Chapter 88: Spirit Elf Nira vs Arch Demon Morvain

There was a flash of light.

For a moment everything else became obscured by it. The monsters ceased to attack, the dark elves raised their arms to block the light, and the flames burning around the estate seemed to pale in comparison to the green, blue, and gold light engulfing the battlefield.

At the center of the light stood Nira.

The spirits surrounded her.

They weren’t far off, whispering to her, or floating through the trees, but were right next to her, swirling around her body, inside her mana, and answering her thoughts before she spoke them.

Then a voice rang out across the battlefield.

[An individual has fulfilled the necessary conditions for skill evolution.]

Everyone heard it.

[Common Skill Spirit Blessed has evolved into Unique Skill Spirit Sovereign.]

[The individual has fulfilled the necessary conditions for racial evolution.]

[Race Elf has evolved into Spirit Elf.]

The dark elves were shocked.

"What?"

"Race evolution?"

"Spirit Elf?"

Even Vaeron was staring at Nira. There had never been a reported race called Spirit Elf. Elves who had a natural connection with spirits were sometimes referred to as Elf Spirits. It was the connection they had with the spirits, not a title for their race. But Spirit Elf was different. It had been declared by the Voice of the World. Nira slowly opened her eyes.

Her wounds were gone.

The pain that had plagued her body was gone, replaced with a strange feeling of clarity. Her mana, which should’ve been nearly depleted, surged through her veins with amazing power.

Then there was something else. Something behind her. Two translucent wings burst out from her back. They resembled fairy wings, but instead were made up of a mass of spiritual energy, green, blue, and gold swirling together in an odd pattern like living paint. Nira turned her head slightly to the side, looking over her shoulder at the wings.

"Wings?"

She flexed her wings instinctively. The wings responded to her movements immediately, and the wind around her shifted. Nira looked down at her hands, then into her mind. Her Soul Record appeared before her eyes.

[Race: Spirit Elf

Unique Skill: Spirit Sovereign]

She stared at it for a few seconds.

Spirit Sovereign.

Nira had known about Spirit Blessed for years.

She had thought she had understood it all her life.

She could hear the whispers of spirits, and could cast elven magic with an easy connection to the elements. The wind responded more readily to her than most elves, and Nira had always had an innate understanding of the elements. But, that was all that she ever thought she knew.

Nira’s brow furrowed slightly.

"So I never really understood Spirit Blessed."

The spirits answered Nira with gentle voices. They were telling her about the wind around Morvain’s body. They were warning her about the darkness accumulating around him, and showing her the disturbances in the ground where the remaining monsters had moved. Nira took a deep breath.

Spirit Blessed had never been simply about hearing spirits.

The spirits had been trying to reach out to her. And now she could return the favor.

Her father was watching her from across the battlefield, a proud smile adorning his face despite the damage occurring around them.

"You finally awakened your true power, daughter."

Nira turned back towards the Greater Demon. Morvain had been watching her the whole time, and now that a miracle had appeared before his eyes, he was smiling.

"I didn’t expect to meet an Elf blessed by the spirits here." The dark energy around him began to gather. "I believe it’s time I stopped holding back." Nira’s father’s grip tensed around his weapon.

"That aura... impossible." His grip tightened further. "An Arch Demon." Morvain smiled.

"Let’s fight to the death, Elf Spirit." Nira glanced at him. Her wings spread out, and the spirits surged around her. "It’s over, Morvain." Morvain’s smile widened. "Then let’s prove that."

The ground beneath him exploded as dark energy shot forward in sheets of energy like numerous spears.

Nira was gone.

The spirits surrounding her body helped reinforce all her movements, and she disappeared between the first two spears, twisted under the next one, and caught the fourth one with her dagger. Normally the impact would have knocked her backwards, but the wind spirit surrounding her blade redirected the force.

Nira stepped forwards.

"Wind Blade."

The dagger flashed, and a compressed blade of wind sliced through Morvain’s spear.

Morvain raised his hand, and dark energy formed a shield in front of him. The Wind Blade struck it and dissipated. Nira was already moving, planting a foot on the ground and launching herself upwards.

"Flame Burst!"

Fire burst up underneath her, and the explosion sent her high into the air while also directing the fire towards Morvain.

Morvain swept his arm upwards, and darkness consumed the fire. Nira twisted through the air, and the wind spirits caught her. She changed direction before landing and swept her dagger downwards.

"Wind Cutter!"

Three blades of compressed wind rained down from above, striking from different angles. Morvain’s eyes narrowed. He moved, and the first one missed. The second one tore into his shoulder, and the third one grazed his cheek, leaving a small line of blood. Morvain touched the wound, looking at the blood on his fingers, then chuckled.

"Interesting."

His aura burst around him, making the trees around them bend violently, and black markings appeared across his skin while two great horns grew from his head. His body grew larger, his muscles tightening under his dark armor, and wings made of black feathers unfurled behind him, making the few uninjured soldiers fall unconscious due to the great pressure he was exerting.

Morvain suddenly vanished. Nira’s eyes widened. Her spiritual perception instinctively told her where he was. She turned, and Morvain’s fist came right at her face. Nira crossed her arms, and was sent flying backwards by the impact. She crashed through a stone wall and rolled across the ground. His fist came down on top of her.

Nira raised her dagger, but was caught in the grip of his black wings. Morvain’s aura burst from his body again, cracking the ground beneath his feet.

Nira could feel the pressure against her skin, and the spirits gathered around her. They were scared. Not of Morvain, but of the power he was about to release. Morvain raised one hand, and darkness condensed around his palm before shooting towards Nira. Nira moved to the side, and wind wrapped around her body and sent her sliding away from the blast, which tore huge chunks of the earth into the air.

Another strike came almost immediately.

Nira twisted away from it and landed on a broken stone wall. Morvain was right in front of her. His claw came down, and Nira raised her dagger, and the two weapons clashed. The ground beneath her feet shattered with the impact, and Nira allowed herself to be pushed back before using the wind to change direction, spinning through the air and sending a compressed blade of wind towards Morvain’s chest.

"Wind Blade!"

Morvain caught the blade with his arm, and Nira followed up with fire.

"Flame Burst!"

The explosion engulfed him, but before the flames dissipated, Nira cast Wind Step and appeared above him. Nira’s dagger came down towards his shoulder. Morvain raised his arm and blocked it, but blood fell from his shoulder. Morvain stared at the wound, then smiled.

"You’re learning quickly."

Nira said nothing. The spirits whispered to her. They were giving her warnings every time Morvain moved, and showing her the flow of his dark energy and guiding her past his other attacks, revealing the small holes in his defenses that ordinary perception would have been unable to notice. Nira fought alongside them. She attacked from one angle, and reversed her direction with a burst of wind magic to come at him from another, using fire magic to force him back while earth magic disrupted his footing, and using wind magic to follow up.

Morvain’s power was no longer enough to simply push her back. Nira was adapting. But Morvain had some tricks left. He suddenly stopped. The spirits around Nira fell silent. Nira’s expression changed. Morvain raised both of his hands, and dark energy started to gather above his head.

The light around the battlefield dimmed, and even the flames burning across the battlefield seemed to shrink.

"What is that?" Kaelith asked. Vaeron looked up at the sky. "Everyone, get away!" The soldiers quickly obeyed. Morvain laughed. "You cannot defeat me, Elf Spirit!" The darkness above him expanded into a giant sphere. "Your holy magic would only be weak like earlier." The sphere was pulling in the mana from around the battlefield.

"DARK DEVOURER!"

The sky seemed to be collapsing in on itself.

The giant sphere of darkness fell towards Nira, and everything around it started to become weaker. The light of the spirits around the battlefield was being sucked towards the sphere, and the fire magic Nira had been using lost some of its strength.

The magical barriers the soldiers had conjured flickered, and even the mana in the air around them was being devoured. Morvain’s voice rang out over the battlefield.

"Your magic will disappear inside my darkness!"

Nira was staring at the spell that was falling towards her. The spirits surrounded her. She was hearing them all clearly. Not as whispers, or as random voices. They were giving her something. A way of shaping her magic, and a way of calling upon their power. Nira slowly raised her hand.

"Spirit of light, appear before me."

The golden spirits gathered around her.

"Bearer of the first radiance, answer my call."

The light grew brighter.

"Descend upon this land and illuminate the darkness that stands before you."

Morvain’s Dark Devourer continued to fall towards Nira. Nira’s wings opened, and wind surrounded her body.."Let the light shine where darkness has taken root." Her voice grew stronger. "Let its radiance pierce the shadows that conceal evil." The golden spirits surrounded her completely. Morvain’s smile faded. Nira stepped forward. The spirits surged around her. "Let every shadow that stains this land be purified by sacred radiance." Her wings glowed brighter than ever. Morvain roared and forced more energy into Dark Devourer.

"Don’t think your little spell can stop me!"

Nira looked right at him. She raised her dagger to the falling spell. "And let the light remain when the darkness is gone." The spirits answered her. Thousands of voices rose to one. Nira’s eyes glowed a golden light. "By the blessing of the spirits. By the light that stands above every shadow..."

Golden light spilled over Dark Devourer.

"Erase every trace of darkness before me!

"SANCTIFICATION!!" Nira brought her dagger down and the battlefield exploded with golden light.

Dark Devourer swallowed the light up, but Morvain’s laughter died with it. A golden glow appeared inside the sphere of darkness, and cracks began to spread up its surface. Morvain’s eyes widened in shock.

"What?"

He poured more energy into Dark Devourer, but the dark sphere was slowly losing its black color.

Morvain’s expression twisted in horror.

"No!"

The sphere shattered.