The Broken Halo

BOOOOOOM!!!!

The world seemed to shake.

For a brief moment, Simon’s ears rang and everything else disappeared beneath the deafening road of the explosion.

The already damaged watchtower violently burst apart from within. Chunks of stone the size of wagons were hurled into the air while burning debris shot in every direction.

Fire erupted from shattered windows and cracks in the structure before thick black smoke billowed into the sky.

The upper section of the tower completely collapsed.

Stone walls shattered.

Support pillars snapped.

The entire structure folded inward before exploding outward once more under the force trapped inside.

The demons surrounding the watchtower had no time to react.

Some were struck by flying debris.

Some were buried beneath collapsing stone.

Others were thrown off their feet by the shockwave, and screams instantly filled the air.

"GET DOWN!"

"THE TOWER IS COLLAPSING!"

"RUN!"

The orderly formation around the watchtower immediately descended into chaos.

Simon’s eyes widened in realization the moment he saw this.

’Caesar!’

The bastard had prepared something inside the watchtower.

The realization had barely appeared in his mind when the shockwave reached him.

It slammed into him like a giant invisible hammer.

The air itself seemed to explode.

The ground beneath his feet cracked apart as the pressure wave swept across the battlefield.

Sonya reacted immediately as the shockwave reached her and the others.

"SHIT!"

The little demoness stomped her foot.

BOOM!

The earth rose.

Massive slabs of rock erupted from the ground around the group before rapidly folding inward.

A thick dome of earth formed around Akaza, Sunless, Merath, Jorra, and herself.

The next moment, the shockwave struck.

The stone shield trembled violently.

Cracks spread across its surface, and chunks of earth broke away and were sent flying.

Sonya’s face instantly paled.

The force behind the explosion was far greater than she expected.

Unfortunately, Simon was not inside the protective barrier.

He was too far ahead for her to protect him.

The shockwave struck him head-on, and his body was instantly thrown backward.

The Chaos Blade slipped from his grip, but it quickly flew into his heart despite his current state.

The world spun in his eyes.

He tried controlling the wind, but it was far too powerful and chaotic.

Then came the heat.

Flames and burning debris crashed into him

His clothes caught fire in several places while his skin felt like it was being pressed against a furnace.

The smell of burnt flesh reached his nose and pain exploded across his body.

He grunted, but in the next moment, a large chunk of burning wood slammed into his shoulder and sent him tumbling through the air.

Bang!

His body crashed into the remains of a stone wall, and the wall shattered as his body went through it.

Then he bounced across the ground and rolled several more times before finally coming to a stop amidst broken stones and burning debris.

For several seconds, Simon simply lay there.

His ears rang.

His vision was blurry.

His body felt as though every bone had been struck by a sledgehammer.

The burns on his arms, chest, and face throbbed painfully.

Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, then he coughed multiple times.

Blood splattered all over his body and the floor.

Slowly, very slowly, Simon finally pushed himself up.

Even without his command, he could feel UnholyRegeneration working its magic. His demonic energy was drained at a rapid rate, and if not for Miser’s Ring which halved his demonic energy consumption rate, more than half of his demonic energy would have been used to heal his body.

’I didn’t know before, but because my body is unique, Unholy Regeneration requires more demonic energy to heal.’

Simon looked around, and the first thing he saw was smoke.

The second thing he saw was fire.

The third thing he saw was the watchtower.

Or rather...

What remained of it.

The structure was gone. Only part of the lower foundation remained standing.

The surrounding area had become a field of rubble, broken stone, shattered beams, and burning debris.

Demons stumbled through the destruction. Some were injured, some were trapped beneath collapsed sections of the tower, and some were already dead.

Simon spat out another mouthful of blood and forced himself to stand.

His previously regenerated hand had been burned black in several places. His right shoulder was also broken.

His clothes were torn and looked like rags, and his body screamed in pain.

Yet his eyes slowly narrowed.

Because through the smoke and destruction... He could see it.

An opening.

Although Caesar wanted to use this explosion to kill him, he had created an opening in the clan’s Shadow Veil.

The Shadow Veil was a massive array that protected and hid the clan from outsiders.

Simon knew about it, and it was why he targeted one of the watchtowers.

The watchtowers were also like control towers for the Shadow Veil, and because Caesar completely destroyed the watchtower, there was a hole in the Shadow Veil.

The empty air above the edge of the ravine rippled, then it fractured.

Thin cracks of pale silver light stretched across the sky like shattered glass. They spread outward from where the watchtower once stood, flickering in and out of existence as if reality itself was struggling to remain intact.

A low humming sound filled the surroundings.

It was faint... very faint in fact.

But Simon could hear it through the wind, and more importantly, he could feel it.

His spatial affinity reacted.

His eyes flashed as he stared at the he phenomenon.

The cracks in the sky widened a second later, then for a brief moment, the illusion covering the ravine flickered.

Simon’s eyes widened slightly when he saw the outside world for a brief second.

It was the familiar Blackwind Valley, and for the first time since his arrival in the Shadowgrave Clan... Simon saw freedom.

The sight lasted for less than two seconds.

Then the veil attempted to repair itself.

The cracks began to close, the silver lines faded, and the distorted sky slowly returned.

A cold smile slowly appeared beneath Simon’s damaged mask.

’Not on my watch. Lilith!’

The moment Simon had this thought, the Chaos Blade shot forward and pierced the barrier.

A second later, black flames erupted from the blade and the veil stopped healing.

’Her control over the chaos flames is truly something else.’ Simon thought with a tinge of awe in his expression.

Just as he had this thought, a loud rumbling suddenly echoed throughout the ravine.

Simon raised his head, a figure suddenly burst out of the smoke behind him.

"Little kitty!"

Sonya’s voice echoed through the battlefield.

Moments later, she landed beside him with a heavy thud.

Akaza followed shortly after while carrying Jorra over one shoulder. Sunless arrived from the shadows with Merath on her back.

All of them looked battered.

All of them were covered in dust.

But they were alive.

Sonya immediately pointed at the fractured sky.

"I don’t know what that weird thing is, but this Honourable thinks we should leave before it disappears."

Simon nodded.

His gaze never left the damaged formation above.

"That’s exactly what we’re going to do."

He stretched out his hand, and the Chaos Blade returned to him.

On the edges of the array were burning black flames that refused to go out.

"Move." Simon said.

The group did not hesitate.

They charged toward the edge of the ravine while the Shadowgrave Clan burned behind them.

Some seconds later, they jumped out of the ravine and escaped the Shadowgrave Clan.