The clash between two Super Gods instantly transcended the laws of causality.
Within that brief span, Zhongli and Venti had already exchanged countless blows. Each strike carried mortal danger—one slip would mean grievous injury.
Though this was a Gift Game, it was also a battle of life and death. To enter the fight was to bear the resolve of killing one's opponent.
Even knowing it was impossible, they still exhausted every ounce of power.
Crack—
After more than a hundred million extreme clashes, Zhongli seemed to seize an opening. The Vortex Vanquisher pierced forward with force enough to penetrate several great universes, aimed at Venti's back.
At the level of Super God—even a low-tier Super God with only a single-digit number of universes—their full-force strike could pierce through ten great universes.
Of course, to pierce was not to destroy.
Just as the Vortex Vanquisher was about to pierce through Venti's divine body, a backlash of tearing resistance blocked it. A sky-blue greatsword, wielded as a shield in Venti's hands, stopped the spear.
"Old man, I don't just use a bow, you know. These ten thousand years haven't been for nothing. I might not match your mastery of every weapon, but against an equal, I won't fall behind."
That sky-blue greatsword was, of course, the Skyward Pride—formed through Pseudo Star Map Creation. Only Pseudo Star Map could resist Pseudo Star Map.
The two Pseudo Star Maps clashed head-on. The forces of two divine collectives converged here, with invisible ripples surging outward at every collision.
Like pebbles dropped again and again into a tranquil lake, wave after wave spread outward.
Crack, crack, crack—
Even the void itself began to fracture where their powers concentrated at a single point.
At that point, nearly eight great universes' worth of mass had gathered. Yet instead of exploding, it twisted ceaselessly.
The fissures of the void shimmered with multicolored light, crimson and violet dominant, streaks of dimensional force seeping outward.
If Teyvat's void were broken, beyond it lay the superdimension.
At Super God level, one could shatter the void and depart Teyvat into the superdimension by their own strength.
But as important gods of Teyvat, the further they strayed from the great world, the stronger the pull of gravity became. Once it surpassed their resistance, they would be dragged back—like iron filings drawn to a magnet that grew ever stronger.
A light sphere, dazzling even to Super Gods, formed at the point where the Pseudo Star Maps pressed together, swelling larger and larger.
The void's cracks multiplied, and more dimensional force poured in.
"So even the void shatters under full strength… I underestimated my own power." Zhongli himself was astonished.
Venti too was strained. This was no different than arm-wrestling—but with equal strength, neither could budge, only cracking the table beneath them.
"It's only the void fracturing. With dimensional force pouring in, perhaps the Dimensional Gap gains some nourishment."
"We don't need to keep trading like this, old man. Let's just clash head-on!"
"Strike me with your strongest move!"
Zhongli showed a trace of weariness. "Not merely strong… it's cruel."
Even at full force, he had still held back three parts of his power.
Venti broke the balance first. "Come on, old man!"
Rumble, rumble… crack, crack, crack—
Their stalemate ended. At the node where the Pseudo Star Map weapons met, the mass swelled until it engulfed half their weapons, then exploded at the ultimate critical point.
But this time, it was not a Big Bang. Instead, the void spanning more than a dozen great universes shattered in an instant like glass, splintering into webs of cracks.
From outside the arena, it looked as if the void itself had shattered into shards of glass. Dimensional force surged wildly, flooding the entire arena.
At the same time, countless void fragments drifted chaotically through the Dimensional Gap.
Hu Tao clicked her tongue. "This fight's way too intense. They've smashed the void itself into the Dimensional Gap."
Guizhong clenched her hands and bit her lip. "Is the gap between Super Gods and Almighty Gods truly this vast? Does this shatter humanity's common sense of omniscience and omnipotence—directly breaking the void and linking beyond Teyvat?"
Marchosius drew a deep breath. "The gap is indeed vast. Otherwise, why would Lord Heavenly Principle establish the ranks? There must be an essential difference."
"In terms of energy levels, an Almighty God is limited to a single universe. A Super God, however, has already broken free of that constraint, able to stack power without limit."
"To put it simply, it's like a human who has broken the biological limiter compared to one who hasn't."
"In Fontaine, isn't there a Supreme God called Saitama? He broke the biological limiter and can infinitely stack strength through training under a single law of power. He has only one law, unlike other gods—but by pushing one cosmic law to the end, then indirectly influencing other laws through it, he too reached Supreme God."
"Right now, Almighty God is already the endpoint for gods. But to surpass that—to become Super God—is to break the divine limiter."
"I call it the 'divine limiter.' Break it, and one can double the mass of a single universe and step into Super God."
"To break this limiter, one must either embody a philosophy, or become the ultimate evolutionary form of an entire system."
"As for leaders of divine collectives—once they gained their Pseudo Star Map, their limiter no longer existed."
Moon Carver cried out: "Look! The Sovereign has already entered close combat with that lord. Are they about to decide the victor?"
Xianyun grew tense. "I don't know… The Sovereign's battle has already far surpassed our comprehension."
Hu Tao waved her hand. "I can't tell either. I don't even know which of them is stronger. I've never seen either truly fight before."
...
The clash of the Vortex Vanquisher and Skyward Pride within the Dimensional Gap felt like silk fabric being torn apart.
The Dimensional Gap itself made no sound, but the shattering of laws and the wild turbulence of dimensional force struck even their divine souls.
Zhongli and Venti exchanged close-quarters strikes over a hundred million times. Even for gods of their rank, it was a dazzling spectacle.
Yet Zhongli, after all, was the Warrior God. He still surpassed Venti by a margin. That faint edge, across endless exchanges, gradually widened.
If they continued this way, the scales of victory would inevitably tilt toward Zhongli.
Venti grew strained, his eyes reflecting Zhongli's martial god-like stance.
I am not skilled in battle. If it continues like this, surely victory will be yours, old man… That's what you're thinking, isn't it?
But… before the origin of time itself, such an advantage may not hold.
Beyond hope, beyond freedom's wind—at the very beginning, I also shared a connection with Lady Istaroth.
Now, Lady Istaroth has become the Lawbearer of Time—the master of the river of time.
And this time, tied to that connection, I have already carried with me a trace of the great might of the Principle of Time.
Old man, you were indeed the mightiest, the oldest among the Seven. But in terms of connections… you may not surpass me.
[The wind brings seeds of stories, and time makes them sprout.]
Time as a law is a necessary force in constructing a great universe, and one of the most vital structural powers in ascending to Almighty God.
All-powerful, all-capable—such is the human understanding of omnipotence, not the perspective of an Almighty God.
In their eyes, they are far from omnipotent, even if they have mastered all the laws of a great universe.
Among the laws mastered, there exists a difference in weight and quality, a difference in how much they contribute to one's omnipotence.
Typically, one's origin law becomes the center that links to all others.
The old man's origin laws were the most numerous among the Seven Archons. Yet he did not possess time—the supreme law.
Even among laws of equal tier, there exists hierarchy. Though the old man's mastery encompassed the highest-level laws, even the highest could not compare to the supreme.
Barbatos was fortunate to hold time itself as his origin law.
Of course, time alone was not enough to defeat the strongest among the Seven Archons.
But this time came from Law itself, carrying with it a sliver of the might of Principle—even if only a trace.
And that trace was the hidden killing move the old man could not perceive.
As Super Gods, they saw through all laws—but only laws, not the higher principles above them.
Venti and Zhongli had clashed with their Pseudo Star Map weapons countless times. A hundred billion? That seemed like an earlier tally already surpassed.
Between Super Gods, unless the gap was truly immense, victory between near equals could take an eternity.
It was like the battles of the Magic Gods in A Certain Magical Index, where their exchanges were counted in kei—a kei being one trillion.
With so many strikes exchanged, injuries were inevitable.
Venti's chest was grazed by the Vortex Vanquisher, golden divine blood scattering into the Dimensional Gap. Though only the skin of his divine body was cut, its flawless defense had been broken.
Morax's face, too, was marked by the Skyward Pride. Golden blood seeped out, droplets scattering and drifting who knew where within the Dimensional Gap.
Now that this place connected to the superdimension, their divine blood drifted beyond Teyvat.
Even a single drop of blood from a powerful Super God could raise an entire planar world into a small universe, perhaps even one day into a great universe.
Now, countless drops of divine blood had fallen—who knew what worlds would obtain them.
Yet the blood of Teyvat's Super Gods was not so easily absorbed.
Any world that bore Teyvat's aura would be marked, and would inevitably merge into Teyvat, becoming part of its multiverse.
"They're bleeding…"
Kamisato Ayato opened his mouth in disbelief.
He could withstand the terror of the Seven's battle, but to see them bleed in battle against one another was beyond his understanding.
Super Gods did bleed in direct combat.
The concept of bleeding itself meant that even Super Gods could, in battle with each other, die.
To imagine the Shogun-sama, who could casually create universes and whose divine thought radiated across endless worlds, truly dying—it was beyond him.
It was not that he could not accept the death of gods. It was that he could not conceive of gods beyond his understanding perishing.
Kitsune Saiguu shook her head, her pipe trembling in her hand. "Of course they can die. All gods in Teyvat can die—except for Lord Heavenly Principle, the Lords of Truth, and the Sustainers of Heavenly Principles. As long as Lord Heavenly Principle exists, so too do they."
Lord Heavenly Principle was absolute. The Lords of Truth would not perish even if Teyvat itself ceased. And the Sustainers shared the power of Lord Heavenly Principle; as long as he existed, so did they.
Raiden Ei raised her hand and lightly tapped Kitsune Saiguu on the head, a hint of reproach in her eyes.
She did not want to hear the word "death." Memories of her sister's passing could resurface too easily.
"Ow~" Kitsune Saiguu rubbed her head helplessly. "Ei~"
Yae Miko, at her side, covered her face with her hand, hiding her laughter. Only her eyes, curved in mirth, peeked out.
Raiden Makoto widened her eyes at the arena. "They're about to decide the victor! That drunkard actually had such a hidden trump card!"
"As expected… as one of the Seven from our era, who knows how many secrets are hidden behind him!"
All eyes turned sharply toward the arena.
Raiden Ei opened her mouth, speaking with grave weight. "This is… the Principle of Time?"
As one who had entered Eden and the Temple of Truth, she was deeply familiar with the aura of Principles.
Thus, she sensed it instantly.
Kamisato Ayaka, regaining her composure, suddenly remembered and exclaimed:
"I recall it now! When Acting Grand Master Jean invited me to the Windblume Festival, I learned of Mondstadt's earliest myths. Though the stories were hazy, only fragments remained…"
"One tale mentioned a god who governed time, and even told of rituals once held in that god's honor. But as the ley lines shifted, the place of worship became isolated overseas, and over time people abandoned those rites."
"That god of time was deeply connected to Lord Barbatos."
"Putting all this together, that god of time must be Lady Istaroth."
"And Lord Barbatos must carry within him power tied to Lady Istaroth."
...
Those within the arena could not perceive their own situation, but those outside saw it clearly.
Yet the Principle of Time was too high a concept—only Almighty Gods and above could discern its subtle traces.
Nahida spoke softly, "Unbelievable… the most ancient, Morax, has fallen into a trap. He is about to be defeated."
Odin asked quickly, "I only sensed it was tied to Principle. What did you see?"
Nahida explained, "Barbatos is like a spider weaving threads of the Principle of Time into a web. He only needs to wait for the moment when the prey falls into the net—then there will be no escape, no counterattack."
As a counterpart of Greater Lord Rukkhadevata, the embodiment of Truth, she possessed vision beyond the ordinary.
Through her eyes, she saw Morax and Barbatos locked in desperate combat.
Barbatos still appeared to be at a disadvantage.
But with each of his movements, strands woven from the Principle of Time were cast out.
Now, he had already woven a web spanning the entire arena.
The finishing blow would come the instant the net closed.
...
Venti barely blocked one of Zhongli's strikes, his arm torn open, his face twisted in pain, as though he could not hold on much longer.
"Barbatos, you are about to lose." Morax's golden eyes radiated divine majesty as though made substance.
"Old man… you're really ruthless… One last strike to decide it all!"
—
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