Chapter 2031 - 2031. Favor
Axia found herself sucked away from the sky. An immense pulling force that she couldn't oppose led her inside a huge dark area that didn't seem to have borders or limits. She couldn't sense the end of that blackness even after she expanded her consciousness.
The liquid stage cultivator didn't panic. She knew exactly what had happened to her, but the recent breakthroughs made her unclear about her situation.
Shafu had eaten her, sending her inside its separate space. Axia knew that Noah had created the dragon to transport immense regions and packs to the black landmass, so she didn't worry about her situation. In theory, her surroundings were only a different environment, but her instincts told her that Noah decided to put her there for a specific reason.
"Come out already!" Axia shouted. "You won't be able to take me by surprise even if you have prepared this environment for our battle."
"You are right," Noah announced as his figure materialized among the blackness of the separate space. "Shafu isn't strong enough to create something capable of blocking your senses, but he isn't alone."
Snore, Night, and Duanlong materialized next to Noah as he raised the Cursed Sword and the sword-shaped roots above his head. He seemed ready to launch another powerful offensive, but Axia didn't fear it. She had already confirmed that she could survive it.
However, the dark world suddenly expanded from Noah's figure and fused with the blackness around him. Shafu's separate space and Noah's technique mixed to create a stronger version of both of them. Axia saw her consciousness shrinking and her body growing sluggish as her surroundings applied an unfathomable pressure to her world.
Axia finally understood the reason behind her faint worry, and she immediately turned to escape that situation. Yet, a massive pulling force suddenly fell on her body and slowed her down, allowing Noah to reach her in an instant.
The cultivator clapped her hands to release her invisible energy, but her dense current missed Noah and gave him the chance to slash his blades downward. Axia quickly discharged a shockwave that slammed on the massive slash flying toward her, but her attack was far weaker than usual, and Noah's blow ended up piercing it before falling on her figure.
Axia saw her body falling apart, but her world intervened to salvage part of her figure. She lost her legs and pieces of her torso, but her hands remained safe. Yet, she felt Noah's destruction invading the insides of her existence and preparing itself to blow up.
Axia used the second right after the exchange to resume her escape, but the pulling force hindered her again and made her unable to dodge the beam that flew in her direction. She had to turn and clap her hands to launch an attack, but her energy suddenly abandoned her body and left her defenseless against Snore's ability.
The cultivator couldn't salvage her body anymore. Her figure vanished and cracks spread on her world as many black lines expanded on its surface. Axia wanted to rebuild herself and resume her escape, but Night arrived on her and launched multiple black lines that opened deep cuts in her core.
Axa's world leaked energy that Noah didn't hesitate to absorb, but the process didn't slow down his offensive. He landed on her invisible mass of energy and stabbed the sword-shaped roots inside one of the cracks before activating the parasite's innate ability.
The parasite grew as purple liquid left its fabric. Flowers appeared and wilted as they left seeds that generated multiple branches right inside that powerful world. Axia was strong enough to suppress the plant's abilities, but Noah didn't let it fight on its own.
A high-pitched noise spread inside the blackness, and the properties of that unique environment enhanced the sound's power, forcing Axia to lose control of part of her world. The Cursed Sword then descended and forced the entirety of its bloodlust to fall on the liquid stage cultivator.
Dark-red shades spread from the vast cut opened by the Cursed Sword. The bloodlust acted as a poison that made Axia unable to think clearly and handle the dark-purple liquid filling her very existence. The cultivator tried to muster the entirety of her control to stabilize her condition, but a massive amount of her energy suddenly disappeared and left her defenseless against Night.
Axia almost forgot how she had ended up in that terrible situation. She was the weapon master. Her world had countless meanings, and many of them had the power to counter Noah's companions.
Nevertheless, Noah's companions were almost as strong as liquid stage cultivators in their current state, and their offensive showed no flaws. They wouldn't be able to handle Axia's attacks on their own, but the special environment and their teamwork gave birth to a barrage of abilities that left the cultivator no chance to react.
Axia felt overwhelmed by the incredible abilities that damaged her world. She couldn't move, summon energy, or even attempt to escape in that situation. Noah had an answer to everything she tried to launch, and understanding dawned upon her mind.
Axia wasn't weaker than Noah. Her power actually surpassed his even after his companions reached the ninth rank, but she lost in terms of purity.
Noah's existence had fewer aspects, but they were far stronger than Axia's individual true meanings. She could fuse them to create attacks capable of expressing countless features, but those many powers lost against the joint offensive of Noah's companions now that they could deploy their might to the fullest.
The situation would have been different in the sky. Axia would have been able to stand her ground against that incredible offensive, but Shafu's insides advantaged Noah in ways that she didn't predict. Her abilities had become too weak after the separate space fused with the dark world, while her opponent had only grown stronger there.
Noah was fighting against time due to the massive amount of ambition deployed during the battle, but Axia knew that he wouldn't show any opening. Noah was ruthless, especially toward himself. He would never risk giving his opponent a chance in the hope of weakening his drawbacks. He would deploy the entirety of his power until he turned Axia into a lifeless mass of energy and deal with the consequences of his reckless actions later.
Axia could make it hard for Noah. Her death was inevitable, but she could worsen his condition before the arrival of the drawbacks. Duanlong absorbed her energy before she could summon any attack, but she could still decide to detonate herself. The dragon wouldn't be able to seize all the fuel in her world in time to stop the explosion.
However, Axia wasn't one of the ordinary cultivators in Heaven and Earth's system. She had managed to escape the rulers' complete control for countless years, and she felt no attachment toward them. She had joined the sky out of necessity, but she remained independent in her mind.
Axia found no reason to do Heaven and Earth a favor. She even blamed them a little for her defeat. Of course, she was only trying to justify herself now that death drew close, but that ended up benefitting Noah. The mighty privileged cultivator let herself die without causing any problem.
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Author's notes: I've thought a lot about my current schedule lately. I can handle publishing so much each day, but that only if I cut away everything else from my life, so I've decided to establish Saturday and Sunday as partial breaks. I will publish 1 chapter for Chaos' Heir and 2 for Demonic Sword those days to fix eventual delays accumulated during the week, rest, or enjoy my life a little. I hope you can understand my position.. In short, I'll publish another chapter today, two tomorrow, and go back to three afterward.