The battle between Lily and Sahara continued.
The desert around them had already been transformed into a massive battlefield of sand and fire. Waves of sand rose like mountains before crashing down, while Lily moved through the air, surrounded by flames.
Sahara swung her hand.
A massive sand fist appeared from beneath Lily.
Lily quickly twisted her body.
The fist passed just beside her.
"Still going?" Lily shouted.
Sahara didn't answer.
Another wave of sand rushed toward her.
Lily fired several fireballs.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The flames collided with the sand, scattering it in every direction.
But Sahara immediately gathered the sand again.
A giant sand serpent formed behind Lily and opened its mouth.
Lily turned around.
"Oh, come on!"
She flew upward just before the serpent closed its jaws.
Sahara followed.
The two clashed again and again.
Fire against sand.
Speed against overwhelming control.
Neither of them was willing to stop.
Lily's breathing became heavier.
Sahara's expression remained wild and unstable.
"SAHARA!"
Lily shouted.
Sahara answered with another attack.
Lily dodged.
"I'm seriously getting tired of this!"
Another attack.
Lily blocked it.
"Why won't you listen to me?!"
Sahara suddenly appeared behind her.
Lily turned.
BOOM!
The impact sent Lily flying across the desert.
She rolled through the sand and finally stopped.
For a few seconds, there was silence.
Lily slowly stood up.
Her fiery aura flickered around her.
She looked at Sahara.
Then she sighed.
"Enough."
The flames around Lily suddenly began disappearing.
Her fiery hair returned to normal.
Her red eyes returned to their usual appearance.
Her Fire Body vanished.
Lily returned to her normal form.
Sahara stared at her.
Lily walked toward her.
Sahara raised her hand again.
But Lily didn't dodge.
She simply walked straight through the attack.
Sahara's eyes widened.
"What...?"
Lily reached her.
And then—
SLAP!
The sound echoed across the desert.
Sahara froze.
Lily stood directly in front of her.
Her expression wasn't angry anymore.
It was serious.
"If you keep acting like this, what do you think your sisters will think about you?"
Sahara's eyes trembled.
Lily continued.
"They'll think you can't control yourself."
Sahara's expression slowly changed.
"They'll think you can't do anything without someone controlling you."
Sahara lowered her hand.
"And they'll think you always make mistakes."
Those words struck something deep inside Sahara.
Her eyes became distant.
A memory suddenly appeared in her mind.
Five sisters.
Standing before a divine presence.
A god's voice echoed through the memory.
"You five have been entrusted with one duty."
"Maintain the balance of the world."
The five sisters stood together.
And among them was Sahara.
The youngest.
The smallest.
The one who often acted like a child despite having lived for thousands of years.
The memory faded.
Sahara's eyes began filling with tears.
Lily noticed.
"Sahara...?"
Sahara's lips trembled.
"I..."
She looked down at her hands.
"I wasn't supposed to do this..."
Her voice became smaller.
"I didn't want to fight you..."
A tear rolled down her cheek.
Then another.
And suddenly Sahara began crying.
Not like a powerful Guardian.
Not like a Demi-Goddess.
Not like someone who had lived for thousands of years.
She cried like a child.
Lily stood silently in front of her.
She understood.
Sahara had always allowed the childish part of herself to come out.
And right now, that child inside her was finally breaking down.
It wasn't truly Sahara who wanted any of this.
That part of her had never wanted to hurt her friends.
She simply hadn't been in control.
Sahara covered her face with both hands.
"I don't want this..."
Her voice cracked.
"I want to go back..."
Lily slowly approached her.
"It's okay."
Sahara continued crying for a while.
But gradually, her breathing became calmer.
The wild expression disappeared.
The sand surrounding her began settling.
Her enormous presence faded.
Sahara finally wiped her tears and looked at Lily.
"Lily..."
"Hmm?"
"Forgive me."
Lily tilted her head.
"Why are you apologizing?"
Sahara looked down.
"I wasn't in control of myself."
Lily smiled gently.
"What happened, happened."
Sahara looked at her.
"You were under my big sister's control. It's not like you chose this."
Lily extended her hand.
"Come on. Let's go back."
Sahara stared at her hand for a moment before taking it.
She wiped the remaining tears from her eyes.
Then she suddenly made a strange expression.
"Wait..."
Lily blinked.
"What?"
Sahara looked embarrassed.
"Funny scene."
"Huh?"
Sahara covered her face.
"Damn... you actually saw me crying like a child."
Lily smiled.
Sahara groaned.
"I've been alive for thousands of years! Thousands! And I've never cried like this before!"
Lily laughed softly.
"It's okay."
Sahara looked at her.
"Besides, what's wrong with crying?"
Lily's expression became gentle.
"Adults often hide their pain inside themselves."
She placed a hand on Sahara's shoulder.
"You cried because of your pain. Not because you intentionally wanted to cry."
Sahara became quiet.
Then she smiled faintly.
"...You're surprisingly good at this."
Lily laughed.
"Well, I'm already a mother. I know how to deal with childish behavior."
Sahara immediately looked offended.
"Hey! Don't call me childish!"
Lily raised an eyebrow.
"You were literally crying like a child five seconds ago."
"That's different!"
Lily laughed.
"Come on."
She held Sahara's hand.
"Let's go."
Sahara nodded.
The two stood together in the middle of the quiet desert.
Then Lily activated her teleportation.
A bright light surrounded them.
And in the next instant—
WHOOSH!
They disappeared from the Earth Temple battlefield.
The battle was finally over.
The Guardian Arc had come to an end.
But somewhere else, another battle was about to begin.
A battle between the last surviving World Martial Artist General—
and Mizuna, the Water Temple Guardian.
And unlike the others...
The surviving General possessed no Spiritual Beast at all.
He had never awakened one.
He had survived entirely through his own physical strength, martial arts, and relentless training.
Now, he would have to face one of the Five Guardians.
Mizuna.