Luna stood frozen in pce. She was silent, staring at her opponent with a bnk expression as she endured the excruciating pain coming from her right arm.

  Luna clenched her teeth, forcing herself to ignore the searing pain that tore through her very being. Her right arm trembled, her fingers twitching as if they barely belonged to her anymore.

  At first, she had been worried that her body would break down after breaking all restraints.

  But it hadn’t.

  Instead, the damage was being done to her soul. The constantly overflowing pure essence was doing more harm than good at the moment due to her ck of a soul gate.

  Once again, having a mundane body was her number one enemy.

  Regardless of the pain she felt, Luna gritted her teeth and made the first step.

  If her soul was destroyed during this fight, she would die. Her actions had consequences and in this case—it was death.

  ‘Just a little further…I need more time’

  She looked forward and forced a serious smile.

  Her breathing steadied, her pulse syncing with the rhythm of battle. The world around her faded, leaving only the soft glow of the moon and the figure standing before her. She could feel it now—the flow of combat, the invisible tension in the air just before an attack, the silent nguage of warriors cshing beyond words.

  Even though her opponent was hard to read, Luna managed to identify the little emotions on his face. It dispyed both caution and seriousness.

  That was a small victory in itself. Luna had forced him to acknowledge her—not as a mere mortal, but as a true threat.

  ‘If he sees me as a true threat then he’s going to use his Aura to end me right here and now.’

  Luna clenched her jaw, gripping her forged weapon as it materialized once more. A sharp pulse of energy rippled through her fingers, the weight of the bde grounding her amid the chaos.

  Her gaze flickered to his third eye.

  She knew instinctively, it was the real danger. A weapon sharper than any bde, deadlier than his spear. And if she wasn’t careful, it could strip away any chance of survival she had.

  ‘Stay alive. Stay alive until Storm gets here.’

  Determination surged through her veins as she poured a massive chunk of her energy into her weapon. It pulsed in response, its form igniting with a brilliant golden hue. The air around it crackled, power breathing life into the bde, making it hum with restrained fury.

  A deep chilling voice shattered the silence.

  “I can’t let you ascend, little mortal.”

  The Pantheon’s third eye was now glowing with a terrible light as it drew in the surrounding Qi. The air itself seemed to tremble, bending under the force of his will.

  In his grasp, his spear pulsed with silver-gold brilliance, its essence sharpening into a killing edge.

  He was preparing to strike. But with what?

  Her question was answered immediately by a blinding silver light that erupted from his third eye.

  The beam tore through the air like a nce of divine judgment, surging toward her with unstoppable force.

  Luna didn’t hesitate to act.

  With a sharp breath, she charged forward, her face an unreadable mask of calm.

  The Sun Ember hummed, responding to her intent, its edge gleaming with raw power. As the beam neared, she swung in a fluid arc—a vertical ssh that cleaved through the attack, splitting the light in two.

  BAM!

  The severed beams veered off-course, scorching through the air. Everything they touched, the ancient trees, the very earth itself…was reduced to nothingness in an instant.

  This wasn’t fire. It was something far worse.

  Luna’s eyes narrowed. She had seen energy beams before--Gail’s attacks were simir. But this...this was different. This was the essence of the world itself, turned into a weapon of absolute destruction.

  Around her, the crimson-leaved giants were devoured by the merciless fmes, their once majestic forms colpsing into embers and ash.

  Thick smoke curled up into the sky, swallowing the battlefield in a suffocating haze.

  A second beam tore through the air.

  Luna’s muscles coiled, her instincts honed to perfection.

  Wind ssh!

  With a fierce ssh, she cut through the energy once more, the force of her strike splitting the beam before it could reach her.

  The pantheon paused after the second beam and started gathering energy again.

  ‘There!’

  This was the only weakness Luna had noticed since this battle began. She didn’t waste a second as her body was already in motion.

  Luna lunged forward, the world blurring around her. Her speed was blinding, the ground beneath her cracking under the sheer force of her movement.

  In less than a heartbeat, she was upon him, face to face with the Pantheon. Her dark eyes burned with unwavering focus.

  With that, Luna unched into a flurry of ruthless strikes, each one a blur of golden arcs meant to tear through her opponent.

  But the Pantheon was faster.

  The first swing met an unyielding force, his glowing spear.

  Sparks erupted.

  The csh of their weapons sent violent tremors through the battlefield. Luna’s strength poured into each strike, yet the Pantheon didn’t so much as flinch. His stance was solid, unwavering, as if rooted into the very fabric of this world.

  The air itself seemed to wail in protest as shockwaves from their battle sent more trees crashing down, the crimson leaves scattering like dying embers.

  The pantheon stared directly at Luna and opened his mouth. “You must die!” The hate in his voice was palpable as he blocked her sword with ease.

  Luna didn’t say anything. She was still struggling to push him back, her vessels almost visible as she struggled to resist his skill and strength.

  With a tense growl, the pantheon pushed Luna with great force, creating a great distance.

  His three eyes then all changed to a jade color and suddenly all the fmes disappeared. The burned trees regrew to their original state instantly and the smoke was cleared away by a bst of wind from his body. He wasn't going to let her lordship's garden burn. It was his duty to watch over this beauty until he drew his final breath.

  Luna staggered back, digging her heels into the dirt to keep from being flung away. The sheer force of the Pantheon’s presence was suffocating, it felt as though reality itself was bowing to his will.

  Her chest heaved, every breath feeling heavier than the st. She could see the way his jade-colored eyes gleamed with divine authority, returning the battlefield to its original state.

  Seeing this, she could guess what his Aura was. It was The Concept of Nature. Luna had seen ascenders use it in the real world but not on this scale.

  This was its true form.

  ‘This is the worst day of my life.’

  Just as she prepared to attack again, a sudden, excruciating pain shot through her left leg and she forcefully stopped.

  Something sharp and unyielding tore through the flesh from behind, emerging gruesomely from the front.

  Her eyes widened in shock as she looked down, her breath caught in her throat. The sight was enough to freeze her in pce—a grotesque tree root, slick with crimson, had impaled her.

  It slithered like a monstrous serpent, its thick tendrils burrowing into her flesh.

  The pain was unlike anything she had ever felt before. It wasn’t just the root, it was the culmination of everything gnawing at her strength. She had already been battered, exhausted, and barely holding herself together. This final blow shattered whatever fragile grip she had left on her body.

  Her body trembled violently, every nerve on fire as blood poured from the wound, staining the ground beneath her.

  “Ahhhhh!!!”

  She let out a scream so loud that her voice broke in the process. This…this might be the worst pain she has ever felt.

  However, despite the pain, tears didn’t pour down her pale face, she didn't fall to the ground and give up. Instead, she pressed her teeth together and pulled her leg out of the root.

  Blood spewed everywhere, spoiling the soil as Luna lost a lot of blood.

  To make matters worse, she noticed a piece of the root inside her body. Her blood vessels turned bck as the root grew rapidly while feeding on her life essence.

  Regardless of the excruciating pain, Luna remained standing. She wasn’t going to die here…not like this. She winced and tried to shift most of her weight to her good leg.

  Luna had never felt this motivated to live than she did right now. This was the strongest she had ever felt. She wasn’t going to die. Not when she had started living.

  With a scream, Luna charged towards the Pantheon despite the hole in her leg. She ignored the pain that came with each step and tried to focus on why she was fighting—to protect the few people she cared about. To prove to herself and the world that she’s worthy of the Feng Bloodline!

  All of this was for herself! This was her will!

  "How is she moving?"

  The Pantheon, who had created some distance, commanded all the roots around and they all attacked her with deadly intent. Luna sshed through all of them, her body moving on its own as all the techniques she mastered came to use. She moved through the endless attacks, jumping, dodging, and cleaving a path for herself until the pantheon was within a specific range.

  Luna skidded to a stop, pnting her foot firmly against the ground. Without hesitation, she hurled her sword with all the strength she could muster. The weapon cut through the air like a streak of golden lightning, its bde burning with raw essence.

  The Pantheon barely had time to react to her sudden action. In an instant, the Sun Ember tore through his armor as if it were paper, plunging deep into his flesh. A sickening crunch echoed through the battlefield as the bde embedded itself into his arm, stopping only when it struck bone.

  For the first time, the deity staggered. His jade-colored eyes flickered with something unreadable. Was it pain, disbelief, or perhaps fury?

  The scent of scorched divinity filled the air as silver blood seeped from the wound. How was a human capable of doing all of this without a Gate?

  ‘Burn!’

  With an instant thought, the sword released all the fire Luna had absorbed from the previous battles.

  A while back, Luna had figured out that as long as she held the God Relic, the Sun Ember was capable of storing both fire energy and light.

  The runes on her arm were a pact that connected her with the Sun god’s Domain which was probably the Divine Concept of Fire. So, even though her Aura wasn’t Fire, Luna was connected to it through the Forged Weapon.

  It was a weak link, of course. But weak was enough in this situation.

  The Pantheon was suddenly thrown into a shock as fire appeared and seeped into his system like liquid fire. He felt his skin burn as the fmes started consuming him from within.

  He dropped his spear and staggered back.

  He then directed his pained look to Luna. He scowled at the pale girl.

  Despite the hole in her leg, she smiled at him. “How does pain feel?”

  Luna sent another command to the sword and the fmes around it started to spread across the deity's arm.

  The Pantheon pressed his teeth together in protest as his flesh started to sizzle when the intense heat increased. He was struggling to resist the pain but a god relic's strength was superior compared to most weapons. Even though he was of divine birthrate, the Sun god's sword was still powerful in the hands of anyone.

  Controlling the fmes obviously consumed too much of her life essence. This wasn’t doing any good because the soul she struggling to keep intact kept on warning her with ounces of intense pain.

  If Luna kept this up, she was going to die. And even if she stopped controlling the fmes, the thing growing in her leg was going to finish the job eventually.

  ‘I am becoming more and more of a masochist with each passing day.’ She thought, her face paling even more as she controlled the sword's fmes.

  The Pantheon suddenly let a ugh that surprised her. “Ha! Indeed you’re worthy of Ascension, little Mortal!”

  With that, he picked up his spear and lunged at Luna, ignoring his burning arm.

  Luna dodged his first thrust and grabbed hold of the shaft.

  Her feet sank into the ground when she pulled the spear with all her remaining strength.

  The Pantheon did not expect it to work. But his confidence fell when the small girl pulled him with just her strength alone.

  Luna was quick to let go of his spear once he was pulled in. She moved like a true master and came closer to the pantheon with her fist clenched.

  kuaaakkk!

  She aimed and struck his third eye with beautiful accuracy after making a st-minute calcuted guess.

  It had to be the most vulnerable part of his body. He might have been a servant of a god, but he was no True Celestial like Everlight whose own name brought fear to those who knew her.

  Punching the eye left her with burned skin around her right hand but just added it to the list of pains she was feeling and pushed on like nothing had happened. Thankfully, the growing root sized its growth once the third eye closed.

  'Just as I thought, his Aura needs his third eye open for it to activate.'

  She dismissed the Sun Ember and moved. She then drew out all of the techniques she had in her arsenal and attacked with a face as calm as the ocean. As a martial artist, her emotions needed to stay in check if she wanted to perform at her best.

  At the same time, the Pantheon had given up on underestimating Luna. He roared when his third eye closed and sealed itself after receiving direct damage. He felt his influence on the world fade away once his domain was sealed away with the eye.

  "Unforgivable...." His two eyes turned bloodshot as he abandoned his spear and healed his burned arm now that the fmes had stopped.

  Once Luna appeared in front of him, he threw an instant kill blow to end this fight right away.

  Naturally, Luna saw it coming and twirled out of its path like a dancer. Her light body and her mastery of the Dancing Maiden made this maneuver possible. If she had stayed in the way to block it, Luna was sure she would be a pile of flesh right now. She couldn't compete with him in terms of strength.

  When she was close enough, Luna's dark eyes shone with brilliance as she opened her right fist to reveal her palm, which was now healed--and struck exactly where she st hit.

  Suddenly, the essence in the world gathered exactly where her palm hand nded and…

  Boom!

  A deafening explosion erupted from her strike. The force of it sent a shockwave rippling through the battlefield, tearing through the air like a thundercp.

  The Pantheon’s body recoiled, his form lurching backward as a golden fissure split across his armor from the point of impact. The raw essence Luna had gathered detonated like a star being born, its brilliance swallowing the darkness for a fleeting moment.

  The moon servant let out a guttural sound before the sheer force of her attack swooped him off the ground and sent him flying, sweeping through trees like a rock until he disappeared. The sound of breaking trees faded away and dissolved into the wind.

  Luna stood silent for a moment. She was staring at the damage, expecting the Pantheon to appear right away after she pulled off something like that.

  But it didn’t.

  ‘No one is going to believe me.” She whispered to herself. She released a satisfied sigh and fell on both knees as she welcomed the pain while the adrenaline started to fall.

  Cackle! Cackle!

  Her dark eyes moved to the hand that had delivered the final blow. It not only fully healed, but it was also cackling with Qi after she maniputed it out of desperation.

  Luna was certain of what was going to happen next when her body started getting warmer. All the essence around her became more visible to her eyes as something in her damaged soul started to move.

  “Why Now!”

  Luna cried and dropped to the ground. She was too battered and broken to go through his right now.

  Opening a gate was not usually a painful process. But forming the first one was defined as torture. The human body wasn’t designed for ascension to begin with. It had to undergo adjustments to support the godlike gifts that came with ascending to godhood.

  Luna gasped as the pain started. It was worse she expected. She clutched onto the ground as she tried to hold back the screams from having her soul and body undergo these adjustments.

  Tears ran down her face as she grew weaker and weaker while the qi in her body started to burn her very being. She was certain the human brain wasn't meant to experience all of this pain at once.

  ***

  Meanwhile, even after Luna’s powerful blow, the pantheon emerged from the destruction unharmed.

  “That…little mortal”

  His ranting was cut off by another voice. “You just got humbled by that little mortal, Dorous. How does it feel?"

  He looked over his shoulder and his two eyes narrowed.

  A pale beautiful woman was standing behind him. Her golden hair fred in the air and her red eyes stared at him like death.

  It was by no doubt that she was exceptionally beautiful under the moonlight.

  Dorous smiled on seeing her. “Storm...no.” He shook his head to correct himself. “It’s a pleasure meeting you once again, Emily.”

  Storm Rider didn’t react to his greeting though hearing her real name after a long time was odd.

  “So that’s the project you and him have been working on these past centuries. I can’t lie…she’s a very impressive mortal.”

  Storm Rider crossed her arms and nodded with pride. She had observed Luna's entire fight from the shadows. “I’m gd you’ve noticed. It took us a long time to find someone capable of using the Lineage like that.”

  “But that doesn’t give you the right to free Him,” Dorous gritted his teeth picked up his spear, and pointed it directly at Storm Rider. “The gods locked him here for a reason!”

  When she sensed even the slightest bloodlust, Storm didn’t hesitate to call out her fmes. The beautiful fmes purged away all darkness as they burned from the center of her palm.

  “And the divine realm still colpsed. What don’t you understand, old friend? You are still a prisoner to your duty.” She tried to refrain from raising her voice. “The gods abandoned you here. Don’t you want to avenge your people? Where is your pride as a Pantheon?”

  Dorous clenched his fists. “I protect the Bance. My duty is my pride.”

  Storm sighed. Words were meaningless when talking to someone so devoted to his goddess. She had tried centuries ago and barely escaped with her life then.

  She didn’t want to fight him because deep down, Dorous was still a friend of hers. He wasn’t evil.

  “I am leading an army of humans here. A battle is going to break out between the guardians and humanity’s champions. I don’t care who wins but I know they will destroy Artemis’s garden and the Tower. The girl will learn the truth and will begin her journey to godhood as I pnned.”

  “I won’t let any of that happen,” Dorous growled. He opened his hand and the spear flew into it.

  Storm Rider, on the other hand, sighed regretfully and the fmes in her hand became even brighter. When they first fought, she almost lost because she hadn’t yet fought the corrupted deity on the floor below.

  But now she was content about how her powers worked and how strong she was exactly. She could win this fight because of that.

  “I guess this was always destined to happen.”