Chapter 98: Third Ascension

Varkos charged again, and this time Neo held his ground. He couldn’t afford to keep getting pushed back. As the first blade swept past his shoulder, Neo seized the opening and thrust his sword upward, managing to land a shallow cut across the dark elf’s chest. It was barely a scratch, but at least he’d managed to draw blood.

"Persistent, I’ll give you that," Varkos remarked with a faint smile, as if Neo’s struggle amused him.

His second blade suddenly swung around in a wide arc. Neo threw himself to the side, hitting the ground hard as the blade sliced through the air where he’d been standing just a moment ago, leaving behind a sharp tearing sound.

Neo rolled back onto his feet and spat another mouthful of blood onto the ground, and as he did, he felt something settle inside his chest, a quiet, exhausted clarity that came only after a person had run through every reasonable option and found all of them wanting, and he understood, with the same certainty he had once felt standing in front of his father’s household knights and realizing he could not yet match them, that nothing he had used tonight was going to be enough.

’The First Ascension helped me survive, and the Second was enough to deal with the soldiers at the gate. But against someone like him, they’re useless. He’s a whole realm above me, and he can send me flying through a wall without even trying.’

His mind briefly returned to the dragon from his memories, coiled around a distant mountain, its breath freezing entire rivers in an instant. He then thought of the unfinished staircase within him, with nine stages in total. So far, he had only managed to master the first two.

There was also a third stage, one he had glimpsed in his memories but had yet to master.

’I haven’t mastered the third stage. I barely understand it. If I lose control, it could kill me just as easily as he can.’

But he had no time to hesitate. If he played it safe, Veldra would fall, and Diana, Mira, and every villager still fighting behind him might not survive.

Neo closed his eyes for a single breath and reached deep within himself, past the two stages he had mastered, toward the third stage he had never dared to fully unleash.

He knew the risks of using the third stage. If he lost control, the backlash could cripple him for life. But with Veldra on the verge of falling, he had no other choice.

[Nine Heavens Dragon Ascension Art: Third Ascension!]

His mana suddenly surged out of his body, no longer flowing in the controlled manner he had practiced for years. It rushed through him like a dam breaking, spreading far beyond what he could contain. A soft, steady light enveloped his body, its color impossible to identify, while a strange warmth spread through him from head to toe.

For a moment, Neo felt as though he had lost touch with his own body. The boundary between him and the surrounding mana seemed to disappear, allowing his awareness to spread beyond his physical limits. He could sense the burning streets, the dark elves, and even the villagers fighting beyond his line of sight. It was as if his consciousness had expanded into an invisible dome covering the entire battlefield.

The atmospheric mana drifting through the night air began flowing toward Neo, drawn to his glowing body like water toward a drain. It wrapped around his shoulders and chest before seeping into the shallow cuts Varkos had left behind. One by one, the wounds closed, and a gentle warmth spread across his skin. It felt less like healing magic and more like his body was simply returning to its natural state.

Neo slowly opened his eyes.

Something about them had changed. He could feel the difference, a strange clarity sharpening his vision. When the firelight fell across his gaze, his eyes shimmered like sunlight reflecting off clear water, their deep blue glow brighter and more vivid than before.

Varkos halted, his twin blades lowering slightly. For the first time since sending Neo crashing through the wall, the amusement vanished from his sharp, dark features, replaced by a flicker of genuine interest.

"Now, this is getting interesting."

Neo didn’t reply. He wasn’t even sure what to say. Everything felt different now, as if his senses had expanded beyond the limits he had always known. Speaking seemed unimportant compared to what he was experiencing.

Instead, he raised his blade. The mana flowing into him responded almost instantly, gathering along the edge of his sword and forming a long, gleaming line of energy. A faint hum filled the air as the condensed mana trembled with barely contained power.

’This is too much. The mana keeps pouring into me faster than I can handle it. I don’t even know how to stop it.’

A part of Neo recognized the danger. It was the same part of him that had promised Senya he would be careful and assured Nora that he would never leave her. He had unlocked this stage only moments ago and had never practiced it, yet he was already drawing in mana at a rate he could barely comprehend. If it continued to build without an outlet, the accumulated power would eventually erupt somewhere. And when that happened, he might not be the one deciding where it went.

But those concerns faded into the back of his mind. Varkos was already moving, and Neo had no time left to worry about the consequences. Right now, he had only one thing to focus on: surviving long enough to find out whether this newfound power was enough to keep him alive.

Varkos’s first blade swept low toward Neo’s thigh, but Neo blocked it without moving an inch. The force that had sent him crashing through a wall moments ago now flowed through his arm and into the ground beneath his feet, leaving him completely steady.

Varkos’s eyes narrowed. The amusement on his face disappeared, replaced by genuine interest as he realized that something about his opponent had changed.

"You’re not supposed to be able to do that." For the first time that night, Varkos spoke without a trace of condescension. His voice was serious now, his attention fixed entirely on Neo.

Varkos’s words barely registered in Neo’s mind, feeling as distant as rain falling on a faraway roof. He pushed forward instead, his blade cutting through the smoke as he met Varkos’s second strike head-on.

Steel clashed against steel, the ringing impact echoing across the burning street. Every villager nearby who was still standing turned toward the sound, their eyes widening at the sight of Neo holding his ground against the dark elf who had been overpowering him moments earlier.

Somewhere behind him, Neo faintly heard Diana shouting his name, her voice almost drowned out by the pounding of his heartbeat. And for a brief moment, he thought he heard another voice too, one buried deep within his fading awareness.

Nora’s voice. He couldn’t tell if it was real or merely a memory brought on by exhaustion, but hearing it made him think of something he couldn’t afford to forget.

Neo had no time to focus on either voice. Varkos was already attacking again, moving faster than before. The dark elf was no longer treating this fight as something he could finish without much effort.

Neo met each strike head-on, refusing to give ground. With every clash, the warmth inside his chest grew stronger, slowly turning into something closer to burning heat. It was building deep within him, and he had no idea how much longer he could keep it under control.

***

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