Chương 60: Desperation

Everything happened in an instant. The fire golem's desperate roar shook the whole forest, the flames on the verge of disappearing roared back to life as if in a magic show. But instead of continuing to spread aimlessly, they were pulled back in lightning speed and merged into the spirit's body. The being swelled, swelled, and erupted with a boom. Demoness's face twisted, stumbling back with heavy steps. The ground ruptured underneath her, and lava gushed.

But Ren didn't have time to worry about her as a wall of flames shot at him. The golem reformed in front of him, those two revolving, fiery holes glaring down. FU— A truck-sized fist slammed into him. That was it. Ren's vision darkened all of a sudden, and when he opened his eyes back up, he realized he was staring at the sky. Flying like a ragdoll, he crashed hard.

"Ugh!" Fresh blood spurted out of his mouth. And… Something else crashed onto him. Or exploded on him, he couldn't discern, ears ringing, body numb. He tasted ash, soil, and something metallic. Blood? Probably. His lungs burned for air, but his body wouldn't respond. Breath came out wrong and never came in— all he could do was a thin, shrill wheeze like a fucked-up idiot. His mind was hazy, and so was his sight. A shadow… no, a searing ball of light falling on him. His fingers twitched. Then his armored hand moved.

It was agonizingly slow, stiff and… fake, as though an invisible hand had tugged at a puppet's string. Where the mind failed, instinct took over. His hand clenched into a fist! Moonlight energy didn't fail him, and Ren suddenly felt he was able to breathe once again. He drew a sharp breath at that instant, chest rising to the limit. His half-closed eyes ignited, gray erased in an instant as a brutal crimson blaze burst forth—"FUCK OFF!"

A primal scream tore through his throat, blood spurting out of his mouth, nose, eyes, and even his ears. That same green, phantom figure rose into the sky with a roar, both hands raised in rage. Swelling into a giant, it didn't even wait for full materialization— swinging a mighty punch. Rumble! The fist collided with the golem's stomp. Ren's eyes turned bloodshot as the phantom figure crashed down. It failed to put in even a little struggle, only gaining him a few seconds.

But those precious seconds turned out to be the difference between life and death.

"Who do you think you are kicking?!" Demoness flashed behind the golem, her leg ripping apart the very air like a blade. Her kick threw off its balance, causing it to miss Ren and stumble onto its knees. Obviously not caring about its state, she rushed to his side.

"Ren—" Ren didn't answer. He had gotten up at one point, but he hadn't even noticed, his vision tunneling only to the golem. It raised its head, sparks rained down, and flames parted away to let out another howl.

"Shut the hell up," he spat through clenched teeth, and the phantom figure charged out. He punched the empty air. Boom! The phantom figure copied his stance, its previously illusory form finally solid. Its crown flared wildly as one punch cut short the golem's voice, making it stagger. At the same time, Ren's will flared once more, colors draining out of the world. Already thrown caution to the wind, he sent as many lines as he could control. Bang! Bang! Bang!

Punch after punch rained, each one connecting with a solid thud. The golem, disoriented, reeled back, destroying anything beneath its feet. And with every line connecting, its flames rippled violently and hoarse growls rose. Yet the one-sided beating came to an abrupt end when the phantom faltered mid-punch. Its head slumped forward, its form momentarily losing cohesion. Ren froze. All the colors returned as he lowered his head and stared at his cold hands. His strength… had depleted? I…

A sudden heat wave struck his face, his complexion turning ashen. No more holding, the phantom figure began to dissipate. It turned at the last second and gave him a glance before fading out of sight. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Ren collapsed. Not in a dramatic way, or with any dignity. No. He crashed face-first into the dirt.

"You idiot." Fortunately, Demoness caught him in time. She supplied him with some energy, though it had no healing effect and only gave him enough strength to stand on his own.

"When did you get this 'desperate effort till the end' mindset, huh?" she muttered, waving her fist as though considering hitting his head. But she decided otherwise in the end, pushing his hair plastered over his forehead back.

"Great, now that you spent all your will and even provoked it this much, we have no choice but to destroy it." Ren evaded her gaze. He had nothing to say, after all. He turned back at the golem and saw the enforcers had already come to their help, flying around it like annoying flies. Surprisingly, their attacks seemed to be working. But how? Snorting the blood out of his nostrils, he took a long, deep breath. His thundering heartbeat also slowed. It shrank its body?

Before the golem exploded, it easily towered at ten meters or so, almost the same as Phantom Blade. But now it wasn't even five meters, and despite its aura growing heavier, the same couldn't be said for its defenses. Ah, where is Phantom Blade? Thinking this, his eyes searched around but couldn't find the gentle beast. There was no sign of the other beasts either.

"We are here, human." That soft voice came from behind him. Ren turned with Demoness's help. Phantom Blade was standing there, leaning on the support of three bovine beasts.

"You're not going to say anything?" Demoness asked, nudging his stomach with her elbow. Even though she was careful to use almost no force, Ren felt a sharp pain in his ribs, and a small groan escaped. Shaking his head at her antics, Ren forced a wry smile.

"Go and help them. I'm alright." She raised a brow, but seeing him pry open her hand and manage to stand, she nodded and stepped back to the battlefield. She ignored his slightly wobbling state. He wouldn't die, at the very least. Ren followed her with his eyes, struggling to keep his emotions under check. At least he didn't want to parade an awful state.

"I won't lie— you look pretty pathetic," Phantom Blade transmitted its voice. Its mouth was in no shape to talk properly.

"Heh," Ren answered in kind, "as if you're any different." They remained silent for a moment, then both of them broke into chuckles.

"I messed up big time," Ren said, finding a broken tree to lean on. He slowly slipped to the ground.

"Like always." He whispered the latter.

"You should have let me do my thing. You humans are always too stubborn for your own good." Phantom Blade sent the trio to help, then settled beside him, curling up its tail and sitting like a human. Interesting sight. But what wasn't interesting in this new reality of his? Heck, he was having a 'pleasant' chat while a deadly fight was happening a little farther from them. Ah, there was also the fact that he'd just gotten his ass handed to him, and blood was still trickling down his face.

That must be the real interesting sight. Also, when had he become this talkative? Wiping his mouth, Ren threw these idle thoughts aside. Instead, he focused on another thing he had missed earlier. Why haven't I seen any predators remain behind to help? Thinking now, it was strange. Including Phantom Blade, no matter what its appearance suggested, only herbivore beasts had chosen to help. He watched them. They had charged in, without using any beast arts. They haven't even waited to find an opportunity.

And flung away by simple slaps, no surprise there. They still tried. As it ought to be, predators were better suited to these kinds of things, even if he set aside their power and just considered their nature. So they're just a bunch of scaredy-cats, huh… Call it hunters' 'first of all self-protection' instinct or anything else, Ren found the act selfish. And understandable, more than these misfits of beasts.

"Don't talk like it was your responsibility to sacrifice yourself," he scowled.

"It's irritating."

"Why? Seeing your reflection rubs you the wrong way?"

"I'd greatly appreciate it if you stopped roasting me." Ren scrunched his nose.

"Someone else did that enough already." The beast gave him a strange look, as though it couldn't understand his words.

"You're a handful."

"Heard that." Ren chuckled.

"Through all my childhood. Didn't seem to help, though."

"I assume you've taken your fair share of beatings for it as well," the beast rattled out a hoarse chuckle.

"They should have hit harder. You see, what's a few broken bones if it kept you from being such a stubborn prick?"

"You think they didn't wanna?" Ren shook his head wryly. He had troubled his mother countless times, and being sensitive, he could always catch her urge to smack his ass. She hadn't, of course, except that fated day, her heart too soft for it. Maybe she… fucking hell, I don't know. Phantom Blade went silent for a minute, gazing absently at the fight. The golem was obviously struggling as Demoness vented her anger on it.

Its size had shrunk by one more meter, its howls constantly shaking the forest, or at least what remained of it. Although the wildfire had ended, all that remained were ruins blanketed by ash and the smell of death. Months, even years, were needed for nature to claim it back and give life again.

"Why?" Ren asked.

"What?" the beast blanked.

"Why were you willing to die for something that had nothing to do with you?"

"Nothing to do with me? This has been my home for more than five centuries, human. How could I ever bring myself to stand aside and watch it burn?"

"You'd have failed." Ren stared into its beastly eyes.

"And you knew that. The problem isn't the wildfire; it's that golem. So your sacrifice wouldn't stop the destruction of the forest, only weaken the golem. You can't be selfless enough to help a human you've just met by giving away your life."

"Guess not."

"Why not enlighten me, then?" It didn't answer immediately. A faint, silvery light slowly seeped from its pores, accompanied by its green energy. As Ren watched, the scars painted the brutal past it had experienced, until almost no spot was left illuminated.

"I miss Mama." The beast let out a deep sigh.

"We lived in a peaceful community— everyone got along. No violence. No hunger. No greed. The days we ran across the endless plains, drinking cold water straight from springs, and grazing on dew-kissed grass… they were beautiful. Innocent. Unlike you humans, she believed beasts could build a life of harmony if they gathered together. That's why she named me Serene, dreaming of a life for me, far removed from all the filth and chaos of this bloody world." Here comes the tragic backstory…

he mocked internally, but didn't show it on his face.

"What happened to her?" Ren asked quietly.

"Her ideals drew noble beasts' ire." Serene scowled, its face twisting.

"Those bastards didn't like the thought of harmony, so they sent a beast of Dawn. I'm the sole survivor, and only because that beast didn't dare to enter your sect's territory at that time." All of a sudden, all the scars faded, giving way to a claw-mark embedded in its blade-like ridge. It lifted its head to gaze at the dark sky.

"This was the first scar my kind bestowed on me, heralding all the others that would follow till the day I, and my Mama's ideal, die. So I thought: why give them the joy of taking my life, when I could cast everything aside for a noble cause Mama would appreciate?" It muttered, a bitter laugh escaping. Ren opened his mouth, but found he couldn't say anything. No matter how he wanted to mock it, to dissipate the heavy atmosphere, he couldn't. Serene turned to him, that gentle glance once again appearing in its eyes.

"And in doing so, I could also give you an opportunity and pay back my debt to your elders for all the times they sheltered this useless beast…"

"You brat, who dares to say you're useless?"