The youth's emerald-sapphire eyes darted wildly, surveying the scene before him. His absolute certainty of Raiden's death beneath his blade shattered into pieces within an instant. Though his opponent's body had been severed into multiple parts by his lethal strike, not a single drop of crimson blood flowed from the points of separation. All that remained before him were traces of ice-cold mist and microscopic crystal shards dancing in the empty air.
"Elemental Embodiment?!" he whispered, deep furrows creasing his brow as his mind raced to process information about his opponent's rare ability—a power that should have existed only in ancient legends.
Completely disregarding the youth's stunned expression, Raiden began his magnificent transformation. His entire physical existence dissolved into millions of microscopic ice shards, shrouded in deep blue mist. Within a fraction of a second, these fragments moved in perfect harmony, reuniting like puzzle pieces finding their match, reconstructing his body with flawless precision. Simultaneously, the remaining ice shards suspended in the air formed into dozens of gleaming, threatening ice spears before launching like guided missiles toward the fox-eyed youth.
Armed with reflexes honed over years, the youth wielded his twin short swords in a calculated deadly dance. Each approaching ice spear was met with precise swings, perfect timing in every movement creating a symphony of metallic clinks that vibrated through the air.
Yet amid his concentration on deflecting the relentless assault, a concentrated beam of silvery-blue lightning laser shot forth from Raiden's extended index finger. The destructive energy pierced through the youth's right chest at a speed that even trained eyes couldn't detect.
"Urggh—damn it!" A pain-filled curse escaped his trembling lips. His eyes nearly rolled back completely as waves of pain and shock mercilessly coursed through every cell of his body. The lightning's effect created a torturous sensation he had never experienced throughout his fighting career.
Thick crimson blood flowed freely from the corner of his uncontrollably quivering lips. A gaping burn wound in his chest released thick smoke with a nauseating scent of charred flesh. His body, instantly paralyzed by the high-voltage lightning strike, couldn't react when Raiden's ice-encased fist struck a vital point on his crown with devastating accuracy.
His form was flung like a rag doll, launching at terrifying speed before crashing into the stone floor with such tremendous force that it created a deep crater, with cracks spreading like a giant spider's web. His consciousness rapidly faded, his body completely shattered with broken bones at various vital points that had directly impacted the steel-hard surface.
In the pitch darkness that gradually devoured his consciousness like a predator consuming its prey, the fox-eyed youth finally surrendered to total unconsciousness. His now helpless body lay devastated in the center of the crater, tangible evidence of the attack's brutal intensity.
The air around the battlefield still trembled with lingering lightning energy, while the scattered ice shards slowly melted, leaving pools of water mixed with the narrow-eyed youth's blood. An oppressive silence enveloped the area, occasionally broken only by the subtle cracking sounds of remaining ice.
The Crown Princess remained frozen, her mind yet to fully process the rapid sequence of events unfolding before her. As consciousness returned, a cry of concern burst from her lips, "Ye Chen!"
She rushed toward the crater where Ye Chen lay unconscious. But before she could reach him, a silvery-blue flash struck in nanoseconds, precisely where Ye Chen was located.
Raiden, with his unique Lightning Elemental Embodiment, moved at light speed. His physical form had completely transformed into a massless lightning entity.
The Crown Princess's face tensed at Raiden's sudden appearance beside Ye Chen. Fear dominated her thoughts, imagining the worst the silver-haired youth could inflict upon her subordinate.
"P-please, don't hurt him anymore!" The Crown Princess quickened her pace, her voice echoing with desperation.
But the vengeance burning within Raiden knew no mercy. His hand rose, and instantly, a massive ice cone erupted from the stone floor, brutally piercing through Ye Chen's torso. Red blood froze at the tip pointing skyward, while secondary freezing effects spread, encasing Ye Chen's entire body in thick ice.
Absolute terror radiated from the Crown Princess's face. "N-no!" she screamed hysterically, unable to accept the possibility of losing someone she regarded as a younger brother.
Her legs lost strength. She fell to her knees at the crater's edge, her gaze empty as if her soul had been forcibly torn from her body.
Raiden lifted his face, regarding the Crown Princess with dense killing intent. His beautiful sapphire eyes were now cold as ice, piercing with threat.
"Isn't it natural for someone who intended to kill me to meet a similar fate?" he spoke in a low, menacing voice, creating a suffocating atmosphere around them.
The Crown Princess's eyes widened at this statement. Realization struck her - the handsome man before her was nothing more than a monster wrapped in human skin, devoid of even a speck of mercy.
Suppressing her grief, the Crown Princess rose with burning anger. "You... how dare you!" Her uncontrolled emotions triggered a massive wave of crimson suppression qi, radiating from her entire body.
The qi waves spread like lightning tendrils, destroying surrounding buildings and objects. High-level palace guards had anticipated this, reinforcing the magical barriers protecting the main castle. Meanwhile, novice guards could only submit under the princess's qi pressure, falling unconscious with convulsing bodies.
None dared to intervene. All guards had been warned about the arrival of the Heliosbane family heir as the Empress's honored guest. Moreover, after witnessing how easily Ye Chen was defeated, they understood - the chance of defeating Raiden was nonexistent.
A space-time distortion appeared beside the Crown Princess. From within, the majestic Azure Dragon stepped out in all its glory.
"Princess, control yourself. These impulsive actions endanger the entire palace. They cannot withstand your suppression qi!" Its voice was gentle yet thunderous to human ears.
Raiden started at seeing a dragon for the first time. However, neither he nor Melinda seemed affected by the Crown Princess's suppression qi.
"An Asian dragon... Truly a mesmerizing first sight," Raiden praised with a greedy smirk, continuing to approach the Crown Princess's position.
Sensing the threat from Raiden's existence, Azure Dragon breathed scorching flames. "Perish, human!" it roared in fury.
But unexpectedly, Raiden and Melinda had translocated directly above the dragon's head thanks to Melinda's magic, avoiding the flame burst with perfect timing.
"My, my, how impatient. Shouldn't a magnificent being like yourself be wiser before attacking innocent humans?" Raiden teased casually, ignoring Azure Dragon's anger. "By the way, are you female? Do you have a vagina?" he asked with a comical expression that contrasted sharply with the tense situation around them.