While Anharya and his five-hundred elites, Dasra and Mishri prepared to leave their bases to investigate the origin of the structure change, thousands of light beams erupted from the Jade Dynasty and crossed the sky to descend upon them!
Their eyes rose and as the light dispersed, they were startled to see a legion of five-thousand beauties dressed in three-winged bronze armors at the helm of which eight with silver armors stood. Those five-thousand women appeared like an organized division forming five distinct lines of female soldiers.
Five lines breathing discipline.
But while the cultivation of this force failed to trigger any awe within the demons, within the devas, it was another story. Aakash, in particular, felt as if a nightmare had descended from heaven's vault to obliterate his good mood.
"Five thousand with three pairs of wings, eight with four. Tarnation, they had that much left?"
He asked out loud with glaring fright. The reminder of his collision with the Valkyrie Armors was as garish as it was frightful. A horrid, fresh disaster he couldn't shake from his mind! Though more composed, Nehal was no better. And even Dasra had to admit he'd not expected them to possess an entire legion of such cloth. Although the lower quantity of wings heralded weaker strength, those armors couldn't be underestimated!
And considering the timing of their appearance, it didn't take a genius to realize that the world-structure's change was the doing of the Jade-Dynasty! But as if to further antagonize them, two light beams stretched across the sky to land before them all.
Astarte and Zamira. But while Zamira's silver armor further soured the leading Deva's moods, when they lay eyes on Astarte's garb, their eyes almost popped out of their socket!
"No…no…NOOOO!!!"
Aakash sobbed in a fit of outrage while Nehal trembled and a glower twisted Dasra's eyes. For around Astarte, it wasn't a silver armor that lay, but a six-winged, dark purple armor rippling with massive malevolent energies.
Konrad's Might Reversal Armor!
In order to cope with unexpected occurrences, and allow his plan to go without a hitch, Konrad temporarily bestowed his Might Reversal Armor onto Astarte. Never did she expect she'd have to don it so soon.
And to say nothing of the devas, even the likes of Jasmine were startled upon seeing Konrad's Armor on Astarte's curves. Still, Anharya remained undaunted. But with the Valkyries' pressures crashing on his troops, he realized the purpose of their "visit."
"Interesting. When I have yet to knock on your door and demand your heads, you show up on mine? Life in this world must be crushingly dull for you to so brazenly court death. But that's fine, we can oblige!
Bring me their heads!"
Anharya ordered, causing his demonic legions to rise in the sky and shoot at the five thousand Valkyries. The leading ladies' lips curled into smiles, and as their Valkyrie Mark flared, bright red flamed erupted from their forms.
"Valkyrie Surge!"
As if connected in one mind, they all roared in tandem, causing the same red flames to cover the entirety of their forces and their individual strength to overlap in an organic whole. But that was merely the beginning!
"Valkyrie Merge!"
They promptly followed, and devas and demon alike were startled to see that within the burning red sky, the five-thousand Valkyries combined in a ball of crimson flames!
*BOOOM*
From that ball, a massive energy wave burst, and sent the incoming demonic troops spiraling backward! Now, Anharya frowned, but when the crimson flames dispersed, he was astounded by the sight of one riveting beauty dressed in that same purple armor whose features seemed to embody the best in the legion!
The Valkyrie's windblown, multicolor hairs swayed while her similarly painted eyes locked on the demonic troops!
She stretched out her right hand, causing a purple longsword to appear within. The sword drew a dazzling arc, releasing a three-hundred meters wide purple half-moon that slammed right into the demonic legions, and killed one hundred in a single blow!
Rage and indignation blazed within Anharya's eyes as he shot into the sky to stand between his forces and that new creature!
"Who the hell are you?!"
He snarled with soaring rancor. One move! In one move he'd lost more soldiers than in his three days clash with the devas! And it was all due to his underestimation of the foe!
"How queer, you want my head, but don't even know my identity? What a joke."
A strange chorus of perfectly synched voices thundered within the sky as the Valkyrie's lips parted. As the words boomed within his ears, Anharya felt his cheeks redden.
"I am The Valkyrie. The Jade Emperor's consort, here to reward your conceit with unrestrained destruction."
The Valkyrie exclaimed, and stretched out her hands, causing a purple-sphere to entrap Celestial and Infernal Forces alike! Now, even if they wished to let the two clash and reap benefits, the Devas couldn't see such a plan through.
Still, even before Konrad's armor, Dasra wasn't perturbed. This time, he'd come prepared. In fact, if he knew what he faced in their previous confrontation, he didn't believe he would end up defeated. But as he rose with his brother to engage The Valkyrie, a deeper worry trotted within his mind.
"Where is he?"
The armor was present, but the man wasn't. Dasra couldn't help but feel a strange sense of foreboding spread within his heart. Alas, that question wouldn't find an answer, and as The Valkyrie entrapped the two forces in a deadly clash that would stretch across years, within the Ancient Crystal World's Inner Core, Konrad's cultivation reached another stage.
The ethereal layer of fog shrouding access to the Fourth Layer broke, and as the overflowing death above saturated his chthonian flesh and soul, Konrad broke through the fourth layer of the Blossoming Death Art.
And the problems began, because as soon as he broke through, the black gate within Konrad's mind opened, pulling him into a realm of eternal darkness where a faceless figure stood with a long black robe and cloak:
Death Incarnate!
With his eyes shut, Konrad stepped forward, landing before Death, his Death without an ounce of fear.
Meanwhile, within a distant realm, the System's True Owner stood with Cloud, Night, and the Happiness God beside him. His inscrutable eyes ignored all within the Three Realms to lock on Konrad that now stood on the threshold of Death Transcendence.
"Success or failure? Let's take bets."
