If the arrival of five supreme auras, rarely seen before, on the battlefield, where bodies lay strewn about, made hearts quake, then the next thing that happened made most people terrified.
Up in the firmament, Riku suddenly raised his hand. The Taiji Diagram reappeared in his palm, and a yin-yang chart unfurled across the battlefield.
A beam of light burst forth from within it, blazing with the most dazzling radiance. As that light appeared, the entire Little Garden shuddered. Even the horizon was thrown into chaos, and the sun's trajectory was displaced to a terrifying degree.
After that, the terminal light plunged swiftly toward the centre of the battlefield. Any gods and buddhas who stood in its way were brutally pulverised into dust by the overwhelming might spilling off that terminal light, their very Divinity annihilated.
"Is that the [Heliocentrism] Divinity!?" Every god-king's pupils constricted in disbelief.
"Riku succeeded, did he." The Halloween Queen's lips curled upward.
Athena and the other executives' eyes gleamed as well; smiles surfaced on their faces.
"How nostalgic… so it's finally time." The Lord of White Night, folding fan in hand, let reminiscence flash through his eyes as his aura rose. The pressure of an ancient Demon Lord descended once more.
"Gods and buddhas, hear my command, intercept immediately! Under no circumstances allow [Heliocentrism] to reappear in the Little Garden!" Seeing [Heliocentrism] flicker over the battlefield centre and fly toward the Lord of White Night, Shakyamuni, face tense with urgency, shouted.
Empowered by Authority, his voice became a wave that exploded in every deity's ears, snapping them out of their stupor.
Recalling the terror of the Dawn Era, the god-kings erupted; gods and buddhas alike, eyes blood-red, hurled themselves toward [Heliocentrism].
"Hmph." In response, the people of [Disboard] all snorted coldly and intercepted en masse.
Even so, quite a number of gods, buddhas, and god-kings ignored everything, braving grievous wounds from the attacks raking their backs, and charged for the [Heliocentrism] Divinity at all costs.
"Hahahaha! Gods and buddhas, you're already too late to prepare to greet my advent." At that instant, well prepared, the Lord of White Night turned into solar flame, directly received the [Heliocentrism] Divinity, and fused it into himself.
In a flash, from the boundless Little Garden, from the ends of the earth, the terminal radiance grew ever brighter, illuminating the entire Little Garden.
At the same time, another terminal banner, one different from the [Perpetual Motion Engine], began to fly.
From the end of time, the end of space, the end of the stars, returns the strongest god-slayer, a facet of the end, the strongest primordial star that once repelled tens of millions of legions of gods in the Little Garden, plunging it into a Dawn Era without night..
Humanity's Final Trial—[Heliocentrism]
Once more descends to rule over the Little Garden!
"Unacceptable!" Shakyamuni roared. A golden Buddha-body vast beyond measure reached out a palm to swat Riku aside, intending to strike him back and rush to suppress the Lord of White Night.
"Hmph. Shakyamuni, with just you, you still can't drive me back!" Riku snorted coldly. He threw a punch; a sky-piercing pillar of energy reappeared and blasted the golden Buddha palm apart.
"Twin Goddesses, if you think you can get past this banner, you're mistaken!" Near the legions, the [Perpetual Motion Engine]'s Divinity swelled, reaching a level that made the myriad gods and buddhas tremble. Grinning, he blocked the Twin Goddesses with ease, leaving them no recourse but to stare helplessly toward the Lord of White Night.
At that moment, anomalies surged forth. The Lord of White Night's Divinity exploded upward, in an instant reaching two-digit class and still climbing.
Meanwhile, centred on the Lord of White Night, everything turned snow-white, and strange plains appeared one after another.
They were snow-white plains, emblematic of the unending, eternal sun-never-sets hills, the white-night horizon!
Then the sun's orbital track across the Little Garden underwent a violent change; even the trajectories of anomalous celestial bodies were forcibly twisted! What had been dusk a moment ago warped against the laws of time back into full day; the blazing sun scorched the earth! [Heliocentrism], a paradox against celestial law by merely existing in the Little Garden, twists the heavens and triggers the collapse of rules, plunging the entire Little Garden into turmoil!
"Hahahahahahahaha!!! Gods and Buddhas, welcome my advent!!! Champions fear me!!! I am the emblem of the unsetting sun!!!" A berserk cackle flared within the solar radiance.
Then the pure-white terminal wind swept out. Gods and buddhas, god-kings who forced their way close, had not the slightest power to resist; they were instantly slain, reduced to ash, with no day of rebirth!
Out of that pure-white terminal wind, a figure walked forth at an unhurried pace, the Lord of White Night.
Though his appearance had scarcely changed, the pressure and Divinity he exuded filled legions of gods with terror; they couldn't even muster a shred of courage to oppose him.
In that instant, the godly battlefield strewn with corpses fell silent. Every being stared blankly at the Lord of White Night; merely looking upon him, the overwhelming god-slaying nature made them feel suffocated, their Divinity seemingly unable to bear it.
"So this is the scene from the prophecy… In the end, it really did appear." Laplace looked up at the sky. The sight identical to her prophetic dreams drew an involuntary murmur from her lips.
"[Heliocentrism], huh… it really has been a long time," the Halloween Queen sighed.
Athena, Poseidon, God, Tank, and the others all wore looks of astonishment.
"In the end, it's come to this. Subduing Demon Lords may be the duty of the gods and buddhas, but I can't turn a blind eye," muttered Dao De Tianzun as he arrived.
As he spoke, the banana-leaf fan in his hand swept toward Riku. A searing gale blew in from the edge of space, surging at him.
"Dao De Tianzun, what courage can a defeated man lay claim to?" Riku snorted, blasting the scorching wind apart with a single punch.
Taking that opening, Shakyamuni slipped past Riku and rushed the Lord of White Night.
Of course, Riku didn't stop him on purpose. At this point, anything Shakyamuni tried would already be too late.
"I will not allow the Dawn Era to be reborn in the Little Garden!" Shakyamuni roared. His Divinity surged unchecked, and his palm descended toward the Lord of White Night.
That strike could have pierced the universe.
"Shakyamuni… in your current state, you are no match for me. Recall well the fear of back then." The Lord of White Night merely lifted her folding fan and gave it a light flick.
The Primordial Star shone again. The [Heliocentrism] Divinity erupted; Shakyamuni's golden Buddha palm shattered, and he was even driven back.
"So your power has already recovered to this level…" Seeing that, Shakyamuni abandoned futile actions and only stared grimly at the Lord of White Night.
Boom!
Just then, space at the battlefield's centre detonated and collapsed.
Before everyone's eyes, two figures appeared there.
Another two-digit Authority-level aura joined the fray: the Son of God, Jesus.
The other figure, in a sorry state, was Indra. Yet the awe of the former King of the Gods was gone; his breath was paper-thin, his Divinity had been stripped away.
Now he was little more than an ordinary deity.
In a Gift Game, defeat costs you your Divinity.
"What a lively scene. It seems our side has achieved its objective." The Son of God held the [Godslayer Spear: Longinus] in his right hand, Indra's Divinity in his left. He scanned the field, his gaze coming to rest on the Lord of White Night, and smiled.
"I was too careless," Indra said with a bitter smile. The instant he sensed the descent of [Heliocentrism], his mind wandered, and he ate a finishing blow.
Had he not, he could have stalled for a while longer.
To lose now, things couldn't look worse.
"This is troublesome," the Twin Goddesses frowned.
On their side, they had three two-digit Shakyamuni, Dao De Tianzun, and themselves. But [Disboard] was worse to face.
Riku, [Heliocentrism], the [Perpetual Motion Engine], and the Son of God. Add in the Halloween Queen, who can't tangle with two-digits, and the newly awakened Sun Wukong… just thinking about it gave them a headache.
The fighting strength simply didn't compare.
"Looks like we can't hold back anymore. This really is a dead end." The Twin Goddesses gave a small shake of the head.
As they spoke, the shroud of shadow around them dispersed. [Alpha of Creation] and [Omega of Destruction] merged into a single black-and-white figure.
At the same time, a divine blade appeared in their hand, a sword containing the totality of their deeds, the very one that had once cleaved the [Heliocentrism] Divinity.
But both they and the Lord of White Night knew that one time had been an outrageous stroke of luck and only because the Lord of White Night had been far too careless.
"Heh… Twin Goddesses, it's been a while." The Lord of White Night looked at their revealed form, tightened her grip on the fan, and grinned. "I'm trembling with joy, let's settle our old accounts properly."
"If we cut you once, we can cut you a second time," the Twin Goddesses shot back without flinching.
"Hmph. I'll be waiting. You know just how lucky you were last time." The Lord of White Night's voice went cold.
As they spoke, the heavens warped ever more violently under the influence of [Heliocentrism].
The Twin Goddesses had no rebuttal for that, tacitly acknowledging it with their silence.
The battlefield's air grew heavier and heavier. Everyone understood: the outcome hinged on those few.
"Another loss…," Shakyamuni said with a helpless smile. With [Heliocentrism] reclaimed, this was, without question, a total defeat.
"Though… not without a sliver of a turn." His eyes sharpened again as he went on.
"Oh? You still haven't given up, Shakyamuni?" Hearing that, the [Perpetual Motion Engine]'s blood-red eyes flashed with frost. His swelling Divinity pressed on the firmament as he snorted.
"We don't have a choice. We can only continue the fight. We must seize [Heliocentrism] back!" Shakyamuni said gravely.
"Heh. Looks like your reinforcements are here." Riku gazed into the distance, as if seeing past the horizon's end.
The next second, seven-colored mists lit the sky. The clouds became a rainbow bridge that stretched from the world's edge, and two ethereal figures walked into view.
Both were, like Dao De Tianzun, ancient immortals.
Founders of the [Daoist] tradition, the other two of the Three Pure Ones.
Among them was Lingbao Tianzun, whom Riku already knew and the last to appear of the Three Pure Ones: Yuanshi Tianzun.
Yuanshi Tianzun, formally, "Qingxuan Zuqi Yuqing Yuanshi Tianzun, the Ineffable Supreme Emperor," also titled "The Jade-Pure Purple-Void, Sublime Supreme Primordial Sovereign, Great Dao Lord", is the foremost of the Three Pure Ones of the [Daoist] tradition.
The Comprehensive Chronicle of Immortals Through the Ages calls Yuanshi Tianzun "the progenitor who governs the Celestial Realm." Existent before the birth of the Taiyuan (the cosmos itself), he is venerated as "Primordial" for that reason.
Lingbao Tianzun originally styled the Supreme Jade-Dawn Primordial Sovereign, Great Dao Lord of the Upper Clarity ranks second among the Three Pure Ones, just beneath Yuanshi Tianzun. In the Tang, he was called the Supreme Great Dao Lord, later known as Lingbao Tianzun or Lord Lingbao. The canon says he emerged from primal qi before the cosmos was formed, "the essence of the twin dawns, the purple mists of nine felicities" Then, after 3,700 years in the womb, he was born and dwelt in the Jade Capital of Profound Metropolis within the Upper Clarity. There, three hundred thousand gold and jade attendants serve him, myriad gods pay homage, and the souls he ferries are beyond counting.
Dao De Tianzun, also the Supreme Elder Lord, occupies the third seat among the "Three Venerable Pure Deities." Venerated as the earliest supreme deity of the [Daoist] faith, he is an ancient immortal born with the cosmos; one of his incarnations is the famed "Laozi," who enlightened the world and delivered living beings.
With that, the three mysterious supreme immortals of [Daoism] appear together.
This rare spectacle made all others hold their breath, stunned.
"So even the Three Pure Ones gather… not even in the Dawn Era did we see this," the Lord of White Night said, folding fan in hand; the bell on her hairpin chimed softly as she shook her head.
Each of the Three Pure Ones rivals Shakyamuni. By rights, [Daoist] strength should surpass that of [Buddhism], yet it does not. Shakyamuni's identity is too particular, and so the two sides have remained in parity.
"So what if it's the Three Pure Ones? We crush them all the same," the [Perpetual Motion Engine] said, eyes of blood flashing with frost.
"Heh. I was thinking the same," the Lord of White Night once more the Humanity's Final Trial, [Heliocentrism] smiled with equal madness, no longer half a step restrained.
"Shakyamuni," Yuanshi Tianzun said after a glance at Dao De Tianzun, "to let the [Heavenly Realm] be ravaged like this, and to let [Heliocentrism] be taken dereliction of duty."
"Did you come just to scold me?" Shakyamuni replied helplessly.
"Scold? Hardly. Merely stating the fact." Yuanshi's tone remained even. His divine sight seemed to pierce past and present as he turned to Riku. "So you are the god-slaying Demon Lord? I see. Hardly ordinary. No wonder you sealed Dao De Tianzun and seized [Heliocentrism]."
"Tch, spare me the posturing," Riku said coldly, meeting Yuanshi's gaze without a hint of deference. "God-kings, Buddha-lords, Three Pure Ones, whatever you are. Stand in the path of [Disboard], and you'll be broken."
That ferocity, pure conquest, made the battlefield iron-cold again. Countless gods and buddhas shuddered.
[Pseudo Star Map: Third Kind of Star Particle Body]!
In a flash, Riku raised his right hand, power flooding his palm. The aurora ignited a one-hit-kill world-concept, and a pillar of light howled straight at Yuanshi Tianzun.
"Opening with something that strong, proper Demon Lord style," said Yuanshi and Lingbao together, composure finally hardening into grim focus as they dodged away.
Riku's strike was the signal.
All at once, the corpse-littered field of gods erupted into fresh carnage; Demon Lords and gods and buddhas clashed again.
"Twin Goddesses, let's see how long you can last in my hands this time…" The Lord of White Night stepped before them, fan engraved with the sun-that-never-sets, and grinned.
The [Heliocentrism] Divinity burst unchecked, warping celestial mechanics, shaking the entire Little Garden. This strength did not heed her restraint; it was a true rampage.
Forget the wounded Twin Goddesses; even at their peak, they could not defeat the Lord of White Night as she was now.
"We likely can't reprise the miracle of the Dawn Era," the Twin Goddesses said, voice cool, faces grave, "but stalling you will suffice."
"Will it now? Let's see." The Lord of White Night snapped open her fan.
The Primordial Star blazed behind her. The crushing weight of the universe compacted to a point, birthing boundless gravity, a black hole, a maw that overturns all things.
A devouring singularity erupted toward the Twin Goddesses.
Crack!
The Twin Goddesses' expressions tightened; their Divinity flared without hesitation. Gripping the swords of Creation and Destruction, they swung once. A blade-light that seemed to cleave the cosmos itself split the black hole to dust; its traces vanished without a ripple.
"Oh? You've still kept that much power. Good, don't disappoint me," the Lord of White Night laughed, delighted.
Then she and the Twin Goddesses collided in a savage exchange, the space around them utterly unapproachable.
Even so, to any watcher it was clear: the Lord of White Night held an overwhelming advantage.
In their prime, the Twin Goddesses could have parried her onslaught. Wounded as they were… it was another matter entirely.