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Chapter 23 - Chapter 23: Wrath of Seraphiel

Ryn gasped. "That swing… it wasn't aimed at us. It was a warning."

"Noted," Arden said grimly. "Now it's my turn."

He leapt from the wall, landing before Seraphiel with a quake that cracked the earth.

The angel's gaze fell on him — bright, merciless, yet faintly curious.

"You are unafraid."

"I've walked through Hell long before Heaven cared to notice," Arden replied, drawing his blade.

Blackfang, reforged with divine blood, sang with both Qi and sanctified energy. Sparks danced along the edge.

Arden exhaled slowly, his aura compressing into a dense, fiery core.

"Heaven-Sundering Style — Eighth Form: Burning Sky Collapse."

He swung upward.

A spiral of golden Qi erupted, colliding with Seraphiel's descending flame. The explosion tore a crater into the land, sending shockwaves miles away.

The two forces clashed — fire and fury against mortal will.

Seraphiel grinned, his teeth glowing with light. "You burn brightly, mortal… but you are still bound by flesh."

He swung again, faster than sight. Arden barely crossed blades in time.

The impact hurled him backward, smashing through walls and stone.

Dust and fire filled the sky.

Arden rose from the rubble, blood trickling from his mouth. His armor cracked, but his eyes burned brighter than ever.

He spat, wiped his lip, and smiled. "Not bad."

Seraphiel descended, wings spreading like a storm of embers. "You amuse me, child of dust. Before I burn your world, tell me — why fight against Heaven?"

Arden's voice was calm. "Because Heaven forgot what it means to bleed."

He thrust his sword into the ground.

"Formation Sigma — Heavenbane Array!"

Runes ignited across the battlefield. Dwarven engineers and elven mages activated massive pylons buried beneath the snow.

A circle of divine light enveloped Seraphiel, trapping him in radiant chains of reversed divinity — energy forged from fallen angels' essence.

Seraphiel snarled as the chains tightened. "You dare use Heaven's power against Heaven?"

Arden raised his hand. "I don't just dare. I succeed."

He pressed his palms together — golden Qi surged.

"Heaven-Sundering Style — Ninth Form: Divine Severance!"

The ground erupted. A blade of condensed Qi and divine flame struck Seraphiel dead center, shattering armor and slicing one of his wings clean off.

The angel screamed — a sound that shook the world.

Flames poured from the wound, molten feathers falling like meteorites.

Ryn appeared beside Arden, slashing through divine soldiers who'd emerged to protect their general. "You actually wounded him!"

"Wounded isn't dead," Arden said, already focusing his Qi for another strike.

Seraphiel roared, fury eclipsing reason. His remaining wing flared, and the sky turned crimson.

"ENOUGH!"

Fire engulfed the heavens — rivers of molten light rained down, consuming entire stretches of the battlefield.

Thousands screamed as the land itself burned.

Arden gritted his teeth, summoning every ounce of Qi to shield the fortress. His barrier cracked, veins of light spidering across the surface.

Selene's voice echoed through magic channels. "We can't hold much longer!"

"Then we won't," Arden growled. "We'll finish it now."

He charged through the inferno, his body ablaze with golden Qi. Seraphiel's massive form loomed ahead, flames distorting the air.

Their blades met once more.

The world vanished in light.

When the brightness faded, silence reigned.

The plains were nothing but glass and ash. Half the fortress walls were gone. The air itself shimmered from residual heat.

Arden stood amid the ruins, breathing heavily. His cloak burned to tatters, his armor scorched black.

Before him lay Seraphiel — one knee on the ground, chest impaled by Blackfang.

The angel looked up weakly, voice ragged.

"You… mortal… how…"

Arden withdrew his blade. "You underestimated what a mortal can become."

Seraphiel tried to rise — but his wings dissolved into flame. His final words were a whisper carried by wind.

"Heaven… will remember…"

Then he was gone.

Ryn limped over, hair singed, blood on her face. "Two Archangels down."

Arden looked up at the blood-red sky. His eyes glowed faint gold.

"And five to go."

He turned to his battered army. "Rebuild the walls. Gather the wounded. From Seraphiel's ashes, we forge again."

Selene approached, pale and trembling. "My Duke… if you keep absorbing their essence, you may stop being human."

Arden smiled faintly. "Good. Humanity's limits are too small for what's coming."

Above, thunder rumbled — not from storms, but from the fury of gods preparing their next descent.

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