They were just a few drops of blood, but it changed everything for Azazel. She had no idea how Aion prevented her from pushing his consciousness into the illusion realm, but whatever it did took a toll on him.
Azazel set her Depravita Aura ablaze and channeled it into her Dream Eyes, directing an even greater soul pressure into the Neo-Demon.
"CRACK!"
The sudden blast of energy and soul force made the ground beneath Aion crumble, and this one could not stop trembling as more blood began to feel from his nose and mouth.
"MORE!"
One of Azazel's Dream Eyes exploded, increasing the soul force that she unleashed on Aion, and she felt how the Neo-Demon's consciousness was slowly emerging from inside his mind. The Depravita was ready to give everything she had in this battle and go beyond her limits, as the idea of defeating the undefeatable made her soul burn with excitement and thrill.
Aion's ears, nose, and mouth began to bleed profusely, but he did not break his lotus position. He did, however, open his bloody eyes and stare at the Depravita with a cold light as he clasped his hands and intertwined his fingers.
Just like when he defended from Sirik's onslaught in the last second, Aion twisted space-time around him, generating a set of shining gray chains that enveloped his body.
The instant those chains came into existence, Aion's body stopped trembling, and it seemed they were able to pin down his consciousness into his body with monstrous strength.
Azazel's eyes narrowed as she saw those chains, and the original feeling that she got when she attempted to seal Aion's consciousness into the illusion realm returned. Once again, the Depravita felt she was not trying to capture an individual's consciousness but that of the entire world.
Noah was looking at the battle with his Samsara Eye, and a sense of utter shock appeared in his heart when he finally understood how Aion resisted Azazel's illusion spell.
The Samsara Eye showed Noah how Aion's soul fused with the world around him in a way he had never seen before, and the chains sealed that fusion with even greater strength. It was no wonder Azazel was having such a hard time trapping Aion's consciousness.
However, there was a silver lining. The instant Azazel broke that connection, Aion would suffer such a devastating backlash that he might lose consciousness immediately, granting her victory.
Noah did not say a word since he should not interfere in the battle of others. Besides, Azazel was already focusing all her power on trapping Aion's consciousness in the illusion realm, so he did not need to meddle.
Two more of Azazel's Dream Eyes exploded as she increased the pressure over Aion, making this one shake again while bleeding from every orifice in his face. The cosmic chains that keep the Neo-Demon's consciousness in place began to rattle, and it was clear they were not indestructible.
Aion's eyes were cold as he stared at the Depravita. He strengthened the grip between his two hands, enhancing the chains' power as he did all in his power to resist.
Seconds become minutes, and there was total silence in the coliseum as people held their breath and watched the clash between the two geniuses.
Other than Sirik's fight, this was the first time someone had put Aion under such immense pressure, and the most shocking part was that Azazel did not have to recur to suicidal techniques to achieve that goal.
The notion that Azazel only managed to reach this far, thanks to Athea's loss, faded away as the Depravita proved she had every right to be among the mighty Samsara Geniuses.
"Boom."
Azazel's seventh Dream Eye exploded as she kept firing her illusion spell, and despite the exhaustion and pain, her soul grew more vibrant with every second.
The Neo-Demon with the Human Lineage was an absolute monster in physical and energy battles, but his soft spot had finally been discovered, and they were illusions!
"Crack."
One of the cosmic chains holding Aion burst to pieces, making him puke a mouthful of blood, but that was not enough to seal his consciousness or break his lotus stance. The soul force attacking him had already pulverized the ground beneath him, making him float above a pile of sand.
"?Boom!" "?Boom!"
"Crack!" "Crack!" "Crack!"
Azazel's eighth and ninth Dream Eyes exploded, increasing the soul force she unleashed by several folds, shattering many of Aion's cosmic chains but also pushing her one step closer to her breaking point.
"?AHHHH!"
A cry of rage and determination emerged from inside Azazel as the last of her Dream Eyes exploded, charging all the soul force left in her inside the illusion spells. It made it so powerful that people could see the phantom of a demonic hand appear above Aion, closing around this one in order to seal his consciousness.
"CRACK!"
All the cosmic chains shattered into pieces, and the phantom demonic hand began to squeeze Aion's body as more and more blood leaked from his eyes and ears.
Aion's eyes began to lose focus, and he felt himself about to fall into the illusion realm, but an expression of utter rage and viciousness appeared on his face as he bit his tongue with so much strength that he nearly ripped it off. The pain brought an instant of focus to his mind, allowing him to make all the energy inside his body explode!
"BOOOMMMM!"
There was no order or control in that blast, only wild energy blasting in all directions, but it allowed Aion to push back against Azazel's soul force before this one could seal his consciousness into her illusion realm.
The soul pressure faded along with that blast, and everybody could see how the Depravita and Neo-Demon fell to the ground, having difficulty breathing, much less stand-up.
The people in the coliseum did not know how to react. Azazel's illusion spell failed, and she suffered a severe backlash, but Aion endured severe spiritual wounds by facing the soul pressure for such a long time.
In the end, the one that would decide was the one that monitored the entire battle, the Revenge Thearch. People turned to him in order to get an idea of which side was the winner, but Venganza did not move a muscle and simply stared at the duo on the ground.
The Revenge Thearch's eyes glowed as he thoroughly analyzed the duo and saw that neither of them had enough strength on them to continue fighting. After a moment, an idea came to mind, and he took a deep breath.
"10!"
Venganza's thunderous voice echoed across the entire Daybreak Sector, and flaming numbers appeared in the sky for everybody to see.
The eyes of Azazel and Aion widened when they heard that, and the tension in their hearts only grew the next second.
"9!"
The flaming number in the sky changed, and everybody understood this was a countdown. Since neither the Depravita nor the Neo-Demon had any more strength left in their bodies and souls, the first one to rise would be the winner!
"8!"
Aion struck his head against the ground, trying to use it as a lever to push the rest of his body up.
Azazel pushed two of her bloody wings into the ground, using all her strength to rise.
"7!"
Just moving their bodies proved immensely painful for the duo, and their exhaustion made them want nothing more than just to lie on the ground, but they refused to give up!
"6!"
Aion clenched his teeth as he spread his arms and put his palms against the ground.
Azazel used all her strength and buried her wings against the ground, breaking pieces of them, but generated a stable base.
"5!"
Vengaza's voice became even more powerful, and he would not slow down regardless of the one ahead. Whether it was the Neo-Demon or the Depravita, the one that rose first would be the winner!
"4!"
The people in the coliseum and across the entire Daybreak Universe focused on the Depravita and Neo-Demon with a sense of absolute focus. It was a matter of seconds before the victor emerged.
"3!"
Azazel pulled herself from the ground but had yet to fully stand up, while Aion had already straightened his chest and now had to do the same with his legs.
"2!"
Aion and Azazel looked at each other and could feel the desire to win over the other. No matter what, neither of them was willing to lose!
"1!"
"?AHHH!"
"?AHHH!"
Two roars full of will emerge from the arena as the Depravita and Neo-Demon give their all in the last second.
"In the battle between Azazel from the Depravita Race and Aion from the Human Lineage, the outcome is..."
Venganza's voice carried a solemn aura that made it clear no one could defy his decision.
"A draw!"
Those two final words reached every corner of the Daybreak Sector, and all life forms in the universe could see the figures of Azazel and Aion standing up!
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