"This is truly… unbelievable power."
The Demon God King, sent flying hundreds of meters, twisted his body in midair to disperse the force. Yet the power was far too immense. Even with his best effort, the instant his feet struck the ground, the redirected force tore apart a quarter of the Temple of Time from its foundation.
As he regained his stance, a magical glow flickered over his body. In the next moment, he appeared once again before Satsuki. Now, purple magic began to spread around him—signifying that Goetia had no choice but to augment himself with mana to keep pace with this overwhelming foe.
"Now that's more like it."
Satsuki nodded inwardly. She had been restraining herself, for her power far exceeded his. If Goetia understood the situation clearly, then he too should be seeking every possible chance of victory.
This time, as the Demon God King flashed close, he did not simply strike with his palm. Instead, he closed the distance further, launching an elbow strike. This change in striking point and shorter range of motion reduced reach but multiplied his power severalfold compared to before.
Satsuki lightly tested his elbow strike with her forearm—and at once felt tremendous force shake her wrist. For the first time, she sensed strength capable of contending with her own.
After dispersing that force, the two exchanged a few rapid blows. Then Satsuki dipped low, suddenly closing the gap. Now, the distance between them was less than half a body's length.
Both channeled power into their footing, limiting each other's ability to generate force while enhancing their own.
At such proximity, the most vital point of strength was no longer the feet, but the waist.
Bodies like coiled whips, their fists and palms lashed out within a space devoid of even the slightest gap.
Faster, even faster…
Even the Tenseigan could glimpse only the shadows of their fists. An EX-ranked Clairvoyant eye had no time to observe the trajectory of the next strike.
Bang bang bang bang—!
The thunderous impacts shook the earth, making the entire Temple of Time tremble. The land around the temple fractured from the force's spread. Oceans surrounding it surged skyward under the shockwaves. Stray blasts of fist wind shredded Demon Pillars at the edges into fragments.
The mere aftershocks of their collision composed a symphony of destruction upon the land.
...
"How could anyone fight the King to such a degree? Observation unit, have you gathered no data yet?"
"Target: unreachable. Power: unmeasurable. Conclusion: none."
"..."
The leader of the Demon Pillars wanted to curse them as useless. But as it gazed at the clash before it—beyond all imagination—it found no words.
The strength of this enemy no longer required assessment. Simply by feeling the air pressure and the overflowing mana at the temple's limit, one conclusion was clear.
Even within the Temple of Time, this lone invader was an existence they could never oppose.
"Damn it, why doesn't the King activate the third Noble Phantasm? With his immortality and the third Noble Phantasm, there's still a chance of victory."
The Demon Pillars could not understand Goetia's decision. But without his authorization, they had no right to release the heavenly light band.
They could only watch as the battle grew fiercer.
At this extreme distance, combat demanded the highest technique. Goetia's form was ill-suited for such close-range exchanges, yet his mastery of martial arts locked Satsuki down tightly.
Neither side could gain advantage. When Satsuki attempted a risky move to break the stalemate, Goetia seized the opening. His elbow smashed against her cheek. Though she managed to block with one hand, the blow still collapsed her guard and sent her hurtling dozens of meters, her feet carving deep furrows into the ground.
As expected of Israel's champion of fists—his mastery of martial arts was extraordinary.
If close range would not work, then she would change to long range.
With that thought, Satsuki shifted her stance. Her body turned slightly, right fist extended straight forward, left fist placed beneath her cheek.
"Another new stance?"
The Demon God King stood on guard. Though he had gained some advantage in their earlier exchange, he knew full well that it was only because his opponent restrained herself.
In the next instant, Satsuki flashed forward, appearing before him. This time, instead of opening with a punch, she launched a series of rapid kicks.
Goetia was momentarily surprised and chose the conservative option of retreat. But Satsuki pressed forward relentlessly. Following the momentum of her kicking legs, her waist twisted sharply, sending her upper body into a sweeping punch.
Sensing the sheer force of the incoming blow, Goetia instantly flooded his body with purple mana, wrapping it around his elbow as he intercepted the strike head-on.
Boom!~
The impact generated a collapsed rift of space between them. Yet to the two combatants, such a phenomenon was nothing to fear.
Goetia's other hand immediately struck toward Satsuki's face. But her guard was already in place. The fist beneath her cheek rotated horizontally, deflecting his attack.
At the same time, her lower body drove with explosive force—her foot slammed directly into Goetia's face.
One hand occupied with defense, the other redirected by her counter. Against this sudden kick, Goetia was caught unprepared, sent flying violently.
This was no ordinary kick. The force behind it could flatten a mountain. Moreover, it carried concealed power from Vipralopa, which easily dispersed the defensive magecraft layered on his body.
Though he had just gained the upper hand, Satsuki immediately turned the tide with decisive action.
"...Such adaptation and reflexes… a style I have never seen before…"
Even with his immortality, the blow inflicted massive damage on Goetia.
"Choosing the most appropriate form of attack for the foe. Using offense to cut off my offense. Using interception to create an instant opening in my fist techniques… Is this a martial art of your own creation?"
In his eyes burned both curiosity and awe. What Satsuki had displayed a moment ago had already stepped into the realm of Divine Fist Flow. With time, her strikes might even unravel the established routines of his own martial style—robbing them of any threat.
"I once studied a technique of body interception. I had never used it in real combat, but during our fight, I realized that ordinary fist routines might no longer suit me. So I thought of this."
As they exchanged words, they drew closer once again. Both were adjusting themselves during this brief lull of close combat.
Amid the ruins of the Temple of Time—now reduced to only two-thirds of its structure—they stopped just under two meters apart. Goetia still held the stance of Divine Fist Flow.
"It is not a style bound by routine, but rather a mature awareness of thought itself."
"Instead of separating defense (block) and counterattack into two steps, it unites them as one—defense and counterattack executed simultaneously, in a single motion."
As he spoke, Satsuki shifted into another stance. Her body turned sideways, legs parted into a triangular base. Her arms hung behind her at first—then with a sudden surge, her body coiled, fists opening slightly before settling into a pose, one high and one low in front of her.
"And the one who created this method of combat named it—Jeet Kune Do."
"Jeet Kune Do? I see…"
As one who possessed eyes that could perceive both past and future, the Demon God King was not unfamiliar with this world-renowned martial art.
Though it was Satsuki's first time applying Jeet Kune Do in actual combat, her exceptional aptitude and unshackled mindset—free from the rigid patterns of fixed routines—allowed her to grasp its essence almost immediately.
Yes, just as the Knight King had once conveyed to her through swordsmanship, when fighting Heroic Spirits one must abandon common sense.
Jeet Kune Do was precisely such a style—eschewing formality, flowing like water, attacking and counterattacking, dissolving everything into formlessness.
Rooted in Wing Chun, boxing, and fencing, it was not merely a martial art but a philosophy. Within its system there was no right or wrong, no absolutes, no fixed patterns.
Its purpose lay in ultimate freedom of expression—abandoning tradition and remaining faithful to oneself.
Thus, its essence was captured in a single word—speed!
Not the speed of fists, nor the speed of kicks, but the speed of thought!
By observing an opponent's attack patterns, distance, and methods, one could anticipate what attack would come, from what angle, with what force—and then, in the instant before it was executed, preemptively intercept and dissolve it with a faster action.
Goetia once again assumed the stance of Divine Fist Flow, balancing defense as he gradually closed the distance with Satsuki.
The moment they entered a certain range, Satsuki's body pitched forward like lightning…
Goetia's Clairvoyance could not discern such subtle motion. His body instinctively leaned back—but then he realized it was nothing but a feint.
At that exact instant, Satsuki's body jolted with sudden force. A lightning-fast ura-ken (backfist) followed immediately.
Where the fist passed, a black fissure tore through space itself.
Even deceived by the feint, Goetia's instincts still allowed him to barely evade the blow that exceeded even his vision. He tucked his body low to avoid her follow-up kick and retaliated with a punch aimed at her lower body, forcing Satsuki to retreat half a step and counter with a swift interception.
Using his longer reach, Goetia immediately followed with a straight punch. Yet Satsuki's Tenseigan had already foreseen his intent. She slipped close along his arm, her hand clamping down to restrict his punch. Closing the gap within three inches, she drove an outward elbow strike toward his head.
But Goetia had not committed both fists. His other hand was already guarding. With another surge of violent mana, his hardened flesh and magical defenses barely withstood her crushing elbow.
At once, the two were locked in a contest of raw power…
At this proximity, Demon Buddha Māra and the Demon God King glared into each other's eyes. His gaze burned once more with tyrannical arrogance, while hers remained cold and imperious, as though overlooking the world.
Yet the faint curves at both their lips showed that each had found what they sought most from this battle.
In this pure clash of martial arts, Satsuki chose not to rely on her indestructible golden body to ignore Goetia's strikes. Likewise, Goetia did not fall back on his immortality or turn to an unreasonable style.
Both had fully immersed themselves in the trial of fists. This blinding exchange of attacks, this war of thought and reflex, was what they craved.
Purple lightning and black space fissures wove like spiderwebs across the battlefield. The Demon Pillars watching from afar were already shredded to pieces by the stray force of their fists.
Rumble—!
As their powers erupted once more, the Temple of Time itself split in two under the blast.
The shattered temple floor, the throne torn apart by sheer force—all bore witness to the might of the strongest beings in this world.
Hurricane gales, born of their fists, raged within the temple. Around the throne they reached from earth to sky. Beyond the throne, the blood-red land cracked apart, spewing molten magma under the pressure strong enough to shift the crust.
"Truly a pity… It seems our exchange of fists must end here."
Satsuki withdrew from her stance. Beneath her feet rose a black mandala throne. Leaning back upon it with casual ease, she gazed toward the Demon God King before her.
"To have crossed fists with the Lord of the Sixth Heaven of the Desire Realm… such an experience is no less than my battle with God Himself."
"You've fought against God? How was His strength?"
For once, Satsuki asked out of curiosity.
Goetia considered for a moment. "If you exclude His divine power and authority, purely in terms of martial skill, He was about equal to me."
"Oh~ it seems this God has quite a wide range of talents…" Satsuki mused. "If I ever have the chance, I'd like to spar with Him myself."
"Hahahahaha~"
Hearing her words, Goetia burst into uncontrollable laughter. "Ha! I too would look forward to the sight of you pounding that fellow into the ground."
"Mm. If you manage to survive this battle, I'll be sure to invite you to watch."
"…Thanks."
At that, silence fell between them.
Goetia now understood. This was no longer a simple martial exchange, but a true life-and-death struggle—where survival would be determined only by the full extent of their powers.
The intent that rose was no longer one of sparring, but of killing.
Satsuki raised her hand. Instantly, seven Vipralopa Truth-Seeking Orbs surged forth, merging into a storm of repulsion—Vipralopa: Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion.
The Demon God King crossed his arms at his chest. From the pink eye embedded within, massive purple mana condensed into a radiant beam capable of vaporizing all things. It shot forward against the storm.
Yet the result was entirely unlike their earlier evenly-matched fist exchange.
Under the might of Demon Buddha Māra's Vipralopa power, Goetia's beam collapsed instantly, torn apart as though it were nothing.
The storm struck him head-on. His mighty body, which had stood evenly against Satsuki's fists, was shredded apart within the tempest. Before a mere fragment of her true strength, even the Demon God King's form was utterly helpless.
"—It's over. The foreseen conclusion."
Satsuki spoke calmly. She did not depart, but remained seated within the Temple of Time.
Even when the reborn Goetia reappeared upon his own throne behind her, sustained by his immortality, she did not turn to face him.
"…Indeed. Against your Vipralopa power, our defeat is certain, no matter how many times we try. The conclusion has been sealed."
Reborn, Goetia made no further move. Their last clash had already laid bare the abyssal difference between them.
Moreover, he did not believe that one who had reached the level of Demon Buddha lacked a means to counter even his immortality.
And yet…
The heavenly light band above had now charged to its absolute limit.