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Chapter 79 - CLASH OF RENSHI TITANS

Sasaki's eyes twitched.

Lucy's Iaido strikes were getting faster.

With each blink, he felt her presence getting closer.

His instincts screamed.

She's right there…!

The speed of his blinking increased as he tried to catch her movements. But the more he looked, the more he left himself open. And Lucy did not miss a single chance.

Shhhk! Shhhk!

White flashes danced in front of his eyes.

His body was already covered in cuts, yet the wounds healed almost as quickly as they appeared. But Lucy's speed was overwhelming—her sword moved like lightning.

For two whole minutes, her barrage never stopped.

Her voice rang out like a sharp bell:

"Nukitsuke Iaido!"

Sasaki felt the danger and instantly reacted.

He switched—dropping down from the air, deactivating the red tornado beneath his feet.

"You're impressive, young lady. I underestimated you," he said, looking at her from the ground.

Lucy stood tall, her sword raised toward the sky.

Then—

A massive white Renshi circle appeared above Sasaki's head.

From it, countless Renshical swords rained down like a divine punishment.

Clang! Clang! Shhhk!

Each blade pierced or slashed his body, spilling blood into the air.

Sasaki gritted his teeth and summoned his red Renshi tornado, trying to blow them away. But it wasn't enough.

The rain of swords only grew faster.

He dropped to one knee under the relentless storm.

Far away, Bash and Lyon continued their own fight. But they couldn't ignore the scene.

"Amazing… she's pushing Sasaki back," Bash muttered in shock.

Lyon's eyes narrowed. "It's not over. He hasn't shown his real move yet."

Finally, the rain stopped. The white circle faded.

Sasaki stood, his body full of holes, bleeding heavily—yet his wounds began to close at an unnatural speed. He reached into his elbow and pulled out his forged sword.

"Ready to get serious, or should I keep pissing you off?" Lucy said with a small smirk.

Sasaki chuckled. "Such confident words… Good. Show me more."

A giant sword materialized in his hands—this one a reddish metal, shining under the sun.

"You gave your sword a name… You're no ordinary user. Let's see what you and your blade can do against mine."

In a flash, Sasaki used Switch Mode and attacked from every angle.

Clang! Clang!

Lucy's sword caught every strike, her movements calm and precise.

She suddenly pushed forward, her blade wrapped in white Renshi, forcing Sasaki back.

He retreated with Switch Mode, his tornado widening. Then he extended his other hand—without a sword—and created fifteen giant shurikens of pure Renshi.

They shot toward Lucy at light speed.

Shhhk! Shhhk! Shhhk!

The shurikens attacked from every direction, impossible for normal eyes to follow.

Lucy blocked as many as she could—but Sasaki appeared behind her and landed a crushing punch.

BOOM!

She flew backward, skidding across the ground.

Before she could recover, the shurikens came again. Sasaki closed in, attacking with both his fists already kept his giant sword. Cuts began appearing across Lucy's body as the pressure mounted.

She leapt high into the air to escape. But Sasaki followed, tiny tornados forming under his feet as he hovered and slashed at her mid-air.

"What's the matter? Is that all you've got?" he mocked.

Lucy's allies saw her being pushed back.

"Master… how?!" Alfie gasped, cutting down another darkside spirit lookalike.

Rebekah, still fighting, shouted, "You can't lose! Kick his ass, Master!"

Lucy's eyes narrowed. She folded her wings away and dropped back to the ground.

Sasaki gathered all his shurikens into one massive blade of spinning death.

"This will end it. You're strong… I'll remember your name."

Lucy reached behind her neck. She focused her Renshi into a single fingertip.

Fshhh!

A paper seal appeared, covered in ancient writing.

Her voice was quiet but steady.

"You've underestimated me, Sasaki."

The air around them began to change.

Lucy's fingers brushed the back of her neck.

With a single motion, she peeled away the seal.

The moment it came off—

BOOM!

Her Renshi exploded outward, surging to five times its previous strength.

The air shook. The ground trembled. Her aura was so heavy it felt like the sky itself might break.

Sasaki's eyes widened, but then his lips curled into a wild grin.

"That's what I've been waiting for! No need to hold back—give me everything you've got!"

His laughter was sharp and wild.

"Haaahahahahahaaa!"

Then he roared, forcing out the massive Renshi aura he had kept hidden inside all this time.

Two titanic auras clashed. The earth between them cracked and splintered.

Lucy's was stronger—just barely. But the difference was enough to make Sasaki grit his teeth.

---

Far away, in the Kingdom of Guhan—

From the highest tower, Exca watched the battle.

Such power… I never expected that woman to be this strong.

His hands clenched.

I've been a careless father. I didn't even notice my own son's absence. How did those boys manage to tail Lyon and Sasaki? Impossible…

Exca's eyes darkened.

If you're behind this, Lyon… I'll cut your head off without hesitation.

He let out a slow breath, frustration burning in his chest.

With my current strength, I stand no chance against that woman.

Inside the locked meeting room, he sat cross-legged in the middle of the mind control Renshi circle. His connection to Sasaki's consciousness pulsed like a living thread.

The more your Renshi grows… the more it eats away at mine.

His voice rumbled in Sasaki's mind.

"End this now!"

---

Back on the battlefield—

Lucy smirked.

"It's exhausting, keeping all this Renshi locked inside… Now I can finally release some steam. Make sure you keep up, brat."

In the blink of an eye, she vanished—appearing behind Sasaki. Her kick smashed into his back, sending him face-first into the dirt.

Sasaki lay there for a moment, then chuckled. Above them, his shurikens hung in the air.

With a single thought, they dove toward Lucy.

She raised her blade. SHHHK! One clean slash split the giant shuriken in two. The force of her swing shattered Sasaki's tornado domain—and with it, the endless swarm of darkside spirit lookalikes.

---

Alfie collapsed to his knees, gasping for breath.

"What a relief… they just kept coming. I almost ran out of energy fighting them. You were a great help, Red Head—we made a good team."

Jackson smirked. "Not bad, huh?"

Nearby, Marcel dropped to the ground.

"Finally… I thought they'd never stop."

Alfie suddenly bolted toward Lucy and Sasaki.

"Hey! Come back here!" Rebekah shouted.

Jackson frowned. "You idiot! That fight is way out of your league—you'll just slow her down!"

Alfie didn't stop.

But then—

A massive upgraded Alpha darkside spirit emerged from Sasaki's blood-infused Renshi tornado. Its body twisted with crimson energy.

Alfie froze.

Sasaki rose to his feet.

"This little pet will be taking the boy back to Guhan… while I finish with you."

Lucy's eyes never left him.

"Alfie! This is your second training under me. Defeat that thing before I'm done here. Failure is not an option."

She blurred forward with Switch Mode. One strike—clean and merciless—tore into Sasaki from shoulder to waist.

The force blasted him across the forest, ripping apart trees and tearing open the earth.

Lucy's wings flared wide as she shot after him.

---

Lyon stopped mid-attack.

"Bash, stop."

Bash snarled. "What are you doing?! This fight isn't over!"

Lyon's voice was calm. "We should save our Renshi—just in case she fails to defeat Sasaki."

---

Back in Guhan, Exca slammed his fist into the floor.

"I won't let that kid get away! I can't check on Lyon while Sasaki's being pushed back! I won't let all my efforts be in vain! NEVER!"

He stood, then slowly calmed himself.

Reaching for his cape, he removed his special Darkside Knight badge—a relic forged by the top mages of Wuhan.

He dropped it to the ground… and crushed it beneath his boot.

"Sorry to disturb all of you… but I have no other choice."

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