Pov Author
The null zone was no longer silent.
It screamed.
Not with sound alone—but with pressure, with distortion, with the unbearable sensation of reality being pulled apart thread by thread. The chamber that had once been a calculated prison was now a battlefield between forces far older than kingdoms, older than gods who dared call themselves eternal.
Anna stood at the center of it all.
Her knees trembled, but she refused to fall.
Cold stone pressed against her bare feet, cracks spreading beneath her with every pulse of energy that surged through the floor. The symbols that once bound her now flickered wildly, some shattering completely, others melting into molten silver lines that crawled like living veins across the ground.
Her breath came fast and shallow.
I'm still alive .
The thought anchored her.
The necklace at her throat burned—not painfully, not anymore—but with a steady heat that spread through her chest, down her arms, into her hands. It felt like recognition. Like something ancient had finally opened its eyes and realized she was listening.
Above her, the rift twisted.
Silver light and black smoke spiraled together, tearing the sky open like wounded flesh. Shapes moved within it—massive, slow, watching. Not attacking. Not yet.
Waiting.
Anna swallowed hard and lifted her gaze.
And there he was.
Shou Feng.
He stood beside her as if the storm meant nothing, black robes whipping violently around his legs, long dark hair floating unnaturally as shadows coiled at his feet. The darkness did not consume him—it obeyed him. It wrapped around his arms, his shoulders, his spine, like a living crown.
His eyes were no longer just black.
They were endless.
"You feel it," he said quietly, his voice cutting through the chaos like a blade through silk. Not a question. A statement.
Anna nodded, afraid that if she spoke, her voice would break. "It's… everywhere. Inside me. Around me."
A faint, dangerous smile curved his lips. "Good."
The necklace flared again, brighter this time. Threads of silver-gold light spilled from it, weaving through the air like luminous ribbons. They brushed against Shou Feng's darkness—and instead of clashing, they interwined .
The null zone shuddered.
Anna gasped. "Shou Feng—"
"Don't pull back," he said sharply, stepping closer. His presence was overwhelming, suffocating and grounding all at once. "The moment you hesitate, it will turn on you."
Her heart pounded. "What if I lose control?"
His gaze locked onto hers, intense, possessive, terrifyingly focused. "Then I will burn the world before I let it take you."
Something twisted in her chest at that.
Fear.
Relief.
Something far more dangerous.
At the far end of the chamber, Tomika staggered to his feet.
Blood streaked the side of his face, his once-perfect composure fractured beyond repair. His eyes darted wildly between the rift, the glowing symbols, Anna—then Shou Feng.
"This… this wasn't how it was supposed to go," he snarled, hands shaking as dark magic poured from his palms. "You were supposed to break him. You were supposed to be his weakness!"
Anna turned toward him, her fear sharpening into something cold.
"I'm not a weapon," she said, her voice steadier than she felt. "And I'm not your leverage."
Tomika laughed, high and frantic. "You don't understand! Gods like him don't hesitate. They don't care. Until you."
The necklace pulsed violently in response, as if reacting to the truth of his words.
"You made him hesitate," Tomika continued, eyes blazing with obsession. "That makes you dangerous."
Anna lifted her hands.
Light poured from her palms.
It wasn't blinding—not yet—but it was solid , thick with intent. The shadows Tomika summoned lunged toward her like serpents, black and screaming—
They disintegrated before they could touch her.
Tomika screamed in disbelief as the magic shattered into nothingness.
"No—NO!"
Shou Feng stepped forward.
The floor cracked beneath his feet, darkness surging outward like a tidal wave. Shadows rose behind him, towering, vast, their edges sharp as blades.
"She warned you," he said calmly.
Anna felt his power wrap around her—not imprisoning, not controlling—but shielding. Like standing at the center of a storm that refused to touch her.
Tomika stumbled backward. "You… you're not supposed to be like this!"
Shou Feng tilted his head slightly, eyes cold. "You took what you believed was my weakness."
The shadows surged.
"You were wrong."
The force of it slammed Tomika into the wall, pinning him there as black tendrils wrapped around his limbs. He screamed as the null zone itself turned against him, symbols cracking and snapping under the pressure.
Anna staggered as another surge of energy ripped through her.
Her vision blurred.
And then—
The silver presence returned.
The air shifted instantly.
Calm flooded the chaos like water poured over fire.
A figure stepped from the fractured light at the edge of the chamber—robes flowing, expression serene, power vast and controlled. Nine luminous tails moved behind him in slow, deliberate arcs, each one radiating quiet authority.
Anna's breath caught.
She didn't know why—but the moment she saw him, something inside her loosened. The fear eased. The pain dulled.
She felt… safe.
The figure said nothing. He didn't need to.
His presence alone stabilized the space, reinforcing the barriers long enough for Anna to breathe.
Shou Feng glanced toward him briefly, eyes narrowing—not in hostility, but in wary acknowledgment.
"Don't interfere," Shou Feng said.
The silver figure's gaze flicked to Anna.
Protective. Assessing.
Then he stepped back into the light, remaining just beyond reach—watching.
Tomika laughed weakly. "You see?" he gasped. "Even they fear what she's becoming."
Anna clenched her fists.
"No," she said quietly. "They're protecting me."
The necklace burned brighter.
Something inside her snapped into place.
She understood then—it wasn't about borrowed power. It wasn't about being chosen.
It was about acceptance.
Anna stepped forward.
The light around her surged, responding instantly to her will. It expanded, no longer defensive—decisive . The symbols on the floor shattered completely as her energy reshaped the null zone itself.
Tomika screamed as the bindings tightened, his magic collapsing inward on itself.
"I didn't want this!" he cried. "I just wanted to stop him!"
Shou Feng's eyes were merciless. "You used her."
Anna raised her hand.
The light obeyed.
It struck Tomika like judgment—clean, overwhelming, absolute. His scream cut off as the power tore through his magic, his body slamming to the floor, broken and unmoving.
Silence fell.
Not peace.
Anticipation.
The rift above pulsed violently, reacting to the release of power. The silver and black spirals accelerated, tearing wider, deeper. The shapes inside it stirred, massive and curious.
Anna swayed.
Shou Feng caught her instantly, darkness wrapping around her like a living cloak. His grip was firm, grounding.
"Easy," he murmured near her ear. "You did well."
Her hands trembled. "It's not over."
"No," he agreed softly. "It's beginning."
From within the rift, a voice echoed.
Low. Ancient. Familiar.
Anna… its time .
Her heart slammed against her ribs.
She looked up, eyes burning with determination. "I'm not afraid."
Shou Feng's hand tightened around hers. "Good."
The rift didn't just widen.
It answered .
The silver and black spirals twisted violently, screaming as something on the other side pulled back . The pressure crushed the air in the null zone, forcing Anna to her knees. Her palms slammed against the cracked stone, breath tearing from her lungs.
The necklace at her throat burned like fire.
Not warmth.
A warning.
Shou Feng swore under his breath, shadows erupting outward as he shielded her. "Stay behind me."
But the voice came again—closer now.
"Anna."
Her name echoed from everywhere and nowhere, vibrating inside her bones.
The silver figure stiffened for the first time.
Kitsune's tails flared violently, light snapping like lightning.
"This is wrong," Kiyoshi said sharply. "That voice should not be able to reach her."
Anna's heart slammed against her ribs. "Reach me how?"
The ground split open between her and Shou Feng.
A裂—deep, jagged, endless.
From it, a hand emerged.
Not shadow.
Not light.
Something older.
Veins of ancient runes crawled across its surface as it reached for Anna with terrifying certainty.
Shou Feng moved instantly.
Darkness exploded from him, slamming into the arm with enough force to shatter mountains.
The hand didn't retreat.
It clowed its fingers.
The necklace screamed.
Pain ripped through Anna's chest as the bond ignited, burning, pulling— claming.
Her scream tore from her throat.
"ANNA!" Shou Feng roared, stepping into the裂 despite Kiyoshi's shout of warning.
The rift surged violently.
The hand wrapped around Anna's wrist.
And reality collaspsed.
Light. Darkness. Silver.
All of it shattered—
And Anna was gone.
The null zone fell silent.
Shou Feng stood frozen, staring at the empty space where she had been.
Then the world felt it.
A god of destruction had lost the one thing he would burn every realm to protect .
Shou Feng lifted his head slowly.
And smiled.
A smile with no mercy left in it.
"Find her," he said softly, darkness flooding the sky.
"Or I erase everything until she comes back."
To be continued...