A loud crash of powerful attacks happened in the sky above the remains of the True Mountain sect.
The lightning bolts pierced the gales' loose structure and destroyed many spikes before exploding into crackling dark sparks. The flames swept the artificial winds too and enlarged, covering a large chunk of the sky with their destructive might.
Only a few gales managed to survive those clashes, but they soon found a barrage of sharp feathers in front of them.
Noah didn't build Snore's wings to help it fly better. They increased its agility mid-air, but that wasn't their main purpose. Each feather was an improved version of the saber-shaped rune that used large quantities of dark matter. Noah had to build them one by one before fixing them to Snore's body.
They had become body parts of the Blood Companion once Noah perfected his creation. Still, they had remained disposable weapons that Snore would take a while to regrow.
Of course, they were so troublesome to implement in the Blood Companion because their might was incredible. Noah had made sure that all of them had a starting level at the bottom of the solid stage and could grow as they absorbed the primary energy in the environment.
Such a powerful attack would generally weigh a lot on his mind. However, Noah had limited their maneuverability to relieve part of their pressure. Also, Snore's consciousness shared part of that burden, making them even more comfortable to handle.
Noah and Elder Marco had gone through a few exchanges already. Primary energy filled every corner of the battlefield and struggled to leave the area due to its high quantity.
The feathers had an innate traction force due to Noah's greed. The primary energy converged toward them as they flew toward the gales and increased their power when it fused with their structure.
By the time they reached the few surviving winds made of sharp spikes, their power had surpassed Elder Marco's cultivation level!
The feathers overwhelmed the gales and continued to fly toward the incredulous Elder, who could barely understand what was happening. They pierced the remaining dense air around him and aimed for his figure.
Some of them didn't manage to change their trajectory enough to hit him, and others had lost too much power due to the condensed air. Yet, many feathers still swept Elder Marco, who found himself engulfed in that barrage of sharp runes.
Noah used that chance to deactivate the Divine Deduction technique. His mental sphere was still far away from reaching a critical state, but he had kept the Demonic Form active for the entirety of the battle. He couldn't afford to waste too much mental energy, especially since he had also activated the Black Mark spell.
A sudden surge of energy appeared in Elder Marco's position. Noah sensed the power of the peak of the solid stage coming from that spot and saw a gray light coming out from inside the barrage of feathers.
The runes slowly fell apart. Even the higher energy in their structure lost its stability and dispersed in the air, revealing a poor-looking Elder Marco that held a cracked talisman in his hands.
The cultivator had resorted to a disposable inscribed item to fend off Noah's attack, but his condition appeared terrible nonetheless. His robe was full of holes, and black spots filled the skin underneath them.
His legs were nowhere to be seen, but there were only superficial injuries on the rest of his body. It seemed that he had managed to activate the talisman right before the feathers could reach his internal organs.
An ugly expression lingered on Elder Marco's face. He could now understand the real power of the hybrids and why they were so troublesome to face.
The superiority of the magical beasts when it came to their bodies was one of the cultivation world's pillars. Yet, that feature became almost unfair when existences paired them with the abilities of a cultivator.
Elder Marco had hit Noah twice with abilities fueled by his "Breath" in the solid stage. On the other hand, Noah had landed only a blow on him. That would typically give the upper hand to Elder Marco in a battle between humans. However, the actual damage suffered by him and Noah differed in severity.
Noah had taken Elder Marco's legs and poisoned him with one attack. Those injuries were bound to affect his battle prowess, even if only slightly. Instead, Noah had a few cuts on his body and injured lungs, but those wounds didn't affect him at all.
The resilience of a hybrid was showing its importance in the battle. Humans were too frail to endure the same powerful attacks repeatedly.
Elder Marco understood that he needed to end the battle quickly. Otherwise, Noah's incredible body would slowly tilt the scales of the fight in his favor.
Noah felt able to read what was happening inside the Elder's mind. He knew that the next exchanges would decide the battle's outcome, so he had to prepare for anything that the old monster had in store for him.
"You know," Elder Marco said, "My individuality isn't related to spikes and needles. It's about control over the air. I make it take that form because it's easier to turn it into a weapon, but it seems that it won't be enough against you."
Elder Marco's aura spread, and a sense of stillness filled the world. His consciousness affected the air and tried to reach for Noah, but the dark matter of Snore's body fended it off.
Noah could see some similarities with Dreaming Demon's individuality. The difference was in the subtlety of their mental waves. Dreaming Demon took control of the matter of the world delicately, while Elder Marco's approach was forceful.
That led to a difference in what they were able to obtain through their influence. Dreaming Demon could even fuse with Heaven and Earth's will and predict future events with her individuality. As for Elder Marco, Noah had yet to see the full potential of that unique existence.
Noah didn't wait for the Elder to complete his preparations. Additional arms wielded copies of the Demonic Sword to perform the second form of his martial art. Snore spewed flames and launched lightning bolts too.
The attacks struggled to fly through the condensed air. They managed to cross a large chunk of the sky thanks to their might, but it seemed that Elder Marco had paid particular attention to the space between him and his opponent.
Meanwhile, his control over the sky expanded and reached the air behind Noah, affecting even his movements. It was as if the air had turned into a dense liquid that hindered anything trying to move inside it.
"Let's see how you handle the fall of the sky!" Elder Marco shouted as he raised his hand before swinging it down with a sharp movement.
Noah didn't even know what to look for since his mind sensed danger everywhere around him. However, when the Elder completed his gesture, he felt the entirety of the sky weighing on his back and flinging him on the ground.