Chapter 518
Chapter 518
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 518
Chapter Title: Chapter 518
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 518
Chapter Title: Clash (4)
Accelerating his thoughts to their utmost limit to observe the flow of causality, Hans ground his teeth.
'Damn it, come on. Even for him, this is ridiculous. Capable of something like this?'
The authority wielded by the Reverse Heaven Leader that Hans had grasped thus far was the manipulation of space and time.
Time and space.
Among all the various attributes, these ranked at the pinnacle of difficulty to wield effectively.
The profound mystery of bending them to one's will was hailed as the supreme secret in any dimension imaginable.
'Even the Executioner, who only had the power to halt time, was such a pain to deal with...'
Abilities like those naturally demanded far more effort to counter than to employ.
It wasn't for nothing that Hans had been pleased upon learning Ramu had awakened to Space-Time Control.
'Still, the other abilities—like Entity Assembly and such—don't seem blocked. Well, if he could do that much, it'd truly cross the line. Even this is plenty excessive.'
The Reverse Heaven Leader's method of blocking their summon releases was simple yet profoundly intricate.
As he himself had put it, he had used his space-time authority to pin the very fact of their presence in this 'place' to the 'present' moment.
As long as that authority held, they could not proceed to any future where they had left the spot—they were forced to remain right here.
It was a multifaceted, higher-dimensional application of power, leagues beyond mere teleportation or time-stopping.
'Brutal method, too. Even as a divinity, directly meddling with causality has to carry an insane burden.'
Evidently, their repeated failures to seal 'spatial movement' despite throwing every trick in the book had really gotten under his skin.
Judging by how desperately he was going all-out just to snag them.
...Well, considering all the havoc they had wreaked so far, it wasn't entirely incomprehensible.
"The resistance is fiercer than I thought. I'll join the fray soon enough, Lord."
"Hmm, very well. That would be quicker, indeed. We must retrieve Doctor posthaste as well. Their prowess exceeds expectations."
"Fortunate, then. We can eliminate these two right here for certain. The rest of Masquerade will fall in due time."
To add insult to injury, the Black Knight—who had been monitoring the situation—began stepping forward once more.
Even handling just the Reverse Heaven Leader alone was a struggle; if the Knight joined in, all hope would vanish.
'What now? Just charge straight in?'
Before things deteriorated further, they needed to attempt something—anything—right away.
Hans still had plenty of untapped options, starting with Entity Assembly.
The Heavenly Demon and the Scribe, who had inverted the Leader's holy power into daggers honed solely to pierce him, had kept their Godslayer might concealed to the very end.
Harley, too, had refrained from tapping the full potential of his Authority of Gluttony and Shikigami, conserving as much as possible.
Those were their ultimate trump cards, reserved for the perfect moment to sever the bastard's lifeline.
'...Can't stay holed up forever, even now. Losing Hans and Harley for real would be the true catastrophe.'
As his resolve began tilting decisively one way—
Shwaaak—
The clash reignited between the Black Knight, who drew his demonic sword and advanced, and Harley, encased in thick armor across his entire form.
"Kahahahat! I've got your number now!"
Harley blocked the neck-aimed slash by thrusting his swollen arms before his face, then erupted in booming laughter as he rocketed forward like a cannonball.
More than half those blocking arms were lopped off in the process, but compared to his torso being bisected in a single blow until now, this was a quantum leap.
This much would regenerate in no time anyway.
"...Repulsive abomination."
Frowning at the reckless charge, the Black Knight lunged with his sword once more.
His transcendent demonic swordplay—soaring to the heavens—sliced repeatedly beyond mortal senses.
Unquestionably swung in sequence, yet the paths bore no before or after, inescapable murder filling every direction.
'I see it!'
Harley's Odd Eye blazed savagely as he barreled into the storm like diving into a tempest.
The Fighting King's Brand etched across his body glowed softly, elevating his physical prowess to its zenith.
The Bio-Aura called forth by his will ignited crimson, condensing at the collision points with the sword paths.
The relentlessly cycling Modified Mad Emperor Heart Technique drew madness from the Seed of Madness as fuel, imbuing the instinct-driven monster with higher martial principles.
The Mad Tyrant aided every step for peak efficiency.
With all buffs complete—
Limit Break activated, temporarily supercharging every ability as his flesh—the Ultimate Evolved Lifeform—vaulted to yet a higher plane.
Skgagagak—!
Harley's body shredded amid the onslaught of sword gales.
The same merciless barrage that had pureed him like a tomato in a blender before.
But the outcome this time differed vastly.
"Huh?"
The Black Knight's brow twitched.
He was well aware his foe was adapting swiftly.
But this...
-Kuhahat! What the hell? This isn't mere attack resistance buildup. You're piercing my sword arts and adapting on the fly?!
A grotesque sight—body gashed everywhere, not one spot unscathed.
Drenched head to toe in blood, limbs lost in patches, a wretched state—yet still thundering straight at him on both feet.
Locking eyes with him through a pair ablaze with madness.
-Incredible! Truly incredible! Can't wait to see how far this monster evolves given more time!
'Won't happen. No matter the struggle, it ends here.'
-Kuhuhut! True, with the Lord here, it's done. Ahh—what a waste. If only that body were my vessel...
'Shut your trap.'
By the time he lunged, most of his ravaged flesh had mended.
His talons—ripping through empty air—hurtled forth.
A master's strike, raw savagery veiling intricate stratagems.
Kclang—! Chaeeng!
"Kahahat! Finally a real scrap! Fights gotta have this punch-and-counter thrill!"
"Tch. Futile thrashing. Surrender now, confess all, and you might keep your neck. The Lord takes keen interest in your kind."
"Ha, won't know till it's done! Tongue's awfully loose for you. Cut the blather—let's finish this!"
"Hah! Very well. I'll dice you till regeneration fails and reinter that skull. Curious if your tune changes then."
The Black Knight gripped his demonic sword tighter, countering Harley's wild full-body frenzy with another sweep.
He knew full well his foe was dissecting and evolving against his blade even now—but this was no sparring partner to baby.
'...No matter. Its style won't let it fully weaponize those gains. And escape from here? Fat chance.'
He never suspected.
That his lifetime-honed swordsmanship was streaming outward in real time.
That data, meticulously parsed via Harley's razor senses, served as prime curriculum fattening Heinrich and Ha Seung-hoon's martial avatars.
Kwaaaang——!
Unlike Harley exceeding all expectations in his stand—
Hans fared poorly against the Reverse Heaven Leader now unleashing his true might.
[Kuhuhu—this is dicey. Hard to recall the last time this body's been so wrecked.]
Body embedded in the lab's collapsed remnants—now in rags—Hans chuckled ruefully as he rose languidly.
His abyss-forged robe mended gradually; fractured, splintered bones knit anew.
No nerves in this undead frame meant no pain—but the foreign divinity seeping in set his bones creaking irritably.
"Amassing that much divinity already. Hahoe Mask, just what have you been up to, and where?"
The Reverse Heaven Leader drew near the visibly dismayed Hans, cocking his head.
Hans had clung tenaciously with solid ripostes, yet the Leader bore not even a mote of dust.
'This sub-dimension registers as distinct from Earth. Damn—wrong venue from the jump. On Earth, he couldn't sustain summon lockdown amid such fury.'
For all his power, the foe's Earth activity was suspiciously sparse.
Power-limited post-Outerrica invasion too—but two decades plus on Earth screamed some Earth-exclusive limiter.
'Hence rushing the showdown before his schemes bore full fruit and power restored.'
Issue: Doctor's sub-space skirted those curbs just enough.
Explaining his free rein despite time left till projected deadline.
"Your old haunt—Outerrica, was it? Outsiders unbound to a world face divinity caps therein. Don't tell me you..."
[Kukukuk, guess? Fit the pieces yourself.]
True enough—Hans's divinity stemmed not solely from Outerrica.
Straws jabbed across countless realms since Hunter World had fueled this growth.
'Lately, Divore's faith poured in especially thick.'
Divore dimension.
Realm the Executioner—eternal archfiend—had toured; where surface-bound demons lorded over all.
He had purged every last one, bequeathing undead proxies to his regent—and evidently thriving, faith swelling daily...
'Wait. Speaking of—'
A long-buried fact resurfaced.
Hadn't he snagged something right after wrapping up there?
"...Ample time ahead; I'll pry it out leisurely. I'll force every secret from your own lips."
The Leader's prattling ahead fell on deaf ears.
He had just recalled a breakthrough for this stalled quagmire.
'Tested it a few times experimentally, then deemed useless—clean forgot till now...'
The Liberator perk: achievement reward post-Divore demon purge.
Unlike Savior easing isekai strictures for fluid ops, Liberator was blunt, direct.
'Nullifies bindings, barriers, detainment—frees you outright.'
With summon releases and myriad escapes already in his kit, no perk more redundant.
Deemed a total dud, consigned to oblivion.
[Kuhuhuhu—what absurdity. Pure idiocy till now.]
"...What? Succumbing at last?"
[Opposite. Outstayed expectations—time to head home.]
"Huh? Think it'll bend to your will?"
Would the perk deem his plight 'detainment'? Unknown.
Yet a queer certainty gripped him: it would.
'No waiting needed. Test direct.'
He triggered Liberator forthwith—
"What?!"
—the Leader, momentum surging, froze mid-gesture, eyes skyward.
Then whipped around, face contorted.
"You bastard, what trickery—!"
[Kahahahahat!]
Conversely, Hans—joyfully tracking causality's upheaval—roared with laughter.
The Leader's causality seal brimmed with dense divinity atop space-time sway.
For lesser beings, ironclad edict unbreakable.
Obviously beyond Hans or Harley's grasp...
'But the perk's not mine. Direct system intervention—a miracle bestowed!'
No ascension could vault the Leader past the Akasha System—embracing realms beyond dimensional gods.
En masse awakening Earthlings to pierce dimensional veils, nurture growth; via perks, even cheat death for full rebirth. The system: absolute, unchanging law.
Kururung——!
That instant, time stagnated as space crumbled, clamping from all sides.
Deadlier, sincerer than prior displays—but...
[Kukuk, panicking now?]
"...You!"
[Remember.]
Escape secured—no fears remained.
Hans met the Leader's glare head-on.
Declaring to him. Vowing to self. One phrase laden with ironclad resolve.
[Next time, I'll kill you for sure.]
The words barely faded.
Hans and Harley—gone from the sub-space. Utterly, tracelessly.
"Hahoe Mask——!!"
As ever.
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