Kael stood.
His body screamed at him to stay down. Ribs grinding against each other with every breath. Leg throbbing where the kick had connected. Blood still dripping from his lips, coating his teeth, running down his chin to stain his black kimono.
He stood anyway.
"Support me."
Silas moved to his side without question. Her brown hair was matted with dust and blood. Her uniform was shredded. The loss of her direwolf showed in her eyes.
Behind them, Rue and Aria were struggling.
The Mana Heart Peak Rank 9 cultivator had dismissed their attacks like rain off a roof. Aria's light blasts did nothing. Rue's Word Magic had been broken with painful backlash—the fox girl was coughing blood from her nose, her golden eyes wide with something that looked horrifyingly like fear.
Despair was setting in.
