Ash had been observing everything through the connection created by [Akashic Mind], and although the overwhelming majority of Eva’s attempts had long since reached a level where even he could no longer properly keep track of every detail, he had still witnessed enough to understand exactly how much effort she had poured into finding a solution.
While he had been busy fighting Kane and desperately buying time against an opponent far stronger than himself, Eva had been carrying the burden of finding a path forward all on her own, repeatedly throwing herself against impossible walls, enduring failures that had accumulated beyond comprehension, and continuously searching for a solution even when reality itself seemed determined to reject every possibility she discovered.
And somehow, despite all of that, she had actually succeeded.
A smile slowly appeared on Ash’s face.
You did well, Eva. No, that’s not right. You were amazing there.
Inside the Soul Space, Eva froze for a brief moment as those words echoed through her mind.
You literally fought against reality itself and won. I don’t think I could have asked for anything more from you, especially when even I had already started running out of ideas.
A bright smile immediately appeared on her face.
Despite gradually becoming more and more similar to a system, there was still one thing that had never changed, and that was how genuinely happy she felt whenever she managed to help Ash when he needed her the most.
{Of course I did. Who do you think I am?}
Even through the Soul Connection, Ash could hear the unmistakable cheerfulness in her voice.
A small laugh escaped him.
The best partner there is.
Hearing that only caused Eva’s smile to become even brighter as a faint warmth spread through her chest, because no amount of successful calculations or completed analyses could compare to being acknowledged by the person she had worked so hard to help.
Unfortunately, the current situation wasn’t going to wait for them to celebrate.
The battle was still ongoing.
The enemies were still surrounding him.
And most importantly, the barrier was still being completed.
Ash’s expression gradually became serious once more as he shifted his attention back toward the battlefield, where the enormous amount of energy being gathered by countless Ocean Species had already reached a frightening level.
Activate it.
{Understood.}
For a brief moment, Eva looked toward the newly created ability that had been born from countless failures, impossible calculations, and a direct clash against reality itself before finally focusing her entire attention on it.
{Activating ability: Deus Ex Machina.}
In the real world, only two seconds remained before the barrier surrounding the battlefield was completed, and the ability was activated at that exact moment.
-CRACKLEE!!!!!!!!
The Crimson Lightning surrounding Ash died down as he pulled himself back, and seeing his behavior, Kane also stopped attacking instead of immediately continuing the battle.
Even then, he did not let his guard down in the slightest as his blood-red eyes remained fixed on Ash with intense focus, carefully observing every movement and every subtle change in expression as though trying to determine what exactly the Absolute Anomaly was planning.
Kane’s breathing was rough as usual, and despite the fact that the scent of Ash’s blood had been constantly stimulating his instincts throughout the battle, he was still somehow managing to stop himself from completely losing control.
He had some truly insane Will Power.
For a brief moment, neither of them moved as they simply stared at each other while the surrounding ocean remained strangely quiet despite the countless eyes currently focused on them.
One second passed.
Then another.
And finally, the barrier was completed.
-SHRINGGGGGGGG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
An enormous transparent dome sealed the Ocean battlefield as countless streams of energy flowed throughout its surface, creating a pressure that seemed to be suppressing Ash in some unknown ways that he couldn’t fathom.
What? Why is nothing happening...?
Ash thought inwardly in confusion as he looked toward the barrier that had formed around him and the four Celestial Rank beings, while everyone else was outside the barrier.
The barrier stood exactly as it was supposed to, its smooth glass-like surface stretching across the battlefield while faint rainbow colors occasionally appeared and disappeared due to the interaction between sunlight and water.
Without even turning around, he could already sense the other Celestials approaching toward him from different directions.
No, let’s wait. The effect might not be instant....
Ash thought as he backed off slightly, making sure not to allow himself to be surrounded from every side while he continued waiting for something to happen.
{The ability has been activated. We can only wait now. Also, that barrier will remain active for fifteen minutes.}
Alright, Eva.
Ash replied to her inwardly, before shifting his focus towards others.
"That was pretty fast. It feels like I am some sort of villain, where everyone has joined hands just to take me down. It’s funny, isn’t it."
Ash’s words reached everyone’s ears, causing more than a few expressions to become slightly uncomfortable.
After all, no matter how they tried to justify it, the current situation really was somewhat ridiculous.
Four Celestial Rank beings.
Hundreds of thousands of Ocean Species.
Several powerful organizations.
And even the attention of the Eternals themselves.
All of it had gathered because of a single person.
Unfortunately, whatever shame they felt was quickly overwhelmed by something much stronger.
Greed.
"There is nothing funny. Everyone is serious about their task here."
Sera replied to his words, her voice laced with coldness as she continued approaching without slowing down.
Ash chuckled hearing those words.
"Nothing funny you say? But to me, everything you all are doing is nothing less than a joke. After all, what crime have I committed? Did I rob someone? Did I steal anything from you guys? Did I commit a mass genocide or something? Am I trying to destroy the world or universe? I don’t think so."
His expression carried neither fear nor nervousness despite the overwhelming force currently gathered around him.
"You all are just coming after me, just cause those three stupid Eternals have too much free time on their hands. Eternal life might have turned their brains into mush, otherwise I don’t think they would be so much interested in the secrets I hold."
His words caused several expressions to darken almost immediately, yet Ash continued speaking as though he hadn’t noticed it at all.
"YOU DARE!!!!!!!"
Sera’s voice erupted first, the holy power surrounding her instantly becoming unstable as genuine anger appeared on her face for the first time since the battle began.
"HOW DARE YOU!!!!!!!!"
Kane’s roar followed immediately afterward as blood-red energy exploded around him, his already unstable emotions becoming even more difficult to suppress.
"INSOLENT!!!!!!!!"
Perseus’ voice thundered throughout the battlefield as an overwhelming pressure burst from his body, the surrounding ocean trembling under the sheer force of his Will.
"WATCH YOUR TONGUE!!!!!!!!"
Even Kai could no longer remain silent as his voice echoed across the battlefield, his expression becoming considerably colder than before.
The four furious voices overlapped with one another and crashed toward Ash from every direction like a storm.
The combined force behind their voices crashed into Ash like a physical attack, causing blood to immediately flow from his eyes, nose, ears, and mouth.
Yet the injuries healed almost as quickly as they appeared, and before the blood could properly spread through the surrounding water, his body had already returned to normal.
Ash simply smiled.
If anything, the reactions only seemed to amuse him even more.
"See? This is exactly what I mean. The moment someone says something slightly unpleasant about them, all of you react as though I just insulted the creators of existence itself."
A faint chuckle escaped him before he casually shrugged.
"Don’t they feel shame that even after living for who knows how long, they are still stuck where they are and can’t find the secrets that I discovered in just 6-7 years since I started wielding mana? At this point, they should just retire and die of..."
He never got the chance to finish his words as Sera’s patience finally snapped.
The holy power surrounding her erupted as a spear of brilliant light instantly formed within her hand before shooting toward Ash with terrifying speed, tearing apart the surrounding ocean as it crossed the battlefield.
At almost the exact same moment, Perseus stepped forward and threw a punch, the surrounding waters collapsing inward as overwhelming physical force and Will Power condensed into a single attack aimed directly at Ash.
Kane moved as well.
The blood drifting throughout the battlefield instantly surged forward as the Vampire Prince appeared before Ash in a blur, his claw already descending toward Ash’s throat.
Three Celestials attacked simultaneously.
Three attacks that arrived before Ash could even react.
And just before any of them could reach him.....everything stopped.
Or rather, everyone was forced to stop against their Will.
It felt similar to a Time Stop, yet at the same time completely different, because although nobody could move a single muscle, they could still see, think, and remain fully aware of everything happening around them.
And what they saw caused confusion to immediately spread through their minds.
Because no matter how they looked at it, no matter how they tried to understand it, the same question appeared within everyone’s head.
What the hell is that?
****