Depthless Hunger

Chapter 215: A Long Forgotten Rivalry

Kai ran through the city, struggling with his instincts. Zae Zin Nim was sorely outnumbered at the gates, Nirka and Maggle were under heavy assault, and the main army was barely entrenched at Mercantile Central. He wanted to go help any or all of them, but at this stage the battle was joined and he had to trust in the strength of his allies.

Instead he ran into the city to take on one of the Diamond Crystalliers.

If they had all stayed together, the revolutionaries would have had to concentrate their forces too, leading to an extremely chaotic battle. Kai hadn't been able to predict how such a thing would end, but Krainuun's analysis suggested that it wouldn't happen. Even if the merchants were all technically working together, when Yulthens was under threat, they would look after their own interests.

As soon as the walls were retaken, Vyorrine had raced inward. She had two Ruby Crystalliers running after her, one who looked a bit Goralian and the other a vaguely familiar squat Krysali. So, in addition to all of Vyorrine's powers, he might have to deal with crystal cultivation and Class abilities.

"Got your back!" Kraetius suddenly appeared beside him. He looked more anxious than he should have, given that the two of them were less vulnerable than most, but he was a good ally to have on hand. Kai nodded to him and they sprinted across the city on their D rank Physiques.

They intercepted Vyorrine in the middle of a street. There had been parks and statues there once, but they were abandoned, a few floating crystals bumping forlornly against the walls. Vyorrine's eyes flickered around the street, as if considering whether or not she could get around them, and then she dropped into a combat stance.

Neither one of them was shrouding or holding back, not now, so he got a clear look at her soul.

Name: Vyorrine Nermtrian

Total Power: 417

Flamecaster Class: 43 (53)

Waterborn: Firstswept (91)

Path of Steel: Steel 2 (40)

Crystal Cultivation: 2806 (75)

Physique Level: E-3 (89)

Soul Level: 7 (49)

Golden Dragon Breath (+20)

>

She'd grown stronger since her exhibition match, which was to be expected for the top of the entire nation. The bigger danger than her incremental improvements was the possibility that she was using her subtle shroud to hide some new ability she'd acquired since then. Others in the revolution were more worried about other Diamonds, but by his judgment Vyorrine was the most unpredictable of them.

At the same time she was analyzing him, and what she saw didn't lead her to attack. As someone who specialized in hiding skills at the highest level, it was possible that she saw some hint of deeper power within him, which would give her pause. She was definitely narrowing her eyes like she didn't want this fight.

"Kai!" The squat Krysali man muscled forward with a shout. "Every time I think you're dead, you crawl back to taunt me again. But you went too far this time, trying to destroy everything. Your luck comes to an end now!"

For just a moment, Kai had no idea who it was. He looked closer and some part of his mind must have remembered, because the name appeared in symbols of the man's soul.

Name: Graetri of Yulthens

Total Power: 271

Crystal Cultivation: 99,480 (199)

Physique Level: F-8 (46)

Soul Level: 4 (16)

Dragontouched (+10)

>

It had been a long time since he'd seen Graetri, and he hadn't really thought about him much. Apparently that had not been the case for the Ruby Crystallier. He'd grown a little stronger since they'd last met, but hadn't been able to cultivate many crystals - another consequence of the gold to crystal ratio.

"Last time we fought side by side," Kai said cautiously. "I'm not here to destroy, I-"

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"Now you're fighting alongside the Maneater we were trying to kill! Anything you say will just be another goddamn lie!"

Graetri launched himself forward, his crystal necklaces burning with qi. The other Ruby Crystallier leapt into action as well, but Kraetius caught him in midair and they grappled in the other direction. That unfortunately left Vyorrine free to wait for her moment.

There was no point holding back, not against some rival he barely remembered. Kai swung his arm overhead and flattened his opponent with a Tyrant's Claw. The impact sent the man into the street and splintered some of his crystals, but he got up the next second... and met Kai's kick to his face.

Somehow Graetri didn't collapse and instead grabbed his foot. More crystals continued to grow around them both, trying to pin him in place. Graetri's eyes began to glow golden as he prepared a new technique.

"Did you forget I was Dragontouched?" The other man let out a laugh. "You can't-"

Kai exerted the full capacity of Direboar's Strength. Fueled by the Myogenecon and enhanced by his new Physique, he shattered the crystals so effortlessly that he ended up striking his opponent with more force than he intended. Most of the necklaces shattered, followed by several of the man's bones, and the Ruby Crystallier tumbled off the side.

Then the golden flames engulfed Kai from behind.

It was the greatest risk they had been considering from the beginning: the Diamond Crystalliers would be difficult to defeat on their own, and with strong allies they could deal crippling strikes. But it was no accident that he'd tried to track Vyorrine first, because he'd anticipated exactly this.

She was still breathing out the golden flames when Kai walked out of the inferno. The fires had burned away the remnants of his shirt, but they only heated his skin. He'd survived much worse from the golden dragon, and Behemoth's Heart had been working ever since then, strengthening him.

"A real golden dragon tried that too," Kai said calmly. "That isn't going to work anymore."

"Shit." Vyorrine drew her sword while shooting a glance toward Kraetius and the other Ruby Crystallier still fighting. "I thought I was rising fast, but you..."

"Who exactly are you fighting for?" Kai asked. He spread his arms to either side to encompass the city. "You've seen the revolution spread across the entire nation. How long do you think your employers are going to keep fulfilling their promises?"

"Hah, and you think your band of peasants can do better?"

"I'm not trying to convince you to join, just think about whether this is worth the fight. How long will the merchants of Yulthens take to recover from this? Are you willing to risk your life just to help them rebuild?" Kai loosened his knees and tightened his fingers into claws. "If you decide you're going to try to kill me, you'd better do it now, because this will be your only chance."

Vyorrine stared at him a long moment, then suddenly sheathed her sword. "You don't plan to hunt me down?"

"If you abandon the merchants now, everyone will consider you one of them. Aren't there other powers you could be seeking somewhere else?"

"Well... I guess crystal cultivation is getting old." Vyorrine glanced over the city, shrugged as if to herself, and then leapt into the wind.

Kai tracked her, just in case she was lying to circle back, but it seemed like he'd gotten through to her. With so many fighters attracted by nothing but money, he'd hoped that he could reach at least one. He'd planned a lot of other arguments, then the very first one had worked. Apparently Vyorrine didn't need much convincing to focus on her own interests.

With her gone, Kai took out Graetri for good and then went to help Kraetius end his fight. The old man looked oddly uncomfortable, his eyes staring not quite at Kai but past him.

"Is something wrong?" Kai asked.

The old man flinched, then raised a finger to point toward the wall.

"What?" Kai turned in time to see something gleam bright red.

Suortril stood atop the city wall with three Ruby Crystalliers at his side. It took all three of them to power the device he was using, which was some sort of ruby the size of a boulder. Mystical symbols had been etched across it, glowing brighter red than the ruby itself as the process was completed. From so far away, there was nothing Kai could do.

Clearly it was a weapon, but Kai didn't see what he intended to do with it. He was uncertain right up until the point when Suortril made a gesture and the ruby was launched into Yulthens.

In that instant, Kai understood two things. First: when the ruby hit, the qi inside would cause immense devastation, likely enough to destroy any part of the army in range. Second: Suortril was entirely conscious of striking at his own city. He was willing to destroy anything to win this fight, because he believed that literally everything in his world was at stake.

The ruby sailed overhead, deceptively slowly, and he realized that it was going to hit Mercantile Central. Yurwa, Cragrila, and all the others would vanish in a flash of red light.

Kai ran to intercept it, first raising a hand and then lowering it. No, striking the ruby would probably set it off, and even in the air it could hurt everyone. That meant he really only had one weapon available to him.

When Kai activated Void Gaze, his will shot out from him to bind the ruby... and the weapon struck back. Kai stumbled back a step, his feet digging into the street. The weapon was filled with so much qi and malicious energy, and it couldn't be intimidated. Void Gaze slowed it down, but it was still moving. In fact, with its slowed pace it seemed to be arcing down toward him.

He drew on his monstrous power as deeply as he could, focusing on Void Gaze like never before. By the end Kai was roaring, but the ruby came to a halt in the air. Its momentum was spent, but nothing was holding it up but Void Gaze.

Kai had never needed to blink while using it, but now his eyes itched.

As the seconds stretched on, the malicious energy of the ruby kept burning, as if eager to explode.

Around him, others were starting to notice. It was only a matter of time before they found the courage to hit him with ranged attacks and try to shake his concentration.

Before it could happen, a black form flitted from the side. Zae Zin Nim arced through the air, directly toward the ruby bomb. She was being pursued by the enemy cultivator, but this wasn't a gambit to save herself. When she reached the ruby she dealt a palm strike that stopped just before the surface. The force of her qi pushed the ruby back in the other direction, sailing toward the wall and the merchant army.

She danced on, staying barely ahead of her opponent, but Kai could only stare at the impact.

For a moment, a sunset exploded at the edge of the city. The blinding crimson was followed by a shockwave that knocked over many of the soldiers and practically blinded others. Kai narrowed his eyes and refused to look away, watching as the qi from the ruby expanded and destroyed the walls of Krysal as well as a major portion of the enemy army.

When it faded, however, leaving the air itself glowing red, there was one figure still in the center. Suortril straightened within his prism and brushed away some dust distastefully.

The battle was against the Diamond Crystalliers, yes, and they couldn't win without confronting them one way or another. But this was a reminder of something Kai had forgotten: they were fighting Suortril and all of Krysal.

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