The Guardian's molten mane erupted, flames spilling upward until they pierced the clouds. Its body grew larger, molten cracks spreading across its obsidian hide as if its very form could no longer contain its fury.
The ground shuddered. Mountains in the distance fractured. This was no longer a trial—it was annihilation.
The disciples fell to their knees, unable to withstand the pressure. Even sect elders watching from afar grew pale.
"This… this power is beyond the trial's bounds…"
"The beast has gone berserk!"
Arhaan planted his feet, chains flaring outward, forming a radiant net of interlocking sigils. Every link screamed under the pressure, each one threatening to snap.
The Guardian raised its claw, fire condensing into a single, blinding sphere of destruction—an attack that could erase not only the plateau but everyone upon it.
Kael tilted his head, crimson eyes shimmering. His aura coiled hungrily, like serpents eager for a feast.
"This is the end, Arhaan. If you survive this, you will stand among legends. If you fail… then you'll simply be forgotten."
Arhaan's chest heaved, blood dripping from his lips. His body screamed to collapse. Yet in his heart, something deeper stirred. Memories—faces of those he had protected, the weak who had no voice, the oppressed who could never climb these peaks.
If I fall… then who will protect them?
The sphere of fire descended.
The chains shattered.
Gasps rang out. Disciples screamed. The dome of sigils broke apart into a storm of fragments, scattering into the air like falling stars.
But Arhaan did not fall.
From the shattered remnants, new chains were born—each link glowing with blinding light, as though forged not of metal, but of will itself. The Crimson-Gold Chains burned brighter than ever, streaked now with silver flame.
The new chains lashed upward, weaving themselves into a colossal barrier, larger and stronger than before, intercepting the beast's strike. The explosion consumed the mountain, a cataclysm of light and fire that blinded the world.
When the flames cleared, Arhaan still stood—knees bent, body bleeding, but unbroken. His chains rattled like war drums, their glow fierce enough to rival the sun.
The disciples were silent. Then one voice whispered, trembling:
"He… he forged new chains from nothing…"
Kael's smile flickered. For the first time, the calm mask cracked. His eyes narrowed, crimson light flickering with unease.
And above them, the Guardian staggered back, its molten chest scarred by the new chains. Its roar was no longer wrathful, but uncertain—like heaven itself had been wounded.