Global Awakening: Only I Can Respawn

Yeji ignored the chaos around her and kept walking towards Lycaon. Unlike the rest, there was no trace of fear on her face. Noticing her confidence, Lycaon couldn\'t help but chuckle as he raised his hand toward her.

No matter how powerful someone was. They were as good as dead if they couldn\'t move.

"Humans never learn," he taunted, letting his aura flow out.

As it happened to YuWon, Lycaon\'s aura moved around Yeji, wrapping around her. But as his aura reached her, it couldn\'t get close to her. At first, Lycaon was confused until he noticed the blood swirling around her.

The blood of the fallen centaurs had become one with Yeji, forming into armor around her. The blood armor protected her, and Lycaon\'s aura couldn\'t penetrate it.

"Impressive…" Lycaon\'s eyes narrowed.

It wasn\'t the first time someone had evaded his attack. But it had been a while since something like it happened.

Meanwhile, the awakeners and centaurs stopped fighting, instead focusing on the battle between Yeji and Lycaon.

Soo-Ah was smiling like she had won the lottery, unable to take her eyes off her goddess. Gina and Anna were shocked when they saw Yeji\'s strength.

It was like the time Yeji lost control of herself. When that happened, she gained immense strength but lost her rationality. But it didn\'t happen this time. She didn\'t lose her marbles, just gained strength.

"What\'s going on with her?" Gina asked, but no one had any answer.

Even Anna didn\'t have any clue about it. But then it hit her. The blood swirling around Yeji, following her every whim, could only mean one thing.

"It\'s not her!"

***

Meanwhile, Lycaon lunged at Yeji. But she sidestepped effortlessly. As Lycaon moved past her, the blood around her shifted, forming sharp edges along her arms and legs. It was her turn to attack him.

She swiped her bloody claws at him. But Lycaon didn\'t care. Until he felt a sharp pain in his chest. He stumbled back, realizing that she had managed to cut him, even if just slightly.

It was the first time someone had gotten past his [Invulnerability] and he was surprised. But he couldn\'t wait for long. The human before him was dangerous, and taking her down was the only thing on his mind.

He charged at her again, but Yeji was faster. She spun, slashing him with her claws again. Lycaon dodged some of her attacks, but each time he took a hit, he felt something strange. His wounds… they weren\'t closing up.

Lycaon\'s eyes widened in shock. Not only did Yeji penetrate his defenses, but she was messing with his regeneration.

"What… what is this?" he muttered, glancing down at his chest.

The blood around Yeji had latched onto his wounds, clinging to them like leeches, preventing them from healing. Yeji smirked and rejoiced at the fear in Lycaon\'s eyes.

"Maybe you\'re not as invincible as you thought."

Lycaon growled, but his confidence was waning. For the first time, he was facing someone who could injure him and prevent him from healing. He couldn\'t understand how it was possible, but he couldn\'t ignore the pain all over his body.

Thanks to his regenerative abilities, Lycaon had forgotten the feeling of being hurt. Now he was having a difficult time adjusting to the pain. Hence, he couldn\'t focus on the fight.

Yeji took a step back. The next moment, the blood armor around her disappeared, turning into mist. But it reformed when she extended her arm and turned into spears floating around her.

"You\'re done."

Lycaon\'s eyes darted around, realizing he was in a troublesome situation. If just a little of her blood on his cuts could cause him this much pain, he didn\'t even want to imagine what would happen if one of those spears pierced him.

"You think you can defeat me? I\'m the king here! You\'re nothing but a mortal—!"

"Too loud," Yeji cut him off, unbothered by his threats.

With a wave, Yeji thrust her hand forward, and the spears shot toward Lycaon in unison. He barely had time to raise his arms in defense as the first wave of spears struck him, piercing through his flesh and pinning him down.

He roared in pain as each spear dug deeper into his body. He tried to move away, but the spears pinned him to the ground like an insect caught in a black widow\'s web.

Lycaon thrashed around, trying to free himself, but it was all in vain. He continued to struggle, but the blood from the spear continued to spread within his body.

Just like he used his aura to control others, Yeji was using his blood to control him. Slowly, he lost control of his hands, then his legs. Eventually, everything below Lycaon\'s neck was in Yeji\'s control.

"No!" he roared. "This… this is impossible!"

Yeji stepped closer, smiling coldly as she looked down at him.

"So you bleed like anyone else..." she scoffed. "I\'m disappointed."

Lycaon\'s breathing got haggard. He desperately tried to fight off Yeji\'s control, but every attempt threw him deeper into the pits of despair. He felt fear creeping into his mind. An emotion he hadn\'t known for centuries.

"Not yet!"

Desperately, he reached out with his aura, trying to grasp at Yeji one last time. But he couldn\'t even raise his arm, let alone concentrate his aura.

"You will die here," Yeji said. "Not because you killed some beasts. I couldn\'t care less about them. But because you laid your hands on someone I love."

With a wave, she made the blood within Lycaon go haywire. His blood chaotically flowed within him, reaching everywhere and nowhere at the same time.

His heart couldn\'t take the continuous reversal in flow and, slowly, he lost consciousness. All the while, Yeji stood over him, watching as the light in his eyes dimmed.

Lycaon\'s breaths came in ragged gasps. The blood continued to hold him down, draining his life force. He tried to summon the last of his strength and force his aura to stabilize the blood flow, but it was useless.

As his vision blurred, Lycaon looked up at Yeji, not with anger or desperation, but with admiration and respect. At last, he understood why the centaurs chose her for the ritual.

"You… you\'re… stronger than I thought…"

Yeji didn\'t respond. She just watched as the last traces of life faded from his eyes. Only when he died did she turn away.

"...the king is dead."

"Retreat!"

Chaos erupted among the werewolves as they fled the scene. If someone could defeat Lycaon, then they could annihilate everyone in sight. The centaurs wanted to chase after them, but they couldn\'t offend their savior and turned to Yeji first.

But something was off with Yeji. She hadn\'t moved at all after killing Lycaon. It appeared like she was in a trance. Just when things looked calm, it happened.

Yeji lost her mind.

As the centaurs kneeled and praised her for defeating the cursed king, she approached an elder who looked up, expecting a blessing. Instead, he got his throat ripped out.

Yeji laughed as the centaur convulsed on the ground. Everyone else could only watch in horror.

But Soo-Ah and Min-Joon had the biggest smile on their faces. They had done it. They had forced Sekhmet\'s divine incarnation into Yeji\'s body. Now, their goddess could rule over the earth.

"That\'s enough!" YuWon yelled, leaning on Gina\'s shoulder.

Yeji turned to YuWon, only to laugh at his face. "A mortal... thinks he can order me around?"

A flash of crimson passed before her eyes as she lunged towards YuWon.

"I am Sekhmet! The Goddess of destruction and healing—!" she yelled but was interrupted by YuWon.

"No, you\'re just an out-of-control slave."

With a snap of his fingers, he forced Sekhmet to her knees. Since it was Sekhmet and not Yeji, YuWon didn\'t hold back and let her experience the full brunt of the slave brand\'s power.

Sekhmet stared at YuWon with murder in her eyes. She struggled to free herself from the slave brand, but the more she tried, the more painful it got for her.

Soo-Ah and Min-Joon couldn\'t witness their goddess in such a state. They moved to attack YuWon, only to be stopped by Gina and Anna. Soo-Ah summoned her skeletons for aid, and Min-Joon was about to go berserk.

But then the joint force of centaurs and awakeners rushed at them. The skeletons stood no chance against an enraged horde. Neither did Min-Joon as they got pinned to the ground and forced to watch their goddess kneel before YuWon.