The sky cracked with thunder as the Blood Lotus Sect's central altar loomed into view—spiked, obsidian, and pulsing with ancient curses. Blood mist curled around the monolith like incense, fed by forgotten sacrifices. At its peak, the banner of the Crimson Demoness snapped in the wind.
The battlefield shook beneath them. Elder Shui Feng's corpse puppets surged like a tidal wave, bones clattering and talismans burning green. They swept toward Su Xue and Lu Xuan in a tide of death and rot.
But Su Xue, now burning with freshly awakened Nascent Soul power, raised her hand.
"Absolute Frost: Thousand Petals Bloom."
A wave of frozen qi erupted from her blade, forming a dome of crystallized snow that slowed the undead to a crawl. Their limbs froze mid-swing. Their shrieks died in throats of ice.
Yet her knees buckled. Blood stained the corner of her lips.
"Don't push it!" Lu Xuan shouted, his body flaring with dark qi.
"I said shut up," she spat, staggering back upright.
From the left, Elder Yanwu launched himself forward, bloodfire spiraling around his twin sabers. Each step left behind a crater of melted earth.
Lu Xuan pivoted, intercepting with his blade—that unnamed weapon, the one that had whispered to him from across lifetimes. Sparks flew as sword met saber. Lu Xuan grunted and twisted, breaking the stance and sending Yanwu skidding backward.
Elder Bai Xun tried to flank them, poison mist cloaking his dagger.
Su Xue anticipated it.
"Frostfall: Shadow-Sliver Edge."
A single flick from Frostbane, and the mist turned to shimmering frost. The dagger cracked, splintering into shards that cut into Bai Xun's own flesh. He cried out, stumbling back.
Then, Elder Mo Jie appeared.
"Die in dreams," he whispered, unleashing his true technique—Soul Mirror Maze.
A field of spectral mirrors formed, encasing Lu Xuan and Su Xue in an illusory prison. Every reflection showed different versions of themselves—some dying, some victorious, some... monstrous.
Lu Xuan looked into one and saw himself on a black throne, Su Xue kneeling before him in chains.
Another mirror showed her striking him down.
The mirrors pulled on their minds.
But Lu Xuan smirked.
"Nice try."
He drove his sword into the ground.
Devouring Domain: Abyssal Core.
Darkness exploded outward, shattering the illusions. The mirrors burst one by one until Mo Jie stood exposed, stunned.
Too late.
Lu Xuan's blade sliced through air and shadow alike. Mo Jie collapsed, gasping, soul threads unraveling.
Elder Yanwu and Shui Feng regrouped, readying one final charge.
"We underestimated him," Yanwu growled.
"Too late now," Shui Feng hissed.
As the two lunged, Su Xue stepped forward, qi coiling like a blizzard hurricane.
"Ice Lotus Ascension!"
She leapt, spinning midair. A lotus of pure frost bloomed beneath her, releasing shockwaves of condensed frost qi. Lu Xuan followed, blade sheathed briefly as he channeled the Devouring Skill to its edge
Then—the final strike.
Together.
His sword cut through Yanwu's flames.
Her frost shattered Shui Feng's puppets.
A final explosion rocked the mountain.
When the dust settled, the elders lay defeated—not dead, but broken.
And Lu Xuan stood tall, panting, blood running down his arms.
Su Xue beside him, silent, eyes still like ice.
Their gazes met.
No gratitude. No truce.
Only understanding—of power, of pain.
And the widening chasm between them.
"We fight well together," he said, voice hoarse.
"I still hate you," she replied.
"Good. Then you'll be the one who kills me... if I fall."
She didn't answer.
She didn't need to.
The Blood Lotus Sect was wounded. But far from finished.
And in the deepest sanctum of the monolith, the soul shard of the Crimson Demoness stirred... watching.