Feralroot was not a place—it was a wound.
A realm of endless jungle, where roots rose like serpents and the very air pulsed with rage. Vines whispered curses in forgotten tongues, and the ground was littered with bones fossilized mid-scream.
As Kaito and the Ember Host crossed the threshold, the first wave came—beasts, half-man, half-tree, with claws like thorns and eyes that burned with feral intelligence.
Kaelyra's scimitars sang.
Isha vanished into shadows, striking unseen.
Kaito unleashed the Blade Echo, a ripple of pure force that split the jungle for miles.
But Feralroot grew back.
"They're regenerating," Kaelyra yelled. "This realm feeds on conflict!"
"Then we starve it," Kaito growled. "We end this fast."
---
Deep in the jungle heart, they found it—the Wild Altar, grown into the ribs of a long-dead colossus. Upon it stood the second Void Sovereign, a creature made of bark, bone, and rage.
His name was Thornwrath.
"I remember you," the creature snarled. "The Emperor who ran."
"And now I've returned," Kaito said, stepping forward. "To uproot you."
Thornwrath laughed, shaking the trees for miles. "Then bleed, Blade Emperor!"
Roots erupted from the ground, wrapping around soldiers, piercing armor.
Kaito's sword clashed with the Sovereign's living axe. Sparks flew. Earth cracked.
But Thornwrath's power came from the realm itself.
"I am the forest!" he bellowed.
"And I," Kaito roared back, "am the blade that clears the path!"
---
They battled for hours.
Until Kaito drove Nightcleaver through Thornwrath's core—splitting bark, bone, and fury in half.
The jungle screamed.
Then, it wept.
The trees calmed.
The air cleared.
Kaelyra dropped to a knee. "Feralroot… is free."
Kaito, drenched in sweat and sap, looked to the third and final mark on the map.
"Next," he said, "Netherglow."