God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

Many chains were slumped down, carrying the weight of deceased Beastmen. However, the battle didn't seem to be slowing down at all. Instead, it intensified with every second that passed.

The {Abyssal Realm Walkers} were far stronger than the {Blood Abominations}. Although they were controlled by a general, that didn't mean they were lacking intelligence. On the contrary, they were sinister and insidious in their attacks.

However, the Beastmen weren't the same as well. They had also gotten stronger. With Hunter, Floki, and Galip taking the head, they tore into the army of {Abyssal Realm Walkers}.

It was mutual destruction...

Both sides tore each other apart in equal measure. Eyes were gouged, heads were sent flying, and bones were snapped and broken like rotten twigs.

Still, the Beastmen were at a greater disadvantage. This was because of their numbers. Currently, the Beastmen were around five hundred in number. At the time of them entering the Rift, they numbered around eight hundred.

However, the Realm Walkers were around two thousand. The difference in numbers didn't seem much when it was compared to the numbers of the {Blood Abominations}. However, a majority of the {Blood Abomination} army was fodder. Even in their weakness, the Beastmen could take them on. They were also not the most intelligent of Aether Beasts.

The Realm Walkers on the other hand were exponentially stronger and smarter than the {Blood Abominations} and Beastmen.

The death ratio between the Beastmen and Realm Walkers was about one to one and a half. The only reason this was the case was because of the presence of Hunter, Galip, Floki, Jenny, and Susan.

Still, almost half of their numbers were gone. The sight of so many Beastmen hanging from golden chains was a frightening scene. Only a few Beastmen were lost during the battle between the {Blood Abominations}. Compared to this loss in the hundreds, it was incredibly negligible.

Cain gritted his teeth, 'Just a few more minutes.'

He could tell they were close to the exit...

They just needed to hold on for a few more minutes. However, the Beastmen just kept dying. They fought their hardest, but they still fell in droves.

Right now, there was nothing he could do but turn a blind eye. Besides, he wasn't a hero. He couldn't save everyone...

He couldn't save everyone...

His arms trembled...

Gritting his teeth, he squeezed out more power from his body. His mana, his Ki, his Essence. Everything!

He also couldn't shake off this terrible feeling in his chest. Suddenly, the shadows behind him came alive and a figure jumped out of it, sliding onto the back of the Astral Avatar like a sack of potatoes.

It was Evangeline. Cain was shocked. Upon further inspection, he could see that she had been terribly injured.

Susan who was also there couldn't help but turn pale,

"W-what happened?"

Although she looked gravely injured, Evangeline just shrugged,

"We need to get out of here as fast as possible."

Cain was shocked, "You mean..."

She nodded, then spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva,

"That thing is unbeatable. We need to run. If we get out of here, I don't think it will be able to chase after us."

After speaking, she let out a pained wince. Cain could tell that her condition was very bad. Although he wasn't looking directly, he could still see with the help of the {Dark Soul}.

"Cain..." Susan turned to Cain and muttered listlessly.

Cain gritted his teeth, "Let me think."

He hadn't seen the creature that Evangeline fought. However, if it was powerful enough to do her in so badly, then it would be a terrible idea to face it as he was right now.

'The only thing I can think of is improving {Wind Weaver}. However, that in and of itself is a risky gamble. If I fail, we are all done for.'

They were at the crux of a very delicate situation. They were one foot out the door with the other dangling over the abyss. Taking the right step could lead to liberation, but the wrong step would certainly, without a shred of doubt, lead to damnation.

For a very brief moment, he was truly at a loss for what to do...

In the end, he decided it was a risk worth taking. From what he understood, now that the creature had beaten Evangeline back, there was no way it wouldn't come for them next.

In the end, he still had to take this gamble. Fortunately for him, if there was one thing he was good at it would be creating modulated spells from existing ones. Evolving spells was a very difficult task to undertake. However, his special traits made it look like easy work.

The main issue with this was keeping his focus on two things at once. Modifying spells was something that usually took up the entirety of his focus. {Wind Weaver} in particular was a very intricate spell.

Although it had been conceived in the heat of the moment, it was anything but simple.

While magic and sorcery were in constant defiance of the laws of nature, they didn't throw it out the window completely.

Instead, it manipulated these laws by accessing the spiritual realm and various other unique energies to produce events that were beyond what normal logic could encompass.

For example, the universal law of gravity could be manipulated by a creature with the ability to magically influence gravitational fields.

The creation of strong poisons and toxins using magic could be facilitated by using mana to manipulate the chemical structure and composition of materials.

Being able to perform magic, to some extent, required an understanding of these natural laws and principles. For spells like {Wind Weaver}, an understanding of basic aerodynamic principles would work wonders.

By creating a vacuum with the surrounding air, a wind tunnel resembling the fuselage of an aircraft would be created. However, it didn't end there. The air displaced to the rear end of the vacuum provided a propulsive thrust that allowed rapid and sustained movement. He had created this spell with this as a model.

So what he was going to do, was modify it. What made an aircraft faster? How was he going to achieve it with magic? Although his Mana pool was getting low it was something he could afford.

Still, there was the matter of focus. Splitting his mind between controlling the Astral Avatar and diving into his mind to modify a spell was not going to be an easy feat. In fact, it would be one of the most, if not the most difficult thing he had ever done.

Without hesitating for another moment, he began dividing his attention between these two difficult tasks. His mind dived further into his consciousness, while at the same time, remaining on the surface to control the Astral Avatar.

A splitting headache immediately assaulted his mind, but he dutifully ignored it. It was incredibly uncomfortable at first, but that gradually changed to disorientation.

It was weird... It was almost like being in two places at once. Now in his subconscious mind, Cain began working on modifying {Wind Weaver}. Although it was not going to be as great as it usually was, the time dilation was still in effect making his disorientation even greater.

However, he was determined not to fail...

'Ha... Doing this is child's play. What's a little bit of discomfort?' He grinned to himself despite the discomfort and pain. This was his habit of absolutely pushing himself to his limits of breaking.

He was balancing on the edge of a thin wire across an abyss once again...

One wrong step, and it was game over.

But that was where the excitement was...

To him, there was nothing more exhilarating than this...

***

Standing upon a long ice bridge that stretched from the central island to the northern island was a group of individuals. The numbers were around thirty to forty individuals. A majority of them didn't seem very strong.

However, a chilly aura radiated from their bodies. Looking at them was the same feeling one would get when staring at a large body of water, or an iceberg. Amongst them, two individuals stood out. A young, beautiful woman with smoky eyes dressed in near rags, and an elderly man with a bad posture dressed in rags as well.

In fact, the entire group of people were dressed in rags. Although they wore random pieces of armor and held weapons, that didn't diminish their aura. If anything, it strengthened it even more.

Still, they couldn't compare to the individuals that stood at the head of the group.

Calio looked at Vincent who stared straight at the Central Island without a single change in expression,

"Uhm..."

Before the words could come out of his mouth, Vincent spoke,

"You don't need to tell me anything. I also think this is a bad idea."

Calio's frown deepened, "Then..."

"However... That doesn't mean I'm not willing to go forward with it." Vincent said, still looking at the island.

"I knew you lot were suicidal, but this is truly something else!" Calio let out a tired sigh.

Vincent snickered, "What? Don't tell me you are scared of a few furries... C'mon, where's your manly spirit?"

If this was any other time, Calio would be riled up. However, this involved his life or death. Being cowardly to preserve one's life wasn't something to be ashamed about.

Just as he was about to respond, a chilly voice rang out, making both men freeze up,

"If you two fools are done playing around, we can get going..."

Sue had a dark look on her face as she stared at the Central Island. A chilly and fearsome air floated around her making it obvious to all observers that she was in a terrible mood.

Vincent scratched his head, "Lady Sue, I'm sure they are fine. They probably just ran into a few hiccups."

Sue's voice was grim, "They've been gone for too long. We can't just wait and do nothing."

Blaze who was standing to the side shrugged, "She's right. This was supposed to be a simple in-and-out rescue mission. It's been almost two weeks."

David had a grown on his face, "I just hope those kids are alright. Losing my job is one thing, but losing my students? That's unforgivable..."

Sue stared at the people behind her, "It's too late to turn back now."

Then she muttered a chant under her breath,

"Sand Demon..."

The chant was complete, and a giant magic circle appeared on the ice bridge. From this magic circle, a fifty-meter-tall creature appeared. It was a humanoid-looking creature with flesh that resembled flowing sand and two yellow glowing orbs embedded in the area one could only conclude was its head. It was very bulky, with long arms that ended with very sharp claws.

This was the skill she had acquired from the Sandworm Queen...

Staring at it, the others could not help but swallow their saliva. The creature let off a very disturbing air...

"Let's go."

Without waiting for anybody, the creature turned into a whirlwind of sand that consumed everybody.

A moment later, that portion of the ice bridge was completely empty...