Chapter 13: Who Is the True Mara? (2)
Chapter 13: Who Is the True Mara? (2)
A martial art capable of looking down upon even the world itself unfolded from Chi-chi's Demonic Spear. The thrusts looked simple, yet had been honed and refined countless times. They held enough power to pierce even a Diamond Indestructible Body, while at the same time being peerless under heaven in their ability to bend in any direction.
Block it, or let it slide past.
A spear art that forced you to choose between those two options was truly worthy of being a martial art devised by the Heavenly Demon. Comparable to the Heavenly Demon Sword Art, which had been passed down through generations of Demonic Cult leaders, that spear art rightfully deserved to be called a divine art.
I had already won once, but that was because I was the Number One Under Heaven.
If we were to settle things based purely on the depth of our martial arts, then Chi-chi's Heavenless Divine Might Spear was one step ahead of my miscellaneous assortment of martial arts—no, two steps ahead.
So I had no choice but to respond on the fly.
Crackle!
I generated repulsive force through the soles of my feet. As repulsion arose from the feet gripping the earth, the resulting rebound force sent me flying backward.
I wasn't in a position to retreat, but just as I could push off a wall with my hands to send my body backward, I could grip the earth with the soles of my feet and push away with repulsive force.
Whoosh!
Thanks to that, the distance between us grew greater, and the Asura Demon Spear, which had pierced empty air, let out a strange, mournful hum. Was it venting its fury at having lost its prey?
Even if it was a Demonic Spear, wasn't it being a little too arrogant?
I drove out a punch carrying thunder.
True to its radial nature, the Thunder Fist shot out and, before long, released its energy in every direction right in front of Chi-chi.
Clicking her tongue, Chi-chi thrust out the Asura Demon Spear and pierced through the Thunder Fist. The reason that fist of Lightning Qi didn't explode was that she had stabbed through it, seized it with the Heaven and Earth Grand Shift, and held it in place.
Chi-chi drove the Thunder Fist she had caught straight into the ground. Was it working on the same principle as a lightning rod?
After letting the Thunder Fist flow away, Chi-chi drew back the Demonic Spear and stared at me intently.
Strangely, there was no hostility directed at me in those red eyes, but they were full of murderous intent. It felt like one of those legends about a red moon heralding the appearance of a monster.
Perhaps because she was wielding the Heavenly Killing Star to its fullest, her eyes were brimming with murderous intent despite her having no intention of killing me. If I made even the slightest mistake, I felt like I really would die.
"You'd better be a little more careful this time. I have no intention of holding back, either."
"That's frightening."
When I joked, a terrifying energy began to ripple from the Demonic Spear. The hard qi formed by the Asura Demon Spear shivered, then broke away from the spear itself.
But the energy didn't disappear. Instead, it turned into six small orbs, which arranged themselves around the shaft of the spear as though it were their central axis.
"Yama Ring. It won't be so easy to let my attacks slide past now, so steel yourself."
"Got it."
I remembered reading about this in the original story. It was one of the techniques of the Heavenless Divine Might Spear that Chi-chi had used when fighting the protagonist. The six orbs of Intent-Shaped Aura resonated with one another.
The linked Intent-Shaped Aura kept making the Asura Demon Spear at its center vibrate without pause, until the energy ran out and they vanished.
And it did so through ultrahigh-frequency vibrations that could shatter any defense.
It was one of the Heavenless Divine Might Spear's techniques, using the resonance of Intent-Shaped Aura to create something like ultrahigh-frequency vibration.
No matter how peerless a treasured sword might be, if it touched the Asura Demon Spear now, its edge would chip and be damaged. Even my Diamond Indestructible Body would be sliced apart like paper, splitting my flesh and sending blood pouring out.
I understood perfectly well that I absolutely must not let it touch me.
"Then here I come."
"Bring it!"
Thump.
Chi-chi's movement technique, whose sound seemed to trail behind her, surged toward me. She came flying in like a flash of lightning, the Asura Demon Spear encircled by the Yama Ring whirling wildly as it traced countless lines through the air. As those lines multiplied, they shifted from lines to planes, forming a sun of slashes.
I met her head-on with attractive force and repulsive force, wielding them to their fullest.
My Thunder Hands, moving fluidly in circles like Taijiquan, twisted and flowed like dragons roaming above the clouds, unwinding the tangled lines of slashes one by one.
In a situation where a single mistake would cut my body in half, I felt a peculiar joy.
I never thought I would find such fulfillment in a spar, and not even in sex. It felt as though I were walking across upright blades, precariously balancing on a tightrope.
Even as the blades pierced the soles of my feet and pain lanced through them, I had to keep moving forward, my mind as still as Clear Mirror Still Water, holding my center and refusing to waver.
Every single cell in my body was swept up in excitement at the sensation of being alive.
How immense would the sense of conquest that enveloped me be, if I could subdue this woman and claim victory? The anticipation of it drew me a little farther into the world of ascension.
The parts of my realm that I had achieved through talent, but that remained incomplete, were filled in through battle with her. The talent that came with protagonist plot armor directly took in Chi-chi's techniques as it met them head-on, absorbed them, and made them its own.
Brilliant golden lightning intertwined with ink-black lines.
A deafening roar that shook heaven and earth rang out again and again, and the mountain screamed, crying out in pain. But the Lust Demon and the Heavenly Demon had no time to worry about such things.
Our eyes held only each other, and we clashed with everything we had, giving it our all.
It was as if Chi-chi felt the same joy I did. In her two red eyes, along with the murderous intent, a strange longing flickered.
The intensity of those emotions was so vivid that even amidst the battle, they were unmistakably visible.
KWA-GWA-GWANG!
The Thunder Fist, charged with lightning, collided with Chi-chi's Yama Ring-wrapped Demonic Spear, unleashing a massive shockwave. Without resisting the backlash, we both simultaneously widened the distance between us.
The bright moon, now high in the sky, cast a gentle glow over the two of us.
"As much as I enjoy this relentless clash, shouldn't we see it through to the end?"
"Of course. The only acceptable conclusion is the Lust Demon toppling the Heavenly Demon."
"Ha! A lecher like you should just accept defeat and serve faithfully as my personal pleasure tool. Who do you think you are, trying to crush the Heavenly Demon?"
Even in the face of my obscene taunts, Chi-chi remained composed, countering with even sharper words as she flashed a razor-edged smile.
At this point, shouldn't she be called a fully corrupted Heavenly Demoness? In this era, no one would dare imagine such brazen sexual provocation between opponents. Yet here she was, gripping her Asura Demon Spear with unshaken confidence.
"The final bout between Super Peak masters must inevitably be a clash of Transcendent Heart Art. Now, witness what I've perfected."
"Huh?"
The last time I saw Chi-chi's Transcendent Heart Art, it was still incomplete. That was why I could suppress her without resorting to my own. And then, I captured her.
After that, she spent her days drowning in pleasure under my conditioning—yet somehow, she reached Super Peak and completed her Transcendent Heart Art?
How in the world was that possible? To me, it was utterly incomprehensible.
Watching my stunned expression, Chi-chi licked her lips like a hunter eyeing prey.
"Your shock is most satisfying. Now that I've revealed this, you won't dare hide your own Transcendent Heart Art."
"If yours were mediocre, I wouldn't bother... but since it's you, Chi-chi, I have no choice but to show mine."
"Now that's an answer I can appreciate."
Hwoong.
The aura around Chi-chi shifted dramatically as her cynical smile deepened.
Intent-Shaped Aura, rising from her entire body, didn't dissipate but instead coalesced, taking on a distinct form. This wasn't mere qi manipulation like the Formless Sword—pure martial force materializing from sheer energy.
No, this was something else entirely.
It carried the essence of the Heavenly Killing Star, merging with the Heavenly Demon Divine Art until the martial art itself became a living entity.
A demon of the heavens.
Mara. Papiyas. Heavenly Demon. By any name, one thing was certain—this was a being akin to a devil.
And now, that celestial demon descended upon the mortal world.
Before my eyes unfolded Chi-chi's Transcendent Heart Art—a fusion of the Heavenly Killing Star and the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.
Transcendent Heart Art
—Asura Advent
The crimson killing intent unique to the Heavenly Killing Star intertwined with the abyssal darkness of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, summoning a blood-black asura into the world.
──────────!!!
The asura, its maw gaping wide, roared its ambition to slaughter all existence. The heavens trembled under its deafening cry as six arms brandished Formless Spears.
This was undeniably a Transcendent Heart Art.
Nothing short of that could manifest an asura through Intent-Shaped Aura.
The asura's eyes—like twin malevolent stars—bore into me, dredging up deep-seated terror I had long suppressed.
Those six Formless Spears undoubtedly contained the same unstoppable thrusts she had demonstrated before.
"Well then, Lust Demon, reveal your Transcendent Heart Art. Or do you intend to die here, crushed beneath my asura?"
"No need to rush. You really think I'd die before getting my hands on that Heavenly Demon cunt?"
"Heh. Now that's the Lust Demon I know."
She waited, almost courteously, as I steadied my mind.
'Damn it, I didn't want to show this off. But now I have no choice.'
Annoyingly, my Transcendent Heart Art had nothing to do with sexual techniques. Despite calling myself the Lust Demon, the mental discipline required to manifest it was anything but lewd.
That's why I avoided using it. Even though wielding it would make me untouchable—allowing me to roam the Central Plains openly as the Lust Demon without fear of capture—I still hesitated.
But facing Chi-chi's Transcendent Heart Art...
An asura radiating slaughterous intent, capable of extinguishing all life in this world...
I couldn't afford to hold back.
"Chi-chi, don't be shocked when you see mine."
"Oh? Does it forcibly arouse your opponents or something?"
"Not exactly... It's a Transcendent Heart Art that could exert that sort of power, though."
"...What?"
Her eyes widened—whether in comprehension or disbelief, I couldn't tell.
I released the Lightning Qi saturating my body, scattering it across the battlefield as if to electrify the world itself. To an outsider, it might look like a desperate rat's last struggle against a cornering cat.
But as the natural energy in the atmosphere gradually transformed into Lightning Qi, Chi-chi's expression hardened.
This was corruption.
My Lightning Qi, acting like an electronic signal, had poisoned the world itself, devouring it piece by piece.
KRRRRR—
The corrupted natural energy gathered in the void, taking the form of a Thunder Dragon as peals of thunder rumbled from its colossal body.
Transcendent Heart Art
—World Violation
The world was pinned beneath him.