The Red Dragon Mountain Range had not been the stage for such an absurd level of destruction for many thousands of years.
Mountains were being forcibly reshaped, entire valleys disappeared under magical explosions, and the sky above seemed to be constantly collapsing, torn by lightning and heatwaves.
Two figures collided repeatedly against that relentless surface.
One of them wore Black Armor, glowing at various points, wreathed in flames and electricity.
The other had silver hair and fought shirtless, his torso marked by several wounds.
Even at this point in the battle — despite Rygar literally being a living lightning — he could not press his opponent as he wished.
Every advance was answered to perfection, every attempt by him to impose a tempo was neutralized efficiently.
Rygar had already spent such a large amount of mana in that battle that he was beginning to be surprised the thing had not ended yet.
Even with the extraordinary efficiency that Doomsday provided him, he had already consumed a little more than half of his reserves. That, by itself, would be unthinkable in any other confrontation.
While he fought, he also analyzed his opponent.
Rygar theorized that Orsted had spent about a third of the reserves he had when the fight began, maybe even less.
It was difficult to analyze precisely, since the Dragon God was blocking the Magic Power Eye, using some method Rygar did not know.
The Dragon God's fighting abilities were simply... on another level.
Much more powerful. Much more efficient.
The Godsword, despite consuming a huge amount of mana to be summoned, did not require continuous expenditure afterwards.
Once manifested, it remained there, offering Orsted a constantly lethal method of attack, at no additional cost.
It was astounding.
Rygar had already given the order to withdraw to his members in the capital Asurana. Aisha had achieved the main objective at the Flying Fortress of Perugius.
From a strategic point of view, everything that needed to be done… had already been done.
Therefore, Rygar began to seriously consider the possibility of retreating immediately.
He was no longer so sure that Orsted was merely trying to stop him or defeat him.
Observing his violence and ferocity, there was a real chance that the Dragon God wanted to kill him.
After all, Oldgar had been spared in another timeline. But since then, the current Rygar had made many changes.
Who could guarantee that Orsted had not decided to eliminate him?
That aside, Rygar had become too strong.
With his current speed, he could retreat if he wanted. Unfortunately, there was another problem.
The closer the fight between him and Orsted moved toward the center of the Red Dragon Mountain Range, the more Rygar felt the tremors, the shockwaves and the smell...
All of that came from Dragon's Roar Mountain — the tallest mountain in the entire world.
And that was not the result of the fight between him and Orsted.
It was something related to the Technique God.
Whatever was happening at that point of the range, Rygar was absolutely sure it was nothing simple.
He quickly calculated his gains and losses.
Ignoring the Technique God was not an option for him at the moment. Its strength could very well change the whole board in an instant.
The Dragon God himself seemed to have realized that something was wrong. Although still pursuing Rygar with the intent to defeat him, his movements were no longer as relentless as before.
Even so, the mere movement and battle of the two continued to destroy the landscape chaotically.
Fire melted entire mountains. Lightning collapsed everything around. Blade strikes cut mountains as if they were sand.
Any Red Dragon unlucky enough to be in the way had a high chance of dying in the crossfire, reduced to ashes before even understanding what was happening.
The fight was fierce.
And as a beast born to fight, Rygar could not even contain his own excitement at facing such a powerful being. Like a true battle genius, he could feel his improvement in real time, adjustment after adjustment, strike after strike.
All because it had been a long time since the last time he had really needed to fear for his life.
That day, he stood at death's door once again.
And that brought him an indescribable feeling of freshness and adrenaline.
Gradually, as they exchanged blows capable of reshaping the world, the fight began to get closer and closer to the tremors of the neighboring battle.
---
A few minutes earlier, at the center of the Red Dragon Mountain Range, a battle no less apocalyptic was unfolding.
There, the Fighter God Badigadi, allied with the North God and the former Sword God, faced the one who occupied first place among the World Powers, the Technique God, Laplace, at his absolute peak.
To a layman, the conclusion would be quite easy.
Three combatants who occupied — or had once occupied — positions among the Seven Great World Powers against a single enemy.
Even if that enemy was the top-ranked one, his advantage should not have been great enough to suppress numerical superiority.
But reality proved cruel to Kalman III and Gall Farion; that fight revealed a crushing truth.
Despite their titles, despite their achievements, in that battle of titanic proportions…
both were reduced to supporting characters.
They were nothing more than helpers. Support.
The true confrontation took place between the two monsters.
The Fighter God advanced and retreated laughing like a fighting demon. His body, wrapped in a golden glow, cut through the battlefield with absolute violence, each step exploding the ground beneath his feet.
Power, strength and martial skill manifested at a level that seemed unattainable for any other living being.
While Badigadi wore the Golden Armor, he possessed more than a thousand secret techniques, and he executed them always at the best moment, in the best situation, in the most efficient way possible.
No wasted movement.
His name did justice to the title of Fighter God. A power worthy of being called something capable of destroying the world.
And yet…
By comparison, the Technique God was even more terrifying.
Laplace wielded a silver spear. With its blade, he was capable of cutting and piercing everything. With the shaft, he crushed with ease even the invincible Golden Armor that Badigadi wore.
Each of his movements was perfected to the extreme. Every action seemed the perfect solution for that exact instant.
For Gall Farion, witnessing that clash was a shock of epic proportions.
The apex of martial combat unfolded before his eyes, and his perception of the world was completely turned upside down. Everything he believed he knew about the sword, about technique, about limits… seemed small.
Moreover, he still found it hard to accept that that golden titan was, in fact, the Badigadi he knew.
Amid the chaos, he even wondered why he had not stolen the Fighter God's position when he defeated him at the Sword Sanctuary.
In any case, Gall could hardly get close to the clash between the golden titan and the white dragon. The shockwaves, flying rocks and explosions of light made any direct approach a death sentence.
All he could do was wait for the perfect opportunity.
And then, in Laplace's weakest instant, use the Longsword of Light, his most powerful weapon.
And, surprisingly… that strategy worked.
Who would have thought — he managed to wound the Technique God once.
Although most of the time he acted only as support and distraction, Gall was excited. The so-called Man God was not lying.
If he could learn from a figure as prominent as Laplace, he sincerely believed he could surpass his current power easily.
He could surpass his disciple. And even surpass Orsted.
When he understood that truth, his excitement reached its peak.
Meanwhile, Kalman III was at the opposite extreme.
From the beginning of the fight, he attacked with the same wild impetus as the Fighter God, his great-granduncle Badigadi. And he was rewarded with brutality.
A silver spear pierced his chest.
Kalman did not even see the movement, and he had no time to react. He had no chance to defend or counterattack.
He was simply… killed in a single strike.
Therefore, he did not even take part in the first confrontation — he was still regenerating.
When he returned, he attacked again, this time cautiously. And then he was again repelled like an irritating insect. Time after time.
If it were not for his immortal blood and the healing magic circles Randolph carried, he would have died several times.
Unlike Gall Farion, Kalman attacked furiously, and yet managed to help considerably thanks to the versatility and power of the Gravity Sword Kajakut.
Despite being a warrior above any other, the Dragon Laplace had no real means of defending himself from magic. He only reacted with his normal techniques, adapting as best as he could.
But in front of the Fighter God, those small errors were fatal.
Even so, Kalman began to gradually realize how insignificant his ambition to become the greatest hero in the world was.
Randolph had mentioned that the Beast God and the Dragon God were on the same level as these two monsters.
How could that be true?!
A mixture of anger and rejection rose in his throat, causing a strange pain, hard to explain. He wanted to scream. He wanted to complain. He wanted to deny that reality.
But there was no time.
Before he could even organize his thoughts, he was defeated again by Laplace.
To become the greatest hero the world had ever seen? He could hardly face an opponent who was at a numerical disadvantage.
Aleksander Ryback attacked with everything he had, his confused feelings mixing with the growing fury, while charging against Laplace with all his power.
The battle continued.
---
Not far from the battlefield, contrasting with the chaos that ravaged the Red Dragon Mountain Range, a man with a monkey face slept peacefully.
His body lay on its side, breathing deeply, as if in ordinary rest, oblivious to the shockwaves tearing mountains a few kilometers away.
Beside him, a man with a skull-like face watched the battle with absolute attention. He didn't even blink, making him seem sinister.
Vita had only one function in that battle, but that function alone could decide everything.
He watched carefully as Laplace was struck by the Longsword of Light, Gall Farion's blow opening a wound in the leg of the Technique God.
At the same time, Badigadi advanced like a truck, the ground shattering under his steps, his three right arms retracting, ready to unleash a devastating triple punch.
It was at that exact moment that the monkey-faced man — Geese — woke with a start and shouted.
"Now!"
The voice was urgent.
Vita did not hesitate for a single second.
His body vanished, becoming a blur as he rushed toward the combat.
At that critical moment, Laplace was about to counter the Fighter God's punches. His spear began to move, the trajectory forming in his mind.
But then—
Gravity disappeared.
For a single second, Laplace was thrown into zero gravity.
The destabilization was minimal, but fatal.
His body lost its axis, his strength ceased to align.
He barely had time to reposition the spear in a defensive posture when the three golden fists of Badigadi struck his rib and his temple, with only one of the blows being partially blocked by the spear.
"BWAHAHAHAHAHA!"
Badigadi's deafening laugh preceded the impact.
A colossal shockwave exploded from the point of impact. Laplace was violently hurled backwards, his body colliding repeatedly against rock formations, destroying each one in sequence, being tossed like a weightless puppet across the Range.
Finally, he collided with a massive rock.
Coincidentally… it was near where Vita was running.
The rock exploded into violent debris, dust and fragments hurled in all directions.
Vita approached.
Laplace opened his eyes.
He raised his hand, still gripping the spear firmly, but his arm had been broken by the Fighter God's punch. The attack had been slower than expected.
Vita, who at that moment was in Randolph's body, felt imminent death.
But he did not hesitate.
He only needed to follow the plan.
Then, finally, he placed his hand on Laplace's forehead.
For a single second—
The Technique God's mind went blank.
His eyes lost focus as he sank into the realm of infinite dreams, the fruit of Vita's absolute power.
Vita took a deep breath.
And then he heard a laugh.
"BWAHAHAHAHA! HOW EXCITING, LET'S—"
A voice immediately interrupted him.
"Badi, please, recite the enchantment!" Geese said hurriedly.
Badigadi blinked, confused for a moment. He wanted nothing more than to keep fighting, to crush everyone there to death.
But then he remembered the agreement he had made with the little monkey.
"Ah, come on… how did it go?!"
He cleared his throat.
"I declare the combat bond closed! Suspending the transfer of strength and withdrawing my will to fight and to battle. Closing the amplification circuit and initiating inert state!"
At that very instant, the Golden Armor opened at the back.
Badigadi was thrown out as if he had been tossed, falling on his back to the ground like a sack of potatoes.
"Ah?! Damn!" he said, still laughing. "I almost got caught again! Bwahahaha!"
He crossed his arms, looking at the Golden Armor with curiosity, totally oblivious to the gravity of the situation.
Gall Farion then spoke:
"Hey… what's that?"
He pointed off in the distance.
On the horizon, it was already possible to see lightning, fire and destruction rapidly approaching the world's highest peak.
Randolph looked at Laplace's motionless body, making a deep grimace.
"We don't have time…"
"Bwahahahaha!" Badigadi cackled. "Is the kid already here? We're unlucky, huh! Shall we say hello?! The guy isn't subdued yet?!"
Vita shook his head slowly.
"This is unexpected. The Technique God possesses extremely high mental resilience. I cannot dominate his mind without at least… a few days."
He paused.
"And that assuming zero interference. If we move the body or give him external stimulus, he will not only resist for much longer… he may free himself."
"Hooh! I understand!" Badigadi replied, completely unconcerned.
Gall Farion also seemed indifferent, as if it were none of his business, despite the wound bleeding in his stomach.
Geese watched everyone in silence.
His thoughts accelerated, searching for a solution.
Then, his gaze fell on the young North God, who remained silent, in a somber mood.
Geese smiled.
He had an idea.
-----
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