"What... what kind of power is this?" Cold sweat immediately beaded on Electra's forehead. His two clones quickly retreated, then converged into one.
Electra had seen more than one expert cultivate the Mysteries of the Water Law, but this was the first time he had encountered a move like the one before him. Even before they clashed, he instinctively sensed danger.
"This is... a technique that completely fuses the Mystery of Roundness and Softness into an attack!" On the spectator stands, Emmanuel's eyes widened at the sight. He nearly stood up in spite of himself.
As a Seven-Star Demon of the Four Divine Beasts Clan, he cultivated the Mysteries of the Water Law himself. He had even witnessed his clan leader, Gaiseresen, spar with his grandmother, Grand Elder Gaia. His knowledge and understanding of the Mysteries of the Water Law were first-rate.
Among the Mysteries of the Water Law, the most elusive was the Mystery of Roundness and Softness. It perfectly embodied the principle of using softness to overcome hardness, with a power capable of endless transformations. The experts of the Four Divine Beasts Clan who cultivated the Mysteries of the Water Law generally focused their attacks on the sharp assaults of the Mystery of Ice and the illusory attacks of the Mystery of Mist.
The Azure Dragon Clan's physical bodies and Innate Divine Ability were indeed better suited to pairing with these two Mysteries. But it was also undeniable that the Mystery of Roundness and Softness was the most elusive of the Water Law Mysteries, and extremely difficult to fuse with other Mysteries. Even Gaiseresen and Gaia, both Asuras of the Four Divine Beasts Clan, hadn't fully fused it.
Much of Gaiseresen and Gaia's Asura-level strength came from the physical talents of their second-generation super divine beast bodies, rather than from fusing the Mysteries. After all, Gaiseresen's physical strength was top-tier even among Asuras. Apart from a few freaks like Beirut, few could surpass him, which made up for the gap in his mastery of the Mysteries.
"I can only meet this move head-on!"
All kinds of thoughts flashed through Electra's mind. The idea of surrendering outright even crossed his mind, but he soon decided to take a chance. His opponent had only made one move. Surrendering now would make it seem as if he'd been scared witless, and the Prefect would certainly be displeased.
He might as well try to withstand the attack first, then surrender afterward if need be. The move looked powerful, and his instincts told him it might be enough to defeat him, but it probably wouldn't kill him in one blow.
"Vmmm..."
Both of Electra's clones began to gather Divine Power. Gray ripples spread outward, while translucent, blood-red flames formed in front of them.
"Destruction—Light!"
"Fire of Repentance!"
By changing how he channeled his Divine Power, Electra could turn the Death Law's Fire of Repentance from a soul attack into a physical one. Though it couldn't match the power of the Law of Destruction, combining the two still made for a formidable attack.
The translucent flames and the black light began to spiral upward at the same time, charging toward the enormous net that blotted out the sky, trying to tear a hole through it.
The white threads shuddered slightly under the impact. A fine mist appeared on their surface, quickly enveloping the Divine Power of Destruction and Death. The power was then gradually absorbed and dissipated. The net continued to descend without slowing, and its once-loose mesh began to contract at a terrifying speed.
"How—could this be?"
Electra's eyes widened in disbelief, but it was already too late for him to try anything else.
The white threads rapidly tightened, instantly wrapping around Electra's body. His entire form turned translucent blue, then shattered like a block of ice and vanished in midair. Two Godheads and a Spatial Ring fell to the ground.
The Seven-Star Demon Electra—had fallen.
Silence!
The entire venue fell silent. Everyone in the stands stared at what had happened, stunned and dazed.
"Ren! Ren! Ren!"
No one knew how long it took before the first person began to shout. Soon, the whole crowd was chanting Ren's name. Even among the Four Divine Beasts Clan, a young woman from the Vermilion Bird Clan looked eager to join in, but her brother immediately pressed a hand to her shoulder.
Ren slowly descended back onto the Battle Arena, unmoved by the deafening cheers around him. He knew very well that if he had been the one to die just now, these same people would be shouting Electra's name instead. That was how the Battlefield worked: the strong were celebrated, while the weak were forgotten.
"Among the Seven-Star Demons, he was already strong. But compared to the Purple Blood Demon and the Silver Moon Demon, he was still far behind."
Ren raised his right hand and collected Electra's Spatial Ring and Godheads, then shook his head.
To an ordinary God, a Seven-Star Demon was someone to look up to. But even among the Seven-Star Demons, there were vast differences in strength. That was clearest during the battles between the Four Divine Beasts Clan and the Eight Great Clans. When Delia was injured, Linley had flown into a rage and killed five Seven-Star Demons by himself.
If Electra had fought Seven-Star Demons like Emmanuel or Garvey, he could have won decisively. But against Blue, he wouldn't have stood a chance. Ren had never fought Blue, but he could tell that his Water Divine Clone was no weaker.
Ren's sixtieth consecutive victory drew even more attention, and sparked discussions about the Prefect throughout Liang'an City.
A day later, at Lake Tamogin, a figure hurriedly flew into the Prefect's residence, as if something momentous had happened.
"This is going to cause a huge problem." Hobbs's face was pale, and beads of sweat the size of beans gathered on his forehead. Thinking of how the Prefect might react, he slowed his hurried steps.
After taking a deep breath, Hobbs suppressed his shock and panic, and his expression settled. He walked into the small courtyard where the Prefect lived.
Inside the courtyard, Prefect Alfred sat on a stone chair, holding a delicate silver wine cup and quietly savoring its contents.
Though Alfred had lived for countless years as an Asura and had tasted every delicacy in Hell and drunk every kind of fine wine, it was hard for such things to surprise him anymore. That didn't stop him from occasionally enjoying them between bouts of cultivation.
Ever since his steward Hobbs had reported to him a few days ago, Alfred had temporarily stopped cultivating. After all, Electra would come to report to him once the battle was over, so there was no need to do anything else for the time being.
"Whoosh!"
A white figure took shape. Steward Hobbs entered the courtyard with his head slightly bowed and slowly approached Alfred.
"Hmm? Why did you come alone?" Alfred glanced at Hobbs, surprise flickering across his brow. He had assumed Electra would come with Hobbs to report to him. If that Ren proved capable, Electra might even bring him along after recruiting him as a subordinate.
But now, only the white-haired steward Hobbs had arrived. A sense of foreboding rose in Alfred's heart.
"Prefect, Electra... he's dead. Ren killed him," Hobbs said carefully, his head bowed.
"What did you say?" Alfred sprang up from the stone chair. The wine cup in his hand instantly crumbled to dust, and an eerie purple light flashed in his eyes.
Before you continue