Russ tightened his grip on the scythe until the bone-white shaft creaked. His breathing was ragged, shadows trembling along his skin.
"Live? For what?" he growled, glaring up at the Hollow King's projection. "If I run now, I'll never stop running. I'm ending this here."
The Hollow King's eyes narrowed, but the glyph in the sky flickered out. "Then burn, boy." His voice dissolved into the wind.
---
Phase Four – Blood Ignition
Russ slammed the scythe's blade into his own palm, letting the blood drip along its edge. He whispered the incantation for [Blood Ignition], and the weapon erupted in red fire. His qi output didn't just double—it detonated.
Shadows surged around him like a storm, and his eyes glowed crimson-white.
The Executioner's calm mask cracked. "You're killing yourself."
Russ bared his teeth. "Only one of us walks away."
---
The Final Clash
They moved at the same time.
The Executioner's spear became a blur of golden arcs, each one trailing ribbons of qi sharp enough to slice through stone. Russ's scythe roared with bloodfire and shadow, cutting through the golden streams as if they were cloth.
Every step Russ took shattered the ground. Every swing carved black-red wounds into the air itself.
The Executioner thrust straight for Russ's heart—Russ twisted, letting it pierce through his shoulder, using the momentum to hook the scythe's blade under the man's arm.
[Void Rend] activated. The scythe's edge didn't just cut flesh—it devoured qi. The Executioner's golden aura sputtered, his left arm going numb.
Russ snarled, blood spraying from his mouth, and drove his knee into the man's gut before spinning the scythe for a killing blow.
---
Desperation Skill – Heaven Spear Burst
But the Executioner wasn't done. He roared, pulling all his qi into the spear tip. A sun-like blast of golden energy erupted, catching Russ square in the chest.
His ribs cracked, blood gushed from his mouth, and the force hurled him through three stone pillars. His vision blurred, darkness creeping at the edges.
Still, he stood.
He staggered forward, dragging the scythe behind him, blood leaving a trail on the shattered floor. The Executioner stepped toward him too, bleeding from multiple shadow-burn wounds, but still radiating lethal intent.
---
The Killing Stroke
Both warriors charged for the final time.
The spear thrust came straight for Russ's throat. He leaned into it, letting the blade tear through his collarbone—because his scythe was already in motion.
[Blood–Shadow Execution] activated.
The scythe's arc unleashed a vortex of black and crimson energy, swallowing the Executioner from the waist up. His golden qi shattered like glass, his scream lost in the roaring void.
When the light faded, only his lower body remained before crumbling to ash.
Russ dropped to one knee, panting, his vision swimming. The fusion tattoos faded from his skin, leaving him pale and trembling.
He had won. Barely.
As the silence fell over the battlefield, Russ looked down at his blood-soaked hands and whispered to himself,
"…Never… retreat."