Birth of the Demonic Sword

King Elbas didn't understand those words, but Noah's aura surged after he finished his line. His sharpness became so intense that cracks opened in the fabric of the sky even if he didn't move.

Noah still wielded the Demonic Sword in front of his face, and the remaining dark world flowed inside the blade as he focused on the images of Sword Saint's final slash.

He needed everything he could muster to perform that technique. Sword Saint's final slash wasn't something that belonged to his path, so he used all the energy inside his centers of power to replicate it.

King Elbas could vaguely guess what was happening, but he didn't show any fear. His condition was a mess, but he had already accepted to sacrifice part of himself to win that war.

The blood flowing out of his injuries burned as more flames fused with the golden sea surrounding him. Part of the new fire also merged with the spear to fuel his next attack.

The group of powerhouses watched as the two monsters prepared their next offensive. Not even a second had passed since King Elbas' last attack, but they felt as if they had remained in that state for days due to the tension acc.u.mulated on the battlefield.

The outcome of that exchange would decide their fate, and it was too late for them to help Noah fending off the next attack.

'The final form of the blade has no shape,' Noah thought as enlightenment dawned upon him. 'A slash without art. The peak of the blade is formless. It cuts because it exists.'

Noah's aura began to tremble at those thoughts. He loosened the grasp on the Demonic Sword and placed his forehead on its surface.

He wouldn't perform a slash. He didn't need to.

King Elbas continued to smile, but his expression froze when a violent tremor spread through his body. The Royal spewed mouthfuls of blood as some vital organs threatened to collapse, and his spear broke into a chaotic mass of flames as he lost control of his technique.

Noah attacked at that point. He didn't move nor push his energies forward. He focused on the Demonic Sword and let his sharpness do the rest.

King Elbas' was struggling to stabilize his condition when he sensed the spike in Noah's aura. Yet, he didn't see anything coming at him, and the sea of flames around his figure remained intact even after Noah's individuality quieted down.

However, pain suddenly spread from his chest. King Elbas' body was a mess filled with injuries, but he didn't fail to notice that a new wound was making its way through his tissues.

A small cut opened at the center of his chest. The wound became larger until it became a black line that left a diagonal mark on his whole torso!

King Elbas couldn't believe what was happening, but he promptly deployed his flames to stop the enlarging of the cut. His whole figure took fire, and the black line slowly vanished under the effect of his higher energy.

When the flames dispersed, the powerhouses could see that the superficial layers of King Elbas' skin had disappeared. A long cut divided his torso in half, and part of his internal organs became visible through it.

The powerhouses could even see King Elbas' beating heart. If Noah were slightly stronger, the Royal would have died in that short moment of weakness.

'A blade that needs no form nor slashes,' Noah thought as a sense of weakness spread through his body. 'Truly the peak of the sword path.'

Performing Sword Saint's final technique had exhausted him. His body still had a lot of energy due to the black hole, but Noah felt tired nonetheless.

It wasn't exhaustion that came from the condition of his centers of power. Noah felt as if his existence had become tired when he pushed his level above his actual rank.

Sword Saint's final technique wasn't an attack that he could perform without drawbacks. Noah felt that he was about to faint, but there was still something that required his attention.

King Elbas did his best to stabilize his condition. Part of the sea of flames around him flowed inside his body and covered his wounds to stop the bleeding.

The Royal had decided to preserve his higher energy after entire days spent wasting it. Noah's group had brought him to his limits, and he couldn't risk suffering any more injuries.

"You die now," King Elbas announced, but Noah acted before he could even raise his hand.

Noah took a space-ring and squeezed it inside his palm before throwing it toward King Elbas. The cracks on the item spread as it flew toward the Royal, and it crumbled when it touched the scorching aura.

Once the space-ring fell apart, the items contained inside it came out into the world. King Elbas saw hundreds of spiked spheres filling his vision before the sound of explosions reached his ears.

Noah still had a few traps. They wouldn't do much against King Elbas if he were at the peak of his power, but his current condition forced him to focus on stopping those Instabilities.

The dark world formed around Noah again, and the group used that chance to retreat toward the nearest teleportation matrix. The storm created by the Instabilities stopped with it touched the dark matter.

King Elbas did his best to burn all the saber-shaped runes as fast as he could, but the powerhouses were already on the ground by the time he took care of the items.

"See you in the Immortal Lands," Noah said as the teleportation matrix under them activated.

The Royal shot toward the powerhouses even if a blinding light began to engulf their figures. He threw a wave of flames on that spot, but his senses told him that he had been one instant too late.

Noah appeared inside the separate dimension and found Thirty-seven waiting for his orders. The other powerhouses soon turned toward him too, but he had already decided on his next move.

"Detonate everything," Noah said as he suppressed the dizziness trying to take control of his mind. "Don't leave anything to King Elbas."

Thirty-seven hated when cultivators destroyed inscriptions for their benefits, but King Elbas had burned almost all the formations on the new continent.

The automaton had taken King Elbas as his life-long enemy, so he didn't complain when Noah told him to destroy everything.

King Elbas hovered above the spot where Noah and the others had disappeared. Complex calculations happened in his mind as he tried to understand how to gain access to the separate dimension.

Then, the sound of explosions reached his ears. The Royal could only watch as every formation, item, or building that still had a connection with the Hive detonated and released all the "Breath" acc.u.mulated in their structure.

That outcome didn't surprise King Elbas, but he had to act now if he wanted to find his enemies. He knew that there was a formation under him, so he only had to activate it to reach Noah and the others.

King Elbas' flames came out of his figure and seeped inside the ground. A few shining lines burned due to the pressure that his higher energy radiated, but others activated under his expert control.

The formation activated and began to teleport the Royal. Yet, a tremor ran through the light engulfing him, and King Elbas found himself in a room full of instabilities once the lines went dim.

King Elbas immediately understood that the Hive had built traps together with the entrances of the separate dimension. Any unauthorized entry would bring the intruders in there.

Large screens inside the separate dimension showed how every door, formation, and building on the surface exploded. Everything of the Hive disappeared without leaving any trace, and Great Elder Diana soon gave a similar order after witnessing that spectacle.

The buildings and formations of the Council exploded too, and the Matriarch turned toward God's Left Hand to see if she was willing to do the same.

God's Left Hand could only sigh and pick her inscribed notebook to order the Empire's structures' self-destruction.

Noah gave a quick look at what would be his new home for a long time before he retreated in his quarters. He was in desperate need of rest after that defeat.