Although Azrael felt somewhat surprised by everything that had unfolded since finding Splint, he wasn't overly nervous.
So far, he maintained control of the situation. After all, he couldn't sense any Diamond-level demons among the opposing group.
Perhaps Ulquiorra and the others' unusual equipment would pose challenges, but could they truly be more formidable than Lust?
Previously, Azrael had managed to cripple that Diamond-level demon with just Ulquiorra and Artoria, though admittedly, much of that success stemmed from Lust's carelessness and being struck head-on by a fully charged Excalibur blast.
Now Azrael and his companions faced not only the distraught swordsman but also the young woman who had just spoken, plus four additional demons.
Azrael and Pierre exchanged glances, quickly determining their opponents.
Azrael would face Marve, the young woman, and an elegantly dressed man.
However, the swordsman appeared deeply shaken by recent events, diminishing Azrael's desire for combat.
"Marve, this is no time for melancholy. Hurry and assist," the woman said coldly.
Hearing her words, Marve shuddered. "Kaela, I..."
Before he could finish, the woman raised her hand, silencing him. "Stop talking nonsense. I've wondered about your strange behavior. I've given you countless chances, yet you remain hesitant."
"I thought you were disgusted with my body, but now..."
"Hehe," Kaela concluded with a sneer.
The elegantly dressed man beside them showed no interest in their complicated relationship. Instead, he fixed Azrael with a cold stare. "You were the one who killed Jhon and the others earlier, weren't you?"
Though phrased as a question, the man's tone carried absolute certainty.
Who is Jhon?
That was Azrael's first thought, though he suppressed his curiosity rather than pursuing it. He assumed this Jhon was likely the demon Ulquiorra and the others had casually eliminated outside the secret realm.
Seeing Azrael remain silent, the elegantly dressed man narrowed his eyes. A jet-black beam, identical to the one that had previously annihilated Splint, suddenly blasted down from the sky toward Azrael.
But such an attack could never strike the young man. He simply stomped the ground and instantly vacated his position.
Swish,
In a split second, a charred crater two men wide appeared where Azrael had stood.
He frowned slightly, glancing skyward. Tsk...
Can't sense it? In the stratosphere?
After witnessing these two attacks, he could roughly determine that his opponent was using an energy weapon launched into orbit.
However, considering this secret realm lacked a proper starry sky, the opponent's weapon could only exist within the atmosphere.
Judging by his current inability to sense it, the weapon hovered at least above the stratosphere.
If that's the case, we need to deal with him first, Azrael thought as Ulquiorra and the other two prepared to attack.
Seeing this, Kaela said mockingly, "Human Emperor, I don't share as many concerns as Marve does."
Without even glancing at the elegantly robed man, her back split open, revealing a spine resembling a dragon's. A blood-colored mist suddenly spread from the grotesque opening.
Before seeing the woman's true form, Azrael had assumed the swordsman's disdain for her stemmed from promiscuity, but now he understood what she meant by "dirty body."
By then, Ulquiorra and the others had already reached the three demons. Faced with the sudden blood mist, Artoria simply tightened her grip on the holy sword.
The next moment, a raging wind exploded from the blade.
However, contrary to Azrael's expectations, the blood mist didn't dissipate. Instead, the elegantly dressed man was crushed into rotting flesh by the Wind King's Hammer.
"What?" Azrael gasped in surprise. "So fragile?"
He hadn't expected the demon to be so weak, unable to withstand even the Wind King's Hammer. Logically, since he stood alongside Marve, he shouldn't have been this pathetic.
However, Kaela remained expressionless at the man's death, as if she'd anticipated this outcome. She simply spat with disdain, "You lack the heart for martial arts."
With that, the woman fell silent.
As her voice faded, a figure identical to the previous man flew rapidly from the distant horizon.
Azrael muttered to himself, "Clone? Uploaded consciousness?"
If Marve and the trio he'd encountered earlier had some connection to martial arts, this elegantly robed man was a complete technological phenomenon.
That's actually beneficial, though. This eliminates the threat posed by his original body, the thought flashed through Azrael's mind.
The battle remained unaffected by the Human Emperor's resurrection. Although Marve's Dao heart teetered on collapse, his life was at stake. He patted the sword case behind him, summoning the mecha Azrael had seen before.
However, this mecha had completely transformed since their last encounter.
Azrael was slightly startled seeing seven floating sword pods hovering behind the giant robot.
Fortunately, Ulquiorra wasn't fighting alone. Without hesitation, he activated his Second Release. Terrifying black-green spiritual pressure instantly dispersed the surrounding clouds.
Just as he prepared to confront Marve, someone blocked his path.
It was the Human Emperor.
"I, "
Bang!
The elegantly dressed man was about to speak when a flash of lightning pierced his chest, creating a massive hole.
He stared blankly at the gaping wound before collapsing.
Moments later, the Human Emperor flew back again.
This time, he offered no words but launched a direct attack.
Sensing the jet-black beam blazing from the sky, Ulquiorra expressionlessly used Sonído to evade.
"A pointless attack! How could someone like you be associated with them?"
Hearing Ulquiorra's slightly bewildered words, the Human Emperor's expression darkened. The reason he'd once been mentioned in the same breath as Marve and the others was entirely due to this set of imperial martial arts armor passed down through generations.
After all, rather than trusting the wildly unstable martial arts talents of descendants, it was better to place faith in martial arts armor that remained unchanged for millennia.
And as it happened, their royal family possessed such a set of martial arts armor requiring virtually no talent to activate, powered by biomass energy supplemented by internal energy.
Not expecting an answer, Ulquiorra casually fired another Cero, once again ending his opponent's life.
After a moment's reflection, he suddenly flew toward the sky. If possible, it would be best to destroy the opponent's weapon first. Otherwise, the constant interference was becoming quite irritating.
Elsewhere, Retsu Unohana and Artoria had already engaged Marve and Kaela, respectively.
Looking at the petite black-haired woman before him, Marve finally perked up slightly. "That Gavin guy died at your hands, right?"
"I didn't expect there were pure swordsmen like you in the outside world."
"So, are you going to use that strange ability to drag me into that space next?"
Retsu Unohana, upon hearing this, simply stared blankly at the massive mecha before her. She wasn't prepared to trap him in her Bankai's blood dimension. After all, in that terrain, the mecha's size actually provided advantages.
On open ground, she could still use her agility to maneuver around the enemy.
Seeing the woman didn't respond, Marve's lips curled in disappointment, and the sword pods behind him instantly began to dance.
Unohana's expression remained unmoved as she watched the massive swords slash down. Bang!
As the seven sword pods descended, the ground began to tremble.
Knowing his attacks had missed their targets, Marve remained unfazed. He hadn't expected a single strike to succeed.
"Combine! Star Pivot Sword Skeleton!"
With the swordsman's roar, the seven sword pods embedded in the ground suddenly flashed with golden light, merging into a longsword that could obscure the heavens.
Clang,
With the sound of swords soaring skyward, a chasm was instantly torn through the earth.
Watching the longsword coming toward her again, Unohana only tightened her grip slightly.
The next moment, the shadow of a majestic building flashed behind her.
It was Azrael's Venue Card, [Seireitei].
[Soul's Refuge]: When a non-spiritual demon is slain, a wisp of its soul is drawn from its death, which can be used to enhance Death-type cards.
It had absorbed countless souls since its creation.
If Azrael had to describe it, this ability had reached 100% capacity.
Infused with the Venue Card's power, Unohana's aura suddenly surged. Tangible murderous intent instantly permeated everyone's minds.
Marve, sniffing the faint scent of blood lingering in his nostrils, couldn't help but frown. "What is this?!"
Forgive his limited vision, this was the first time he had seen such an ability in this world. Clearly, no one in Ande City had ever possessed a Venue Card before.
At least not Yale and the other two Emerald-level Lore Cardians, otherwise he wouldn't have been so bewildered.
Compared to Marve's confusion, Pierre was left with only shock.
He could clearly see that aside from one being cannon fodder, the other two demons Azrael faced were significantly stronger than his own three opponents.
However, considering Azrael's previous displays of strength, Pierre decided to follow his lead.
He hadn't expected the young man to possess a Venue Card.
Of course, the Venue Card alone wouldn't have shocked him so much. What truly captured his attention was the terrifying aura enhanced by [Seireitei].
What's this?
Half-step to Diamond?
Pierre thought to himself.
In the arena, Unohana felt the slashing currents against her face, calmly colliding her long blade with Marve's Star Pivot Sword.
At this moment, extremes contrasted sharply, yet only Marve knew what he was truly facing.
Feeling the sudden surge of power from the Star Pivot Sword, he roared, "Open!"
With his roar, razor-sharp pressure instantly spread from the point of conflict between the two contrasting weapons.
Amidst the creaking symphony of metal, the ground crumbled, revealing perfectly smooth cuts.
Seeing this, the black-haired woman retreated, abandoning the pointless struggle.
Sensing sudden lightness on the sword's blade, Marve frowned and immediately brought the Star Pivot Sword Skeleton before him, shielding the mecha.
Swish,
A tiny crack appeared on the massive blade of the Star Pivot Sword Skeleton.
Inside the cockpit, Marve couldn't help but groan, stilling his trembling right hand. "If even ancient warriors possess this ability, what's the point of martial arts armor?!"
Although he knew they weren't from the same world and couldn't be generalized, he still momentarily doubted the accuracy of recorded information.
After all, compared to the monstrous swordswoman outside, he seemed like a joke.
He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. "Good. This is interesting."
Unaware of the swordsman's complex thoughts, Unohana remained impassive as she unleashed one slash after another.
As the two clashed, Artoria was nearly finished with Kaela.
However, compared to the slightly tense situation nearby, the battle on her side was completely one-sided.
This was primarily due to Kaela's inferiority to Marve.
Unohana was supposed to face the female demon while Artoria dealt with Marve. However, considering her opponent's nature, Artoria chose to take the initiative and confront Kaela.
After the Battle of Camlann, the Perfect King finally emerged from her completely rational state. Coupled with Azrael's daily care and affection, the blonde girl sought to understand the human heart.
She still harbored resentment over Sir Tristan's remark that "King Arthur doesn't understand the human heart."
Kaela, with a sullen expression, swung her right claw to block the incoming sword. As the battle with Artoria dragged on, she became increasingly unrecognizable.
Her once graceful figure now took on a terrifying grotesque form, twisted animal limbs fused in paradoxical yet seamless harmony.
After the arrival of martial arts armor, this world's Xingyiquan had already lurched toward the grotesque.
After all, rather than simply imitating animals, with the aid of biological martial arts armor, warriors could directly possess animal limbs.
At this moment, Kaela sensed a terrifying aura emanating from Marve's direction, and crimson poisonous mist suddenly erupted from her body, forcing Artoria back.
Even after forcing the blonde girl back, she remained on high alert, remembering the beam attack unleashed at the entrance.
Unbeknownst to her, Artoria couldn't unleash her holy sword continuously within a short period, and not even a day had passed since the previous battle.
Just as Kaela was about to signal Marve for a retreat, her expression suddenly changed.
The next moment, a spiritual spear descended from the sky, piercing her body.
Following closely behind, flame-encrusted mechanical constructs of all sizes plummeted from the sky to the ground.
It was Ulquiorra.
He had eliminated the Human Emperor's weapon.
Azrael had anticipated this outcome. Fortunately, it's only Emerald-level, located at the stratosphere's peak. Considering the Lanza del Relámpago's range, it's barely within reach.
By this time, the Human Emperor's face was already utterly dejected. Although he tried his best to prevent the enemy from destroying his weapon, he ultimately failed.
"The foundation of an eternity has been destroyed by my hands."
In response, Azrael sneered, "From the moment you became dogs, what foundation could you even speak of?"
Hearing his words, the demons present looked at each other with varying expressions.