Chapter 626: Magic

Chapter 626. Magic

Swoosh!!! Clang!!!

Crack!!

[Damage rate 42%, destruction upon reaching 100%.]

When Davey, synchronized in soul and body with the power of the jewel, collided with Isildi, a single strike unleashed a titanic backlash that swept over the region. The Spirit Realm was much smaller in size compared to the Heavenly Central Plains. It was quite obvious what would happen if two beings capable of destroying worlds fought each other with all their might.

Boom!!

As an immense explosion echoed, attacks with speeds undetectable prior to synchronization of soul and body flew toward each other. Isildi, who was shedding tears of blood, launched a frenzied assault at Davey. But despite the ongoing intense fight, her pained expression worsened due to her growing agony.

"Run away... Please, just go."

Yun Hee-Ryeong's will pierced and seeped through Isildi's instincts. But Davey didn't listen to her plea. He sidestepped her energy blade with incredible speed and delivered a blow to her abdomen, causing her body to twist and fold into unnatural shapes, all because he did not hold back any of the original power of Asura's Ultimate Godly Fist.

Since Davey was using the jewel's power, it was not possible to wield the Power of Taboo at that moment. Added to that, the Power of Taboo was not too fond of external influences. So Davey was basically just using his inherent strength in every blow he was giving her.

"Ugh!" She groaned in pain. But she was quick on her feet, instinctively launching a counterattack, and the force packed into it was so terrifying that chills coursed through Davey's body, because he could've been torn apart from that single blow.

While Isildi's physical abilities were superior, she was not as physically powerful as Sleesia. So what made her dangerously formidable was just one thing—her battle skills and experience that were too high. Of course, that did not mean that she did not have any other abilities.

While internally marveling at her skill in deflecting his punches with strange forces, Davey retracted his clenched fist and thrust forward again.

Crack!!

His consecutive strikes relentlessly rained down on Isildi. Because if one strike failed, he would try two more, and if two failed, then he would try three more.

And while she tried moving and evading his lethal strikes, he tripped her legs, causing her to tumble. Davey then quickly took the opportunity, straddling her with no hesitation. But right as he was about to land another punch without a second thought, an immense surge of energy from her flung Davey into the air.

A slight lapse in judgment translated into a massive blow. She dove in and stabbed Davey with her sword as he was hurled away. However, the sword did not pierce his heart but his left hand instead.

"What?!"

"It's called a hand guard."

Of course, a true hand guard technique would not entail sacrificing one's hand to block the attack.

Thud!!!

He packed another unfettered attack into his fist, and Super Ribbon hit her hard in the left shoulder, which sent her crashing into the ground the moment she attempted to restore her balance.

* * *

Boom!!! Thump!!

The Supreme Lord of the Spirit Realm, who was surrounded by the guardians, frowned as shivers ran through his entire body.

"How could a single living being possess such power..."

"The Spirit Realm is trembling..."

The fear felt by a high-ranking guardian was undeniable in the way his body trembled. But it was not just him who feared the collision of the two beings would cause the Spirit Realm to collapse at any second. Meanwhile, the Supreme Lord, who was directly feeling their terror, clenched the new Royal Seal of the Immortal King in his hand. It was unclear how there could be two genuine seals, but one thing was certain. The destructive phenomenon caused by that red monster could be stopped with the seal he currently had. What remained was to pray that the ongoing battle between the two powerful beings would not completely destroy the Spirit Realm.

* * *

Dozens of attacks were exchanged like flashes of lightning, and during the brief consecutive clashes, Isildi eagerly ducked into the massive river, and Davey gripped his Super Ribbon tightly, his eyes flickering.

[Longsword]

[Slice]

[Cutting Water with a Sword]

There was a saying that goes: A fight between a married couple is equivalent to cutting water. It was because they could not be broken apart, no matter how hard they tried. However...

Crack!!

A massive river spanning hundreds of meters split in two from a single stroke of Davey's sword.

"Ever heard of the Crossing of the Red Sea by Moses?"

Their eyes locked as she emerged from the water, and her energy blade was aimed as if to end everything. Her body was bleeding black blood from the wounds she had gotten from Davey's sword. But it wasn't just her who sustained injuries from the intense battle. Davey bore minor injuries all over his body as well, but they were significantly fewer than hers.

"See? You're having a harder time than you thought, right?"

"..."

She had shouted at Davey to run away, but it seemed like she already realized that even if she used all her power, defeating him would not be simple.

"So stop resisting and just faint."

"Human!!" In a flash, the Princess of the Abyss's instinct flared, and she lunged at him with murderous intent.

But no matter how experienced she was in real combat, Davey learned from several heroes who could likely outclass her and even fight the entire Abyss alone. That was why there was truly no reason for his experience to be inadequate.

[Damage rate 54%, destruction upon

reaching 100%.]

"Ugh!"

"A weak spot is open!"

Davey dove in and used Super Ribbon to slice her abdomen without any hesitation. And judging from the way she staggered unsteadily on her feet, it was unmistakable that the attack left a fatal wound on her.

"No matter what you do, it won't change anything. You cannot suppress my instincts, human. No matter how you seal them, your powers have limits against me."

It was exactly as she said. Even though Davey's power was superior to hers, suppressing her instincts was impossible. If it had been possible from the beginning, most Princesses of the Abyss could have been easily sealed. But precisely because it was not possible, Davey and Kain, on behalf of Goddess Freyja and Neltarid, respectively, were searching for the Absolute Gem to close the portal from the Abyss and lock it up permanently.

However, Princess Isildi possessed one distinctive difference from the other Princesses of the Abyss. Her rationality as Isildi yearned for the days of Yun Hee-Ryeong, and this presented an opportunity. Found between instinct and rationality, this chance could create a single miracle.

Woosh!!!

Her energy sword pierced through Davey's abdomen, but he did not let go and remained gripping her firmly.

"What are you doing?!" Even engulfed in instinct, she seemed shocked by his willingness to take her attack.

"What do you mean? It's just about separating your instincts."

As he said so, Davey used a substantial amount of mana on her, restraining her as if to compress her. He did this even though he was already spitting blood, a clear indication of a critical injury. But had he been that close to death, he would have died long ago against other enemies.

Woong!!!!!!

Right then, as if waiting for the signal, a power that was not his own began to stir within his body. But Davey could not manipulate it since it wasn't his. So he focused instead on pressuring Isildi by overpowering her using The Curse of Versha, the Form Collapse, to break down her form.

This alone would not resolve the situation though. That was why Davey had to utilize all the options available.

"It may be different, but a Princess of the Abyss who had suppressed her instincts already exists."

If it were any power other than the Power of Taboo, Davey could receive it and use it accordingly, and simply possessing the Abyssal power was not much of an issue aside from the severe side effects.

"Don't worry. You're easy to deal with."

Isildi's eyes widened in shock at his bold claim. "Is that true?!"

Screech!!

Suddenly, a look of absolute desperation settled on her face, but it was gone all too soon as she was devoured by her instinct again, her eyes becoming cloudy with madness.

"Don't fool yourself, human!! Our instincts are eternal!"

Her blood, alternating between black and red, signified her struggle. But within that moment, the power that had infiltrated Davey began to grow. Precisely, it was the power of Verdandi, the sister of Urd and the elder to Skuld.

Then, as if it had been waiting, the distinctive power of Verdandi embraced Isildi.

"Ugh?!"

As she started to stumble, Davey manifested his holy power, holding the pierced spot in his abdomen. But simple holy power would not be enough to heal her energy blade that was too high-level.

"Lucky I didn't bring Perserque here," Davey muttered, plowing his Super Ribbon into the ground to support himself as he tried to catch his breath.

"Ugh!! Cough!!"

The Curse of Versha widened the divergence, and her rational self continuously rejected her instincts. Meanwhile, the enigmatic power of Verdandi began to separate her will from her instincts, and Davey quietly watched something hideous detached itself from Isildi.

It was the raw instinct of a Princess of the Abyss.

Normally, Davey would have to suppress or destroy it, but he had no intention of stopping there.

"Ah!! Aaahhh!!!"

"THIS CANNOT BE!!" Yun Hee-Ryeong's screams and the twisted voice resounded at the same time while the transformation was happening.

And then... Isildi split in two amid the light.

"Cough!!

" Coughing up red blood, the Princess of the Abyss, Isildi, or rather, Yun Hee-Ryeong, now looked up. "What did you do? How is this..."

"There's nothing fancy about it. It's just about separating you, since you can't be sealed conveniently like Verdandi," Davey explained while he grabbed Yun Hee-Ryeong by her neck and pulled her behind him.

Cling!!!

Another Isildi with pitch black eye pupils unsheathed a black energy sword and lunged straight at him..

Boom!!!!

Davey, despite his injuries, effortlessly dodged the attack.

[Devil Ylgr's Crowd Suppression]

[Abdominal Strike]

Thud!!

A colossal shockwave reaching tens of meters struck the separated part of Isildi, sending it flying.

Yun Hee-Ryeong, now sputtering on the ground, seemed unable to comprehend as she looked up at Davey with a pair of eyes that demanded an explanation. But instead of giving Hee-Ryeong the answers she wanted, Davey took a quick step toward Isildi's instinct, which was attempting to recover.

"Verdandi, it worked perfectly. Now, finish it off if you don't want to die."

[This is the first and last time I'll allow Goddess Freyja to utilize me in her scheme.]

Almost instantly after Verdandi's voice fell silent, Davey held Super Ribbon with both hands and charged with all his might at Isildi's instinct that was attempting to rise again.

"Ugh?!" Surprised, it quickly drew its Mind Sword, but it lacked the threatening aura it initially held.

"Don't resist. This one's quite powerful."

A single sword strike, which was only possible to perform when the soul and body were synchronized and deep understanding was transfused into the physical form, unfolded. Both of Davey's sword masters were formidable; just as Dokgo Jun possessed mighty martial arts, the Sword Lord Ares had mastered sword skills.

[Transcendental Longsword]

[End game]

[Earthshaker]

The skill focused entirely on destructive power beyond measure. Derived from the peak of deep understanding, Davey's sword technique was a simple vertical slice that multiplied the weight of the blade to its maximum before it was unleashed in a berserk descent. But her brandishing a Mind Sword to block the impending attack was a problem.

"Ugh!!"

Davey's Super Ribbon generated a tremendous impact that was akin to a falling meteor. Isildi's instinct, sensing danger, drew its Mind Sword in panic, but it stood its ground, its malice and destructive desires facing Davey's attack head-on.

Boom!

An enormous crevasse, spanning hundreds of meters, formed, and Davey then unleashed the colossal weight of Super Ribbon, shattering the ground further.

Crack!!!

The aftermath of the staggering impact made the air disappear, and the earth swelled like a wave. And this colossal catastrophe was created by a simple sword.

It was logically impossible, but it had been made possible, which was why Ares had been called the Sword Lord.

* * *

Princess Isildi of the Abyss was dangerous like Sleesia. She was strong enough to be a threat.

Without complete synchronization of the soul and body, her attacks were too fast for Davey to even sense, let alone properly fend off. But going beyond the limit of strength was not something she could achieve. Even though she was more powerful than Davey in a normal state, there was still no reason for him to be outmatched by her when Davey had synchronized his soul and body.

"It can't be..."

The colossal craters created by the devastating sword strike extended tens of kilometers in diameter, well beyond any simple repairs. But Davey judged it necessary to take down a Princess of the Abyss of such level.

Losing half of her vital power yet enduring such damage was insane as it was absurd.

Struggling, Yun Hee-Ryeong watched the vast incomprehensible aftermath unfold before her eyes. Not even a mighty meteor from space could create a crater similar to the one made by a mere sword swing.

But at the very least, it was done. The last variable left on this land had been dealt with, and the sky seemed strangely clear.

"How on earth did you manage to..."

Half of her power as a Princess of the Abyss remained when Yun Hee-Ryeong was separated, and Davey could defeat any typical Princess of the Abyss with this much power with ease. However, her amazement did not seem to be because of Davey's overwhelming power. It seemed to stem from the fact that her rationality got separated from her instincts.

Davey ignored her though. He glanced over to the spot where Isildi's instinct had vanished, checking for any issues. Then a frown settled on his face.

Apparently, unleashing such a sword technique was no easy task. The jewel, continually degrading, had about 30% of its durability left before he deactivated it.

Once done with his thorough inspection, Davey then composed himself for a moment before finally turning to Yun Hee-Ryeong to talk.

"The answer is already set, so you just have to respond."

"What?"

Their eyes met as she looked at him.