As he gazed at the sky, Aconé knew they had to hurry and join the others. But Tony showed no sign of moving.
Lost in his own thoughts, Tony drifted within the depths of his consciousness. His face wasn't marked by sadness but by a dark intensity. He listened to his inner voice.
Should I drown myself in anger or some other nonsense? he thought. After all, that's life… Everyone dies eventually.
At that thought, his mind trembled.
…It's true… But… To die like that, right in front of my eyes…
A sudden laugh broke the silence.
"Hahahahahaha! Hahahahahaha!"
…It's so absurd… Who would've thought I'd grow attached to that kid? Tony placed a hand on his head, a bitter smile on his lips. Who knows, maybe in the future, he would've gone down a bad path, and I'd have had to kill him myself…
What's the point of thinking about it? He's already gone.
Anyway, my goal is just as insane… A rough laugh escaped him. Hahahahaha! Hoho! To become the strongest—or at least one of them—and then get my revenge… But that's far off for now. The only person I can kill right now is Canou Gérard. He wants to crush both clans? Fine, I'll do it for you. Too bad you won't be around to see it.
Tony closed his eyes, as if sealing that promise.
Aconé, growing more impatient and considering dragging Tony along by force, saw him suddenly stand up.
"Finally, damn it! Let's go now!" Aconé growled.
Tony extended a hand toward him and opened his palm.
Aconé eyed him suspiciously. "You want me to hold your hand?"
"Yeah," Tony murmured.
"Why?" Aconé asked, intrigued.
After a brief pause, Tony replied, "Because I'm going to wipe this city off the map. Completely. And we'd better be far away when it happens."
Aconé studied Tony's smile—a chilling mix of madness and resolve. "How are you gonna pull that off? You're just a rank six!"
Tony crossed his arms, a smirk tugging at his lips. "Seriously, Aconé, you've seen me fight. You know I can hold my own against rank eights without breaking a sweat. I'm going to create a kind of mini-bubble filled with compressed flames and lightning. And then… Boom. It won't destroy everything, but fire spreads fast, and so does lightning. So, no worries."
"And why are you doing this, Tony?" Aconé asked, puzzled.
"First, for me. And anyway, all the non-cultivators will die from the poison before I even launch my attack. That's for the Chang clan. Plus, it'll help me refine my mastery. Now, take my hand," Tony said, extending his palm again.
Aconé shook his head. "You're a real lunatic. But I guess to kill that many people, you need either a touch of madness or a crazy ideology." He grabbed Tony's hand.
Tony raised his other hand to the sky. A bolt of lightning struck them.
From Aconé's perspective, it felt like they were flying. They weren't just hit by the lightning—they were inside it. He also noticed that the bolt's width was almost that of a human body.
A few seconds later, they touched the ground again. The others stood before them. Simone glared at them, visibly annoyed and in a hurry.
"Hurry up, we're leaving!" she shouted, heading toward the boat.
"By the way, Simone, are we still far from the boat?" Hikiri asked.
"No, two more minutes and—"
She was cut off as Hikiri suddenly scooped her into his arms. Surprised, Simone struggled to break free.
"Calm down, Simone… I just saved your life," Hikiri said.
"What are you talking about?"
"He's telling the truth," Tony interjected, stepping closer. "We've got company."
Not far from them stood Dola, Hirina, Chiva, and Ji-li.
"The blue-haired girl sent a compressed air bullet straight at your head. If it had hit you, you'd be gone," Hikiri explained, releasing Simone.
"Okay… Thanks… But now we need to deal with them," Simone replied, resolute.
Dola pointed an accusing finger at them. "You! I've been hunting you since you got here, just to tear you apart! You're my prey!"
Ji-li leaned toward her sister Hirina's ear and whispered, "Weren't we supposed to be looking for the two princesses?"
"Yeah, but… You know Dola. Searching bores her. She saw that lightning bolt—the one I'd told her about—and she knew it was them. And here we are," Hirina muttered back.
Chiva, sword in hand, her face buzzing with excitement yet focused, turned to Dola. "With me!" she called out.
Dola flashed her a conspiratorial grin. "Of course."
Tony noticed their exchange and warned the others. But he hadn't seen that Dola's hand was pointed toward the sea nearby.
Hikiri was the first to notice, but it was too late. Dola's hand shifted toward them. Turning his head to the sea, Hikiri saw a massive wave rushing their way.
Instinctively, he thrust both hands toward the wave. "Well, I've never done this before, but there's a first time for everything!"
A white dust shot from his hands, freezing the base of the wave on contact.
"…I'm freezing…" Hikiri could barely feel his hands. "It's easier to make ice with water outside my body, but this? This is damn uncomfortable," he muttered, redirecting his hands toward the rest of the wave.
"Oh? Someone who controls water? You want to challenge me? No problem!" Dola taunted, focusing her hands on the sea again.
"Chiva, Hirina, Ji-li, take care of the others! I'm focusing on him!" she shouted.
Suddenly, a sword swung toward Dola's neck. The attack was parried by a fiery blade wielded by Chiva.
"And why go for her first when I'm right here?" Chiva asked with a provocative smile.
Tony looked at her with indifference. "Because it's better to take out the nuisances first."
Chiva pushed Tony back with her sword, unleashing a series of heavy strikes. "That…"—a flurry of rapid blows—"won't happen, kid!"
Tony parried as best he could, struggling with the flames leaping from Chiva's sword. What an annoying weapon. And of course, I'm stuck with this crappy sword… he thought.
"What's wrong? Having some trouble?" Chiva taunted, relentlessly pressing her attack.
"You know, I haven't fully mastered fire yet, but I've picked up a few interesting tricks," Tony replied. Lightning crackled from his arms and legs, though it didn't strike Chiva.
"And did you know a lightning strike can shatter the ground?" he added.
Chiva, wary, ignored his words and hurled her flames at him. Their speed was almost invisible to the naked eye.
But the flames missed their mark. Surprised, Chiva turned to look behind her.
A fist shot out of nowhere, striking her and slamming her to the ground. The impact drove her head into the hard earth, leaving a small crater.
Tony stepped back, catching his breath. "So, a few hundred kilos of force packed into me? That's your big head buried in the ground. But man, that's exhausting," he said, panting heavily.
Chiva pulled her head from the dirt and looked at Tony with an eerie calm. "I owe you an apology. Since you weren't really fighting back, I thought you were a rank six. But no, you're clearly higher."
She let out a scream, and flames erupted from her body as if she were burning. The flames coalesced into armor around her torso, a helmet on her head, and in her hands formed a spear in her left and a tachi in her right.
"Get ready—this is between you and me!" she shouted.
Tony placed a lightning-charged hand over his mouth, his expression a mix of complexity and surprise. That punch was supposed to kill her… Damn, if I were rank eight, she'd be dead, no question. But now she thinks I'm some high rank when I'm not… Hahaha, oh well! Might as well go all out and at least knock her out.
Tony's gaze locked onto Chiva's. The fight was on. They charged at each other.