The moment the light wrapped around them, the four figures blurred and vanished, flashing forward with terrifying speed.
The glowing circle beneath their feet didn’t stay behind, it moved with them, expanding and twisting across the cemetery floor like it was bound to their presence.
Saturn followed close after, his greatsword blazing with pale white light, his gaze fixed on Ragnar and Knight like a predator waiting for the moment to strike.
Two of the sword-wielders streaked toward Ragnar, their glowing blades slashing with killing intent. The other two hurtled toward Knight, their swords leaving arcs of white radiance that split through the air.
Ragnar slammed his foot into the ground and met the charge head-on. Silver light blazed across his arms, his club roaring with power as he swung it upward.
The two glowing blades collided against his strike, the impact splitting the ground apart, dust and stone erupting around them.
Ragnar laughed, the sound booming, and shoved them back with raw strength.
Meanwhile, Knight’s sleek black form shimmered into existence as the two attackers closed in. His red eyes glowed faintly unblinking. Just before their swords fell, his body blurred, space blurring around him, he vanished and reappeared some distance away in a silent flash.
A deep growl rumbled from his throat as he lashed out, one paw swiping through the air.
The space around his claws twisted, compressing into sharp distortions. The moment he struck their blades, a shockwave of warped space rippled outward, flinging sparks of white light across the area.
The glowing swords screeched as if resisting, but Knight held his ground, darkness bleeding from his body like smoke, coiling and suffocating their glow.
Both Ragnar and Knight had stopped the first wave of attacks.
But then, the circle pulsed.
A ripple surged through the glowing floor, climbing up the blades of the attackers, siphoning their strength, and feeding it back into Saturn.
The Emperor’s greatsword erupted in a fierce blaze, veins of white energy racing along its surface. His lips curled into a grin as he crouched low, the earth cracking beneath his weight.
"Divine Execution!" Saturn roared, and leapt forward.
His greatsword carved downward in a massive arc, compressing the gathered power into a blinding crescent of pure destruction.
The swing carried not only his own monstrous strength but also the very force Ragnar and Knight had used to resist.
Ragnar growled, the crimson mist around him flaring violently as he raised his club to block. The weapons collided, exploding in a blast that shook the cemetery, ripping cracks across the earth.
Knight’s form blurred again. Space folded with a flash as he reappeared at Saturn’s flank, his body wrapped in rolling shadows. His claws swiped at the Emperor’s side, twisting the space they carved through.
But the circle pulsed again.
A shimmering wall of light rose up around Saturn, intercepting the blow, sparks flying as claws scraped against the barrier. The Emperor pressed harder, greatsword grinding against Ragnar’s club, the glow burning brighter with every pulse.
"Even beasts fall before this Emperor!" Saturn bellowed.
Ragnar’s eyes narrowed, but the grin never left his face. Just as the crimson mist around his body churned, ready to explode into a counterattack, the earth behind him split open. A black, spiked root shot upward like a spear, whistling through the air straight for Saturn’s heart.
The Emperor’s reaction was instant. He twisted his massive frame just enough to avoid a fatal blow, the root punching through his shoulder instead. Blood splattered as his body skidded across the ground, his boots carving trenches into the dirt before he caught himself.
The battlefield froze for a heartbeat, all eyes flicking toward the source of the sudden strike.
And then, crimson mist rolled in.
Lyrate flashed forward, her form dispersing and then re-forming right in the center of the glowing circle itself. Her throne-like arrogance carried into her voice as she tilted her head and smirked.
"Ragnar," she said sweetly, though mockery laced her tone, "you still need to work on your strength."
Ragnar growled but didn’t reply.
Lyrate lifted her foot and stepped down.
The earth convulsed.
With a deafening crack, the ground split open beneath the grandmasters. Roots—black, jagged, and pulsating with wild Essence, erupted in a storm, lashing out in every direction. They coiled and whipped like serpents, striking at Saturn, at Mandal, at Porus, Karu, and every other grandmaster caught within the circle’s glow.
Those wielding the glowing swords managed to hold their ground, their weapons blazing as they hacked and cut through the roots swarming toward them. Sparks and splinters filled the air with every clash.
But the others weren’t so lucky.
Caught in the chaos, many staggered, their defenses faltering against the sudden onslaught. Roots wrapped around legs, snapped against weapons, and smashed into bodies with bone-crushing force.
And in that chaos, Knight moved.
The panther’s form blurred, vanishing into a ripple of darkness and space. In an instant, he reappeared behind one of the struggling grandmasters.
A whisper of claws, and a head rolled free, eyes wide in frozen terror. Before the others could even shout, Knight was gone again, reappearing on the opposite side. Another clean swipe, another grandmaster silenced.
Two corpses dropped to the dirt, their blood darkening the glowing circle.
The battlefield stilled again, shocked at how swiftly death had slipped between them.
Ragnar scoffed, his grin widening as the silver aura around him roared to life. It wasn’t just power, it was raw, concentrated weight, the embodiment of the Force Laws he wielded.
The ground beneath his feet cracked like glass, spiderweb fractures racing outward as he bent his knees.
"Fall," he muttered, voice guttural.
His body launched forward like a cannonball, a streak of mist and silver light. The air warped in his wake.
Porus’s eyes widened. His knuckles whitened around the glowing sword in his hands. The blade vibrated in resonance with the circle beneath his feet, its light intensifying, wrapping around him like a shield of faith. He gritted his teeth, sweat beading across his brow.
"I won’t fall!" he roared, thrusting his weapon upward.
Light flared. The blade of white glow expanded, transforming into a massive crescent arc that hung in the air, pulsing like a newborn star. His voice bellowed over the chaos.
"New Horizon—Cleave!"
The crescent of light shot forward, colliding with Ragnar’s descending figure.
But Ragnar was already in motion, his colossal club raised high above his head. The weapon pulsed once, then again, each thrum in perfect sync with his Force Laws. Essence compressed around it, distorting space.
"Titan’s Verdict!"
The silver-imbued club descended.
The world slowed.
Porus’s Sacred Horizon smashed into the club with a blinding flash, light versus silver.
BOOM!!!
The impact screamed. Shockwaves burst outward, sending debris, roots, and dust flying into the air. The glowing circle trembled violently, straining to stabilize under the clash of laws.
Porus braced, teeth grinding, every muscle in his body straining as he held the blade aloft. The white glow wrapped around him thickened, layers of light forming shield after shield as he pushed upward with desperate defiance.
For a moment, just a moment, it seemed like he could hold.
But then the Force Law struck.