Ignis looked at the weapon in Kael's hand. He smirked, trying to hide his growing unease. "A Replica? What kind of sword is that supposed to be?"
The air in the void world grew incredibly thick. The dark sky turned pitch black, completely swallowing the remaining light. A heavy, suffocating pressure pushed down on the cracked void world.
Kael smirked. In the next instant, he sprinted forward. His movement was so fast that even the speed of light seemed slow in comparison.
He passed right by Ignis. At first, Ignis kept smirking, thinking nothing had happened. But a second later, he realized Kael was no longer standing in front of him.
Ignis quickly turned around. Kael was already standing a few paces away, quietly smirking back at him.
Suddenly, the thick air seemed to vibrate. A sharp, agonizing sensation flared up in Ignis's arm.
Ignis cried out in shock, gripping his wrist tightly. "What the heck?!!! What did you do to me?!"
Kael turned his head slightly. "I didn't even touch you. I just touched your sword."
Ignis fell to his knees on the jagged stone, gasping in heavy pain. His wrist was bleeding profusely. "At what speed...?" he muttered, his voice trembling.
Kael walked toward him with cold, calculated steps. "You can heal yourself anyway. So take this!"
Kael leaped high into the dark sky. A fierce smile spread across his face as he yelled, "Fire Force!"
A massive, roaring fireball plummeted toward the ground. Ignis smirked, preparing to dodge, but the giant fireball suddenly split into four smaller spheres. The spheres shot out in four different directions, instantly creating a cage of roaring flames around him.
Ignis gasped in shock. The burning bars of the cage quickly expanded, fusing together into solid walls of raging fire.
Trapped inside the fiery box, Ignis stood on the melting stone. Green lightning crackled around his bones, rapidly healing his injured wrist. To counter the heat, he activated his water sorcery. A thick layer of swirling water coated his body like armor. He stepped forward confidently. Finding that the intense flames could not damage him through the water armor, he strode right out of the fire wall.
The moment Ignis stepped out into the open air, a brutal fist slammed directly into his face.
Bam!
The sheer force of the punch sent Ignis flying backward, crashing straight back into the center of the fire box. Kael smirked coldly. He raised his hand and activated a defensive spell right around the blazing perimeter.
[Infinity Barrier]
Ignis scrambled to his feet and tried to step out again. But this time, he slammed into an invisible wall. It was impossible to pass through the flames. Something absolute was blocking his path.
Standing safely outside the barrier, Kael raised his hand toward the darkening sky. Black ripples formed in the air as he summoned five powerful entities.
[Five Infinity Cursed Spirits]
Inside the burning cage, Ignis tried every possible angle to escape. Every single exit was completely sealed.
Kael casually waved his hand, removing the Infinity Barrier. The invisible wall vanished into thin air.
Ignis finally stumbled out of the fading fire box, panting for breath. But when he looked ahead, his jaw dropped in utter disbelief. Kael was standing calmly on the cracked ground, flanked by the five terrifying cursed spirits.
Ignis bit his lip until it bled. 'Never give time to your enemy,' he thought bitterly.
Desperate to regain control, Ignis launched a direct attack, throwing his full weight forward.
Kael did not flinch. He yelled into the void, "Redemption!"
A brilliant blue light exploded from Kael's sword. The weapon began to shift and warp, violently splitting into two identical twin blades.
Ignis skidded to a halt, stepping backward in sheer terror. "No way... The Redemption Swords..."
Memories of a past defeat flashed in his mind. Long ago, Kael had fought him with those very blades, causing Ignis to lose his entire kingdom. But then, a dark smirk crept back onto Ignis's face. 'It doesn't matter,' he thought. 'I still killed Tatsuka and Shiya.'
Kael lunged forward. Before Ignis could fully react, Kael was already upon him. The Shadow Lord managed to dodge by a hair's breadth, completely abandoning his own sword in the process. He simply could not match Kael's speed. Kael was moving faster than light itself.
Realizing he could not win in a direct race, the Shadow Lord raised his hands. Black fog surged from the earth as he awakened his shadow army once again.
A chaotic storm of swift sword clashes echoed through the void world. Sparks flew, illuminating the dark wasteland. But with each passing second and every heavy clash, Kael could feel his stamina draining. His breath grew ragged. The pressure of maintaining his hybrid form was taking a heavy toll.
Kael let out a weary sigh. His legs grew weak, and he dropped down onto one knee, folding his other leg beneath him. The Replica blades dissolved into thin air, leaving his hands empty.
Kael did not panic. He extended his arms out to his sides. Two glowing purple magic circles began to rotate rapidly in the air. Kael plunged both of his hands deep into the centers of the circles, gripping something heavy. With a sharp pull, he dragged out two massive, terrifying scythes.
Ignis raised his eyebrows in surprise. "What is this now?"
Kael did not answer. He hurled the scythes forward with all his remaining strength. The massive blades spun through the air, completely slicing Ignis's body into multiple pieces. The severed parts fell heavily to the ground.
But a second later, every piece began to glow with a bright green light. The flesh knitted back together, and Ignis regenerated perfectly once again.
Kael panted heavily, the sheer weight of the scythes exhausting his remaining energy.
Suddenly, a calm, mysterious voice echoed deep within Kael's mind. It was Nyx.
'You can use them like a boomerang, Kael.'
Hearing the advice, Kael focused. He gripped the handles of the scythes tightly as they flew back to his hands. He threw them again and again in a relentless cycle. Every single time the scythes spun across the battlefield, they cleanly removed Ignis's head from his body. Yet, every single time, the green lightning flashed, and Ignis regenerated instantly.
Ignis simply laughed at the futile effort. He raised his right arm and pointed toward the sky. "Look upwards."
Kael paused his attacks and looked up. High above the crumbling wasteland, massive, ominous gates were slowly shifting and opening in the pitch-black sky.
[Gates of Shadows]
The dark portals groaned loudly as they prepared to unleash something catastrophic.
Kael stared at the opening gates, his eyes narrowing as he gripped his weapons tightly. "Now... I have to use Trinay."