A few moments earlier...
"What did you... just say?" Kaiden turned around to Leila and asked.
"Do you... also have visions?" Leila became a bit scared and hesitant when Kaiden turned around.
"I do have visions..." Kaiden said while he contemplated the visions that he has had recently.
"Really?!" Leila's eyes lit up as she might have finally found someone who can understand her.
"Are those visions like someone else's point of view?"
"Hmmm, not quite. I think it is still me..." Kaiden replied
"That-" Leila's expression was that of a surprise but before she could say what she had in mind.
Kaiden suddenly felt weakened as he knelt on the ground.
"Sir, are you alright?" Dylan was quick to assist Kaiden as well and helped him regain balance.
"I'm just exhausted, it seems..." Then, Kaiden blacked out again. Dylan had to quickly support his head and body after he lost consciousness.
Michael interjected and said, "It seems like he is overfatigued.... The two of you should not be here. We will only serve as a burden to the City Lord and the Cross Clan's Princess."
He said "we" because of his injury and his incapacity to impact the current battle in anyway.
"Young Lady, it seems you have some questions for Sir Knight. You may ask them once he recovers" Michael said to Leila.
"Yes, sir." Leila responded to the general.
"Young man seems like you are able-bodied. Help Sir Knight to evacuate from this area." Michael commanding Dylan.
"Yes, sir." Dylan nodded.
"Leila! Are you okay?!"
The one who just shouted was Kris who first waited for the tremor to settle before eventually going down to where Dylan and Leila was. He immediately appeared in front of Leila as he checked whether she was really alright.
"I'm fine, Kris. Calm down." Leila assured him.
After seeing that she was really okay, Kris finally calmed down.
"Good."
When he did, he finally realized who was in front of him.
"Ge-General Michael P-Paulson! I-It's an honor to meet you s-sir!" Kris was so nervous that he stuttered. This was one of the famed generals of Soaring Cloud City. He can't believe that he actually has the opportunity to meet him in person.
'This boy has a very distinct aura... He also has potential since he is already at the peak of Origin Palace Realm.' Michael was able to sense that Kris had a distinct quality to his Innate Energy. 'It's subtle but it feels like an imposing flame...'
However, Michael knew that they had much more important priorities right now,
"Calm down, the greetings can wait later. You're a soldier assigned in the lookout tower, right?"
"Uh, sir, yes, sir."
Michael deduced with the uniform that Kris was wearing and continued, "I won't ask why you're this far here. But since you are already here, you lead the way as we escape."
Being assigned by a task by Michael made Kris extremely excited and motivated as he responded. "Will do so, sir."
*Rumble* *Rumble* *Rumble*
"?!"
Everyone was shocked. They could not help but look up to the sky from those loud thunders coming from the tribulation clouds.
"How Terrifying..." Leila and Kris could not help but exclaim.
"That Heavenly Tribulation Lightning is too massive... Is that really for a single person's only?" Michael Paulson as someone who had also experienced a heavenly tribulation and who had seen his peers also endure the same ordeal could not believe the scale of what he was seeing.
Meanwhile, Dylan had a different feeling. His heart was beating loudly. It was as if he was feeling both excited and anxious.
'Why does it feel like the lightning is calling me...'
*Rumble* *Rumble* *Rumble*
When they saw that the entire sky that was previously filled with clouds were being twisted, they felt like those lightning streaks were the wrath of a divine entity manifested. If one of those lightnings were to strike at them, then their death was certain
"The sky is being twisted?!" Kris exclaimed.
"Those lightning seems like they're alive..." Leila noticed.
"Is that something a mortal can withstand? It feels like the heavens really wants to eradicate the defiant mercilessly..." Michael commented.
Kaiden, who was being held by Dylan, suddenly opened his eyes. There was an intense gray-colored glow in his eyes as he stood up like he had no injuries at all.
"I have to save her!" Kaiden once again said these words and started walking towards Victoria's direction.
Dylan tried to stop Kaiden and grabbed his wrist, "Sir Knight, your wounds are not healed yet. You need to rest."
Leila, who was originally dazed by the imposing nature of the Heavenly Tribulation clouds, looked at Kaiden because she felt a resonance within her soul. Her eyes were now bluish in color as her aura changed completely.
"Samsara..."
There were traces of Blue, White, Red, Green, and Yellow energy rising from Leila's body. The ethereal elements from before had now gained more clarity as those colors flowed out of Leila's being.
She magically appeared behind Kaiden and beside Dylan while the traces of those five colors followed behind her. She said in an ethereal voice while also grabbing Kaiden's wrist, "Oh lost soul, your impermanent desire shackles you from Nirvana."
"Be that as it may, for this desire of mine is the only reason for my continued existence..." Kaiden similarly answered in archaic manner as Kaiden leaped with unmatched speed.
*BOOM* *CRACK*
===
*BOOM* *CRACK*
It was at this instant that the Heavenly Tribulation Lightning also struck down!
It was only one Heavenly Tribulation Lightning but it was one giant lightning dragon, formed by the hundreds of lightning bolts resting in the heavenly tribulation clouds.
When the first preemptive lightning dropped from the center of the vortex, the lightning bolts followed suit and struck towards that first lightning. As they combined, the size of the lightning became so exponentially big that it was even bigger than one of the giant undead beasts from earlier.
However, as it struck down, the color change into a pure white lightning that was completely devoid of color! Its only intent was to erase
Victoria only had a single thought in her mind as she witnessed the divine lightning, 'I'm going to die...'
===
'What the?!' Dylan had no idea what just happened. Just a moment ago, he was a few dozen meters away. He did not even blink but somehow, he is currently in mid-air just above Victoria.
Above him was the massive divine tribulation lightning that could seemingly end all creation.
Beside him was also Leila who was also in mid-air. Leila had seemingly lost consciousness as well.
Just in front of him was Kaiden.
Then, he only felt a sharp pain in his right hand. He saw that his entire right arm had been bent backward with his fingers bent the opposite way as well.
To recapitulate, Kaiden had moved so fast that he reappeared in front of Victoria before a lightning could even travel half its trajectory. Dylan and Leila were holding Kaiden by the wrist and so they were flung away in the same direction that Kaiden went.
This explains why Dylan's right arm was bent so horribly.
His body was already moving towards the hardened space but he saw that Leila was unconscious beside her, so he reached out and wanted to shield Leila from the impact.
Kaiden who reappeared in front of Victoria, could not move forward any more and save her because the space had hardened so Victoria was locked inside it. It was as if heaven's were saying no mortal can get in the way of those it deems as defiant.
Kaiden's entire body which initially no longer had any more Innate Energy to produce suddenly had an outburst of unknown gray energy. Mysterious silver-gray marks appeared all over his body as a horn was appearing above his right eye. His eyes were now gray surrounded by a silver hue.
The unknown gray-colored power was truly mighty, far mightier than the quality of his energy when he did his double berserk to shame. It would be akin to comparing a bonfire to the sun itself!
With that much power, he conjured two energy swords. Then, behind him, something manifested. It was a near transparent-like hands and faces growing out of Kaiden's face, he now seemed like a three headed, six handed Asura with a sword in his mouth and his hands.
'Nine Sword Style: Asura's Wrath'
*Shing* *Swish* *Shing* *Shing* *Swish* *Shing* *Shing* *Swish* *Shing*
He twisted his body as each of his six limbs slashed along with the swords that were in his three mouths. That attack produced nine consecutive slashes that each broke down the hardened space.
*BOOM* *BOOM* *BOOM* *BOOM* *BOOM* *BOOM* *BOOM* *BOOM* *BOOM*
*Crash*
The space that was hardened by the heavens was broken by Kaiden!
No one would believe that this was possible as it would mean that that person has enough power to even rebel against the heavens themselves!
Without the hardened space, Dylan was now directly under the lightning dragons trajectory. He had just now managed to hold Leila with his left hand and then brought him close to his embrace but who would have thought that he would be the first to be hit by the lightning bolt!
'Damn it!' Dylan cursed as he closed his eyes unwilling to meet his doom.
Victoria could not believe her eyes as she saw that Kaiden had actually managed to destroy the isolated space. While she stared in shock, Kaiden pushed her away and said,
"Live"
"Noooo!" Victoria could only cry out helplessly because she was already going backwards.
No matter how much she tried to reach out to Kaiden, her body was already moving along the momentum. Kaiden's push was too strong to resist yet somehow gentle enough for her not to feel any discomfort.
The last thing she saw from Kaiden was a relieved smile and a satisfied expression before he also got hit by the lightning.
"I finally saved you."
*KRAK! BOOM!*
Once she landed on the ground, she could only witness as Kaiden was enveloped by the pure white lightning and seemingly devouring his entire existence.