Divine Emperor of Death

Three months had passed from the moment Davis and the others entered the Nine-Treasured Palace. In other words, ninety days or nine days on the outside. The situation outside was unknown, so they all couldn't help but worry one way or another, but they didn't want to make a mistake in these challenges by being hasty.

While Davis and Myria stood in front of the chamber, a crimson-robed woman abruptly appeared in front of them, her crimson eyes appearing complex.

"You're really going to challenge the trial the eighth time? There's no going back."

"Yes."

Davis simply nodded to Shirley, causing her to heave a gentle sigh as she raised her hand and touched his chest.

"Just remember that your life isn't yours alone. It's ours."

"I understand."

Davis inwardly laughed that even if Shirley said that his life was hers, he would've nodded since she practically revived him using her chance to invoke a nirvanic rebirth, although she had later gained it after the Ice Phoenix Mistress gave her soul essence.

Shirley stared at him with a faint light in her eyes before she looked elsewhere, walking away before arriving in front of another person.

"You too, Myria. This isn't a game."

Myria opened one of her eyes and gazed at Shirley before closing her eyes.

"I appreciate you for worrying, Shirley but this… I absolutely recognize this as a matter of life and death."

"… Forgi-."

"You don't have to say that twice when you haven't even made a move against me. There's nothing there for me to forgive."

"…"

With Myria making it clear,  Shirley said no more as she turned around and left, arriving before the others who smiled at her because they saw that both of their resolves were firm as an unshakable mountain.

"I'll be going first then."

Myria took a step forward, turning to look at Davis, who nodded as it was only after she battled would he enter every chance, and there was no change to that order, but he quickly shot a vague smile.

"I won't wish you luck."

"As it should be."

Myria smirked at Davis and left, entering the chamber with resounding steps. Once she crossed the line of divide, the transparent barrier came up behind her, while to her front, an icy-blue robed manifested in plain sight, her lips moving behind her veil.

"You're truly a foolish woman, knowing that you only have less than ten percent chance to win against me even with all the odds accounted for, and yet, insist on challenging me for the eighth time. Did going through so many incarnations put a dent in my intellectual capacity?"

"Indeed." Myria raised her hand, beginning to outline a spirit formation, "After all, you're already speaking as though you've possessed me."

"Isn't that just a matter of course at this point?"

The imitation mockingly smiled, appearing completely calm even while Myria was summoning the spirit formation that would allow her to increase her prowess to eight levels higher. It went to show how it no longer cared about Myria powering up, giving the intent that it could still handle Myria, which made the latter increasingly cold and utterly calm.

"We'll see about that~"

*Zumm!~*

A pitch-black light emerged as it encased her body, increasing her soul force's prowess by a level. Her reincarnation energy that flowed out like tendrils out of her body rapidly grew in strength while exuding a terrifying might of existential threat.

"Die!"

Black-white iridescent strands of energy conjoined into one and released at the fake Myria, who hurled a similar attack. Both of their reincarnation energy transformed into a serpent-like head with a black-white horn, opening their mouths as they displayed their large fangs.

"Otherworld Serpent's Death Snare!"

Their melodious voices bellowed out with seething intent as both the serpents clashed and bit each other's necks, tearing apart the essence of the technique as they flailed. Their struggle brought a huge gust that transformed into a tornado, causing the air to reverberate with intensity as they twisted and wrapped around themselves.

Their clash made each other tremble ever so slightly as they felt the danger to their existence. After all, this was a move that eradicated souls, cutting off their ability to reincarnate, although the chances were not high. However, it still caused the physical souls of the victim to be completely eradicated so that not even their next incarnations wouldn't remember that they had a life like that, even if they procured resources to remember their previous life like Alia Silverwind or Ancestor Aries.

It caused their pupils to dilate as they were never the recipients of one of the three ultimate techniques Myria devised.

*Bang!~*

Both attacks collapsed upon each other, unable to gain an advantage, but Myria knew that her technique had lost ground, a few kilometers ever so lightly. Clenching her teeth, she was about to make the next move when her imitation abruptly appeared to her side, keeping both of its hands together.

"Soul Subsistence Breaker!~"

Two palms abruptly appeared beside Myria as they threatened to crush her to death! Her white hair raised in goosebumps as she knew if she got crushed by it, even her Eternal Life Soul might fail to sustain her life as it caused the soul's tie to this world to break as it corrupted the spiritual souls, making it so that it would eventually collapse and return to the reincarnation cycle for healing as though it was natural.

Myria instantly raised her two hands to the side as her reincarnation energy swelled out.

In truth, the Soul Subsistence Breaker's effect on her Eternal Life Soul was unknown, but she wasn't about to let her fake make her as the experiment subject, quickly surging out with a black-white iridescent force that transformed into one single needle-like lance that spun with a tremendous force as though absorbing or creating a vortex of heaven and earth energy that became aggressive and threatening before they struck the two iridescent palms.

*Bang!~*

Their clash shattered the palms while Myria leaped and arrived before her fake, waving her hand as six black-white iridescent lances shot out, only to be countered by the imitation's six lances that were hurled at her.

*Bang!~* *Bang!~* *Bang!~*

Reincarnation energy kept exploding, causing the air to shudder. If any souls were in the vicinity, it was of little doubt that they would quickly collapse amidst these otherworldly explosions that didn't release any smoke or fire but an aura that ravaged the fabric of souls.

Their figures kept rushing past each other as resounding booms kept echoing.

"…"

Outside, Davis was watching their battle with wide eyes, comprehending their live execution of Reincarnation Laws. He had already watched many instances of their battles, and the more he watched them with focus, the more he gained insights into Reincarnation Laws that he felt like he wasn't far from it and only lacked a moment of enlightenment or an impetus to fuse life and death.

'Perhaps, it is like Myria said… that I would find it difficult to fuse life and death energy on my own before I become an Immortal King, no, an Immortal at the very least...'

Nonetheless, he still couldn't help but want to try if he could comprehend the way of fusing Life and Death Laws before he could become immortalized.