Kael didn't retreat—he dashed into it, his feet striking the surface with condensed qi, each step a ripple of spiritual force that defied the wave's pull.
His Crescent Requiem Dao guided his movements, Abyssal Fang cutting downward, splitting the water to reveal the beast's glowing eye beneath.
The blade stabbed deep, the Silver Lotus Flame surging into the wound, its light boiling the creature's ichor from within. The beast thrashed, its howl a cacophony of pain, its massive head crashing into the cave wall, shattering stone and shaking the roots above.
Kael held fast, his hands twisting the blade, channeling a torrent of Lotus Flame that burned through the creature's spirit core, its thrashing slowing, its aura collapsing.
He leaped off just before the beast slammed into the wall again, landing on the broken stone floor, his breath ragged, his robes soaked, blood dripping from a new gash on his thigh where a stray claw had grazed him.
