The monstrous creature, now missing one of its heads, roared with raw fury, its remaining eyes rolling wildly. In blind rage, it launched itself at Yami, its four massive arms flailing in wide arcs that could tear through boulders and trees with ease. Each strike it threw came with enough force to shatter the earth, but Yami, in his Death Deity form, moved as if time itself had slowed.
To an outsider, it looked like he wasn't even making an effort to evade. Each of the creature's blows swung past him, slicing through the air just inches from his spectral frame. Yami's movements were fluid and minimal, his figure an almost ghostly blur. Not a single wild slash could find him, not a single swipe of those gargantuan claws touched him. It was as if he danced between each attack, with an eerie grace that made him seem untouchable.
Growing frustrated, the creature let out another roar, its remaining head twisting with hatred. Yami watched, his skeletal face unchanging, before reaching his hand out. He extended his arm to the ground with a soft, chilling calmness, his fingers pressing lightly against the earth. For a moment, everything was still. Then, with a pulse of energy, the ground beneath his hand shattered. A deep pit formed in the earth, cracks radiating out like a spider's web as the land splintered and fractured, sinking the creature's massive frame into the yawning chasm below.
But the beast wasn't finished. With a guttural snarl, it leapt back up, clawing its way out of the pit. Its rage seemed to double as it reared up, aiming its clawed fingers directly at Yami with vicious precision. Its jagged fingers slashed through the air toward him with deadly intent, the air whistling as it prepared to rip through anything in its path.
Yami, unmoved and seemingly unbothered, clenched his hand into a bony fist. In a single, swift movement, he swung it forward with incredible force, meeting the creature's enormous hand mid-strike. The impact sent a shockwave ripping through the forest, a deafening crack echoing in all directions. The creature's hand splintered and exploded upon contact, shards of bone and darkened flesh flying outward in all directions.
But the shockwave didn't stop there. The force from Yami's punch barreled forward, tearing through the trees, uprooting everything in its path for miles. An entire swath of the forest was left flattened, a desolate wasteland where once-thick trees had stood. The ground was torn apart, rocks were shattered, and the wind carried away the dust and debris.
Rei, who had been watching from a safe distance, felt her heart pound as she watched Yami's movements. She had seen him fight before, witnessed his strength many times—but this, this was different. In his Death Deity form, he was something beyond human, a figure of pure power and command. She watched in awe, feeling both pride and a strange sense of reverence, as if she were seeing the true force of the Shiyume clan for the first time.