"Let’s find out."

The moment he said it, Damon recognised the connection between Tsukiko and Ivy. The bond between the divine beast and their champion.

It was similar to his bond with Ayame, but significantly less complex.

Damon’s hand rose casually.

Both Tsukiko and Ivy flinched at the sudden movement, anticipating some sort of attack, but nothing happened. At least not at first.

Phoenix Clan Leader frowned. She had expected an attack, and instead, she only saw a human standing with his hand raised as if he were mocking her cautiousness.

"You dare jest with us-" Her words quickly died off as a sudden, sharp tug pulled at both her and Ivy’s cores.

Unlike before, when Damon had to fully indulge himself in weaving the threads of power, now with the Heavenly Comprehension, he could simply leave half of his mind to it, while the other half operated his body.

It was an odd sensation, as though he were in two places at the same time. Part of him just pulled at the threads responsible for the bond between Ivy and Tsukiko, while the other part of him watched them writhing in pain.

Their connection snapped a second later.

Tsukiko was the first to realise. Her eyes went wide, and all her previous calmness was gone, replaced by the look of absolute terror.

Ivy and Yoru realised what had happened a second later, their expressions not far from Tsukiko’s, who stared at Damon as though she was looking at the most treacherous creature she had ever seen.

"H-How..." she murmured, her arms wrapped around her abdomen, which burned with the sensation of a shattered bond.

Beside her, Ivy stumbled on her feet, her body swayed, and just as she looked as though she was going to hit the ground, Damon appeared beside her with his shadow step.

Ivy’s eyes locked onto him for a moment, her body turning lighter with each second as her presence was slowly being removed from the world she did not belong to.

"D-Damon..." she whispered, a slight recognition started to appear in her red eyes just a second before his body completely vanished. Returning back to its rightful place.

The second Ivy’s body disappeared from Damon’s arms, he turned his gaze toward Tsukiko, who looked at him with terror.

Suddenly, she turned around and tried to dash away, her flames bursting to life, but before she could even take a single leap, Yoru was already beside her, grabbing her by the back of her neck and slamming her into the ground.

"Tskk, you think sending that human girl back changes anything?! Resurrection is mine! Go ahead, kill me! I will just come back to life—"

"No, you won’t," Damon cut her off. His voice was flat. "The resurrection technique no longer belongs to you."

Tsukiko snickered at the comment. "It’s been mine since birth. It belongs to me and me alone!"

Damon’s expression turned almost pitiful as he watched the Phoenix Clan Leader desperately try to pretend she still had the upper hand.

Unfortunately for her, there was nothing but truth in Damon’s words. He did more than simply sever the connection between her and Ivy. He had also taken the resurrection technique from her altogether, removing the only thing standing between her and death.

"You damn human!" she hissed, trying to push herself upright but failing miserably against Yoru’s superior strength. "I will kill you first! Then, I will burn both the Kitsune and Dragon clans, leaving nothing but ash—"

CRACK!

With a simple twist of Yoru’s wrist, Tsukiko’s neck snapped to the side. Life faded away from her eyes, and the heat emanating from her presence subsided within moments as the so-called immortal Phoenix Clan Leader fell before them.

[You have slain a Level 159 Divine Beast: Phoenix Sovereign]

[New Monster Index Bonus: +112 Strength, +87 Vitality, +99 Dexterity, +129 Mana]

[You have reached Level 145.]

[You have reached Level 146.]

[You have reached Level 147.]

[You have reached Level 148.]

Damon ignored the notifications ringing in his head.

Instead, he turned toward Yoru, who had already let Tsukiko’s lifeless body hit the ground, and was brushing her hands off as though the task required far more dirty work than it looked to be.

Her gaze met his a second later. She stared him straight in the eyes for a few moments before moving slowly toward him.

She stopped only inches away from him, her hands landed on his armoured chest, and her body leaned onto his.

"You did it," she said, her voice softer now.

Damon held her gaze for a moment before finally deactivating his Heavenly Comprehension ability.

Immediately, he felt a sudden weight lift off his mind. He no longer ran calculations of everything around him, no longer felt the urge to study everything he laid his eyes on.

Now, he could simply meet her gaze without the need to do anything else other than to be in that moment.

"...Yeah," he replied after a moment of pause.

Damon felt a sudden feeling of exhaustion crash into him. He had been awake for nearly four days now, during which he spent most of the time weaving threads of power which required his utmost attention and focus.

"Let’s head back," Yoru said, noticing the exhaustion settling over his features.

Damon nodded, but as Yoru turned to walk back, he grabbed her arm and pulled her back in.

"Oh?" she raised a brow, her body pressing onto his.

Without skipping a beat, Damon’s arm wrapped across her back, and the second it did, their surroundings vanished, quickly replaced by the familiar sight of her bedroom.

What had been a distance of several hours, Damon just covered with a single use of his ability.

Heavenly Comprehension allowed more than just a way to file information, it allowed him to find ways of using his abilities that he didn’t think possible. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

The mana expenditure was great. Far greater than most would dare. But Damon’s reserves had long since stopped being something he had to consider.