This was a domain technique.
Through her recent developments, the Snow Empress had discovered a new way to wield it.
The same absolute zero.
The difference lay in its focus.
If the Emperor's Palm destroyed the molecular structure of anything it touched, rendering it nonexistent, then Imperial Frost was akin to Esdeath's Mahapadma.
By freezing microscopic particles, it created a domain akin to time-stop, where everything within was held in absolute stasis.
Of course, this didn't affect her, or...
"A beautiful scene."
Damien was equally unaffected by the technique.
He and the Snow Empress were one.
Her attacks had no effect on him.
And for effects like time-stop, Damien synchronized with her.
"Bop?"
It was Ogerpon's first time seeing the Snow Empress use this move, and she was visibly intrigued.
"Ogerpon's fine too?"
Ogerpon's resilience made the Snow Empress set aside her underestimation.
This technique was powerful, but not invincible.
For beings who had touched the laws of time or possessed immense energy, it wasn't as effective as she had hoped.
Floating in midair, the Snow Empress approached Gilgamesh, frozen in place.
If her goal was to kill, she would have struck with Emperor's Palm immediately after Snowdance Sunblaze, erasing him.
But they were still 5% short of full analysis.
By locking down the Gate of Babylon, the remaining 5% would be filled quickly, even without Ea.
Her task was to ensure Gilgamesh didn't cause any more trouble in the meantime.
"So..."
"How will you respond?"
The Snow Empress looked down at Gilgamesh, her voice cold, "Most ancient king, Gilgamesh."
"..."
Gilgamesh's consciousness remained active.
But his body couldn't move.
Even his Gate of Babylon, due to its low mana consumption, was stalled by the Snow Empress.
Move... I can't move...
Gilgamesh cursed inwardly, but he couldn't so much as twitch a finger, let alone counter her.
"Hm?"
Suddenly, the Snow Empress sensed something and swiftly retreated a few meters.
Clank!
"What?"
Before her appeared the same Enkidu chains that had bound the Ice Empress.
Silver chains darted through the air, attempting to ensnare her as they had her counterpart.
"Unaffected by my ice?"
"Interesting. Is this the specialty of an Anti-Divine Noble Phantasm?"
"Ugh, so close, just a bit more."
The Snow Empress moved with ethereal grace, weaving through the chains like a butterfly.
[Analysis Progress: 100%]
"Enough!"
Seeing the analysis complete, Damien issued his final command to the Snow Empress, "He's useless now. Kill him."
"Understood."
Her response was calm, as if killing Gilgamesh was no different from slaughtering a chicken.
"Ah!!"
"You mongrels!!"
Humiliated, Gilgamesh's rage ignited.
The red patterns on his skin flared with blinding light, and with sheer mana, he broke through the Snow Empress's time-stop domain.
"Die, mongrels!!"
With a wave of his hand, more Enkidu chains surged toward the Snow Empress.
She dared not touch them.
While she looked down on Gilgamesh, Enkidu was a troublesome Noble Phantasm.
She had a feeling that even she, if caught, would lose most of her power instantly.
Her divinity surpassed even the Ice Empress's.
So, she retreated, choosing to avoid their grasp.
"Enkidu is impressive."
"But it's too slow. If it can't catch anyone, what's the point of its strength?"
The Snow Empress effortlessly slipped out of Enkidu's encirclement.
She was curious to see what trump card Gilgamesh could pull in this situation.
"Hm?"
Under her gaze, Gilgamesh reached into his Gate of Babylon and drew an utterly bizarre weapon.
It was likely a sword.
It had a hilt and a crossguard, its length comparable to a longsword.
But the 'blade' was far from any typical sword or knife.
It consisted of three connected cylindrical segments, with a spiraling, blunt tip. The cylinders rotated slowly, like a millstone.
This was an divine construct crafted by the gods before humanity's dawn, embodying the divine craftsmanship of creation.
The three millstone-like cylinders moved in sync with celestial orbits, carrying the weight and energy of tectonic shifts.
The surging mana it unleashed was so vast it would shock any modern magus.
"Awaken, Ea!"
Ea... the god of earth and water in ancient Mesopotamian myth, dividing 'heaven' and 'earth.'
This Sword of Rupture, named Ea, was the primordial blade that witnessed the creation of heaven and earth.
Its mission was to cleave the chaotic void, giving form to heaven and earth.
"The Star of Creation that Splits Heaven and Earth: Enuma Elish!!"
As Gilgamesh poured the remaining Command Spell mana into the Sword of Rupture, a spatial storm more terrifying than the previous world-ending deluge swept forth, threatening to devour the entire world.
"Before this sword strikes, the world are but meaningless chaos."
"After this sword strikes, a new truth will cleave the sky, earth, and seas."
The shockwave of creation surpassed any Noble Phantasm.
It obliterated not just physical forms but all phenomena in existence.
This was why the King of Heroes stood above all Heroic Spirits.
Boom!
The sky collapsed, the earth shattered, and as all faded into a void of darkness, only the golden Heroic Spirit, wielding the Sword of Rupture, shone brightly aloft.
"Remarkable power..."
Witnessing such a staggering Noble Phantasm, the Snow Empress felt no fear.
On the contrary, she was eerily calm.
In that calm, she felt a trace of gratitude.
Gratitude for accepting Damien's invitation to follow him to other worlds.
If I hadn't left that prison called Douluo Continent, how could I have faced such a formidable foe?
This strike deserves my full strength!
The Snow Empress radiated icy blue mana, and behind her, golden divine rings materialized.
The rings overlapped, adorned with ancient inscriptions that seemed to sing a grand prelude to creation, celebrating the birth of heaven and earth!
***
Bonus Chapter:
100 Power Stones = 1 BC
300 Power Stones = 2 BC
500 Power Stones = 3 BC
700 Power Stones = 4 BC
1000 Power Stones = 5 BC
***
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