2255 2255. Purple

Decumia wasn't taking her fight seriously. She didn't know if she could kill Steven in one blow, but she wasn't even trying to hurt him deeply. Her attacks were simply too powerful for her opponent, so they reached his world.

Steven's intentions also became clear in Decumia's mind quite soon. She had studied the experts in Noah's organization as deeply as everyone else in the sky, so she knew Steven's character.

The expert was part of Noah's core team, but he was unique. He had met Noah and the others relatively late in his cultivation journey, and his improvements had never stopped him from being one of the group's weaker links.

Strength was obviously relative. King Elbas excelled in many fields, but he lacked Divine Demon's ability to perform miracles. Noah and the others also shared similar peculiarities, and Steven wasn't an exception.

In theory, Steven was the best when it came to fighting experts who had benefitted from Heaven and Earth's influence. However, he had to hurt his foundation and limit his potential to achieve that power.

Steven's ability to counter Heaven and Earth's assets wasn't innate or natural. He had developed that power due to anger and necessity. The change had also happened during his breakthrough to the ninth rank, which was far from ideal.

The breakthrough to the ninth rank always brought changes, but they usually remained inside the range of the experts' laws. Yet, Steven had experienced a proper transformation. His determination had turned into anger that had further evolved into power only meant to target Heaven and Earth.

That alone couldn't make Steven strong, not as strong as his companions at least. Still, the nature of the final battle allowed him to perform important tasks anyway. He was actually more helpful than many others at the same level, but Decumia seemed able to exploit his flaws.

Decumia wasn't even doing that on purpose. Her world was simply complete even after removing Heaven and Earth's influence. She had obviously lost some power, but she remained incredibly strong, too strong for Steven.

"So, you want to make a noble sacrifice," Decumia sighed while grabbing Steven and forcing him to stop. "I guess that's not a bad way to go. You must have also planned countermeasures that will activate after your death."

"Wills are powerful tools," Steven stated as a smirk appeared on his face. "You can kill me, but you can't destroy my will, not if I put my whole life into it."

"Tricky," Decumia exclaimed. "Well, I suppose this is the end of our battle. I'll see how long your dying wish can keep your dear underlings alive."

Decumia closed her hand into a punch before throwing it toward Steven's face. Still, her eyes flickered when she sensed energy leaving her arm and turning her attack into nothing more than a harmless bump.

Steven was as surprised as Decumia. The punch landed on his cracked forehead without inflicting any damage, but his consciousness eventually sensed something. A massive boulder was flying at high speed toward his position.

<br/>"What is it-?!" Decumia asked, but the boulder suddenly accelerated and slammed on Steven and her.

Steven flew away again, but his back eventually slammed on a firm surface. That wasn't the sky or the landmass, and a squeal reached his ears before his mental waves could reveal the nature of the situation. He didn't need to inspect his surroundings anymore after hearing that cry.

"What are you doing here?" Steven asked as he straightened his position and made his way out of the fumes that had surrounded him.

"I'm saving your life!" The Foolery announced while lifting its head.

Steven knew that the pig had performed its usual gesture, but he couldn't see it through his eyes. The Foolery was surrounded by smoke that came out of its very skin. It seemed that every inch of its body had recently been on fire.

"Shouldn't you focus on recovering from your injuries?" Steven gasped.

"What injuries?" The Foolery asked.

"Your whole body is fuming!" Steven responded.

"The smoke makes me go faster," The Foolery claimed without lowering its head.

Steven spared some mental waves to check the grey smoke, but he didn't see anything connected to techniques or energy in its fabric. It was simply gas released by the pig's charred flesh.

"No, these are injuries," Steven tried to correct.

"I did take you by surprise, didn't I?" The Foolery exclaimed. "That's because the smoke makes me faster."

Steven opened his mouth to speak, but only a sigh left it. He knew that reasoning with the Foolery was impossible, so he limited himself to a brief scolding. "You shouldn't have come here."

"Why is that?" The Foolery questioned. "You were dying. I saved you. Wait, you are still dying."

The Foolery finally lowered its head to sniff Steven. The latter's world was still burning to keep his influence active. The injuries on his chest, abdomen, and forehead only worsened his overall poor complexion.

"I need to keep this up," Steven declared. "Our army will die otherwise."

"I don't get it," The Foolery exclaimed. "You are hurting yourself, right? Just stop."

Steven didn't know how to explain the situation better than that, so he heaved another sigh before adding something that even the pig could understand. "I've already made my decision. I ask you to respect it."

"I refuse," The Foolery promptly replied.

"What?" Steven shouted. "You can't do that."

"I just did," The Foolery responded.

"I decided what to do with my world!" Steven uttered.

"I don't care!" The Foolery squealed. "Wait! Oh, no!"

"What is happening?" Steven gasped as he tried to understand if something was off on the higher plane.

"My smoke is going away," The Foolery revealed while glancing at a spot on its left side. "I'll get slow now."

Steven found no words to address the situation. He could sense most of the battlefield due to his dark aura. The entire higher plane was raging, but he was using his limited time to listen to that idiocy.

"Just leave," Steven eventually sighed. "I've always known the price for my current power. I'm doing the best I can to give it some meaning."

"But that's wrong," The Foolery announced. "You won't play your role like this."

"What role?" Steven questioned.

"You need to hinder Heaven and Earth's influence," The Foolery stated. "Solving troublesome problems is Xavier's job."

A golden light lit up on the Foolery's belly and released a soft shockwave that dispersed all the smoke flowing out of its flesh. King Elbas' influence spread in the area, and his voice eventually resounded. "I've adjusted some buildings for the issue. Steven, withdraw your energy. You are in the way."

"I told you!" The Foolery proudly exclaimed while lifting its head before lowering it right away to stare at its belly. "Hey, why did Xavier's voice come out from there? Did I eat him?"

"I planted a communication device on you," King Elbas answered.

"Does everyone have it?" The Foolery asked.

"No," King Elbas snorted. "You are the only idiot who wouldn't notice something like that."

"It makes sense," The Foolery nodded. "Well, you heard him. Your energy is in the way."

Steven would have never trusted the Foolery, but hearing King Elbas' voice forced him to accept the reality of the situation. He calmed down and stopped setting his world aflame to retrieve the dark energy and stabilize his condition.

The purple tendrils immediately regained power and tried to affect Heaven and Earth's army. The sudden power-up stunned those assets for an instant and made them suffer heavy losses, but those who survived failed to experience Decumia's influence.

A series of huge golden buildings materialized in different spots on the battlefield and began to radiate their influence. Their radiance was faint and soft, but it countered the purple tendrils and forced them to crumble.

The Foolery's words sounded perfectly on point in Steven's mind while he inspected that scene. King Elbas had performed the same task more efficiently and without hurting himself. He was the problem-solver of the team.

"I guess that leaves us with a different task," Steven whispered while glancing at the privileged cultivator who had waited for the conversation to end.

"Exactly!" The Foolery shouted as it pointed its eyes on Decumia. "We have to eat purple!"