Chapter 375 - Advent of the Heavenly Demon (5)
“What nonsense are you saying?”
Did it mean the heavenly demon would no longer be swayed by the words? The heavenly demon glared and changed his posture. The power of aura, magic, and the sacred creatures united in one place, forming an unprecedented shape. As long as the Absorption Star Method was activated, the heavenly demon would be difficult to overcome with a transcendent’s power alone. Therefore, Theodore had to prepare a trump card.
“Let’s see?” As he felt the power rising behind him, Theodore playfully said to the astonished heavenly demon, “I brought your brother to you. Isn’t it your duty to thank me?”
Theodore had brought a miko with no battle experience onto a dangerous battlefield for a reason. Although he felt sorry for her, it couldn’t be helped. It would be too bad to miss the opportunity to borrow the power of a transcendent—Abe no Seimei.
“The old gods of Takama-ga-hara, Suzuka who keeps the legitimacy of the heavenly deities is here―”
It was already too late for external interference to interrupt it. This fact was known to the heavenly demon. A ceremony of such great power couldn’t be completed in seconds. It would’ve taken at least a few minutes. The chanting would’ve started the moment the heavenly demon’s feet were tied up by the joint attacks of the Dao Yuan Nine Palace Troops. Moreover, with Theodore blocking the front, it was impossible to kill Suzuka in a matter of seconds.
“Great Founder Seimei! I give you my body today!” Then Suzuka, miko of Japan, completed the ceremony.
[I’m sorry for bringing you to such a rough place, my child.]
The Possession Ceremony! It was much less advanced than obtaining a divinity, but it became much more difficult if the subject was a transcendent like Abe no Seimei. Fortunately, Suzuka was a distant kin of Seimei and was able to easily succeed because Seimei cooperated.
Flash!
A light glowed and a translucent figure appeared behind Suzuka. It was the soul fragment of Abe no Seimei, who had escaped from the Eight Jade Magatamas.
“No? That aura, that power! You are...!” The heavenly demon was aghast when he recognized Seimei.
However, Abe no Seimei and Theodore people spoke like the heavenly demon wasn’t there.
[There is only one chance. Don’t make a mistake.]
Theodore replied, “Of course. I am aware.”
There was a limit to using Suzuka’s body as a vessel. Only one technique could be used against the heavenly demon. If Seimei exerted more than that, Suzuka’s body and soul would be crushed. Therefore, this move had to hit.
Kiiing.
There was a sharp ringing sound, and the whole world turned black and white. Time Stop was activated within a certain range! However, the one who had already experienced this once scoffed. The heavenly demon had already fully adapted to Time Stop. “Ha! Are you stupid enough to try to use this to tie my feet for a few minutes?”
“I will return your words. Don’t you know after seeing it once?” However, Theodore laughed at the unexpected situation. “I didn’t stop time in order to tie up your feet!”
“What?”
It was just after that...
Inside Suzuka’s body, Seimei completed the chant, [Taboo, Soul Incantation Killing.]
Chill.
It was dangerous. Despite his sky-high pride, the heavenly demon suffered from a sense of crisis and moved his body. He couldn’t allow the other party to finish this incantation. The heavenly demon had to kill before it could be cast, and avoid it if he couldn’t kill the caster. In the world where time had stopped, wings of fire rose. It was the power of the sacred creature, Karura. The heavenly demon was going to control the fire and leave this place.
“Hold on, Immortal Rope!”
At this moment, ropes flew at the speed of light and tied up the limbs of the heavenly demon. It was one of the three treasures Theodore had received from the supreme monk—a rope that could even hold a sacred creature.
“Eek! This crude thing...! Kuk, why?”
“Now, who is stupid?”
The Absorption Star Method wasn’t activated. No, the absorption didn’t work when time was stopped. It was useless in the area of Time Stop, where even mana flow was stopped. The heavenly demon grasped the situation too late and struggled.
[For a full day, I will seal your spirituality predation,] Seimei uttered in a loud voice and held his two fingers in front of him like a blade as the shape of a sword formed.
The maximum sealing taboo—it was a magic blade that could wedge into the soul of a god. This was one of Abe no Seimei’s ultimate techniques, which could seal even an immortal heart.
Puk!
Despite the heavenly demon’s desperate struggle, the sword leaped from Seimei’s fingertips into his heart. The heavenly demon’s hard skin was meaningless because it wasn’t a physical technique.
It was a sword blocking the soul. From now on, the heavenly demon would be in a state where he couldn’t use the Absorption Star Method. His body was fully recovered due to the forces he absorbed a short while ago, but the attack power of the heavenly demon fell by half now that he could no longer use the Absorption Star Method.
‘Seimei, from now on I will fight alone.’
[Can you win? He is a monster, even without that absorption method.]
That’s right. The Absorption Star Method was a trick that relied on external forces. The fearful thing was the heavenly demon’s infinite resilience and recovery. The combat power of the heavenly demon got stronger with every minute and every second. This meant Theodore needed to defeat the heavenly demon as soon as possible, before he could fully embrace his power.
‘Man proposes but God disposes. The heavens will stand by me.’ (This Proverb statement tells that whatever man proposes as his objective to achieve by exercising his willpower, efforts, and intellectual potentialities, there is a limit to his abilities and that there is some supernatural power—God—to determine the shape of things and their end.)
There was an emblem on Theodore’s right hand—a sign that stood for the guardian of the world. As long as the Absorption Star Method was cut off, the material world could be used as backup. Theodore had a 70% advantage in the battle while the heavenly demon had a 30% advantage. Seimei read Theodore’s will and sent Suzuka off the mountain. Only two monsters were left on this vacant lot.
Duduk. Duk! Tududuk! The heavenly demon broke through the Immortal Rope tying him.
It wasn’t with any spell or technique, just strength. He broke through the rope with simple strength. Then the heavenly demon turned to face Theodore. “Are you done?”
“What does that mean?”
“Did you use all your tricks?”
A bloody-colored aura overflowed from the heavenly demon, who held a sword and spear in one hand while the appearance of Karura showed up behind him. No, it wasn’t Karura. His body was surrounded by lightning, and his two legs, which had become hazy, looked like power from a sacred creature. With the practical experience of fighting Theodore and his group, it made the heavenly demon even more advanced.
‘I’m glad.’
However, Theodore raised both hands instead of retreating.
‘I am still stronger.’
Eight jewels started moving. The Eight Jade Magatamas—it was one of the three divine artifacts that could create separate bodies. The Eight Jade Magatamas recognized their owner’s will and shone.
Flash!
One, two, three... Theodore’s clones appeared in the air, lined up at regular intervals. Magic power flowed out of his body into the ground, scattering enormous pressure. Including Theodore, there were nine people. They couldn’t copy the main body’s defense and Gluttony’s power, but the magic power of nine circles was terrible enough.
The pupils of the heavenly demon shook for a moment.
“I couldn’t use this function due to the Absorption Star Method… but things have changed a bit. Isn't that right?” Theodore said half seriously, half as a bluff.
There might be nine bodies, but that didn’t mean Theodore was nine times stronger. After all, the clones were created using ultimate magic. Once the ultimate magic was used up, the body of the clone would be reclaimed. A body that disappeared could only be summoned again in seven days, so it couldn’t be used again in this fight.
‘Well, I have no intention of telling him that.’
Theodore flew into the air, and his eight clones followed him in a semicircle. The nine Theodores and the enemy of the world, the heavenly demon—the moment their two pairs of eyes collided...
“How do you feel about your death day being the same as your birthday, monster?”
“―You!”
The next generation was marked by the end of a great battle.
* * *
Hwang Mountain collapsed.
This was a simple summary. If he wanted to express the landscape in words, he would need dozens of pieces of paper.
The altitude of the lowest mountain peak exceeded 3 kilometers. This was high in comparison to any famous mountain on the East Continent. The splendor of Hwang Mountain wasn’t inferior either. A sword master’s aura blade or great magic, which could burn thousands of people, wouldn’t be able to shatter even a tenth of this mountain.
Flash!
However, there was a flash of light, and dozens of mountain peaks on Hwang Mountain collapsed, causing a major earthquake.
Kukukukukung!
The surface of the ground was peeled off like flesh, and some of the rocks that fell from the edge of the cliff rose to the height of clouds. There were rising air currents, and it was like a massive volcanic eruption had occurred! The dark night sky was covered by thousands of pieces of rubble. The catastrophe that was already beyond the realm of a mortal crashed into Hwang Mountain, crumbling several times a second.
“Kuaaaaahhhhh!”
Lightning storms, fire pillars, and other great magic aimed at the heavenly demon, who raised both hands. In addition to the power of the two beings—the power of the sacred creature, Karura, and the evil dragon’s steel storm—he called on the dao king.
Thunder Hegemon Dao Final Skill.
One Dao Precipice.
It was great enough to cut a cliff with a human body, but the heavenly demon literally carved the heavens and earth. Heat, pressure, and gravity all twisted arbitrarily. Dirt disappeared, and light and sound collapsed. It was a destructive power that shook the laws of physics of the world.
Theodore, who opposed him, didn’t look human either.
「 Absolute Shield. 」
「 Reflection. 」
「 Void Wall. 」
The ultimate defense magic of eight magicians centered on one point, stopping even the destructive power that could tear the world. The material world screamed as both forces offset each other. The ecosystem of this area had long collapsed. Even the forest and mountain animals hundreds of kilometers away were fleeing as far as possible.
‘Number 7 didn’t escape. There are four left.’
It had gone on like this for an hour. Theodore frowned as one of his clones disappeared. With his mental power, it was impossible to control all nine bodies perfectly. Geotia controlled two clones, but every time a discrepancy arose, one clone was lost. As such, there were only four of the eight clones left.
‘The speed of his strength increase is too fast. 14 types of great magic and Supercell no longer work, and neither do the lightning acceleration and Time Stop. More than anything, he is trying to steal my magic in the midst of the battle...!’
The two presences crossed nearly a thousand times in one minute and one second.
“Kuoh...!”
“Hu!”
If the battle lasted for another hour or even 30 minutes, Theodore might be the one losing his life. In fact, if his preparations had been lacking or he was missing even one colleague, it was likely he would already be dead.
‘But...’
He won.
Two swords of light sprung up from Theodore’s two hands and crossed in front of his chest—the Heavenly Sword and Soul Calibre. Theodore poured out all the magic power supplied by the material system and grabbed the swords of light. Was it because he had sunken into a state of enlightenment as the bloody struggle continued…? It seemed the horizon was flickering.
Fairy Dance’s Passed on to the Lord of the Family.
Four Major Hidden Techniques.
Boundary of Heavy and Earth.
He didn’t know the technique, but his body still remembered. It was the skill of a man who had conveyed his will to Theodore before disappearing.
Great magic Abraxas (ΑΒΡΑΞΑΣ)
Final Chapter.
Elemental Buster.
Two swords—one was the peak of magic, and the other was the peak of martial arts. Theodore forgot his own existence and moved both hands. He drew a cross shape. A sword technique that could cut the heavenly demon’s heart into four pieces. This technique was unique to Theodore. It was the sum of magic and martial arts that no one else had reached.
“Transcendent.”
Grand Cross.
The two rays of light passed through the flesh of the heavenly demon, and a fountain of blood gushed out.