The suffocating darkness of the cave felt even more terrifying now. The skinless, blood-drenched Prana-Jivi stood right in front of them. Just looking at its raw, pulsating red muscles was enough to make one's soul tremble.
Rudra, who was secretly scared out of his mind, puffed out his chest, stepped forward, and joked, "Hey! You guys killed the big one... so I get to kill this one!"
Before Rudra could even finish his sentence, a terrifying sound tore through the air—SWISH!! In less time than it takes to blink... the Prana-Jivi vanished from its spot.
"What—?" Rudra's eyes widened in shock.
THUD! The monster was literally standing inches from Rudra's face! The nails on its fingers were as long and black as daggers. Without wasting a single microsecond, the beast thrust those horrifying claws straight toward Rudra's stomach!
SHH-CLANG!!
Before those nails could pierce Rudra's flesh, Dev flew in through the air. In his hand gleamed the brilliant blue Prana-sword. With one fluid, brutal swing, Dev sliced the monster's entire arm off at the elbow!
SPLAT! The severed arm hit the ground, and black blood erupted like a fountain from the stump.
"Saved..." Rudra panted, his heart hammering against his ribs.
But their relief lasted for exactly one second.
The eyes of all three widened in absolute terror. From the stump of the Prana-Jivi's severed arm, clumps of red flesh and veins suddenly began to boil and twist together... and within a single second, its entire arm grew back!
"Impossible..." a terrified whisper escaped Maya's lips.
The Prana-Jivi raised both its hands into the air. Squelch... Ssshhh! The flesh of both its hands melted and morphed into two terrifying, pulsating red swords! It crossed both blades and slammed them down toward Rudra and Dev with devastating force!
BOOM!! The ground shattered, launching jagged stones into the air.
The demon didn't pause. It launched itself straight at Rudra. Its speed was so absurd that its swords looked like nothing but red blurs. It swung both blades from the same angle, aiming directly for Rudra's neck.
But Rudra, whose survival instincts had kicked into overdrive out of pure fear, showed incredible agility and ducked! SWOOSH! The sharp blades grazed the very tips of his hair.
Seizing the opening, Rudra put all his raw strength into his leg and delivered a devastating kick straight into the demon's stomach!
THWACK!! The kick was so incredibly heavy that the massive Prana-Jivi skidded backward across the rocky floor.
Watching this, Dev was genuinely stunned. Gripping his sword tighter, he muttered, "I admit Rudra lacks speed... but never underestimate his raw power."
The demon stood back up. This time, pure rage burned in its eyes. It lunged directly at Rudra.
But Dev intercepted. CLASH!! Dev's glowing blue Prana-sword collided with the demon's fleshy red blades, sending a shower of bright sparks flying across the dark cave.
At that exact moment, Rudra leaped from behind Dev, aiming a loaded punch right at the demon's face. But the Prana-Jivi was cunning. It simply took a half-step back, and Rudra's fist swung through empty air.
Suddenly, the demon turned its red swords into thick 'black smoke'. The sickening stench of burning flesh flooded the air. And from the smoke, its nails extended back into long, deadly daggers.
It slashed its claws straight at Rudra's face!
Rudra jerked his head back and narrowly avoided the slash, but then... he saw the demon's foot rocketing straight toward his chest.
CRASH!!
The kick planted squarely on Rudra's sternum. The sickening crack of his ribs echoed as he was launched through the air, crashing hard into the dirt.
Groaning in agonizing pain, Rudra looked up. The demon had now unleashed its full fury on Dev.
SWASH! SWASH! The demon's attacks were so relentlessly fast that Dev didn't even have a window to strike back. He was desperately dodging left and right just to keep his head attached to his shoulders.
Sensing an opening, Rudra charged again, pulling his fist back for a heavy strike.
But the demon, without even turning around, sidestepped Rudra's punch and delivered a brutal spinning back-kick right into Rudra's face!
However, this was the exact split-second Dev had been waiting for.
SCHLICK!! Dev lunged and drove his blue Prana-sword straight through the demon's chest! The glowing tip of the blade pierced its heart and erupted from its back.
But instead of writhing in pain... the Prana-Jivi slowly turned its head. It locked its horrifying, glowing red eyes onto Dev. Reaching down, it grabbed Dev's sword embedded in its own chest and violently yanked it out!
SQUELCH!! Black blood splattered across the air.
"SSSKKKREEECHHH!!" the demon roared with a deafening screech, raising the stolen sword to plunge it into Dev's chest!
But the moment it thrust the blade forward... the blue sword suddenly turned to gray ash and blew away in the wind.
For a fleeting second, a chilling, smug smile appeared on Dev's face. He thought to himself, 'That was made from my Prana-shakti. Only I can use it, you fool!'
But Dev's smile vanished the very next instant when a devastating kick slammed into his stomach. BOOM! Dev was launched like a cannonball, crashing violently against the cave wall and slumping to the ground.
Rudra tried to attack from behind once more, but the demon casually dodged and buried a fist so deep into Rudra's gut that it knocked all the air from his lungs.
COUGH! A mixture of bile and blood spewed from Rudra's mouth. The bitter, metallic taste of his own blood coated his tongue. He collapsed straight onto his knees. His condition was so critical that he couldn't even muster the strength to stand up anymore.
The demon now began a slow, menacing walk toward Dev, who was still groaning in pain by the wall.
Maya, who had been staying back, screamed and ran forward. She unleashed her 'Vayu-astra' (Wind Art) at the demon. But it was useless. The beast tore right through the stormy gales and, with a single backhand, swatted Maya to the ground!
[Sight & Sound: The Dark Truth]
The demon finally reached Dev.
Dev struggled to push himself up, but the demon simply extended its hand, forming a long, massive red sword out of its own flesh once again. It gripped the fleshy hilt with both hands and hoisted it high into the air. Its intention was crystal clear... it was going to drive the blade straight through the dead center of Dev's chest.
"NO!!" Maya shrieked.
SWISH!! The demon plunged the sword downward with absolute, lethal force.
But in that exact millisecond, lying helplessly on the ground, Maya forced out the very last drops of her energy and shot a highly concentrated blast of 'Vayu-astra' directly at the descending blade.
Maya's wind pressure managed to deflect the terrifying sword just inches away from Dev's heart... but the entire length of the blade plunged straight through Dev's shoulder, pinning him to the rocky floor!
CRUNCH!! The sickening sound of flesh tearing and bone shattering echoed loudly.
"AAAAAHHHHHH!!!" A soul-shattering, agonizing scream ripped from Dev's throat, vibrating through the entire cave. A thick fountain of blood erupted from his shoulder, quickly painting the stone floor a deep, dark red.
Witnessing this... the entire world stopped for Rudra, who was still on his knees in the corner of the cave.
His eyes widened to their absolute limits. His pupils dilated. He went completely, terrifyingly silent. Dev's agonizing screams, Maya's desperate sobbing... all the sound faded into a deafening static.
Trembling, Rudra looked down at his own two hands. Hands that possessed absolutely zero Prana-shakti.
"What's the point..." Rudra's voice carried an eerie, heavy emptiness. "What's the point of having all this raw power... if I can't even save my own friend?"
Rudra raised both his fists and slammed them into the rocky ground with everything he had!
THUD! THUD! THUD! The skin on his knuckles split, and blood began to pool on the rocks. He kept pounding the cave floor like a madman.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!"
The roar that tore out of Rudra's throat didn't belong to a human... it sounded like a wounded, ferocious beast. A roar so primal and terrifying that it actually forced the demon to freeze in its tracks for a split second.
Yes, Dev had been right... Rudra could be incredibly dangerous.
The Prana-Jivi, leaving its sword still embedded in Dev's shoulder, turned its head to look at Rudra. It could sense a bizarre, terrifying energy welling up from deep within the boy. Abandoning Dev, the demon dragged its long, bloody nails across the stone floor... and began walking straight toward Rudra.