Three-Way Battle

“What’s so funny?”

“I thought Mr. Bruce only learned skills related to attack. I never expected you to have mastered such a powerful buff skill too. It was worth deliberately keeping you alive.”

“…What?”

Bruce made a strange expression at the words that made him doubt his ears.

Deliberately kept alive?

Bruce, who had been wondering if something had broken due to too much shock, immediately hardened his expression when he met Alice’s eyes.

Eyes filled with absolute conviction, showing not even a shred of doubt about their own words.

Nothing was broken.

Alice was completely serious right now.

“I’d love to keep fighting and learn various things, but I think I should end it here. I’m not confident in controlling my strength while fighting if I get too strong haphazardly. So…”

Before Alice could finish speaking, Bruce’s form shot forward at light speed.

It wasn’t a conscious movement.

The warrior’s instincts honed through countless brushes with death sensed mortal danger and moved his body on their own.

MartialGod’s strike, taking the shortest route at maximum speed, shot toward Alice’s heart.

Woong!

Bruce’s all-out strike was blocked ridiculously easily.

Looking at the turbulent, rough energy swirling around Alice and his own fist stopped in mid-air by that energy, Bruce muttered in a trembling voice.

“…Heaven-Defying Blood Demon Technique?”

The internal energy amplification amount, the nature of the energy.

There was no doubt it was the Heaven-Defying Blood Demon Technique.

In that instant, countless thoughts crossed Bruce’s mind.

Heaven-Defying Blood Demon Technique wasn’t something brought from another world but a demonic art he personally created based on numerous demonic arts to minimize side effects.

A martial art unique across all dimensions along with Infinite Origin Force.

The ultimate secret technique he had only created as a last resort and never once used in reality was now being displayed by the android before him.

“Don’t tell me you too, like that bastard…”

Crack!

“Gah?!”

Alice’s palm strike smashed into Bruce’s chest.

Thanks to naturally occurring counter-force and the Diamond Indestructible Body skill, he avoided fatal injury, but that wasn’t what mattered to Bruce right now.

The palm print clearly imprinted on his chest as if painted there, and the terrible chill spreading throughout his body from the point of impact.

It was the Lesser Demonic Art.

Not just any Lesser Demonic Art, but the one he had modified himself.

That wasn’t all.

Fist techniques, palm techniques, finger techniques, leg techniques, footwork, body techniques.

Discovering traces of familiar martial arts in every single one of Alice’s movements – hands, feet, even subtle motions – Bruce lost his reason and let out a roar.

“How dare you!”

“You’d better bring out any hidden skills you have.”

Bruce with an expression like a malevolent demon, and Alice smiling brightly.

Though different in height, gender, and personality, the two launched themselves at each other while taking identical stances as if reflected in a mirror.

* * *

Yuseong threw a punch at Lucifer.

The fist containing immense power shot forth at supersonic speed.

However, that strike was blocked meaninglessly.

Tap!

The insane power strike that scattered clouds with its pressure was caught by Lucifer’s hand with a soft sound.

A defense that ignored the laws of physics of action and reaction.

Lucifer, who erased the impact the moment he caught Yuseong’s fist using karma, immediately thrust forward the sword in his other hand.

Though it was a lightning-fast strike, Yuseong who was reading the future with near-precognitive prediction leapt upward by creating a gravity foothold the moment his fist was blocked.

Swoosh!

The sword barely grazing past beneath his feet.

After crisis comes opportunity.

Yuseong used the nearby Flying Sword Formation he had set up as a foothold to leap toward Lucifer.

Boom boom boom!

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The explosions from kicking off sword blades and the sonic booms from flesh exceeding the speed of sound created a strange harmony.

Lucifer, who had been fluttering here and there like a feather in the wind while barely avoiding Yuseong’s attacks, suddenly spread his wings wide to wrap around himself.

Though it looked like defense at first glance, seeing the feathers faintly glowing with light, Yuseong immediately threw himself backward instead of attacking.

Swoosh swoosh swoosh!

Brilliant light exploded from Lucifer’s wings as thousands, tens of thousands of feathers shot out in all directions.

A lethal attack that filled the entire space leaving not even the smallest gap.

Neither blocking nor dodging was possible.

However, not a single feather could touch Yuseong’s body.

Because Yuseong’s body changed like a mirage, letting the feathers pass through.

Of course, it was evasion using karma.

“…Haah. You’re really being annoying. Can’t you just take one hit?”

“I’ll think about it if you take one first.”

Yuseong responded to Lucifer’s words.

Though it looked like normal conversation on the surface, both were desperately observing each other’s stances and predicting the future in their minds.

A transcendent battle incomprehensible even to mortals watching.

The method to win in this bizarre battle that ignored causality and manipulated reality was simple.

Like when Yuseong landed a hit on the intruder’s face, you just had to use overwhelming karma to block the opponent’s future prediction, fate manipulation, reality manipulation and so on.

But neither Yuseong nor Lucifer considered using that method.

‘This bastard Lucifer. Just how much karma does he have?’

‘I thought I could roughly figure out his karma reserves while fighting casually but… Whether it’s due to skill in usage, I just can’t get a grasp on it.’

The method of overwhelming with karma was simple but the risk was far too great.

What if you use massive karma to attack but the opponent has even more karma and defends or evades and counterattacks?

You’d be helplessly crushed without even being able to properly resist.

Until figuring out how much karma the opponent possessed, they had no choice but to minimize karma usage.

This was why the fight was dragging on.

A long battle between a transcendent who had surpassed mortal limits and a semi-transcendent.

If Yuseong and Lucifer wanted to, they could probably keep fighting for over seven days and nights.

However, contrary to their relaxed outward appearance, both were burning with impatience inside.

-The users are getting beaten up right now! Just how long are you going to keep fighting with him!

‘Alright, alright. Damn, after all that big talk and you can’t even buy time properly. How pathetic.’

Lucifer silently clicked his tongue at Changwei’s voice echoing in his head.

Bruce who had confidently declared victory was being overwhelmed helplessly, and the situation wasn’t looking good for the other users either.

In a situation where he had to conserve every bit of karma, if the users joined forces with Yuseong, it would only put him at a disadvantage.

‘This is driving me crazy. I can’t keep dragging this out.’

While Lucifer was clicking his tongue at Changwei’s nagging, Yuseong looked around the sky and tightly clenched his fist.

A day had already passed since the intruder left those brutal words about annihilating Earth and this dimension.

There was no knowing when the crazed intruder might appear with transcendents and divine beings in tow.

Naturally, Yuseong was feeling anxious too.

Boom!

How much time had passed?

In the midst of the fierce battle that seemed endless, Yuseong and Lucifer’s gazes briefly crossed.

Though no words were exchanged, both could tell they were thinking the same thing.

The longer this dragged on, the lower their chances of victory.

They had to go all out and settle this in one breath, come what may.

As if by agreement, both put distance between them and simultaneously drew upon their karma.

Blades of flame formed on the back of Yuseong’s hand, while pitch-black horns sprouted from Lucifer’s forehead with gray energy gathering between them.

The two scraped the very bottom of their souls to draw out karma with all their might.

No room to conserve karma.

They would unleash their full power strikes and whoever had insufficient karma would die.

“…”

“…”

When the constant explosions ceased, people sensing something strange temporarily stopped fighting and looked up.

Silence fell over the battlefield for a moment.

Everyone who saw Yuseong and Lucifer facing off instinctively realized that the outcome of this war would be decided by who won between these two.

Crack! Crack!

Space distorted and time began flowing slowly as such massive karma clashed it became tangible.

A powder keg situation.

And just as the two were about to unleash their lethal strikes, an anomaly occurred.

Shatter!

An out-of-place sound like glass breaking suddenly rang through the sky.

Taking your eyes off a life-or-death battle was tantamount to suicide, but both Yuseong and Lucifer looked up at the sky.

If it had just been sound, they wouldn’t have moved an inch.

But they reflexively lifted their heads because they also felt the presence of beings so powerful it made their skin tingle.

“…What?”

“…Were we too late?”

And they both froze in that position.

An enormous crack formed in the sky.

And countless beings beyond it.

An elderly man with a stern expression holding blindingly white lightning.

A man holding a hammer aloft while riding a chariot pulled by two goats.

An indescribably massive giant with a human upper body but snake lower body.

A nine-tailed fox swishing its ten tails.

A giant fly emitting magic power so foul it made one’s skin crawl.

And beyond them, countless other divine beings – angels, demons, monsters, dragons and more with presences no less overwhelming – were gazing down at Earth through the crack.

———-!

“Ugh!”

“Gah!”

“My, my eyes! My ears!”

When the countless cries of transcendents and divine beings merged into one and rang through the world, people screamed or fell to their knees.

The cry containing such power it made even users stagger was far too mighty for mere Contractors or newly minted users to handle.

Woong!

“No!”

Seeing the divine beings trying to cross the crack into Earth, Yuseong screamed and unleashed a space slash.

The strongest strike containing all of Yuseong’s energy and karma flew toward the crack.

At that moment, the elderly man at the very front smiled faintly and threw the lightning he was holding.

Crackle!

Yuseong doubted his eyes for a moment.

The formless slash that cut through space was being incinerated and annihilated upon striking the lightning.

The elderly man who had created this unbelievable sight waggled his finger side to side before making a cruel expression and throwing lightning at Yuseong.

Crackle!

“!!!”

Even as he raised his arm to defend against the lightning, pain beyond the ability to scream wracked his entire body.

Pain Nullification had no effect.

A shock that shook not just flesh but soul.

“Mr. Yuseong! Mr. Yuseong! Get a hold of yourself!”

Opening his eyes after briefly closing them, Yuseong saw Alice pouring a potion into his mouth and realized the situation.

One strike.

And not even a serious one but a playful strike had nearly killed him without him being able to handle it.

“Damn… it.”

Yuseong quietly cursed while watching the divine beings emerging through the crack.

Though Dragonia and Vimana, the users and ability users were putting up what resistance they could, they couldn’t inflict any real damage on the transcendents and divine beings.

“Kuhahaha! Didn’t I tell you? I’ll annihilate this planet, this dimension without leaving a trace!”

A somehow familiar voice.

Moving his eyes, Yuseong found the intruder letting out a mad laugh in the sky and gritted his teeth.

“…Fine then. Let’s see about dying together.”

He reaches into subspace and pulls something out.

Yuseong’s eyes glowed as he looked at the gray fragments piled in his palm.