Bang! Bang! Bang!

Sebastian's movements were untraceable even with All-Seeing Eyes.

Boom!

Damien only felt the pain of impact after Sebastian had already moved onto a new attack.

He moved Mirage in a desperate attempt to block, he used Freya and Hel to try and buy himself space, he even tried to outright teleport away, but Sebastian always managed to stop him.

It wasn't just a matter of power, but also precision. Using the special corrosive trait of his mana, Sebastian was able to shatter Damien's connection with his mana, effectively cutting off its activation entirely.

Under these conditions, Damien could do nothing but take the beating. His body collapsed multiple times, remaining functioning due to Transcendent Regeneration alone.

Sebastian's every punch was like a nuclear bomb, and when mana was involved in those punches, they became planetary destroyers. Damien took the force of the punches with a straight face only because of all the pain he'd experienced so far in life.

If it wasn't for the powerful body and healing factor he gained through Devour, he would've died ten times over by now.

The only respite Damien had was Void Mana's special property to devour. With this, his mana fought back against the corrosion, which allowed him to occasionally defend, even if his power was somewhat weakened.

'Do you think that's enough?' Sebastian thought smilingly.

Inky black mana covered his skin like armor.

'Heavenly God Armor: Balistic Form'

"The inspiration for this technique actually came from you humans, so I truly do need to thank your race."

The Heavenly God Armor morphed away from

It's original appearance and changed into something akin to a mech titan.

An array, a plethora, a true myriad of weapons emerged from within the mech titan's body.

BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!

BOOOOOOOOM

XIU! XIU! XIU!

The cacophony of sound formed by the combined attack of those weapons was soul-tearing. As for the damage..

Damien's body shot through the air with so much force that he truly turned into a meteor, completely exiting the world's atmosphere.

Sebastian bent his knees and shot upwards in chase. The two soon arrived in the vast starry sky, a stage for them and them alone.

"Now that we've moved here, you can also show your full potential, no? If you don't, you'll truly die, you know."

"So you really were testing me, you dog bastard."

"Ohoho! A test it may be, however master has given me full control over this operation. Do you know what that means?"

"That you'll kill me because I told your Young Master to suck my dick?"

"You are a human who truly knows how to test others' patience. Did I not beat it into that thick skull of yours yet?"

Sebastian's figure vanished.

Damien suddenly felt a hand on his face.

"Stop the cocky act if you don't want to die."

BOOOOOM!

A burst of inky black mana collided with Damien's face at point blank range. The terrifying black emission was like a jet engine, completely enveloping Damien's upper body in its flames.

'FUCK!' Damien roared inwardly.

His face was truly burning off. His body was going to be charred to a crisp anytime soon.

'Transcendent Regeneration can't keep up with the rate of damage..I need to escape his grasp!'

His body was trying its best, but in the end, he was still in the early-stages of 4th class. Even with his insane stats, he couldn't match someone at Sebastian's level at all.

In that moment of desperation, a moment that came without warning, Damien's mind suddenly became tranquil.

A certain prison in his spiritual world that'd remained dormant for many years suddenly shone with light.

Reality slowed to a crawl. The pain in Damien's body became distant. His mind functioned at a speed unlike ever before.

As he began to plan ways to escape his current predicament, he realized something.

He had never been so close to death. This wasn't a statement alluding to his mortality at all, however, as there were plenty of times throughout his life when he'd quite literally been a half step through death's doors.

Rather, it was a matter of spirituality.

Discounting his near-death state, his life that was hanging on by a thread purely due to Transcendent Regeneration, the Nox's inherent mana was a strange variant of death mana as well. Facing a Nox of Sebastian's level inevitably meant existing in an environment overflowing with deathly energy.

Mentally, Damien felt more connected with death than ever before. He felt like if he pried a little harder, he'd be able to understand the nuances behind the concept.

historical

And along with that..

Within Damien's body, a strange interaction was taking place. A greenish-white mana and a harrowing black mana met within his Mana Heart and intertwined, interacting as if they were long lost siblings.

It was the interaction of Life and Death.

'Something..is changing.'

Damien didn't understand what was happening to his body at all, but he did know one thing.

'The longer I can prolong this battle, the stronger I can get.'

The interaction between Life and Death in his body was being fueled by Life Laws siphoned from the [Heal] trait and Death Laws from Sebastian himself.

Life Laws were overflowing in Damien's body not only because of [Heal], but also because of his very own Transcendent Regeneration skill.

The only lacking ingredient was Death Laws..

Death Laws that Damien could harvest in bulk as long as he could survive against Sebastian's strikes.

'Battle is the best course of action. The process taking place within my body is good for me, anyway. I can feel it strengthening me with every passing second.'

There was nothing to fear.

There was no reason to hesitate.

Damien, who had been forced into a passive position previously, ignored the consequences of his actions and completely shattered the flow of battle.

"ARGH!"

Damien cried out in pain as Sebastian's mana slammed into his body and madly burned him. Blood sprayed from his pores and his mouth. .

But he was prepared for this.

For power, any amount of pain just needed to be endured.

Damien used the opening created by his extremely sudden shift in strategy, he opened his mouth wide and roared as loud as he could.

A black beam of dragon's breath exited his throat and impacted Sebastian's hand with an immense force, at the same point blank range he'd struck Damien moments prior.

Sebastian's grip loosened due to the sudden pain. Damien didn't miss his chance. Using Dragon's Breath as a counterforce, he wildly tumbled away from Sebastian's body.

He flew several kilometers before finally stopping.

Transcendent Regeneration healed his body before he even regained his balance.

He stared at the distant Sebastian with a ferocious glint in his eyes.

Reddish-black sparks populated his aura like fireworks.

Black scales and bloody runic patterns modified his body into that of a monster's.

And he charged with only a single thought in mind.

'This is a new path to strength!'

Strength, everything he'd been chasing for so long, and the goal he still chased to this day. To one day stand at the peak of existence and overlook all things..

He'd been stagnating recently. Despite his focus being on something as esoteric as Spacetime itself, he felt a roadblock unlike anything he'd ever faced before.

In simple terms: something felt..missing.

Though he didn't know what was happening inside his body, Damien could clearly feel the emptiness in his soul slowly filling.

This was the missing piece, or at least, a part of it.

And Damien wouldn't allow Sebastian to leave until he understood it completely.