"What is this?! Damn it!" Valdraxx yelled, his voice filled with anger and confusion. He struggled, exerting all his remaining strength to free himself, but the trap seemed made of a material that was either ancient magic or a human-made device.
His still-healing wounds made every movement feel like being sliced. Valdraxx was trapped, his body feeling weaker, and despair began to creep into his mind.
He knew that even after surviving the Judgment Fire, the battle was not over. In this foreign world, Valdraxx realized, a greater threat awaited. Trapped in a large snare that worsened his wounds, Valdraxx growled in rage.
Every movement only intensified the pain of the trap. The cold night air added to the sting of his burnt skin, and the hunger he had just quelled by hunting the strange creature began to claw at him again.
Amidst this struggle, he heard footsteps approaching from a distance. Not the steps of an animal, but a more orderly sound human footsteps.
"Get something?" a low voice came from one of the figures approaching. The voice was followed by a commanding grip from another. "Be careful. This is no ordinary creature."
Valdraxx squinted, trying to gauge who was approaching. From behind the bushes, a group of humans appeared, seemingly ready to confront the threat.
They looked different from ordinary soldiers; they wore strange protective gear, wielding weapons unknown to Valdraxx, and radiated a strong alertness.
Among them, a taller man with a confident demeanor stepped forward. His dark, short hair and sharp, vigilant eyes bore a symbol on his chest that was unfamiliar to Valdraxx.
Valdraxx knew how weak he was at that moment. His body, riddled with wounds, especially from the Judgment Fire attack, had not fully healed.
His energy was nearly spent, and each breath felt heavier.
He was in an unfamiliar place, surrounded by humans who clearly understood this environment better than he did.
The battle was over, but Valdraxx felt no sense of victory. His once-mighty and powerful body now lay on the ground, severely wounded, black blood flowing from cracks in his once-impervious scales.
Ethan, the cunning and brave human, had done something Valdraxx never imagined being swallowed alive, yet it was Ethan who struck from within, destroying Valdraxx's vitality.
Valdraxx felt destruction closing in. Each heartbeat felt like unending suffering. His power, once unmatched, was fading. His vision began to blur, breath coming in gasps, and for the first time, the great dragon felt true fear.
But that fear quickly transformed into burning anger. Amidst the pain, memories flooded back to the elders, the tribe guardians, and everyone who dared to stand in his way.
They were all enemies who had insulted his existence. That feeling of humiliation stirred something within him.
"Those elders… The weak guardians… Do they think they can stop me? They only slow fate," Valdraxx thought, teeth clenched. "I am not done. My goal is not yet achieved. Is this the end? No… I refuse!"
In his dying condition, Valdraxx forced himself to stand. Every movement was agony, but his hatred fueled his last strength. His body trembled, breath raspy, yet his mind was clear on one thing: revenge. Revenge on the world, on humans, on anyone who dared to obstruct his ambition.
"I cannot die now… I must… take my revenge…" Valdraxx hissed.
Then he remembered something an ancient technique passed down in the lineage of the greatest dragons, a final power he could use when everything seemed lost.
It was dangerous, but this was his only chance to save himself.
"This is not the end. I… will transcend death," Valdraxx murmured, his head bowed in deep concentration.
His glowing eyes slowly dimmed, replaced by a magical flash from within. His body began to chant an ancient incantation, one understood only by those with pure dragon blood.
Valdraxx called upon his last energy, accessing the core of his dragon power. The core that contained all his strength would now be used as fuel for Spirit Transcendence, a transformation in which his physical body would vanish, but his spirit would transcend the dimensions of life and death.
It was a desperate act, but Valdraxx knew that if he did not do this, everything would end here.
"Now… my spirit will transcend everything. With this, I will never be defeated. My revenge will continue."
As the incantation concluded, Valdraxx's body began to change. His hard black scales began to dissolve into dust.
Piece by piece, his physical form shattered, dissolving into the night wind. In this process, the precious artifact he had obtained through blood and struggle also disintegrated with him.
The energy from the artifact fused with Valdraxx's body, as if merging with his fading power.
Ethan, who was still inside Valdraxx, was also caught up in this process. His swallowed body now shattered along with the great dragon, dissolving into nothingness.
No more flesh and blood remained, only pure energy that would be carried by Valdraxx's spirit into Spirit Transcendence.
Though his physical body might be destroyed, Valdraxx's soul did not die. He had become something more than just a living creature an entity operating beyond the boundaries of life.
The dust of his body soared with the wind, scattering in all directions, carrying with it his burning hatred, his unquenchable vengeance.
In the darkness of the night, Valdraxx had vanished, yet his presence could still be felt. The transcendent spirit of Valdraxx now lurked, formless, but with a purpose stronger than ever before.
The world no longer knew what had happened to the black dragon, but one thing was certain, Valdraxx was not finished. His revenge would continue, and anyone who had ever obstructed him would feel his unending wrath.
And somewhere, in another dimension, Valdraxx's spirit chuckled softly. This was not the end. This was a new beginning.