The dark spear in the humanoid beast’s hand was the first to disintegrate into wisps of black smoke, followed by its arms, torso, and head. One by one, each fragment crumbled away.
In less than a second, it completely disintegrated into countless drifting crimson specks and fine dust. Even the two points of scarlet flame were extinguished entirely.
The crushing pressure that had filled the canyon vanished. Only Dustin remained, standing with his sword still raised. His breathing was slightly labored in the dead silence that followed.
“Mr. Rhys won! He won,” the onlookers exclaimed in delight. Grace let out a long sigh of relief, her tense nerves finally relaxing.
But before the cheers had even died down, something strange happened again. Out of nowhere, something stirred in the dead silence, cutting the victory short.
The crimson specks in the canyon that hadn’t fully dispersed seemed to be drawn by some invisible force. Instead of fading into nothing like ordinary energy, they began to slowly, almost unnaturally, drift back toward the spot where the beast had fallen.
At first, the movement was slow, like a trickling stream. But it quickly accelerated, forming a miniature crimson vortex. At its center, a darker core began to take shape. Within that growing void, faint traces of armor and energy veins started knitting themselves back together.
“What… What’s going on?” one of the guards stammered, the grin on his face freezing into horror.
“It… It’s not dead? But reforming?”
Judith’s voice trembled. Grace’s face went deathly pale. The dread she’d just shaken off came flooding back. Dustin frowned, and his razor-sharp gaze locked onto the swirling mass of dark crimson energy reforming in front of them.
He could feel the raw life and festering hatred, born of the same source as before. But somehow it was more refined and stubborn as it gathered from the scattered fragments of energy.
“Of course it wouldn’t be that simple,” he said coldly with a snort. Without the slightest hesitation, he flicked his wrist. A sharp cyan sword aura shot forth like a silken ribbon and slashed directly toward the heart of the forming vortex.
The sword aura hit its mark, scattering the partially reformed crimson energy in all directions. But mere moments later, the scattered energy particles once again stubbornly converge towards the center.
The speed of reformation seemed even a fraction faster than before. That point of deep darkness at the core still remained, like an indestructible brand.
Dustin’s eyes narrowed, and he swung his sword again. This time, he unleashed a more powerful sword aura. They transformed into a dense net of blades that completely enveloped and shredded the area.
The crimson energy shattered into pieces so fine they were nearly invisible to the naked eye. But still, the result was the same.
Within moments, those microscopic energy particles ignored the lingering effects of his sword aura and began reforming again. The crimson vortex reappeared, though smaller and dimmer than it had been before. But the indomitable will behind it showed not the slightest sign of weakening.
Dustin struck repeatedly, obliterating the beast each time it tried to reform. He even unleashed his spiritual strength to attack its core consciousness, yet nothing could stop the beast’s unnatural resurrection.
It was as if it possessed a certain immortality that transcended physical destruction. As long as a single trace of its energy remained, it could continuously revive.
He watched the crimson energy shatter under his sword light again and again, only to stubbornly regroup each time. His grip on his sword stayed firm, but his frown deepened with each cycle. For the first time, his eyes showed seriousness and deep contemplation.
This beast’s “immortality” far exceeded his expectations. Clearly, Elysium Isle held secrets far deeper than he realized or some fundamental force he had yet to comprehend.
