After taking the humanoid void creature's first attack, Alex didn't counter immediately. 'There are too many of these monsters to let loose,' he thought, giving the crowd a quick glance.
As he considered his next move, he felt his body respond—his cells seemed to surge with energy, and his vortexes spun faster than usual, boosting his strength to match the power he'd just encountered.
Even while deep in thought, his attention never wavered from the boss monster. 'Let's deal with them first,' Alex decided, summoning a spear from his light ability and settling into a fighting stance.
The void creature, readying itself for the fight of its life, understood its opponent. Its earlier attack had been a test—a way to gauge Alex's strength. The result? It deemed him manageable.
In the blink of an eye, Alex vanished, reappearing right in front of the creature. His speed was so incredible that it seemed like he had teleported, crossing millions of kilometres in an instant.
With his spear poised to strike, he lunged at the void creature. Despite being caught off guard by his explosive speed, the creature managed to react just in time, having sensed the precise moment Alex moved.
The void creature narrowly dodged Alex's lunge, shifting aside with great effort. Seizing the opportunity, it unleashed another powerful attack aimed directly at him.
But Alex had anticipated this. As the creature struck, he twisted his body mid-void, bringing his spear up defensively.
*BOOOOOOM!*
The impact was immense, sending Alex hurtling through the void, straight toward the swarm of other void creatures.
This time, however, the force of the blow didn't rattle him as it had earlier—it only stung slightly. His body had already adjusted, pushing itself to match the creature's strength.
Moments later, Alex found himself amidst the mass of void creatures. Most of them remained immobilized by his aura, unable to act.
Wasting no time, Alex used the momentum from the attack to his advantage. Locking onto the swarm with his senses, he conjured millions of spikes, blanketing the void across millions of kilometres.
The energy he used for this massive attack? Barely 10 per cent of his reserves. With a sudden halt, Alex floated in place, controlling the spikes with precision. His gaze remained fixed on the boss creature, his lips curling into a mocking smirk.
The void creature quickly realized it had been baited into attacking the way it had. But ultimately, it didn't matter.
Its minions were as good as gone, and their numbers could always be replenished. For now, though, it was powerless to change their fate.
Blazing with killing intent, the S Tier void creature watched as Alex mercilessly annihilated its minions.
From the weakest Class Ds to the mightiest Class As, none were spared as each one was impaled or sliced apart with brutal efficiency.
Their anguished screams echoed through the void as they struggled in vain to heal, but regeneration was futile against weapons forged from void energy.
"Well then," Alex said, twirling his spear briefly before letting it dissolve into shimmering particles of light. "Now that the weaklings are out of the way, why don't we have some fun?"
He cracked his knuckles and tilted his neck side to side, loosening up for what he knew would be the real battle.
Using his spear would make things end far too quickly, and that wasn't what he wanted. He already knew where he stood over Class A void creatures. Now it was time to test himself against a Class S.
...........
Alex hadn't realized just how much he had changed over the months. His body had been evolving constantly, growing stronger with every bit of energy it absorbed.
At first, he and the void creature seemed evenly matched as they exchanged rapid blows, each strike unleashing devastating shockwaves that tore through the void and obliterated everything in their path.
But as the fight wore on, Alex noticed a shift. The creature's attacks seemed to weaken—or rather, he was becoming stronger. His vortexes continued to spin tirelessly, drawing in energy to fuel his body.
Even when the creature resorted to a breath attack, spewing its poisonous gas, it barely affected him. The few times he took damage, his body healed almost instantly—except for his armour.
"What a letdown," Alex muttered, his voice tinged with disappointment. "Have I really grown this strong?"
Toying with the void creature, he tore its limbs apart before finally ending its misery with a swift strike.
Perhaps he really had become that powerful. Perhaps void creatures no longer posed a threat to him.
But that was just him. The rest of humanity remained vulnerable.
"I shouldn't think like this," Alex thought, his expression darkening as he recalled the vision he had seen during the cosmic mana wave.
"There are still monsters among monsters in the origin domain. Compared to that creature…" His thoughts trailed off, leaving him with a grim look.
"Let's clean up and head home," Alex thought, pushing his earlier concerns to the back of his mind as he stepped out of the veiled space.
To his surprise, he noticed a fleet of ships in the distance and several familiar faces among the fallen void creatures—James, Lucas, and the Class S hunters.
He heard James call his name in shock, a reaction that made sense given he had been gone for years.
In an instant, Alex appeared before them, his speed so swift that they didn't even see him move. Their reactions were far too slow to catch up.
But the greeting he expected—a warm expression of joy—was nowhere to be found. 'What's with them?' Alex thought, noticing the grim looks on their faces. They were struggling, even the two Class S heroes he had only ever seen on screen.
"A-Alex…" James stammered, barely managing to speak as exhaustion painted his face. He was clearly on the edge of collapsing. "Y-you're killing us!"
Alex froze, realization hitting him. "Oh!" He immediately pulled back his aura.
'Shit. I forgot to hold it in. It would've been a disaster if I'd shown up like this on Earth.' He mentally chastised himself, making a note to always keep his aura contained from now on.