The ground splintered beneath their feet as Kael and Kaito launched into motion once more, twin forces of destruction carving through the storm-lit battlefield.
The God Beast's serpent-arm writhed like a demon unbound, its strikes blurring faster than sound—yet Kael's Voidstep let him vanish at the last second, reappearing behind the creature and delivering a devastating blow to its spine.
Kaito met the beast from the front, his Will energy burning bright red as he unleashed "Crimson Pulse: Dragon Fang."
His blade roared like a dragon, splitting the beast's chest open with a shockwave that echoed for miles.
But the beast didn't fall.
Instead, its body began to shift—bones snapping, muscles folding inward as a second serpent-arm began to grow from its opposite shoulder.
Kael's eyes widened. "It's forming another."
Kaito growled. "This is beyond regeneration… it's ascension."
From the distance, Azephon clenched his fists. "It's mimicking predator traits. If it develops a third adaptation…"
Liora finished his sentence. "We may not be able to stop it without losing someone."
On the battlefield, Kael slammed his palms together, summoning his Ilyrian aura in full.
"Kaito!" he shouted. "Go full output! We end this now, before it finishes mutating!"
Kaito smirked, his blood-red energy blazing as he roared into his Overdrive mode. "I was waiting for you to say that!"
The brothers shot forward in a synchronized dash, Voidstep and Crimson Pulse merging into one radiant strike. The beast lunged its serpent-arms forward—but both warriors vanished mid-motion, reappearing inside the beast's guard.
"Bloodline Cross Slash!" they shouted in unison.
The twin blades slashed in an X-shaped arc, cleaving straight through the beast's torso. Black ichor sprayed into the air as the God Beast was thrown back, screeching with a rage that cracked the clouds.
Its body slumped—but did not die.
It began to twitch again, slowly rebuilding its form…
Kael and Kaito landed, breathing heavily. The power they used would've shattered mountains. And yet…
"It's still… alive," Kael muttered.
Kaito grinned through the exhaustion. "Good. I was getting bored."