by L. M. Kerr
'He recovered fast.' The thought flashed through Micheal's mind as he tumbled, wincing as he felt his hands get swarmed with a numb feeling. The power of the man's spear wasn't something to scoff at.
He once more felt a sensation of sluggishness appear and then disappear, his Aura Nullification Necklace once more proving its value. He landed down on the ground smoothly, trying to shake off the lack off feeling in his arms.
"Nice shot!" Asim's voice echoed in the air as the Arabian General took a few tentative steps forward, his face still bearing an unhealthy pallor.
Vladimir nodded back, taking a step or two of his own as he advanced on Micheal.
"I'll take the front, you get him while I hold em'." The Wonder King shamelessly proposed a strategy right in front of Micheal, as if he couldn't hear the man at all. Asim nodded his assent and began to stalk forward, jogging towards Micheal.
All around them, the various downed men and women were slowly recovering. The fierce battle had only progressed for a few seconds, all the events in it happening quickly.
Vladimir sprinted at Micheal, whipping his spear forward once more. The man was relentless, even with his armor badly damaged and his left arm injured.
Micheal lifted his Obsidian Axe, holding it with two hands as he struck it out to engage the man's spear. A layer of red energy coated his weapon as he cut down with it.
He was no master of axe combat, but he had used this type of weapon several times before. That, when combined with his very high degree of mastery in sword combat, gave him a significant advantage that helped make up for his lower stats.
Micheal's axe slammed into the man's spear. Energy crackled and flashed between them as their weapons collided three times.
Micheal blocked the man's initial spear strike and shrugged it off, leading forward with a strike at the man's chest. The Wonder King responded by using his shaft to ward off Micheal's attack, putting it at an angle to prevent Micheal from shearing through it.
Vladimir moved past that by whipping the spear down, trying to crush Micheal's shoulder as the Wonder King jumped backwards.
Micheal blocked the third strike with a twisting blow of his own, one that threw both his and Vladimir's weapon out to the side. They both maintained their grip on their weapon, but at an awkward angle.
Every strike made was one that was measured and skillful. The Wonder King seemed to react to things instinctively, sensing the flow of combat and adjusting his combat style. The man had grabbed a faint grasp of Micheal's attack style in just a few exchanges, something that Micheal found faintly horrifying.
Micheal took full advantage of their third attack's awkward result to spin his entire body, bringing up his left leg in a sharp kick. The muscles in his legs bulged, the energy running through his veins filling him with strength.
Behind him, he could sense more than hear Asim rushing forward to intercept them. While Micheal and Vladimir's duel had only taken a scant couple of seconds, it was long enough for the Arabian General to get close.
Close enough that Micheal felt a faint pinprick of worry appear in his heart.
'This is taking too long.' The skill shown by the Wonder King at this stage was beyond his expectations, especially when he was limiting himself by trying to stay in disguise and not resort to using a blade. The man was a future S Ranker for a reason.
Vladimir raised his right arm in a frantic motion as he saw Micheal's incoming kick. Micheal's casual elbow that sent the man flying had left quite the impact on the man's mind, one the warrior wanted to avoid a repeat of. As he raised his arm, the Wonder King then attempted to dodge backwards, trying to moving out of the line of attack.
Unfortunately for him, Micheal's blow had struck too abruptly. Micheal's leg cut through the air and smacked directly into his defending arm.
And then passed through the air as the arm dissipated into light.
'Huh?' Micheal's sole thought was one of confusion.
A split second later, Micheal's leg successfully connected with Vladimir's armor, smashing into it. Instead of breaking the man's arm, however, he only further cracked the armor and bashed the man to the side.
At the same time that Micheal kicked Vladimir, an arm abruptly shot out of a hole in the man's armor, appearing from seemingly nowhere as it grabbed onto Micheal's leg.
'Ah damn it.' Micheal realized what had happened at that moment.
The arm that Micheal had been kicking was a light mirage formed by the man's wondrous Abilities. The Wonder King had, in the seconds he took to recover and attack Micheal, not only plotted out how he would respond but formed a surprise attack strategy, counting on a moment when they would both go for direct physical attacks.
'Damned geniuses.' Micheal cursed in his heart. There was nothing he hated more than fighting people like Vladimir. No matter how hard he trained, it always felt like some people seemed magically able to conquer a skill or tactic in just seconds.
The man latched onto Micheal's right leg, clawing down with a vice-like grip.
The moment it touched, a searing, agonizing pain rippled through Micheal's leg. It felt as if his shin was literally on fire, magma melting into and incinerating his skin.
The raw pain was incredible and nauseating. Even for someone like Micheal, the feeling was extremely unpleasant and horrifying to experience.
"I got him! Now!" Vladimir's voice was harried as he yelled over at Asim. He brought his spear up into a guarding motion as he held on to Micheal's leg, shielding his head and shoulders.
Tears formed in Micheal's eyes from the pain, ones he ignored as he flicked to the left and saw the charging Arabian General.
In terms of pain tolerance, ever since he gained the Impact Release Ability, the amount of raw agony he could bear had increased notably. There was something to willingly experiencing obliteration over and over that helped with that.
'I have a couple of seconds.' He realized this instantly as he saw that Asim's Forsaken Aura was several meters away still. He made a quick judgement call in his head, estimating how long it would take to reach him.
Micheal's attention flicked back to the Wonder King as he raised his right arm up into the air…
And then mercilessly brought his Obsidian Axe down on the man's spear, smashing into it.
And then he raised it and brought it down again, lightning fast.
And again.
And again.
His first blow didn't use any type of Sword Energy, just raw force. It knocked the man's spear down, slamming it into Vladimir's armor.
His second blow used Basic Tier Sword Energy. This attack caused his spear to shiver, but otherwise maintain its integrity. It forced Vladimir down to the floor, causing the man's arms to shiver.
His third blow used Intermediate Tier Sword Energy. This attack also failed to cut through the shaft of the man's spear, but further smashed Vladimir into the roof. While the man's guard held up, his grip loosened as he started to feel the effects of Micheal's repeated smashing.
His fourth blow used Advanced Tier Sword Energy.
His attack sheared through the man's spear, breaking apart the expensive Artifact like it was nothing. The axe continued downward and bashed into the man's armor.
Just as it was about to cut into the man and split him into two…
The world around Micheal shifted.
He blinked.
Everything had become odd and horrifying.
The sky was no longer above him, but below him. Every movement he made caused a result that appeared to be the opposite. His senses were thrown into complete disarray as reality seemed to flip, instantly and without warning.
Micheal tried to jump up into the air, but found that himself smashing forward into the ground. Despite knowing how his senses would flip, adjusting to the incredibly distorted state in an instant proved impossible.
He saw stars as his head knocked against the solid stone.
A moment later, his Life Orbs flickered under him and slammed
into his ribs, shooting him off into the air. This time, he didn't aim up, but instead in a direction off to the side. Even if he went in the opposite direction, he would still be going out of range.
As he expected, he flew to the opposite direction he had been aiming at. As soon as he got out of range of Asim's Forsaken Aura, the world returned to its normal state.
Before he left that range, however…
A feeling of heat slashed into his right, Obsidian Axe-wielding arm. The spike of pain ran flush through his mind, one he forcibly crushed as he hurled off to the side.
Micheal tumbled and rolled onto the ground, his body aching as he made himself get to his feet again. He quickly turned his head around, glancing back at Asim and Vladimir.
And what lay between them.
His right arm had been sheared off through the bone, his Obsidian Axe falling to the ground where it lay still. The muscle and tendons on both the cut-off-arm and his shoulder had been seared, the warrior's broken saber holding some sort of fire element effect.
Despite the damage to the weapon, the man had somehow managed to not only predict Micheal's abrupt dodge, but also account for the jerking motion of his retreat, all in the span of a fraction of a second.
'Damned geniuses… God, I really hate fighting them.' He swore again in his heart, his breathing ragged.
If this had been a real fight where he was trying to kill them, he would've just blitzed them at the start with his superior sword skills, and maybe a few explosives, without giving them a chance to defend. Trying to extend the fight, especially without using a blade, just gave the duo time to show off their annoyingly genius-level adaptivity such that they reduced him to his current state.
Asim and Vladimir weren't in too much of a better state, however. Vladimir's face had grown unnaturally pale, while Asim was stumbling as he helped the Russian to his feet. Vladimir's right arm looked to be broken, while his left shoulder and armor, in general, were heavily damaged.
Asim's main injury was one to his soul, something that didn't quite show any visible impact. Despite that, the man managed to adeptly manipulate his Ability and precisely strike out with a perfectly aimed slash, enough to cut off Micheal's arm.
A tense moment formed as they each stared at the other.
'Alright, I should-' Micheal's thoughts were abruptly cut off as he leapt backwards.
Not an instant later, a brilliant spear of white light slammed into the ground a meter in front of where he had been standing, sending up sparks.
"What is going on here?! All inter-human combat has been forbidden within the territory of the Angels Arcadia!" A figure wearing a mask and the customary white leather armor of the Angels Arcadia appeared in the air, landing down on the skyscraper rooftop. Several other armed figures could be seen rushing across one of the bridges, heading towards them.
'What?! Already?!' Micheal's eyes widened when he saw the troops from the Angels Arcadia appear.
The Great Arrival kicked all of the Big 3 into high gear as they heavily patrolled and moderated their territory, trying to forcibly control their land. Initially, their efforts saw positive results. As more and more people poured in, however… things grew out of hand. At least, that was what happened in Micheal's first timeline.
Micheal hadn't expected to see troops appearing so quickly, however, though the multiple explosions he set off likely drew a ton of attention from everyone in the area.
Indeed, as he glanced past them, he could even see a few Morenkai clambering up the side of a nearby skyscraper, drawn by all the noise they'd been making.
Micheal took one last glance at the two leading geniuses of the future 'Dawning Six.'
The duo were leaning on each other as they glared at Micheal, holding steady. A spear of light had landed on the ground in front of them as well, something that had caused them to freeze up and face the yelling Emissary that had appeared.
'Good enough.' Micheal spun around, wincing in pain as his badly burned leg twinged. He burst into motion as he sprinted towards the edge of the skyscraper. His run wasn't graceful, but he was able to use his Cloud Stepping Shoes to make it fast, barreling forward at maximum speed.
"The Church forgets nothing!" He yelled out some nonsense as he fled, the words echoing in the air with deadly, but decidedly fake, promise.
"Halt! In the name of-" The rest of what the Emissary said was lost on Micheal as he threw himself off the side of the skyscraper, his Life Orbs slipping under him as he fell. In mid-fall, he shattered one of his three Life Orbs, restoring his body to full health, though leaving him exhausted.
He then beat a fast retreat, zooming off to the north as he fled the territory of the Angels Arcadia, off to meet up with an old friend.
...Leaving behind a pair of slackjawed geniuses and a very confused Emissary.
.
Chapter 39
The next day…
.. .. .. .. .. ..
Director Prime sat in a large, mostly empty lounge. The room had been cleared of almost all furniture, save for a large wooden desk, and a plush, comfortable chair. A closed door was set opposite of him, the only entrance to the room. Light gleamed in from the windows off to the side, giving the room a warm, well-lit appearance.
Currently, he was resting in meditation, his body relaxing into the back of the chair. A certain air of stillness surrounded him, as if nothing could shake his focus.
20 minutes passed as he sat like this. Gradually, faint white energy flashed around him, energy the color of soaring clouds. This energy seemed to ebb and flow off of his body, pulsing.
If Micheal had been present, he would've recognized it instantly.
It was a manifestation of one's Ki, something that required at least Sky Tier Ki Cultivation or higher.
Purchasing Sky Tier Ki Cultivation cost 606,500 Points in the Shop. On the First Layer, it was thus impossible to achieve this through Points.
The only way to reach Sky Tier Ki Cultivation was through skill and talent.
Even then… achieving the Sky Tier was excessively difficult on the First Layer.
Each Layer was structured in a rather unique way, a way that resulted in the creation of the 'Points Wall.'
The higher up the Layers one went, the stronger and more restrictive reality became. If a regular person entered the Seventh Layer, their body would directly collapse and they would die near instantly, due to the raw pressure and powerful restrictions placed on reality.
The Layers were collectively seen as a sort of training ground, to bring all species up to par, for whatever sick reason they had all been called to the mystical reality of the 7 Layers.
However, as a result of those restrictions… it became far easier to train one's body the higher up one went. Ki Energy was easier to condense and grow, muscle and bone density was easier to increase, the power of one's Soul… well, that was always hard to increase, but it did become marginally easier in later Layers.
On the First Layer, it was essentially impossible for the vast, vast majority of all humans to reach the Sky Tier of Ki Cultivation. It was simply too difficult to achieve.
Despite that… Director Prime had managed to reach it anyway, ignoring logic.
10 more minutes passed as the man continued to sit in meditation, a peaceful, relaxing one meant to help him calm his mind and soul.
Finally, the man opened his eyes.
All of the fluttering white energy vanished around him, the room returning to a perfectly normal state as he glanced over at the doorway.
"Come in." His voice echoed out softly.
A moment later, the door opened up.
"Director! Everything is prepared, as commanded." The speaker that walked into the room was a short, dark-skinned man with silver hair. He wore a set of grey robes and didn't have any weapons on his person.
"Kaber." Prime nodded at his Chief Secretary, waving for him to continue. The man's words were worth their weight in gold when it came to anything regarding minute detaili
ng or minor, but important tasks.
Kaber turned around and clapped his hands together.
Instantly, a half dozen figures poured into the large lounge, all bearing brown boxes that were packed full of documents. The workers quickly transferred a solid six dozen boxes into the room, setting them down in a large circle. Some of them were so full they were almost overflowing. The sheer number of boxes alone turned the room into a crowded mess.
Prime smiled slightly when he saw this.
"What do they contain?" He asked a question that he had asked again and again the past few days.
"Per our agreement we made with the Angels Arcadia, this is a listing of all notable incidents that happened within the past 24 hours in reference to any of their Main Branches Enforcement Teams or Emissaries." Kaber waved at the assorted documents as the various workers filed out of the room. He then continued,
"As of this morning, there were a total of 8,872 notable incidents, an increase from yesterday's 6,592. The huge influx of refugees and new Chosen has begun to have a serious impact on security and safety, within all territories." When he finished his last sentence, Kaber looked at the Director as if he wanted to say something else.
Prime's smile turned sad and he shook his head, guessing what the man was thinking.
"Kaber, we're doing everything we can to provide for the welfare and peace of our territory. I've heard of the terrible violence, violation of human rights, and more that's been going on. The numbers are simply starting to become overwhelming, despite our best efforts." Prime sighed, rubbing his forehead.
His Chief Secretary was a man he trusted and was someone he could not do without. The man's heart was in the right place too. However… when it came to people or the logistics of controlling so many men, the man didn't have the head for it.
"Going by the numbers we've drawn up…" Prime closed his eyes for a moment,