Joon crawled over to Elara, saying, "No…no.."
Elara coughed, "Joon…I'm scared."
"…Me too….but stay awake please…"
Elara reached out to Joon, saying, "You're my best friend Joon.."
Joon thought, 'How long does she have..?!'
[80 seconds. She's trying her hardest to allow her qi to flow through her body. As you guys have barely trained to do so during training with the poison activity, she's using the same method]
Joon remembered it, and he began to shed a tear, he said, "She's trying so hard to live…what can I even do?! It was mentioned right in the beginning! The Lust Deity…served by Yu Baozhai and the Black Lotus sect..just how the Blood Sect serves the Blood Deity Xiahou Anara…I should've paid more attention, been more aware! How could I not see past the small details?! How can you call me your best friend..Elara?"
Elara sobbed, "Joon…"
[70 seconds left]
Joon asked, "What can I do?"
[Nothing]
Joon gasped, and said, "No! I won't accept that."
Joon looked over at Caelan and Zephyr, seeing them struggling to stand, blood dripping from them.
Venrix, hovering above Joon, smiled, "Desires…Lust…it's all the same honestly. These fools will look to me for power, which will increase their desire to achieve their goals. You…boy…all of you…I can read all of you. Joon, is it? You desire for happiness again, to not make anyone hate you, and for revenge against those who wrong you. You seek happiness in every situation, but you struggle to find it at times. Elara..? Yeah that's her name, you desire to get revenge, save your best friend, and even get rid of your addiction of talking down on yourself, you desire more confidence. Zephyr, you desire for the motivation to live, the motivation to get revenge again. And Caelan, you have the desire to not be taken advantage of, and to not die alone, but your attitude pushes everyone away, so you've become angry with yourself, not trusting anyone. If you immediately turn to me, I will save you all from your struggles. You will have the power to achieve your desires. You're all around 11-13 years old, and yet, the things you've gone through have shaped your mind into maturity, and to comprehend things as well as a teenager."
Caelan said, "Fuck…you."
Joon added, "We're not turning to you."
Zephyr added, "…We're not."
The other assassins said:
"What is that thing?!"
"We gotta…get away!"
"I didn't expect this!"
"None of us did.."
Watching from a distance, Jiho stood there. He looked up into the sky, and said, "Ughhh. Man. Vaelle, now I see why you've turned from a heartless woman to a caring woman. Especially after you had that baby. I don't care if I get punished…I'm heading down. I've looked up to you for awhile Vaelle, I wanted to be scary like you so they could respect me. This is what you would do. Kiera and Old Han wouldn't do this, because they're too piss scared of The Head. Ahh this is stupid."
Joon crawled further to Elara, and he grabbed what was piercing her through the chest.
He said, "Elara…don't give up yet.."
Elara sighed, "This…is scary.." she grabbed Joon's hand, and smiled, "You're amazing, Joon."
Joon sobbed, and he ripped the piece out of her chest, making her scream. Joon picked her up, lifting her on his back, saying, "She's not dying here!"
Venrix said, "And here I thought we could come to an agreement. With the demons roaming around spreading demonic qi, I would've thought you all would make sense of it and see that they're prohibiting your goals. This world wouldn't be in this state if it wasn't for them, us deities wouldn't have to encase ourselves in things, we wouldn't be making easy contracts with humans. But oh well. I'll slaughter you all here."
Venrix darted over to Joon and Elara, even Caelan and Zephyr stood up to try and stop Venrix, and at that exact moment, Jiho slammed his two qi-rune axes on top of Venrix, blood splashing everywhere.
Joon exclaimed, "Jiho!"
Jiho said, "Yeahhh um, i'm definitely getting in trouble for this. If you make it back to the hideout fast enough you can save—."
"Take her, please." Joon smiled.
"You're in no condition to—."
"I am."
Elara coughed, "Joon…" she clenched onto Joon tighter.
Joon screamed, "We don't have time! Take her now!"
Jiho dashed to grab Elara, and Elara yelled, "Joon! Don't! Please! I can't lose you either!"
Joon walked towards Venrix, who was slowly rising with more power.
Joon said, "The Lust Deity…he's been here all along. It's been reading us, studying us. Ever since the beginning, he's been everywhere. Listening in on our conversations, what we think, say, and even our actions. The Black Lotus has been active since yesterday with us. He's been in the form of lust itself, in times when I fought Caelan, remember when we all cried? Our motivation to fulfill desires, what we wanted most, was influencing us the most, and The Lust Deity made himself known from then. Even though we ourselves cried because we felt something, Venrix was there, preying on us..he wanted us to be his from the start. Now go, so I can kill this bastard."
'Even when I was in the labyrinth with the Head, the concept of lust and lust itself was written all over him, he begged me to kill and devour Xiahou Anara…everything that led to this point is beginning to connect. So far I've learned a lot. Not just about myself, but about this entire situation. There are deities who govern affinities of power, which is shown through blessings and scriptures on qi-runes, in which I still think my system thing is a qi-rune weapon with the words being qi-runes themselves. Based on what Venrix said, deities here had no choice but to encase themselves in their own so-called metaphorical monuments and bless those who praise and worship them with power because of the demons and demonic qi that's roaming around in this world. And there's many more, I need to write all of these down..if I make it out alive. Yeah, haha, that's what I'll do. I'll write down everything I've learned about this world and this situation as I go along with my journey on opening hell and getting my puppies back. That way I can understand this world a lot better, it's secrets, it's mysteries, everything. But I don't know if I'll be able to do it. This deity might stop me. Why am I trying to make it seem like I'll survive? Thinking of things to do if I survive against Venrix. I'm truly scared then…I'm trying to make myself feel better.'
Jiho dashed off fast, knowing Elara didn't have long.
Elara screamed, "Joon! Please! Don't leave me! Joon!"
Joon said to Caelan and Zephyr and the other assassins, "You should leave too."
Caelan said, "You're actually doing this huh?"
"You told me I wasn't focused on the mission, I got distracted easily. I realized now how fatal that was. In the time where I was contemplating whether or not I should make a decision between the mission and Elara, we got ambushed, we could've caught up to Yu Baozhai."
"My own rival is trying to show me up…don't die, if you die, I can't kill you. Zephyr, let's go.
Caelan dashed off, and Zephyr said to Joon, "Please, if you can…grab Torin's body."
Joon nodded, "I promise."
Zephyr nodded, "You're a good person, Joon."
The other assassins mentioned, "We won't forget you, Joon! Thanks!"
They took off as well.
Joon and Caelan looked at each other, and Caelan left.
'Joon is sacrificing himself so we could get away? And it seems that deity is focused on him anyway…are these what friends are? Tch. Why do I care? I don't.'
Joon continued to walk forward, Venrix slowly ascending in the air, looking down at Joon.
Venrix said, "That tickled. Who is that guy? I want him too."
"It's me that you want, isn't it?"
"Yes, actually. You host a divine but dark power, a power I cannot tell…which deity hosts. I want to see who it is. Who…is hosting that dark power within you."
"I don't know either." Joon smiled, "Come at me."
"That malicious dark smile…it's amazing. Imagine having you as my—."
POW!
Joon's fist with a sharp bone sticking out aimed towards Venrix's face, but Venrix stopped it with his finger.
Venrix smiled, "Is that it?"
….
As dusk veiled the sky in deep crimson and purple hues, tension simmered in the thin, cool air surrounding the hidden entrance to the Blood Sect's underground lair. Yuna, Yeonhee, and Kang led the way, their faces set in grim determination. Behind them, Yu Baozhai and his contingent of cloaked guards followed, their footsteps echoing ominously through the sprawling network of caverns.
"So this is it, huh? So eery and dark down here." Yu Baozhai said,
Yuna, Yeonhee, and Kang looked at each other, their anxiety making them sweat as they looked around them.
The path twisted and turned, delving deeper into the earth, until it opened into a vast cavern illuminated by torches that cast flickering shadows against the rough walls. In the center stood The Head of the Blood Sect, a formidable figure cloaked in deep red, his presence dominating the space. Around him, positioned with lethal precision, the Blood Sect assassins formed a tight circle, their eyes fixed on the newcomers with silent hostility.
The Head smiled, "Welcome."
Yuna, Yeonhee, and Kang staggered back, saying, "They were expecting us.."
The Head grinned, "Why wouldn't we be? Your group is older than Joon's groups and yet, you still can't comprehend things, and down an unforgivable thing."
KATHOOM!
Blood shot in the air as Yuna, Yeonhee, and Kang were blasted backwards by a gravitational force, their bodies flinging and sprawling like ragdolls.
Yu Baozhai thought, 'He quickly dispatched his own assassins…'
Yu Baozhai coughed, "We can truly get down to business now, if you don't mind."
"Certainly." The Head laughed.
In the circle of assassins, Kai, Mina, and Hyun were present, and even Kiera and Old Han.
Kai thought, 'We're not allowed to talk during this time. Wasn't Yuna's group supposed to be teaming with Joon's group? Don't tell me they're dead. It can't be.'
Hyun, leaning back lazily, thought, 'This…is gonna be one hell of a show..'
Mina's leg was tapping, and her thoughts went, 'Are they gonna fight already?!'
Kai told her, "Shhhh!"
Kiera thought, 'Foolish children. They led him here to the hideout out of fear. Even if it wasn't out of fear, or just their way of trying to save everyone by making the Head kill him, they still did it in a sloppy way. What about Joon and his group? Are they even still alive?'
Yu Baozhai stepped forward, piercing the heavy silence, "It seems the Blood Sect honors old debts and darker alliances," he said, his voice echoing against the stone.
The Head's eyes narrowed as he studied Yu Baozhai, recognizing the aura of seething darkness that clung to him. "Yu Baozhai, last scion of the Black Lotus Sect," he began, his voice deep and resonant. "You tread on sacred ground, driven by the shadows of your misfortunes. What do you want?"
Unmoved, Yu Baozhai's lips twisted into a cold smile. "The Frost Lotus Sect destroyed everything I held dear—they massacred my brethren and left me for dead among the ruins of our temple. They thought they extinguished the Black Lotus forever," his voice grew thick with venom. "But from ashes, from solitude and pain, I forged a new path, rebuilt from the darkness they left me in. A path of vengeance."
As Yu Baozhai's guards tensed, preparing for his signal, The Head raised a hand, signaling his assassins to ready themselves. Without warning, Yu Baozhai's guards dashed forward, but as they neared the circle, each exploded in a gruesome display, their bodies bursting apart, showering the ground in crimson.
The Head said, "Oh. They're gone."
Yu Baozhai, unfazed by the carnage, took a step forward, his figure enshrouded in a swirling black aura resonating with dark energy. "This, however, is just the beginning."
The Head studied Yu Baozhai's darkening demeanor and chuckled darkly. "It is fitting, isn't it, that you come before the Blood Sect, when it is blood you seek to spill?" he asked. "Yet, you know little of true sacrifice, the kind Xiahou Anara, our Blood Deity, embraced. Nothing like the Lust Deity you and the Black Lotus embrace."
Closing his eyes, The Head continued, "Our cherished Xiahou Anara chose containment within a stone statue, not as a prison, but as a sanctuary. Stone, unyielding and eternal, symbolizes the everlasting nature of blood—the life force that binds us and the violence that cleaves us. In this form, she moderates the chaos, channeling our inherent savagery into power, binding us to a purpose greater than mere vengeance, but retribution."
Opening his eyes, which now burned with an unsettling fervor, The Head took a measured step towards Yu Baozhai. "You see, Yu Baozhai, unlike your quest driven by the ghosts of past conflicts, our deity channels our darkest desires into strength, fortifying this sect, not tearing it apart with the rabid thirst for revenge."
The cavern seemed to pulse with the accumulating power, shadows dancing wildly against the stone as Yu Baozhai's aura intensified, his eyes blazing with a preternatural glow. The silent circle of assassins tightened imperceptibly, the air thick with anticipation.
"And so," The Head's voice dropped to a menacing whisper, contrasting with the swelling storm of dark energy around them, "brought here by fate or folly, you stand on the precipice. But make no mistake, Yu Baozhai—here, in the heart of darkness, bound by blood and stone... you and your phantoms of retribution—you're all going to die."
With those chilling words, the cave plunged into a tense silence, broken only by the crackling of torches. The final showdown, set against the backdrop of ancient rituals and vengeful spirits, awaited its grim commencement.
Yu Baozhai exclaimed, "We can work out something, can't we? With the demons running around, even hiding amongst us, we could claim our world back!"
"You seek to take it back with control. I will take it back with sovereignty."
"You see yourself as a high deity. Who's more prideful, me or you?"
"I am prideful, yes. Because I have a trump card that will assist me in my journey to true ruling with sovereignty and dominion."
"I wonder what that is.."
"You'll never know. I've seen many like you try and manipulate the demon's arrival to your amusement and lust, but all fall to the same fate.."
"And what fate is that?!"
"Me."