Birth of the Demonic Sword

The announcement put almost everyone into a stern mood. The intelligent members of Noah's team knew what the plan involved, and they didn't know whether they could fulfill it.

The situation didn't sound good in Noah's mind either. He inspected his companions, and what he saw didn't promise well.

Everyone appeared quite tired, especially Wilfred and the landmass. The hybrid wasn't a real issue since he would burn himself before stepping out of the battle, but the creature didn't have that freedom.

The landmass had hurt itself through most of the offensive. Shafu did its best to protect it, but Heaven and Earth didn't give it much room to work with.

A glance toward Sword Saint also confirmed Noah's worries. The expert shook his head as soon as he understood Noah's silent question.

The scene had a few positive aspects. King Elbas, Alexander, Sword Saint, and Divine Demon were like Noah. The clash had worn them down, but they could still express their peak power.

The Foolery had somehow turned itself into a fuming figure again. Its body was a mess, but it didn't seem to care about those injuries and only focused on munching the maimed crystal avatar in its mouth.

June was busy patching up her injuries since the massive power generated by the Perfect Circuit kept expanding them. Her body could still handle her current level, but it worsened the damage she had suffered.

Supreme Thief appeared too busy playing with the set of white cores stolen during the offensive to care about Noah's orders. Noah would usually scold him a bit, but he let him off the hook since he seemed able to express his peak power.

The snake was also a great addition to the team, especially after its recent demonstration. Noah couldn't use it in a proper clash, but throwing it toward some attacks sounded good enough.

All in all, the team could still fight, but their new target wasn't as frail as the crystal figures. The sky would take far more than a joint offensive to crumble, and Heaven and Earth would never give the group the time to complete that approach.

"I have an idea," Noah eventually announced.

"Focus everything we have on a single spot," King Elbas continued.

"That's the gist of it," Noah responded.

"Predictable," King Elbas sighed.

"Do you have a better idea?" Noah asked.

"I might be able to build something if you buy me enough time," King Elbas suggested.

"Something that helps us focus everything we have on a single spot?" Noah teased.

King Elbas didn't answer immediately. He stared at Noah for a few seconds before repeating his previous words. "That's the gist of it."

"Predictable!" The Foolery exclaimed while reaching King Elbas' side and continuing to munch on the maimed crystal fight. Some of its saliva ended up on King Elbas, but his body burnt it before it could leave wet patches.

"I'll never work with you," The Eternal Snake snorted.

"Can you remove part of the ice to open a path?" Alexander asked, uncaring of the snake's previous remark.

"My ice is eternal!" The Eternal Snake declared. "No one can remove it."

"We got ourselves a new idiot," Divine Demon laughed.

"You are part of that group," King Elbas commented.

"This disciple of mine is always so cold," Divine Demon sighed before taking a sip from his cup. "Being so ungrateful after everything I taught him."

"You didn't teach me anything!" King Elbas scoffed.

"Didn't you attune with our powers earlier?" The Foolery asked.

"Did you just notice that?" King Elbas asked before reminding himself never to enter a conversation with the pig.

"I say we let Heaven and Earth come at us with their avatars again," Supreme Thief suggested.

"We aren't taking suggestions from someone only interested in stealing things," June responded.

"Don't you want to fight in the previous mess again?" Supreme Thief wondered. "The sky doesn't sound like an interesting target."

June opened her mouth before closing it. She glanced at the frozen layer around the sky, and her eyes shone when an idea appeared in her mind. Still, Noah was ready to scold her as soon as she searched for his approval. "Don't even think about it."

"We would burn their energy faster," June pointed out.

"And take a lot of their stuff," Supreme Thief added.

"And eat a lot!" The Foolery shouted.

"Why are you joining this conversation?" Wilfred asked.

"I could smell the arrival of Xavier's answer," The Foolery explained.

"That's some dedication," Divine Demon laughed while patting the pig's back.

"I became strong for this sole purpose," The pig proudly announced while lifting its head.

"Are you sure you want us to survive?" King Elbas whispered to Noah.

"It's too late to switch factions," Noah uttered. "Focus on opening a path through the sky. That's your best chance at getting rid of the pig."

"Piercing the sky," King Elbas sighed. "Noah, you know what I'm thinking."

"There is nothing else to do," Noah shrugged his shoulders. "That's the last barrier."

"We can touch their level," Alexander joined the conversation. "We might not have that chance if we delay our offensive."

"Heaven and Earth can't accomplish that fusion so easily," King Elbas explained. "They are probably fighting us to gather information about our worlds. We might carry the answer to their issue."

"Won't they get there anyway?" Noah wondered. He understood what King Elbas meant, but they were still talking about Heaven and Earth. The rulers wouldn't mind waiting for a few eras to perfect their evolution.

"They must have limits connected to their breakthrough," King Elbas guessed. "Maybe their current level can't hold them anymore after they regained some individuality."

"That makes sense," Noah replied. "They are pushing for the quickest option."

"I wouldn't be surprised if they had other plans in store," Alexander commented.

"Either way," King Elbas stated, "It won't hurt if we hurry."

Noah nodded and patted the snake on its head, but a strange sensation filled his mind. Something was off, but he couldn't find the source of that feeling.

King Elbas seemed to share Noah's worries. The two exchanged a meaningful gaze but couldn't come up with anything worthy of their time or words. They were both lost in front of that strange sensation.

"I already told you," The Eternal Snake hissed. "My ice is eternal. And why do you think you can order me around? I should eat you right now."

Noah honestly didn't know whether the Eternal Snake could remove its ice, but using part of it to create armors shouldn't be a problem. The creature's stubbornness was the only issue, but someone promptly came to Noah's aid.

"That's a loser's mindset," The pig exclaimed while landing before the snake's head.

The Eternal Snake snapped its mouth at the Foolery without bothering to address its announcement, but the pig magically materialized before it again.

"You have a long way to go," The Foolery sighed. "Your hunger is great but misplaced."

Traces of instinctive wisdom came out of the Foolery's fuming body and made the snake interested in its words. The giant creature actually went silent as it waited for the pig to explain its stance.

"You won't get all the tasty stuff inside the sky if you eat Noah now," The Foolery explained.

"I can deal with the sky by myself," The Eternal Snake complained.

"Can you?" The pig asked. "There must be some doubts inside you. Why do you want to risk it? Use Noah to break the sky, eat what comes out, and then move to the next meal."

"You might have a point," The snake coldly hissed.

"I can teach the secret behind my wisdom if you become my disciple," The Foolery proudly exclaimed.

"I won't eat anyone until the sky is in pieces," The Eternal Snake added, ignoring the pig's previous comment.

"No, no," The Foolery jumped in. "You can totally eat Xavie-."

The Foolery couldn't finish its line since a series of slaps landed on its head. Noah, Alexander, and King Elbas took care of silencing the pig, and Divine Demon's laugh soon arrived.