CHAPTER 352: BREAKING BONES

The seven level-199 Holt Masters stood firm at the frontlines, their attention locked on me. Their auras flared like miniature suns, flashing with elemental energy. They weren’t hiding, nor backing away.

They wanted me.

Good.

But I had others to care for first.

I glanced toward the battlefield. The Masters under me, dozens were already clashing blades with the enemy, and while many fought like unleashed beasts, a few were quickly being overwhelmed by coordinated Holt groups.

I lifted my hand and whispered, "Form."

Above the battlefield, a large sphere of glowing light materialized—spinning slowly at first, then faster, growing in size until it hovered like a mini-sun. My Essence flowed into it continuously, anchoring it in space. Threads of light extended downward like invisible webs, connecting to each Master under my command.

And then the light struck.

The moment one of my soldiers was knocked off his feet and about to be run through, a sharp beam of yellow light burst downward from the orb and pierced the enemy clean through the chest.

Another soldier, surrounded by three opponents—one light beam seared through their weapons, giving her a window to retaliate.

Again and again, I fired with ruthless precision, my attention dancing across the battlefield while I stood still. Each blast saved a life or shifted the momentum.

Then the seven moved.

They split apart, forming a semicircle around me.

I let the light ball handle the support now. My focus shifted completely.

They moved fast. Two sword users veered to my sides, aiming to flank. One of the earth specialists slammed his foot down, raising jagged walls to limit my movement.

The barbarian charged head-on, massive and quick for his size, snarling with bloodlust. Behind them, two firecasters raised burning sigils in the air, conjuring rings of molten flame.

The last Master dropped to a knee, whispering into the ground and immediately, I felt the terrain beneath me shift and crack, like it had turned against me.

They struck together, well-trained, well-prepared.

But I simply did not care.

A sphere of white-hot fire came roaring toward my chest. I caught the fireball in my palm and closed my fist, Essence reinforcing my skin. The spell died with a hiss of steam.

The barbarian slammed into me at full speed, his shoulder hitting square into my chest like a battering ram. He had the power of a collapsing building behind him but I didn’t even step back. He tried to wrap his arms around me and lift, crushing with raw strength.

I drove my knee into his ribs.

He grunted.

I hit him again. Bone snapped audibly.

On the third strike, he gasped for air but none came.

I grabbed his head, raised it high and smashed him into the ground, splitting his head apart.

The ground beneath me quivered violently, rising into deadly spikes, the second earth user’s doing.

I stomped once. A shockwave pulsed outward from my foot, flattening the entire trap like soft clay.

I locked my gaze on the exposed caster, his eyes wide with panic as he scrambled to react. In a blink, I closed the distance between us, moving faster than his mind could process.

My fist slammed into his chest with enough force that he died before his body could register the impact.

A sickening crack echoed as his armor shattered like brittle glass. Then, with a horrifying spray, his body exploded into a rain of blood and shattered bone, splattering the ground around me.

Two blades closed in from opposite sides. The twin sword users had repositioned, striking in tandem, one above, the other from below. Their timing was precise.

I leaned backward, letting the upper sword skim harmlessly over my chest. My right leg swept out sharply, catching the lower attacker clean in the head and launching his head sideways, away from the head.

The upper sword came again, fast and arcing, aimed straight at my neck.

I caught the blade between two fingers, twisting it sharply.

The woman’s eyes widened in shock—but before she could react, I drove my knee into her stomach with savage force.

Her body convulsed violently, ribs cracking audibly, organs rupturing. She gasped once, blood spraying from her mouth as she crumpled to the ground—lifeless, a dark pool quickly spreading beneath her.

Behind me, the earth shuddered as a massive golem surged upward, a hulking giant formed by the earth user, its fists raised to crush me.

I lifted a hand and pointed.

A spear of violet Essence instantly formed before me then shot forth, drilling through the golem’s chest, piercing the man controlling it with merciless precision.

Both exploded in a gruesome shower of blood and shattered stone.

The two firecasters screamed, conjuring twin arcs of swirling flames—like fiery wheels—cutting through the air toward me.

I held my ground as the blazing inferno slammed against me.

The flames erupted in a thunderous explosion, showering sparks and scorching heat everywhere.

When the smoke cleared, my clothes were shredded, and steam hissed from my skin but I stood unburned, unbroken.

I stepped forward, raising my arm.

A violet vortex sprang to life, greedily sucking in their next fire spell before it could even take form.

One firecaster spun to flee, panic in his eyes.

Before he could take two steps, my fist collided with his chest.

His body exploded in a brutal spray of blood and shattered ribs, flying back to smash against the shattered remains of a watchtower.

The other gasped and tried to raise his hands to cast again.

A brutal backhand caught him mid-motion, sending him spinning twice before his limp body collapsed onto the cracked stone.

Only one remained, the second sword user.

His blade was steady, but terror flickered behind his eyes.

He charged, roaring with desperation.

I sidestepped, closing the distance in a heartbeat.

My fist crashed into his stomach with bone-crushing force.

His body bent in half as ribs snapped like dry twigs.

Before he could catch his breath, a hammering elbow drove into his spine.

He collapsed, lifeless, like a broken statue shattered on the battlefield.

Around us, the world fell silent.

Their elite, seven of the finest level 199 Masters, lay in ruins at my feet.

Their blood soaked the ground. And I hadn’t even broken a sweat.

The Holt army had watched their elite, seven of their best, get ripped apart like paper.

They faltered. They doubted.

That was all I needed.

I roared, Essence surging through my limbs, and charged into the bulk of their army.

They fired spells, arrows, skills—none of it mattered.

My first punch landed on a group of clustered Masters.

BOOM!!!

An air boom exploded outward, flattening half a dozen bodies instantly and sending dozens flying.

My second punch tore through a formation like a crazy ram, crashing through armor, shields, and bones alike.

I spun and summoned my staff.

It appeared mid-motion and extended outward, striking four heads in one swipe like a farmer clearing wheat.

I leapt and came down with a slam—Essence-infused weight behind me—creating a crater in the middle of the enemy ranks. Men and women flew backward, dozens crushed under the impact.

Screams echoed.

The army—nine thousand strong—tried to regroup, tried to resist. They failed.

I became a storm.

A blur of strikes, sweeps, slams, and steps. Every blow was a thunderclap. Every movement shattered something—bones, spirits, ground. My feet cracked the stone. My staff bent steel.

And above me, the sky exploded.

A pulse of red lightning arced from Arkas’s clash with Brutus, striking the ground behind me. The shockwave sent Holt soldiers flying in every direction, screaming.

Then a wave of black shadow, probably from Edgar, washed across the edges of the base, pulling screams and twisted bodies into its depths.

Wind scythes fell like guillotines from the sky, slicing buildings. Flame pillars erupted with each Grandmaster clash.

And through this divine chaos, I fought.

I drove my fist through another line of enemy soldiers, scattering them like leaves. Their numbers meant nothing.

The ground beneath my feet was red with dust, blood, and shattered debris.

But I wasn’t done.

I placed my hand on the heart and whispered.

"Come, Lyrate."

Crimson mist surged out of my core and a floating Lyrate appeared beside me.

Graceful. Deadly. Beautiful.