Kyle released a deep breath as his mind returned to the calm pool of water. His arm had already recovered by now.
"I assume I won?" he asked with a smile.
There was no answer.
Protector Ziccan was calm and collected.
General Regalia felt her heart rate increase a bit. She had already heard about Kyle's powers from Protector Ziccan, but seeing them herself was still a different experience.
Overlord Cloudhorn's eyes were opened wide in focus. With the constant comparisons, he had put himself into a headspace that constantly simulated battles between him and Kyle. When Overlord Cloudhorn had seen the absolute violence, hatred, and power of that punch, his mind had screamed danger at him. Obviously, Kyle would be helpless in front of Overlord Cloudhorn, but in this hypothetical battle between two Seekers on equal levels...
That punch would have been devastating. The sheer violence and conviction behind this punch had given it strength beyond its level. It was not much, at most 20%, but between two equal fighters, 20% was a lot.
Mental Rites were made to be calm, decisive, and controlled. Unrestrained violence didn't allow cooperation. Yet, if such profound aggression could be released and restrained at a whim, it could increase someone's power by great amounts.
Sadly, Humanity didn't have Mental Rites like that. Because of that, this unique power wasn't readily available and mostly unknown.
Senior Protector Blooddrought looked at Kyle in shock. She would have already been surprised if Kyle had just won the battle. After all, this would mean that he could compete with the strongest Sage in Humanity's history.
Yet, he didn't just win. He completely obliterated his opponent. The New Spirit Lord Fighter Demon had been like a punching bag to him.
If Black Sin hammer 37 could obliterate this Fighter Demon with such ease...
He could also obliterate the strongest Sage in Humanity's history with similar ease.
He had not just rivaled the most Legendary Sage. He had completely surpassed them.
Overlord Stygian looked at Kyle as a small glimmer appeared in his eyes. He had already seen through Kyle's true aura, and he had witnessed its monumentality.
None of the things Kyle had done before could rival the true aura Overlord Stygian had seen.
Until now.
This was the first sign, or spark, of the incandescent fire that was Kyle's true aura and Battle-Strength.
And yet...
'His true power is so much deeper,' Overlord Stygian thought.
"Is this what you wanted to show me?" Overlord Cloudhorn asked General Regalia in a neutral tone. Even though he had his voice under control, General Regalia could still hear the slightest sound of uncertainty in his voice.
"There are more challenges," General Regalia transmitted.
"I'm not sure Blooddrought was prepared for this," Overlord Cloudhorn transmitted. "I don't think anyone was prepared for this. Do you think she has prepared more challenges?"
"I told her to prepare as many challenges as she believes are necessary and then add three more," General Regalia answered. "There should be three more challenges, at least."
"Three more?" Overlord Cloudhorn asked with surprise. "He has already shown his powers. He has used all five of his Rites. I don't believe three more challenges are necessary."
"Have you not overlooked something crucial?" General Regalia asked.
"I'm not sure what you're referring to," Overlord Cloudhorn answered.
"His name is Black Sin Hammer 37. Think about his name for a moment," General Regalia transmitted.
An instant later, Overlord Cloudhorn's mind stopped working as his logic and experience clashed with each other.
No Sage could be stronger than what he had witnessed today. His experience told him that.
And yet...
Black Sin Hammer 37?
Overlord Cloudhorn felt a cold bucket of water dousing his body as he realized something.
Black Sin Hammer 37...
Hadn't even used his weapon yet.
While Overlord Cloudhorn and General Regalia talked, Kyle's companions also looked at him in shock.
One Level Five Law and four Level 5.5 Laws.
Even with access to all kinds of Law Wells, they weren't sure if they could build such an oppressive set of Complex Laws as Sages.
Kyle's power was all-encompassing. His body and Domain gave him tremendous defenses. His Momentum and Domain gave him control and adaptability of his surroundings and enemies. His Center granted him a deep well of resources and sustainability. His Law of Black Hole supported all aspects of battle with its multifaceted uses. Lastly, his offensive capabilities were overwhelming.
There were no weaknesses.
There were only strengths.
According to their calculations, experiences, and theories, Kyle could fight the strongest Legendary Sages in the Supreme World with all the powers he had shown.
And he hadn't even used his hammer.
"Announce the result," Overlord Stygian transmitted to Senior Protector Blooddrought.
Senior Protector Blooddrought's brows furrowed as she remembered her job. "Black Sin Hammer 37 wins."
Kyle's smile just widened a bit.
"Black Sin Hammer 37, do you intend to confront the next challenge?" she asked.
"Yes," Kyle answered.
"Very well," she announced as another Demon appeared below Kyle.
This time, it was not a Fighter Demon. Instead, it was a Demon that specialized in killing groups of weaker Seekers. It was over a hundred kilometers tall and covered in a thick and metallic exoskeleton. It had a Fire and Metal Affinity. Its Metal Affinity was fully focused on defense so that it could remain invincible in front of weaker enemies, while its Fire Affinity was fully focused on large and destructive attacks.
Lastly, it was not a New Spirit Lord Demon but an Early Spirit Lord Demon. Medium Spirit Lords would find this Demon easier to kill than most Demons, but Minor Spirit Lords would find it impossible to kill, even though they could fight other Early Spirit Lord Demons.
As an Early Spirit Lord Demon, the Demon's body was far stronger than Kyle's body, and it also focused all of its power on defense. Even with an equally strong body, getting through these humongous plates of armor would prove challenging.
Senior Protector Blooddrought had prepared this level to spite General Regalia. She hadn't believed that it was necessary to prepare more levels, and she had been a bit annoyed due to the heightened workload General Regalia's comments had given her.
As the onlookers saw Kyle's new opponent, they became sure of one thing.
The strongest Sage in history would not have any chance against this Demon.
It would be absolutely impossible to win.
"Are you ready?" Senior Protector Blooddrought asked, her voice a slight bit kinder than before due to some embarrassment. She had made this level unnecessarily difficult and unfair for Kyle.
"Yes," Kyle answered.
"Then, begin!" she announced, and the suppressing forces acting upon the Early Spirit Lord Demon vanished.
As soon as the Demon could move, it activated its destructive Domain, enveloping the world in a fiery inferno. As an Early Spirit Lord Demon, its Domain had the power of a Level 3.5 Law, and due to the two-level difference, its Domain had the power of a Level 4.5 Law when targeting Kyle.
In response, Kyle activated his own Domain, which rapidly pushed the Demon's Domain back. Since there was only one level of difference, the Demon could still benefit from its Domain, but it couldn't influence Kyle in any way.
Sadly for the Demon, it had a purely offensive Domain. It didn't grant it any benefits as long as it could only target the Demon. At most, it could increase its Energy recovery by a bit.
Yet, that didn't matter a lot as the Demon released its fiery Energy into the surroundings, bathing the world in fire once more.
Kyle's skin blackened under the effects of the fire, his Biological Energy dropping slowly but steadily. If the power of this attack were focused on him, he would have already died. Luckily, it targeted everything around it. Although if it were focused on Kyle, it might have missed.
As Kyle saw the Demon's thick and impenetrable armor, he smiled.
And for the first time in months...
Kyle pulled out his hammer.
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