Beyond the Apocalypse
Chapter 564: Killing a Sage alone

Chapter 564: Killing a Sage alone

A massive arc of lightning-infused fire, rising for hundreds of meters, blasted out of the Depravita of Wrath’s sword. The energy it carried was unimaginably dense, and the attack immediately submerged Harbider, crashing into the Voroe Sage’s body before sundering the ground in its wake. The devastating arc carved a deep fissure into the earth, tearing through rock and stone until it finally collided with the canyon walls.

"BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMM!"

A colossal explosion erupted as the energy from the sword’s attack detonated upon impact, sending shockwaves in every direction. The sheer force of the blast caused a massive section of the canyon wall to give way, crumbling into an avalanche of debris that buried the Voroe.

Vlad’s breathing was ragged, his chest heaving as he struggled to remain standing. Unleashing that attack had pushed his body into overdrive, consuming a significant portion of his energy in mere seconds. His limbs felt heavy, his vision blurred at the edges, yet he couldn’t help but smile.

"Had I possessed this power when I fought the Leviathan King, I wouldn’t have been forced into a near-death..." Just as that thought crossed his mind, his instincts flared with an overwhelming sense of danger. His eyes widened as he saw a blinding light beginning to shine through the thick veil of debris that had buried Harbider.

Immediately, Vlad’s body moved on its own, his energy surging explosively as he forced himself into a defensive stance. His black sword was raised in front of him, and he concentrated all his Force into his arms and chest, bracing for whatever was coming next.

Not even a nanosecond later, the debris that had once covered the Voroe Sage erupted into smithereens. From within the destruction, a humanoid figure—composed entirely of pure lightning—flashed forward at an incomprehensible speed. It was as if the very essence of light had come to life, carrying with it a fraction of the might of light speed itself.

Vlad had no time to evade.

His defensive stance barely made a difference.

A crackling, electrified claw struck his sword, deflecting it to the side before slashing straight into his chest. The attack ripped through flesh and muscle with terrifying precision, cutting deep enough to reach the bone. The next instant, Vlad’s body was sent hurtling through the air like a broken doll, crashing violently into a boulder the size of a building.

"PUAGHHHH!"

Vlad coughed up a mouthful of blood as his internal organs trembled under the impact. Pain flooded his senses. Had he reacted just a fraction of a second slower—had he failed to reinforce his body with energy—the wound could have been fatal.

With great effort, he pulled himself from the massive boulder’s remains and collapsed to his knees, spitting out another mouthful of blood. His chest burned, the wound still crackling with residual electricity.

"Damn it..." he growled under his breath, wiping the blood from his lips. "Sage Abilities are truly monstrous... I need to be more careful, even if it seems that victory is mine."

The Depravita of Wrath inside him roared, reprimanding him for his momentary lapse in awareness. His entire body was screaming in agony, the aftereffects of the lightning attack still coursing through his wounds.

Yet, as much as Vlad was shocked by the strength of Harbider’s retaliation, the Voroe Sage himself was equally astonished.

A deep, jagged wound ran across his chest, gushing dark, metallic blood. The damage had reached his internal organs, and despite triggering his ultimate ability—Lightning Speed—at the cost of his own life force, he had failed to finish the fight.

No human had ever survived an attack from him before.

Yet, the young warrior standing before him had.

"You... little ant..." Harbider rasped, his voice laced with both fury and disbelief.

Before the Vorometallicae could finish his sentence, his entire body shuddered. A paralyzing sensation washed over him in an instant. The grievous wound he had sustained was catastrophic, and the cost of his Sage Ability was now catching up to him.

Vlad noticed the weakness immediately. His eyes burned with killing intent as he knew that this opening would not last long.

Without hesitation, he called upon the two powerful waves of Depravita Aura within his Soul Dimension. One wave surged through his flesh and blood, granting him the strength to move despite his injuries. The other concentrated entirely in his legs, manifesting in a violent explosion of fire and lightning.

In the blink of an eye, Vlad propelled himself forward at monstrous speed.

His rage ignited, his wrathful energy enhancing his already formidable power. He funneled the last remnants of his strength into the tip of his black sword, his entire being focused on this one final strike.

Harbider tried to move, but he was too slow.

The black sword pierced through his chest, driving deep into the wound Vlad had already inflicted earlier, bypassing his formidable flesh and tearing straight into his core.

The force of Vlad’s momentum carried both warriors forward until they slammed into a massive earthen wall. The sheer impact caused the ground to quake, and the black sword impaled Harbider against the rock, pinning him in place.

Yet even then, Harbider refused to surrender.

His eyes, filled with rage and murderous intent, burned as he struggled to lift his clawed hands for one last strike.

Vlad saw it, and he acted before his enemy could. His eyes flared, unleashing the final remnants of power within the Burning Eyes of Fury.*

A concentrated laser beam erupted at point-blank range, blasting directly into Harbider’s face.

"ARGHHHHH!"

A furious, agonized roar tore through the air as the last traces of Vlad’s energy surged forth. He twisted the black sword inside the Voroe Sage’s chest, amplifying the attack to its absolute limit.

He pushed the laser beam until there was nothing left to give.

As the final remnants of the attack faded, Vlad collapsed onto the ground, his breathing ragged. His chest wound still burned, and his body was on the verge of complete shutdown.

But none of that mattered. Because when Vlad looked up, he saw Harbider’s corpse pinned to the canyon wall.