dark descendent lurking fate

1. The Scent of Forbidden Power

Deep in the forest beyond the town where Ash now stayed hidden, the winds stilled.

Birds fled. Insects vanished. Even the trees bent away from the center of the land.

Khur Zhal stood at the edge of a crumbled shrine, his demonic aura boiling with malice. His one remaining arm flexed, and his obsidian spear pulsed like a living curse.

> "He's here…"

"I can feel the Yin Yang Lion's remnants… and the scent of the thunder."

He raised his head to the sky—and roared, a sound that shattered mountain tops.

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2. Ash Walks Into the Storm

Ash walked calmly into the field of dead silence.

His shirt fluttered gently as if the wind bent to his presence. Shen Mu's voice echoed in his head.

> "This is no trial. This is war."

Ash's nine spirits had already emerged in a faint circle behind him—shadows of immense power waiting for command.

And from the trees ahead, Khur Zhal stepped forward, his eyes glowing like twin furnaces.

> "So… the boy who stole from heaven dares stand alone."

Ash stopped, eyes cold.

> "You talk too much for someone who lost to beasts."

> "I came to finish what they started."

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3. Clash of Titans

The earth shattered as both charged at once—no holding back.

Ash's body blurred with the power of Howling Gust, evading the sweeping spear of Khur Zhal like wind slipping through cracks.

Khur Zhal twisted mid-air, roaring, and cast a demonic art: Crimson Spike Rain, turning the battlefield into a hailstorm of blood-forged daggers.

Ash grunted and summoned Mrit. The nine-horned bull spirit materialized, his massive body shielding Ash from above with an unshakable aura.

Ash dashed in, Vulcan's blade in hand, clashing with Khur Zhal head-on.

The clash was like two mountain gods wrestling for dominance. Every impact warped the air.

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4. Equal Force, Opposite Nature

Khur Zhal swept his spear in a wide arc—but Ash bent low and used Beast Monarch Strength, his palm cracking the demon's ribs.

Khur Zhal spat blood and laughed.

> "You're no human anymore, are you?"

Ash's eyes glowed with green, black, and white—his three thrones resonating behind him like ghostly temples.

> "And you're no general anymore."

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5. A Turning Point

Khur Zhal hurled his spear into the sky and called upon his demonic domain. Black chains of shadow began erupting from the earth, aiming to bind Ash's spirit companions.

Vyren and the twin eagles howled in protest, barely dodging the seals.

Ash gritted his teeth—this was a trap.

Khur Zhal leapt behind Ash in that exact moment, his claw ripping through Ash's shoulder.

Ash staggered—but smiled.

> "You're within reach."

And he let go.

The Necromancer's Throne awakened fully—spectral hands reached out from beneath the battlefield, dragging at Khur Zhal's legs, stealing strength from his soul itself.

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6. The Fight Rages On

Now enraged, Khur Zhal broke free, black blood leaking from his mouth. He summoned Cursed Flame Armor, shrouding himself in molten shadow.

Ash, weakened, roared back—his body flickering as wind, his blade glowing from beast, and his arm cloaked in shadow.

Nine spirits howled together behind him.

They clashed again—and again—until the forest burned, the mountains shook, and even the veil between realms seemed to ripple.

And still, neither could finish the other.

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7. Interrupted By the Realms

Just as Khur Zhal prepared to unleash his final move—

—portals began to open in the sky.

Armored shadows from upper realm sects.

Masked assassins from demonic cults.

Royal envoys from kingdoms.

Everyone had arrived—hunting the boy who devoured heaven.

Ash and Khur Zhal leapt apart, both panting, both bleeding.

> "Next time," Khur Zhal growled, vanishing in smoke.

"There won't be interruptions."

Ash remained standing—barely—and the eyes of countless powers now fell on him.

> "He's the one…"

"The three thrones."

"That's the Heaven-Devourer."

Ash slowly turned to face them all.

> "So this is how it begins."

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