Noah's consciousness wavered for a moment.
The next second, he had already exited the Land of Divine Punishment and snapped back into his real-world bedroom.
"What happened?" He straightened instantly, his voice urgent, eyes darting around the room.
Buzz!
The air rippled near the door, and the distortion peeled away to reveal a familiar figure.
Lin Qian, his personal bodyguard, shed her stealth mode. The mature curves beneath her combat-tight black suit shifted with her breath, but there was nothing playful about her demeanor this time. Her hand rested firmly on the hilt of a slender blade, her expression taut with danger.
She was no longer the sultry woman from the afternoon. Now she looked like a predator on the battlefield.
"Noah," Lin Qian's voice was sharp, urgent. "Five minutes ago, a void rift appeared above your school's athletic field. The Demon-Hunting Institute of Jiangnan City has already initiated a Level One War Readiness Protocol. All experts above Battle General rank are required to mobilize immediately."
Noah's breath caught. Level One War Readiness?!
Even though he didn't fully understand what a "void rift" was, he knew exactly what that protocol meant.
Level One War Readiness signaled that the city was facing a catastrophic crisis—one that justified deploying every ounce of power, no matter the cost.
In two hundred years of Jiangnan City's history, it had never once been triggered.
Noah's face hardened. "Qian-jie, are you going?"
Her hesitation was brief, but her meaning was obvious. As a second-tier Battle General, she had every reason to rush to the scene. Yet her job was to protect him.
"Yes," she finally admitted, "I'm supposed to stay with you, but I—"
Noah didn't let her finish. He was already striding toward the door. "Then stop wasting time. We'll go together."
Her eyes widened. "You're coming too?"
He flashed a crooked smile. "You're my bodyguard. If I don't go, how can I let you risk yourself alone? Besides…" His gaze sharpened with a trace of fire. "I want to see it for myself."
For a moment, her eyes softened, and then curved into a sly, knowing smile. "Noah, this time I owe you one."
He smirked. "Just remember to pay it back."
By the time the words left his lips, the two of them were already sprinting out into the night.
The moon hung high. The night wind whipped past them.
Above the city, the sky twisted unnaturally.
From within the distortion, a deep, spectral voice echoed, as if the heavens themselves carried the words.
"So… the Jiang family has been eradicated. Shame I came too late to watch."
"Hmph. Pathetic Demon-Hunting Institute. Daring to provoke the Anti-Alliance Organization? This void rift is your warning!"
A low, eerie laugh rolled across the night.
"Oh? The reports say there's a human here who awakened a second S-class combat talent? How amusing… then killing him will make this little visit worthwhile. At least the Jiang family's blood won't have been spilled in vain."
The voice dissipated, leaving only a chilling silence as the black aura dispersed into the moonlight.
On the ground, two figures—one clad in black, one in white—raced down the city streets at a speed comparable to speeding cars.
Noah barely seemed winded, his voice calm as he ran. "Qian-jie, what exactly is a void rift?"
Lin Qian's tone remained clipped, all business. "It's a special artifact circulated by the demon race. When activated, it tears open a passage in the void itself, usually for transporting soldiers. Until now, it's only ever appeared on battlefronts. Why one would manifest here, in Jiangnan City, is… troubling."
Noah's pupils narrowed slightly, a dangerous light flashing deep within.
Could it be? Did they discover I'm Demon-Slayer?
Otherwise, why would the rift appear directly above his school? Coincidence? Not a chance.
A faint crimson glow flickered near Lin Qian's earpiece. Her brows furrowed. "Report just came in—large numbers of demonic beasts are already pouring through the rift. The Demon-Hunting Institute is mobilizing every available fighter to contain them before they spread into the city."
Noah's heart tensed. "How bad is it?"
"For now, still manageable," she replied. "Two Battle Kings from the provincial institute are on-site. But no one knows how strong this rift is. The enemy forces it can spawn are unpredictable."
They sprinted past intersections, neon lights flickering over their shadows.
"Why not just destroy the rift itself?" Noah pressed.
"Impossible," she shook her head. "Rifts fall under void law. Unless the user who created it is killed, it'll just regenerate."
"The user…" Noah tilted his head up toward the night sky, his thoughts dark.
And then—
[You feel it, don't you? Someone's watching you.]
The chilling whisper of the Eyes of the Doomed jolted Noah's entire body.
A sharp, crawling sensation prickled along his skin. Something high above was watching him, malicious and hungry.
But when he glanced sideways at Lin Qian, she didn't seem to sense anything.
Stronger than her? By how much?
"Who is it?" he asked in his mind.
[Remember that Phantom Sprite you fought? This is the same type. Only… this one is at least ten times stronger.]
Ten times?!
That Phantom Sprite had been level 705. Which meant this thing was… over level 1200.
Noah hissed under his breath. A monster of that caliber could wipe cities off the map.
[Oh, she's restless. Looks like she can't wait to taste you.]
The voice sounded almost amused.
Noah came to a sudden halt.
"What's wrong?" Lin Qian stopped too, her long blade scraping sparks against the road as she slowed.
Noah's voice was steady. "School's too dangerous. I'll stay out of it. You go."
Her eyes searched his face. Then, after a beat, she nodded. "Fine. But listen to me carefully—go home, lock the doors, and don't you dare log back into the Land of Divine Punishment. I'll return as soon as I can."
Without another word, she crouched low, then shot into the sky like a streak of shadow toward Jiangnan High.
Noah's eyes followed her for a second, then hardened.
He turned and bolted in the opposite direction, moving so fast his afterimages lingered under the streetlamps.
Minutes later, he arrived at an isolated stretch on the city's outskirts. No houses. No witnesses. Just empty fields.
"Ahh, such a considerate little human," a silvery voice cooed from above. "Running off alone… just for me."
The air shuddered.
The Phantom Sprite descended from the torn void, her crimson dress whipping like flames in the wind.
But Noah's golden eyes lit up, a wicked grin curving his lips.
"Level twelve hundred, huh? Playing with the void? Do you even know who you're messing with?"
He clenched his fist.
Crack!
The void itself twisted and shattered around him, ripping apart the fabric of space.
A scream tore from the sprite's throat as she was dragged out of her sanctuary, her beautiful but twisted figure exposed in the moonlight.
Her seaweed-like hair spilled wildly, lips blood-red, her once-perfect features pale with shock.
"You—you can manipulate the void?!" Her shriek carried disbelief.
How could a human boy, barely awakened, wield such power?
Noah stood tall, golden eyes gleaming, his aura swelling with murderous intent.
"Surprised? That's not all I can do." His smile grew sharper. "But why waste time talking? Come on, try me."
The sprite's face contorted with rage. Her crimson dress fluttered violently as she lunged at him, fangs bared.
Noah's laughter rang clear into the night.
"Not so fast. If you think you can scare me—think again!"