Outside, Shadow's body erupted forward again in another violent burst of Astral Mana while the Trial World shattered around him.
Shadow attacked relentlessly while Astral Mana roared through the void in violent silver torrents around him. Every strike he threw shook the floating ruins hard enough to fracture massive stone pillars apart, yet the demon met him head-on without retreating once. Clawed hands crashed against Astral-infused blows with enough force to send shockwaves tearing through the black landscape beneath them while chains rattled violently around the creature's massive body.
Outside, Shadow's body tore through the Trial World like a catastrophe unleashed. The ruined basin disappeared far behind him as unstable Astral Mana propelled him across entire stretches of terrain in violent bursts of speed. Forests splintered apart in his wake while mountains cracked beneath uncontrolled surges of silver mana exploding from his body. By the time dawn began creeping across the horizon, Shadow had crossed into an entirely different region of the Trial World where massive snow-covered peaks stretched endlessly beneath dark storm clouds overhead.
The fox never stopped following him.
Even through the destruction.
Even while unstable Astral Mana ripped apart the world around them.
Inside the void, Shadow drove Astral Mana directly into the demon's chest again hard enough to crater the black stone beneath its feet. The chains wrapped around the creature snapped taut violently while silver mana exploded across the battlefield around them.
The demon barely staggered.
Its grin only widened further before a claw slammed into Shadow's ribs hard enough to fold his body sideways and hurl him violently through multiple floating pillar fragments. Stone exploded around him while pain ripped through every inch of his body hard enough to blur his vision.
He forced himself upright anyway.
Astral Mana burned through his pathways violently now, and he could feel the damage accumulating faster with every passing second. His body was reaching its limit.
The demon saw it too.
'Breaking already?' it hissed while chains rattled violently around its massive body. 'Disappointing.'
Shadow surged forward again before the creature finished speaking. Astral Mana detonated beneath his feet while the void exploded around them in another violent clash. Blow after blow crashed against claw and chain while silver mana ripped through the darkness in destructive bursts strong enough to tear floating ruins apart.
Outside, Shadow's body slammed through the frozen mountain range in a frenzy of uncontrolled violence while silver mana storms exploded around him. Entire cliff faces collapsed apart beneath reckless surges of Astral power while snow and shattered stone spiraled violently through the air.
Far beyond the mountains, Neto suddenly stopped moving.
His eyes narrowed sharply toward the distant storm of silver mana tearing through the Trial World.
Something was wrong.
Very wrong.
Without hesitation, Neto stepped forward and vanished.
The moment he entered the Trial World, his expression darkened immediately. The environment had changed drastically since the last time he observed it. Entire regions felt warped now, the mana throughout the world far more unstable than before. Massive trails of destruction carved through the landscape ahead of him like something powerful had been rampaging unchecked for hours.
Then he sensed Shadow.
Neto moved instantly.
The frozen terrain blurred past him as he crossed the mountain range at terrifying speed before finally reaching the center of the destruction.
And froze.
Shadow stood in the middle of a shattered valley beneath the snow-covered peaks while Astral Mana spiraled violently around his body in unstable silver storms. His movements looked wrong—wild, erratic, completely lacking restraint as he tore apart the mountainside around himself.
Then Neto saw the tattoo.
The black markings spread across Shadow's body suddenly flared brightly beneath the Astral Mana flooding through him.
Neto's expression changed immediately.
Marvin and Gracey had warned him about this. If the tattoo ever activated, he was to force mana directly into it no matter what happened. No hesitation. No delay. Because if it activated, something catastrophic had already gone wrong.
Inside the void, Shadow finally started slowing. His breathing had become ragged now while Astral Mana tore through his body faster than he could handle it. The reckless power he unleashed earlier still obeyed him more naturally than before, but the strain was destroying him.
The demon was not slowing down.
A clawed hand slammed into Shadow's face hard enough to send him crashing violently across the void while black stone shattered beneath him. Before he fully recovered, chains erupted outward and wrapped around his body hard enough to pin him against the fractured ground.
The demon loomed over him smiling.
'Finished?'
Shadow tried forcing Astral Mana outward again, but his circulation faltered violently beneath the damage already spreading through his body.
The demon laughed.
Then the pressure crushing Shadow's mind intensified.
Darkness started creeping across the edges of his vision while his body began feeling distant and unbearably heavy. The demon leaned closer, its gold and crimson eyes burning with madness.
'Mine.'
Outside the void, Shadow's body slowly turned toward Neto.
Silver light blazed wildly from his eyes.
Then Shadow vanished.
The mountain exploded apart as he crossed the distance instantly.
Neto moved at the same moment.
Their clash detonated across the frozen valley hard enough to collapse the mountainside around them while unstable Astral Mana exploded outward in a violent storm. Neto's eyes widened slightly from the impact alone.
Shadow was far stronger than he should have been.
But the frenzy in his movements confirmed immediately that something was terribly wrong.
Neto surged forward again and slammed his palm directly against the glowing tattoo spread across Shadow's body.
Mana exploded outward.
Inside the void, the demon's expression changed instantly.
The chains binding its body suddenly blazed with violent light while massive amounts of external mana surged directly into the restraints surrounding it.
The demon roared in fury.
The entire void shook violently as the chains wrapped tighter around its massive body while glowing symbols spread rapidly across the black stone beneath them. Shadow collapsed to one knee gasping for air while the crushing pressure inside his mind suddenly weakened.
The demon lunged toward him anyway.
The chains violently snapped tight mid-step.
The creature crashed against the restraints hard enough to shake the void itself while rage twisted openly across its face for the first time.
Outside, Neto continued flooding mana directly into the tattoo while Shadow convulsed violently beneath the unstable Astral Mana exploding around him.
Inside the void, the demon roared again while the chains wrapped deeper into its flesh.
Then Shadow felt it.
The creature's power collapsing.
All the overwhelming mana the demon had accumulated over countless years was being ripped away violently as the restraints tightened once more.
The demon realized it too.
Pure hatred twisted across its face.
'NO!'
The roar thundered across the void hard enough to fracture floating ruins apart while the chains dragged the massive creature backward violently. Glowing symbols spread rapidly across its body and sealed the leaking Astral Mana back beneath the restraints.
The demon fought like a mad beast trying to tear itself free.
It failed.
The last thing Shadow saw before darkness consumed him was the creature glaring at him with murderous hatred while the chains dragged it deeper into the crimson void. The rage in its eyes made one thing painfully clear.
It knew this chance would not come again for a very long time.