CHAPTER 393: DANCE OF LEAFS

Brigid collapsed to the ground, the demon spawn’s severed hand still locked around her throat even as Cassian ripped it away. The creature’s bisected upper body hit the dirt with a heavy thud, split cleanly in two. Cassian had unleashed his Domain through the Gale Whispering Sword, not upon the blade itself, but across his own body—forcing his strike past the spawn’s defenses with sheer precision and will.

Brigid coughed harshly as the crushing grip on her neck finally loosened. Cassian leaned down, eyes sharp as he asked, "Are you alright?"

Even while speaking, his gaze swept the battlefield, wary. No more enemies lurked close by, though faint rustling echoed further ahead.

She wasn’t. Cassian noticed the blood on her lips and the dark bruise forming around her throat. His Domain gathered only around his hands, a deep red shimmer flickering like faint firelight. When he pressed his palm to her neck, Brigid stiffened, ready to pull back, but his other hand held her steady.

"Stay still..."

He would’ve used a potion, but they worked slower than his own abilities. To her surprise, instead of pain, a cool sensation spread from his touch, shifting into a steady warmth that dulled the pain. Her breathing eased, and before long she managed to speak again.

"...Thanks."

The words came with lingering disbelief. Circle Warriors weren’t known for healing—certainly not for healing others. As far as she knew, only a handful devoted to gods carried such powers, the most prominent belonging to the Church of the Lightbringer in Andharta’s capital.

Cassian nodded but didn’t say anything, a strange expression crossing his face as he looked at the spawns he had killed. Their bodies had started to dissolve, turning into black smoke that drifted away into the air.

It wasn’t just the sight that caught him—it was the system notification that followed.

[Trace amount of Chaos detected. If trainee allows, system will consume it and reward training points.]

Watching the remains slowly vanish into smoke, he asked in his mind, ’What do I have to do?’

[Trainee only needs to place their hand on the being’s body.]

Cassian did as instructed. Brigid, who had mostly healed, looked confused but stayed alert. Her gaze flicked forward, noticing more of the creatures approaching, but she still asked, "What are you doing? You won’t get anything from them. They’ll just disappear into smoke..."

To her surprise, the black smoke drifting off the corpse suddenly pulled back. The ruined flesh seemed to reform for a moment, as if the body were inhaling the smoke. Then cracks split across it again, and the vapor poured out—but this time, it was all drawn into Cassian’s hand.

Brigid’s eyes went wide, a flicker of fear crossing her face as she looked at him.

"What are you?" Her voice trembled, disbelief heavy in her eyes. "How could you take my lord’s essence... how?"

"I can’t explain it," Cassian admitted, his tone even. "I don’t understand it myself."A faint, almost eager smile spread across his face as the demon’s body dissolved completely, the severed parts vanishing with it. The smile lingered as he added, "But for now, I’ll just focus on killing a few more of these things."

In his mind, the system chimed:

[Chaos mana consumed. 2 training points rewarded.]

As he finished speaking, Cassian quickly checked the other fallen bodies. The system tallied a total of twelve training points—something nearly impossible to earn except through missions, which were far harder. But killing these weak demon spawns took him only seconds.

A wide, excited smile spread across his face as he spotted more of them approaching, completely ignoring the shocked Brigid, who still couldn’t believe what she had just witnessed.

"Hey, you devil’s sperms!" he called out, amused at his own joke. The creatures didn’t understand, of course, but the shout drew their attention. A dozen more lifted their horned faces from the bushes, answering with enraged roars.

Though Cassian wasn’t the least bit afraid—none of their attacks could even scratch him. It wasn’t that his defense was unbreakable, but rather that their movements were painfully predictable, easy to read and dodge. Yet this time, he wasn’t in the mood to evade.

In a flash, he vanished from his spot and reappeared right in their midst. Taking a steady breath, he whispered under it,

"First form of the Gale Whispering Sword Style..."

Cassian whispered the name of his sword’s first move—"Thousand Leaf Dance."

The moment the words left his lips, his blade moved as though the wind itself guided it. Each swing left behind arcs of green energy, scattering like drifting leaves caught in a storm. But these leaves didn’t float away; instead, they whirled in tight circles around him, forming a deadly ring of blades.

Every spawn that dared to step close was cut apart instantly, their bodies slashed open from countless angles. It wasn’t raw brutality—it was mesmerizing, like a storm of leaves turning into a storm of death. Cassian stood at its heart, his every step weaving the circle tighter, his every motion feeding the whirlwind of blades that shredded everything within reach.

The dance reached its crescendo. Cassian’s blade carved arcs of green energy through the air, each swing drawing the whirling leaves into sharper, deadlier patterns. The spawns rushed him in a frenzy, but every step they took only pulled them deeper into his storm. One after another, their bodies were torn apart by shallow and deep cuts alike, collapsing under the relentless rhythm of his blade.

Brigid could barely breathe as she watched—what she saw wasn’t a fight, but a performance. The leaves and the sword moved as one, weaving an elegant yet merciless dance that reduced every demon spawn that dared to enter its circle.

Then, silence.

One by one, the creatures fell, until only a dozen broken bodies lay scattered across the clearing. But Cassian’s eyes caught movement—the farthest one, trembling, turning its horned face away, ready to flee.

Cassian’s lips curved into a thin smile. He steadied his stance and thrust his sword forward. In that instant, all the gathered green energy and every last leaf dancing in the air converged upon the blade, then shot outward in a single devastating strike.

The fleeing spawn didn’t even have time to scream. The force hit it like a boulder, blowing its body backward, riddling it with countless holes. By the time it crashed into the ground, there was nothing left but a ruined corpse.