Chapter 802: For that kid, everything is possible
With a deafening crash, Kyle's body plummeted into the heart of a forest in what remained of the Sacred Divine Land, creating a massive crater and obliterating the surrounding trees.
His vision blurred as he gazed at the swirling dust and debris around him. His fingers twitched in an attempt to move, but he found himself immobilized.
A familiar figure landed just outside the crater where he lay, staring down at him.
Unsettling silence blanketed the scene, broken only by the ragged rhythm of Kyle's erratic breathing and the sound of debris cascading around him. For two hours, he had fought Azazeal, and it was clear as day who had emerged victorious.
As his hazy green gaze finally locked onto the obsidian eyes with purple slits, he let out a self- deprecating chuckle.
"What... are you staring at...?"
He mumbled incoherently, blinking to clear the blood clouding his vision.
Azazeal hummed and sat down on his heels with a distant expression.
"You are the first person who has endured my fists for so long... Granted, I didn't use any energy or natural laws."
The slits in his eerie obsidian gaze finally faded as he took a deep breath.
"I wonder if things would have turned out differently if we had met in another time and under better circumstances?"
Kyle wanted to laugh. And he did, though his voice barely echoed, quickly giving way to a violent cough that forced blood from his lips, pain wracking his broken body. He took deep breaths to steady himself.
"Different...? No... it's already too late. At the end of this mess... one of us will die. That's already been written."
Azazeal arched an eyebrow. His eyes still lacked emotions, but a rare smile spread across his face. Just a short while ago, he had wished to fall into a deep slumber, yet this human's breakthrough to Celestial rank pulled him back from that desire.
He wondered if he should feel grateful?
However, the words that escaped his lips were anything but expressing gratitude. "Then should I kill you?"
With those words, their surroundings began to shatter into fragments like fragile glass. Kyle's breath hitched when the sky directly above him cracked open, and a massive red and purple blade emerged from the fissure, dark electricity crackling along its surface.
It shot down toward him, and in the next moment, its sharp, gleaming tip halted just an inch from his neck, poised to plunge in.
His eyes contracted as he stared at the gleaming blade, his heart pounding fiercely in his chest. Immediately, a layer of thick ice enveloped his neck and the rest of his body as he tapped into his bloodline power for protection. Now that it had become one with him, he could use it at any time.
Kyle clenched his fists tightly and let out a low snarl as he locked eyes with Azazeal. The hatred and rage in his gaze vanished into a sea of eerie, dark calmness.
"Do... it."
He braced himself for the blade to shatter his body, prepared to use all his strength to save his soul and send it to a safe place. It was true he would need to form a new body for his soul once again and would lose a lot of strength. However, it was the only option available to survive at the moment. Still, the instant he returned, he would kill Azazeal at all costs. This was Azazeal's final chance to end him. But if he couldn't, then it would be Kyle's turn to haunt the latter.
Azazeal stared back at him, his eyes flashing with a multitude of images as he counted something on his fingers. Rising to his feet, he waved his hand, causing the sword hovering above Kyle to vanish.
He turned away, which is why Kyle didn't notice, but his eyes began to bleed. In the end, Azazeal let out a chuckle and stepped into the void. His figure disappeared, leaving behind a few whispering words tinged with a rare hint of desperation.
"Don't disappoint me..."
Kyle blinked once, then twice, in disbelief. What just happened? Did that man really leave? Just like that? He opened his mouth but couldn't articulate anything.
Ultimately, he settled for a chuckle that was swallowed by the layer of ice enveloping his entire body to heal his injuries.
'Now what the hell do you want from me?'
His thoughts wandered as he replayed the words Azazeal left behind in his mind again and again. Silence once again settled over the scene, and this time, no one disturbed him as he made his body invisible.
Odiak, Jane, and the many other supreme ranks who had watched the fight from afar came down to survey the surroundings, but they were unable to sense his presence.
They looked around with the Will of the Universe. They had seen two bright lights fighting and only knew that one of the lights was Azazeal. As for the second light, it was too fast for them to identify who it was.
Jane's face contorted in a deep frown as she glanced at the destroyed section of the Sacred Divine Land. Broken rocks and dust were flying around in the dark space.
"This land is filled with ancient tombs and treasures... but Azazeal did not even think twice before destroying such a significant part of it... and he did it so easily."
Odiak sucked in a deep breath.
"No one knows what's going on in his mind. He hasn't shown himself for a while, so we all thought he was still trapped inside that mass of energy within the gray shield. Who would have known that he wasn't and would suddenly show up with another Celestial?"
Jane rubbed her hands nervously as she glanced at the Will of the Universe.
"I say... what if the other Celestial is from the dark side? If yes, we are all done for."
She shivered even at the thought of it. Her words made all the other supreme ranks in her surroundings shudder as well, and they glared at her for already thinking the worst.
Odiak shook his head at her words.
"No, I believe the newly ascended Celestial isn't from the enemy side. If that were true, why would Azazeal fight that person?"
The Will of the Universe whipped his head back with a grim expression.
"What are you two chitchatting about? Look for the Celestial. I know that person is alive. Even though I can't sense them, the aura of another Celestial is ever-present."
He lowered his voice.
"That person with the blue light is definitely injured after fighting with Azazeal. We need to ensure they side with us!"
Jane scoffed at him. The other supreme ranks scattered to look around, but Odiak and she remained. She spoke in his mind.
'What about Kyle? Should we go back and contact James to save him? Now it's clear Azazeal is not in that place, so it must be Kyle banging on the shield.'
Odiak's eyes trembled when he remembered Kyle. However, he didn't turn; instead, a sudden realization dawned on him. His eyes widened comically as he let out a disbelieving murmur.
"No... that's impossible..."
Hearing his murmur, Jane leaned in.
'What happened?'
Odiak's lips trickled upward into a smile.
'Find the Celestial... if my thoughts are on point, then that icy light can only belong to one person. If we're talking about Kyle, we can't put him in the realm of the impossible. For that
kid, everything is possible.'
Jane's eyes widened and she nodded in agreement. Silently, the two parted ways to search the Sacred Divine Land. They also contacted James and the other five elders to update them on
everything.
Just like the two, many of the supreme ranks who had witnessed the battle also sent news back to their respective planets. This meant that the information about what had transpired in front of the Sacred Divine Land had already spread.
On a distant planet, Alec's mouth hung open when he heard about the legendary battle that destroyed half of the Sacred Divine Land. He looked away from James, who was telling him, Jian, and Asher the news, and asked the system in his mind.
'What are the chances that one of the fighters was Kyle...?'
His fingers trembled with nervousness.
'A staggering hundred percent.'
Alec let out a chuckle at Soul's response. His eyes sparkled with excitement; despite feeling a
pang of sadness that Kyle had achieved the Celestial rank before him, he was genuinely happy
for his friend.
"I guess I need to work even harder!"
His sudden declaration made everyone around him want to run away.
The first was Soul; the system wanted nothing more than to rest. This guy was going to
exhaust all its energy!
The second and third were Jian and Asher, who were seriously considering separating from Alec... because this man dragged them along whenever he went to train!
And then there was James, who hadn't been able to sleep at all because Alec had the stamina
of a beast and just wanted to fight, fight, fight! He and his entire team of warriors were on the verge of collapse! Now this kid wanted to train even more??