Jin Tu lunged to meet him, grinning madly, fists raised, teeth bared like a beast drunk on the promise of violence. He slammed into Vel'kharn head-on.
The world cracked.
A pulse of force radiated outward, shattering stone, vaporizing foliage, and flinging shattered bones into the air like a scream made physical. Jin Tu's grin faltered as he staggered back, ribs crushed inward, spine visibly twisting under the impact. Blood spattered from his mouth in thick, wet ropes.
Vel'kharn did not relent.
His tail curved mid-air in a perfect arc and smashed Jin Tu sideways, sending him cartwheeling into the cliff face with a crunch that broke the rock open like paper. The stone wasn't just split—it aged. Moss grew and died in an instant where his body hit. The cliff face wept, mourning something no one could name.
Yan Qinglan moved next, floating forward with elegance, her hands blooming with a swirl of silver mist.
