"You want to wipe us all out in one net, aren't you afraid of choking on it?!"
The Panther Cat Great Elder roared, shattering the remaining three skulls in a single outburst. Bone ash scattered into the air before flowing back into the skull staff.
The wind-and-fire dragon formed from his breath suddenly split into three.
Jets of wind-and-fire breath erased blossom-blades one after another. The searing, violent dragon bodies battered against the Cherry Blossom Domain, shaking it fiercely amid the eager hopes of the Panther Cat soldiers.
"A feather trying to stop a storm, laughably overestimating yourself."
Ziyan's graceful phantom appeared behind Tōga. Heart and intent aligned, the two swung the Fang Blade together.
"Nishiki – Kenō Ryōiki: Ranō Senba"
[Second Act — Chaotic Petal Wind Carve: Thousand-Layered Sakura Blades]
The petals filling the sky instantly condensed into twelve colossal cherry-colored wind blades, spiraling forward in formation as they ground toward the wind-and-fire dragons and the Panther Cat Great Elder.
Within each blade, the terrifying power of Wind Scar was tightly compressed. Upon contact, they split in an instant into hundreds of miniature sword currents, forming an inescapable three-dimensional cutting net.
Under this overwhelming barrage, the wind-and-fire dragons had nowhere to evade.
From the struck wounds, Cursed Sakura Branches rapidly sprouted, alien yōki spreading and corroding without pause.
The blue-green dragon bodies were dyed cherry-pink, collapsing and disintegrating piece by piece.
Below the dragons, the Panther Cat Great Elder was also affected. Gazing at the Cherry Blossom Domain that sealed heaven and earth alike, a resolve to die flooded his heart.
"If I can use this life to destroy the present and future of the dog clan… that would be a bargain beyond compare."
As he whispered, the skull staff in his hand shattered. Its core, formed of vengeful spirits, became a streak of black light that shot into one of the wind-and-fire dragons.
The blue-green dragon instantly turned pitch-black. Cursed, venomous yōki surged outward, counter-infecting the alien power within. The dragon opened its maw and began devouring the cherry blossoms filling the sky.
The black dragon's body swelled, each pulse spreading rings of inky ripples. An indescribable curse-laden resentment spread like a plague, eroding the cherry-colored barrier.
The drifting petals were stained a murky gray-black. The once-brilliant pillars of light dimmed, and the root-vines withered to ash the instant they touched the dragon's body.
Any Panther Cats caught in the waves were reduced on the spot to pools of sticky, foul-smelling black blood.
The Panther Cat Great Elder himself leapt straight into the cursed black dragon's maw.
The dragon's lifeless eyes suddenly flared red. The Great Elder's will took command of the dragon's body.
The hatred and resentment of nearly a thousand slaughtered Panther Cats poured into the black dragon like scattered starlight.
Demonic power vast as mountains and seas, like a flood long held behind a dam, burst forth in a single, devastating instant!
Heaven-piercing yōki tore through the Cherry Blossom Domain. The black dragon, as though half a step into another realm, released the Great Elder's hoarse, maddened howl.
"The future of the dog clan, rot away together with this filthy curse!"
The dragon's eyes brimmed with malice and destruction, devoid of any remaining clarity. Its bloated body split open, revealing pairs upon pairs of greedy, hate-filled cat eyes.
Merely being stared at made Tōga's entire body go numb, nausea surging up.
"Shūshiki — Kasō · Jōkai Shūen"
[Final Act — Flower Burial, World-Purifying End]
Tōga pointed his sword.
All cherry blossoms collapsed into a single point, forming a cherry-colored wind eye that enveloped the black dragon.
Countless spinning petals rapidly darkened before the naked eye, turning black and gray.
Yet the black dragon's lunging motion halted. The cherry wind eye—like an endless rain of falling blossoms within a dream of flower viewing, imposed a suffocating restraint upon its destructive instinct.
The Fang Blade, power fully gathered, cleaved out a cherry-colored sword river that spanned heaven and earth.
Where the blade-light passed, the polluted black tide melted away like snow under the sun.
Withered vines sprouted anew. Pale blossoms fell once more.
The black dragon let out a shrill wail. Where its scales peeled away, countless twisted faces of resentful spirits were revealed, only to fade to transparency amid the cherry rain.
"Impossible… how could my curse be defeated by just the two of you?!"
The Panther Cat Great Elder's remaining consciousness screamed from within the dragon's head.
"What a pathetic cat's dying howl."
Tōga's voice was cold. With a turn of his blade, the cherry sword river split into thousands of fine threads, winding around the giant dragon layer by layer.
The cursed black dragon collapsed inch by inch, dissolving into light-dust scattered across the sky.
The curse-laden miasma within the barrier was completely cleansed. From the scorched earth, tender green shoots emerged.
Outside the fortress, the dozen or so remaining Panther Cat soldiers fled in panic, only to have their retreat cut off by the furious roars of the dog clan warriors.
The Great Elder's final scream vanished into the wind. The fragments of the skull staff clattered to the ground, then crumbled into dust.
Tōga dropped to one knee, the Fang Blade plunged deep into the soil as he gasped and spat out a mouthful of congealed blood.
This Demon Entanglement: Cherry Blossom Blizzard, had nearly drained him dry.
And the Panther Cat Great Elder's final trump card had been genuinely terrifying.
He had seized timing, terrain, and momentum alike. Compared to this, the White Bone Pill shattered by the Azure Dragon wasn't even fit to polish his boots.
A hazy floral fragrance filled the air. Ziyan separated from Tōga, her yōki likewise exhausted.
She stumbled—then rather forcefully squeezed into his arms, hair disheveled, lips curved in a triumphant smile.
"Well? Big sister's Demon Entanglement with you… stronger than you imagined, right?"
Tōga shook his head helplessly, gently brushing the blood from her cheek with his fingertips.
"Strong, my foot… If I hadn't taken the front, you'd have been drained dry already."
"If you drain me, I'm willing."
Ziyan lifted a hand and poked his chest, light rippling in her eyes.
"After all, this 'Dog General' heart of yours will always beat for me."
Suddenly, a familiar set of footsteps sounded behind them.
"Beat?"
"Would the general care to explain that to this concubine in detail?"
At the distant horizon, the sky began to pale.
Over the smoke-cleared fortress, the first ray of dawn pierced the clouds. Far away came the victorious cheers of the dog demons; close at hand was the soft, alluring body in his arms.
This should have been the triumphant moment—hero saves the world, basking in glory and beauty, yet Tōga's heart turned ice-cold.
"Ah, I've… got something to do. You two carry on."
Ziyan slipped out of his arms with practiced ease. Facing Lady Shirayuki—far more terrifying than the Panther Cat Great Elder, she flashed an awkward yet polite smile, then hopped away like a startled rabbit.
Tōga froze in place. The Fang Blade reflected Shirayuki's graceful silhouette—
Golden sunlight bathed her sweat-dampened face, dreamlike and unreal.
Despite running through the night, Shirayuki remained elegant and dignified, breathtaking as ever. Yet the chill in her gaze surpassed last night's black tide by several degrees.
Tōga suddenly found himself missing the cursed black dragon—
What a useless thing. Died far too quickly. It could've held on just a little longer.
"Shirayuki…"
The Tōga who dared to face life stood up, words forming in his chest—only to be cut off by Shirayuki's movement.
"Does the General seem… disappointed?"
Shirayuki smoothed the wrinkles from his shoulder armor and robes. Moonlight gathered at her fingertips, erasing Ziyan's lingering yōki completely.
She raised her brows and met Tōga's gaze.