LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 119: Hippogriffs
Before following Fang Shan, he left a copy of himself in this world, and the aftermath of his clone rampage lay before him: shattered landscapes, colorful chaos, and debris hovering midair, unsure whether to fall upwards or downwards.
It was a seemingly good job. The only one standing without critical damage was Katley, who, instead of presenting wounds or tiredness, now presented better clothes and a calm gaze.
Yet what actually stole his attention was his clone. Dante's other self was riddled with cracks like a broken mirror struggling to hold its reflection. Why hadn't the clone regenerated?
As he saw himself, the clone's eyes sparked in joy. It quickly closed in, yelling, "FINALLY! DO YOU KNOW WHAT YOU LEFT ME WITH?! I was missing love and hate! You only left me with toon force!" It gestured wildly at the carnage around them, "You have any idea of what I fought here? I ALMOST DIED! TWICE!"
The Original Dante quickly shrugged, "I mean, they were tired, so I thought pure toon force was enough.
"Enough?!" The copycat didn't care about an explanation; the second they became one again, it would be explained to both of them, "Yeah, yeah, just get here, let's fuse again."
The clone, with an enthusiastic tone, yelled before completely merging, "Alright bitches! Buckle up your seats because I'm high, and my main body is running out of time, so prepare for our really rushed grand finale!"
"Shut up, don't spoil them." They neared each other, merging back into one form. The new Dante raised his hand with a dazzling pink aura flaring around him. His body radiated an intense energy that swirled in a mixture of love and hate, with a signature childish tinge hidden in it.
The memories of his clone fighting filled his mind, 'At first I was kicking their asses, but then she-' but it was quickly interrupted by an annoying blue page, "WARNING: YOU HAVE REACHED CRITICAL LEVEL, IT IS RECOMMENDED-"
He punched the system interface, breaking it momentarily, "Shut up. I don't need a narrator. I can feel it in my body" His soul was teetering at the verge of collapse, he wasn't blind to ignore it, "So stop covering my view you useless godlike machine."
He flexed his neck, with his grin swapping to a serene expression, "Looks like this is the end of the line... I would have loved a bit more time, you know?" His voice carried a strange calmness as if he already knew how this would end.
...
...
...
His eyes drifted to the tired limit breakers, but for some reason, Fang Shan's image flashed into his mind. He didn't know why, but it sparked a flash of inspiration, "That Fang guy always used overly large incantations. I wonder if they actually affect... I don't lose by trying!"
The thought settled, and with it came an instinct.
At this moment, Dante is a high-grade reality bender. His love and hate generate such willpower that they are tearing reality itself apart.
BUT!
Everything has its rules, even a place without rules. The only rule is that there are no rules.
The reason incantations exist is to channel power properly. Mere seconds ago, Dante was using them with horrible efficiency, wielding raw power without direction. To put it simply, Dante was recklessly painting without canvas, armed with only shades of black and white, making his attacks only use a fraction of what they should be.
But what will happen if that great painter discovers that there is a vibrant array of colors and endless places to paint that are simpler and better?
"Well," he sighed, "This annoying red alarm keeps bugging me, so I have to rush my final!" His gaze continued to drift to the sky, "This was fun... probably it wasn't, but, eh? Who are we to judge?"
At this moment, all of Dante's hate and love reached to his hand; instinctively, he began to voice with a solemn smile in the corners of his lips,
"In the crucible of my soul, where love and hate merge and intertwine, I call upon the forces that shape the fabric of space and time..."
Below, Katley froze. Her calm facade disappeared as her gaze snapped upwards, she knew this was different, "DON'T LET HER FINISH!"
In a faraway distance, a towering mech triggered his thruster at max power to fly away from the scene while shooting most of its arsenal without care about energy spending, "Fuck this, I'm not gonna get paid enough."
The missiles painted the sky, blasting midair, being obliterated by the shockwaves radiating from Dante as he continued unperturbed.
"By love and hate, this beam is wrought,
My last regret, my final thought,
In this moment, let my will be seen,
Eros and Eris, my soul redeems,
As I embrace eternity, with disdain and devotion..."
The oppressive energy intensified. The ground quaked violently, and a fast chirping noise traveled the entire place; after the massive shockwave rippled, an expansive sound wave thundered in the place, flattening the trees and sending clouds spirling like frightened animals.
Above Dante, an indescribable mass of nothingness stood at his head. The swirling void radiated with a kaleidoscope of dark rays and pink auroras that covered it in a vague contour.
They tangled and twisted in the sky, devouring light and reason in equal measure in a beautiful yet deadly spectacle that made the heavens tremble.
Dante lowered his gaze to the battlefield; coldly, he turned to Kaiden, looking at her with empty eyes while a small smile painted his face, "Reality's Embrace..."
*CRACK*
Before any other sound could claim the scene, "I CAME BACK FOR THE SECOND ROUND!!!" Fang Shan emerged, lit with a grin of realization coupled with an overwhelming aura, and an almost tangible arrogance.
After fully leaving the gateway of the collapsing void, he raised his hands, summoning a symbol that hung in the air like faraway constellations. The symbol twisted and folded in a hypnotic dance, forming intricate geometric patterns in what appeared to be a set-up.
'What do you mean by second round?' Katley's face only turned from apprehension to dread, "FANG SHAN!!!" she realized that screaming was useless, so she asked in a low tone, hoping that it would work, "This is her last breath, don't mess this up just because you want to have fun-"
He ignored her, simply beginning to smile with such enthusiasm that bordered the lunatic one, "Mathconstructions: Golden Ratio Field." He quickly continued with "Zeta Convergence."
A dozen math signs appeared and joined in a harmonized chorus behind him. A golden circle began spinning behind him. This golden circle seemed like it would meet each other in the end, yet it was always missed by a small margin.
This created a beautifully golden infinite spiral. But it didn't there; something with the title of Riemann's Zeta function near it created a cascading surge in the chaotic energy around him, pinpointing many zeros that didn't stop expanding.
Fang Shan raised his sword. Right now, its blade was like an ethereal extension of his soul. With a breath that spans lifetimes, he serenely drew the sword, gleaming like a comet about to split the heavens.
The blade hummed, resonating with celestial frequencies. It hungered for purpose, craving a clash. With the golden glow of phi, Fang unleashed the second part of his definitive technique, "Peerless Descent Severance..."
Katley's face twisted with desperation and worry, 'YOU IDIOT!' But it was too late. The golden spiral behind Fang Shan surged, glowing as it stretched toward infinity.
Everyone except Fang Shan screamed desperately, almost breaking their throats apart, "KAIDEN!!!!!!!!!!"
"I FUCKING KNOW!" She frantically yelled with desperation, echoing in each word, "BOUNDARIES!!! LIMITS!!! RESTRICTIONS!!!"
There wasn't an apparent burst of power like with Fang Shan or Dante, but by erasing boundaries, limits, and restrictions, Katley set herself up as one of the strongest beings that had ever existed and would exist. The only problem would be the consequence of abusing such a state: She might not be able to pay and instantly die a nanosecond after finishing using this mode.
Remembering his first thoughts on the version that abused love, Dante murmured, "Ha... Seriously..." Each and every memory of his alternative echoed as his lips twitched into a soft, ironic smile, "I'm truly, truly a hypocrite!"
Everyone's final words echoed crystal clear in this chaotic disarray,
"Betrothed Anathema..."
"108 Golden Heavenly Draws!"
"ABSTRACTIONS AND EXISTENCE!!!"