Sulphur & Lightning Chapter 33: 032 - A Life Borrowed

Read chapter 33 of Sulphur & Lightning by anaugustauthor on NovelPedia.

Pain. That was the thing that pulled Elijah back. He had sunk into a turbid semi-consciousness from the moment he fully transformed, watching the entire fight but barely registering it and allowing his innate powers to act on their own, better than his overthinking mind ever could have commanded them. Still, something had wrenched him back. That wasn’t supposed to happen. He knew the limits of power that form contained. It was why he did not fear to step in the ring with a fighter who had already completed her second growth phase and had the backing of a great clan. Only his master, Atafa, had ever forcefully wrested him from that form, and he knew for certain that she wasn’t that powerful. Even more curiously… He stood up in his ragged trousers, running his hand across the wound on his chest that had now been mostly sealed. Even more curiously, was the fact that he was certain that she still had no weapon. And yet… That was a sword, he said internally. Of that, there’s no doubt. Every weapon had its character, and one who had truly experienced them would never mistake it for another. He had received a sword slash. Perhaps the purest one he had ever received. Yet his opponent was unarmed. He smiled, something feral creeping into it as he met her gaze. “So this is the depth of the great clans.” A cough seized him. Something thick surged up his throat—heat and iron—and he spat out freely. A small gout of flame burst from his lips along with a dark, clotted mass that hissed as it struck the ground. His breath hitched once. …She had reached his lungs. How pernicious. “No wonder you dared,” he said, his voice steadying. “Still—it’s not enough.” He watched her chest rise and fall. Her deep red Aura had dimmed considerably. It was clear that reaching for the sword had been quite the feat. Hmm. I guess running away is no longer an option. He hadn’t merely chosen the full transformation because of its power but because it let him fall into the darkness. The idea of killing went down easier if he did it as a hound, not a man. It has to happen this way, it seems. He admired the resolve of his opponent and desired to honour it by his consciousness—he would not let the hound in him do the dirty work. Yachit’s rough breaths kept her grounded. Yes, she had touched the sword. But it was a mere glimpse. Her breath was the evidence of this. All cultivation was in the breath. The rough inhalations and exhalations didn’t speak of a person who had embodied the sword and was in harmony with Heaven and Earth. She coughed out some blood suddenly, falling to one knee. No, there was no perfection in this. She had overextended herself. Not good enough! At this, another star rose above and exploded, bathing her in its stellar brilliance before leaving a renewed fighter in the ring. “This is the special ability of my cultivation technique, Crimson Sea of Stars,” she began to explain, holding her breath as she spoke and letting it out in one deep push. It seemed like this was some sort of breathing method to orient herself after such explosive depletions and recoveries. Elijah noticed but didn’t make any moves to interrupt it. He was curious about the technique too and would feel guilty for cutting a dead woman short. “By extensive cultivation, I am able to store Qi in the stars you see manifested in my galaxy… Theoretically, I could extend this to every single one, but even the great elder Akila, who developed this technique, was said to be limited to 144, and, as you can see, I’m limited to a mere three.” “You’re far more powerful than when we last met,” he said. His voice did not hold any congratulation in it. “However you achieved this,” he said dryly, “you’re throwing your life away.” “Fighting you without it would have been the same as throwing it away, no?” “You could always forfeit; I won’t pursue it if you don’t.” She did consider it for a moment. Not so much out of fear like she had earlier, but out of pragmatism; after all, she had already parti