NOVPUB
Chapter 162: The Return of the Mysterious Swordsman
The power of annihilation released by the Slash of the End caused even heaven and earth to tremble before its might. Within this slash, Aldrian also infused his comprehension of death laws, aiming to see if he could affect his target with the touch of death itself. The death laws—the bane of all existence—represent the end of the road for all who reside in the universe. The end of existence, the end of beginnings, and the beginning of the end.
This is Aldrian’s understanding of the death laws, with them, the Slash of the End becomes more "complete." Sensing the power of Aldrian’s Slash, the Greed Devil’s survival instincts kick in, and he scrambles to use an escape talisman. Now that the trapping barrier has collapsed, he can attempt to teleport away from this place.
He tries to reach for the escape talisman hidden beneath his robe, but, unfortunately for him, he has yet to grasp the full extent of the Slash of the End. This sword technique traps its victim in place by condensing space, stabilizing and intensifying the entire area in front of the oncoming slash until it feels unbearably heavy. As a result the victims will have difficulties to move, and even if they manage, they cannot escape using any technique related to space laws.
This time, Aldrian poured his entire domain power into the slash, equating its force to the power of heaven and earth over a quarter of the continent. The Greed Devil feels the oppressive weight of space and finally realizes how doomed he is. The Slash of the End collides with the energy strike of the Sword Devil’s Annihilation Strike. The devil’s strike holds for only a split second before collapsing—a brief resistance of which the Greed Devil can be proud.
The slash energy continued moving at full speed even after colliding with the Sword Devil’s Annihilation Strike, still brimming with immense power. Behind it, space fractured into a violent storm, with cracks stretching over 800 meters wide. Traveling at the speed of sound, the energy left a trail of spatial cracks and storms in its wake, intensifying the destruction as it advanced.
"MOVE!!! AAGGHH!!" The Greed Devil shouted at the top of his lungs, raising his sword in a desperate attempt to block the Slash of the End. He wasn’t sure if he could withstand such an attack, but it was better than doing nothing. His instincts and his very nature as the Sin of Greed drove him to cling to his life at any cost. Having failed to rely on the escape talisman, he resolved to face the strike head-on.
He focused all his devil energy into the Heavenly Blaze Sword, attempting to block the incoming attack. The instant the slash connected with his sword, his entire body trembled violently, instantly engulfed by the golden slash energy that obliterated his consciousness. His physical form was destroyed before he even had time to scream in frustration, leaving nothing behind.
The Heavenly Blaze Sword, now released from his grip, was flung five kilometers away from the point of impact, unable to withstand the Slash of the End. However, once it drifted beyond the path of the slash, the sword steadied itself in midair, its tip pointing in reverence toward Aldrian. Meanwhile, in the place of the fallen Greed Devil, his storage ring had also been flung aside and shattered, spilling its contents—including the entire collection of swords he’d hoarded—into the air, where they now floated.
The golden slash energy continued traveling westward at full speed, slicing through the entire mountain range before it. In a few hours, it would reach the west coast and continue beyond. It was unclear where the energy would finally exhaust itself, but thanks to Aldrian’s careful adjustments when unleashing the Slash of the End, it would remain airborne, sparing the earth’s surface.
If Aldrian had directed the slash horizontally without angling it upward, the landscape on the western side of the continent would have changed drastically, with the slash claiming countless victims in its path. In this instance, the slash traveled above parts of the Forgeheart Kingdom and the Buddhist territory without causing direct harm.
From Badin City, the spectacular sight of millions of swords filling the sky drew the attention of people still recovering from the effects of the heavenly tribulation. They turned to face the direction of the Dragonback Mountains, where they glimpsed a fleeting golden light and seconds later, they watched as the clouds in the western sky split in two, stretching all the way to the horizon. Though they couldn’t fully grasp what had happened, the sudden surge of sword intent and sword will in the air left no doubt about its powerful technique.
They didn’t know who was battling, but this phenomenon marked the return of the mysterious swordmaster, who had seemingly disappeared for over two years. Coincidentally, it occurred not long after the immense heavenly tribulation, leading them to wonder if this enigmatic figure had just broken through to the Emperor stage and was now facing formidable enemies?
The terrifying sword intent they sensed illustrated the power of the sword technique, and the golden energy matched the descriptions given by eyewitnesses in Balin City, where the mysterious swordmaster first appeared. Despite their fear of the overwhelming power, human nature fueled their curiosity about this enigmatic swordsman.
As the golden energy faded into the horizon, the millions of floating swords finally dropped to the ground, creating a cacophony throughout the city. High-level cultivators in Badin City, from the Duke stage and above, instantly moved toward the Dragonback Mountains. Even hidden Kings and Emperors joined the fare, eager to learn the identity of this extraordinary individual, hoping to forge a connection with him.
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Duke Badin, the only person still conscious at the foot of the mountain, didn’t know what to make of the unfolding events. The sudden disappearance of the two devils and the terrifying battle erupting from the central part of the mountain were palpable, even from his position. He felt lost, unsure of what had happened to those two devils, and his unease intensified after witnessing the sword technique that had terrified him to his core.
Desperate to escape, he planned to run as far from this place as possible. As for his mission to acquire the blueprint or Mardred, that could wait for another time; he needed to assess the situation first. He glanced at his surrounding underlings, all still unconscious, before reaching for the teleportation talisman in his pocket, ready to crush it.
"Not so fast, sir." A sudden hand on his shoulder shocked him to the core. Before he could scream, he vanished from the scene, leaving behind a silence.
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At this time the devil lord already informed all the devils that located in the Dalahan city and Valiard city to stop their operation and some of the high levels devils to retreat. He decided to cancel his plan in these cities after his communication with Aldrian, he is considering that with the unknown factor like Aldrian, he will have unknown result. That is not something he likes as his plan will have to move according his will. Although some of his plans in the continent face setback for the past few years, it will not changed the end outcome.
However, if something worse were to happen in the Forgeheart Kingdom while operations were underway, he would lose a significant portion of his forces. It was not yet time for him to sacrifice so many of his chess pieces; he needed more time before his ultimate trump card could be used.
When he suddenly felt a powerful sword will and the phenomenon of the floating swords, his mind turned toward the mysterious swordsman who was finally revealing himself. A few moments later, something snapped in his mind, causing him to frown.
"The greed devil is dead?" Not only that, but the life signs of his right-hand man had also disappeared. He had connected the souls of all devils above the duke stage to himself, allowing him to monitor their statuses—especially the seven deadly sins. Not long ago, he had ordered the greed devil to retrieve the blueprint as soon as possible due to the emergence of Aldrian.
Now that the greed devil was dead, he realized, after sensing that powerful sword will and the direction from which it came during his communication with Aldrian, that he had finally connected the dots.
"That person who comprehended the death laws is the mysterious swordmaster." Although he couldn’t see the person’s features, he now had a clue and their last known position. With this information, he could plan more thoroughly. With the death of the greed devil, he assumed that an uproar would soon erupt among the noble families of the Forgeheart kingdom, as the devils’ operations would be uncovered. However, he was not discouraged, he saw this as an opportunity to take advantage of the chaos.
Depleting the forces of the orthodox cultivators before the prophecy days arrived would be advantageous.
"Maybe I can create chaos in the Doria or Ivory Empire as a greeting?" he wondered, grinning with anticipation.
