2319.Kill

Noah ignored Marcella right after his attack. A sense of weakness filled his entire being, but the destruction of the immense array of magical plants forced his world to produce more potential.

The weakness vanished quickly, and Noah barely minded that phase. He had long since grown used to that process. The entire final battle had been nothing more than a cycle of exhaustion and power for him.

Noah's eyes quickly fell on Heaven and Earth. The crackling figure had ignored the encirclement and had focused on the landmass. Power was also accumulating in its palms, but its opponents didn't let it go so easily.

Sword Saint, Alexander, Divine Demon, Wilfred, and Supreme Thief had launched massive attacks toward Heaven and Earth while Noah dealt with the magical plants. Techniques that would make any rank 9 cultivator escape in fear converged toward the crackling figure, but the latter barely minded them.

A shockwave came out of the crackling figure and split into multiple lightning bolts that flew toward the incoming attacks. Divine Demon and the others had done their best, but Heaven and Earth's offensive was overwhelming. Their abilities stood no chance.

Divine Demon and the others saw the lightning bolts piercing their attacks and continuing to fly toward them. They all had to resort to evasive maneuvers to dodge the incoming offensive, but the latter didn't stop moving even after missing its targets.

The lightning bolts flew past the encirclement until they reached different areas of the sky to fuse with the storms. Loud cracking noises resounded after the event, and more attacks shot toward the powerless landmass at the center of the higher plane.

Heaven and Earth began to turn ethereal at that point, but their fabric suddenly solidified again. They raised their right arm, and a black torrent fell on it.

"You are a fool," Heaven and Earth exclaimed before their entire body shook to send a powerful shockwave toward the black torrent.

The black energy instantly shattered. The destruction spread through the entire torrent, revealing Noah pressing his blades on Heaven and Earth's arm.

The thundering noises released by Heaven and Earth's body intensified while Noah tried to pierce their arm. The destruction carried by the crackling skin began to affect the swords, and cracks even opened on them.

Noah had to face the truth at that point. Everything slowed down in his eyes and allowed him to inspect the rapid destruction taking control of his swords.

Heaven and Earth didn't suffer any damage even after enduring a melee blow fueled by as much potential Noah could gather. Their crackling skin was too firm, and the impact on their body allowed Noah to gain a vague understanding of the power flowing inside it.

Deep fear filled Noah's mind. He tried to suppress that feeling, but his instincts overruled his will. His very world was telling him that he couldn't hurt Heaven and Earth, and he couldn't ignore that warning.

"We'll deal with you soon," Heaven and Earth announced as a buzz ran through their voice. "Stay put for now."

Noah instinctively absorbed his blades inside his world and crossed his arms. Dark matter came out of his figure, and potential flowed into his body to enhance its defensive properties.

Another shockwave shot out of Heaven and Earth at that point. The attack wasn't wide like the previous. It focused on Noah and destroyed most of his defenses while pushing him away.

Entire patches of Noah's body vanished as soon as the dark matter crumbled. Some lightning bolts failed to reach him, but the few sparks that landed on him were enough to leave serious injuries.

Duanlong worked at the best of its capabilities to reduce the attack's offensive power, and the same went for Noah's aspects. The entirety of his world focused on enduring Heaven and Earth's offensive, but he still had to fly until the edges of the higher plane to disperse its power.

Once the attack lost its energy, Noah found himself far away from the encirclement. The storms raged behind him, and his body showed deep holes in multiple spots. Yet, his eyes never left the crackling figure in the distance.

'Did they just spare me?' Noah couldn't help but wonder when he became aware of his condition.

His chest, abdomen, arms, and legs had deep holes, and the edges of those injuries retained Heaven and Earth's destructive power. Noah could even feel sparks trying to make their way through his body, but that wasn't too much to handle for his incredible resilience.

Noah felt sure that Heaven and Earth could have been far harsher in their offensive. He would have probably still managed to preserve his life, but that preferential treatment made no sense.

A strange but familiar feeling eventually landed on Noah's consciousness. He turned toward the source of that sensation, and Emperor's battle unfolded in his vision.

Emperor was going all-out, unleashing his overbearing power on any expert who dared to approach or attack him. His life wasn't in danger, but he couldn't move freely. The numerical disadvantage even forced him into a defensive stance.

Nevertheless, Noah's reptilian eyes went past the battlefield to gaze at a smiling figure hovering behind the storms. Caesar was looking at him while wearing an expression that explained more than enough, and Noah couldn't help but replace the entirety of his feelings with anger.

'Are they treating me like some sort of sacrificial pawn?' Noah roared in his mind as his world exploded with power, but he quickly calmed down.

Noah could understand Heaven and Earth's behavior. Caesar had basically explained that in the past too. The rulers needed stepping stones, so killing Noah in his current state would be a waste.

'They are waiting for me to reach the peak,' Noah thought, but that conclusion didn't bring peace.

It felt beyond demeaning to have his final opponent treat him like nothing more than cattle. That approach was a proper insult toward Noah. It was as if he wasn't worthy of proper attacks.

The anger slowly condensed and fused with many other feelings. A cold smile appeared on Noah's face, and a tinge of craziness filled his eyes. The Demonic Sword and the Cursed Sword reappeared in his hands as dark matter patched them up. He had made up his mind about the situation.

'I just need to force them to take me seriously,' Noah concluded, and a roar left his mouth before echoing through the entirety of the higher plane.

Heaven and Earth didn't stay still while Noah was immersed in his thoughts. Their other opponents had restored the encirclement and had almost finished preparing new attacks. Yet, Heaven and Earth had other plans.

The crackling figure teleported to reappear above Shafu and the landmass. The movement technique was predictable, but it remained too fast for Noah's companions.

Everyone started to fly toward Heaven and Earth, but the latter used that time to raise their hands and accumulate energy. The storms grew wild and sent even more lightning bolts toward the landmass. The rulers seemed set on destroying that giant creature in one blow.

An explosion resounded on Heaven and Earth's back before they could complete their attack. The sheer violence of the event made the void shake, but the crackling figure remained in one piece. It only lost one spark.

"You really want to die," Heaven and Earth commented without bothering to turn toward the fiendish figure on their back.

"Yes," Noah laughed as growls mixed with his voice. "Kill me already."