Chapter 49: Spear and Ice
The coliseum still vibrated with the echo of Kael's crimson roar, but now all focus shifted to the next platform. There, beneath the blue light of the Star Tree and the murmur of thousands of spectators, two figures prepared to challenge their own limits and the destiny of the clan.
Aylin, the newly awakened spear prodigy, with her black hair and emerald eyes, breathed with the calm of a contained storm.
Saira, the envoy from the Starry Ice Empire, radiated an imperial cold: her silver hair floated around her, and her icy blue eyes showed neither fear nor mercy.
From the stands, Samael raised his hand.
"Let spear and ice scream their truth!"
The gong sounded. The Qi of the entire coliseum tensed like a rope about to snap.
I. Initial Clash
Aylin rushed to the attack, her spear spinning in her palm like a fragment of wind and earth.
"Technique: Dance of the Root Cyclone!"
The tip of her weapon traced an arc, unleashing a flurry of green leaves and shards of stone spiraling toward Saira.
Saira raised a hand, and the air around her instantly dropped in temperature.
"Cold Art: Wall of Lunar Frost!"
A wall of pure ice emerged, stopping Aylin's storm and returning part of the impact as a cutting snowfall.
Aylin spun, using the base of her spear to deflect icicles, and propelled herself toward Saira with a spinning leap.
"Flame of the Hidden Emerald!"
Her spear glowed, blending earth, wind, and a trail of emerald fire that sliced the air in a rising line.
Saira barely stepped back; her left hand shone blue, and a fan of ice scales blocked the attack.
II. Strategy and Escalation
The crowd held its breath. This was a clash of opposing natures:
Aylin was movement, adaptability, drive.
Saira, control, calculation, and absolute cold.
Saira advanced, each step freezing the ground.
"Imperial Slash: Path of the Frozen Lake!"
A wave of icy Qi swept across the floor. Aylin slipped, almost falling, but used her spear as a pole to vault into the air and attack from above.
"Technique of the Thousand Stone Flowers!"
Multiple projections of her spear rained down, each impact destabilizing the ice, seeking a crack.
Saira barely smiled.
"Nothing blooms over eternal winter."
She spun, unleashing a blizzard that absorbed the stone flowers and returned a flurry of ice needles.
Aylin spun her spear, creating a shield of wind, but part of the cold reached her; her left arm went numb.
III. Limit and Revelation
Both retreated, panting.
The audience broke into applause and shouts. The disciples saw the battle as a clash of nascent legends.
Kael, in the stands, murmured:
"Aylin is fighting above her level... but Saira has yet to show her full lineage."
Cedric analyzed the field:
"Saira's ice steals the Qi around her. If Aylin doesn't force her to move, it will be her grave."
Violeta clenched her fists.
"Come on, Aylin... find your root."
Aylin, breathing deeply, felt the pulse of the earth beneath her feet.
"I didn't come this far to freeze into history."
She struck the spear against the ground.
"Art of the Primordial Root Spear!"
Golden roots sprouted from the ground, absorbing part of the ice, creating a path of life and energy between her and Saira.
For the first time, Saira seemed to take it seriously. Her blue eyes flickered with a supernatural light.
"Bloodline Awakening: Path of the Blue Ice Dragon!"
Around her, the air filled with frost motes that danced like tiny dragons. The cold became absolute; Aylin's spear crackled, covered in frost.
IV. Climax
Both ran at each other, shouting their most powerful techniques.
"Final Dance: Spear of the Emerald Storm!" —Aylin.
"Bite of the Glacial Dragon!" —Saira.
The clash was so fierce that the Qi of the arena exploded in waves of wind and ice.
Aylin's spear spun, wrapped in life and thunder, while Saira's fangs of frost tried to devour all warmth.
For an instant, both were in the center of a storm of light and cold, fighting arm to arm, spear against bare hand, eyes burning with willpower.
A crack sounded. Saira's ice fractured; Aylin's spear lost its tip.
Both fell to their knees, exhausted, covered in frost and blood. The crowd held its silence, perceiving the dignity of the battle.
V. Resolution
Samael raised his hand.
"Draw! Both aspirants have shown there are no boundaries for the Morningstar legend."
The roar was even greater than after the previous battle.
Saira stood up and extended a hand to Aylin.
"You are a worthy rival, daughter of earth."
Aylin took it, smiling through the pain.
"And you, of ice and courage."
As the healers rushed over, the crowd understood: the clan's glory was not in easy victory, but in the clash of wills that forges true children of destiny.
Thus, beneath the Star Tree, the Morningstar legend added two new names to its saga, and the tournament kept roaring, more alive than ever.