Soulbound: Dual Cultivation-Chapter 446: Ice hailstones

The impact was heavy.

Punishing.

And this time, when he rose, it was slower.

Blood trailed from multiple wounds now, his breathing no longer controlled, his composure visibly shaken as he faced the reality before him, not one opponent, but two, perfectly synchronized, one suppressing him through an overwhelming domain while the other exploited every opening with precise and unpredictable attacks.

From the distance, the reaction was explosive.

"They're pushing him back!"

"Lucas is back in!"

"He's done for!"

The soldiers of Valerion could no longer contain their excitement, their voices rising louder with each passing moment as hope turned into belief, and belief into certainty that the impossible might actually happen before their eyes.

Even Ken's expression darkened further, his confidence eroding with every exchange as he watched Dravok struggle to keep up, his jaw tightening as the situation spiraled beyond what he had anticipated.

"…This is bad," he muttered again, more quietly this time, as though acknowledging a truth he did not want to accept.

Back in the battlefield, Lucas and the Ice Belle did not slow.

They could not afford to.

Every second mattered.

Every opening had to be taken.

Lucas shifted again, appearing at Dravok's side as he attempted to gather wind for a counterattack, and this time he struck with greater intent, compressing space into a focused point before releasing it directly into Dravok's guard, the distortion forcing his defense to collapse inward for just a moment.

That moment was all the Ice Belle needed.

She stepped in, her movement smooth and effortless, and drove a condensed spike of ice forward with devastating precision, striking Dravok cleanly and sending another shockwave through his already battered body.

He staggered again.

This time, he did not hide it.

The gap had widened too much.

The pressure had become too great.

And with Lucas now fully rejoined in the fight, combining his spatial unpredictability with her absolute control over the domain, the situation had turned from difficult to overwhelming.

Dravok was no longer just at a disadvantage.

He was being pushed to the brink.

The shift in power reached a terrifying clarity in that moment, not as a fleeting advantage but as something fully realized and undeniable, something that pressed down on the battlefield with such weight that even the most inexperienced soldier could feel that the tide had not only turned but was now crashing forward with unstoppable force. The Ice Belle stood at the center of her domain like its very heart, her presence calm yet absolute, and when she raised her hand again, it was not a gesture of testing or probing but one of finality, as though she had already decided how this exchange would end.

Above them, the sky responded with chilling obedience, the cold intensifying to a degree that made the air itself feel heavy and brittle, and within that frozen expanse, massive constructs began to form once more, but unlike anything seen earlier in the battle, these were not crude or chaotic in shape, they were refined, elongated, and terrifyingly precise, each one forming into a massive spear of ice with a razor-sharp tip that gleamed faintly with condensed power. The wind within the domain wrapped around them tightly, not to disrupt but to enhance, accelerating their formation and stabilizing their structure so that each one carried both immense weight and lethal velocity.

They hovered only briefly, suspended in perfect alignment above Dravok, and in that moment, the silence across the valley deepened, because even those who did not understand the mechanics of such power could sense the intent behind it, a clear and unrelenting promise of destruction that left no room for doubt.

Dravok felt it completely.

There was no hesitation this time, no arrogance, no dismissal, only immediate and decisive action as he drew upon his full strength, his celestial energy erupting outward in a dense and radiant surge that expanded around him in a protective sphere. This was not the same level of defense he had used earlier, this was deeper, heavier, layered with the essence of his cultivation itself, forming a barrier that shimmered with authority and resilience as it solidified into a multi-layered shield designed to endure even overwhelming force.

He lowered his stance slightly, anchoring himself as he poured more energy into it, reinforcing every layer, stabilizing every fracture point before it could even form, his expression set with a cold determination that acknowledged the seriousness of what he was about to face.

"Come," he said, his voice low and steady despite the tension building around him.

The Ice Belle did not respond with words.

She simply clenched her hand.

And the sky answered.

The ice hailstones descended all at once, not scattered or delayed, but in a unified and overwhelming barrage that tore through the air with terrifying speed, each spear-like construct cutting downward with pinpoint precision as the wind amplified their descent into streaks of pale destruction. The first impact struck with a force that shook the ground beneath Dravok's feet, sending a violent ripple through his barrier that echoed outward like a shockwave, and before that impact could even settle, the second came, followed by the third, and then dozens more in rapid succession.

They did not give him time.

They did not allow recovery.

They struck relentlessly, each collision hammering against the barrier with crushing force, each one carrying enough power to destabilize even a strong defense, and while the barrier held at first, glowing brighter as it absorbed the impacts, the strain began to show almost immediately. Dravok gritted his teeth as he pushed more energy into the shield, reinforcing it again and again, but the problem was no longer about a single strike or even a handful, it was the continuous, unrelenting accumulation of force that wore it down piece by piece.

Cracks began to form, faint at first but undeniable, spreading across the surface of the barrier in thin, jagged lines that grew with every impact, and from the outside, it was clear that the structure was being pushed beyond its limits. The Ice Belle's control ensured that none of the hailstones lost momentum or precision, each one striking exactly where it would cause the most damage, each one contributing to the inevitable collapse.

Lucas saw it clearly.

He did not rush blindly into the assault, but instead moved with careful intent, his understanding of the battlefield allowing him to identify the exact moment where his intervention would matter most, and when that moment came, he acted without hesitation. A subtle spatial distortion formed along the edge of the barrier, not large or explosive, but precise, twisting the flow of energy just enough to create instability within the already strained structure, disrupting the reinforcement Dravok was desperately trying to maintain.

That small interference was enough.

The next hailstone struck.

Then another.

The cracks spread rapidly.

And then the barrier gave way.

It did not explode outward in dramatic fashion, but instead collapsed inward under the overwhelming pressure, fragments of celestial energy breaking apart and dissolving as the defense failed completely, leaving Dravok exposed in the exact moment he could least afford it.

The remaining hailstones descended without obstruction.

The first struck his shoulder with brutal force, driving him downward as the impact exploded into a surge of freezing energy that tore through his defenses. Another followed immediately, slamming into his side and forcing a sharp, involuntary reaction from him as the force rippled through his body. A third came from above, crashing into him before he could fully recover, the impact sending him crashing into the ground with a heavy, echoing force that shook the frozen terrain.

They continued to fall.

Relentless.

Unforgiving.

Each strike landing with deadly precision, each one compounding the damage, tearing through what remained of his defenses and forcing his body to absorb punishment that even a Celestial could not ignore. His movements slowed, his stance broke, and the control he had once held over the battlefield slipped further with every passing second.

When the final hailstone struck, it drove him across the ground with enough force to carve a shallow path through the ice before finally coming to a stop, his body sliding to a halt in a state that bore no resemblance to the composed and dominant figure he had been earlier in the fight.

Silence followed.

Heavy.

Uncertain.

Dravok remained still for a moment before slowly pushing himself up, his movements no longer fluid or controlled but weighed down by the accumulated damage, his breathing heavier, uneven, as blood flowed freely from multiple wounds across his body. His posture lacked the stability it once had, his presence no longer overwhelming but strained, and as he lifted his head to face Lucas and the Ice Belle once more, the truth of the situation settled across the battlefield in a way that could not be denied or ignored.

The Celestial who had once dominated the fight was no longer untouchable.

He was being broken.