Chapter 329: Malachar the Fourbladed and Dragon Ascent
[Temporal Regression has evolved]
[Maximum reset duration increased: 1 minute → 5 minutes]
Caelus taken aback by the unexpected bonus.
His training had apparently pushed his existing abilities to new thresholds.
He stood up and stretched his muscles, feeling stronger than he had in days.
Then the ground shook violently beneath his feet.
An explosion echoed from somewhere outside the Vatican walls, followed by screams and the unmistakable sounds of combat.
Caelus burst into motion immediately.
He found Marcus rallying soldiers near the main entrance while Lunari provided healing support to wounded fighters.
"What’s happening?" Caelus demanded.
Marcus’s face was grim.
"The Demonic Faction is attacking again, they’ve brought King Rank fighters this time."
Ayame appeared beside Caelus, her staff already in hand.
"How many?"
"Three confirmed King Ranks," Marcus reported. "And dozens of Master Rank support troops."
Caelus’s expression hardened.
Three King Rank enemies was a serious threat, even with his current power level.
But he wasn’t about to run away.
"Everyone with us, now!" he commanded.
Freya, Sylvia, Ayame, Zhang Wei, and Lunari gathered behind him without hesitation.
Together, they charged toward the sounds of battle.
The demons had set up their assault near the coastline, the Tyrrhenian Sea stretching endlessly behind them.
Three massive figures dominated the battlefield, each one radiating King Rank pressure that made the air itself tremble.
The leader stood at the center, a demon with crimson skin and four arms that each held a different weapon. His name was Malachar the Fourbladed, a Peak King Rank demon whose reputation preceded him across multiple continents.
"More ants to crush," Malachar laughed while spinning his weapons lazily. "How delightful."
Caelus analyzed the situation rapidly.
His current Combat Score sat at 124.42 at Master Rank, which translated to roughly 1.24 at King Rank. Malachar alone radiated pressure equivalent to 150 King Rank Combat Score, nearly 1.5 at Ace Rank level.
The gap was enormous.
"Miss Ayame, I need your buff right now!" he called out.
He had already formulated a plan.
The Shinto representative understood immediately.
[Ding! You’ve been blessed by the Avatar of Amaterasu]
Power flooded into Caelus’s body as the bdivine buff formed within him. The golden energy merged with his cells, temporarily elevating his combat capabilities.
[+2 Combat Score (King Rank)]
[Temporary Combat Score: 3.24 (King Rank)]
The boost was significant, but still nowhere near enough to match Malachar’s overwhelming 150 King Rank Combat Score.
Malachar’s eyes narrowed slightly.
"Interesting," he said while observing the golden light fading around Caelus. "You actually have some tricks."
Caelus activated his Half Dragon Armor Mode without hesitation.
Black scales erupted across his body in strategic patterns, the blue circuit lines pulsing with contained power. Horns curved from his temples as his eyes transformed into draconic slits.
[Half Dragon Armor Mode Activated]
[+75 Combat Score (King Rank)]
[Current Combat Score: 78.24 (King Rank)]
The pressure he released made the two lesser demons take several steps backward.
But Malachar merely smiled with cruel amusement.
"Still not enough, little dragon." His four weapons began spinning faster. "You’re barely half my strength."
Caelus knew he was right.
78.24 against 150 was a death sentence under normal circumstances. But he had fought impossible odds before.
His answer was a fist to Malachar’s face.
BOOM!
The impact created a shockwave that sent nearby debris flying in all directions.
Malachar’s head snapped backward, but he recovered almost instantly. A thin trickle of black blood ran from his lip.
"You actually made me bleed?" Genuine surprise flickered across his features before being replaced by fury. "You dare?!"
All four of his arms swung simultaneously, each weapon trailing different elemental energies. Fire, ice, lightning, and shadow converged on Caelus from four different angles.
Caelus activated Telekinesis and created multiple gravity zones around the incoming attacks, slowing them down enough to dodge.
But Malachar was faster than expected.
One blade grazed Caelus’s shoulder, slicing through his scales and drawing blood. The pain was immediate and sharp.
[HP: 284/284 → 198/284]
He gritted his teeth and counterattacked with the Ruyi Jingu Bang, the staff expanding to massive size as it swept toward the demon’s chest.
Malachar caught the weapon with two of his arms while using the other two to strike at Caelus’s exposed sides.
Spatial Blink!
He vanished from his position and reappeared above the demon, his staff already descending.
The blow connected with devastating force, driving Malachar into the ground hard enough to crater the stone beneath.
But the demon was laughing when he climbed out.
Meanwhile, Sylvia engaged one of the other Master Ranks with the Crimson Sovereign.
Her newly awakened Crimson Eclipse activated, creating a dome of darkness that encompassed both her and her opponent.
Within the dome, the demon’s movements slowed as blood energy continuously drained their HP.
Sylvia moved like a crimson blur, her Blood Sword Construct leaving wounds that couldn’t heal properly.
Freya, Lunari, Ayame, and Zhang Wei worked together against the third King Rank, their combined efforts keeping it occupied while Caelus and Sylvia dealt with the stronger threats.
Soon, Sylvia also joined them after dealing with the Master Rank.
Malachar launched himself at Caelus with renewed ferocity.
The exchange that followed pushed Caelus to his absolute limits. Every block sent shockwaves through his arms. Every dodge came a hair’s breadth from disaster.
His Dragon Armor began cracking under the sustained assault.
[HP: 198/284 → 156/284]
[HP: 156/284 → 124/284]
Blood seeped through the gaps in his scales. His muscles screamed in protest with every movement.
But he refused to fall.
Malachar’s eyes gleamed with predatory satisfaction.
"Your body is breaking down, little dragon." He pressed his advantage relentlessly. "You can’t maintain that form much longer!"
He was right.
Caelus could feel his cells straining at their limits. The Half Dragon Armor was consuming his stamina at an alarming rate.
If this dragged on, he would lose.
Dark energy gathered around all four of Malachar’s weapons as he prepared a devastating combination attack. The air itself seemed to scream in protest.
"Time to end this game," Malachar declared.
Caelus felt the power building and knew he couldn’t block it with normal means.
He had to use it.
The New Power he now had.
Caelus closed his eyes and reached deep within himself. The air around him began to tremble.
"Dragon Ascent!"
[Skill Activated: Dragon Ascent]
[Warning: This ability consumes all CA]
[Consuming all CA...]
[CA: 284/284 → 0/284]
[Converting CA into Combat Score]
[Conversion Ratio: 0.5:1]
[Combat Score: 2.20 (Ace Rank)]
CRACK!
The sound barrier shattered around him like broken glass.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Three consecutive sonic booms erupted outward in expanding rings. The shockwaves flattened everything within fifty meters, sending demons and debris flying like leaves in a hurricane.
Power exploded through his body like a supernova. His partial dragon transformation intensified beyond anything he had achieved before.
Scales spread across every inch of his form, darker than the void itself. Wings of pure chaos energy erupted from his back, each one spanning nearly ten meters. His eyes blazed with sapphire fire that illuminated the entire battlefield.
But the cost was immediate.
His cells screamed in agony as the transformation exceeded their limits. Microscopic fractures spread through his bones. Blood vessels ruptured beneath his scales.
[HP: 124/284 → 89/284]
The pain was excruciating.
But he didn’t have time to care.
Time seemed to slow around him as he moved. No, he was simply moving faster than anything had a right to move.
Malachar’s combination attack launched toward where he had been standing, but Caelus was already gone.
WHOOOOSH!
He shot downward toward the sea at impossible speed.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
The air itself ignited from friction as he descended, leaving a trail of white-hot plasma in his wake.
The ocean parted beneath him.
FWOOOOOM!
Two massive walls of water rose on either side as his descent carved a canyon through the Tyrrhenian Sea itself. Steam erupted where his superheated body touched the waves.
Then he curved upward, rocketing toward the sky with such force that the water collapsed back with a thunderous crash.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Sonic booms trailed behind him like cannon fire, each one louder than the last.
Sylvia, Freya, Lunari and the others looked up to the sky in shock, shielding their eyes from the blazing streak of light ascending into the heavens.
Every movement sent fresh waves of pain through his body. His cells were literally tearing themselves apart.
[HP: 89/284 → 67/284]
Malachar looked up in confusion, unable to track his movement.
"Where did he—"
Caelus reached the apex of his ascent, thousands of meters above the battlefield.
For one heartbeat, everything went silent.
Then he dove.
Straight toward the four-armed demon.
SCREEEEECH!
The atmosphere screamed as he tore through it. A cone of white vapor formed around his body, then ignited into blue flames from the sheer friction.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
Sonic booms stacked on top of each other, creating a continuous roar that shook the very foundations of Rome.
The world became a blur of motion and power as Dragon Ascent reached its peak. His body pierced through the air like a bolt of divine lightning, chaos energy trailing behind him in a brilliant streak.
Malachar’s eyes finally found him.
For one frozen instant, genuine fear crossed the Peak King Rank demon’s features.
He raised all four weapons in defense, dark energy forming a barrier around his body.
But Dragon Ascent ignored all defenses.
BOOOOOOM!
The impact created a crater thirty meters wide. A dome of pure white light expanded outward from the point of contact, vaporizing nearby debris instantly.
Caelus passed straight through the barrier without slowing. He passed straight through Malachar’s chest without stopping.
He emerged from the other side covered in black blood, the demon’s core clutched in his draconic claws.
The shockwave reached the coastline a moment later.
CRASH!
A tsunami surged outward in all directions as the displaced air slammed into the sea.
Behind him, Malachar stood frozen for a single heartbeat.
"Im... possible..." the demon whispered.
Then he collapsed, dead before he hit the ground.
Caelus landed heavily, his Dragon Ascent fading as exhaustion crashed over him.
His scales crumbled away like shattered glass. His wings dissolved into particles of fading light. Blood poured from dozens of internal wounds that his transformation had caused.
[HP: 67/252 → 34/252]
[CA: 0/252]
His legs buckled, and he dropped to one knee.
Every breath felt like swallowing broken glass.
But it was worth it.
Everything worked out in their favor after all.
One Peak King Rank demon was eliminated in a single strike.
Sylvia finished her opponent moments later, the Crimson Eclipse dome collapsing as the demon within finally succumbed to accumulated blood damage.
She immediately rushed to Caelus’s side, her face pale with concern.
"Caelus!"
Freya also arrived at the same speed as Sylvia.
She immediately begin using her healing skill to heal up his injuries.
The third king rank demon tried to flee, but Marcus intercepted it with holy fire that burned through its defenses.
Then, Ayame and Zhang Wei swiftly came forward and dealt the final blow.
Victory belonged to them.
As Caelus’s breathing slowly steadied, he noticed something glowing among Malachar’s remains.