Chapter 1064: The Logic-Defying Clash Across Null Remnants! (5)
Chapter 1064: The Logic-Defying Clash Across Null Remnants! (5)
As the figure of Vohnvolt soared, leaving a trail of white as it went, Aurolio grinned behind his mask.
His powers were finally being put to use in the way he had intended. Nothing he had had to fight against in Aigas had ever needed anything more than his basic human form. However, in this displaced haven, he had more than one enemy of interest. He could go all out and see if he truly couldn't be defeated.
The prospect delighted him to no end. This was the only way he could satisfy the interpretation of the void he had followed for the last few decades.
The enemy he had just borne a hole through wasn't as excited as he was, but he was definitely curious.
'How is he managing to deal so much damage to me without the Tie of Exchange activating, like before?'
It was indeed a contradiction that vexed the amalgam, but the council of debating phantoms in his head soon came to a conclusion.
'Right. We aren't in Aigas at the moment,' Vohnvolt thought. 'A Tie of Exchange, according to Sila manifests its purpose - and also the punishment after it is breached - from the body of the Deity Quintess; the land. Since we aren't in Aigas, it's not activating. He must have realised that he would be safe.'
(A/N: Refer to Ch.418).
It was unknown whether or not Aurolio had figured that out beforehand or if it had just been a lucky coincidence for him after he landed the first hit, but whatever the right answer didn't matter currently.
There was a more pressing issue.
How exactly did Aurolio's powers work?
The amalgam couldn't conceive a worthwhile hypothesis that could explain how the Voided Deathform was suddenly able to keep up and even damage him when he had been completely overwhelmed before. If it weren't for Aurolio's ridiculous healing factor, he would have died from the unholy punch Vohnvolt grafted into his face earlier.
There was also the question of how he could simply faze through his Inverted Boundaries and ignore his Deviant Trigger Build without consequence, and also that vague figure that he was sure dealt the damage to his side just now.
So many unknowns.
While all this was buzzing in his head, the amalgam realised that he was getting too close to the Null Devil King above through the large white chains of [Budget Tug-of-War] which were starting to grow faint.
He gave the creature and Stylla a sharp glance.
The King returned the same dose of attention, but it was hard to discern what it was thinking.
Vohnvolt spared a second to look more closely at Stylla's figure and then he changed his course, abruptly making his body pivot and shoot west.
Just as he did, a sun-shaped mask appeared in his sights without warning, along with the threatening force of a blow that the amalgam was determined to dodge. He managed to twist the world, moving himself to another location far away, closer to the sounds of menacing explosions and the rough beating of wings.
He had settled in the desert above, looking down at everything below; Aurolio, the Null Devil King and Stylla... when another shattering blow exploded straight into his chest, boring a giant hole in it!
...!!!
The amalgam's sockets blazed before furiously darting to and fro, hunting for the assailant. Again, he only noticed a faint silhouette that rapidly disappeared from his vision, leaving him wondering:
'Seriously, what the hell is that?!' he thought.
But his opponent, who had been below, more than a few stones' throws away, flashed before him and decked him in the face with a strong kick. The amalgam blocked just in time with two arms, but another unseen, unpredictable blow crashed into his jaw, smashing it to dark bits and causing his head to turn lopsided!
"Ha!" Aurolio cackled before wrapping his legs around Vohnvolt's neck and placing his hand on the amalgam's face. "Either you are the shittiest user of Null Life there is, or I thoroughly underestimated my progress. Is this really all you can do?"
The amalgam hurried to grab Aurolio's hand, but it changed nothing about what came next.
"You are fucking lukewarm, Bright Storm. How about a taste of what a superior Parallel can do?"
At the Voided Deathform's words, purple Voided Death Essence erupted from his hand and ignited in a stellar purple explosion that coloured the golden lands both above and below in its image!
A shockwave worthy of the condensed energy released rolled out, causing the already trembling region to tremble even more.
However, even more curious than the power of the explosion, was the fact that where Aurolio had unleashed the attack, a massive, purple scar remained in the Null Remnant, shimmering in a stark purple light that persisted.
The scar ran along the dunes and the sky as though they were the same, and Aurolio was thoroughly pleased by it.
His Void Gate was based on his own interpretation of the void; strength. Ever since he opened his Book of Alignment, the strength he acquired because of the powers stowed within caused him to quickly grow stronger than anyone else in the small city he was raised in, which was much less significant in every aspect than Inhone.
At first, his journey was the typical psalm of a man with a tragic backstory who conveniently acquired the power to change his situation, but soon, as he grew to understand the scope of the story he had been plunged into because of the Book of Alignment, he dug deep into the
meaning of his powers.
The void was boundless.
It was wise.
Its whole was all-encompassing.
Through it, he managed to find meaning in what strength was.
Strength was more than motive. Strength referred to a combatant's capabilities in the moment; style, technique, physique, mentality, form, energy, determination, numbers, stealth, distance, adaptability and more.
Strength was life itself, strength was drive, and it was constantly changing. It was volatile.
This was the idea that Aurolio unlocked. With his Mastered Void Gate, his body was able to embody strength in every way there was. If strength truly was an everchanging constant with nigh limitless components packed into it, then he was the strongest there was!
Because he understood what strength was, he kind of felt insulted that once he unleashed his Void Gate, the amalgam couldn't match him.
He turned his masked face towards the figure of Vohnvolt who had managed to escape him at the last second before being completely overwhelmed by the blast of Voided Death Essence
right now.
"How long do you think you will last?" Aurolio sneered.
The amalgam, with a gouged side, a hole in his chest and half his limbs gone, their stumps aglow in a lilac hue, let out a breath.
Stars, nodes, really, of Levin appeared all around him and began shooting bolts of rejuvenating essence towards him. His side was healed in an instant, as was his chest... but his
three arms and missing leg weren't.
'I see. What a bothersome ability. That condensed blast of Voided Death Essence is so potent
it can't be scraped off once it hits. No wonder it's clinging to this world,' he thought with a sigh while gazing at the phenomenon Aurolio had created.
The amalgam was at a disadvantage.
Distance didn't seem to matter to his opponent.
His own strength didn't seem to matter, and neither did his skills to an extent.
This kind of strength, if it really was just a product of Voided Death Essence, eclipsed what he
could pull off with Null Life Essence currently.
'Good.' the amalgam thought mysteriously.
"You are thoroughly disappointing for Serenity's Champion," the amalgam heard.
Behind him, the Null Devil King had appeared, Stylla by his side.
"I kept waiting to see what your intent was, but it seems this is just all you amount to. Flinging stars, twisting space, throwing punches. Are you sure you and I are of the same
species?"
The amalgam and Aurolio both gazed at the majestic figure.
The former scoffed.
"I'm not sure," he said. "I bet you are no better than me, though. You have the body of such
an esteemed figure in the Null Verse, but you still can't kill one measly dragon."
The Null Devil King didn't answer immediately. He seemed a little...triggered.
"Well, that's a thoroughly unpleasant way to address your King."
As the amalgam scoffed again, the [Nullmancer's Royal Raiment of Acclimation] appearing
over him, his socket flames focused on Stylla.
Sneakily, a gap opened in space beside her, and two small hands jutted out to grab her!