Yet just as everyone was lost in the joy and shock of the "savior's arrival"—
A figure moved at a speed no one anticipated.
It was Ash!
His usual carefree smirk had vanished, replaced by an expression of near-manic determination!
In the instant while everyone was still dazed, his figure flickered and appeared beside Shion's body, which had yet to fully dissipate!
"Divine Skill: Setsuna!"
A cluster of emerald flames erupted from his hand, forming a greedy vortex that forcibly absorbed Shion's still-scattering soul fragments along with the "Dark Flames" power within—all into himself!
"AAAHHH——!!!"
Ash let out an agonized scream as his body convulsed and trembled violently, unable to contain this massive power!
But he succeeded!
He had seized Shion's power!
But he wasn't finished!
The instant he finished absorbing Shion's power, without a moment's pause, his figure flickered again—appearing behind Iori Yagami, whose guard had dropped in his excitement!
"Sorry, Mr. Yagami."
"I need to borrow your flames for a bit!"
Green flames erupted once more!
Iori only felt a chill at his back. The Yasakani Magatama within him—the divine artifact symbolizing the Yagami clan's glory and curse—was forcibly ripped from his body!
SPLURT—!
Iori coughed up a mouthful of blood, the purple flames burning on him extinguishing instantly. His body fell from the sky like a kite with cut strings.
And Ash, having stolen the Yasakani Magatama, now burned with three different fires: the emerald "Flames Without Form," the deep purple "Dark Flames," and Iori's "Azure Flames"!
Three completely different flames achieved a strange yet powerful balance within him!
His aura skyrocketed to a terrifying level that even Kyo Kusanagi couldn't help but take notice!
"Ash! You bastard!" Kyo roared, looking at Iori on the ground and at Ash who now seemed to have become the "final boss."
Yet Ash only turned to him with a meaningful smile—one filled with sorrow and determination.
He glanced at the sky. The crack that had torn it open was slowly healing.
"Time... is running out," he murmured.
Then, before everyone's horrified gazes, he turned and stepped into the still-open temporal-spatial gate behind him—the one from "Those From the Past."
"Elisabeth... everyone..."
"Wait for me..."
"I will end all of this. Completely."
His figure, along with the two stolen divine artifact powers, vanished into the other side of the gate.
Leaving behind a group of fighters exchanging bewildered glances, and a cryptic farewell that no one could understand.
Ash—this seemingly "villainous" youth—had reached the peak of his character arc in that moment.
But everyone vaguely sensed that things weren't as simple as they appeared.
...
As for the mastermind behind all this—Cloud, 380,000 kilometers away on the Moon—he watched Ash's series of "smooth operations" and stroked his chin, a smile of "everything is under control" spreading across his face.
"Interesting kid."
"Looks like this game can go on a bit longer."
After Ash's tragic, almost "self-sacrificing" departure through the temporal gate with the Yasakani Magatama's power, the world entered another brief, strange peace.
The members of "Those From the Past" seemed to have evaporated, never appearing again.
And Cloud, after "closing himself off" on the Moon and successfully ascending to "Cosmic Power," quietly returned to Earth to continue his decadent lifestyle of being surrounded by beauties.
However, what no one knew was that a global "Spiritual Revival"—one personally orchestrated by Cloud—was quietly changing the world's balance of power.
Ever since Cloud used his "divine powers" on the Moon to punch a "drainage hole" beside the temporal gate to "Those From the Past," the pure "primordial spiritual energy" from that higher-dimensional space had been flowing endlessly into Earth.
At first, the changes weren't obvious.
People only noticed the air seemed a tiny bit fresher.
Plants and trees seemed to grow a bit more lush.
Even office workers who usually dozed off at their desks felt slightly more energetic.
But for the fighters standing at the world's apex, these changes were nothing short of earth-shattering!
"Holy crap! I think... I just broke through!"
In the Kusanagi clan's dojo, Kyo's ordinary Oniyaki produced a ten-meter fire tornado! Its power was more than triple what it used to be!
"Hmph, child's play."
Nearby, Iori Yagami—his divine artifact stolen by Ash, but his power still intact—casually slashed his claws through the air, leaving several pitch-black marks resembling spatial tears! Through pure physical strength alone, he had touched the threshold of "ripping space"!
And top-tier fighters like Terry, Ryo, and K' were all riding a "power rocket," each breaking through long-standing bottlenecks, comprehending new ultimate techniques, their strength skyrocketing!
The entire world seemed to have entered a "universal cultivation" era!
Ordinary people were getting stronger.
Fighters' abilities were soaring.
Everyone knew this was Earth's "self-protection mechanism" activating after facing multiple extinction-level crises—a "major version update" had begun.
...
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