In the heart of the dense forest, a series of repetitive thuds reverberated through the air, each impact echoing with a sinister promise.
A woman stood amidst the foliage, her face twisted into a frightening grin. In each of her hands, she held the heads of two young girls.
Their once distinctive features now lost beneath a veil of unimaginable violence. Their pristine Snow White hair had been reduced to a ghastly tableau of crimson, their frail forms contorted beyond recognition, and their hands hanging limply at their sides.
As she abruptly halted her brutal display, she raised the two girls once more, her voice dripping with lunacy as she addressed them, "Hahah, how does it feel, huh? How does it feel to be useless? Do you really think you can stand in my way!?"
She received no response as she continued her sadistic monologue. With a final, brutal flourish, she slammed their ravaged bodies into the already battered tree.
The force shattered the remnants of the tree, showering the forest with splintered fragments, and causing unimaginable agony to course through the girls' broken forms.
With a wicked grin, she added, "Now, watch as I slowly snuff out his life, hehehe." But just as she was about to turn away, Ember and Aurora, both battered and bloodied, began to stir. Their trembling hands rose, their hands lifting slowly.
"Hm?" Malora muttered, her brow furrowing in surprise. Both girls grabbed the hand holding their heads and locked onto her with intense gazes, silently conveying the message: "Don't touch him."
Seeing the determined expressions on their faces, Malora's own countenance darkened, and she muttered frantically "No, no, no, no... This isn't the way it was meant to be!" Frustration surged within her as she raged against the unexpected turn of events. "You should be feeling despair! Begging me to spare you! Not this!"
Aurora, her voice barely a whisper amidst the torment ravaging her body, mustered a taunting smile as she murmured, "Hehe, don't touch him, you... bitch."
Ember also joined in, gathering blood filled spit in her mouth and defiantly spitting it at Malora.
Although Malora had the power to dodge the attack, even incinerate it before it got close, she was so taken aback by everything happening around her that she failed to react in time. The bloody spit struck her squarely on her cheek, smearing her left cheek
The repulsive saliva struck Malora's cheek, jolting her back to reality. Her expression twisted with anger, and she bellowed, "How dare you!" She instantly intensified her grip on Aurora and Ember's heads, attempting to crush them in her rage.
In response, both Aurora and Ember let out piercing screams that cut through the still night. Just as Malora's hands were about to close in on their heads, suddenly, a brilliant azure energy suddenly erupted from the ground a few meters away, bathing the entire forest in an otherworldly, luminous radiance.
The ethereal light extended skyward, as if it aimed to pierce the very heavens.
Within this dazzling display, Atticus's eyes burst open with a sudden jolt. His entire being was encompassed by a pulsating, vivid blue energy, surging with an electrifying vitality, emanating an aura of sheer power.
'What is happening?' Atticus pondered, his thoughts racing. He had been conversing with Cedric just moments ago, and now he found himself here, experiencing this intense energy coursing through his entire existence.
'Was this the surprise?' he thought. He assumed that this was the surprised Cedric had said was waiting for him.
Atticus was feeling good. Incredibly good. It was something hard to describe; it was as if he could do anything, as if nothing could rival his newfound strength, as if he was invincible.
No, it wasn't hard to describe, he understood it perfectly well. This energy coursing through his body was POWER.
It was power at its purest form. It wasn't empowering a particular thing on his body; it was empowering everything. His body, his mana, his bloodline, his strength, his intelligence, and perception, every facet of his being was amplified!
Every single one of his injuries was healed in an instant. He had never felt this good before in his life.
His eyes swept through the scene with a gaze, already seeing everything in a 300 meter radius with pinpoint precision. His expression darkened as he saw some lifeless bodies of trainees strewn across the ground.
His gaze turned frightening as he saw Ember and Aurora being held by the head by Malora, screaming in pain. Without wasting even a single second, Atticus moved.
Every single one of these events happened in less than a second. The current speed of Atticus's thoughts was beyond what many could fathom.
Malora had just taken notice of the blinding blue light emanating from her right. But before she could even react, an overwhelming, bone-crushing force collided with her head, causing a cataclysmic impact.
The strength was so immense that her cheekbone immediately caved in, her head caved in, and in a split second, her head exploded like a ripe tomato struck by an unstoppable wrecking ball.
Astrion and Vorlock's eyes immediately narrowed to pinpricks. What in the world had just happened? They were both unable to catch a thing. They both just suddenly saw a blue light ascending in the sky and suddenly, Malora's head bursting.
Their attention shifted abruptly to the source.
Before them stood a young man, his snow-white hair cascading majestically, his figure suspended in mid air. A brilliant, searing blue light emanated from his form, shrouding him entirely.
His luminous blue eyes blazed with a remarkable intensity, radiating a deeper, almost cerulean hue. A katana, humming with an uncontrollable energy, was securely fastened to his waist.
Atticus directed his gaze upward, fixing it firmly on Astrion and Vorlock, his voice chilling as he declared, "You're dead."
