NOVPUBWHAM!
The sound rang through the air as their fists clashed again—Joshua's punch pushing forward with sheer divine and void power, Adam meeting it head-on with glowing, crimson-coated knuckles.
The impact made the ground quake beneath them, energy rippling in every direction like a shockwave underwater. The air screamed as pressure blasted out in waves.
Joshua grinned.
Adam grinned right back.
"C'mon," Adam taunted, darting back with a light hop. "That tickled."
Joshua exhaled, raising his fists. "I was holding back."
"Oh?" Adam's smirk widened. "Don't."
Joshua vanished again. No sound. No prep.
Just gone.
Adam's eyes widened just a little—barely in time to tilt his head and dodge a golden-white elbow that cracked the space where his head had just been.
Joshua didn't stop.
He was on him.
Fist after fist, punch after punch—each one faster, harder, heavier.
Adam blocked the first.
Dodged the second.
Caught the third.
But the fourth?
BOOOOM!
It sent him flying.
He smashed into the ground like a missile, carving a trench through the arena floor before flipping mid-air and landing on his feet, skidding backward with sparks flying.
Joshua appeared above him, leg raised.
Adam's eyes narrowed. "Oh hell no—"
CRACK!
Heel met palm.
But it wasn't just a hit. The energy riding along Joshua's leg erupted like a controlled nuke. It forced Adam's feet into the ground, creating a crater beneath him.
He winced, sliding a few steps back as the dust settled.
"Alright," Adam muttered. "You're not joking around anymore."
Joshua landed a few feet away, golden wing twitching with raw power, void wing humming silently like a predator in the dark.
"You said not to hold back," he said, voice calm but dangerous. "I'm not."
Adam chuckled. "Then let me show you what adaptation really looks like."
His body pulsed.
Once.
Twice.
Then—
BOOOOM!
All at once, Adam's body glowed, not with one color—but with every color. Energy wrapped around him like strands of living code, changing his aura, his rhythm, even his form. He cracked his knuckles, his eyes gleaming like polished steel.
Joshua didn't even flinch. "Show me."
And just like that—
They were on each other again.
BAM! BAM! BAM!
Their punches collided like meteors.
Joshua swung wide—a right hook enhanced with divine judgment. Adam ducked, rolled to the side, and jabbed upward. Joshua leaned back, letting it miss by inches, then spun and kicked.
Adam caught the leg—only to eat a left hook in the ribs.
He grunted, jumping back, then stepped forward instantly, slamming his elbow into Joshua's shoulder.
Joshua snarled, backflipped, and landed hard, crouched low.
Energy burned off both of them now—smoke rising from their skin, the arena reacting violently to their presence. The constructs in the distance started backing away. Even Nyros floated off to the side with wide eyes.
"Yo, they're gonna break the whole realm," he muttered, hiding behind an energy wall.
Joshua stood tall again, chest rising and falling.
Then he raised both hands.
The space behind him cracked.
And from it—tendrils of light and shadow emerged. They wrapped around his arms, spiraling up like serpents made of divine lightning and void storm.
Adam tilted his head. "What the hell is that?"
Joshua's voice was low.
"New trick."
ZAP—CRACK—ZIIIIP!
He moved.
And this time?
It was fast.
Too fast.
Adam barely got his hands up before the first strike landed—a twin fist strike that hit like a black hole wrapped in a sunburst. The force sent him backward again, but Joshua didn't let up.
He moved with inhuman precision, strikes coming from every direction at once—above, behind, side, front. Adam twisted, blocked, flipped mid-air, redirected the momentum—but even he started gritting his teeth.
Joshua was getting faster. 𝒏𝒐𝒗𝒑𝒖𝙗.𝒄𝒐𝒎
Stronger.
Each punch felt like it had ten versions behind it. Each hit made the air fold in on itself, like the multiverse was flinching.
Adam blinked between movements, his body shifting every few seconds—scales, wings, steel, wind, light—every adaptation showing up for half a heartbeat before melting into the next.
He managed to parry a brutal knee, spun mid-air, and landed a clean palm strike against Joshua's chest.
BOOM!
Joshua skidded back, coughing once—but grinning.
"You're keeping up."
Adam cracked his neck, his smile feral. "Of course I am. I am me."
Joshua vanished again.
Adam leaned back, dodged, but didn't expect the delay—Joshua faked the attack, then came in low with an uppercut that distorted the entire space.
KRAKOOOOOM!!
Adam was launched straight up, punching through three layers of storm clouds in the sky above.
Joshua followed.
What happened next was barely visible.
Just flashes of gold, white, and void-black energy colliding with flickers of crimson, silver, and shifting elements. They tore through the sky like gods playing tag.
Each hit resounded like thunderclaps.
Each movement broke logic.
Adam laughed mid-battle, his shirt torn, hair half-spiked from static. "You're almost fun now!"
Joshua slammed a foot into his chest, sending him crashing downward.
Adam flipped mid-air and crashed into the arena again, shaking the ground.
Joshua followed, landing softly.
Adam coughed once, wiping blood off his lip. "Alright. Fine. No more tricks."
Joshua raised a brow. "You've been using tricks?"
Adam stood up, grinning wide. "That was the warm-up."
Suddenly—
The entire arena turned white.
Energy surged from Adam like a tidal wave. Every version of him training around the dimension froze—then dissolved—absorbed into him.
Joshua's eyes widened.
"…You fused with your own copies?"
Adam's voice was deeper now, crackling with power. "Every version of me… over the last two hundred years. Every skill, every technique, every mistake. Gone. Now it's just me. The real me."
His aura exploded.
Joshua braced himself instinctively as the force hit him.
Adam cracked his knuckles. "Alright. Round two."
Then he moved.
And Joshua wasn't ready.
Adam appeared behind him in a blur, grabbed his shoulder, and spun him like a toy—then slammed him into the ground with a massive downward strike.
BOOM!
The earth cracked open beneath them.
Joshua grunted, flipped backward, and rebalanced—swinging wildly to keep Adam off.
But Adam danced between the blows now—moving like water, flowing around the hits, slipping through the gaps, tagging Joshua with precision strikes.
Chest.
Side.
Neck.
Back.
Joshua staggered, blood in his mouth.
"Damn…"
Adam didn't let up.
He stepped forward—one hand glowing with spiral energy.
Joshua tried to move—but too late.
KRAK!!
The strike hit his core and flung him across the entire dimension—through hills, rocks, towers.
He finally crashed in a crater at the far end of the arena, gasping.
Adam appeared above him.
Hand out.
Helping him up.
Joshua looked at it.
Then took it.
Groaning as he stood.
"…You weren't kidding."
Adam smirked. "Told you. You've got raw power, Josh. But skill? Experience? I've been stacking those like crazy."
Joshua smiled through a wince. "Then let's keep going."
Adam grinned.
"Hell yeah."
