The crowd of despairing souls groaned in eerie unison as Sephiroth stepped onto the inky bck ptform of the Underdrome, his t figure illuminated by the hellish glow of the abyss surrounding the arena. Across from him, Cerberus appeared in a swirl of dark smoke and embers, its three heads snarling and snapping with feral iy. The beast’s fiery eyes locked onto Sephiroth, radiating pure malice.

  Cerberus was a monstrous sight: bck fur glistening like polished obsidian, its massive form rippling with muscles. Each of its three heads bore sharp, jagged teeth and glowing red eyes that seemed to bore into its oppo’s very soul. The ground shook as it took a step forward, its cws scraping against the ptform.

  Hades’s voied from above. “Ladies alemen—well, mostly gentlemen, and mostly dead—get ready for a csh of the titans! On one side, we have tall, dark, and gloomy! And oher, my own ferocious pup, Cerberus! Let’s get this show on the road!”

  Cerberus lunged first, its massive cws gouging into the ptform as it charged. Two heads s Sephiroth from different angles while the third unleashed a torrent of Dark Breath—darkness erupting from the ground in explosive waves.

  Sephiroth darted backward, his incredible speed leaving afterimages in his wake. With a graceful twist, he leaped into the air, narrowly avoiding the snapping jaws and dark eruptions. His Masamune shimmered in the dim light as he struck down with precision, a crest wave of energy flying toward Cerberus. The beast recoiled, but the strike left only a superficial scratch.

  “Not bad, not bad,” Hades quipped, leaning back casually. “But let’s see if you keep it up.”

  Cerberus retaliated with a thunderous leap, smming into the ground with its massive weight. A shockwave rippled outward, f Sephiroth to teleport several feet away to avoid being thrown off bahe hellhound’s heads moved in eerie synization, ung massive fireballs in quick succession. The projectiles exploded like miniature voloes, creating a fiery barrier that hemmed Sephiroth in.

  Sephiroth remained calm, his golden eyes gleaming with calcuted focus. “Is that all you’ve got?”

  Cerberus roared, rearing up on its hind legs. Sephiroth saw his opening. With a flick of his wrist, he summoned a Firaga Wall—a t barrier of fmes that erupted beh Cerberus, striking all three heads simultaneously and g its Dark Breath attack. The beast yelped, momentarily stunned by the seari, but quickly recovered.

  Before Cerberus could regain its footing, Sephiroth jured Shadow Fres—dark orbs of energy that hovered ominously before rag toward the beast. The orbs exploded upon impact, f Cerberus to leap into the air to avoid further damage. Sephiroth smirked, already anticipating the move.

  “Predictable,” he muttered.

  As the beast soared upward, Sephiroth summoned a Meteor spell. A massive, glowing rock materialized above him and hurtled toward the airborne Cerberus. The impact sent the creature crashing back to the ground with a deafening roar, the ptform crag uhe force.

  Hades leaned frinning. “Now that’s what I call fir!”

  But the fight was far from over. Cerberus rose from the crater it had created, its wounds rapidly closing. With a guttural growl, it moved faster than before, its heads snapping furiously. One head caught Sephiroth’s leg in its powerful jaws, lifting him effortlessly into the air.

  Helios, watg from the sidelines, winced. “This might be the first. Two creatures have mao pin him down.”

  Cerberus smmed Sephiroth into the ground with botling force. The crowd of souls groaned louder, their eerie chorus filling the arena. But Sephiroth, ever resilient, twisted his body mid-sm and summoned another meteor smming into the head holding him down causing it to release him. He nded on his feet, albeit unsteadily, and unleashed a flurry of Iaido sshes in quick succession.

  The beast roared in pain as its damaged head from the metean tee. Yet before it could fully recover, Sephiroth darted forward, his bde a blur. Each strike left glowing lines across the beast’s hide, weakening its divine resilience.

  Cerberus retaliated with another shockwave, f Sephiroth to retreat momentarily. Taking advantage of the pause, the remaining two heads verged, charging a massive fireball. The heat from the attack ed the air around it, promisiation.

  Sephiroth acted quickly, summoning another Meteor to intercept the fireball mid-flight. The two forces collided, erupting in a blinding explosion that shook the entire arena. Both batants were thrown back, but her fell.

  Sephiroth’s patience wore thin. His movements became mgressive, his strikes more precise. He leaped onto Cerberus’s back, plunging the Masamune deep into its spihe beast howled, thrashing violently in an attempt to shake him off. Sephiroth held firm, eling dark energy into the bde.

  Cerberus’s heads writhed in agony, one snapping wildly while atempted to bite Sephiroth directly. He teleported to safety, reappearing just as the creature lunged forward. Timing his attack perfectly, he drove the Masamuraight through one of its glowing eyes, causing it to colpse to its knees.

  In a final act of desperation, Cerberus reared back, summoning all its remaining strength. The two remaining heads opeheir jaws wide, spewing torrents of fire and darkness in every dire. The arena became a swirling maelstrom of chaos.

  Sephiroth stood his ground, his coat billowing as he prepared his ultimate move. With a calm breath, he raised the Masamune high, eling all his energy into the bde. In one fluid motion, he unleashed an Omnissh variation—flying around the beast and delivering a devastating series of sshes. Each strike glowed with dark energy, severing limbs and carving deep into Cerberus’s hide.

  The final blow came as Sephiroth appeared above the beast, driving the Masamuraight into its core. Cerberus let out o, ear-splitting roar before colpsing into a heap of shadowy mist. Its form dissolved into the abyss, leaving nothing behind.

  Sephiroth stood in the ter of the arena, his chest rising and falling heavily. For the first time, his exhaustion was evident. Blood trickled down his arm where the beast had bitten him, and his usually unshaken posture wavered slightly.

  Helios called out from the sidelines. “Hades, ten-minute break. Fair’s fair, right?”

  Hades appeared in a puff of smoke, g slowly. “You know what, kid? Fine. I’m feeling generous. Ten miall, dark, and deadly. But after that? We’re really turning up the heat.”

  Sephiroth shot Helios a sharp gre but said nothing. He sheathed the Masamune and walked off the ptform, his gaze focused ahead as if the battle hadn’t affected him at all.

  Helios teleported to Sephiroth and began casting a healing spell on him as he smirked. “Not bad. I’d say you’ve earned a breather.”

  Sephiroth didn’t reply, but the fai hint of a smirk tugged at his lips as he sat down to recover.

  AnnouI will be busy tomorrow so I'm uploading tomorrow's chapter today. See you in two days. I hope you all have a good week.