With the explosion of the Blood Tear Stone, a brilliant light burst out in all directions.
But Zeke didn't back down even in the face of the piercing light from the Blood Tear Stone. He charged straight at the High Priest and swung his sword.
Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa—
The vortex of chaos created by Laevatein engulfed not only the Blood Tear Stone but also the Apostle possessed by the High Priest in one fell swoop.
Kwa-dud-dud!
The vortex spat out the Apostle's body, twisted into a grotesque form from head to toe.
In that instant, Zeke sensed something off.
Abel, who had been lying on the altar, was nowhere to be seen.
'No way?'
He turned his head back.
Ududuk! Ujeok, ujeok!
At that moment, the sound of something being torn and chewed came from below.
Directing his gaze toward the source of the noise, Zeke saw that Abel, who had somehow awakened, devoured the sprawled body of Ajitahaka.
Ramon, who had seen this from behind, cried out in horror.
"You mad bastard!"
He rushed toward the High Priest, whose body twisted in various ways, and shouted.
"High Priest! Harvey West! What the hell have you done?!"
But the Apostle's body that the High Priest had possessed already crumbled into dust and scattered.
Ramon Siemens let out a furious roar as he stared at the dispersing ashes.
"You damned son of a bitch!"
Ramon Siemens, who always maintained his composure, tore at his clothes in a fit of madness.
His body was equipped with the latest model of Hercion.
As he activated the Hercion with a face full of rage, magic circles appeared on its surface, and his body lifted into the air.
Whoooong!
Ramon Siemens flew straight toward where Abel was.
Zeke also turned to follow Ramon.
But at that moment, something came flying toward Zeke.
Kwa-kwa-bang!
A ground-shaking punch.
Turning his head toward the direction from which the punch had come, Zeke saw Tantalos hovering in the air, holding the heads of Arataso and Nebilos in his feet.
Zeke released the summons of the captured Arataso and Nebilos.
Tss-tss-tss!
Arataso and Nebilos returned to their sword forms without regaining consciousness.
Tantalos, unable to use his Authority, drew forth his Demonic Qi Art solely with his physical body, just as he had at their first encounter.
Zeke plunged the Laevatein he was holding into the ground.
Tss-tss-tss—
The power of chaos flowing from Laevatein seeped into the earth, creating an even larger vortex.
If he maintained this state any longer, the Chaos Field itself might have gotten swept up in the vortex of chaos and separated into another dimension.
Zeke raised his shadow and extended his hand.
"Caladbolg."
With his words, the shadow coalesced into the form of a crude sword and gripped itself in Zeke's hand.
The Shadow Sword Caladbolg, connected to the Shadow Armor.
Zeke now had to face Tantalos with swordsmanship alone while maintaining the Chaos Field.
He raised his sword and focused his entire mind.
At this moment, he forgot about Ramon, Abel, and Ajitahaka, concentrating solely on Tantalos.
'He's a demon, but an incredible martial artist.'
A single punch built up through long years of training.
Zeke could feel the traces of that grueling training in Tantalos's punch.
That was why he needed to show his own "sword," forged through his own accumulation.
Zeke straightened his stance, unleashed the Rider Form of Black Sword Qi, and closed his eyes.
Tss-tss-tss-tss—
As Black Sword Qi moved, the shadows enveloping Zeke's body stirred.
Zeke, who had forgotten all senses in the abyss and devoted himself solely to the sword to awaken the Heart-Sword, instinctively knew that Caladbolg was the most suitable blade for unleashing Black Sword Qi.
Nevertheless, the reason he hadn't used Caladbolg until now was that he still hadn't fully grasped the true nature of this sword.
But in this situation, he could no longer delay using the sword for that reason.
Tss-tss-tss—
Zeke felt as if Caladbolg had become one with him.
Sword and mind as one, in the literal sense.
At this instant, Caladbolg and Zeke were practically a single entity.
Tantalos sensed the ominous aura emanating from Zeke, who had assumed the stance of Black Sword Qi, and drew up his Demonic Qi.
Ku-gu-gu-gu-gu—
Even in the Demon Realm, few of the Tuma tribe could withstand Tantalos's Demonic Qi head-on.
But this human had already withstood his attacks from the front several times and even counterattacked, so Tantalos was inwardly impressed.
Moreover, as a member of the Tuma tribe, who lived for battle, Tantalos felt pure joy in combat upon seeing Zeke, a true warrior.
In the battles of the Demon Realm, experiencing such joy happened perhaps once every hundred years.
Deciding to enjoy this battle to the end, powerful Demonic Qi swirled around his two arms like a rotation.
Tantalos extended his arms and began to slowly descend from the air toward Zeke.
Ku-gu-gu-gu-gu!
As he descended toward the ground, Tantalos's falling speed increased.
The body of Tantalos falling above Zeke's head glowed white-hot, and the storm of Demonic Qi enveloping his fist howled madly.
"Haaaaah!"
Tantalos roared and unleashed a double punch toward Zeke.
The Demonic Qi storms swirling from his arms tangled together, creating an even larger storm through rotation.
It was too immense a power to simply call a punch.
Zeke opened his eyes, raising his sword.
Heart-Sword.
To Zeke, it was both an Authority and not an Authority.
It was an Authority received from the Sword Saint Shattan Draker, but he could only wield it properly after awakening it in the abyss.
That was why Zeke could use the power of the Heart-Sword even within the Chaos Field.
With his mind's eye, Zeke clearly saw the core of the storm in Tantalos's punch.
Staring at it, he took one more step forward toward the storm.
Then, he plunged directly into the storm, unleashing Black Sword Qi with the Shadow Sword, Caladbolg.
Infinite Sword Art Special Transmission Form
Black Sword Qi
Black Dragon Emerges from Water Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa!
The shadow dragon bursting from Zeke's sword tore through the storm in an instant and devoured its core.
Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa!
The black dragon that had shredded the storm didn't lose momentum and charged straight at Tantalos.
Kaaaaah!
With a roar, the black dragon bit into Tantalos.
Kwa-dud-dud-dud!
The power of the shadows rising from Zeke's body reacted to the black dragon, rampaging wildly.
Caladbolg controlled these shadows, moving according to Zeke's will.
Tantalos's sturdy body couldn't withstand the power of Black Sword Qi, and cracks began to form on its surface.
Dududud—
But Tantalos didn't retreat; instead, he stepped forward and unleashed a powerful punch.
But then.
Zeke had somehow revealed himself atop the black dragon's head.
Zeke, fused with the shadows while gripping Caladbolg, could wield the power of shadows on his own without the Authority Shadow King.
Wielding the power of an Authority without it being an Authority, Zeke was stronger than anyone else within the domain of the Chaos Field.
"Kraaaah!"
Tantalos roared and launched a straight punch toward Zeke.
It was a perfect single punch honed through hundreds of thousands, millions of swings.
Zeke parried Tantalos's punch with Caladbolg and unleashed his Full Power Technique.
Full Power Technique
Double Spell
Will of Destruction
It was the Full Power Technique infused with the will to destroy Tantalos's powerful body.
Kwarururung!
A sound like lightning striking spread out.
Tantalos, who took the Full Power Technique head-on, was flung back and buried into the evil spirit statue.
Ku-gu-gu-gu!
The dais and altar supported by the evil spirit statue crumbled with a roar.
Ku-gu-gu-gung!
The altar for the Rite of Consecration meant to summon Ajitahaka completely shattered.
Zeke retrieved the floating Laevatein and approached the collapsed dais.
Among the debris, he found Tantalos's body breaking apart.
The straightforward yet immensely strong demon looked at Zeke and slowly opened his mouth.
"It was enjoyable, strong warrior."
With those words, Tantalos's body crumbled like sand and vanished.
Zeke felt that Tantalos's summon had been released.
'A top-tier Tuma tribe demon. An opponent of terrifying strength.' He recalled Tantalos's formidable power.
He once again felt the necessity of preventing top-tier demons from being summoned to the Phenomenal World.
Piiing!
At that moment, Zeke felt dizzy and closed his eyes.
It was the mental backlash from maintaining the Chaos Field for too long.
A moment later, he opened his eyes and looked up at the sky.
The gray vortex gradually faded, and the Red Moon faintly revealed itself.
Zeke felt his Authorities returning.
'I need to end this fight before the Red Moon fully reveals itself.'
To somehow maintain the Chaos Field longer, Zeke gripped Laevatein tightly once more and focused his mind.
Then, he turned his head and quickly flew toward where Ajitahaka's body had fallen.
*
"Abel, stop right now!"
Ramon Siemens descended straight toward Abel, who devoured Ajitahaka's body.
He grabbed Abel and threw him aside roughly.
Kwa-kwa-bang!
Abel was slammed into the ground by his rough handling.
A moment later, Abel staggered to his feet.
"...Zeke Draker... kill..."
Abel kept murmuring his grudge against Zeke Draker, who had killed him.
Ramon, still furious, extended his hand to bind Abel with magic.
Whoooong!
As the binding magic tried to seize Abel's body, a mana rejection phenomenon occurred from him.
Pajijijik!
Seeing the mana rejection unique to Draker purebloods, Ramon Siemens frowned.
"Abel! Obey my command! My top priority is to fully inherit Ajitahaka's power!" Hearing Ramon Siemens's words, Abel clutched his head in agony.
"Obey... the command... obey the command..." Repeating Ramon's words, Abel staggered.
Seeing Abel like this, Ramon shouted irritably.
"You worthless worm! Just like your lowly mother! If you have even a shred of sense, stay put and become my nourishment!"
Ramon thought of the current Abel as nothing more than an empty shell of flesh that had lost its soul.
That was correct. At least until just moments ago.
But at this instant, an abnormal reaction occurred in Abel's body.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
The heart of the Light Dragon Zeus implanted in Abel's body began to beat wildly.
The flesh and blood of the Fell God he had just chewed and swallowed spread throughout his body.
High Priest Harvey West had said Abel was merely an empty shell repeating memories without a soul.
But that wasn't true.
"...Lowly mother... my mother..."
As his heart beat faster, different words flowed from Abel's mouth.
Unaware of this, Ramon Siemens looked up at the sky.
The gray vortex faded, and the Red Moon rose.
He could feel Ajitahaka's Authority returning once more.
Ramon Siemens extended his hand toward the sprawled body of Ajitahaka, gripping the sacred relic.
Ku-gu-gu-gu-gu!
He tried to make Ajitahaka's incomplete body whole using his Authority.
Whoooong!
One of the Authorities received from Fell God Ajitahaka, "Regression," activated.
Tss-tss-tss—
Regression rejected all things.
Including results and even time itself.
Ramon sought to regress Ajitahaka's body to perfection.
As the vortex of the Chaos Field gradually weakened, Ramon's Authority grew stronger. Ku-gu-gu-gu-gu—
Ajitahaka's body began to react bit by bit.
Ecstasy filled Ramon's eyes.
'It's working. Now I will become the ruler of this continent...'
Whoooong—
At that moment, Ramon suddenly felt Ajitahaka's Authority scattering.
"Regression... why?"
He looked up at the sky, but the Red Moon had become even clearer than before.
Ramon couldn't fathom why this was happening.
But then.
Puk!
Feeling a sudden sharp sensation, Ramon Siemens looked down at his side in disbelief.
Somehow, a sword was now in Abel's hand.
The ominous, blood-red blade had pierced through Ramon Siemens's Hercion and protruded out.
The cursed black-flame sword Zahhak.
It was the sword and armor of Siemens Apollyon engraved into the heart of the Light Dragon Zeus.
Ramon looked at Abel with an incredulous expression.
"Th-this..."
Abel slowly raised his head.
The eyes of the red light dragon shone clearly.
He looked straight at Ramon and said. "My mother wasn't lowly. She was mad, though." A clear, resonant voice.
Exactly like Abel's voice in life.
Ramon gasped, clutching Abel's shoulder in disbelief.
He could feel it.
The Authority of Ajitahaka emanating from Abel.
"Im-impossible. Th-this..." Tuduk!
Blood flowed from Ramon's body.
Unable to use Ajitahaka's Authority now, he couldn't regress his wounds.
He grabbed Abel's arm.
"A-Abel. L-listen to me..."
Abel looked down at Ramon Siemens and spoke.
"You haven't changed a bit from when I was young until now."
Ramon stared at Abel with a pale face.
Abel looked at him with cold eyes and said.
"I won't obey your commands anymore, Ramon Siemens."
"You bastard!"
As Ramon screamed in a fit, Abel swung his sword.
Tuduk!
Ramon's head fell to the ground.