Chapter 419: Crossing Back to the Other Side (1)
In one final desperate attempt at survival, Sansa’s shadows engulfed the scattered members of the Elite Class, including the unconscious Danzo and Seris.
Using her shadow that blanketed the entire battlefield, she finally gathered them all. It wasn’t hard to guess what she intended to do.
"You’re not going anywhere."
With a wave of her staff, Beatrice summoned a bizarre creature from the sky .. one with hundreds of slimy hands and an overwhelming, terrifying presence that struck fear into the hearts of everyone present.
The monstrous beast let out a dreadful howl before its colossal hands plunged toward the ground at terrifying speed, aiming to swallow Sansa’s shadow whole.
But before they could reach it ..
A fiery explosion blasted the giant hands, stopping them in their tracks. Phoenix Sunlight had arrived, his body ablaze with crimson flames.
Glaring at the monstrous creature and at Beatrice beside it, Phoenix smiled, recalling what Ghost had asked of him.
He had been told clearly: protect them when the time came.
With a heavy sigh, Phoenix unleashed his flames, creating a sea of fire that engulfed everything below.
"For them to ask me to do this... You know I’ll have to sacrifice myself to pull it off, Frey."
Phoenix clashed violently with the creature’s massive hands, burning them one after another as he formed a blazing dome that shielded Sansa’s shadow beneath him.
"Eternal Flame: Ember Form."
Using the most powerful ability of the Sunlight Family’s Eternal Flame style, Phoenix’s overwhelming form radiated power equivalent to that of an SS+ ranker. It was this strength that had allowed him to overpower Lord Ultras Godfrey and his Empyrean Gvardiol earlier.
His body constantly aflame, his fiery hair billowing in the wind, Phoenix was like a blazing star, spewing fire everywhere.
The Sunlight Lord, hailed as the miracle of his generation, pushed his overwhelming abilities to the limit in this battle.
He had already reached his peak, after countless fierce battles.
And now, with the last embers burning inside him, Phoenix unleashed everything he had against Beatrice.
Shaping the flames around him into a colossal phoenix, Phoenix clashed head-on with the beast above, roaring as he forced himself forward.
His roar mingled with the monster’s agonized howl as both tried to overpower each other through sheer brute force, shaking the sky with their clash.
"The Elite Class is full of troublesome fighters," Beatrice sighed lightly, raising her hand to summon a massive spear of black magic above her head.
The spear, over 20 meters long, radiated a terrifying aura and explosive power.
Then, without warning, she hurled it, tearing through the sky and plummeting toward the ground at breakneck speed.
Phoenix, too preoccupied holding back the monster, couldn’t react in time.
The spear tore through his flames without mercy, flying straight toward the area in front of the teleportation gate.
With a wicked smile, Beatrice aimed her spear.
"There. That’s where you’re going, isn’t it?"
At her words, the spear detonated Sansa’s shadow and the ground beneath it, creating a massive crater of utter destruction.
Beatrice knew the Elite Class would try to escape through the shadow. It hadn’t taken much effort to guess where they would go .. there was only one portal, after all.
She laughed heartily but quickly refocused on the sky above.
There, an incredible scene unfolded as Phoenix continued to burn through the beast’s body, scorching it from the inside out.
Phoenix Sunlight was impossibly fast, his explosive power overwhelming the creature, which howled in agony.
And then, like a fly swatted from the sky, the colossal monster plummeted to the earth, consumed by raging flames, crushing scores of soldiers beneath it as it fell lifeless.
Beatrice first stared at her defeated beast—the creature looked back at her with fear just before it died—then turned her gaze to Phoenix, who hovered above her, panting heavily.
"Amazing. You did well, Phoenix Sunlight."
Wearing her usual smile, Beatrice swept her staff once more, summoning hundreds of massive celestial spheres that glowed ominously, all aimed directly at Phoenix.
"You can die now."
As if granting him permission to leave this life, Beatrice unleashed her devastating barrage.
On the other hand, Phoenix retaliated by unleashing his flames, clashing with Beatrice’s attacks head-on.
The dark aura beams and Phoenix’s searing fire collided with terrifying force, making it seem as though the sky itself was ablaze in a dazzling, deadly fireworks display.
From the beginning, and until his aura was completely spent ..
Phoenix continued to release his flames, pushing his exhausted body beyond its limits, screaming at himself to keep going before it was too late.
But Phoenix endured, forming a fiery curtain to protect Frey and the others.
"I don’t know why you’re fighting this hard. Are you protecting your students?"
Beatrice, pouring all her strength into her magic, summoned more and more celestial spheres to encircle Phoenix.
"Unfortunately for you, I won’t let them reach the portal."
With a mere gesture, she unleashed another barrage of destructive aura.
"You can protect them all you want, but you’ll fall sooner or later... and when you do, it’ll be the end."
Beatrice knew Phoenix couldn’t hold out much longer.
And at that moment...
The witch realized that Sir Alon’s prison, which had trapped Dragoth and Mergo, was about to shatter at any moment .. setting them loose and worsening the Elite Class’s predicament.
Her train of thought was abruptly interrupted when Phoenix let out another battle cry that shook the battlefield.
Gathering the last remnants of his strength, flames erupted from Phoenix in terrifying amounts, unleashing a massive explosion that devoured all the celestial spheres, destroying them, and forcing Beatrice to retreat from his range.
"Incredible... You’re still able to unleash attacks like that."
Beatrice chuckled lightly as she brushed the clinging flames off her body, trying to stop them from burning her.
But as she took a closer look at Phoenix, who had turned the battlefield into a blazing inferno, she realized the bitter truth.
"You’ve... finally reached your limit, haven’t you?"
It was clear that Phoenix’s explosion had been his final strike after reaching his peak.
For as soon as he released it, the flames of the Ember Form vanished completely, returning him to his normal state.
Blood dripped from his nose and mouth as he barely managed to stay airborne, slowly descending toward the ground.
Raising his trembling hand before his face, Phoenix let out a weak laugh, recognizing his limits.
"So this is all I’m capable of?"
A miracle.
That’s what they always called him, and it was no exaggeration.
In his mid-twenties, he had faced a Lord of the Ultras, an SS ranked Empyrean, and an entire army behind them.
And now he had ended up in a brutal battle against Beatrice and her strange magic, where he had no idea where the next attack would come from.
Fighting a witch inside her own domain was pure suicide.
’I am far from being a miracle...’
Gathering the last fragments of his strength, Phoenix prepared to fight until his final breath.
"The real miracles... they’re completely different people."
Frey Starlight, with power rivaling SS ranks.
Snow Lionheart, who matched him in strength. Sansa Valerion, with her explosive might that sent chills down his spine.
Phoenix finally understood his role in this life.
He never imagined his end would come as a sacrifice for others.
But if it meant ensuring the survival of those destined to become monstrous forces one day, then the Lord of Sunlight was ready to give his life without hesitation.
"There’s no greater honor than that."
Smiling, Phoenix charged forward in a blaze of fire, aiming straight for Beatrice.
As a true warrior who had spent his life honing his body for battle, dying on the battlefield wasn’t a disgrace to him.
Even the great Abraham Starlight, whom he deeply admired, had met his end on the battlefield.
With those thoughts in mind, Phoenix pressed on, creating a final shield for Frey and the others.
Beatrice couldn’t understand his stubborn resolve. He could have escaped at any time and left them to their fate.
But she didn’t bother to try and understand. Instead, she raised her staff, ready to strike him down and end his life.
And just at that moment, before the final clash could happen ..
Both Beatrice’s and Phoenix’s eyes widened, though for very different reasons.
For Phoenix, it was because someone grabbed him from behind, pulling him into an embrace and stopping him from going any farther.
"Sorry, but you won’t be dying today."
Seeing those horns, Phoenix immediately recognized Sansa, who had appeared from the shadows, dragging him back.
At the same time, Beatrice’s shock came from something else entirely ..
The moment when her magic completely stopped working.
It was the second time this had happened to her, and it wasn’t hard to figure out what was going on.
Lifting her gaze toward the sky, the witch finally noticed Frey Starlight, who had appeared nearby, activating his anti-magic ability.
"You’ve made a grave mistake, you cursed Whore."
Sansa grinned wickedly as Frey forced his exhausted body forward, swinging his swords ruthlessly .. cutting into Beatrice’s body without mercy.
"From the start, we weren’t running away. We were here to kill you!"
At that moment, Beatrice finally understood what had happened.
When Sansa’s shadow swallowed the Elite Class, she assumed they would immediately escape through the portal.
That’s why she destroyed the shadow near the gate, thinking they would be there.
But the reality was far different.
Using the cover Phoenix had created for them, Sansa and Frey had hidden nearby, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
And that moment came when Balerion and Dark Sister tore through Beatrice’s flesh, causing her black blood to pour out in torrents.