God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

The adrenaline from having stopped a missile with his own hands, the inescapable inevitability of certain death that would have come upon him, his hand had been forced. The creatures were also much weaker than he was.

Now, things were a bit different. This time, he was going to be jumping at the herd of creatures. The strength of some of the creatures was even a bit greater than his.

'Maybe I have gone insane... Maybe.'

Cain sighed as he looked to his side. The three girls were also staring at the sea of monsters with different looks on their faces. Susan had a mask of composure, while Igni's had a frown. Jenny on the other hand flashed him a supportive smile. However, he could tell she was just as worried as he was.

If there was anything he could do, he had to make sure nothing happened to any of the girls...

"Susan, conserve your mana and only heal me and Ignis occasionally. Jenny, take those flying creatures down..."

Although they had talked about it and discussed the plan back at the cave, he went through the process once again. For the plan to work, they would have to make sure their cooperation was seamless. A small nick in their defenses could seek death.

Once he had said his piece, he took a deep breath. Then he took a step forward...

An immaterial flame enveloped his body. The flame was suddenly started with bright electric flashes. Light flashed on his hand and body as the {Weak Blood Carapace} and the {Hand of Stingè} materialized.

He had activated the lightning enchantment of the {Burning Spirit} skill. The weapons in his hands were light, but at that moment, they seemed lighter than ever.

Since they were on an adjacent landmass, they hadn't been noticed by any of the creatures yet due to their senses being obstructed by rock formations and the direction of the wind.

'Faster...'

Cain could feel the blood in his veins running so fast, he could hear his heart beating in his ears.

He broke out into a sprint. A wave of crimson and black energy radiated out from his body, filling the air with omen and dark tidings.

The grey runes on the weapons lit up and the hunger hidden within it was activated. By the time they were noticed, Cain was already upon them...

Cain crossed his blades, the hilt of one resting on the other as he placed the flats of the blades diagonally on his shoulders.

A wave of dark energy, tainted with a layer of crimson washed over the sea of monsters, peeling their flesh from their bones and turning them into corpses.

Blood washed the ground. Waves of blood energy poured into the blade, painting the grey runes a shocking purple. Ignoring this change, Cain felt rejuvenated as he continued forward.

Rushing past the overhead blow of an ape-like creature, Cain slashed. The {Hand of Stingè} turned into a dark blur, and the hand of the creature was separated from the rest of its body.

Applying some force to his feet, Cain ignored the pained roar from the aether beast and slashed forward again. This time, the head of the creature rolled to the ground.

{Congratulations to the host... You have Slain...}

Cain ignored the system prompt and twisted his body, dodging the large claw that slashed at him. Twisting his upper body, he does another. Dozens of spinning magical orbs of fire materialized from numerous magic circles around him.

A deep exhale escaped from his lips...

The orbs of fire rained down on the horde of creatures, drilling holes into their bodies. Some of them died, but the majority only suffered from injuries.

Still, Cain pressed the advantage...

Even as more {Flame Orbs} materialized around him, he summoned the seven blades of metal around him and brought carnage down on the aether beasts. Even more, blood flowed down, and the purple on the edge of his blade was beginning to become even more electrifying.

Soon, a purple mist floated around his body. His eyes had turned a deep purple as he was completely engrossed in his killing spree.

Jenny had her rifle in her hands as she shot down flying creatures from the sky. Occasionally, she would fire a blot of concentrated energy in Cain's direction to protect his blindside.

Susan was mindful of how she used her mana. She had placed blessings on every member of the group and was now using a bow made of tangible light to shoot at the horde of creatures. The bow was a powerful weapon, and a few of her well-aimed shots were guaranteed to bring an aether beast down.

Ignis moved through the horde of creatures like a hurricane. A sea of lava followed behind her. Anywhere she stepped, the ground became hotter and hotter until it turned into boiling-hot magma. That magma then floated up and was used as a weapon of carnage in her hands. The smell of burnt flesh mixed with blood soon filled the atmosphere.

Yet, despite all their efforts, there was no way for them to resist the horde for too long.

Csin took off the head of another creature and amidst the roars and groans, he yelled at Ignis,

"Cover our tail! We need to move forward!"

With that, he picked up his pace to make up for her absence.

The plan was simple...

With Cain as the spearhead, they would dive deep into the horde of aether beasts. He would bear the brunt of the burden, while the others would support him. His damage was more or less the same as Ignis', but he was more versatile. Cain was a bit jealous of the creatures of earth and fire. She was at level 50, yet she could already match up to him in terms of power.

Lamenting the unfairness of the situation, he asked himself with the blood of the creatures standing before him.

A rather large creature slashed at him but he was already occupied. Without wasting a breath, he summoned golden chains that bound the creature tightly. Dropping the {Hand of Stingè} in his left hand, he kicked it forward with enough force to make it move as fast as a bullet. The blade pierced the creature's neck and exited from the back, destroying its vertebra in a split second.

Cain dismissed it and resummoned it. However, that brief period of engagement was enough to stall them for a moment.

A moment was always fatal in battle...

It was as though the creatures attacking them were an endless nightmare. Blow after blow rained down on his armor, denting it in a few places. The helmet of the armor had a lot of scratches on it already. Cain cursed in his mind as he dodged another attack aimed at his head.

A trickle of moisture slid down the back of his head. Although the helmet could protect him from the sharp claws, the force on impact was still enough to give him bruises and abrasions, which could easily accumulate into a concussion. All members of the group were giving their all. Their blood and the blood of the aether beasts mixed with sweat poured down their faces as they rushed forward.

Despite all this, they were slowing down...

Regardless of how terrible the situation seemed, Cain had a wide grin on his face. The excitement of battle filled him with a mania he had never felt in his life.

The thrill, the rush of exhilaration, the warmth of his blood, and the blood of those he had slain...

Everything filled him to the brim with a deep sense of satisfaction. All the fear and turmoil in his heart was being washed away.

He stabbed his blade into the foot of one creature and used all his weight to ram his body into it.

A deep growl escaped his lips as he held his blades in a reverse grip and cut the belly of the aether beast open. Warm blood and organs poured onto the dull red surface of his armor. The purple mist was mixed with red steam. The mist enveloping him had grown so concentrated, that it was as though he was surrounded by a cloud of crimson and purple.

Wherever this mist went on the battlefield, a river of blood flowed. He killed and killed and killed until he could kill no longer. Then he killed some more.

He soon began to grow creative with the way he killed and moved around the battlefield. Previously, he had only relied on the style of battle he had learned from his master. Now, he had managed to take his understanding of the battle technique further.

His master had asked him a question once...

'Do you know what the essence of battle is?'

At the time, he had been unable to answer because he was young and inexperienced. For years, he had trained his mind, but the edge of his blade had dulled.

Then the apocalypse came and he was finally able to sharpen his sword once again. However, he had also come to a few realizations.

He finally found the answer to that question...

'Slaughter. The answer is slaughter... The true essence of any battle is the art of slaughtering the opponent in the fastest, and most efficient way possible.'

With those thoughts in mind, his body obeyed his command and slaughtered. A rather large magic circle appeared behind him, and a large orb of flames began spinning above his head.

Even as he slaughtered, the orb of flames continued picking up speed. It was as large as a basketball, but after a few seconds, it had turned as small as a fist. Soon, the small star began to twinkle violently.

Cain slashed at the wrists of a few creatures reaching out for him. Throwing his blades into the air, he reached forward and caught the horns of a deer-like aether beast that snapped at him with a mouthful of razor-sharp fangs.

A rumble escaped from his throat as he pushed the strength in his arms to the limit. A sickening crack was a result...

With a mouthful of blood, the creature collapsed to the ground. Its corpse hadn't even reached the ground when he plucked his swords out of the air.

The twinkling star above his head shot into the horde of creatures...

There was a brief moment of silence before a shockwave and a sea of flames spread in all directions, crushing the bones and obliterating the flesh of the creatures.

Cain staggered to his knees as he finally felt the first wave of exhaustion creep upon him. Despite that, they had not even made it to the center of the horde where the battle would be at its fiercest.

'Shit!'

Cain suddenly felt a wave of warmth wash over him. Turning his head, he looked through the slit in his helmet toward Susan who now had a staff in her hand. The staff had two branches, with one of them holding a pristine white stone and the other entrapping a pitch-black gem.

A sigh escaped her lips as she slammed the butt of the staff into the ground.