.....
The cave groaned beneath the weight of battle.
The ceiling cracked, the walls trembled, and rocks rained down mercilessly from above.
The sounds of explosions, shattering stones, and nature's silent scream.. all fused into a symphony of destruction.
The caravan master, though still standing, was far from well.
His breaths were heavy, his trembling hand barely gripping his sword, and blood streamed from his shoulder and side.
The light in his eyes began to fade.. yet he did not back down.
Inside him, the thought was clear:
"If this fight continues.. I will die."
He knew that "Di" was no ordinary opponent.
Not just because of his speed or agility..
But because he fought like someone without a heart.
Without fear.
Without limits.
The caravan master raised his sword.. slowly, but firmly.
He aimed it at Di, his voice strained but still carrying the dignity of a leader:
"In my life.. I've never seen talent like yours."
He paused for a moment, looked into Di's eyes, and continued:
"And for that.. I regret that I must be the one to kill you."
As if the skies responded to his words, the winds suddenly intensified.
Small spirals of air danced around his body, growing into howling cyclones, ripping the ground and shattering stone.
The cave.. was no longer a cave.
It had turned into a storm battlefield.
Amidst the chaos, Di stood.
His clothes torn, his skin smeared with dust and blood..
But his body did not waver.
His eyes did not blink.
And around him.. was something else.
Thick black smoke coiled around him like a demonic cloak, and a pitch-dark aura that felt inhuman.
It was as if a being not of this world stood in a mortal shell.
Di stood amidst the destruction like a god born of ruin..
A demon who knew no fear, who acknowledged only strength.
The winds howled louder. The cyclones screamed. The rocks cracked as if the earth itself was suffering.
But Di was not one to await death easily.
He knew..
What was coming was not just an attack..
It was the end.
A strike where the caravan master poured every last drop of strength, life, and will.
A strike like the dying roar of a man who refused to fall in silence.
Yet..
Di did not move.
He did not flee.
He did not retreat.
Around him, the black smoke thickened into a blinding fog.
It devoured everything it touched: air, stone, even light itself.
Reality.. seemed to be torn apart at its edges.
The caravan master gazed at that ominous aura, unable to hide his contempt.
"Cheap tricks.." he growled, raising his sword.
"Hiding behind shadows won't change the outcome."
He advanced..
Slowly, with heavy steps, but each one split the ground beneath him.
He raised his sword high..
And brought it down!
One strike.
A strike to decide life or death.
The sword cleaved through the air like a bolt of lightning,
Slashed the black smoke in a straight line.
BOOOOM!
The explosion shook the cave.
Walls collapsed.
The blast echoed like a final roar of fury.
But..
When the smoke cleared..
Di wasn't there.
Only emptiness.
No sound.
No body.
No trace.
Confusion flashed across the caravan master's face..
Then turned into lethal doubt.
"Impossible.." he muttered.
"Was it.. an illusion?"
But before the thought could even finish..
He felt something behind him.
Cold.
Heavy.
Like death itself whispering in his ear.
Before he could react..
A burning pain pierced his neck.
Sudden, sharp.. like invisible fangs sinking into him.
Then..
A grip.
Di grabbed him by the throat, fingers cold as steel.
He lifted him effortlessly, as if his body had no weight,
As if all his remaining strength.. had vanished.
His sword slipped from his hand.
It hit the stone floor with a faint clink..
Like a quiet declaration of the end.
In that moment, the caravan master looked into Di's eyes.. and saw nothing but silent shadows.
An aura that swallowed all hope.
He knew it was over.
The feeling of death overcame him.
Heavy as a mountain.
Dark as the void.
He whispered with a trembling voice:
"I never imagined.. my life would end like this…"
There was no resistance.
His will collapsed.
He surrendered to the truth.
But Di.. said nothing.
He didn't need words.
His eyes gleamed with demonic light, a deep crimson pulsing with suppressed savagery.
It was the moment he had chosen..
To consume him.
His body, his essence, his soul—
All as fuel to ascend to the next layer.
But then..
Without warning..
The storage pouch on the caravan master's belt glowed.
From within, something oval emerged..
A skull.
But not an ordinary one.
It radiated an ominous purple light..
It sliced through the air and shattered the silence.
A crushing aura burst forth from it.
A power..
Greater than the battle, greater than the cave, greater than Di himself.
Di froze.
His breath caught in his chest.
His knee almost buckled.
His eyes widened..
For the first time since the battle began..
He felt true danger.
.....