In the void, ochre ripples spread outward from a single point, seemingly an ordinary strike yet carrying boundless power. They surged straight toward Ren.
"Then bring it on!" Fighting spirit flashed in Ren's eyes. The longsword in his hand hummed, instantly turning translucent. As it vibrated, its afterimages multiplied into thousands of swords, each containing a Dimensional Blade.
The sword images swept in from every direction, converging to a single point before the ochre ripples. They formed a gigantic lotus, which erupted with power at its center.
"Void—Dimensional Slash!"
With a burst of explosions, countless Dimensional Blades fused into one and unleashed tremendous power. They pierced through the ochre ripples, becoming a cyan halo that shot straight toward Conofier.
"How is this possible?"
Conofier was stunned. Unable to understand what had happened, he could only instinctively raise his Sovereign Artifact to shield his chest. The moment the cyan halo struck, a powerful force swept over him. Conofier was driven back dozens of meters before he finally stopped. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth and his arm as he stared at Ren in fear.
"You—you—you're a Paragon? No, impossible. If you were a Paragon, I'd already be dead. Could it be... a special secret move?" Conofier stared at Ren in terror, his resolve already beginning to waver.
Cultivators used the Mysteries of the Laws in different ways. So even people who cultivated the same Law and fused the same Mysteries would have different techniques, with varying levels of power. Usually, though, their strengths were comparable, with each having its own advantages.
But some people, after years of research, could develop special secret moves of their own. These could greatly increase their combat power without any improvement to their Mysteries of the Laws. Such people were exceedingly rare. Conofier had only heard about them from Gaiseresen. It was said that the legendary Destruction Overlord had a similar secret move.
Ren had no idea what Conofier was thinking, and even if he had, he wouldn't have cared. He knew the benefits of studying his own secret moves, which was why he had continued to work on them over the years while cultivating the Mysteries of the Laws. Leisjing's Amethyst Space was one such special secret move. Linley had relied on it to create "Inch Earth Foot Heaven" on the Planar Battlefield, letting him rival someone who had fused five Mysteries despite having fused only four.
Among the Overgods, the Destruction Overlord had relied on the Tartar Clan to study and develop his own secret move, World Destruction, and later created Space-Time Chaos. The Fate Overlord, Oufu, had not only completed his Samsara Golden Body but also created Transcending Samsara.
Though many thoughts ran through Ren's mind, he didn't slow down. The instant Conofier retreated, Ren's body burst forward at astonishing speed, charging at him like a meteor.
"Damn it! Gravity Space! Condense!"
Conofier cursed inwardly and rapidly retreated. Gravity Space contracted once more, increasing the force pressing down on the intruder. His ochre Divine Power turned black, forming a cage around Ren.
"A move like Blackstone Prison? It won't work on me!" Gripping his longsword, Ren drew a strange arc through the air. A cyan streak erupted, forming a hundred-meter-long sword image that shot toward the ground beneath him.
Wind Law, Dimensional Attack—Azure Light Sword Shadow
"Boom!"
A tremendous explosion rang out, and the black cage crumbled in an instant. At the same time, a translucent cyan sword image shot out, aiming straight for Conofier's head. It moved so fast that there was almost no time to react.
"Not good!"
A flash of cyan reflected in Conofier's eyes. He instinctively raised his right hand to block the light sword with his Sovereign Artifact. But the moment the sword touched his warhammer, it suddenly split apart, turning into dozens of invisible Dimensional Blades that swept past Conofier. Several bloody streaks immediately appeared on his thigh and shoulder.
On a nearby mountain peak, Emmanuel and Alfred stood dumbfounded, unable to believe what they were seeing.
"Elder Emmanuel, shouldn't we leave first?" Alfred asked hesitantly. He really hadn't expected Ren to have been hiding his strength when they fought. If he'd known, he wouldn't have come back. Just how many tricks did that guy have?
"Run? Why should we run? I refuse to believe he'd dare kill me. I'm an elder of the Four Divine Beasts Clan." At Alfred's suggestion, Emmanuel exploded with anger. Ren's strength had shocked him too, but leaving in such disgrace would drive him mad.
Alfred opened his mouth. He wanted to say, "I don't know if Ren would dare kill someone from the Four Divine Beasts Clan, but he'd definitely dare kill me! I'm not one of them."
But he didn't dare leave either. If Emmanuel killed him in a fit of anger, he wouldn't be able to fight back. All he could do now was pray that Conofier would hold his own and not end up losing because of carelessness.
Conofier hadn't noticed Emmanuel and Alfred. All his attention was fixed on Ren. Feeling blood seep from his wounds, he was overcome with rage. Deep in his soul, his original body immediately activated a drop of Water Sovereign Power. A blue-green force surged from within him, and his wounds began to heal rapidly.
"So we've reached this point after all." Ren sighed inwardly and activated his own Water Sovereign Power. He wasn't surprised that Conofier had used Sovereign's Might. The Four Divine Beasts Clan had no shortage of it. Even as an honorary elder who wasn't born into the clan, Conofier couldn't possibly be without any.
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"It looks like I won't be able to kill him today. I need to get out of here fast. I can explain everything to Gaiseresen when I get back. I'm an honorary elder, and I came to help Emmanuel this time. The Four Divine Beasts Clan can't just ignore that. Then we can join forces and hunt Ren down." After thinking it over, Conofier made up his mind. In a flash, he turned into a streak of light and flew over Emmanuel and Alfred.
Emmanuel felt a powerful pull. His body was dragged out of his control and straight toward Conofier, who seized him in an instant. Then Conofier flew off with him toward the horizon, ignoring Alfred, who remained where he was.
"Damn it! You..." Alfred was so furious he couldn't speak. His body trembled. Emmanuel had just insisted he wouldn't leave and that Ren wouldn't dare kill him, and now he'd left Alfred behind.
Emmanuel didn't react at first. By the time he came to his senses, they were already far away. He immediately sent a voice transmission. "Elder Conofier, what are you doing?"
"If you don't want to die, don't move!" Conofier snapped, too pressed for time to explain. Escaping while carrying a Seven-Star Demon would slow him down, but he couldn't leave Emmanuel behind. If Ren had the nerve to kill Emmanuel, Conofier wouldn't survive either.
He had left with an elder of the Four Divine Beasts Clan, a Seven-Star Demon, only for that elder to be killed while he made it back alive. Gaiseresen and the others would never let him off. In their eyes, an honorary elder like him was nothing more than a servant of the Four Divine Beasts Clan. They showed him a little respect in ordinary times because of his strength, but when it really mattered, he was worth nothing.
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