Chapter 559: How well do you fare against a Transcendent?
Each second brought with it a new death, the ground beneath them soaking in the gold and crimson blood of both sides.
Amidst the chaos, the demon generals issued a dire warning to their troops, their voices cutting through the din of battle.
[STAY CLEAR OF THE PROGENITOR GODSLAYER’S DIRECTION!]
One of the Four-Star Generals barked, eyes wide as they glanced toward Arthur in the sky.
The crimson-silver tendrils of destruction energy crackled and writhed around him like serpents, wildly lashing out at anything that dared come too close. Even from a distance, the sheer destructive force was palpable.
The generals knew better than to let their men become collateral damage again.
’The gods are not weakened; they still have their full power.’
Glancing back towards the sky, he asked.
’Why isn’t he using his weakening ability?’
It wasn’t hard to guess the answer to his question; Arthur was holding back.
Arthur had been eager to test his mettle against a genuine Transcendent for a while now, and Jakimor had presented him the opportunity.
Having increased his power level to 43% Transcendent, he’d grown a lot stronger and wanted to see the limit of his power.
Well, it had been bolstered further by the recent kill that had pushed him to Level 899 so it wasn’t 43% anymore.
Jakimor infused his blade with a surge of law energy and divinity, clashing with Arthur and momentarily overwhelming the destructive energy that coursed through Celestia.
For a brief moment, it seemed as though Jakimor had neutralized Arthur’s main source of damage and just when he thought that, Arthur teleported behind him and thrust Celestia forward with the blade tearing through the intricate, multi-layered barrier that protected Jakimor, piercing deep into his upper arm.
"?!"
Jakimor’s eyes widened in shock as he felt a sudden weakening in his soul’s defences. The realization hit him like a hammer.
’The Sword itself is a threat!’
Without a second thought, Jakimor activated his weapon break skill, spinning around to deliver a crushing downward strike aimed at shattering Celestia.
**KRANGG!!!
The moment their blades connected, a sharp, discordant ring echoed through the air, with Jakimor’s eyes widening as the expected result didn’t occur.
Instead, a rebounding force surged from Celestia, sending a shockwave up Jakimor’s arm. The energy backfired, and to his shock, his great sword cracked slightly along the edge.
Arthur seized the momentary opening and reignited his destruction energy, thrusting his blade forward and hitting Jakimor with two strikes that knocked him back.
The Transcendent stumbled mid-air, struggling to regain his balance as Arthur pressed the attack, following up with an Island Split.
Jakimor responded with a slash of divinity, aiming to counter the attack, only for Arthur to snap his fingers and make the slash skip time!
He made the Island Split skip the space and duration it would have needed to reach Jakimor, allowing it to cover the distance instantly, hit the man and send him reeling.
Arthur charged forward, pulling back his blade and thrusting it forward, unleashing a beam of destruction energy that surged forward.
The Transcendent, regaining his composure, swung his sword with the intent to cleave the beam in two. Yet, just as his sword was about to make contact, the beam halted abruptly, causing Jakimor’s strike to cut through empty air.
In the blink of an eye, the beam resumed its movement, now with twice the speed, and barrelled into Jakimor.
’It’s not Space but time? No...it’s both!’
The man realized with growing unease that Arthur wielded control over both of these powerful laws.
Seeing the grin on Arthur’s face, which made it seem as though the boy was treating the entire battle like a mere game, unnerved him more than he cared to admit.
The two blitzed through the air at hypersonic speed, occasionally flying low and sending soldiers sprawling as they clashed.
Jakimor’s great sword cleaved down towards Arthur’s neck, but the boy slowed time and evaded before retaliating with Celestia.
However, before Arthur’s blade reached him, space cracked open and white chains burst out, wrapping around the blade and holding it in place.
[’Causality?!’]
Both Arthur and Celestia reacted in the same manner, but a moment later, they realised it wasn’t the son of a bitch law.
’Oh...it’s his skill.’
Arthur flared his destructive energy, tearing the chains apart and backing away. The chains of luminous energy chased after Arthur so he stopped them in time and slashed with Celestia, splitting them with slashes of destructive energy.
He used a burst of gravity energy to propel himself forward and swung Celestia, aiming at Jakimor’s neck. However, Jakimor brought his great sword up to block the strike, the two blades colliding with an impact that sent shockwaves rippling through the air.
Jakimor’s divinity surged, and a blazing inferno of white flames enveloped his sword. Arthur used his Anti-Divinity on instinct, mixing it with destruction energy.
Sparks flew as the two energies battled for dominance, but to Jakimor’s surprise, neither could gain the advantage.
’How is his energy quality matching mine?! I’m a Transcendent for fuck’s sake!’
"Gravity...x10."
"?!"
Jakimor’s body shook when he heard those words escape Arthur’s lips, instantly conjuring dozens of chains which shot out of thin air and wrapped around Arthur’s arms, preventing him from swinging his blade.
But this only succeeded in halting him for a second as Arthur simply expelled destructive energy from his body and turned the chains to dust, before continuing his swing, though with reduced momentum.
Nevertheless, this short delay bought Jakimor time to reinforce his blade with the Law of Earth’s power, his sword taking on a rocky texture that absorbed the impact of the strike.
"Eternal Bind!"
Jakimor called out and his Unique Skill’s luminous energy chains manifested from thin air, snaking towards Arthur with incredible speed, but Arthur slowed their approach with time manipulation, just enough for him to twist out of their grasp.
He retaliated with a sweeping arc of Celestia, and the blade tore through the chains like paper, but more chains emerged, going from a few tens to hundreds in seconds, each one ensnaring his arms and legs.
’Oh, they’re increasing my weight. Is this gravity?’
Arthur questioned as he felt the weight of the chains increase as they tightened around him, and Jakimor pulled hard on the chains, dragging Arthur closer as he prepared a follow-up strike with his great sword, the blade now glowing with molten fire.
’That’d be bad...Annihilation Sphere.’
The godslayer used a technique, unleashing a spherical pulse of destruction energy that caused the chains to shatter under their power. He teleported behind Jakimor, aiming a stab at his back but Jakimor was already moving.
The great sword whirled around, intercepting Arthur’s strike with a resounding clang, and the man used his superior strength to force Arthur back.
But the young godslayer wasn’t deterred. He raised his free hand, warping gravity around Jakimor, increasing the pressure tenfold in an attempt to crush him.
Jakimor responded by channelling the law of Binding’s power through his body, wrapping himself in his chains which served as armour to reinforce his form against the crushing gravity.
More chains appeared once again, going for Arthur and coiling around his body in a more intricate pattern, each link infused with Jakimor’s divinity and...the law of sealing.
’Is this guy seriously trying to seal me mid-fight?’
Arthur was surprised by his audacity, but he soon realised Jakimor wasn’t just being audacious as he found himself struggling against the chains which tanked three Annihilation Spheres without breaking!
[Master...]
Celestia’s voice rang out in his head, but Arthur ignored it as Jakimor conjured a massive humanoid construct out of earth and fire, standing as tall as a mountain.
Jakimor thrust his great sword forward, and at the same moment, the construct’s flaming fists crashed down toward Arthur in perfect synchronization with Jakimor’s own attack.
’Rewind!’
Arthur rewound his body’s time to before the chains constricted his movements, spinning around and generating a spiral of destruction energy to repel the construct’s fists.
But as he turned to parry Jakimor’s strike, he felt the chains tighten around him again, sapping his strength and restricting his movements. Jakimor’s blade collided with Celestia, and this time, the force of the impact nearly knocked Arthur’s sword from his grasp.
The law of sealing’s power began to seep into his body, aiming to place a lock on his powers. Jakimor’s eyes glowed when he noticed this, and he drew in more ambient fate law energy, using it to enhance his binding powers to hold down Arthur’s movements.
The giant construct joined the fray, its fiery fist striking Arhtur and sending his body crashing into the ground, tearing open a massive fissure in the earth. It rushed forward, kicking the boy up into the air, before jumping up and slamming him back down to the ground.
"Now, you’ll be sealed."
Jakimor declared, his voice echoing with power as he tapped into the Pseudo-Origin core in his soul.
[Pseudo-Authority of Binding.]
More chains wrapped around Arthur, tightening further as they attempted to seal Arthur’s powers for good. Arthur could feel the energy constricting around him, the sealing technique slowly taking hold.
’This is bad...’
[Master, use your Pseudo-Authority!]
Celestia called out to Arthur but the boy ignored her and studied as the ground beneath him began to quake. The seal’s power grew, its tendrils reaching into the earth and sky, ready to lock Arthur away.
Seeing this, the High-Rank Demons rushed over but other Divine Humans formed a protective barricade to block them from getting to Jakimor.
It was then that a faux true voice rang out in all their heads.
|¬Pseudo-Authority of Destruction. ¬|
Eyes shot in Arthur’s direction and just before Jakimor’s chains could cover his lips, Arthur called out two words.
|¬Destruction Nova. ¬|
**KAABOOOM!!!!!
Arthur unleashed his destruction energy at 50% and it erupted from him in a blinding flash of crimson silver, obliterating the chains and sealing technique before it could complete.
The shockwave from the explosion tore through the battlefield, sending debris flying in every direction.
Jakimor was forced to retreat, shielding himself with his divinity as the explosion threatened to consume him.
But his instincts creamed ’danger’ and he quickly raised his sword to block the semi-transparent blade that cut through the smoke and aimed at his head.
"Oh, you noticed that?"
Arthur calmly asked, pulling back his blade and striking ten more times in a single second, each strike enhanced by the powers of time and gravity.
’Time Shatter.’
He hit Jakimor’s leg once, but the man felt nine more impacts on his leg, sending waves of pain coursing through him and temporarily destabilizing him.
Arthur took advantage of this and used gravity law energy to wrap the man’s body and fling him towards the ground, but he broke out with a burst of divinity and sent a wave of chains surging towards Arthur while his mountain-sized humanoid construct attacked the boy from behind.
In the face of the pincer, Arthur slowed the time of everything within a kilometre radius, giving him the leeway to turn around and raise Celestia.
"Island Split."
He swung his blade down, cleaving through the humanoid construct and destroying it before turning around and using a gravity shield to divert the trajectory of Jakimor’s chains.
The speed of time returned to normal and just as Arthur was about to charge to meet Jakimor, a chain wrapped around his left leg and yanked his body back.
"Uh-oh!"
Jakimor shot forward and attacked Arthur at that moment, his great sword carrying a weight that Arthur’s gravity shield struggled to block. He attacked five more times in a second, the pressure mounting with each strike and eventually overwhelming Arthur’s shield.
The boy tried to teleport, but to his surprise, Jakimor’s chains bound him to that position in space, preventing his teleportation.
