Birth of the Demonic Sword

"You know me," Divine Demon announced while waving his hand. "Give me a topic, and I'll surpass you. I guess you will choose physical strength."

"No challenges," Wilfred snorted. "I know how your law works, but I want to see what form it takes when you don't have to surpass anyone."

"I think I don't remember my true form," Divine Demon laughed while spreading his arms. "I take what I need from the world to seize victories. My existence lives through challenges. I might be nothing more than an empty body without them."

"Let's find out!" Wilfred shouted before throwing a punch.

A shockwave spread from the spot where his fist hit the air, and a series of deep noises resounded through the sky. The world quickly began to send energy toward Divine Demon, but a hole appeared in the azure array that had appeared in front of him.

The attack ran through that raw energy and flew past Divine Demon's shoulder. The sheer power carried by the punch managed to destroy a large chunk of his skin, but his limb remained intact, even if badly damaged.

"You want a battle of ranged attacks then!" Divine Demon shouted, and the azure energy began to transform as his battle intent intensified.

"No, you are better than me at that," Wilfred contradicted Divine Demon before he could use his dangerous law.

The azure energy suddenly lost its power. Wilfred had declared his inferiority before Divine Demon could make anything out of that silent challenge. His law didn't create anything special, and the world felt unable to understand what the expert needed.

Wilfred punched the air again, and another hole appeared among the azure mass of energy. Divine Demon saw one of his legs exploding and falling toward the ground, but he ignored the event completely.

"Resilience it is!" Divine Demon shouted, and a tremor swept the azure "Breath", giving it a new purpose.

"You are better than me there too," Wilfred replied, and the azure energy lost its purpose again.

Wilfred waved his hand, and a current slammed on the array of azure "Breath" to disperse it. The remaining power contained in that gesture hit on Divine Demon and flung him away.

"I can still fight without challenges!" Divine Demon shouted, and azure energy began to gather around his figure.

The "Breath" flowed inside his injuries and restored part of the missing chunks of skin. The energy even recreated an ethereal version of his leg to stop the bleeding.

Currents began to flow around Divine Demon and created an array that resembled a technique. However, Noah and many others could see that the expert was forcing the "Breath" to take that shape. He wasn't giving it any special purpose.

'The small victories are making him stronger,' Noah thought while inspecting the battle, 'But he can't put that new power into his abilities. Is this Divine Demon's great weakness?'

Divine Demon gained power by overcoming challenges. His growth would match the harshness of the trials and the restrictions that he forced on himself.

Yet, the lack of challenges led to a mass of power that had no purpose. Divine Demon had enough "Breath" to defend himself and launch counterattacks, but he wasn't using it at all.

Divine Demon behaved like a mindless brute, but he wasn't stupid. He knew his flaws better than anyone else, and his personality had developed around that.

He had a sharp tongue capable of tricky words. Divine Demon could always manage to lead his opponents into challenges, but Wilfred was going out of his way to avoid that. The hybrid didn't even want to win. He was only curious about Divine Demon's power.

On the other hand, Divine Demon was struggling to show his real power. His opponent was accepting losses on purpose, so he consistently failed to give a proper nature to his energy.

The world wanted to help Divine Demon, but it didn't know how. The cultivator couldn't use its power to create techniques without choosing a specific field.

"Come on!" Wilfred shouted while unleashing a flurry of punches in the air. "I have spent entire years clearing the pyramid with you. I acknowledge your power, but I don't want to see it in the shape of another challenge. Show me the real you!"

The attacks pierced those currents and landed on his body. Wilfred had held himself back, but his punches still managed to leave deep holes in his c.h.e.s.t.

Truth be told, Divine Demon could express average liquid stage battle prowess even without challenges. However, Wilfred was a hybrid who had improved his fighting style after seizing rewards from the pyramid.

Wilfred's physical strength was also far above normal hybrids. He could surpass average liquid stage cultivators even when he held back. Divine Demon didn't have a chance against him without his challenges.

"This is getting boring," Wilfred eventually sighed.

"I challenge myself to defeat you in ten blows!" Divine Demon shouted when he saw his opponent turning to leave.

The azure energy began to flow into his body and improving his physical strength, but Wilfred suddenly turned and said words that made the audience fall silent.

"I challenge you to win without challenging anyone," Wilfred said, and the azure energy lost its power again.

Wilfred's challenge bypassed Divine Demon's self-imposed limits. The latter had finally obtained what he wanted. Yet, he didn't know what to do in front of that issue.

"Challenge without challenges," Divine Demon mumbled as he brought his hand on his chin.

It was clear that Wilfred had taken him by surprise. Divine Demon appeared completely confused. He didn't even pay attention to the battle anymore.

"Do you think he will recover before the mission?" Wilfred asked while turning toward Noah.

Noah ignored the expert. His eyes remained on Divine Demon. His instincts had begun to sense something, but he was still unable to translate them into proper feelings.

'He must have faced similar situations in the past,' Noah thought. 'I guess we are about to discover how he overcame them.'

"Winning challenges to improve," Divine Demon continued to mumble. "Improving is important. Victories lead to the higher ranks, and the higher ranks are everything."

The battlefield was silent, so everyone could hear his confused words. Even the underlings watching the battle from inside the domes could understand what Divine Demon said due to King Elbas' sensors.

"Victories without challenges," Divine Demon continued. "Definition of victory, defeating opponents, winning without challenges is a challenge!"

The world released a humming noise, and Noah's eyes widened when he heard the laws screaming in pain. He had already witnessed a similar reaction. The matter did the same whenever he used Shandal's ability.

'Is he about to use the laws of the world?' Noah wondered, but the surprises weren't over.

The matter shattered and transformed into the usual azure energy generated by Divine Demon's law. However, the world wasn't giving that power willingly. Divine Demon's aura was ripping it away from the sky and forcing it to become part of his existence.

"I need victories," Divine Demon whispered. "Victories will bring challenges, and challenges will bring power."

The azure energy gathered around Divine Demon, but it didn't have its usual orderly shape. It was an unstable array of power that took different forms under the influence of his aura.

Noah had seen Divine Demon fight many times, so he could recognize some of the shapes taken by the azure energy. That "Breath" transformed into many techniques that the expert had used in the past. Some spots even became white and marked the arrival of the higher energy.

"Give me victories!" Divine Demon shouted, and the energy around him shot forward.

Wilfred could immediately understand that he had to go all-out. Divine Demon wasn't even trying to hold back.