Over thirty million recurrences Pie-non had gone through, there would only ever be twelve Coreflames in each—it was always like that, without a single exception.
But now?
He actually sensed two identical Coreflames of Death.
How could he not be shocked upon realizing this?
Could it be that the Deliverer he had waited countless years for had finally arrived?
He truly wanted to understand what had happened and what had changed in this group of old friends.
While Pie-non was distracted by the sudden change in the current recurrence, Castorice and the others had already launched their attack.
Castorice and Polyxia attacked together—one controlling black liquid, while the other unleashed dragon breath.
Normally, the power of Titans was definitely stronger than that of demigods, but unfortunately for them, Pie-non had slain more Titans and demigods than he could count—hundreds of millions.
Because of that, with just a single swing of his blade, the massive surge of energy from his swing easily shattered the combined attack of both Death Titans—even the aftershock sent the two flying, their bodies shockingly badly wounded.
What made it terrifying was that Pie-non was actually still holding back—he was not even moving.
"Cas! Xia!"
Tribios immediately opened a Century Gate, safely catching the two sisters before they could crash into the trees nearby.
Surprisingly, in the very next moment, their bodies glowed with green light, and within just two breaths, their badly wounded forms had fully healed as if nothing had ever happened.
"I can do this all day!"
Castorice calmly stood up and declared firmly.
Needless to say, this was the confidence Lucian had given her.
If she could not defeat the mysterious swordsman before her, then she could at least wear him down.
Seeing this scene, Pie-non was stunned once again.
He had just sensed that green power, and he was sure it was something he had never encountered before.
""HAAHH—!!!""
Just then, Mydei and Phainon charged forward again, throwing everything they had at Pie-non.
However, the result was still the same as before—they were swatted aside like two vermin by the roadside.
Pie-non once again held back, only testing to uncover the hidden change in this recurrence, trying to see if this was the chance he had been waiting for all this time.
"Hand over the Coreflame of Strife, or die." Pie-non said coldly, gazing at Mydei.
"If you want my Coreflame, then come and kill me!" Mydei stood back up, face proud and unyielding. "I am the King of Castrum Kremnos! I will never compromise with someone like you!"
It was as if Pie-non had already expected Mydei's response—even as he spoke, Pie-non had already raised his blade once again, preparing to attack.
"You—aren't you going to help?" Anaxa asked, shooting Cerces a look of reproach.
"Even if I joined the battle, it's no use." Cerces calmly shook her head. "Reason tells me this swordsman may come from the black tide. He can slay Titans as easily as breathing."
Upon hearing this absurd statement, Anaxa narrowed his eyes, staring hard at Pie-non.
"Is fleeing our only option?" Anaxa muttered sternly.
After hearing Cerces's words, his only thought now was to have Tribios use the Century Gate to send the mysterious swordsman away, or at least evacuate the group to Okhema.
However, if they escaped, he feared that this monstrous swordsman would destroy the Grove of Epiphany and massacre everyone in it.
Tribios understood as well that the enemy this time was far too strong—even if more demigods or even Titans helped, they would only be throwing their lives away.
'If only big brother were here...'
'He would surely defeat this man easily...'
'Or if I had big brother's ability that always made his enemies flee in terror, maybe I could rob this man of his strength...'
Just as Tribios thought this, recalling the time when Lucian used his strange ability to defeat his enemies, a message suddenly appeared in his mind.
[Lucian has agreed to lend you his conceptual ability, Disarm.]
[Disarm: Able to remove any equipment from a target.]
Upon hearing this message, Tribios's eyes widened.
'Conceptual ability?'
'Disarm?'
'Is that what big brother's mysterious power is called?'
Tribios was lost in thought as the information about the conceptual ability called Disarm—what it was and how to use it—appeared in her mind.
'I was just thinking about him, and he responded to me...'
'He must be watching over me. He must not have appeared yet because it isn't time for us to reunite.'
'Just knowing he is watching me is enough...'
Tribios suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of safety, making the mysterious swordsman before her seem no longer a threat at all.
Silently thanking her beloved big brother in her heart, Tribios then stepped forward before the others, her expression calm and filled with confidence.
"Lady Tribios, step back! I'll stop him!" Phainon shouted, about to rush forward again.
"Get lost, Deliverer! He's my prey!" Mydei also jumped in.
It was not about stealing the spotlight—both only wanted to stand at the front to protect their companions.
Just like that, the two men charged once more at the swordsman, attacking together.
"Futile..." Pie-non said coldly.
Today was probably the most he had spoken in countless years.
However, just as he was about to swing his blade once again, a crisp shout suddenly rang out.
"Disarm!"
*Rip!*
In the next second, a tearing sound split the air as Pie-non's clothes burst apart on their own!
His weapon was flung from his grasp.
His mask broke free by itself.
Beneath it, Pie-non's body was nothing but a hollow shell filled with flames of energy.
Flesh?
What flesh?
From his toes to his neck, only fragmented patches of skin remained, while the rest of him was pure, raging energy.
Even his head was missing a third—only his face remained relatively intact.
However, that intact face alone was enough to make everyone present gasp in horror.
Mydei and Phainon froze mid-strike, their eyes wide in disbelief—because the face beneath the mask of the mysterious swordsman was actually identical to Phainon's!
"How…" Castorice said, covering her mouth as she struggled to believe her own eyes. "How could he be Phainon?"
Polyxia was too shocked to even speak.
Anaxa's heart trembled, his mind racing as he stared coldly at the sight, struggling to make sense of it.
"Was the one who destroyed Aedes Elysiae actually Snowy himself...?" Tribios said incredulously, looking equally dumbfounded.
Honestly, she truly could not comprehend the situation—this was not something her big brother had taught her to deal with.
"Could it be that the vile black tide monsters have already learned to imitate humans?" Cerces voiced her speculation.
Among everyone, Phainon himself was the most shaken of all.
A demon who destroyed his homeland while wearing his exact face—for Phainon, this was worse than death!
"WHO THE HELL ARE YOU?!" Phainon roared furiously. "WHY ARE YOU IMPERSONATING ME?!"
Pie-non did not answer, because he too was stunned.
He had no idea what had just happened to him, or why his equipment had been forcibly stripped away.
It seemed to come from the grown-up Tribbie's power, but had she always possessed such power?
He knew that Tribbie and her other split selves never had this kind of power, so the only explanation was that someone outside of Amphoreus had given it to her.
However, if that were the case, who had given her this power?
Could it be the Deliverer he had awaited?
"No, it must be another mask! He must be disguised as Snowy to throw us off!"
Tribios, still unconvinced, acted decisively, unleashing Disarm once more.
"Disarm!"
Maybe she had not fully stripped him the first time, so if she did it again, the truth would surely be revealed.
As Tribios's voice fell, Pie-non immediately felt an indescribable force assault him, and soon after, he suddenly felt as if the Coreflames inside his body had come alive, struggling violently to break free from their cage!
"No… NOOO—!!!"
For the first time, Pie-non panicked—truly panicked.
He couldn't help it.
At this point, the Coreflames within him had become his lifeline, so if they were taken away, it would mean his end, since without their support, his ruined body could not last long.
If that happened, his plan to prevent the Era Nova would fail, and Amphoreus would be destroyed.
Knowing this, how could he not be panicked?
Seeing Pie-non in such a frantic state, shouting in despair, everyone immediately felt a rush of joy.
Finally, the villain was being subdued!
They had nearly failed to hold him back, but fortunately, Tribios's mysterious power had saved them.
Just as everyone breathed a sigh of relief, a Coreflame of Reason suddenly burst from Pie-non's body.
*Thump!*
Everyone froze at once, their eyes fixed on the Coreflame that had fallen to the ground.
"Is that... a Coreflame of Reason?" Cerces asked with a bewildered expression.
Wasn't the Coreflame of Reason in her possession?
In that case, what was the thing that burst out from the mysterious swordsman's body?
However, it was not just one.
Next came the Coreflame of Romance, the Coreflame of Sky, the Coreflame of Death, the Coreflame of Strife, the Coreflame of Passage, the Coreflame of Time, the Coreflame of Law, the Coreflame of Earth, the Coreflame of Ocean, the Coreflame of Trickery, and the Coreflame of Worldbearing—all twelve kinds of Coreflames exploded outward in succession.
"W-Why?!" Phainon exclaimed in confusion. "Why does he have all the Coreflames?!"
Not just him, everyone present was dumbstruck—their minds smoked like overworked machines, unable to comprehend what had unfolded before their eyes.
Yet, it was actually not over.
Where there was one, there was more.
A second set of twelve Coreflames...
A third...
A fourth…
A tenth…
Pie-non was now like a popcorn machine, endlessly spewing Coreflames.
Before long, the entire ground was covered with Coreflames, making it look like a sea of Coreflames.
===
[A bonus chapter for every 500 Power Stones.]
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