Although Yang Ming’s level had been restricted to Level 6, his consciousness was far beyond that of a mere Level 6 combatant.

He was the genuine Level 9 warrior, Akihiko.

The body under his control belonged to a true apex fighter.

But according to the rules of the seal—

He could only use the techniques, insights, and power he had comprehended during his time as a Level 6 warrior. He was forbidden from using any strength beyond those specifications.

Unless...

It was something Akihiko himself had comprehended with the understanding he possessed back then.

For the first time, Kanzaki Rei’s expression truly shifted.

The Dissolution of All Things spread across his own body, and cracks instantly erupted over his flesh!

Yet as those countless fractures spread across Rei’s body—

The cracks vanished again just as quickly.

Not because they had been negated or canceled.

But because...

The destruction had already occurred. The effect had already resolved.

The only reason his body remained intact was because his regeneration had activated almost simultaneously with the destruction itself.

His regeneration speed was so absurdly fast that it synchronized perfectly with the attack.

WHOOSH!

Before him, golden heavy punches exploded outward like a woven net crashing over the battlefield.

Akihiko was not merely counterattacking—

He was pressing the assault.

"So you really did unravel it."

CLANG!

CLANGCLANGCLANGCLANGCLANGCLANGCLANGCLANGCLANG!

In a single instant, spear shadows and fist images collided. Within one ten-thousandth of a second, tens of thousands of punches and tens of thousands of spear strikes had already been exchanged.

A dense shockwave erupted from the point where the two clashed!

BOOM!

Far away, Malcolm covered his beak-like mask and opened a black umbrella.

The aftermath of their battle slammed into it.

He muttered under his breath,

"Fight, fight, fight... Couldn’t you at least spare a thought for the people nearby? Put anyone else where I’m standing and they’d be shaken into paste by your shockwaves."

The residual force of their battle distorted space itself. If an ordinary Level 6 class-holder were here, a single spatial tremor would pulverize them into minced flesh.

Even Level 7 class-holders would struggle to endure the vibrations created by the aftermath alone.

RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE—

Visible soundwaves shattered through the heavens.

The two were fighting!

Comprehending the Dao!

Rei continuously fed his own Dao into Akihiko, while simultaneously gaining new insights from Akihiko’s understanding.

The incomplete aspects of his path became increasingly refined.

Meanwhile, Akihiko continued experiencing Rei’s Dao-Transformation techniques through combat.

Akihiko’s growth speed was terrifying.

Every second he fought Rei, he became stronger, evolving more and more techniques.

And yet—

Not once did Akihiko feel the gap between them shrinking.

Every attack was dissolved by Rei.

Every Dao-Transformation technique Akihiko used was instantly learned by Rei.

But from Rei, Akihiko only received fleeting moments of inspiration.

Breakthroughs and enlightenment required accumulated experience.

One could achieve a sudden realization once.

Twice, perhaps.

But it was impossible to endlessly breakthrough, endlessly comprehend.

Yet Rei—

Rei continued learning without pause.

He had already comprehended all five of Akihiko’s Dao-Transformation techniques, along with his Imperial Dao!

Now, in every punch and every movement, Akihiko could feel the overwhelming majesty of Rei’s imperial might.

As though Rei himself ruled this world.

As though he were the supreme sovereign of existence itself.

And compared to him—

Akihiko, who had merely comprehended the Imperial Dao, was nothing more than a false emperor.

Rei was the true orthodoxy.

The only true ruler.

Turning another’s Dao into his own...

Could he be the legendary Myriad Dao?

BANG! BANG!

Two crisp explosions rang out again.

Akihiko’s arms shattered once more!

"You’ve slowed down."

Rei closed directly into Akihiko’s face. Releasing his war spear, he slammed another punch into Akihiko’s chest.

But Akihiko suddenly drew a sword!

The blade intercepted the strike in front of his chest!

"I didn’t want to use this."

The moment the sword was unsheathed, Rei’s fist crashed into its flat side!

If it had been an ordinary weapon, it would never have survived Rei’s punch.

At this point, nearly every weapon capable of being used in Rei’s battles was a disposable armament forged temporarily during combat itself.

But the sword in Akihiko’s hand—

Not only blocked Rei’s punch, it released an overbearing imperial might that invaded directly into Rei’s consciousness.

Within his sea of awareness, Rei looked upward—

And saw a golden emperor towering above him.

SWISH—

Using the impact, Akihiko slid backward across an enormous distance.

Then he flicked the sword outward.

CLANG!

The entire space trembled violently as surging golden waves flooded through the Starshard domain, dyeing the whole dimension gold.

Vast imperial pressure filled the world.

Turning his head, Rei discovered Malcolm already kneeling on the ground in worship toward Akihiko.

"This sword," Akihiko said slowly, "was something I obtained by chance three hundred years ago within the Tomb of the True Emperor. At the time, I was exactly Level 6."

"And this... has remained my weapon ever since."

"This weapon is also a Divine Artifact."

Under that overwhelming imperial aura, Rei had to tilt his head upward just to glimpse the colossal phantom manifesting behind Akihiko.

The figure’s head could not even be seen.

Even raising one’s gaze fully revealed no true appearance.

Holding the Imperial Sword, Akihiko pointed it toward Rei.

"Even now, I still believe that relying on the power of a Divine Artifact to fight others at Level 6 is something disgraceful."

"And that remains true even against you."

"The Imperial Sword itself disdains being drawn against the weak. So even after obtaining it, I rarely unsheathed it before becoming a Level 9 warrior."

"But now... the Imperial Sword is telling me..."

"You are an opponent worthy of drawing the blade against."

HUMMMMM—

Layer after layer of ripples spread outward as Akihiko swung a flat diagonal slash toward Rei.

CRACK—

Time froze.

The very instant Akihiko’s arm moved, the golden sword energy had already arrived before Rei’s face.

If not for Final Perception—

He might not even have reacted in time!

And the true form of this attack...

Though it appeared to be a diagonal slash, the actual strike surface resembled an enormous solid wall pushing forward.

It sealed off every possible avenue of evasion.

Through his future foresight, Rei saw exactly what would happen if the strike landed—

His real-world body would instantly be transformed into golden mist.

This was the Emperor’s Divine Punishment!

Although it could not kill him without breaking his "Eternal Void Misalignment," the golden authority would completely sweep through his sea of consciousness.

And even if he regenerated afterward—

He would end up like Malcolm, kneeling in humiliating submission.

...Fuck that.

Who the hell wanted to kneel in submission?!

This attack absolutely could not be taken head-on.

He had every reason in the world to evade it.

「Azure Dao — Dao VIII: Boundless Traversal」

His footsteps moved through frozen time.

In a single instant, Rei crossed space itself and appeared directly behind Akihiko.

「Weapon Dao — Dao V: Resonant Armament: Sword Summoning」

CLANG!

Within frozen time, Rei flicked a finger against Akihiko’s sword hilt!

A violent resonance exploded through the blade!

And then—

Frozen time resumed.

BUZZZZT!

Akihiko suddenly felt a terrifying vibration erupt from the sword in his hand. The Imperial Sword actually began breaking free from his control!

In Rei’s eyes, Elaria’s overall combat strength was admittedly mediocre.

But as one of the mere dozen or so warriors in the world who had stepped into the Dao—

Her Weapon Dao was peerless.

Dao II allowed her to manifest endless weapons.

Dao III let her unleash different Dao-Transformation techniques depending on the weapon she wielded. When using a giant axe, the resulting technique became World-Shattering Cleave.

And Dao V, Resonant Armament—

Allowed her to forcibly resonate with any weapon in existence, seize control of another person’s armament, and turn it into her own.