Chapter 382 - 380:“Understood. now, rest my child.”
"Seraph light arts—Lance of Judgment!"
"Champion sword arts—King’s Verdict!"
I watched the two attacks approach.
The confidence on the faces of the two youths.
I didn’t know why.
Was it because I was suddenly insulted by the fact that they had just disregarded my friend?
Or that they thought a little power-up would be enough?
I suddenly had the urge to crush that confidence.
But, it seemed someone else had taken a very big offense as well...
ROOOOOOARRRRRRRR!!!!
"WORLD PILLAR ANNIHILATION!!!"
The sky ripped open as another massive staff descended from the heavens.
"MONKEY!! KNOW YOUR PLACE!!!" The crimson-blond youth roared as the halo behind him flashed once, and then...
SHATTTER!!!!!
The staff in the sky was shattered instantly!
My eyes shone as I witnessed the spectacle.
"Enough of your meddling." A quiet voice came from beside Malachi as...
PSHHH!!!
Blood splashed through the air.
"Wha.. Blerghhh..." Malachi puked a mouthful of blood as he looked down. A beautiful silver sword had been thrust right through him.
"Ho.. how?"
SPLAT!
His body was split cleanly in two as the armored youth behind the split corpse leveled me a dead stare.
"Heh! I don’t think you should be focusing on me right now; you still have company."
ROOOOOOARRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A furious roar shook the entire skies as a massive hairy palm descended with fury.
Malachi’s punch aimed squarely for the armored youth.
"Impossible!" For the first time since this battle began, I could finally hear some semblance of surprise in the youth’s voice.
BANG!!!
The fist struck cleanly as the youth was blasted backward. Righting himself midair, he stopped beside the blond young man as they both looked up.
ROOOOOOOAAAARRRRRR!!!!
A towering golden ape had made its appearance.
Malachi having chosen to go big rather than go home.
"Heh! Seems your myriad transformations got an upgrade, didn’t they!" I couldn’t help calling out in excitement.
This was arguably the coolest I’d ever seen the monkey. Even after their visible upgrade. Even after that bizarre negation effect the blond youth’s halo had. Malachi wasn’t down. Not yet.
"Oh! You have seen nothing yet!" His voice boomed through the air as his staff grew to match his size, and as if that wasn’t bad enough...
"MULTIPLY!"
Poof! Poof! Poof!
All around us, more figures of the massive golden ape appeared.
They kept spawning until there were exactly 5 of them; plus Malachi himself, there were six.
Six mountain-sized apes radiating the same nefarious energy.
"True clones." My eyes flashed. Impressive, I couldn’t help thinking.
With the raw power leaking off these clones, I just knew these two young men were about to have a very difficult time.
"FILTHY MONKEY!!!! WHY WON’T YOU JUST STAY DOWN!!!" The blond young man roared in rage as his wings flared brighter and brighter.
The halo behind him began spinning violently as a strange force escaped him.
The clones around began glitching, almost like they were about to be forcefully dispelled, but...
POOF! One instantly transformed into the figure of..
"Old man?" I couldn’t help raising an intrigued brow as the monkey-transformed Valen raised his arm, and then...
Hummm!!!
The glow behind the blond youth died down. Its effects... NEGATED!
"Negation?" My eyes finally widened as I witnessed something impossible.
The monkey had just made use of a law I was certain he had no comprehension of.
Poof!
The clone vanished the moment it was done, but they had already completed the job.
"Boundless Monkey King’s Judgment!"
Following a roar from Malachi, all four remaining clones, together with him, struck.
Phantom images of multiple staves covered the entire heavens as the floodgates opened, but what fell wasn’t water, but punishment instead.
The multiple phantom images solidified into five trembling staves that descended with a fury that made the earth below tremble and shudder...
CRAAAAAAACKKKKKKKKKK!!!!!
The city finally gave in as it began collapsing into a rift carved into the very earth itself.
The two young men had frozen stiff from the deadly aura the attacks were giving off.
They could feel it.
I was sure they could.
Death!
That was all Malachi’s attack promised.
But before the cataclysmic impact of the staves hit...
"You promised me you’d take care of the disturbance, outsiders." A calm and unhurried voice echoed through the carnage.
And the world... froze.
"You have failed me." The voice sounded once more as Malachi’s attack scattered into the wind.
"Not only have you failed—"
Poof! Poof!
The true clones Malachi had summoned were instantly unsummoned as the voice continued, "—but you have also caused unbearable damage to my city."
"BLERGH!!!!" A rain of golden blood fell from the skies as Malachi opened his mouth and puked mouthfuls.
His form shrank back to normal before he staggered, almost collapsing.
My hand reached out, steadying the monkey.
"I am incredibly upset. I wonder how you intend on making it up to me." My head raised slowly as I finally laid eyes on the man that had been speaking all this while.
The moment I looked up, our eyes met and I could feel it instantly.
Strong! Not just strong, but unbelievably so.
"Dante..." Salazar’s grim voice sounded behind me as I kept my eyes locked onto the figure that had appeared in the skies.
"WE GREET HIS IMPERIAL MAJESTY!!!"
"THE EMPEROR KOLEN’KUL ABARITH, THE UNKILLABLE!!"
The fanatical voices of the soldiers that had survived burst through the air, unveiling the identity of the one that had just appeared.
The man finally took his gaze away, settling his eyes on the still-frozen figures of the two youths.
"So. Outsiders. Tell me why I shouldn’t just kill you two first, before taking care of the ones who murdered my children." The man’s voice was apathetic, devoid of all emotion. I didn’t like it. Not one bit. But before I could act or say anything...
"Again." A low voice spoke up.
"Again. And again. I’m being looked down upon." The speaker was none other than the crimson-blond-haired youth. His head was bowed, fists clenched so tight his nails had dug into his palms.
"I, Kael LightTorched, am being looked down upon by not only feeble humans, but also a monkey and a filthy Abyss Walker?" The venom in his words could be tasted.
"Enough." He slowly raised his head.
"Enough." He gave me a dead look.
"Enough." He gave the newly appeared man the same look.
"Enough." His gaze finally landed on his armored friend. "Enough of these games. It is time these fools understand just who it is they have offended." At his words, the armored youth knelt.
"I, Joshua, servant of the goddess, hereby present myself as an offering for the descent of my lord Seraph."
The moment the armored youth finished speaking, a sudden hush fell upon the entire place.
I could see the eyes of the man that had appeared finally change.
"I, Kael LightTorched, hereby sacrifice myself as an offering for the descent of my lord Seraph."
The crimson-blond youth spoke up as well. The newly arrived man finally looked grave and weary as...
"Father, show them just where it is they belong." The crimson-blond youth added, and then...
"Understood. Now rest well, my child."
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A/N: oh, come on. You guys know I had too. Anyways, see y’all in the next Chapter. The climax of the abyss is heating up. Two big players just appeared, what’s about to happen next? Hahaha... as always...
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Thanks for reading...