But there was no time to gloat. The Brutes were stilling, and I could feel the presence of something more—something darker and far more dangerous. My eyes darted toward the horizon, where the massive form of a ck Rakshasa loomed. It wasrger than the others, its body crackling with energy, and I knew it was the leader—the mastermind behind this assault. Read thetest on empire


    And not just any leader—it was a Golden-Capped ck Noble.


    From what I understood of the battle raging in the skies above, Nobles could evolve once more, and this creature was the second evolution of a ck Rakshasa. The one I had killed with my own hands, the one I had ripped its head and spine out of at the cost of almost dooming myself, was nothing but a normal Noble.


    This one, however, was in a league of its own, a higher status, and clearly far more powerful.


    "Of course," I muttered, tightening my grip on the spear. "It wouldn''t be a real fight without a proper challenge."


    The Golden Noble ck Rakshasa raised its arms, and I felt the air shift around me. This was no ordinary brute—it was a Golden Noble, its power amplified to terrifying levels. The sky darkened as if in response to its presence, and the sea below began to churn violently.


    "Let''s do this!" I whispered to myself, more for my own reassurance than anything else. I had faced death before, countless times, but this—this was different. The weight of the battle, the odds stacked against me, the knowledge that one mistake could mean the end of everything—it was all pressing down on me.


    But I wasn''t going to back down. I''m no main character, but I sure as hell am not a side character!


    With a roar, I entered the Golden Titan''s Madness, gigantifying myself to match his size. Iunched myself toward the ck Rakshasa, my spear-shaped Creeping Demise morphing to match my size—a gigantic serpent several dozen meters long and equally wide, zing with Poisonous Qi. The Golden-Capped Noble met me halfway, its own energy surging forward in a sh of wills.


    Our energies collided, creating a shockwave that rippled through the battlefield.


    The fight was on.


    Every move was calcted, every strike met with a counter. The Golden-Capped ck Noble''s strength was overwhelming, its power almost suffocating, but I fought back with everything I had. My spear danced through the air, striking at every opening, every weakness. But the Noble was cunning, its eyes tracking my every move, anticipating my attacks.


    It was apletely different fight from thest one. Where I had waited for an opportunity to strike back, I now found myself being baited by the Golden-Capped ck Noble.


    It wasn''t just a battle of strength—it was a battle of wits, of endurance, of who could oust the other. The talismans on my body burned with effort, keeping me afloat as the sea tried to drag me down. I could feel my energy waning, my body screaming for relief, but I pushed on.


    I had to win. I had to.


    With a final surge of power, I gathered every ounce of Poisonous Qi I had left and channeled it into my spear. The de glowed with a sickly green light, pulsing with lethal energy—a mix of my own Poison Qi, the Primordial Serpent God''s Heavenly Qi, and Shen Mo''s pseudo-demonic Qi, despite not being in his body.


    The Noble in front of me hesitated, worry clear in its eyes. The mixture of energies swirling around me didn''t backfire or harm me, even though it should have. This unstable fusion of elements was dangerously potent, and by sheer instinct, I called out, "BURN!" as I coated the entire de with my Soul me.


    Like alchemy, all the elements fused in unison—Demonic, Heavenly, Poisonous Yin Qi, and Yang Soul mes. The mixture was further enhanced by the Golden Titan''s Roaring Ki.


    For a split second, I felt as if my mind had expanded, as if I could see more, think more, feel more. The world slowed down as my eyes took on the shape of a serpentine god. The Primordial Serpent God''s eyes allowed me to see a split second into the future. I saw the twitch in the Golden-Capped Noble''s right shoulder—a swing wasing, faster than mine.


    In that instant, my eyes turned toward the Noble Brute barraging the city''s barrier, and my fist tightened, enabling the Heaven Swapping Ring.


    With so much Qi and energy channeled into my weapon, the instant transposition between myself and the Noble at the city drained me to the core. But from afar, the explosion that tore through the Noble who had reced me was unmistakable. The surprise was still painted on the face of the Golden-Capped ck Noble as it found itself staring at the position of the now-dead Noble Brute.


    With its arm still fully extended upward from the killing blow it had intended for me, I seized the opening and transposed myself against a piece of the grime and slime, the remains of the dead Noble ck, and sliced upward with Creeping Demise.


    A single line crossed from the upper thigh all the way to the shoulder. A smoldering white me ignited along the wound, and the entire beast shuddered. It gurgled a torrent of internal blood and liquids as it slid apart, split in half. The energy that had kept it aloft dissipated, and half of its body plunged into the deep sea, disbelieving of what had just urred.


    For a moment, everything was still.


    I hovered above the battlefield, breathing heavily, my body trembling from the exertion. The sea was calm once more, the Golden-Capped ck Noble defeated, and the rest of the Rakshasa scattered across the water like broken toys. This was just the aftermath of its own strike against its ally,pounded by the impact of my own.


    The oue was clear to all. Many who had been inside the city had watched from afar, and while I waspletely drained, barely holding myself afloat, with talismans bursting one by one from depletion, I saw hundreds of torrents of bullets shooting toward my location as the puppets began clearing the remaining Rakshasa.


    Amidst the chaos, I saw three familiar faces. Tao Yang led the charge, her sword burning in hand as she sliced through the enemy, with Liang Yu and YuYu following close behind, their eyes locked onto me, tears of relief and joy shining in their eyes.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    I missed them more than words could convey.