Chapter 432: Against The Monstrous Heart Demon

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Riven glanced back at Vladimir, then at the demon. Seeing what had been inside him made it easier to understand why the attack had exhausted him so badly. Getting it out had been one thing. Dealing with it now was another. He moved away from Vladimir, trying to draw its attention before it could get any closer to him.

"That’s a strong one. Think you can take it?"

"Easily."

Riven raised his hand, already gathering his psychic power. He had just finished fighting Vladimir, and now he had to deal with this thing before he could even catch his breath. At least Vladimir wouldn’t be arguing with him during this fight. He kept watching the demon’s movements, waiting to see which way it would go.

"GRAAAARRRR!"

The massive, twenty-meter-tall monstrosity charged, aiming not at Riven but at Vladimir. It wanted to destroy his soul and take his place, turning him into an even more resentful man than he’d ever been. Consumed by his Heart Demon, he might even become immune to Riven’s commanding ability.

It barely looked at Riven as it passed him. Vladimir was still unconscious, unable to move or defend himself, and the demon seemed to know it. Riven turned immediately, following its path. He hadn’t gone through all that trouble to spare Vladimir just to let something else take him away. He needed to stop it before it reached him, not after.

But Riven didn’t let it. He took one step forward, his psychic power forming a massive invisible sword that pierced the monster’s back. Several more descended, repeatedly impaling the beast.

Riven aimed the next blades along its path, forcing it to deal with them before it could continue toward Vladimir. He could feel each sword strike, even though he couldn’t see the blades themselves. The demon jerked under the attacks but kept trying to move forward. Riven sent another sword down in front of it and pulled the others closer together.

He couldn’t afford to give it a way through. Every time it tried to turn, he adjusted the blades, keeping himself between it and Vladimir. It was taking more hits than he had expected, and he still couldn’t tell how much damage he was actually doing.

"Oho, not bad at all, brat! To think you’ve learned to shape psionic energy itself into blades! I’m amazed. You can seamlessly combine all these energies and create more new techniques the longer you fight!" The Ten Thousand Poison Master’s psychic ghost laughed. "But Heart Demons are really good at resisting psychic elemental attacks, kid."

Riven kept his hand raised and looked at the demon again. That explained why it was still trying to push through his swords instead of collapsing. The attacks were hitting, but hitting it wasn’t enough. He would have to try something else, and he would have to do it while keeping the thing away from Vladimir. For now, he held the blades in place.

"GRAAAAAAHHHHH!"

The monstrous Heart Demon roared, shattering Riven’s Psychic Constructs before charging toward Vladimir. Its massive claws dug into the ground and tore it apart. Black flames erupted everywhere, but Vladimir was no longer there.

The demon struck the spot where he had been lying, digging its claws deeper as if it could still find him beneath the broken ground. It lowered its head and searched through the flames, refusing to move away. Riven watched it from a short distance, glad he had acted before the constructs broke. Leaving Vladimir there for another moment would have been a mistake.

"GRRRR?!"

The monster glared back at Riven with anger and disbelief. Riven’s shadow had absorbed Vladimir, who was now floating safely within that darkness, getting his well-deserved rest.

Riven kept his shadow away from the fire as he stepped forward. He didn’t need Vladimir to wake up in the middle of this, and he definitely didn’t need the demon finding another way to reach him. The beast followed his movements; its claws still planted in the ground. At least now it was looking at the person actually fighting it.

"If you want him, you’ll have to get through me."

"RAAAAHHHH!"

The beast roared, unleashing an inferno of black fire at Riven. He immediately sensed that this much power could burn him to charred remains, so he responded with the power of Ice he’d already mastered. Endless frost surged, seamlessly combining with poison and blood to form purple and red ice formations that shielded him from the fire.

He raised the first barrier directly in front of him, then formed another behind it. The flames spread farther than he had expected, reaching around the sides before he could finish closing them off. Riven pushed more frost into the gaps and stepped back, keeping his hands raised. He needed room to move, not just something to hide behind until the fire caught up.

The demon kept pouring fire against the ice, giving him no chance to send an attack back. Cracks spread across the first barrier. Riven reinforced the next one instead of trying to save it, watching how quickly the flames were advancing. These defenses weren’t going to last. He would have to use whatever time they gave him to get out of the way.

BOOOMMM!!!

The flames broke through his defenses, however, shattering the ice and spreading through the surrounding area. Everything they touched became part of a corrupted spiritual domain that threatened to trap Riven inside.

Riven looked up as the fire spread around him. Staying near the ground would only give it more time to surround him, and the remaining ice was already breaking apart. He launched himself upward while the barriers still held some of the flames back. Below him, the demon continued its attack, burning through the spot he had just left.

He kept flying away until he was clear of the spreading fire, then turned to check below. The domain continued expanding where he had been standing. If he had waited to see whether another barrier could hold, he might not have gotten out.

He kept Vladimir within his shadow and made sure neither of them was being dragged back toward it. After escaping during the brief opening his defensive ice barriers had given him, he looked down at the beast, narrowing his eyes.

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