Solar Blood Masters (149)

Chapter 149 - Hells Glory

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Lu Jade watched anxiously as Raphael and Hellphet clashed near the center of the platform. Their Solar Essences collided, creating shockwaves that rippled through the arena. It was a brutal dance of horns and spear, hooves and shield, a primal struggle for dominance.

“Big Brother…” he whispered with a concerning gaze. He then felt a presence behind him and turned.

Lu Ruby stood there. Her scales were practically vibrating with barely contained fury.

“Stinking little brother, you should worry about YOURSELF and the hell I’m about to unleash upon your scales!”

A shiver ran down Lu Jade’s spine as a chilling memory flashed before him: Lu Ruby obliterating Akai Kage with a wave of scorching heat. Will I be able to survive that? He wondered. Fear gripped his very core, but before those flames of despair could fully ignite within his scales…

Thienika’s soothing voice came, “Grandson, it’s alright. I’m here to protect you.”

Lu Jade coiled himself tighter around her staff. “Thank you, Grandma.”

“Grandson? Grandma?” Lu Ruby was confused and disgusted. “Since when have you been adopted by that withered tree, baby brother? Back in Hebikuni, we used trees as our vehicles! But look at you now… being comforted by one! You’ve fallen THIS low? Tsk, tsk, tsk…”

She shook her head in mock disappointment.

“Truly… you are a disgrace to the Lu Clan. I will rectify this stain on our lineage by eliminating you… today! You won’t even receive a proper burial. I’ll burn you to ASH!”

With a venomous hiss, she spat a fireball at Lu Jade that moved at terrifying speed.

“Solar Beam!”

Lu Jade reacted instantly. A beam of emerald-green energy shot forth from his Jade Sun Cycle, intercepting the fireball and blasting it apart in a shower of sparks.

“You call THAT a Solar Beam?!” Lu Ruby scoffed. She swatted away the remnants of the beam with her tail as if they were mere insects, before dashing toward Lu Jade with blinding speed. Her fangs were bared, ready to sink into his flesh.

Lu Jade’s eyes widened in terror. He tried to dodge, to defend, but she was too fast!

Her jaws snapped shut.

He could feel her hot breath on his scales.

He was about to be devoured…

When…

“Royal Guard!”

BOOM!

Thienika slammed her staff onto the platform. An invisible force rippled outward.

Lu Ruby froze mid-air. Her form was locked in stasis, and her jaws were inches from Lu Jade’s neck.

“Quickly, Little Lu! My stasis won’t last long!”

“Right!”

Lu Jade slithered around his sister’s frozen form while weaving a net of Phantom Willow Grass. He constricted, squeezed, then slithered upward with those whispers of “I got this!” echoing.

Reaching the top, his emerald gaze settled upon her ‘Sun Cycle’. It pulsed with a dangerous red light.

“This is Father’s Sun Cycle. With it… Sister is too powerful. I can’t allow her to use it!”

He began prying the Sun Cycle away from Lu Ruby. She screamed in pain as he ripped apart the invisible mental threads that connected her to the Ignitor Sun Cycle.

Sensing his intent, Thienika extended her roots. They wrapped around Lu Ruby, holding her captive.

Finally, with a final yank, the Sun Cycle came free.

Lu Jade looked across the stage. Raphael was locked in a fierce battle with Hellphet. He was using ‘Wing Slashnado’ to keep the blazing elephant at bay.

“Big Brother! Catch!”

He flung the ‘Sun Cycle’ towards Raphael.

Lu Ruby’s eyes blazed with fury. “NO! You… TRAITOR!”

…

On the Emperor’s platform, Lu Ignis was balancing on the edge of his trident while glaring at Lu Jade.

“That unfilial brat! Stealing my Sun Cycle and tossing it to that bull?! I’ll skin him ALIVE!”

He glared down at Lu Jade with a murderous intensity that would surely make this brat piss himself if his bladder was weaker.

His outburst had Mermaid Merlando laughing, “That snake… He has spirit! Perhaps… he’s learned a thing or two from that bull?”

…

WHOOSH!

The ‘Ignitor Sun Cycle’ arced through the air.

Raphael turned.

He saw the Sun Cycle approaching.

With this… I can turn the tides of battle. I can incinerate Hellphet. He thought while reaching out his hands eagerly.

However, fate had other plans for him. Just as he was about to grasp the Sun Cycle…

BAM!

Hellphet, with a roar, slammed his shield into Raphael, sending him tumbling backward. Then, with a swift movement, snatched the Sun Cycle from the air!

“Princess! I’ve secured it!”

“Great job, Hellphet! Now use it and INCINERATE those bastards!”

“Really? Can I… really use this powerful thing?” Hellphet admired the Sun Cycle. It was a divine relic that millions would kill for.

“Don’t let him use it, Big Brother!” Lu Jade warned Raphael.

Raphael attempted to stop Hellphet, but it was too late.

He secured the Sun Cycle at his rear, forming a mental bond that connected him to its potent energy.

And then…

The Sun Cycle began to grow! It emanated a dreadful, crimson light. The heat intensified drastically. The arena’s air warped and exploded. Due to his fire attribute that was much more stronger than Lu Ruby’s, Hellphet was able to maximize the potential of the heat generated by the Ignitor Sun Cycle.

“Damn! That heat… It’s oppressive!” Splinter Roc, locked in battle with Qi Fenwei, stumbled back, shielding his eyes. Even with his mastery of Lightning Dao, he couldn’t withstand the ‘Ignitor Sun Cycle’s’ infernal heat.

QI Fenwei also felt the heat. She activated her Black Wind defenses.

“That Sun Cycle… It’s a monstrous weapon! We have to be careful!”

As for Raphael who was facing the heatwave head-on, he was the least affected. Shao Jin’s bull body, tempered by millennia of bathing in Fire Pools, had a natural affinity for flames. He was the only one who could withstand the heat.

But even he felt the strain.

“Kuhahaha! With this power coursing through me, your demise is PROMISED, bull!”

Hellphet’s body was ablaze. He charged towards Raphael like a fiery juggernaut of destruction.

“Shadow Blood Resolve!”

Raphael countered by coating his entire body in ‘Abyss Nylon’ to protect himself from the searing heat.

They clashed!

BOOM!

Their Solar Essences collided!

It was a devastating impact that sent shockwaves rippling through the entire arena. The very air itself ignited!

A massive heatwave, like a heliocentric ring, blasted outwards from the point of impact!

Qi Fenwei and Splinter Roc were thrown to the very edge of the platform, but they managed to stay on.

Lu Ruby’s bonds shattered! The Phantom Willow Grass that had held her captive was incinerated by the heatwave.

Lu Jade was blasted away, tumbling through the air! Thienika swiftly extended her staff and caught him just before he fell out of bounds.

Watching the chaotic battle unfold, Muburt was stunned.

“That… that was incredible! The very forces of FIRE and SHADOW collide! Who will emerge victorious from this inferno?! Can the Breath Takers withstand the might of the ‘Ignitor Sun Cycle’? Or will the Crimson Slithers turn the tides of battle with their newfound power?! Stay tuned, mighty spectators! For this battle… will be LEGENDARY!”

…

BOOM! BOOM!

Lu Ruby’s tail lashed out like a crimson viper straight for Lu Jade’s head. He braced himself for the inevitable, but just as the attack was about to connect…

“Royal Guard!”

Thienika appeared before him and thrust her staff forward. A translucent shield sparkled into existence.

‘That technique… It freezes you for a few seconds upon contact.’ Lu Ruby thought, recalling her previous encounter with that dreadful skill.

Instead of striking the shield directly, she dipped her tail into the stage floor and with a flick, launched a slab of earth towards Thienika’s shield.

The earth struck the shield.

And froze.

Royal Guard had taken effect, but on the rock, not on Lu Ruby. She grinned, seizing this opportunity. Thienika couldn’t maintain her ‘Royal Guard’ indefinitely, there was a cool-down period.

With Thienika’s staff still locked onto the frozen earth, Lu Ruby lashed out again and swatted the old woman aside.

Then, her gaze settled on Lu Jade, who was trembling before her might.

“Now… where were we?”

WHAM!

Her tail slammed into his head, which made him sprawled face-first into the dirt. She coiled her tail around his slender form, lifted him, and began smashing him against the stage like a ragdoll.

Lu Jade screamed in agony. “Big Brother…!” But Raphael was too far away, locked in a fierce battle with Hellphet. Thienika was still recovering from the blow. There was no one to save him.

SLAM! SLAM! SLAM!

“You pathetic worm! You think you can steal Father’s Sun Cycle and get away with it? I’ll teach you a lesson you won’t soon forget!” She hissed, relishing in his pain. She squeezed tighter.

Lu Jade could feel his bones creaking. His scales were cracking.

He was about to burst…

“Limiter – On!”

His form shrunk. He was now a tiny vine, easily slipping through her grasp.

“You slippery bastard! Trying to escape my wrath?” She started smashing her tail repeatedly onto the stage, hoping to crush his tiny form beneath her might.

But he was too small, too quick. He dodged her attacks by slithering through cracks and crevices in the platform.

“Damn you!”

“Red Chariot – Grazing Mogul!”

BOOM!

Her chariot materialized beside her. Eight Circular Spell Diagrams, glowing with a menacing red light, appeared above the chariot, and before Lu Jade could even react, she unleashed a barrage of fiery blasts!

The platform shook violently! Explosions rocked the arena!

“Little Lu!” Thienika cried out.

Lu Ruby laughed, “That pathetic snake! He’s nothing but dust now! Hahaha!”

But…

Unbeknownst to them… Lu Jade had clung to the underside of the Red Chariot. He was shivering, desperately holding on as the chariot zipped across the stage, unleashing its fiery barrage.

Thienika, who’d recovered from her fall and was observing Lu Ruby’s rampage with narrowed eyes, spotted him.

A faint smile played on her lips. “That sneaky little serpent…”

…

Hellphet, noticing the destruction Lu Ruby was causing with his chariot, grinned,

“Kuhahaha! That little snake of yours has been obliterated, bull! Not even bone remains! Now… it’s YOUR turn to join him! HAA!”

He unleashed a wave of scorching heat that blasted Raphael off his feet. He skidded across the platform, tumbling head over heels before crashing into a pillar.

And then…

Chains, made of pure fire, erupted from the ground! They wrapped around his limbs, binding him tightly. He struggled, his ‘Abyss Nylon’ flickered, but it was useless against these infernal chains.

“Hell Chains!” Hellphet bellowed. “You’re trapped, bull! Trapped!”

With Raphael immobilized, Hellphet soared into the sky in a spiraling manner. He lifted his trunk high and began charging a massive ball of fire!

“Ignitor Sun Cycle! Amplify my power!”

The Sun Cycle at his rear spun rapidly, its infernal glow intensified. The arena’s temperature skyrocketed, and the very air itself seemed to ignite.

“HELLS GLORY!”

The spectators screamed and shielded their eyes as the heat became unbearable. Some fainted. Others coughed blood which evaporated instantly. Even the hardiest of beasts felt the strain.

“This heat! It’s unbearable!”

“Emperor Lala Zhen! Protect us!”

Their pleas were answered, for from the Emperor’s platform, a figure descended.

Lala Zhen.

His massive form hovered above the central platform. He summoned the red and yellow banner from Muburt and held it aloft. It radiated a potent energy, and with a swift motion, he created a massive barrier that shielded the audience from the infernal heat.

Muburt watched his Emperor with a newfound awe. The banner’s power, amplified by Lala Zhen’s Solar Essence, was truly magnificent!

…

Raphael struggled against the ‘Hell Chains’, but they wouldn’t budge. He glared at Hellphet, who was now unleashing that enormous sphere of fire he’d charged!

“Damn, this is bad! Very, VERY bad! That attack… It’s going to incinerate everything!”

He closed his eyes, bracing for the inevitable.