Arthur didn't linger where he was after avoiding the stomp. The moment the shockwaves finished tearing through the ruined city beneath him, he teleported again, this time deliberately opening up distance rather than simply escaping the immediate danger. He hovered hundreds of kilometers away, with his eyes locked on Typhon's towering form as dust and debris still rose in thick curtains around the crater.
He exhaled slowly, steadying his breathing, and then reached inside his dimensional storage.
Black plates began to cover his body, materializing seamlessly from his dimensional storage and locking into place piece by piece. The armor's surface was matte black with gray undertones in multiple places. It wasn't bulky and didn't exaggerate his silhouette and lacked the aggressive weapon systems common in battle gears. This armor wasn't designed to empower its wearer, it was meant to endure most of the attacks faced by its user. And the armor doesn't have many techs added to it since it was only meant for protection against impacts.
Arthur rarely fought in armor. He had learned long ago that relying too heavily on external protection stalled growth, especially when one's body was constantly evolving under extreme pressure. Pain, resistance, and risk to one's life were all part of that process. But this fight was different, Typhon wasn't merely another powerful opponent; he was a being operating on a completely different level that could force Arthur into reckless overextension if he wasn't careful.
The armor was composed entirely of Element-M, a material that Arthur had found in his early days in this universe. Over time, he had learned that Element-M did more than mimic structural properties of different materials. He had deliberately attached it with the properties of Alloy X, the toughest material he currently possessed, and Orichalcum, chosen not for its strength but for its unparalleled conductivity of mana and Aether. The result was a material that could both withstand catastrophic impacts and channel energy with minimal loss.
More importantly, Arthur had discovered something new as his strength had grown. Element-M didn't just copy material properties only. Given sufficient and repeated exposure to abilities, energies, it could internalize and replicate their effects. And Arthur had built this armor specifically for his eventual confrontation with Typhon.
As the final plate sealed over his chest, Arthur's gaze hardened.
He could have fought Typhon like he usually fights, but Steve had told him that if his physique drastically improves in a short period of time anymore, then there would be consequences he would need to face due to the imbalance between his body and soul.
He trusted Steve's warning, so he decided to err on the side of caution. His body evolves too quickly in every confrontation where his enemies were stronger than him, making his soul's strength unable to cope up with his physique's growth. Pushing it further, especially against an entity like Typhon, risked consequences he wasn't ready to face. The armor wasn't a crutch but was a safeguard for such situations.
And he believed he could even fight the gods of Thyrandel with his new armor and decided to name it Godbuster Mk I.
…
As soon as Arthur finished donning the armor, Typhon was already on him.
Arthur's instincts prickled as air warped violently in front of him, the massive demon king closing the distance with impossible speed. The sheer scale of Typhon's movement distorted the air, and before Arthur could even fully adjust his stance, an enormous fist filled his vision, descending with enough force to collapse islands.
Arthur could have teleported away from the attack, but chose not to. He was deliberately facing the attack because, first he cannot always run from Typhon as he had to confront him and second he wanted to test the Godbuster armor. He anchored himself in midair, braced for the impact, and let the punch land.
The next instant the huge fist slammed on Arthur with a deafening boom. A concussive blast ripped through the atmosphere as Arthur was sent flying backward, his body carving a violent arc through the sky for tens of kilometers. The shockwave raced outward, flattening what little remained of the ruined structures below and scattering debris across the horizon like dust in a storm.
Arthur stabilized himself after several seconds, by utilizing Spatial Manipulation to anchor himself, and came to a halt. He flexed his fingers, rolled his shoulders, and took a moment to assess the damage.
Ninety percent of the impact had been absorbed by the armor. And some of the kinetic energy was absorbed by him, so the remaining force barely caused him any discomfort due to his extremely tough body.
He grinned at the revelation, the armor was working exactly as he intended it to, the kinetic energy was absorbed and stored within the armor instead of being driven directly into his body. Even the residual force was well within what his physique could comfortably endure.
"That's… good," he muttered, satisfaction clear in his voice.
Typhon was still stronger than him physically, there was no denying that. But he felt with this armor and another of his trump cards he specially prepared, the fight could be won.
Arthur raised his hand and channeled Aether into his palm. Purple energy condensed rapidly, and rotated in controlled spirals until a dense orb hovered just above his palm, its surface flickering with compressed force. He could already see Typhon was closing in again, the massive presence moving extremely fast towards him.
Arthur lifted his palm and released the attack. The orb shot forward like a bullet, the difference was it was countless times faster than one, it tore through the air without resistance. Typhon could be faster than him, but it doesn't mean he was faster than his attacks.
Typhon was only a few kilometers away when it slammed directly into his chest. He didn't attempt to dodge, he hadn't even considered it. In his mind, there was no reason to. But he was still a bit surprised at the speed of the attack, as he felt he couldn't dodge it even if he wanted to.
The explosion wasn't violent. Purple fire bloomed outward from the point of impact, crawling across Typhon's scales and rapidly engulfing his entire body.
Typhon sneered.
"Humph!" he scoffed, spreading his fingers as the flames continued to wrap around him. "You attack me with fire mortal?"
He willed the flames to gather, drawing them inward toward his palm, intent on turning Arthur's own attack back on him. In the first place using fire against him was a stupid idea as he had Divine Authority over it.
But the flames didn't move and Typhon's sneer faltered. He exerted more control, his will pressing down harder, but still nothing happened.
"What…?" His eyes widened. "Impossible!"
The realization hit him with the force of a truck. His authority over fire lets him control all fire, unless it was from someone who was stronger than him. So, imagine his surprise when he couldn't control the fire from Arthur's attack.
Arthur watched the confusion ripple through Typhon's expression, his own suspicions finally crystallizing into certainty.
He had already speculated that his attacks couldn't be controlled by even gods as his energy source was not mana but Aether. But he was not sure if it would work on someone from a different universe, so he used a probing attack on Typhon, but seeing the scene before him he finally had a confirmation of his speculation.
"Arrrrrgggggg...!" Typhon roared in fury unable to maintain his composure, the purple flames still clinging stubbornly to his body. And again sped towards Arthur unable to understand why his Authority was not working.
Arthur straightened, his demeanor shifting as he finally got serious.
"Ha!" He shouted, and his entire figure was engulfed with purple energy as he launched himself forward.
The collisions that followed shook the whole planet. Arthur was thrown back again, skidding across the sky before regaining control. Typhon followed relentlessly, fists and claws tearing through air as the two clashed again and again. Each exchange sent Arthur flying, but each time he returned faster, more controlled, the armor absorbing the attacks that would have crippled him for some time.
The fight continued for some time, but Typhon was becoming more and more frustrated.
His attacks weren't doing any damage. And Arthur's teleportation made it infuriatingly difficult to land a blow on him easily, denying Typhon the satisfaction of dominance through brute force. The human was a constant irritation, slipping away from most of his attacks, and never allowing the fight to end.
Typhon snarled, his patience finally snapping. He finally took a hard decision, he was going to use his energy in the fight if only using his physical strength was not enough. He hesitated for only a moment, weighing the cost.
But drawing on his energy reserves would aggravate the Throne's corruption still festering within him, undoing years of careful recovery. The pain would be immense, but that was not important. The damage to his body could be potentially permanent. But letting Arthur live was no longer an option for him, if he let him go now who knew how much stronger he would return after a few years.
But to take care of Arthur he felt it was a worthy sacrifice so he took a deep breath and crimson energy erupted from his body, flooding outward like a tide of blood-red light as he abandoned restraint. The pressure in the air spiked instantly, space itself trembling under the weight of his unleashed power.
Arthur's eyes narrowed. Now this, he knew, was the real beginning of the fight.
***
Become a patreon member and read 30 Chapters ahead!
patreon.com/New_Horizon1
You can join my discord channel to discuss my novel and find artwork of this novel!!
https://discord.gg/PmkQsrAdMY