Child of Destiny

Bang! Bang!

The earth beneath Malzareth’s feet suddenly caved in.

Countless jagged cracks rapidly spread across the battlefield as though the ground itself could no longer withstand the overwhelming pressure pouring from his body. Chunks of shattered stone slowly rose into the air before being crushed into fine dust by the invisible force surrounding him.

Swoosh! Swoosh!

At the same time, his dark crimson hair rapidly lengthened before transforming into blazing strands of demonic aura.

The fiery mane danced wildly behind him, flowing like living flames with every surge of power while the crimson runes engraved across his armor shone even brighter than before.

Without a word, Malzareth slowly extended one hand toward the colossal, spiked execution club resting beside him.

Grip!

The moment his fingers wrapped around its handle, another terrifying wave of pressure erupted from his body.

Boom!

The surrounding air trembled violently.

The countless metal spikes covering the massive weapon began releasing dark crimson mist as though the ancient execution club itself had awakened alongside its master.

Standing there clad in the Oni Armor of War, wearing the Oni Mask of Slaughter, and wielding that monstrous execution weapon, Malzareth no longer resembled an ordinary Demonic Player.

He looked like an ancient war demon that had marched through countless battlefields since time immemorial—a living embodiment of war and slaughter.

Meanwhile, Shin quietly watched the entire transformation unfold, his gaze remaining calm beneath the [Nephilim’s Gemini Mask].

The overwhelming pressure pouring from Malzareth was enough to make even the surrounding battlefield tremble, yet not a single ripple appeared in Shin’s eyes.

Naturally, he had considered interrupting the transformation before it could fully complete.

Unfortunately, every surge of demonic power erupting from Malzareth carried terrifying destructive force. The violent shockwaves continuously tore through the surroundings, making it extremely dangerous to force his way inside.

Rather than recklessly taking that risk, Shin chose a different approach.

”If you’re going to fight at your strongest...” he muttered while tightening his grip around the [Yamato]. ”...then respond in kind.”

Almost all of his greatest trump cards had already been exhausted during his desperate battle against the Elemental Anomalies.

Several remained sealed by cooldowns while others were still lying dormant after overusing them during the previous battles.

Fortunately, there were still a few that had yet to reveal themselves.

Without the slightest hesitation, Shin released the remaining power sleeping within him.

Swoosh!

The first to respond was the authority bestowed upon the Apocalypse Set.

’Equipment Skill (Apocalypse Set): Ruler’s Authority.’

Boom!

An overwhelming aura instantly erupted from Shin’s body.

Invisible pressure spread across the battlefield like a tidal wave as his very presence underwent a fundamental change.

He no longer resembled an ordinary swordsman.

Standing amidst the ruined battlefield, Shin carried the bearing of a monarch descending from a heavenly throne to pass judgment upon everything before him.

The oppressive aura surrounding him even began confronting the pressure released by Malzareth head-on.

Immediately afterward—

Boom!

The world itself seemed to lose every trace of color.

The crimson battlefield, the burning sky, even the rivers of slaughter energy—everything faded into black and white.

Only Shin remained standing at the center of that monochrome world.

’Grim Reaper Skill (Tier 2): Monochrome Field.’

Silence quietly enveloped the battlefield.

Even the flow of mana appeared to slow beneath the influence of the domain, but Shin had yet to finish.

His sword intent suddenly erupted without restraint.

’Special Ability: Sword Heart — Sword Graveyard.’

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Countless swords descended from the heavens.

Some were broken, others remained pristine, while the rest were covered with countless scars left behind by forgotten battles.

One after another, they plunged into the earth until the entire battlefield resembled an endless cemetery where innumerable legendary swords had been laid to rest.

An overwhelming sword intent filled every corner of the domain.

Yet another surge of power followed.

Boom!

Dark clouds violently gathered overhead.

Crackle! Crackle!

Heaven and earth rumbled as endless bolts of lightning danced between the clouds as a violent tempest descended upon the battlefield.

The howling winds merged with the roaring thunder, transforming the skies into a sea of destruction.

’Storm Raider Title Skill (Master): Domain — Thunderbolt Destruction.’

Lightning continuously crawled across the graveyard of swords, illuminating the monochrome world with blinding flashes of white.

The four domains overlapped seamlessly—the Royal Authority, Death, Sword Intent, and Storm.

Each represented a different aspect of Shin’s strength.

Together, they formed a battlefield that belonged solely to him.

The four domains intertwined seamlessly, gradually suppressing the overwhelming aura radiating from Malzareth.

Yet...

He was still not finished.

Shin calmly lowered his gaze toward the sheathed [Yamato] resting at his waist before quietly uttering two words. ”Void Reaper.”

Swoosh!

The surrounding space rippled.

A pitch-black rift silently opened behind Shin as an indescribable void aura seeped from within.

From the depths of the Reaper’s Realm, Hanzo slowly emerged in his humanoid form.

The Ancient Void Spirit stood silently behind Shin for only a brief moment, his violet eyes sweeping across the battlefield before stopping on Malzareth.

A faint smile appeared on his face. ”An Ancient Oni... It has been a while since I have fought one.”

His body then dissolved into countless motes of dark-violet light.

Swoosh!

The streak of light shot directly toward the [Yamato], disappearing into its sheathed blade.

Immediately afterward—

A deep violet radiance flowed along the length of the sheath before countless spatial ripples quietly spread around the sword.

The surrounding space itself began to distort.

’Elemental Spirit Possession (Void): Dimensional Cutter.’

A faint hum echoed throughout the monochrome battlefield.

The sheathed [Yamato] now possessed an edge capable of severing not only flesh and steel but also space itself.

The overwhelming pressure released by Malzareth moments earlier was gradually pushed back.

The two monstrous auras collided violently in midair, causing the surrounding space to distort as heaven and earth trembled beneath their confrontation.

...

Malzareth slowly raised his head, his crimson eyes locking onto the overwhelming figure standing before him.

Instead of fear, the battle hunger burning within them only intensified.

The blood of the Ancient Oni coursing through his veins had never feared impossible opponents.

To an Oni, an invincible enemy was not something to avoid. It was the perfect whetstone upon which a warrior tempered himself.

”ROAR!”

With a deafening roar, Malzareth violently stomped the ground.

Boom!

The earth instantly collapsed beneath his feet.

A violent earthquake rippled across the battlefield as the towering giant launched himself forward like an unstoppable meteor.

The massive execution club resting upon his shoulder was already descending before his body had fully crossed the distance.

At almost the exact same instant—

Swoosh!

Shin vanished before directly reappearing before the towering body of his opponent while his right hand rested upon the hilt of the [Yamato].

Shing!

The blade left its sheath.

For the briefest instant, the world fell silent.

Then—

Crack! Crack! Crack!

Thin fractures spread across the space before the sword.

Reality itself splintered.

Rather than merely cutting the air, the silver blade carved directly through the fabric of space, leaving behind a collapsing dimensional fissure that surged straight toward Malzareth.

’Jade Kirin Scripture: Quick Draw (Void) — Flash Strike (Dimensional Collapse)’

The strike carried almost no visible sword aura. Instead, everything along its path simply ceased to remain whole.

The space before Shin collapsed inward, devouring itself as the dimensional fissure relentlessly advanced.

At the same time—

Malzareth’s eyes flashed.

Without slowing his charge in the slightest, he swung the colossal execution club with every ounce of strength his transformed body could muster.

The countless spikes tore through the atmosphere as if attempting to smash heaven itself apart.

’Demonic Oni Technique: Secret Art — King of Execution’

BOOM!!

The two attacks collided.

Or rather...

They should have.

Malzareth’s overwhelming strike possessed enough raw power to flatten mountains and reduce fortresses to dust, but the colossal club found itself unable to advance any farther.

Not because something had stopped it, but because the space before it no longer existed.

The collapsing dimensional fissure swallowed every ounce of force carried by the execution club, tearing apart the very medium through which its devastating power could be transmitted.

However, at that very moment, the collapsing dimensional fissure suddenly stopped advancing.

Another invisible force surged from Malzareth’s execution club, violently crushing the surrounding space as it collided with Shin’s Void-infused strike.

The two collapsing worlds confronted one another, neither willing to yield.

For the briefest instant, a deadlock was formed between the two.

BOOM!!

A cataclysmic explosion erupted from the point of collision.

Swoosh!

Shin swiftly retreated, combining Void Steps with Phantom Shroud to slip through the violent shockwaves before they could engulf him.

His figure flickered repeatedly across the battlefield, each afterimage disappearing into distorted space as the explosion consumed nothing but empty mirages.

In contrast—

Boom!

A gigantic silhouette suddenly burst through the heart of the explosion.

Malzareth—this towering demon charged straight through the collapsing shockwave without slowing down in the slightest.

The Oni Armor of War covering his body emitted a deep crimson radiance as it endured the devastating explosion head-on. Fragments of shattered space and violent mana currents continuously crashed against the armor yet failed to leave even the faintest scratch upon its surface.

It was as though the ancient armor had transformed his body into an impregnable fortress.

”Ha!” A savage grin spread beneath the Oni War Mask. ”That’s it!”

His crimson eyes burned even brighter. ”Show me what you can do more, Battle God!”

Bang!

Without allowing Shin a single moment to recover, Malzareth violently kicked off the ground once more.

The battlefield exploded beneath his feet as his colossal body shot forward like an unstoppable siege weapon.

The enormous, spiked execution club rose high above his head.

Its countless steel spikes gleamed beneath the flashes of lightning from the Thunder Field, while terrifying demonic power rapidly gathered around the weapon.

”Let’s see...” His booming voice shook the battlefield. ”...whether your blade can cut through overwhelming strength again!”

BOOM!

The gigantic execution club descended toward Shin with enough force to seemingly crush heaven and earth.

...