Chapter 365: Ki Heart Compression Refining Art – Heavenly Dragon Ascent!

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"Oh no! RIVEN!!!"

Daniela panicked as a burst of wind threw her away from the battlefield. Riven roared and unleashed all of his Spirit Power, placing himself directly between her and the incoming attacks. The feathered snakes struck him at once, exploding against his body with wind and lightning, attempting to tear through him.

BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM!

His entire body was battered, burned, and sliced again and again. However, his regeneration closed the worst injuries as quickly as they appeared. His physical enhancements, biological armor, and spiritualized clothes fused together, forming a heavy black armor shaped from the features of dozens of different beasts. Scales overlapped across his chest, fangs protected his shoulders, and thick claws anchored his feet against the broken ground.

Each slow step shattered the floor beneath him as Riven continued advancing, bracing himself against the massive assault. Blood ran from the openings in his armor, but he refused to stop. Above his feathered crown, Quetzalcoatl charged an even greater attack, gathering multiple colors of light into a single point. The unstable energies spun faster as thunder and wind were dragged into their center.

"CRAAAAAAAHHHHH!"

With one last furious cry, the massive bird deity hissed and unleashed everything at once. A tremendous beam of pure, concentrated Spirit Power erupted from above his crown, compressed so densely that the surrounding ruins were torn apart before it even reached Riven. Its many colors merged into blinding white at the center, while thunderbolts and cutting winds spiraled around it.

"Are you kidding me?!"

Riven’s eyes widened. No single weapon technique or simple Spell could oppose that attack alone. Trying to block it with Fenrir Fang would only get him swallowed by the beam, yet avoiding it would leave Daniela, Label, and everyone behind him exposed.

"How can I...?!"

He needed to think of something, but there was no time. Before his conscious mind could decide, his body and his other nine brains moved on their own. Different abilities activated together, each reacting to the danger faster than he could command them, leaving him speechless.

"Yes, that’s right... Don’t overthink it."

Yeah, he did not need to overthink things anymore. After every battle, mutation, and transformation he had endured, his body had learned how to respond on its own. All Riven had to do was trust it and direct that instinct toward the enemy before him!

"Gather, compress... release."

His hands moved almost ephemerally, passing through space and warping the air around him as he gathered all his essences between his two open palms. The energy built steadily, pulling in every remaining spark of power he still held after the long fight.

Ki Beam.

Or rather, an evolved, improved form.

Ignias roared within his aura, fusing into the sphere completely and then releasing it all at once. The technique took shape in that instant, refined beyond its original limits.

Ki Heart Compression Refining Art – Heavenly Dragon Ascent.

"ROOOOOOOOAAAAAAARRRRRR!"

A mighty draconic roar echoed through the facility, clashing against Quetzalcoatl’s Spirit Ray and then piercing through it. The ray divided into dozens of smaller beams that tore into several other areas, sending debris flying and leaving deep scars across the surrounding structures. The force of the impact shook the ground underfoot.

And at the same time...

BOOOOOMMMM!!!

It pierced through the massive creature’s chest, leaving a huge hole behind. Its transparent, completely drained spirit core shattered at the same moment it died. The light that had filled its form flickered out in a final pulse.

"T-Thank... you..."

As it died, lucidity finally returned into his red eyes. They turned green and gentle for one last second as Quetzalcoatl whispered a few words of gratitude before collapsing. The words hung in the air only briefly.

To never wake up again.

RUMBLE!

As the massive body collapsed onto the floor, the only thing remaining was the stillness of the moment. A frenetic battle that had pushed everyone to their limits, even if it didn’t last the longest. Dust settled slowly over the wreckage left behind by the clash.

"R-Riven...!" Daniela ran toward him with Label close behind, their steps quick over the cracked ground.

"Are you okay?" Label asked, eyes scanning him for any lasting damage.

"I’m fine..." Riven sighed, even if he was covered with all sorts of nasty wounds. Half of his body was charred, his dead skin quickly peeling off and turning to ashes as new skin regrew underneath, leaving no wounds visible. The regeneration worked steadily, patching him up piece by piece while he stood there catching his breath.

Ignias’ Spirit manifested by his side, looking down at the poor Esper’s body. "Quetzalcoatl..."

"Did you know him?" Riven asked. "I thought you’d spent your entire life in that dungeon after your world was destroyed."

"I know him, yes," Ignias said. "That you saw the memories of the dungeon doesn’t mean you saw my whole life, right?"

"I suppose you’re right. What I saw was very limited," Riven nodded.

"Just like your world, mine also was visited by the Gates," said Ignias. "Among those I conquered, there was one with Quetzalcoatl inside. He became a dear ally of mine. I don’t know what happened to his world fragment after that, but I suppose... I suppose this was his fate."

"...!" Riven’s eyes widened. "I see... Did you know more Espers?"

"A lot. We made an alliance between them. Of course, some of the more evil dragons disagreed with this and treated them as invaders, even when the truth is Espers are just survivors of destroyed worlds," sighed Ignias. "Just like I am now... and I hope that you never become like us."

"..."

Riven reached out and touched the feathers. They felt familiar under his fingers, and after a moment he sensed a faint spiritual presence inside them. It was weak, almost gone, but still there.

"?!"

His psychic power and spirit power came together at once. He focused on that presence and managed to gather what little remained of it. It was the last will of Quetzalcoatl, a small piece of his soul that was already fading.

"Ahh..."

"Quetzalcoatl?!"

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