Alex narrowed his eyes and looked at the mist that was fading into the distance. He had been too late to help Elsa and Edith, and now he felt angry with himself.
"Come, Maya," Raven said, reaching out his hand. An intense belt of pressure descended from the sky, and the sea of clouds that hung over the distant mountain began to cave inward. A large lightning hand burst through the clouds and grabbed Maya, whisking her up into the air.
**
Evan and Antoine had been in the middle of a banquet when they heard the thunder-like crashes.
"What do you think it is?" Evan asked, frowning.
"I've no idea," Antoine replied, "but it doesn't sound good. I think we have a great enemy on our hands. Alex is going to need our help."
Evan nodded and spoke to the rest of the party. "We'll go and check it out. Activate the spell and protect the area as much as you can."
A moment later, both men were surrounded by light rays and shot into the sky.
**
The lightning hand that had hoisted Maya into the air positioned her face to face with Raven.
She frowned but did not allow herself to appear frightened. "Why are you here, Raven?"
"You're in no position to question me," he said. "It's just as well that I'm here now, or we would never have known that you had joined the enemy. But don't worry just yet. It's not my job to deal with you. I'll send you straight to the divine realm where the council of elders can decide your fate."
After he had finished speaking, he pointed a finger at Maya, and a silver thread of light shot forward and began to form a cocoon around her so that she was no longer able to move. Then Raven slowly waved his hand, and Maya disappeared. Without blinking, he turned to Alex.
"Alex, I have to admire you," he said. "It's extremely rare to find a master of your level who can pass between realms. It's just a pity that you provoked my sect. You obviously had no idea what you were getting yourself into, but the masters of the divine realm are not to be crossed. You simply couldn't understand the level of power that we possess. It's something you and other masters on Earth can only dream of. Even a person of your ability would never be able to reach it in your lifetime."
Before Alex could respond, Evan and Antoine landed at his side. Both looked ready to fight, but they found themselves unable to move. A tremendous pressure bore down on them, and it was like nothing either of the men had felt before.
Antoine felt completely shocked. He had encountered the power of many immortals on Earth, but this was different. This is extraordinary, he thought. This master of the Thunder sect must be one of the top overlords of the divine realm. He's more powerful than all the immortals on Earth put together.
Moments later, the entire sky froze. It seemed as if all light had been drawn from the sky, and it gathered around Raven's body in a series of lightning bolts. He looked like a ferocious beast preparing to attack. Suddenly, there was a massive explosion as lightning shot out below him and destroyed everything in its path.
Alex watched all this from a safe distance. He truly is one of the great sect masters, he thought. He's far more powerful than many who claim to be at the same divine level. I must tread carefully here.
Alex took a deep breath and stepped into the void. Though he was high up in the air, he moved as if he were walking on flat ground. Stripped to the waist, his black hair fluttered in the wind, and his smooth muscles emitted a divine light that was a mix of gold and blue. His eyes shone with a golden light.
"How about this, Raven?" he asked. "If you can block three of my moves, then I'll spare your life."
"What shameless boasting!" Raven replied, his eyes full of contempt. "Forget it. Even if I were to block three hundred of your spells, so what? I have a much better idea—one that will make this far more interesting. How about you try to make me move one inch? If you can do that, then you win."
Alex considered the proposition for a few seconds, and then he nodded his agreement. Before taking another step, he turned to Evan and Antoine.
"For the record," he said. "If he dares send Maya back to the divine realm, I'll be left with no choice but to kill him."
He began to move further into the void. With each step, the glow of blue and gold light around his body became stronger and stronger, and it looked as if his whole body were enveloped in a bright, burning flame. An aura began to rise from him, and at first, it appeared as a small cloud. Within a matter of seconds, it had grown to a full-blown tornado that raged in the sky.
At the same time, Raven's aura moved forward, and the two monstrous tornadoes collided, splitting the clouds in half.
On the ground, Evan and Antoine felt their hearts beat faster. An intense pressure pushed down from the sky, and it felt as if an ancient beast had been awakened. They felt helpless. There was nothing they could do but wait and hope that Alex could overpower this great master.
The battle of the tornadoes set off massive waves, causing the clouds to transform into whirlwinds that crashed into each other. Pressure continued to press downward, and Evan and Antoine were forced to continue moving farther and farther away from the action.
"This is not going to be an easy one for Alex," Antoine said in a low voice. "But I've heard that once you step into the divine realm, you advance to a whole new level. This goes far beyond doubling or tripling your power. Alex may find that he's as much as twenty times stronger."
**
In the divine realm, Alex and Raven began their fight.
Alex reached into the void and pulled out a long blade. Its handle was etched with bolts of black lightning, while purple lightning sparkled on the back of the blade.
"You really have no shame," Raven said, and then he let out a laugh. "You really intend to attack me with this divine lightning blade? A weapon fused with the spirit of our ancient lightning god? Hmm, let's see how it behaves under your command."
With a wave of his hand, a golden lightning dragon appeared, baring its fangs and brandishing its claws. Its aura was majestic, and its eyes shone with a spiritual light. It looked as if it had a mind of its own.
Alex recognized this as one of the Thunder sect's most powerful spells. Used by Raven, it was ten times more powerful than when it was invoked on Earth.
"Strike one!" Alex shouted. He felt power from his body rush outward and fuse with the lightning blade. The purple glow on the weapon suddenly expanded, and the saber grew to ten times its original size. Then the lightning saber swept across the sky in a divine glow, moving as though it were in the hands of an ancient god. The sea of clouds was torn apart by the extraordinary energy coming from the saber, and bolts of lightning rained down and were absorbed by the blade. The weapon glistened and sent out a massive aura into the sky.
The smile faded from Raven's face, and he looked at Alex in shock. Although he had wielded the lightning blade many times before, he had never experienced its aura.
But this man is just an immortal from Earth, he thought. How can he have this level of power? His magic seems to be slightly more powerful than mine.
While Raven paused to think, Alex struck with the lightning saber.
The long blade swept across the sky, and below, Antoine and Evan saw the clouds burst open and reveal purple bolts of lightning. Though they couldn't tell what was happening in the divine realm, a chill ran down both of their spines.
In the divine realm, with the lightning blade advancing toward him, Raven felt his own world was about to shatter. He had to do something fast.
He felt his power surge, and the golden lightning dragon grew ten times bigger and twisted in the air. Then it flew into position to block Alex's blade.
The strength from Alex's golden core ran through the blade, enhancing its strength, but the dragon did not flinch; it drew a breath and began to exhale golden flames.
The blade and the dragon inched closer until there was an extraordinary crash. For a moment, all Alex could see was a massive explosion of golden light.
As the light began to fade, he spotted the form of the golden dragon and realized it had been sliced in half by the long blade. The two pieces fell through the sky and crashed into Raven.
An intense rage came over Raven, and he shut his eyes and began to cast spells against the lightning blade. Each spell was rapidly followed by another. And each time, the dazzling blade broke the advancing attack.
Eventually, Raven was forced to uncover the wings of lightning on his back. He flapped them gently in the air, and his body retreated far enough to dodge Alex's sweeping blade.