The two streams of psychic power became entangled. Night Frost’s form slowly condensed, while Crimson Gold Flame coiled around her soul.

From the flame in Night Frost’s palm, Azure’s solidified soul sensed a trace of danger. That flame seemed capable of burning souls.

“So this is your trump card? If that’s all you have, then you’re dead.”

The Spirit Threads wove together and pulled against each other. The Crimson Gold Flame climbed along them, but neither side could do anything to the other.

Azure’s eyes shifted slightly. A powerful sense of danger surged within her.

She hadn’t expected Night Frost’s psychic power to be so tenacious. It was like an impassable barrier, preventing her from breaking through with ease.

She knew this would become a battle of attrition. She needed time to destroy Night Frost’s soul.

Yet time had become her greatest enemy.

As long as Crimson won her duel against the Guardian of the Seventh District, they would lose their advantage in this battle. Their only hope was for the Guardian of the Fourth District to break through the Formation from the outside.

“It’s over.”

The corners of Night Frost’s lips curled slightly. A smile lingered in her eyes.

She had calculated everything—even herself.

And now, victory was within her grasp.

Outside the Formation, the Night Frost who had been lying on the ground opened her dark-gold eyes.

She readjusted to her body, pulled the Crimson Gold Lance from the Flame Seed, and walked step by step toward Azure.

“How did she wake up? That’s impossible!”

The Guardian of the Seventh District stared at the awakening Night Frost.

The souls of Night Frost and Azure were clearly still inside the Formation. So why had Night Frost awakened?!

She turned her spearhead and charged straight at Night Frost.

Gathering all her strength, she tore open the thin barrier before her. Then she swung the sharp pair of scissors in her hand down toward Night Frost’s head.

But Crimson was clearly faster.

The Wand in her palm unfolded a shield, blocking the Guardian of the Seventh District from the outside.

The Guardian of the Seventh District saw the Wand spread its barrier before Crimson. Crimson then wove Moon Owl’s Magic Armor and tore open the space before her.

Just as she was about to break through the rift and seize Night Frost by the shoulder, Crimson’s kick slammed into her face.

She was sent flying a great distance.

Night Frost swung her Spear and thrust it toward the center of Azure’s brow.

But Azure’s hardened skull blocked the attack for the moment.

“I grant flame to the dragon, and fire to my hands. Tear apart the shackles of life! Burn all creation! Let every strike become a killing blow! Inferno shall burn here!…”

Night Frost spun the Spear.

The surrounding flames condensed at her side, following her words. Black Flame spread from both her palms and covered the Crimson Gold Lance.

Then she thrust once more toward Azure’s brow.

The Black Flame surged forward with unstoppable force. It easily tore through the Magic Layer around Azure’s skull, then pierced her flesh.

Even the seemingly indestructible God’s Bone, which no one could break, was shattered.

“No!”

Azure’s soul, trapped inside the psychic Formation, pounded desperately against the light barrier.

Night Frost had deliberately shown her everything happening outside.

Azure saw Night Frost pierce through her body. Now, the Black Flame was scorching her flesh. Before long, she would die in the physical sense.

“Why?”

The Guardian of the Seventh District climbed to her feet nearby.

Her gaze seemed to pierce through Night Frost’s shell and glimpse the soul within.

But she didn’t see Night Frost’s soul.

She saw a pair of dark-gold eyes—and the colossal body behind them.

“The Calamity Dragon… The Calamity Dragon’s soul is inside her body. And she actually trusts it enough to let it take control?”

Crimson spread her hands. She was curious, too.

What kind of agreement had Night Frost reached with Li Dogegg? Why was Li Dogegg following her so devotedly?

It had once been so powerful. Even when six Ultimate [Chapter Three] beings surrounded it, it hadn’t fallen into defeat within a short time.

Azure’s body began to fade.

The source of psychic power was Mana, but Mana couldn’t exist without the body that restrained it. Without that body, Mana was useless.

The psychic power covering Azure’s soul rapidly dimmed. It fell from its former arrogance into a precipitous decline, like a dream destined to vanish.

She never thought she would fall here today.

“So this is the power of comrades…”

She couldn’t help remembering the days when she had traveled with Crimson and the others.

The four of them had joined forces and defeated stronger enemies despite their weakness.

But now, she stood alone. She was no different from the enemies they had once slain.

So that was how it happened.

Without realizing it, she had come to stand against everyone.

There was no road back anymore.

Even at the very end, she still intended to carry out her wish.

She gathered every last ounce of strength and lunged at Night Frost.

Even if she died, she would take Night Frost with her!

And if nothing else, she would at least make Night Frost pay the price!

But suddenly, cracks appeared across the surrounding Formation.

A tremendous noise erupted from outside, making Night Frost’s body slip.

Azure’s soul flew straight out of the Formation and plunged back into her own body.

At the edge of the Formation, her body slowly rose.

The Black Flame had scorched away all the moisture of her blood, leaving behind nothing but charred bones. Yet her tenacious vitality continued to support her.

She picked up her fragile Wand. Then she reached into the Spatial Box and pulled out an emerald-green Magic Stone.

The moment the Magic Stone appeared in the air, Crimson’s pupils contracted.

Her crimson ribbon transformed into a sword and slashed toward Azure’s hands.

That was Jade’s Magic Stone.

As Jade’s captain, Crimson knew exactly what power it contained.

But the Guardian of the Seventh District caught Crimson’s sword in her bare palm and gripped it tightly.

Crimson had no choice but to pull the sword back. She stepped forward and threw a punch.

Still, the Guardian of the Seventh District clung to Azure like a stubborn parasite, refusing to leave her side.

In an instant, the heavens shattered.

It was as if the sky could no longer bear this overwhelming energy. Cracks spread across the firmament, while lightning and thunder raged and the wild wind howled.

“Sense the might of the heavens and pour out all my heart’s blood. Sever mountains and rivers, shatter fallen stars. Support the collapsing beam and uphold the sinking sky!”

Crimson intended to use this punch to completely destroy Azure’s blackened skeleton.

The Guardian of the Seventh District faced it as if confronting a great enemy. Yet she was confident she could block the blow.

But Crimson’s incantation hadn’t stopped.

The Magic Stone at her waist wove a new Magic Spell.

“I sing high above the clouds, standing amid the world’s splendor. Beautiful satin, lean against my side. Let petals fall from the heavens and applaud me. Waltz—Crimson, Domain!”

The crimson ribbon rapidly expanded outward from Crimson.

In an instant, the entire space seemed to be dyed a faint crimson.

The ribbon danced through the air like an elegant performer. Under Crimson’s control, it enclosed everything within the range of her sight.

Crimson danced at the center.

Mana condensed into strips of ribbon, binding the Guardian of the Seventh District and Azure together.

After a brief pause, Crimson’s fist smashed through the Guardian of the Seventh District’s head and continued toward Azure.

The Guardian of the Seventh District was sent tumbling head over heels.

Azure suffered even worse.

Crimson’s fist punched straight through her body. Even her God’s Bone was blasted apart and scattered across the ground.

“Why don’t I have this kind of power?”

The Guardian of the Seventh District coughed blood.

They were clearly at the same level. So why was Crimson so powerful?

And what exactly was that so-called Domain?

Night Frost returned to her own body, and Li Dogegg returned to his as well.

A few days earlier, Night Frost had summoned Li Dogegg and given it all its instructions.

If Night Frost was forced to drag Azure’s soul into the Formation alongside her own, Li Dogegg would control Night Frost’s body and deliver the final blow to Azure.

As it turned out, Night Frost’s plan had worked perfectly.

She had nearly killed Azure.

Afterward, Azure drew a Magic Stone the color of jade from her robes. It contained an astonishing surge of Mana.

Crimson seemed to recognize it and tried to stop Azure from shattering the stone.

To prevent Azure from doing so, Crimson revealed her own trump card—

[Domain].

“What was that?”

Night Frost asked Li Dogegg.

Li Dogegg answered from within Night Frost’s familiar space:

“According to my memories, it’s a killing move that can only be possessed after one’s level of life reaches another stage.”

“Within the Domain’s range, its master becomes the ruler. Nothing can escape the master’s grasp. At least, that’s what my inherited memories tell me.”

“Of course, Crimson’s Domain seems a little different. It appears to serve only as an auxiliary enhancement, more like… a powerful Magic Spell.”

“But even so, those two can’t contend with her. The victor has already been decided.”

“A Domain…”

Night Frost sighed as she gazed at Crimson, who was suppressing two enemies alone within the Domain.

A trace of envy appeared in her eyes.

“Do I have one, too?”

“Of course. The Black Dragon’s heart should contain one. The Order Gemstone should have another.”

“Of course… whether you can enter the Ultimate level is still a question. The two powers within your body…”

Before Li Dogegg could finish speaking, Crimson, who had been standing in midair, suddenly fell straight down.

Far away, an extremely powerful aura of healing erupted, accompanied by the sound of a Magic Stone shattering.

“Wind of healing, rise in silence. Like a mother’s touch, gently brush across every pain. Illness and wounds, beneath this sacred wind, shall gradually fade and become nothing. Let life rise like the morning sun!”

Crimson’s sudden collapse gave Azure a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

The Wand in Azure’s hand exploded together with the Magic Stone. A powerful healing Mana rapidly spread, covering the ground beneath everyone’s feet.

Azure’s body had already been burned by Black Flame until only dry bones remained. Yet under the nourishment of this Mana, it began to undergo an astonishing transformation.

Her bones gradually filled out.

Muscle and skin rapidly grew under the power of the Mana. The charred marks slowly faded, replaced by a body brimming with strength.

Her aura also grew stronger and stronger, as if she had experienced rebirth.

The wounds on the Guardian of the Seventh District, Crimson, and Night Frost were healed by the ripples of Mana as well.

But Night Frost had no time to think about any of that.

The sudden change had left her helpless. She could only help the fallen Crimson to her feet and ask about her condition.

“That was Jade’s Magic Stone. It possesses the power to revive the dead and restore flesh to bare bones.”

“As long as someone still has a breath left, it can bring them back.”

“No, no, no. What happened to you? I’m asking about your condition. Why did you suddenly collapse?”

Fatigue filled Crimson’s eyes.

Many new wounds covered her body. Most were deep enough to expose bone. No one knew when she had suffered them.

Because of Jade’s Magic Stone, however, her injuries were slowly healing.

“Perhaps… this is my future.”