Chapter 644: Just Another Sky Soul

The ending was inevitable, of course. Cragrila knew in her bones that they couldn't win this fight, the most they could do was buy time.

As soon as she and Wan Fei had arrived in Floodisle City, he had gone out to face the enemy. That had interrupted the executions, but it was the beginning of the end. A few cultivators who had sided with the invaders tried to attack them to gain favor with their new masters and were almost immediately cut down - Cragrila drew their attacks out of the sky and then drained the bodies of qi.

When the weaker invader arrived, Cragrila unleashed all that qi at him, hoping to bring the man down before Yangix could arrive. It wasn't quite enough, and she knew that they had failed.

They had only a brief window where she and Wan Fei could potentially have wiped out the lone invader, but they couldn't do it: the man was too durable, and he had too many local collaborators supporting him. Cragrila had become adept at piercing Earth Soul formations, but they slowed down Wan Fei, and while he could take on another Sky Soul, Cragrila felt the limits of her power when she tried to fight any of the leaders.

Of course they had some allies of their own, and some of the weaker enemies were kept back, but the majority were too weak to join the high-speed battle. After a short time, only Cragrila and Wan Fei fought the invader in a city plaza, everyone watching their phased battle. Cragrila had long ago given up on the watching cultivators stepping forward to help.

Once Yangix arrived, their slim chance to gain an edge vanished. Many of the local collaborators even stepped back, it was so obvious how the battle would go. Cragrila survived only by focusing on a speed phase and staying far ahead of the invaders, plus her spear could absorb some of their broader attacks. Wan Fei was tough enough to survive them, but his Physique was being worn down.

The invaders hurled qi endlessly, pinning Cragrila down in a narrow alleyway of the city. Just when she thought they were going to finish her off, Wan Fei unleashed another of his Deepriver techniques, pushing them both back enough for her to slip out.

Now that she had a moment to breathe, she tried to search for some solution she had missed, starting with Yangix.

<

Name: Yangix

Total Power: 2407

Cultivation: Body Purification 20% (1227)

Human Essence: 400

Brute Cultivator's Physique: D-0 (300)

Soul Level: 6 (216)

Cultivator's Robes (+100)

Ring of Qi (+150)

>

But his soul was just too overwhelming, arising almost entirely from a few sources of raw power. A considerable percentage came from his tools, robes and a ring of qi, but separating him from either of those seemed nigh impossible.

Maybe that was the only path available to them, though. If Cragrila was to sell her life, she wanted it to cost the enemy something. If she could destroy even one of Yangix's advantages, he would be closer to a range that one of her allies might be able to defeat.

Yangix unleashed a broad wave of qi, not really a technique so much as a shockwave of strength that pushed them both back. His ally rushed forward after it, sword cutting - Wan Fei had learned the hard way that the phased weapon could cut even his body. The old man managed to block with a qi technique, but he was hurled through a wall and into the water outside the city.

That was her moment. Cragrila dove into the water herself, her crystalline body slicing through the waves. Yangix hovered overhead, his finger swinging down in another of those killing techniques, but he was too pompous with it and she was ahead of him.

She grabbed Wan Fei under his arms and pulled him away, arcing deeper through the bay before they came up beside one of the ships. It was only a matter of time before Yangix turned to them, but he could catch his breath and she had a chance.

"Cover me," she told him, except it was more of a request. They had worked together, but they weren't truly allies like her fellow revolutionaries.

"You order me to..." Wan Fei looked briefly angry, then hesitated, then nodded. "I'll give you an opening."

They both dodged aside as Yangix pointed and the boat exploded behind them. He'd separated himself from his ally, so they had a shot at him and rushed in a pincer movement. Yangix raised both hands, but his exploding technique was slow by the standards of anyone with a speed phase, so they dodged the explosions and closed the distance.

This was where they had always come up short before, because Yangix could unleash an aura of lethal qi that defended him. Cragrila pulled back as the flames lit up around him, readying her spear, hoping it was enough.

In that moment Wan Fei lunged in, striking Yangix with a punch that actually made him stagger a step. He paid a price for it: Yangix swept out a hand and the rush of qi sent Wan Fei hurtling backward, demolishing a wall and collapsing within the rubble.

And Cragrila struck with everything she had. Her spear penetrated the aura, shaking with the effort of absorbing the phased qi, but she drew it back through her crystals and vented it behind her. The tip nearly struck Yangix's chest and tore through his robes.

Just before it could, his hand closed around the point. Cragrila's eyes widened, but it was too late, his strength was overwhelming. Even though the spear was draining away his qi, he simply had too much, so he could afford to pin her in place like this.

"All this effort is so useless." Yangix raised his other hand, qi gathering around one finger to produce a lethal exploding technique. "You can try your tricks and gimmicks, but in the end, cultivation comes down to power. And you can see how short you come up there."

He began to lower his hand, pointing not at her but at Wan Fei. Even now, he didn't consider Cragrila a real threat and only wanted to eliminate the Sky Souls that stood against him. She wished that she could prove him wrong, but he was right, the gap in their strength was too large.

Cragrila let go of the spear and hurled herself in front of Wan Fei, almost before she knew what she was doing. The old man was the only one in the Southern Rivers with a spine, the only one who had stood beside her, but with just his partial qi phase, the finger technique would kill him. She had a split second to build up phased crystals in front of her, then the qi impacted.

Her defenses were barely adequate, of course: the crystals over her body exploded violently and she was thrown back. Cragrila found herself falling in front of Wan Fei as he pushed upright, smiling down at her strangely.

"All of you are mad," he said, not unkindly. "But there is a nobility in your madness."

Was that a compliment from a cultivator? It wasn't much of a final gift, considering that they were finally reaching the inevitable end.

From her position on her back, Cragrila saw a dark figure appear in the sky. Even before she recognized the white sash, she knew that it was Zae Zin Nim, because it felt like her. Unlike the other cultivators, there had always been an aura of other energies around her, and that aura had massively increased.

"Don't let her interfere!" Yangix shouted to his underling. The other invader leapt into the air, swinging his sword toward Zae Zin Nim.

His rush was met by a palm of blue flame the size of his body, and this time, the invader's natural defenses were useless. The phased flame incinerated him instantly, and as the ashes blew away, they revealed Zae Zin Nim still standing in the air, her eyes merciless black slits.

<

Name: Zae Zin Nim

Total Power: 2576

Cultivation: Sky Soul 0% (1200)

*Heavenly Sash: Cultivation +10% (100)

Coldfire Corona: 46 (438)

Pure Yin Shroud: Spinel Rank (285)

True Blackblood Physique: E-12 (472)

Soul Level: 9 (81)

>

Not only did she have an astonishing Power over 2500... she was drawing her palm back for another strike. A much larger one, fueled by both qi and chakra.

"That..." Yangix actually gaped, realizing too late what he was facing. Cragrila didn't think the invaders had developed complex spiritual sight, but they had an intuitive sense for when they were outmatched.

"What were you saying about power?" Cragrila asked.

Yangix snarled and then pointed toward them - not activating his killing technique, merely preparing it. "Stay back!" he shouted to Zae Zin Nim. "If you try to attack me, I'll slaughter these peasants you love so much! Come now, we can talk about this. You've clearly attained more power, so we..."

Zae Zin Nim thrust her palm forward and the fiery palm erupted far larger than the first time, rumbling down toward the city like the sky itself intended to crush them. Yangix desperately thrust his finger toward it, but his qi dissipated as, for the first time, it was directly overpowered.

As the flames approached, Cragrila closed her eyes and smiled.