Luna reappeared directly in front of Levi, the Blood Refining Fruit still clenched carefully in her jaws!

At the exact same moment, Levi appeared where Luna had been standing, having swapped positions with her through the Substitution Technique!

For a split second, Levi stood on the platform surrounded by dark cultivators, completely exposed.

Every eye in the clearing turned toward him.

The female Fiend-Warrior who had just attacked was barely two meters away, her sword still extended from her failed strike. Her eyes widened in shock as she registered the new target.

At least thirty dark cultivators suddenly locked their killing intent onto Levi, recognizing him as the thief who had stolen their precious treasure.

"KILL HIM!" someone roared.

Levi didn't hesitate!

He snatched Luna from where she'd appeared in front of him, tucking her and the precious fruit safely into his inner pocket. Then he spun on his heel, activating Thunder Step at maximum power!

BOOM!

Crimson lightning exploded beneath his feet! The black stone of the platform cracked from the force of his launch. His body transformed into a bolt of electricity, shooting toward the edge of the clearing at incredible speed!

"After him!"

"Don't let him escape!"

"The fruit belongs to us!"

At least fifteen dark cultivators broke away from their battles with the top ten students and gave chase! Some activated movement techniques, their bodies becoming blurs. Others took to the air, flying after him with wings manifested from their Astra Souls.

Levi had gotten what he came for, but now he had to survive long enough to actually consume it!

-----

THE STATUES AWAKEN

But just as Levi was about to escape the clearing and disappear into the maze of buildings, something terrible happened.

THUMP!

A pressure descended on the entire battlefield!

It wasn't just killing intent or Astra energy pressure. It was something far more ancient and malevolent. It felt like the attention of something that shouldn't exist, something that predated humanity itself, something that had been sleeping and was now waking up.

The dark leader, still battling Aldric in the sky, suddenly broke away from their clash. His black eyes blazed with fury as he raised his skull-topped staff high above his head.

"You dare steal from us!?" His voice boomed across the clearing, amplified by Astra energy until it was loud enough to make ears bleed. "You dare profane this sacred ritual ground!?"

The dark leader began to chant in a language that hurt to hear!

The words were twisted, wrong, like reality itself was rejecting their existence. Each syllable made the air vibrate uncomfortably. The sound didn't just enter through the ears—it seemed to bypass them entirely and resonate directly in the skull.

As he chanted, the demonic runes covering the four statues suddenly blazed with brilliant crimson light!

The light grew brighter and brighter until it was painful to look at directly. The statues themselves began to tremble, stone grinding against stone with a sound like thunder.

Then, impossibly, horrifyingly, the statues began to move!

The demon tiger statue was the first to fully animate. Its stone body flexed, muscles rippling beneath the black surface as if it were flesh rather than rock. Its empty eye sockets suddenly filled with burning red flames that cast dancing shadows. Its jaw opened wider, and a roar emerged—a sound that no stone sculpture should be able to produce!

ROOOAAARRR!

The roar shook the entire clearing! Birds fled from trees in the distance. The ground trembled. Several weaker dark cultivators actually collapsed, blood leaking from their ears.

The tiger's stone body became fluid, moving with predatory grace as it turned its burning gaze toward the clearing's exit—toward where Levi was running!

Then it leaped!

The ten-meter-tall stone demon tiger launched itself off the platform with such force that the black stone cracked beneath its hind legs! Its body sailed through the air in a perfect arc, covering fifty meters in a single bound.

CRASH!

It landed directly in Levi's path, blocking his escape!

The impact of its landing created a crater three meters wide. Cracks spread outward like spiderwebs. Dust and debris exploded upward, and when it cleared, the tiger was crouched in a predatory stance, its burning eyes locked onto Levi with undivided attention.

Behind him, Levi heard three more sounds of stone grinding against stone.

He risked a glance backward and felt his blood run cold.

The minotaur statue had come to life, raising its massive war axe as it charged toward the fourth-ranked student. The serpent statue had uncoiled, its body extending to its full thirty-meter length as it slithered across the platform toward the seventh-ranked student. And most terrifying of all, the two-headed humanoid statue had spread its blade-wings and taken flight, diving toward Aldric with both heads now screaming—the male head in manic laughter, the female head in agonized wailing.

The dark leader had brought all four demonic guardians to life!

And the tiger—the smallest but fastest of the four—had been sent after Levi!

Levi's hand instinctively moved to his saber's handle as he stared at the stone demon blocking his path. His Danger Sense was screaming so loudly it felt like an ice pick being driven into his brain.

This thing was dangerous. Incredibly dangerous. Possibly more dangerous than the two Fiend-Warriors he'd fought earlier combined.

From inside his pocket, Luna squeaked nervously, pressing the Blood Refining Fruit against his chest as if trying to hide it.

Levi took a deep breath, forcing himself to stay calm despite the terror trying to overwhelm his rational mind.

He'd wanted the fruit. He'd gotten the fruit. Now he just had to survive long enough to eat it.

The demon tiger opened its jaws, revealing fangs that glowed with the same crimson light as the runes covering its body.

Then it pounced!​​​​​​

Levi took a deep breath, forcing himself to stay calm despite the terror trying to overwhelm his rational mind.

He'd wanted the fruit. He'd gotten the fruit. Now he just had to survive long enough to eat it.

The demon tiger opened its jaws, revealing fangs that glowed with the same crimson light as the runes covering its body.

Then it pounced!​​​​​​

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