The Dragon Ancestor saw Tatyana's wrist moving, ready to flick her sword, so he summoned his own weapon. It was a long spear, with golden serpentine dragons coiling around the shaft, and with a large, pointy blade at the top that gleamed with red light.
"Now that I can see your energy, I can finally tell your hidden cultivation." The Dragon Hunter Ancestor snorted. "Do you think that you are strong for being a Level 3 Demigoddess? You are still one Level below me! Fear me, Hakkan, who has been praised through the eras! [Thunder Law: Sky Dragon Pierce]!"
Lan Shuyao was standing by Yasenia's side. When she heard those words, her face changed significantly. "Demigod Hakkan, Thunder Emperor Dragon Slayer!? That's one of the original ancestors of the Dragon Hunter clan! He became famous after defeating a Seventh Realm dragon while being at the peak of the Sixth Realm, attaining Demigod status!"
Yasenia's face gained a touch of concern. 'He doesn't sound like someone easy to defeat.'
Tatyana didn't flinch at those words and swung her sword with a cold smirk. "Block this then."
Energies of the world transformed and gathered, the manifested Hell pouring strength into Tatyana's sword.
Both sides released their attacks on each other.
Principles of the world twisted, manifestations of thunder dragons and wailing ghosts covering the skies. The sword slash split the sky, but the spear's pierce created a massive hole in the middle of the horizon-stretching slash.
BOOM!
The sky shook, the earth trembling at the collision of their attacks. Yet, neither side moved after it.
The five Seventh Realm cultivators used their own laws to protect themselves from the aftershock, their faces showing tension.
Tatyana hummed after the attack, her cold face maintaining her faint smile. "Not bad. You are indeed strong enough to be arrogant."
Hakkan, however, was not satisfied. 'I used a Law Technique to block her attack, and we were evenly matched. This is not a good sign.'
This single exchange was more than enough for Hakkan to realize he was at a disadvantage. 'Even then, I have five helpers by my side. Their strength is mediocre, but they will help greatly in a moment of peril.'
Tatyana moved again, her aura transforming along her sword's diagonal path. In that moment, it seemed as if all sounds had disappeared, a dreadful silence and darkness enveloping the world. Nothing could breathe, nor could they exhale. A sense of indefinite stillness grasped the world's heart.
"[Death Law: Abyssal Strike]."
"What!? A second [Law]!?"
Hakkan's expression turned grim, his energy gathering to form tens of thousands of thunder dragons. "[Thunder Law: Dragon Spear Nest]."
Thunder rumbled, and all the dragons that manifested transformed into spears that could crush mountains with their sheer size. All dragon spears transformed and quickly descended towards Tatyana, each with enough strength to blow up a star.
The black slash, carrying dreadful death energies, soared across the sky, slicing thousands of thunder spears in half. Yet, that number was a drop of water in the ocean of spears being hurled at her.
Hakkan's lips arched. "Your attack is too weak."
Tatyana answered lightly. "Naturally, it is weak. This attack is not meant to be a single slash, after all."
The energy of her sword didn't dim after the path was completed. Instead, Death Energy seemed to keep pouring in and transforming. Following that, Tatyana grabbed the longsword with two hands, and her arms blurred.
SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH!
The space before Tatyana turned into a convex black blanket, woven using the black lines created by her Abyssal Strikes, before streaking forward and shredding the sky into pieces.
BOOM!!
All the dragon spears were reduced to little chunks, exploding violently as if a Heavenly Tribulation had descended upon the dark world. Hakkan quickly raised his hand, a giant shield treasure manifesting in front of him to block the rain-like Abyssal Strikes.
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
Hakkan's face grimaced, the weight of the attacks piling up on the shield and creating a backlash. "[Thunder Law: Lightning Dragon Roar]!"
ROAR!
The head of a golden dragon manifested behind him, followed by a thunderous roar that struck the world and deafened everyone. The shockwave of the roar carried the principles of lightning, destroying all Abyssal Strikes and clearing the sky.
The world instantly recovered, returning to its black, cloudy sky, with green lights woven across it like massive rivers of ghostly energies. Tatyana showed a hint of interest. "Not bad. It seems that your techniques are decent. Shall we see how good you are at martial arts? [Void Shattering Phantasmal Steps]."
Tatyana ripped open the void before her, instantly reappearing behind Hakkan and slashing down at his open back. Hakkan's eyes tightened, spinning his long spear and using the shaft to block it.
Clang!
A minuscule nick appeared on the spear's shaft, stunning Hakkan. 'What kind of sword is that? It can damage a Five Star Ancient Ranked treasure!'
"Don't become dazed. It is dangerous~."
Tatyana's body became shadowy, slipping past his defense with an evil smile. Hakkan gritted his teeth, knowing that he was a bit too late to defend.
Taking a step back, Hakkan used the sleeves of the treasure robe he was donning to defend against the strike.
BANG!
The strength behind the sword strike was like a meteor, hurling his body into the sky while blood poured out from his cut forearm. Tatyana tore the void once more, perfectly timing it and appearing right behind Hakkan while slashing down at him.
Hakkan manifested a shield, knowing that Tatyana would not let this chance slip. The sword struck, creating a gong-like sound. Even when blocked, the strike's power was really too much, forcefully pushing him back.
After that, Tatyana entered a transcendent flow, each step moving her thousands of kilometers as she sliced time and again at Hakkan, throwing him around as if she were playing ball.
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
Hakkan knew that he needed to break the flow, but Tatyana's timing was truly too precise, leaving him almost no chance to retaliate. Each time he tried to use the few instants in between attacks, Tatyana would ruthlessly aim for the gap and prevent him from doing as he pleased.
To get away from this situation, Hakkan decided to take an exchange hit. "[Thunder Breaking Spear]!"
Tatyana reacted quickly, her sword glowing with malevolent energies. "[Death Severing Strike]!"
BOOM!!
Both sides recoiled, wounds appearing on their bodies. However, those in Tatyana's body were quick to heal, as if they were a lie to begin with. Hakkan's wounds, corroded by the principles of Death, took much longer.
Meanwhile, the few drops of blood Hakkan shed at first finally completed their trajectory, landing on the ground. Lan Shuyao moved in front of Yasenia when she realized and erected a barrier.
Yasenia was confused. 'What's wrong—'
RUMBLE!
The energy of the blood exploded violently when it touched the ground, thunder crackling around it and leaving large scorch marks. Yasenia was stunned. Lan Shuyao explained. "A Demigod of their level is already strong enough to make worlds disappear with a finger's flick. A drop of their blood is naturally packed with violent amounts of energy. When it drips from uncontrolled situations, the reactions are as you can see."
"No wonder you moved…" Yasenia looked up, the fight in the sky constantly creating massive rifts, thunder, and other phenomena.
Even with the ferocity displayed by the two cultivators, Lan Shuyao noticed that Yasenia was too calm. Even if she had confidence in Tatyana, it made no sense for Yasenia not to show a hint of concern. "Are you that confident in Lady Tatyana?"
Yasenia smiled slowly. "She has yet to become serious. I wonder what her plan is."
"Huh?" Lan Shuyao looked back up, both sides exchanging thousands of moves each second that created wounds here and there. "That's Lady Tatyana's strength when she is not serious? Why are you so sure?"
Yasenia answered, not losing her smile. "Tatyana is not a melee fighter. She is, as she likes to call it, a necromancer."
It was then that Lan Shuyao realized that Tatyana's energy surged and her voice shook the heavens.
"When my enemies rise, when war is near, my imperial decree summons you…"
Tatyana's sword and Hakkan's spear exchanged clashes constantly, but her words never stopped, the chant reverberating like an ancient song.
"…As the swords rise, as the bows tense, my imperial decree calls to strengthen you…"
Hakkan's heart skipped a beat, his face turning more hideous the more they clashed. 'Vocal chants? What kind of skill needs that?'
Word chants were something of the far past, a technique lost in time. Those using it in the era after the Heavenly Cataclysm either discovered an ancient inheritance, or the effects were mediocre at best.
"As the horses gallop, as the dragons roar, my imperial decree commands you…"
Tatyana struck Hakkan, sending him flying against a distant corpse mountain.
"You all swore on the breath that I give you that you will never retreat, that you will be my army!"
Opening her arms wide, thousands of green and black void fissures opened like countless eyes across the sky.
"[Death Empress Decree: Eternal Legion Awakening]!"
Hakkan burst out from the mountain and looked around with a wary look. Then, from the myriad of portals, undead beings poured out endlessly.
A hundred thousand, a million, ten million… The army expanded endlessly, covering the skies with their bodies.
After just a few seconds, Tatyana put down her arms, closing the rifts and stopping the endless pour of undead. It was not because she ran out of them, but because she didn't need more.
Tatyana looked down coldly at Hakkan and spoke with a hint of mocking. "Since you like to play with numbers, I also called a few beings to help me. You don't mind, do you?"
Not a single sound could be heard. Everyone was too terrified at the sight extending in front of them.
Hakkan's face was also slightly pale, looking around with a trembling heart. "…Who are you? How can a being as evil as you still live without Heavenly Punishment? The number of lives you've taken is not something that can be forgiven!"
Tatyana smiled coldly. "Heavenly Punishment? I am tired of receiving it, and Heaven seems tired of administering it." Tatyana then released the full extent of her killing intent.
BOOM!
Death flashed before everyone's eyes, a blanket of fear wrapping tightly around their bodies and chilling their blood. Even their hearts stopped pumping for a few seconds, thinking that they had actually died.
This effect lasted for a while, many creatures falling into the endless whirlpool of killing intent and losing themselves.
"Demon… No." Hakkan's faintly trembling lips opened. "Devil. You are the manifestation of a devil!"
Tatyana's lips arched into a face-splitting grin. "Good that you know. Now, time for you six to become part of my army. [Death Empress Decree: Eternal Imperial Parade]."
Her aura coated all the army creatures, their strengths soaring endlessly, and their bodies gaining enough sturdiness to fight in the current battle. With a wave of her hand, all the undead surged forward. They moved like a massive ocean of creatures that spawned at the deepest layer of hell. The vast sea of creatures swallowed the world, enveloping Hakkan and the other five Seventh Realm cultivators who had been trying to find a gap to participate.