Chapter 91: Blade Storm
The corridor beyond the arena was long, dark, and carved from obsidian-veined stone. No torches. No wind. Just a suffocating quiet that felt… wrong.
Isaac and Lira moved cautiously, the temple's unnatural silence swallowing even the sound of their footsteps.
"I thought the trial was over," Lira whispered, blade drawn.
"It was," Isaac said. "This is something else."
They passed through a fractured arch into a circular antechamber. The air was thicker here—damp with a metallic tang that clung to the back of the throat. Runes flickered across the ceiling in angry red spirals. On the far side of the chamber stood a sealed obsidian gate, pulsing slowly like a heartbeat.
Then the floor trembled.
From the cracks in the walls and seams in the stone, shadows began to crawl.
Figures emerged—twisted, humanoid shapes clad in molten black plate, with helms shaped like fanged skulls. Their eyes glowed ember-red beneath the masks.
There were five of them.
They moved with intent.
"They're not mindless," Lira murmured. "These are elite summons."
"No," Isaac corrected. "These are what's left of the temple's real defenders."
The lead figure raised a jagged sword and pointed.
The others surged forward.
Isaac didn't move.
He raised one hand.
[Armament Phantom – Rank S+]
Three phantom swords shimmered into existence in midair—Silverveil, Veyrian Soulfang, and a third unnamed blade, thin and barbed.
Then he activated—
[Telekinesis – Rank A]
The weapons hovered, steady, waiting.
Lira dashed in first, lightning crackling at her fingertips.
Isaac stayed still.
Five enemies. Coordinated. Dangerous.
He conjured five more blades. Then five more.
Fifteen weapons now spun in the air around him.
The defenders charged.
Isaac lifted his hand.
"Rain."
The weapons shot outward with surgical speed. No wasted motion. No delay. The first blade pierced one defender's shoulder mid-lunge, spinning him sideways—right into a follow-up barrage that shattered his knee and drove a second phantom sword into his chest.
Another turned to deflect a pike—only for two daggers to curve around and strike from behind.
A third leapt into the air, raising a flaming axe.
Isaac didn't even look.
Ten blades soared upward and met the figure midair, tearing through him like a cyclone of spectral steel.
Lira skidded to a halt, watching the display unfold.
"…You're not even throwing them anymore."
"No need," Isaac murmured, summoning another wave of ten.
He pointed a single finger toward the final two enemies.
A spread of twenty phantom blades hung above them like a shimmering crown.
Then they fell.
Not thrown—commanded.
They struck the stone in rapid sequence, surrounding the enemies, cutting off movement, herding them into a kill zone. The last five blades curved inward and struck together, driving both figures into the floor with bone-crunching force.
Silence.
Then, the weapons vanished into smoke.
All that remained was Isaac, breathing steadily, untouched.
Lira walked forward slowly, eyes wide. "That wasn't a fight. That was a performance."
Isaac shrugged, flexing his fingers. "I don't need to be fast when my weapons move faster than thought."
She looked down at the cratered floor. "You conjured over thirty weapons in under a minute. How's your mana?"
Isaac opened his system window briefly.
"Still full."
He could see it—[Essence Efficiency – Rank EX] was doing its job. Even with continuous conjuration, his MP stayed steady. The cost was too small to matter. And Telekinesis meant no wasted effort.
He didn't even need to raise a blade anymore.
Just his will.
"Rain of Blades," Lira said, grinning. "We're definitely calling it that."
Isaac smirked. "I wasn't planning on naming it."
"Too late. You conjured a rainstorm of swords and made five elite defenders look like practice dummies. The name is sticking."
They turned toward the obsidian gate.
Now it pulsed faster.
Reacting.
As if the temple had just realized it had underestimated its intruder.
Isaac placed a hand on the sealed stone.
It trembled under his fingers.
"You ready?" he asked.
Lira flipped her blade, nodding. "After that? Hell yes."
The gate began to open.
And whatever lay beyond… would meet the storm next.