If Ren Kuroda hadn't been in the state of Blade Spirit Release, where his five senses had been sharpened to an almost absurd degree, then if he had taken that strike head-on just now, he probably wouldn't have died—
But he would have been crippled at the very least.
Milim's greatsword strike had missed its mark.
Just as she was about to pull the Demonic Sword: Tenma back, Ren suddenly stepped forward and stomped down on the blade's hilt, pinning it in place.
At the same time, he twisted his body and unleashed a spinning kick straight toward Milim's abdomen.
BOOM!
Caught completely off guard, Milim took the hit squarely in the stomach.
Her small body was sent flying backward at incredible speed, smashing straight through the barrier Guy had erected around the battlefield.
At the very same moment—
Something began to change around Ren.
Thick black matter began to seep out from the cracks in the ground around him.
The substance looked like viscous black mud, bubbling up from beneath the earth before slowly swirling around Ren's body.
As this tar-like darkness spread, the atmosphere around him changed completely.
Earlier, Ren—empowered by his vast magicules and the state of Blade Spirit Release—had given off an aura that felt powerful, imposing, and faintly ethereal.
But now…
The presence emanating from him had become ominous, suffocatingly heavy, and filled with bottomless darkness.
It was as if the very concept of a "Demon Lord" had been created specifically for him.
At this moment, Ren looked like a true demon—a being who embodied the title of Demon Lord more perfectly than anyone else.
The substance surging from the ground was known as All the World's Evil.
Centered around Ren, it rapidly expanded outward, forming a domain roughly several meters in radius.
Within that area, the black mud moved as if it had a will of its own.
It could automatically defend Ren, launch attacks against enemies, and even devour anything that entered its territory.
The moment she saw All the World's Evil, the person who reacted the most strongly was Medea.
Without even thinking, she stepped forward, preparing to break through the barrier to help Ren.
Because among everyone present, she understood the nature of that power better than anyone.
She came from the same world where that phenomenon originated.
And she had experienced it personally.
No matter how great a hero someone had been in life, when faced with All the World's Evil—the crystallization of humanity's collective negativity—there was only one possible outcome.
Corruption.
Ordinary Heroic Spirits couldn't even use that power.
Simply coming into contact with it carried the risk of being eroded and consumed by it.
Because she understood just how dangerous it was, Medea's expression had become visibly tense.
However—
Just as she was about to break through the barrier, she suddenly saw Ren standing in the middle of the swirling darkness.
And Ren… shook his head at her.
His eyes were completely clear.
There was not the slightest trace of corruption within them.
No one could truly control All the World's Evil.
After all, it was the power born from an entire world's accumulated malice.
Ren was no exception.
However, he had dealt with that power many times before.
There had even been several occasions where he had been consumed by it and lost control.
But as his strength had steadily grown, Ren had gradually developed a certain resistance to its influence.
He still couldn't fully command that power.
Yet using it to a limited extent was now within his capability.
The black mud continued to spread across the ground around Ren.
Earlier, Milim's missed strike had left the Demonic Sword Tenma embedded in the earth.
Now, under the slow erosion of the spreading darkness, the enormous sword began to sink.
Just like an object being swallowed by deep water, the blade was gradually devoured by the black mud.
With the barrier shattered, everyone present could clearly feel the ominous aura radiating from Ren.
It was chilling.
Unsettling.
And deeply, instinctively wrong.
Guy Crimson narrowed his eyes.
"Well… it seems his identity probably isn't a problem."
"With an aura this ominous, he can't possibly be some agent from the Hero's side—or one of those angels from the Heavenly Palace."
"But…"
Guy's expression grew more serious.
"…this might have gone a little too far."
"Judging from his state, that ability of his… could it have the same kind of side effects as Milim's Wrathful King?"
Guy had originally intended to use Milim's strength merely to probe Ren's background.
But he truly hadn't expected the man in front of him to be this monstrously powerful.
Faced with Milim's overwhelming might, Ren had not only endured every attack—
He was even growing stronger as the battle progressed.
At the level the two of them had now reached, their strength had already far surpassed the limits of an ordinary Demon Lord.
If the fight continued…
There was a very real possibility that the situation would spiral completely out of control.
Guy could tell that both Ren's All the World's Evil and Milim's Wrathful King were essentially bug-like abilities that dramatically increased their power.
But the stronger those powers became, the more terrifying their side effects would be.
If the two of them continued fighting like this…
The battle might turn into another clash like the one between Guy and Milim long ago—
A battle that lasted seven days and seven nights.
And things were even worse now.
The Fairy Queen Ramiris had already exhausted her power.
If a similar situation happened again, there would be no one capable of stopping them.
Not even Guy himself.
In fact, this scenario might be even more dangerous than the past.
Back then, only Milim had gone berserk.
Now…
There might be two of them.
Guy considered stepping in to end the fight.
But Milim had already become completely immersed in the thrill of battle.
When she saw that Ren had grown even stronger, her face lit up with pure excitement.
Without hesitation, she charged forward again.
As for Ren—
Even though he could still maintain his rationality while using All the World's Evil, his emotions and temperament were inevitably affected to some degree.
And Milim's Wrathful King radiated overwhelming rage energy.
That fury resonated strongly with the darkness surrounding Ren.
The result…
Ren's fighting spirit surged wildly.
"Dragon Star — Explosive Flame Tyrant!"
Countless glowing particles gathered rapidly in Milim's hand.
In the next instant, they condensed into a massive beam of light that blasted forward.
This was not the earlier attack she had used while holding back—the Dragon Star Scatter Burst.
This was the true version.
A supreme spell created by manipulating star particles and compressing magic power to extreme density—
Triggering a phenomenon equivalent to a supernova explosion.
If Dragon Star Scatter Burst could instantly kill an ordinary Demon Lord…
Then this attack could easily annihilate even an Awakened Demon Lord.
The colossal beam of starlight roared toward Ren.
Yet Ren simply lowered his stance slightly.
His right hand naturally rested on the hilt of Kamiyori, the divine blade at his waist.
He took the stance of an iaijutsu draw.
Despite the devastating attack rushing toward him—
Ren's heart was as calm as a still mirror reflecting clear water.
Within his mind, he visualized the cosmic micro-universe inside his body.
The swirling darkness of All the World's Evil around him suddenly grew extremely active, gathering toward the blade at his waist.
"Let the six senses return to the heart…"
"The ultimate peak of martial mastery…"
"Wind, Forest, Fire, Mountain — Secret Technique…"
"Bukoku."
Ren drew his sword.
The slash itself appeared simple and unremarkable.
But the blade's light shone with dazzling brilliance—like it contained the entire cosmos.
The arc of the slash shimmered with dreamlike rainbow colors.
The moment it was released, the blade's energy surged forward, expanding rapidly as it met the massive pillar of star particles head-on.
The ultimate strike born from Ren's inner cosmos—
versus
Milim's supernova beam formed from star particle manipulation.