Rivers of the Night - Chapter 256

Chapter 256: Tribulation
The oppression of the skies… it was something that Theron never thought he would feel. Or maybe he had just wiped that part out of his memory.

He had forgotten how heavy the weight of a Tribulation was. Every time he had that dream, he couldn’t recall the strength of the man exactly, he couldn’t recall the weight of the black clouds above. He couldn’t even recall how many people were there, or how many had died.

All he could remember were those three faces. The tears streaking down his little sister’s face. The way his mother huddled over her as a protective shield. The helplessness his father looked back at him with.

Every line of pain, every subtle regret, every stabbing emotion in those eyes that looked so similar to his own, and yet so very different.

In all of that, he had forgotten the might the skies held.

Staring up at it, as the rain grew from a mist to a heavy downpour, harsh winds splitting his hair into wild strands that seemed to reflect the turmoil in his heart, he felt that intimate terror all the more now.

Bits and pieces of that dream that he dreamt every night began to piece themselves together. The young man seemed to have vanished entirely, leaving behind nothing more than those oppressive skies.

And that was when he realized… this Tribulation was so much weaker than it had been. Even with him standing here, it was pathetic by comparison.

That young man had survived this? How old was he even, back then?

Theron had no idea. Even now, he couldn’t remember that face at all, as though it had been erased from his memories.

But he knew… he knew that it didn’t matter what had been done to his mind, it didn’t matter how strong the technique or how unique the method. When he saw that face again, he would know it.

Theron unsheathed his blade. With Veinsong thrumming to the beat of his heart, every resonating echo sending his blood flying through his veins faster and faster, he swiped his father’s sword across the heavy rain.

Droplets began to accumulate, a swirling storm of might coming from on high.

Theron unleashed a roar and slashed at the skies.

Akin to a flood dragon ejecting from his blade, a scythe of water spiraled upward and cut through. It sputtered and flailed as it churned higher and higher, before it shattered to pieces, unable to quite make it.

But the intent itself… the intent itself was enough.

The clouds seemed to roar back, their power almost doubling.

Theron had already glided his sword across the air again, his Mana draining with considerable speed as he made it heavier, and heavier, and even heavier than that.

He took a step forward, his torso flexing and his legs pulsing with so much strength they nearly tore what little remained of his pants.

He roared again, a deep, rumbling roar that was completely unlike the usual gentleness of his voice.

And then he slashed.

This time, it soared through the air even faster than before, cutting through the rain so fiercely that there was a portion on the ground that forgot to be soaked through.

But even it sputtered when it seemed to get close to the clouds above. Theron was just a Silver Mancer. Even though Tribulation Clouds were lower than usual clouds might be, the distance was still far too great for him to attack from.

Yet, once again, the intent alone was enough.

By this point, the Alpha was trembling. It was more than ready for Theron to try and kill it, but it didn’t expect that Theron would begin to do something like this. It didn’t even understand what the purpose was.

Was he just trying to kill them both?

It had no idea that Theron had ignored it because he had already forgotten about it.

This wasn’t for the Alpha. This was for him.

This was between he, Theron Galethunder, and the damned skies above his head.

Theron gathered another scythe of water, this one so large that it arched across dozens of meters. The heft it carried with it was so great that the muscles, tendons, and ligaments in his shoulder seemed to be about to tear themselves to pieces.

But Theron simply gripped his short sword with one hand, running the palm of his other across its surface.

Deep in the depths of his eyes, the frosty intent had grown to a fever, the white in his hair becoming no less prominent than the streaks of gentle violets, blues, and pinks.

His palm swiped across, his blood spurting and turning the gorgeous arc of blue into a devastating, almost devilish maroon violet.

He took another step forward, his foot cracking the earth beneath his weight and stepping onto the vein of Blood Crystal.

There was a churning in his body, down to the depths of his heart, and digging even further into the core of his very soul.

He pulled the sword back in a wide arc, his two Echoes being pushed to their absolute limits as he looked above him.

He would definitely split those skies in two.

Veins popped across his arm, bursting the sleeves of his robe apart as the frostiness grew.

Chi.

His blade seemed to solidify, and he roared once more. This time, it came from so deep within him that his throat was shredded to pieces, mists of blood becoming sparkling, ruby-like gems as they froze through the air.

And then he slashed at the skies once more.

The scythe was ejected from his blade, growing larger and larger as it accumulated rain as it went. Theron’s blood seemed to command the rain and wind, splitting it in two and reaching the blackened clouds above in an instant.

Chi.

The black clouds were severed.

Theron’s eyes became bloodshot, his grip on his short sword becoming so tight that it almost seemed as though his knuckles would tear apart his own skin.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The two halves of the Tribulation Clouds swirled into one mass, their forms bending and twisting until they formed a funnel aimed right at Theron.

The first true bolt fell from the skies at that moment, moving so fast that Theron couldn’t even react as it enveloped him completely.

Even if he had reacted, it wouldn’t have mattered…

How do you dodge a bolt of lightning as thick as that?