| The Cyber Ascension | Arc 7 — "The Bloodlines and Carnage" | Volume 7 | Chapter 74 : "Rain of Fractured Heaven" |
The world tilted.
The massive meteor finally let go of the sky.
It began to fall.
Not fast—
inevitable.
The air screamed as it descended, gravity collapsing inward. Space bent. Mountains were pulled upward, ripped from the ground like offerings to extinction.
Kiyoshi pointed downward, eyes wild.
Kiyoshi
"Ah! Take this, King of Hell!"
The meteor accelerated.
A shadow larger than the Second Heaven swallowed the battlefield.
---
Hope Dies First
Haruko froze.
Her barriers trembled—
cracked—
screamed.
Eirien
"STO—!"
Too late.
The meteor crossed the point of no return.
The pressure alone flattened forests into dust. Rivers evaporated mid-flow. The sky fractured into purple veins.
Haruko clenched her teeth.
Haruko
"…Tch."
Sanji Youta stood calmly beneath the falling apocalypse.
Looking up.
Unmoved.
Sanji Youta
"Heh."
His smile sharpened.
Sanji Youta
"Pathetic."
---
Before Impact
Before anyone could scream—
Before the world could end—
Z moved.
Z
"Yakai… Suizeitsu."
Reality blinked.
Z vanished.
Then—
FLASH.
Purple light erupted across the sky.
Once.
Twice.
Ten times.
Thirty.
His presence split, reappearing across the meteor's surface faster than perception. Each movement carved a line of absolute severance through the falling mass.
The sound didn't explode.
It whispered.
Like rain.
---
The Rain
The meteor didn't crash.
It broke.
Millions of razor-thin fragments shattered apart, reduced into countless small stones—
each harmless.
They fell gently.
Like ash.
Like rain.
Tiny rocks struck the ground, tapping softly against scorched earth instead of erasing existence.
The Second Heaven survived.
Barely.
Silence followed.
Even Hell seemed stunned.
---
The King of Hell Roars
Sanji Youta's smile vanished.
His eyes burned.
Sanji Youta
"YOU CAN'T PROTECT THIS—ALWAYS!"
His aura surged violently, blood-red energy tearing the ground beneath his feet.
---
Aftermath
Haruko marched straight up to Kiyoshi and grabbed his collar.
Haruko
"STOP USING GOUKANI BAKKYAKU!"
Her voice cracked—not fear, but rage.
Kiyoshi blinked.
Then laughed.
Not goofy.
Not light.
A mad, breathless laugh.
Kiyoshi
"Sorry!"
He wiped blood from his mouth, eyes shining.
Kiyoshi
"…Got carried away."
Eirien stared at the sky, then at Z.
Eirien (quietly)
"…He cut a falling world."
Z lowered his katana.
His breathing was uneven.
Blood dripped from his fingers.
But he stood.
Sanji Youta tightened his grip on his blade.
For the first time—
The King of Hell looked serious.
---
End of Chapter 74
The meteor fell.
The world survived.