"Buzz..."
Accompanied by the spinning of the disc, the god named Verethragna became the sacrifice for the dark grand spell that was about to be cast, sucked into the disc, lighting up the sword emblem on the disc, even causing the dragon-head pattern to faintly glow.
Holding the Ser-Veresta, now returned to its normal size, Kaiser did not relax just because Verethragna had been defeated, instead turning his gaze toward the sea below.
"You should be coming up soon too, Melqart."
Kaiser spoke calmly.
His voice was not loud, but what responded was a resoundingly loud reply.
"Not bad, that was truly a splendid battle. You've made this old man view you in a new light, God-Slayer."
From beneath the ocean, where countless pieces of ice floated, a massive figure suddenly burst forth from the water, slowly rising.
Holding the pair of magical maces, Yagrush and Aymur, the fifteen-meter-tall giant emerged bathed in seawater, once again appearing before Kaiser.
"To sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight, I didn't expect a dignified King of Gods to enjoy such elegance."
Kaiser said this not without sarcasm.
"This old man is indeed a king, but besides being a king, I am also the finest hunter. Since I am a hunter, waiting until the prey is exhausted before striking is only natural."
Melqart spoke without concern, even with a laugh.
"Besides, I've always been at odds with that unruly God of War, and with you, we are enemies, not friends. If two of my enemies are willing to fight each other to the death, why would I interrupt?"
Before his Trident was stripped of its divine power by Verethragna's Golden Sword, Melqart had already broken free of the sea's restraints.
After all, he was not merely a Sky God—he was also the Storm God, the Sun God, the God of Life who governed harvest and decay, and like Poseidon, also a Sea God.
The sea was likewise a domain under his control—how could Kaiser expect to drown him with a tsunami and suppress him at the bottom of the ocean?
It was just that, when he broke free from the sea's shackles, the battle between Kaiser and Verethragna had already reached its climax, so naturally he had no reason to jump in and risk being targeted by both of them.
Rather than saying he was watching the tigers fight from a mountain, it was more accurate to say he was hoping to profit as the fisherman when the snipe and the clam fought.
"To make the ever-victorious God of War taste defeat, you should be proud, God-Slayer."
Melqart couldn't hide his glee as he smiled.
"But do you still have the strength to deal with me?"
In Melqart's view, having fought a life-or-death battle with Verethragna, Kaiser must be close to exhaustion.
Whereas he was the complete opposite—at full strength, with abundant stamina and magical power.
Last time in the underground temple, he had been in a weakened state from serious injury, while Kaiser was at full power.
Now the roles had reversed, and Melqart found it quite satisfying.
However...
"Dealing with you doesn't require much effort." Kaiser said calmly. "Our victory and defeat were more or less already settled last time."
"Hm?" Melqart's laughter came to an abrupt halt, his brow furrowing. "What did you say?"
Kaiser didn't respond, but instead put away the Ser-Veresta and took out a dagger-sized Zanpakutō.
It was not Shinsō, but the still Bankai-state Kamishini no Yari.
"Remember this blade?"
Kaiser raised the Kamishini no Yari in his hand, making Melqart instantly assume a guarded stance.
How could he possibly not remember that blade?
Although there wasn't much divine power emanating from it, and it didn't seem to be a sacred weapon, the speed it had displayed in the underground temple was enough to make even Melqart wary.
There's a kind of speed known as the third cosmic velocity.
That refers to the speed an object must reach when taking off from Earth's surface to escape the Sun's gravitational pull without further propulsion, allowing it to leave the solar system and enter broader space.
The third cosmic velocity is 16.7 kilometers per second.
Yet the extension speed of Kamishini no Yari had reached 170 kilometers per second—more than ten times that!
With such an astonishing attack speed, even a god could not help but fear it.
Even if he and Kaiser were separated by ten thousand meters, the tip of Kamishini no Yari could strike him in less than 0.1 seconds, and within one second, it could hit him seventeen times—how terrifying is that?
If not for the fact that while the blade was fast, its lethality wasn't on par with legendary weapons and could only inflict surface-level injuries to a god, Melqart would have turned and fled the instant he saw it.
Thus, Melqart said solemnly:
"That blade cannot harm me."
This was no bluff—it was the truth.
But Kaiser remained completely composed.
"That's because you don't yet know this blade's true ability."
As he spoke, Kaiser raised Kamishini no Yari and pointed to its blade.
"Look here. What do you see?"
Hearing that, Melqart followed Kaiser's gesture and looked at the blade of Kamishini no Yari.
With one glance, Melqart immediately noticed something wrong.
"A chip?"
Indeed, the blade of Kamishini no Yari had a chip in it, a fragment was missing.
Kaiser's voice slowly rang out.
"The extension speed of Kamishini no Yari is astounding, and the reach of its blade is terrifying. However, neither the reach nor the speed is what makes Kamishini no Yari most terrifying."
"The most terrifying part of Kamishini no Yari is that, in the instant it extends or contracts, the blade turns to ash."
"When Kamishini no Yari strikes an enemy, it can turn a part of itself to ash and leave it inside the opponent's body."
Kaiser looked at the now pale-faced Melqart with a half-smile.
"Guess—what do you think the ash left inside the enemy's body does?"
Melqart didn't answer but began frantically burning his magical power, igniting every part of his body.
"No need to answer. I'll tell you."
Kaiser ignored Melqart's desperate struggle and spoke with the coldest tone:
"The ash left inside the opponent's body will, upon reconstituting into a blade, release a powerful toxin capable of dissolving cells."
"Even if it's a god or a monster—as long as it has a physical body, this poison will dissolve it instantly."
This was a poison that even Aizen, whose life form had evolved multiple times, could not resist.
Were it not for the protection of the Hōgyoku, which granted Aizen the trait of immortality, he would have died at the hands of Gin Ichimaru.
Gods, though great beings standing at the pinnacle of life, if they possess flesh and blood, this poison will work on them.
Perhaps it's not a poison strong enough to slay gods, but it's at least enough to dissolve their bodies.
"Found it!"
Melqart suddenly roared.
As the God of Life, if something were hiding inside his body, as long as he searched carefully, there was no way he wouldn't find it.
Unfortunately...
"Too late."
Kaiser activated his finisher without hesitation.
"Kill, Kamishini no Yari."
The moment the words fell, the invisible ash that had remained inside Melqart's body immediately turned into an unremarkable blade fragment.
From the fragment, the potent toxin was released.
"Boom!"
Melqart's enormous body collapsed like a crumbling mountain, instantly dissolving.
"Uwaaaaahhhhhhhh...!"
With a wail of agony, the fifteen-meter-tall giant melted at a speed visible to the naked eye, as if his entire body had suddenly vanished.
After becoming Kaiser's exclusive weapon, Kamishini no Yari's enhancements were not limited to its speed or extension—it had also significantly strengthened the deadly poison that could dissolve cells.
Unless one had extraordinary resistance to poison, even a god would be helpless in the face of this toxin.
Thus, the God-King Melqart was annihilated.
"No! I haven't lost yet!"
A roar erupted, and at the location where Melqart's body vanished, a ball of lightning suddenly appeared, crackling with white electric arcs.
That spherical plasma was Melqart's spirit body.
"I am the God of Life—the ruler of the ever-reviving sun! How could mere destruction of the flesh be enough to defeat me?!"
The God-King's roar triggered a tsunami, and the sky once again filled with thunder and lightning.
But what responded to this furious Melqart was a brilliant, blinding, supremely radiant blade of light.
"Swish!"
The blade of light, moving at the utmost speed, flashed and vanished—piercing through the spherical plasma.
"————"
Melqart's roar, like Verethragna's earlier laughter, was abruptly cut off.
Separated by about a hundred meters, Kaiser floated in midair, holding the fully extended Kamishini no Yari in a thrusting posture, expressionless, as he spoke:
"Too bad—I used to be a Shinigami."
Perhaps most people, when facing only Melqart's spirit body, would be at a loss.
But Kaiser was definitely not among them.
He had been a Shinigami for decades—the Zanpakutō in his hand was meant to slay spirits.
When it came to dealing with spirits, he had more experience than anyone in this world.
"Buzz!"
The Circle of Usurpation, which had been spinning in midair, instantly flew to the top of the spherical plasma and emitted a powerful suction force, drawing the plasma inside.
The lightning and thunder in the sky disappeared, the tsunami gradually calmed, and no further waves formed.
"It's finally over..."
Kaiser put away Kamishini no Yari and slowly exhaled a breath.
Immediately afterward, a smile appeared on his face.
"Killing two gods—this harvest ought to be quite good, huh?"
Wasting no time, Kaiser used Shunpo to flash beneath the Circle of Usurpation.
"Buzz!"
The Circle of Usurpation vibrated instantly, returning the absorbed divine power to Kaiser, making him feel a heavy sensation on his back.