As the flame reached him, searing heat made Cain's skin sweat and melt like wax. Yun'er was no different, but the flames reached her and not Cain.
At first, her screams were louder than the flames, but that was before the scorching river entered her mouth and down her belly, destroying everything inside.
Defiantly, she didn't die, she couldn't. Cain's had made her even more enduring than him, but he did not make her numb to the pain. He was sure Yun'er was undergoing pain he could imagine very well.
The flames became less and less, and by the end, Cain threw Yun'er aside, he took some damage around his arm but it was negligible. A swipe of his hand and some energy fixed it to be as good as new.
The madman Cain watched the charred girl fall, only to be caught in her father's arms before reaching the floor. Her hands twitched at the pain of it all.
"To still be alive, impressive." Cain grabbed his sword and teleported to the dragon projection, shoving Bloodletter into its body. The Dragon roared but the absorption of Spiritual Qi drained it of any resistance.
The giant body became smaller and smaller before it disappeared and the soul returned to its owner.
"Sun Xiang, know that you helped me a great deal. Although I wouldn't say it's been fun. Seeing a dragon was like a dream come true!" Cain's eyes glowed with fervor.
By now, the palace was in ruins. All the guests and royal family members who didn't die yet were killed in the flame attack. There was not a person besides Cain and Sun Xiang.
"Return," Cain called out and his surroundings responded. The mist ghosts entered back into their home and didn't stay a moment longer outside. They found the Emperor dangerous, a few of them died in the flames and couldn't be revived.
Standing beside the Emperor, Cain stared at Yun'er's corpse.
"I must thank her. Without her desire to marry me, she wouldn't have caused this."
Sun Xiang didn't respond. He just tightly held his daughter as tears rolled down his eyes. He was in despair.
"I suppose whichever concubine she was born from was the one you truly loved. Let me guess, she died so this girl was the last memory of her?"
Cain frowned when Sun Xiang didn't humor him.
"Hah, just die."
Cain swung his sword, but before it landed, a golden seal entered Sun Xiang's hand. It had the word "Mandate" on it. There was a great sense of danger, along with a great deal of Heavenly energy.
"Heavenly Mandate, something given only by the heavens!" Cain couldn't retreat, lighting flashed before his eyes.
Sun Xiang cried out, "I should have used this seal earlier! If only.....Yun'er wouldn't have died!"
Lighting broke through the barrier in the sky and touched Cain's flesh, turning it black. Screaming in pain he backed away as the black flesh broke and wilted, revealing new flesh.
Sun Xiang giggled as he let go of Yun'er and stood up to face Cain.
"The ancestors spoke of people like you! I could smell it once you used that mist! You are an Otherworldly Demon! You will destroy the world if I don't kill you here and now! Heavens help me! I shall sacrifice my Ancestral Spirit Beast!"'
A booming voice roared from Sun Xiang's chest.
"Sun Xiang! I have protected your family for generations! I am the reason you rule over mortals! You dare sacrifice me to the heavens and break our oath! Do you have that authority!?"
The Emperor only laughed like a madman as blood-red tears ran down his face, he plunged his hand into his chest and pulled out a giant soul. He then offered it to the Heavenly Mandate which swallowed it whole.
Fizzling screams came from the Tier 9 Soul without a body. It was a very rare sight, Cain was curious as to why the dragon was forced into its situation, but it's not like he would find out.
Sun Xiang raised the Seal and the heavens shook. Lightning of all colors struck from the sky and hit Cain in repetition.
Cain focused on healing as his body was in a race against the damage done. His body repeatedly healed while being charred over and over.
This went on for ten minutes before both opponents ran out of energy.
"Hah....damn it. You didn't tell me you had an 8th-tier Divine Treasure. Well, I guess it's best not to tell..." Cain made a half-hearted comment.
He fell to one knee as his cores rapidly sucked in Pure Energy to fuel themselves. For the first time, Cain was on the losing end. Chunks of his body were gone, leaving him with a figure that looked to be half-eaten.
Sun Xiang's piercing gaze was filled with hatred and killing intent. Step after step he limped to Cain. His body was in a mess, using so much power had exhausted him of everything, and the soul in one of his legs died in a backlash, crippling his leg. Another sacrifice to the heavens.
'Losing the Royal Family's Ancestral Guardian Beast and Golden Spirit will be worth it if I kill him! I must kill him!' The Emperor thought.
Cain knew what was happening. It was going to come down to a good old fistfight. The one where whoever killed the other would win and either escape or continue to rule.
Such an idea intrigued Cain's fighting spirit. He too stood up and hobbled towards the Emperor.
The hall around them was scorched, neither of them remembering that it was supposed to be a joyous day of two people being wed. Those memories were burnt to a crisp along with the Palace.
Neither spoke, as they got within striking distance they both threw their fists with sluggishness, using all their weight behind them.
Cain's fist landed, while Sun Xiang missed, but they both fell over and crawled to continue. Cain grabbed Sun Xiang's clothes and threw another punch, but the Emperor rolled with it and brought Cain below him. He then threw punch after punch while Cain helplessly blocked.
Sun Xiang got tired, this was when Cain threw him to the side and tried to stand up, but Sun Xiang roared and tackled Cain again.
This continued another round of punches, each punch leaving both more bloody than the last.
By the time both made some distance to stand again, Cain's face was black and blue while Sun Xiang had some of his skull showing, he did not bruise at all and instead lost flesh.
Cain spat out some blood and walked forward. Sun Xiang did the same, the hate inside him rising by the second.
Again they closed in, only, this would be the last time.
Cain smiled ominously as his hand didn't turn into a fist but opened as the energy in his body funneled to conjure something. He summoned Bloodletter, a mere 3rd Tier Sword after absorbing the Dragon Projection.
Cain's smile reached climax. "Die!"
Sun Xiang was caught off guard as Bloodletter pierced his chest, he was too injured to dodge. He coughed once but much of his remaining blood was lost with that one cough.
"This is the end for you." Cain's voice was rustic and dry.
Sun Xiang's eyes were completely red, his hands reached for Cain's neck and squeezed. Unfortunately, Cain too couldn't escape his grasp.
The two struggled one last time, Cain twisted his sword while Sun Xiang only squeezed harder. But the fight was already decided, and the Emperor lost the light in his eyes as his hands drooped down and life escaped him. Bloodletter had devoured his soul along with all the remaining spirits in his body.
"Haha. HAHAHA! Die, you bastard! You fought well but not well enough!"
Cain spread his arms wide and twirled around the Emperor's corpse. He would trip from slipping on the thin layer of blood.
"HAHAHAHA!! Everything dies, everything dies HEHEHEHE!" His crazed laughter echoed again and again. Blood dripped onto his face and hair from the ceiling. The Palace was covered by death. Not a soul left in the wake of his massacre.
Losing energy, Cain dropped to the ground, he kept himself steady using Sun Xiang's body as an anchor.
"Hah....hah....time to get out of here, the heavens will soon gather again."
Cain took a breath and then stood up. As he walked out of the palace he knocked his foot with something, looking down he saw the Heavenly Mandate.
"Don't mind if I do. Now that I think about it, I should do a bit more than leave like this right? That old woman should be heading here by now...."
...
A group of people from the Immortal Sect were rushing through the sky. Everyone had grave expressions, the one with the worst expression was Fang Yuan, he had rushed back with all his energy due to the call from the sect leader and learned what was going on.
His heart was swaying between two duties, one to his Sect, the other to his Disciple. What scene he would find would decide which duty would take over his heart.
"We must hurry, the marriage ceremony should be reaching its completion by now!" The Grand Elder Moon was excited, she would be able to gain much from this if Cain was caught.
The group zoomed into the capital, from a distance, they could see clouds gathering above the Palace with lighting brewing. A thin barrier was also slowly disintegrating, it is now more of a fence around the palace than a full barrier.
Everyone's faces froze when they saw the Palace grounds covered in crimson. Their speed slowed and the worst had come to mind.
"J-Just what happened here....."
Zoe instinctually moved closer to her master. Fang Yuan blankly stared the whole time. He was already pale from using up the majority of Spiritual Qi in his body.
"What's that?" Lady Moon saw something peculiar above the palace, as she got closer she realized it was a head on a pike. When she saw whose head it was she froze and backed away in disbelief.
"This shouldn't be possible, how could he....just what...." Zoe heard her Master's muttering and looked at the head. It was of a young man with golden hair, his face filled with rage and arrogance. It was the head of Sun Xiang, the Emperor of the Sun Dynasty, dead, along with the last remaining True Dragon.
A man appeared before the Grand Elder, it was hard to see who they were through the glaring light piercing through the parting clouds.
"Hah, send out the Demon Killing Order, and inform all the sects of this incident. The boy couldn't have gotten far, and he's most likely injured."
Sense flickered in Fang Yuan's eyes, he raised his head and pleaded, "Sect Leader, please wait! It's not Cain, there's an evil being inside him! I promised I would exorcise it!"
The sect leader blocked by light sighed. "It's too late for that. The creature gained control, you're Disciple's soul was most likely consumed in its awakening."
Fang Yuan's eyes dulled, the pleading defeated smile on his face died, and his hope was turned cold. He thought he could save his Disciple, but in the end, he didn't help at all.
The only thing Fang Yuan gave Cain was false hope.
...
Limping in a forest, Cain had long sealed himself and went back into the mindscape. His other half had already regained control and was moving in a panic.
"What do I do? Where do I go?!"
(Obviously not backward, go to another country. With the Heavenly Mandate, we have enough heavenly energy to reach the Enlightenment stage. Once we get strong enough we will go out and find the core, easy and simple.)
"You're not the one trekking through a forest with a bad leg!"
(True)
Cain felt the presence of the voice vanish, he was left alone.
'Where to go....'
With a world in front of him, he felt overwhelmed.