Chapter 98: What is Death?

She was unable to finish her sentence.

Kai’s gaze had changed.

Following the agonizing pain came a bone-chilling cold and a sense of finality.

Kai looked down at his blood-drenched severed arm, then looked up at the unrecognizable disciple before him.

The last flicker of hesitation and pity in his eyes vanished, replaced by cold killing intent and boundless sorrow.

He realized that awakening her was no longer possible.

To keep her from further suffering and to stop the Demon Queen pulling the strings from behind the scenes, he had to act.

“Ling Xiya… you forced my hand…”

Kai’s voice was hoarse and cold.

Using his remaining left hand, he painstakingly pulled a shimmering **[Rhombic Crystal]** from his robes.

It was the fruit of his life’s work, a vessel for all his sacred power and faith in the light.

It was his final trump card, an ultimate move whose backlash he might not even survive— **[Holy Judgment: Light of Annihilation]**.

He would never have used it unless it was a matter of life and death.

Now, however, was that time.

Ling Xiya seemed to sense the terrifying aura emanating from Kai.

The smile on her face vanished, replaced by vigilance and a hint of dread.

She assumed an attacking stance once more, preparing for Kai’s final counterattack.

Kai gripped the crystal, which pulsed with destructive power, tightly in his left palm.

The blood from his severed arm stained the crystal red, causing it to emit an eerie and ominous glow.

He tilted his head back, his eyes devoid of tears and filled only with a deathly gray.

“In the name of Kai, I sacrifice my faith and pray for the **[Final Judgment of Light]**…”

He began to chant an ancient and obscure incantation.

His voice was not loud, yet it carried an unquestionable authority.

The sky seemed to darken as an indescribable, terrifying pressure enveloped the entire battlefield.

Golden light erupted from Kai’s body, resonating with the crystal in his hand to form a massive vortex of energy.

The violent energy caused space itself to warp, emitting a low, vibrating hum.

Ling Xiya’s expression changed drastically.

Sensing the threat of death, she tried to flee, but an invisible force locked her in place, rendering her unable to move.

She could only watch helplessly as the light in Kai’s hand grew brighter and more blinding.

“LIGHT OF ANNIHILATION—!!!”

Kai used every ounce of his remaining strength to thrust his left hand forward.

A concentrated pillar of golden light, seemingly capable of swallowing everything, erupted from the crystal.

It carried the supreme power to destroy all evil, hurtling toward the locked-on Ling Xiya with ferocious intent.

This pillar of light was ten, even a hundred times stronger than the previous Evil-Slaying Slash.

Everywhere it passed, a long rift was torn through space, and the very air was ignited.

Ling Xiya closed her eyes in despair, waiting for death to claim her.

However, a split second before the destructive golden pillar of light could hit Ling Xiya—another anomaly occurred.

The golden pillar, which had been heading straight for Ling Xiya, suddenly jerked at its leading edge.

Then, before everyone’s shocked eyes, it took a sharp, nearly ninety-degree turn.

Its direction had changed completely.

It no longer pointed at Ling Xiya on the ground.

Instead, as if pulled by some invisible force, it shot toward the figure standing at the edge of the battlefield who had been watching with a playful smile—the Demon Queen, Isayat.

Its speed was even greater than before.

Kai froze, his eyes wide with disbelief.

He could clearly feel that he hadn’t controlled the light’s turn.

Rather, an incredibly powerful will, carrying the scent of destruction, had forcibly interfered with his **[Holy Judgment: Light of Annihilation]**.

Time on the battlefield seemed to freeze at that moment.

Everyone’s gaze was fixed on the golden pillar’s bizarre turn and its new target—the Demon Queen, Isayat.

Kai’s mind went blank.

The move he was so proud of, a technique that could even threaten a Demon Queen, had been forcibly redirected so easily and in such a humiliating fashion.

‘This power… this will filled with destruction… could it be…’

He jerked his head toward the figure at the edge of the battlefield.

Even though the pillar of light was inches away, her playful smile hadn’t shifted in the slightest, as if she wasn’t the one about to be hit.

BOOM—!!!

A deafening explosion swept across the battlefield, its momentum several times more violent than when Kai had attacked Ling Xiya.

Golden light erupted like a sudden sun, swallowing the spot where Isayat stood.

A powerful shockwave expanded outward, kicking up layers of earth and even scattering the clouds in the sky.

Dust and smoke filled the air, obscuring everyone’s vision.

Kai stood where he was, his body stiff.

He even forgot to maintain his flight, slowly descending to the ground.

His eyes were filled with shock and a hint of fear that even he hadn’t noticed.

He didn’t understand.

Why?

Why would that power draw the pillar toward the Demon Queen?

Was it an enemy’s plot?

Or was it some variable he couldn’t comprehend?

On the ground, Ling Xiya, who had closed her eyes in despair, trembled as she opened them after the expected destruction failed to arrive, replaced by an even more terrifying roar.

What met her eyes was the area in the distance shrouded in golden light and thick smoke.

She was stunned, her brain unable to process the information before her.

The pillar of light… was gone? She wasn’t dead? What was that loud noise?

Just then, the dust slowly cleared, revealing the scene at the center of the explosion.

The ground there had been blasted into a massive crater, the scorched earth radiating intense heat.

At the edge of the crater, a figure lay collapsed in a pathetic state.

Her luxurious black dress was tattered and covered in dust and dark red liquid.

Her long golden hair was scattered in a mess, obscuring her face.

It was Isayat.

Ling Xiya’s pupils shrank, and her heart felt as if it were being squeezed by a giant, invisible hand.

“Master!!”

A shrill scream erupted from Ling Xiya’s throat.

She practically crawled and scrambled toward the place where Isayat had fallen.

Her speed surpassed even her limits back when she was a Hero, fueled by boundless panic and despair.

Kai also saw Isayat lying motionless on the ground.

He furrowed his brows, his mind filled with doubts.

‘Is she dead just like that? Was the Demon Queen hit by my Holy Judgment: Light of Annihilation and defeated so easily?’

It felt far too simple.

Yet, that force that had forcibly turned the pillar…

He hesitated, not daring to step forward.

Ling Xiya had already reached Isayat’s side.

She fell to her knees and reached out with trembling hands, gently pulling Isayat into her arms.

The body she touched was warm, but it carried a heart-wrenching heaviness and frailty.

Ling Xiya carefully brushed aside the messy hair on Isayat’s face, revealing the countenance that usually wore a lazy smile.

Now, it was as pale as paper and entirely devoid of color.

A trace of blood remained at the corner of her mouth, and her eyes were tightly shut.

Her long eyelashes were stained with dust, stripped of their former brilliance.

“Master… Master! Please wake up! Look at me! Master!!”

Ling Xiya’s voice choked with sobs.

Tears fell uncontrollably, splashing in large droplets onto Isayat’s cold cheek.

She reached out, her hand shaking as she checked for Isayat’s breath.

There was nothing… she could feel almost no breath at all.

“No… it won’t happen… it’s impossible…”

Ling Xiya’s body shook violently.

She held Isayat tightly, as if trying to pull the woman into her own body.

“Master… don’t scare me… please wake up… Master!!”

She shook Isayat’s body frantically, trying to rouse her, but the person in her arms remained unresponsive, like a broken doll.

“Why… why did this happen…”

Ling Xiya raised her head.

Her bloodshot eyes slowly turned until her gaze crossed the crater and landed on Kai, who stood nearby with a complicated expression.