Noah stared at the horde of Lilas surrounding him, his mind racing as they closed in. The deformed ones lurched forward first—twisted parodies of the girl he knew, their limbs askew, features warped beyond recognition.
'No time to hesitate,' Noah thought, gripping the Eclipse Blade tighter.
As one of the misshapen clones lunged at him, arms outstretched with unnatural strength, Noah sliced through it with a precise arc of his blade. The creature's arm separated cleanly, and something unexpected happened—where the Eclipse Blade cut through flesh, instead of normal blood, a strange viscous substance splattered across the pristine white floor.
Noah's eyes narrowed as the liquid seemed to react to his blade, sizzling where void energy made contact. The substance wasn't quite blood—it was darker, thicker, with an unmistakable red sheen that reminded him of...
'Dark chi,' he realized with sudden clarity.
