Ren lay on the ground, his body bruised and battered, unable to move. He felt weak and with the chains sucking the mana out of his, his breath came in ragged gasps. Then, a soft voice echoed throughout, piercing through the haze of pain.

"You're strong, Ren, but you've gravely miscalculated the amount of time it would take for him to gather toward all seven pillars..."

The voice said, and he strained to listen, turning his head towards the source.

There, standing before the sun, was a figure that cast a brilliant glow. Ren squinted against the blinding light, trying to make out Jezebeth's figure that was hidden behind the glowing light of the sun.

He looked powerful at this moment…

More powerful than he had ever seen him in the past.

Clank. Clank. Clank.

Ren strained with every last ounce of his strength, extending his hand towards Jezebeth and tearing at the chains in his way.

As he covered his figure with his hand, his vision darkened, and he no longer needed to squint. Simultaneously, he sensed an immense power gathering above him, the air trembling with its intensity.

Ren was prepared for it.

He gazed at the chains binding him, briefly closing his eyes, and then slowly clenched his hand.

Chains... he wasn't unfamiliar with them. He had been bound by them for a very long time, especially ones that had been imbued with the laws.

They were like an extension of his body by this point, and they didn't bother him very much.

When he opened his eyes again, sunlight filtered through his fingers as his extended hand, which was aimed above his face, came to a close.

Cr...Crack!

With a resounding crack, the space around Jezebeth shattered like a broken mirror, revealing his figure, frozen, and standing behind the fractured barrier.

"If someone has miscalculated, it's you... Jezebeth."

Ren muttered in a low tone, his eyes fixed on the chains still clinging to his hand. He clenched both fists, and the chains disintegrated into tiny particles, followed by the chains that bound his feet.

Ren reached for a potion, slowly rising to his feet and patting down his clothes.

"As I said before..."

His vision suddenly blurred, and he reappeared in front of Jezebeth, who was trapped behind the shattered glass, seemingly frozen.

"...You only got a fraction of your deductions correct."

Ren pressed his hand forward, shattering the space around Jezebeth, and his figure vanished into nothingness.

Crash—! What followed was utter and complete silence as a gentle breeze blew past, scattering Ren's hair slightly.

"..."

Ren stood motionless, staring at the spot where Jezebeth used to be before suddenly bringing his hand over to his mouth.

"Pftt."

A dark red substance filtered past the narrow gaps of his fingers as his face became incomparably pale. Although his expression had no change, his entire figure was trembling.

Clearly, what he had just done had taken a huge toll on his body.

A testament to this was the fact that he soon felt his body plummet to the streets beneath, crashing down on them and breaking a few cars along the way.

BANG—!

"Haaa… haaa…"

Breathing heavily, Ren stared at the distant sun with a blank look.

Almost every fiber of his muscles was torn, and his bones were on the verge of breaking apart. The extent of his injuries was so severe that Ren didn't even bother taking out a potion to heal himself.

He knew that it'd be of no use to him.

'I,I guess this is… the extent of this body…'

On any normal occasion, he would've been able to last a lot longer. In fact, he would've perhaps even been able to beat him, but…

The current situation was different.

He wasn't at his full strength.

The other him was still lurking around the pillars, collecting the remnants of the Protectors, and fighting against the Seven Demon Heads.

In order to ensure that he could fight against them, Ren had to restrict the amount of mana he could use. It put him at a severe disadvantage and made things a lot more difficult for him.

But that was fine…

This was the path that he had chosen.

"Haaaa…"

Taking another deep breath, Ren stared at the sky and closed his eyes.

For now…

All he could do was wait.

He had done enough.

Cr— Crash!

The space around him collapsed.

***

WOOOM—!

Coming out of the dimensional space, Ryan stumbled a couple of steps forward until he fell to his knees.

Feeling the hard ground beneath, he looked up at the sky and stared at the distant sun.

The blue sky… It was a familiar sight. When he looked around him and saw the crumbled buildings, his eyes started to clear up.

"Finally… we're back."

His emotions were complicated at the moment. He wasn't sure how to feel.

He was partly glad that he was back, but as the images of what had happened before continued to flash in his mind, he found himself struggling to keep himself composed as his hands slowly came to a close.

"D-damn it."

If only… if only he was more talented in combat instead of intellect.

He was so close to him, and yet all he could do was watch as he died right before his eyes.

He couldn't even do a thing!

The same was for Smallsnake.

If only…

"Haaa… now's not the time"

Taking one big breath, Ryan forced himself to calm down. He was no longer a teenager. He could no longer dwell on such matters as he did in the past.

He had to keep himself focused on the goal at hand.

Mourning came later.

Rumble—! Rumble—!

Hearing the muffled rumbling coming from the distance, he was reminded of what he needed to do, and he quickly sobered up.

"Nothing's changed."

The only thing that changed was the location of where the war was taking place.

'I need to get into contact with the others.'

Taking out his phone, Ryan was just about to send a message to the others and verify who was there, when, all of a sudden, he stopped.

WOOOM—!

Thump—! Thump—!

Overhearing two thumps from behind, Ryan turned his head to see Emma appear from the dimensional crack. She had awakened not too long after the Pillar had collapsed, and despite his offer to assist her, she had declined his help.

Next to her was Leopold's body.

"H..help me."

Emma tiredly called out for him as she heavily gulped for air, her face extremely pale.

"Ah… yes."

Helping himself up, Ryan moved toward Emma and offered her a couple of potions.

"Drink these; it should help you heal up."

Handing over the potions, he didn't even bother looking at Emma.

She was lying next to Leopold's body, and he didn't want to be reminded of his failure.

Not again.

"Don't… you have any more?"

"I didn't give you enough?"

Frowning, Ryan finally looked at Emma. At a glance, she seemed to have recovered somewhat, and she still had several potions at hand.

"It doesn't look like you need any, so wh—"

"Not me, idiot."

Emma cut, pointing at Leopold.

"Him."

"Ah?"

***

[Pillar of Glutony]

'This can't be happening...'

Han Yufei was known for his unwavering composure in even the most tumultuous of situations.

He had faced numerous challenges and crises throughout his life, but none of them had ever fazed him quite like the scene that played out before him at this very moment.

As he gazed into the distance, his heart pounded in his chest and his palms grew sweaty, betraying the control he had so carefully cultivated over the years.

"He's absolutely insane."

Han Yufei muttered under his breath, his voice barely audible over the cacophony of explosions that echoed through the air.

"He's lost his mind!"

Despite his attempts to remain calm, Han Yufei found himself caught in the grip of an overwhelming sense of dread.

His eyes were fixed on the distant figures engaged in combat, their movements blurred by the sheer intensity of their struggle.

As he strained to see through the haze of dust and smoke, Han Yufei's gaze fell upon the Pillar Master of Gluttony, a fearsome demoness whose immense power sent shockwaves rippling through the earth itself.

Booom—! Booom—!

Despite her plump and seemingly innocuous appearance, there was no mistaking the lethal force that radiated from her being.

As she unleashed a barrage of devastating attacks, the very land beneath her feet trembled and cracked, unable to withstand the full force of her fury.

Rumble! Rumble!

Han Yufei could see the devastation wrought by her power, the shattered remains of the land and trees were strewn about like so much debris.

For a moment, Han Yufei felt a pang of despair. How could anyone hope to stand against such a force? And yet, at the very moment, two such figures were fighting against her.

They were none other than Maylin, the elven queen, and Liam...

Yes, Liam...

"What the fuck is he doing!?"

The realization hit him like a ton of bricks, and Han Yufei lost his composure.

He knew Liam very well by now, and if there was something he understood, it was that he was a total maniac.

At a glance, he could tell that he had chosen to deliberately challenge the Pillar Master. Even if he was weaker than her!

"Damn it, Liam!"

Booom—!

"Ukh."

Another explosion shook the ground beneath his feet, sending Han Yufei stumbling backward.

He struggled to maintain his balance, his mind racing with thoughts regarding Liam's safety, but when he looked up and saw several powerful demons appear nearby, he knew that he had to worry about something else.

"Fuck it."

He cursed, throwing one last glance at Liam while taking out his broadsword.

"I'll cover for you just this time."

Clenching onto his broadsword, his entire figure doubled in size, and his power suddenly exploded. Without wasting a single second, the ground cracked underneath his foot, and he slashed with his sword once.

Swoosh—!