Chapter 463: Domain Battle
Edward was happy with the appearance of these two rules. Rules or Authorities prove that his understanding of certain types of magic has reached the pinnacle.
So, he will always be happy for the manifestation of one; the more, the merrier. Of course, he also understood he had limits and could not know and control all known rules.
And even if he could, it was not worth the effort. So, he was prepared to major in a few while the others would be used in an emergency or situation that needed them.
"Huh?" muttered Edward as he looked in the distance. The fluctuation of his rules alerted the Shinigami King, allowing the latter to detect his existence. He immediately went on the offensive and used a Law Spell–a spell containing the power of rules or Authority.
[Hand of Death]
A towering black hand descended from the sky, heading straight for the Shinigami King, who looked like the creature summoned when using the Dead Demon Consuming Seal. The only difference was his size which was at least 15 meters tall, and the weird crown with the character for Yama engraved in it.
'In the past few days, this Shinigami King was the only thing I could not completely figure out,' thought Edward as he watched his attack heading for the opponent. 'The only thing I know about him is that he uses Chakra.'
In fact, Edward could tell the entire Pure Land was composed of well-crafted and controlled Chakra, which further inspired Edward's understanding of the Space-Time Rule.
The Shinigami King waved his hand, and Edward's attack disintegrated, and he did it effortlessly.
'Death Rule,' analyzed Edward. 'Moreover, the entire Pure Land is like his Domain, boosting his strength.'
[Law Spell: Wail of Death]
The head of a banshee appeared before screaming. Her voice created a sonic wave with the power to bring death to all the souls in its path.
However, the Shinigami King's response was the same. As he slowly moved forward, he waved his hand, and Edward's attack disappeared.
'This person's application of Death Rule is above even me,' analyzed Edward. However, he did not stop attacking since this was a perfect learning opportunity.
However, after another attack, he suddenly felt he could no longer use his Death Rules; it was like someone stripped him of the right to use this Authority.
Edward remained calm as he analyzed the situation.
'My Death Rule is utterly useless while the power of the other ones has drastically decreased.'
His eyes became brighter as he found another application for his Magic Domain.
'Morgana, according to your calculations, what is the best way to deal with his domain?'
'You can use intense energy fluctuation to reduce its effect. However, your mana and soul strength are also suppressed, so you need to tap into your reserved Mana Pools.
'And the second and most efficient way is also to use your Magic Domain. This situation is a perfect time for field testing.'
Edward agreed, so he waited until the King was closer. Then, he used the second domain by combining his Soul Dimension with an instantly created pocket dimension.
However, something odd occurred. His pocket dimension did not envelop the Shinigami King. Instead, the space of the Pure Land blocked the creation of his dimension.
So, the situation became odd. One side was Edward's Domain, where he sat on his throne with the books, while the other side was the King and the Pure Land.
"Is this the result of two Domains Clashing?"
Edward observed the situation while also stabilizing the pocket dimension. The situation was an anomaly, and he needed to use his Space Rules to prevent the Domain from crashing.
Furthermore, he also detected the size of his Domain was rapidly shrinking by the Pure Land.
"As expected, this Domain is unstable and requires too much reliance on Space Magic," commented Edward. Regardless, he saw this situation as an opportunity to gather more data before perfecting it.
However, the Shinigami King was not playing around; he only wanted to deal with this powerful invader. He waved his hand to instantly create a legion of Dead Souls.
Under his command, they rushed into Edward's Domain. He observed this army and noticed they paused for a moment after entering. Then, they continued their charge.
With a single thought, they disappeared from this world. Then, Edward used the same spell as the King. He watched as his army entered the latter's enemy.
'There is a significant difference,' he analyzed. He saw his troops instantly annihilated after entering the enemy's territory. The Shinigami King's control over his Domain is miles ahead of him.
'His domain followed his will; it instinctively rejects any power that does not belong to him. Furthermore, it is very aggressive.'
Edward could tell the latter's domain acted as if it was alive and had a will of its own.
So, he closed his eyes, ignoring that his domain was rapidly shrinking. He followed his new discovery and instilled his will into this domain–the will to reject any foreign powers and anything that wished to harm him.
Bang!
Edward's domain vibrated, and a mysterious change seemed to have occurred. The Shinigami King sensed something and acted. He raised his hand to create a black cloud of death powers.
However, things are different now. As soon as the cloud reached Edward's side, his Domain automatically extinguished it.
The king acted swiftly and summoned a black scepter. A terrifying wave of Chakra emanated from its body as he slammed the staff on the floor, generating a mighty energy wave.
In an instant, Edward's domain shrunk by more than twenty percent.
'The integrity of the domain's space is too fragile,' analyzed Edward calmly. 'It would be best if it could be like a mini-universe that is not easily destroyed.'
Edward realized another flaw of the domain. And the way to deal with this issue is to reinforce the space with enchantments. And the second is to essentially turn the domain into a mini-universe or world.
'The Gods' Divine Kingdom is this way, so, arcanists can follow this step.'
Edward wanted the domain to not rely on outside aids or resources. It should be a magical ability usable by all Arcanists. However, he realized he was asking too much.
Even the Kingdoms of the Gods require numerous resources to create. And if Arcanists wish to use their Domain to compete with the Divine Kingdom, they will also need to make an effort.
'So, I need to create special artifacts that Arcanists can fuse with their domain to turn them into small universes.'
Edward suddenly thought of the Space Gem from the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
'I can study the gem and recreate it; this would be the best thing to stabilize the domain.'
Other options he could think of are Void Energy or the Space Chamber, which is a Divine Spark.
'The Space Chamber is a unique thing and cannot be used. Meanwhile, I feel that Void Energy is still too dangerous. So, let's study the Space Chamber first to create something from it.
'Then, in my next voyage, I will go to the MCU and study the Infinity Stones.'
All these thoughts flashed into Edward's mind as his Domain was rapidly annihilated. Then, he finally focused on the battle.
A staff appeared in his hand and activated his Space-Time Rule to enchant the space of the domain. Finally, he blessed the domain with all his rules.
Immediately afterward, he felt the domain underwent another change. It became more stable; his power was easier to use, and the requirement for mana drastically decreased.
'Interesting changes. Morgana, are you getting all this data?'
'You should know the answer without asking.'
'I'm just checking if you're not lazy.'
The little elf ignored him.
Boom!
Edward's domain expanded and enveloped the Shinigami King before the latter could respond.
'Is this the power of multiple rules?' thought Edward.