Chapter 41: The Arrogance of the Storm Dragon
The storm above the Kilvish Clan Arena had not faded since the battle began. Black clouds churned in the sky, a crackling dome of electricity enclosing the battlefield like the wrath of a tempest caged in stone.
Kevin Haze stood tall, wind howling around him. Lightning coiled up his arms and danced along his collarbones like sentient serpents. His hair whipped wildly, streaks of electric blue glowing with intensity. Across from him, Samrat Kilvish lowered his stance, blood dripping from his brow, but his eyes unflinching, dark, steady, and cold.
The air between them was warped, compressed by Samrat’s gravity Qi. The platform cracked under invisible pressure as the force around Kevin thickened, the very space bending and pulling inward.
"Dark Emperor Sword: Third Form," Samrat muttered, raising his blade high. "Crushing Dominion."
The atmosphere shifted.
Kevin’s foot sank slightly into the stone tiles beneath him. He grimaced. His movement slowed, like wading through invisible mud. Lightning sparks sputtered off his body, dulled and drawn downward as if chained.
Samrat strode forward like a force of nature, blade raised.
"You can summon lightning, Kevin," he said, "but you’ll never outrun the weight of the world."
Kevin’s form blurred, trying to dodge, but even his Storm Step faltered under the gravity pull. Samrat’s blade came crashing down.
Kevin blocked just in time, but the impact launched him back, a crater forming where his feet had been. He skidded, rolling once before slamming into the arena barrier.
The crowd gasped.