“No…”
Tina still wanted to refuse, but Sasha let out a sharp shout from her small frame: “Hurry up!!”
It felt just like being scolded by an elder.
Tina’s shoulders trembled slightly. Her gaze turned solemn.
“I understand.”
Agnes’s voice echoed in everyone’s minds: *“This shared mental space for soul transmission is actually the channel for Faith Power. Little Sasha… are you certain about this?”*
*“Well, of course,”* Sasha mentally replied. *“Miss Tina could summon that Deity to save us. It’d save us a lot of trouble.”*
Sasha wasn’t reckless—had the Deity intervened before mortal danger struck, it would’ve been far better.
But…
Silent until now, Tina spoke softly: *“The Deity is gone.”*
*“…What?”*
Sasha thought she’d misheard. *“Gone? What do you mean?”*
*“Since last year, I’ve severed ties with my family. That Deity only sent her for a brief appearance—she has her own duties. From the start… we’ve had no protection.”*
Tina’s words sent a tremor through Sasha’s calm.
What the hell?!
Why say something so destabilizing *now*?
It forced her mind toward the worst outcome.
No divine protection.
They were facing a Grade-A monster head-on.
Heaven-rank Martial Sovereigns slain by it? More than one hand could count.
A beast like this…
Just the seven of them?
Could *she* die too?
*Die!*
Fear prickled her skin like needles.
Numbness spread through her limbs.
Her heart hammered in her throat.
Don’t waver!
Don’t you *dare* waver!!
*“What do I do next?”* Sasha asked, voice trembling.
Agnes remained calm. *“Just channel Faith Power on impact. This time… we load the ‘bullet’ for you.”*
*“I… understand…”*
Gritting her teeth, Sasha shoved the Lionbite Shark back over ten meters.
In that split-second gap—
She planted her feet, bent low, right fist pressed to the earth.
Corebreaker Fist.
Feel the earth’s pulse.
Let every tremor in the land veins fuel your strength.
And…
Activate Faith Power.
Ten… twenty…
Thirty…
Forty!
Already her limit.
Agnes placed a hand over her glasses. *“Little Sasha… I’m so sorry to ask this of you.”*
Fifty…
Sixty!
Seventy… eighty!!
No way…
Her meridians swelled, burning, ready to burst.
*Wait—!*
She bit back the cry.
If she flinched now, the others would hold back.
*This time… I carry it.*
Roland added his power.
Ninety… one hundred… one-ten…
One twenty.
Her body felt torn open—muscle, vein, bone, all starkly clear.
“Count on you, Sasha!” Thuke yelled.
Faith Power surged to 160.
Autumnwater stayed silent. He contributed nothing.
*“To burden a child with this weight—I will not. Even in death, I fight.”*
Demonic wings flared. He shot toward the Lionbite Shark.
“Earth Art: Twelfth Form—Stone Spike Stele!”
Stone spikes erupted beneath the beast, hurling it upward.
Hovering midair, Autumnwater gripped twin crossbows.
“Feathers of Judgment and the Fallen.”
A whisper. Arms raised. Bolts shot skyward.
Above him—a small portal.
Its other end: pressed against the Lionbite Shark’s snout.
Arrows rained down point-blank—eyelids, nostrils, tooth gaps.
No blind spot spared.
The cunning barrage forced the beast back, eyes squeezed shut to protect them. Blind. Scent useless in the swamp-muck air. It couldn’t find Sasha.
Perfect chance!!
“Miss Tina! Xue Die!” Sasha cried.
They hesitated no longer.
Faith Power spiked from 160 to 240.
A strange, searing pain flooded her—but oddly duller now, her body numbed to agony.
Slowly, she straightened.
Her spine felt rusted solid.
All energy funneled into one fist.
Her body cleansed, every ounce crammed into that tiny knuckle.
Feet braced. One misstep, and she’d collapse forever.
Then—
“SASHA!!”
Amid the shout, she charged straight at the Lionbite Shark.
The Grade-A monster sensed danger—retreated again.
Tina blocked its path with a frost wall behind it.
It roared, eyes snapping open.
Elf-light flickered deep within its pupils.
…
Corebreaker Fist!!
…
BOOM!!
Red crystals shattered across its hide. It slammed down like a dead fish. Cracks spiderwebbed the plain—a crater over a hundred meters wide, ten deep!
“ROAR!!!”
Green blood sprayed as it howled.
BANG!!
The clash of Faith Power and crimson crystals hurled Sasha backward.
Roland spread his wings, caught her midair.
Impact slammed them rolling across the ground before stopping.
“Sasha!! Roland!”
Agnes rushed over. “Are you alright?!”
“We’re… okay…” Sasha murmured. She glanced at her fist.
Still there.
She’d thought the arm was lost.
*Guess an Elf’s body really is tougher than I imagined.*
“Did we win? Sasha—you *beat* a Grade-A monster?!” Thuke stared, stunned.
“You’re scarier than that Lionbite Shark!”
…Was that a compliment?
Sasha almost laughed, almost cried.
But they’d made it.
They’d survived.
