CHAPTER 289: DESTROY THE CURSED (104)

Chapter 289

Meanwhile, back at the cursed island, the battle had turned critical. Funny thing was, it hadn’t even started yet.

Jay had just unleashed the Lion Roar again. That made it twice in one day.

Normally, that technique should only be used once, unless you were suicidal.

But Jay? He pushed through anyway. The strain on his body was brutal, but he didn’t care. From the very first exchange with the Dark Emissary, he knew.... he wasn’t on her level.

Still, the Lion Roar changed things. His strength, speed, and defense were all pushed to a monstrous new height. The surge of qi burning through his veins was wild, untamed, intoxicating. For the first time, Jay felt like maybe—just maybe—he stood a chance.

"The rest of you, cover me," he said. Then his gaze cut to Ronan.

"Hey, killer. You’re with me."

Ronan’s face didn’t even twitch at the nickname. "Let’s go," he muttered, "and try not to get hit."

Jay smirked. "No promises."

Then they charged.

The Dark Emissary’s eyes locked on them... black, endless, hungering. A flicker of motion, and she vanished. Reappeared right in front of Jay.

He didn’t flinch. He knew she’d come for him first.

Her mistake.

Qi exploded around him like a living storm. "Qi Burst!"

The energy detonated outward in a spiral, catching her head-on. The shockwave smashed into her, forcing her a step back... just enough.

"Now!"

Ronan appeared behind her, blade already drawn in a blazing purple arc.

"Sky-Slicing Gale!"

The slicing aura roared to life, slamming into her chest. It didn’t cut her in half but it launched her skyward, straight into Jay’s waiting strike.

"Tenth Jungle Art, Falcon Dive!"

Qi spiraled, roaring like a beast unleashed. The impact was monstrous. The air cracked, the ground screamed, and the Dark Emissary was sent flying downward like a broken doll.

Jay landed hard, chest heaving. Silver Wing and the rest were already moving into position.

He bent slightly, qi surging beneath his feet like a storm waiting to explode.

"Fourth Jungle Art, Cheetah Stride!"

He vanished in a blur. The next instant, an eruption of shockwaves tore through the smoke, scattering dust and debris in all directions.

But the sight that awaited them froze every drop of blood in their veins.

The Dark Emissary stood there completely unharmed.

One hand clamped around Jay’s neck like he was a misbehaving child.

The other held his glowing fist effortlessly in place.

Her head tilted slightly.

"You... are... interesting."

The words came out in a voice that wasn’t human.

It was broken, distorted... like a predator learning speech for the first time.

The Dark Emissary’s eyes locked on Jay and she grinned... that same devilish, hungry grin she always wore before she struck. But Jay’s situation had just gone from bad to worse.

His body flickered, and where he’d been stood there a small rock ... not tiny, but still just a stone. It looked harmless. The Emissary’s hand closed around it; the rock didn’t even crack. It exploded, shattered into dust like it had been made of thin glass.

Jay’s throat burned. He clutched it, feeling the phantom of that rock where his neck was... whatever happened to the stone could have been his fate. He staggered back, hand instinctively pressing to his throat.

Ronan’s fingers were white on the hilt of his dread sword. Jay turned to him and managed, "Thanks. I owe you one."

Ronan gave him a sidelong look and didn’t bother answering. There were bigger problems than politeness.

The ground trembled. The Dark Emissary gave a low, almost amused groan.... not of pain, but irritation. Something like anger flared under that amusement, and it frightened Jay more than anything else. She hadn’t been fighting seriously; everything so far had been play. If she’d been toying with them... what would full force look like?

Her voice came out warped and low, like something unnatural trying to shape human words. "You... should... die." Her head tilted, and her gaze locked on Ronan.

Warning lights pulsed across Ronan’s system, a cascade of alarms only he could see. He didn’t hesitate. He swapped places in a blink, leaping up with another rock.... a sacrifice to bait her, and it was incinerated the moment she reached it.

"Everyone, prepare your strongest." Ronan’s shout cut through the chaos as he sprang skyward. "I’ll lure her!"

It was a simple plan: Ronan draw her fury, keep her fixated, buy the rest a single window to strike. It was the only plan that made sense. It was also madness: everything hinged on one man’s stamina. How long could Ronan hold her?

"If I know Ronan..." Aiden called, steel in his voice. "He believes he can do it. So what are you waiting for? Give your strongest!"

Two tails unfurled from his back in a flash ... one yellow, one green. Jay cracked a short, breathless joke, then sobered. Nicknames wouldn’t save them. Speed would. Precision would. Luck would.

Shin drew his bow; arrows took shape around him like forged promises. Silver Wing condensed light into his palms until they hummed with power; when he released it, he’d be spent — maybe ruined — but if that’s what it took, so be it. Shae’s eyes stayed closed, but her long blue sword glowed brighter the longer she held still. Alexa muttered incantations under her breath; Balor exhaled and thought of Void Pulse... the move that would shred him as much as their enemy, but might be the price of survival.

While everyone else was preparing something big, one figure just sat there — small, still, and almost lazy.

Little One.

He was in his microscopic form, watching everything unfold with that same nonchalant face.

"Go all out, they said," he muttered, half amused, half annoyed. Then he grinned. "Funny thing is.... I’ve been going all out from the start. But if they really want me to go fully out..."

He reached into the void beside him and pulled out an orb.

Old. Ugly. Dangerous.

An artifact he’d found long ago, something he swore never to use unless it was truly worth it. Its destructive power was terrifying... real, primal, unholy.

If he unleashed it, the Emissary wouldn’t just fall. The whole place might go down with her.

"So be it," he said. "Let’s see who burns first."

Aiden crouched low, both hands pressed to the cracked floor like a wolf ready to pounce. Two elemental tails sparked behind him... one blazing with wind, the other glowing like molten earth. His eyes snapped open.

"She’s coming," he whispered.

Meanwhile, Ronan was still trapped in the center of the storm. His switched skill flickered with strain. He’d been trying to outrun the Dark Emissary, but it wasn’t working anymore. Even with that teleport-based dodge, he was barely keeping ahead of her claws.

She was too fast. Too strong.

The fact he’d lasted this long was already a miracle and that miracle was running out.

"They’re ready," Ronan thought, gasping for breath. Then he made his choice.

He dashed across the ruined floor, every step burning through his last reserves. When he reached the center of the room, he shouted, voice raw with exhaustion....

"NOW! HIT ME!"

And they did.

Every hero unleashed hell at once.

Silver Wing’s radiant blast burned like a miniature sun.

Alexa’s lightning bolt tore through the air, blinding and furious.

Aiden’s elemental storm ripped loose... earth and wind fused into raw destruction.

Balor emerged from the void, half-dead, eyes hollow but burning with resolve. "Void Pulse!" he roared, and a torrent of black energy erupted from his palm.

Shin’s arrows followed, glowing like falling stars.

Bron’s energy cannon screamed.

And Little One... smiling...released the orb.

The world froze.

For a heartbeat, everything was silent, filled with light too bright to look at. Then it all slammed together. Every attack merged into one roaring inferno of energy, all aimed at a single point.... Ronan.

The Dark Emissary blinked, realizing too late what was happening. Ronan’s figure shimmered... then vanished.

Her head snapped up. Too slow.

The combined attack hit her dead center.

The explosion wasn’t just sound.... it was force. Reality itself seemed to rip apart. The blast hurled every hero off their feet, slamming them into the walls like ragdolls. Cracks spiderwebbed through the stone. The floor buckled.

But it didn’t stop there.

The walls of the throne room split open as the entire cursed island trembled, shaking like it was about to crumble into the sea. Far below, in the serum production chamber, a dormant figure floated inside a green liquid tube. It had been still for ages.... no breath, no life. But now, one finger twitched. Just once. Then it went still again.

Back in the throne room, the heroes were a wreck. The air was thick with dust and the stench of ozone. Jay’s knuckles bled where he’d struck. The throne itself was half-buried in debris.

Little One groaned, trying to stand.

"Brutal, don’t you think?" he muttered, half laughing, half broken. He could barely lift his head. His body was trembling, empty. "Right now, I’m so damn weak I couldn’t even handle a petty villain."

Not just him, everyone.

Jay, Ronan, Silver Wing, Alexa, Aiden... every single hero was drained to the bone. Their limbs trembled. Their lungs burned. Right now, even facing a low-ranked Red Vanguard would feel like suicide. They wanted nothing more than to drop and rest.... but they couldn’t. Not yet.

They had to know.

Did their combined strike actually kill the Dark Emissary? Or at least weaken her?

The smoke began to thin.

When her silhouette appeared, their hearts thundered violently in their chests. Their eyes widened in disbelief.

Because she was still standing.

The Dark Emissary stood there in the middle of the destruction.... armor cracked, yes, but mostly intact. A faint trickle of blood slid down her chin, yet her presence... it hadn’t dimmed. If anything, it felt worse.... heavier, darker, more alive.

Little One’s trembling hand pointed right at her.

"Wait... that’s all?" he said, his voice hollow.

They didn’t need to say anything. They all understood.

All their strength. All their effort. All that devastation.

And it had done nothing.

The Dark Emissary’s gaze shifted. It locked onto Ronan.

And then.... she vanished.

An instant later, she was right in front of him, her cold hand wrapping around his throat like a steel vice.

Ronan tried to fight, to break free, but he couldn’t. His body was weak, his qi all but gone. Even activating his Switch Skill was impossible now. The Emissary’s grip tightened, the pressure alone forcing the rest of the heroes to their knees. None of them could move under that suffocating aura.

The corners of her lips curved into a wicked grin.

Her hand squeezed harder. Ronan’s vision began to fade... black closing in at the edges. He could feel his pulse slowing. His ribs creaking. He was dying, and he knew it.

Then.... suddenly, it stopped.

The crushing grip vanished. The suffocation eased. Ronan gasped for air, eyes snapping open in shock.

He was no longer in Drake’s throne room.

He was back.... on the island.

And so were the others. All of them... except Han.

"What the.... who saved us?" Ronan muttered, still coughing, trying to process it.

"Wait..." Alexa whispered, eyes narrowing. A spark lit up in them. "Could it be... him?"

Her gaze turned back toward the cursed base, a faint smile tugging at her lips.

"A Class-S hero," she said softly. "LightRunner."

---

Meanwhile, back in Drake’s shattered throne room—

Han stood still, facing the wreckage before him. His brows furrowed as he glanced at the figure beside him.... a familiar hero, smiling as if he hadn’t just jumped into the middle of hell itself.

"Well," LightRunner said casually, his golden eyes igniting with radiant fury, "suit up. I’ll hold her off until you’re done."

He turned then, his aura flaring, locking eyes with the Dark Emissary. Her dead gaze met his, and a low, mind-twisting growl rumbled from her throat. The sound would’ve broken weaker men—but not him.

LightRunner only smiled wider. Calm. Almost friendly.

"Care to hear a joke?" he asked.

TO BE CONTINUED...

AUTHOR’S NOTE

That’s the Chapter, everyone!

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