The golden rift above the Threadsink split wider.
From its depths came not just light—but judgment.
Divine runes fell like meteors, each inscribed with the Heavens' decree:
> "Memory forbidden. Identity purged. Soul unauthorized."
> "So that's how Heaven erases us," Yue Lian whispered, her crimson eyes glowing faintly. "Not by killing. By declaring we were never real."
Liu Shen stepped forward, wind swirling around him.
> "Then it's time they remembered the Demon Sovereign's wrath."
---
The Divine Executioners Descend
From the tear in the sky descended four figures draped in luminous white robes, each wearing a mirrored mask that shimmered with divine light.
Their presence was suffocating.
One by one, they announced themselves:
> "First Executioner: Nameburner."
"Second Executioner: Soulshackle."
"Third Executioner: Starbrand."
"Fourth Executioner: Silence."
Each held a weapon crafted from the stars—spear, whip, glaive, and seal.
Yu Meixing, still unconscious, lay behind the Soul Weaver, protected by shadow threads coiling protectively like serpents.
Yue Lian stood beside Liu Shen, barehanded.
> "Can you fight?" he asked quietly.
> "No," she said, stepping ahead of him. "I can burn."
---
The Scarlet Bloom Awakens
Yue Lian raised her hand. Threads of black and crimson spun from her fingertips, circling like a vortex.
Then, in a single breath—
> Flames erupted.
Not ordinary fire, but soulfire: scarlet and eternal.
> "Soulbrand: Ninth Flame — Heartburn Lotus."
The Threadsink trembled. The fire spread across the sky, devouring divine light, swallowing the Heavens' decrees mid-air.
> "She's not just a soul echo," Lei Qing said, eyes wide. "She's a Sovereign in her own right."
Yue Lian's figure blurred, reappearing before the First Executioner in a single heartbeat.
> "You tried to erase me," she whispered. "Now… I'll erase your face."
Her fingers slammed into his mirrored mask—cracking it.
---
Liu Shen vs. Soulshackle
Meanwhile, Liu Shen clashed blades with the Second Executioner.
The whip in the executioner's hand struck out in arcs of lightning-fast strikes, each laced with spiritual locks meant to suppress cultivation.
> "Demon Sovereign," Soulshackle said in a metallic voice. "You should not exist."
> "You say that a lot for someone losing," Liu Shen growled.
He flicked his wrist, channeling Demonic Art: Abyssal Fangs, his sword splitting into dozens of shadow blades that lashed in unison.
The whip entangled three—but the rest pierced through.
Soulshackle staggered.
> "Do you bleed?" Liu Shen asked, eyes glowing red.
> "We… do not…" Soulshackle coughed, blood spilling. "...bleed."
> "You do now."
---
The Soul Weaver's Last Gift
The Soul Weaver, watching from the threads, began weaving faster.
> "My role is nearly done…"
She cast one final strand toward Yu Meixing's slumbering body. The thread lit with a golden glow—the last of her essence.
> "You gave up your memories, girl. But not your soul. When you wake… you will be stronger."
She exhaled.
And vanished.
> Her body unraveled into threads, floating gently into the wind.
Liu Shen, mid-fight, felt it.
> "She bought us time…"
---
Starbrand's Judgment
The Third Executioner raised her glaive high, marking constellations in the sky.
Stars obeyed her command, rearranging themselves into the Heaven's Scale, a divine formation meant to weigh sins and sever karma.
> "Let judgment fall," she intoned.
Liu Shen and Yue Lian both froze—the spell ignored cultivation and instead targeted fate itself.
But Yue Lian smiled.
> "You think my fate belongs to you?"
She cut her palm. Her blood floated, glowing bright red.
> "By my own hand, I break your chain!"
She threw her blood into the sky—where it rewrote the formation. The stars flickered, stuttered…
And collapsed.
Starbrand gasped. Her glaive shattered.
> "Impossible—!"
> "Your heavens are outdated," Yue Lian spat.
---
The Shattered Seal
Only one remained.
The Fourth Executioner, Silence, floated down slowly. He said nothing, but raised a massive seal inscribed with a single divine character:
> "Oblivion."
The air distorted.
Even thoughts felt hard to hold.
> "His domain affects memory," Yue Lian said, wincing. "He's trying to erase this battle as it happens."
> "Then we finish it before it finishes us," Liu Shen growled.
The two Sovereigns attacked together—one flame, one shadow.
But Silence pressed the seal down. Gravity distorted. The Threadsink itself screamed.
> "He's collapsing the entire zone," Lei Qing shouted from afar. "He's trying to bury us all!"
Yue Lian narrowed her eyes.
> "Then I'll burn the sky itself."
---
The Ninth Flame's Wrath
She took a deep breath—and let go of all restraint.
> "Soulbrand: Final Bloom — Crimson Crown Lotus!"
Her body lit with divine scarlet flame, her soul pulsing like a sovereign beacon. Petals of burning lotus bloomed in the sky, devouring the divine seal.
Liu Shen followed, casting:
> "Abyssal Domain: Demon's Throne of Ruin."
The sky cracked.
The seal melted.
And Silence—vanished.
Not in defeat.
But in erasure.
They had returned the favor.
---
Aftermath
The rift above closed, shuddering, leaving silence behind.
Yue Lian collapsed briefly, but Liu Shen caught her.
Lei Qing approached, half in awe.
> "You two just took down four Heavenly Executioners."
> "We're just getting started," Liu Shen muttered.
Behind them, Yu Meixing stirred.
Eyes fluttering open.
> "Liu Shen…?"
He turned, unsure of what she remembered.
> "Do you know who I am?"
She smiled faintly.
> "You're the idiot who gave up everything to remember someone…"
> "…and the reason I'm still breathing."
> "So yes," she said, standing. "I remember enough."
Liu Shen looked between the two women.
> "Then let's keep going."