Artemis Unveiled:The Descent

Untitled Part 37: Silver Escape

Neven wiped the sweat from his eyes as if nothing had happened, his brown eyes narrowing as he looked at the wound on his arm. "Damn bastard," Neven cursed.

Aria stared at his face in shock, doubting her own eyes. But her attention quickly shifted to Neven's wound. Stormblade's strike had been deep—if it had been any stronger, Neven's entire arm might have been severed.

"You need to withdraw and let Alexander bandage you," Aria said nervously.

"It's not that bad." Neven slowly lifted his arm, showing a rare relaxed expression. "We might still have a chance to win. Stormblade is the soul of Lunarshade. Without him, the rest will fall apart." Neven explained. He frowned, looking worriedly at the Lunar King's platform, his expression growing more serious. "But we have to watch out for Tailsting. Alpha is sure to have some underhanded tactic to make his team win."

Ten banners fluttered in the wind: three red for Tailsting, three blue for Starguard, one purple for Venom, and three gray for Lunarshade. As the spiral structure descended and leveled, the arena became flat and empty. They gathered together and walked towards the spiral iron gate in the center of the arena.

Thorne walked through the swirling dust, his black skin coated with a layer of pale powder. His eyes showed deep concern. "Neven, your duel with Stormblade just now was truly spectacular."

"It was just luck," Neven said.

"What worries me the most is the upcoming beast fight. I haven't figured out a way to break through its hard armor," Thorne added, his voice tinged with a hint of helplessness and anxiety.

Neven frowned, clearly they had encountered the same problem. "I think Damian knows Alpha won't let Tailsting lose the final match," he said.

Aria stood by, feeling a wave of unease. She was used to relying on Neven, believing he could solve any problem. But this time, that hope was dashed. She clenched her hands, feeling the coldness in her fingertips. Even with Alexander's Essence potion, it was far from enough to deal with the demon bear. This sense of helplessness washed over her like a tide, making it hard to breathe.

Thorne blinked his snake-like eyes, his smile holding a hint of friendliness. "You're different from before."

"How am I different?" Neven raised an eyebrow.

"Not as... annoying, and not as... arrogant," Thorrne said slowly, pointing to Neven's sword. "I noticed you're not using your Soul Stone. Damian must have noticed too. Tailsting's people are not good people. You need to be careful."

"That's their usual way," Neven said disdainfully.

"They are despicable and shameless," Aria said angrily, still furious about Damian's actions.

Thorne extended his left hand in slight surprise, his right hand covered in more dust. "You must be the mortal girl. I've heard a lot about you. I'm Thorne, nice to meet you..."

Aria awkwardly extended her scaled hand. "If you mind the scales, you don't have to shake hands."

Thorne enthusiastically shook her hand, his slit pupils narrowing as he saw the scales. "I like them. Your scales are fascinating."

At that moment, the seals on everyone's weapons were lifted. Neven's sword reappeared with a semi-transparent spider on it, which circled the Soul Stone and quickly crawled down. At the same time, all the spiders jumped off the Soul Stones and vanished.

The Essence barrier around the arena refracted rainbow-like light, and in the silent arena, everyone waited for the final beast fight. Suddenly, a burst of chaotic noise came, and someone in the stands stood up, pointing and shouting, "Starguard has withdrawn!"