CHAPTER 192: SHADOWS BREAK THE IRON

The ground shook under the weight of Ralkor the Ironhide’s steps. Each footfall was like a war drum, heavy and unrelenting, sending ripples of pressure through the Blood Valley’s cursed soil. His skin gleamed faintly under the blood-red moon, like steel hammered and forged by the gods themselves. Where Fenric was wild savagery and Vexa was speed incarnate, Ralkor stood as the unyielding wall of the werewolf champions.

Across from him, Syran emerged from the shadows, his cloak of darkness fluttering unnaturally despite the still air. His pale eyes glimmered like blades in the night. Unlike Gordon’s bloody grandeur or Aamir’s playful dominance, Syran fought in silence, his presence a chilling reminder that death often came without sound.

Ralkor cracked his neck and growled.

"You shadow-walker... come, break yourself upon me. None has pierced the Ironhide."

Syran tilted his head, lips curling slightly.

"Then tonight, your legend ends."

With a sudden blur, Syran melted into the ground—vanishing into the spreading shadows. Ralkor snarled, his sharp ears twitching, his massive arms raised like shields. A faint shift flickered behind him—Syran emerged, dagger of shadow aimed for his throat.

But with inhuman reflex, Ralkor twisted, his elbow swinging back like a hammer. The blow connected, sending a shockwave through the arena, scattering dust. Syran slid backward, his boots carving lines across the cracked ground. His ribs screamed in pain, though he showed no weakness.

"Good... you are not just a brute," Syran whispered, melting back into the shadows.

Ralkor smirked. "Your tricks won’t work. I am the wall. I am the fortress. No blade can pierce me."

The werewolf charged, his body wrapped in a metallic glow as his ability surged forth—

"Iron Titan’s Bulwark!"

His skin became pure steel, muscles hardened to an indestructible shell. Every strike now was like a boulder hurled by a god. Syran dodged, weaving through the cracks of shadows, but even the air trembled under the force of Ralkor’s fists.

A single punch struck near Syran, missing by inches, but the shockwave blasted a crater into the ground. Syran hissed as a shard of rock grazed his cheek.

"Impenetrable... unbreakable... unstoppable," Ralkor bellowed, swinging again.

But Syran’s pale eyes glowed brighter.

"No wall stands forever. Shadows slip through every crack."

He split into three silhouettes, shadow clones scattering across the battlefield. Ralkor roared and smashed through two instantly—illusions dissipating into black mist. But the third slipped beneath him, crawling along his legs like liquid night.

"What—?!" Ralkor staggered as the shadows coiled around his body, binding him. Syran emerged behind, his true self holding two daggers forged of pure darkness.

"Shadow Execution."

He struck with surgical precision—daggers sliding between joints, under the rib cage, through tendons. Ralkor howled as the pain cut deeper than his regeneration could keep up with. His iron armor cracked, faint lines spreading like glass under pressure.

With a snarl, he broke free of the bindings, swinging wildly. His fist grazed Syran’s shoulder, ripping flesh, but the vampire only gritted his teeth and pushed forward.

"Your defense is mighty," Syran whispered coldly, his daggers crossing in an X. "But iron rusts. Walls fall. And shadows remain."

With a final lunge, he stabbed both blades into Ralkor’s chest, not deep enough to kill, but precise enough to shatter his concentration. The metallic glow around Ralkor flickered—then broke.

The Ironhide collapsed to one knee, coughing blood, his armor of flesh cracked and failing. Still, his eyes burned with defiance.

"Kill me... if you dare."

Syran pulled his blades free, shaking off the blood. His expression was cold, merciless. But instead of finishing, he stepped back, letting the shadows swallow his form once more.

"No. I leave you to live—so you may remember the night the wall was broken."

Ralkor roared in rage, slamming a fist into the ground, but his body betrayed him. His regeneration struggled to keep up with the precision of Syran’s strikes, leaving him crippled but alive.

Above them, the Blood Valley winds howled, as if mourning the defeat of the Ironhide.

And Syran, standing unscathed in the darkness, turned his gaze toward Aamir’s clash with Fenric.

"Two down," he murmured. "Now it’s your turn, Bloodfang."

The clash between Aamir and Fenric Bloodfang sent shockwaves through the valley. Each punch cracked the very air, ripples of force tearing through the battlefield. Dust clouds spiraled up, trees split apart, and the ground beneath their feet caved in like brittle glass.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The sound of their fists colliding was no longer just noise—it was a storm that threatened to shred the battlefield apart.

Syran narrowed his eyes, his body tense, shadows flickering around his form. "What the hell is this?" he muttered, his gaze fixed on Fenric. But it wasn’t just the brute strength that unsettled him—no, it was the smile. That terrifying, unhinged smile curling on the faces of Vexa Moonscar and Ralkor the Ironhide, who stood watching from the edge.

They weren’t moving to help Fenric. They weren’t worried. They were grinning.

Gordon spat blood to the side, his blood armor shimmering faintly, already cracked from his battle with Vexa. "Why the hell are they smiling? They lost—"

His words cut short.

Fenric staggered back, his arm shattered again, but instead of retreating, he spread his arms wide. His chest heaved, his eyes glowing red like twin furnaces. His tongue slipped out, licking the blood on his lips.

"STRONG..." he growled. "Stronger than me... STRONG ENOUGH TO FEED!"

Before anyone could react, Fenric blurred forward—not at Aamir, but sideways. His clawed hand sank into Vexa’s chest.

CRUNCH!

Her ribs snapped like dry twigs. She screamed once before Fenric’s massive jaws clamped down on her throat.

RRRIIIPPPP! Flesh tore, blood sprayed like a crimson fountain. He bit through her neck and shoulder, tearing away an entire chunk of her body. The battlefield froze in shock.

The crowd screamed in panic, nobles and soldiers alike stumbling back in terror.

"What... WHAT IS HE DOING?!" someone shrieked.

Syran’s eyes widened. "He’s... eating her..."

Gordon’s face twisted in disgust, his voice trembling with rage. "That bastard... he’s devouring his own—"

But before Vexa’s body even hit the ground, Fenric was already on Ralkor. The Ironhide tried to resist, his stone-like skin hardening as he swung a massive punch.

"FENRIC, STOP!" he roared.

Too late.

Fenric’s jaws opened unnaturally wide, splitting his cheeks apart until his maw looked more beast than man. He clamped down on Ralkor’s armored arm.

CRRRUNCHHH!

The sound of breaking bones echoed like thunder. Fenric tore the arm free, blood spraying in a geyser. Ralkor’s roar turned to a gurgling scream as Fenric tackled him to the ground and bit into his neck.

RRRIIIPPP! CHOMP! CHOMP!

The sound was sickening, primal. A nightmare made real.

Syran’s shadows trembled uncontrollably around him. "He... he’s absorbing them..."

And it was true. The moment Fenric swallowed chunks of Vexa and Ralkor, his body began to change. His muscles swelled, his veins bulged like black cords, and his claws grew sharper, dripping with the blood of his own comrades.

His wounds healed instantly—no, more than healed. His flesh shimmered with a grotesque vitality, as though he were becoming something beyond even a werewolf.

Aamir stood unmoving, his hands in his pockets, watching with a cold expression. He tilted his head slightly.

"So that’s your answer?" he said calmly, his tone cutting through the madness. "To eat your own allies just to keep fighting me?"

Fenric turned his blood-soaked face toward Aamir. His eyes were glowing red, his jaw dripping with gore.

"Allies?" he said with a twisted laugh. "THEY WERE MEAT. NOTHING MORE. And now..."

He flexed, the ground beneath him shattering under the force of his aura.

"I AM THE STRONGEST CHAMPION!"

Syran clenched his fists, shadows writhing like serpents at his feet. "This is... insane. Even for a werewolf, this isn’t natural."

Gordon’s face hardened, his voice low and grim. "No... this is Fenric Bloodfang’s true nature. He’s not just a brute... he’s a predator of predators. He’ll devour anything to grow stronger."

The valley fell silent for a moment, broken only by the crunch of Fenric chewing what was left of Ralkor’s neck. Then came the chilling sound of him swallowing.

GULP.

He wiped his mouth with the back of his claw, smirking at Aamir.

"Your turn."

Aamir finally stepped forward, his smirk returning. His knuckles cracked, the air around him humming with restrained power.

"Good," he said softly. "Now you’re worth killing."

The air itself groaned as the two locked eyes again, the promise of a battle unlike anything the world had ever seen hanging over the battlefield.

The battlefield of Blood Valley roared with madness—Fenric’s grotesque feast on his own allies, Gordon’s bloodstorm victory over Vexa, Syran’s endless duel against the Ironhide. The valley trembled under every clash. Yet far away, in the grand Arena of the Vampiric Court, another war was unfolding.

There, Zalmic the Bonecarver clashed with Seemus the Warpriest. Bone and holy fire met in thunderous bursts, the spectators barely able to follow their movements. The ground cracked with each strike, and the cries of the crowd rose in a storm of excitement.

But then—

BOOM.

The air shifted. A pressure unlike anything felt before pressed down on the arena, so heavy that even the strongest of vampires gasped for breath. Seemus faltered, sweat pouring down his brow. Zalmic froze mid-strike, his golden eyes narrowing.

From the heart of the stands, shadows parted like curtains, and a figure walked forth. His steps were casual, yet every movement made the stone tremble.

The arena fell into silence.

Zalmic’s lips curved into a snarl. "...You."

The man stopped a few paces away, his voice calm but dripping with venom.

"Well, it’s been so long... big brother."