To Han Shuo, Salas was not just a powerful opponent, but also the key to making a breakthrough in his cultivation. Han Shuo was determined to fight with all his strength until the end, for no matter how it ended, Han Shuo would have something to gain. Even if Han Shuo lost the battle, he would gain first-hand experience of the strength of an overgod, potentially make gains in demonic arts, and even become famous in the Fringe. Soon, every Fringedweller would learn that another existence in the Fringe could contend against Salas.
There was nothing for an underdog to lose in challenging the top dog, as long as the former survived!
With both hands, Han Shuo grabbed onto the air around him and transformed the killing intent that shrouded him into two dragons. They charged ferociously at Salas who was descending from the sky. With one thought of his consciousness, the Cauldron of Myriad Demon and the seventeen flying swords stopped attacking the fleeing weak gods and flew back to him. Han Shuo was placing all his firepower on Salas.
Salas became enveloped with brilliant and dazzling lightning bolts that contained a terrifying amount of energy. Bright flashes shot downwards at the dark dragons Han Shuo made using killing intent. The frightening rumbles produced caused the Empyrean Peak to rumble.
Those surviving followers of Salas ran to the mountain foot to avoid getting injured or killed by the stray energies produced in the duel between the two experts of extraordinary strengths. They gazed up at the Empyrean Peak which had now become Han Shuo and Salas’ battle arena.
Now that Han Shuo had finally exchanged blows with Salas, he was awed by the terrifying power possessed by an overgod. Even though he had borrowed all of Cauldron Spirit’s energy, aided by the deadly seventeen flying swords, and used all his power, he was still nowhere close to being on top.
Salas’ understanding and mastery of the element of lightning had reached an inexplicably profound realm. His divine body was covered with the element of lightning and every attack he made would carry a boundless amount of lightning energy. The dark dragons that Han Shuo made by congealing killing intent immediately dissipated after they were struck by several hundred thunderbolts simultaneously.
The Empyrean Peak, being the place where Salas spent most of his time, had a higher concentration of the element of lightning than any other place in the Fringe. As there were more elements of lightning in the environment that Salas could utilize, when on the Mountain, his strength would be much greater than when he was elsewhere.
If it wasn’t for the fact that Han Shuo’s demonic body was so resilient; if Han Shuo wasn’t supported by Cauldron Spirit’s energy, there was no way that Han Shuo could last so long against the constant bombardment of thunder and lightning. Han Shuo had been trying to surround Salas with his seventeen flying swords. However, the Salas’ lightning energy would always manage to strike on the flying swords with great precision and disrupt their trajectory. Han Shuo was thus unable to form the Avici Godslaying Sword Formation.
Han Shuo’s eyes remained dark red. Threads of faint, dark demonic aura were emanating from his majestic and muscular naked body. His avatar of destruction had transformed into Demonslayer Edge and was being held in his right hand to fight Salas.
Salas unfolded his domain of divinity. Tens of thousands of tiny lightning bolts started to drizzle from the sky as the Empyrean Peak became filled with meshes made of electricity. Every now and then, Han Shuo would inevitably bump into one of those meshes and the lightning energy would make its way into his body.
Luckily for Han Shuo, his hybrid domain of divinity was also pretty powerful. It was rapidly gathering the element of death nearby and used the element of death and edict of destruction to counteract Salas’ domain of divinity. It gave Han Shuo some breathing room.
As the battle progressed, Han Shuo realized that he would have a very difficult time even if he used his full strength. Moreover, Han Shuo had a vague feeling that Salas had yet to use his full power. This kept Han Shuo wary. He tried to be prepared for an even heavier assault from Salas.
The battle went on. Soon, Salas got impatient.
Salas suddenly let out a roar. Somehow, the tiny lightning bolts drizzling in his domain of divinity became several times thicker. World-shaking rumbles sounded in his domain of divinity.
Even Salas himself seemed to have gained access to unfathomable energy in a split second. Before Salas had used his full strength, Han Shuo was only barely able to defend himself. But now, Han Shuo found himself in grave peril.
***
Many light-years away from Elysium were several mid-level material planes. Every sentient lifeform on those material planes worshipped Salas as their one and only God. Salas would receive a constant supply of the power of faith from his followers every second of every day.
These mid-level material planes were erected with countless statues of Salas and shrines where his believers would worship him ceaselessly. Some of those pious believers possessed demigod or even basegod strengths. They would make pilgrimages to many other material planes to spread Salas’ gospel and recruit even more followers for Him.
But at this moment, without any warning, every living being on those mid-level material planes had blood squirting from their orifices as their souls disintegrated. The power of faith that was juiced out from their souls traversed across material planes and entered Salas’ body on Elysium.
In just moments, several thriving material planes were transformed into lifeless worlds. Billions of lives on those material planes used to piously worshipped Salas as their only God but all that they got in return was to be exterminated – by the one they so worshipped.
***
Back on Elysium, Salas’ strength was temporarily boosted. His Domain of Divinity had squeezed and overpowered Han Shuo’s. World-shaking lightning bolts with the volume of hills struck Han Shuo. The power was so great that even Han Shuo’s Omen Invincible Body could not fully bear it. His skin and flesh started to split and he started bleeding.
Omen Invincible Body could only bear a limited amount of energy. When the attacking energy exceeded its limit, Omen Invincible Body would fail to stop all damages from reaching Han Shuo’s body.
In just a fraction of a second, Han Shuo suffered serious injuries and he was knocked out!
“Master! Wake up! Wake up!” shouted Cauldron Spirit loudly in Han Shuo’s mind that was half-conscious.
The muddleheaded Han Shuo rapidly regained consciousness. In the next instance, he sensed the immense pain screaming from all over his body. Ever since he mastered Omen Invincible Body, Han Shuo had not felt pain of such intensity. Somehow, Han Shuo got a kick out of it.
Han Shuo raised his head and saw that the entire sky of Empyrean Peak was filled with lightning bolts. They seemed to have filled the space between heaven and earth, pouring down like heavy rain.
Salas was gazing coldly at the heavily injured Han Shuo below him. From the look on his face, it seemed that he would not allow Han Shuo any chance of surviving past this day.
Thunder continued to sound and lightning continued to strike. Somehow, Han Shuo’s consciousness was being pulled towards a dazzled state. He had a strange and vague feeling something major was going to happen.
Han Shuo’s mind suddenly became absolutely calm and he was inexplicably enlightened. He felt as though his eyes could see beyond the flow of space and time. In the timeless transic state, he seemed to see Elysium during its creation…
As Han Shuo calmly observed the empty world, all kinds of brilliant ideas and understanding materialized in his mind. All kinds of cryptic and abstruse chants turned into light and engraved themselves into his consciousness. He saw the Beginning when there was nothingness, when the universe was an infinitesimally small point…
Salas, hovering high in the sky, saw that Han Shuo was severely injured. He was ready to give Han Shuo the final blow.
It was at this moment that Salas discovered he had abruptly lost connection with the elements of lightning all around him. That thunder and lightning rumbling in the sky was no longer under his control and they started wreaking havoc to the Empyrean Peak and the rest of the Mountain.
Salas’ followers who were watching the battle from the mountain foot were caught off guard. Many of them were struck by the uncontrolled lightning strikes. Without the awesome defensive power of Han Shuo’s demonic body, they instantly perished.
Suddenly, the Eight Elemental Energies – Light, Darkness, Earth, Fire, Wind, Water, Lightning, Death from the entire world started converging towards the Mountain. Even killing intent, energy of perished souls, energy of fear, and all kinds of energies from all over the world was gushing towards the Empyrean Peak as though drawn by something.
It seemed as though the energy was not being controlled by any being, but was naturally drawn there by the most fundamental forces of the universe. Upon assembling on the Empyrean Peak, that energy started attacking every living thing and destroying every structure on the Mountain.
Those boundaries and energy towers that Han Shuo did not destroy suddenly shattered and exploded. Salas’ followers at the mountain foot were screaming and wailing as the Eight Elemental Energies and other bizarre energies bombarded them. A hundred or more experts perished in an instant, while many more were severely injured.
“Master, the Omen Calamity has come! Ignore Salas. Focus all you’ve got in resisting the Calamity!” shouted Cauldron Spirit. However, Han Shuo could not hear a thing at this moment. He was still in a trance, receiving the profound wisdom flowing into his consciousness.
Without warning, an asteroid came out of nowhere and slammed Han Shuo into the solid rock of Empyrean Peak. It was then that Han Shuo suddenly came to himself. He immediately noticed the enormous transformation around Empyrean Peak. All kinds of energies gathered and were devastating the Mountain. Those energies were still rapidly accumulating to form an apocalyptic attack.
And he was the target of this final attack!
Han Shuo could clearly sense that these energies, drawn by the most fundamental laws of the universe, had locked onto him. When the channeling was complete, it would crash down with insurmountable power to annihilate him along with the Empyrean Peak.
Han Shuo also got the feeling that he could not run from these energies, that they would find him no matter how far he ran. His only choice was to face it head-on.
If he didn’t survive the Calamity, his consciousness would be annihilated and Han Shuo or Bryan would cease to exist in this world.
If he survived, he would break through Omen Realm and reach Skybreak Realm. His strength would soar and the Fringe would be his for the taking!
