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Chapter Begins:
The sealed form of Mang Jian's sword was a double-edged blade.
Despite its lack of extraordinariness, there was one thing that the Ad Infinitum noted instantly.
The silver blade had a black hilt. From this black hilt, thin, almost invisible, strands of blackness were crawling out, covering the entire blade.
Now, following Mang Jian's release command, the entire sword cracked along those strands. Silently, the sword began glowing with a pale white-blue light. It was like someone was carrying a white-flamed lamp, standing deep within the morning fog. A psychic hum pervaded the surroundings as if cicadas were buzzing in a distant land, imperceptible to the senses.
But soon, all the radiance and the humming that Mang Jian's sword carried receded, leaving behind utter blackness in his left hand.
Even if it was involuntary, Kai opened his mouth in shock.
Mere blackness wouldn't have been enough to shock him, though. After arriving in the Primordial Tower, there was nothing he hadn't seen, experienced, and triumphed over. He had even made deals with the Timelines and Deep Ones, fought against manifestations of Corruption, and manipulated Fate itself.
Yet, the sword Mang Jian now wielded truly shocked him.
"… Void…" Kai uttered, acutely sensing the blackness devouring all the radiance. "… You have experienced Null… How…"
The word itself revived a thousand-year-old memory in Kai's mind.
It was the time when Darcie had gone to the ghosts of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Sir Waite before joining Hogwarts for her Alchemy training.
In the end, Sir Arthur had asked Darcie if she knew what the true purpose of Alchemy was.
When Darcie had shaken her head in reply, he had told her Alchemy's ultimate purpose wasn't the creation of the Philosopher's Stone or Elixir of Life, but…
… it was to reach Null.
Null — The search for Nothing — The Ultimate Destination!
Null — where not only Death the Artificer, but most Deep Ones of His domain got their powers from!!
It was Null that had later made Kai choose the Purple King before the third stage of the Tournament of Worth as well.
So, for Kai to see Mang Jian wielding that elusive Concept, that even he had only heard of… was worthy of openly expressing his shock.
And as if that wasn't enough, the Notification flashing in front of Kai's eyes surely added weight to it.
…
[
Contestant Kai D. Stormborn
You are being affected by a Domain
Perception: -50%
]
…
Kai's vision instantly faltered.
All the data that the Ad Infinitum was gathering suddenly experienced... glitches.
Everything, from the perceivable Boggarts to all imperceptible concepts, including senses, was being distorted and sucked by the blade of Null in Mang Jian's hand.
After crossing the 2nd Threshold while fighting against Saber Alter in the Fate Bubble, Kai had begun acutely perceiving the three core primordial concepts on which the System functioned — Mana, Breath, and Life.
So, he could easily tell that all the Mana, Spirituality, and Natural Energy, which had been flowing effortlessly before, were now locked as well, as if something had frozen them.
Opposite Kai, Mang Jian noticed Kai recognizing the nature of his Shikai.
"Not bad," the Blind Executioner praised. "For you to name it, you must have quite high Proficiencies in Alchemy and Magic-based Abilities. You must also have already crossed the 2nd Threshold. No wonder. But… No. It's not Null… Not completely. Merely a hint."
A hint?! Kai thought, unable to take his eyes off the black blade. If a hint locked my Perception by 50%, then…
"As you are now," Mang Jian said, standing calmly at his place, "you have no chance of defeating Black Ghost. Show me the full extent of your strength. Let me see what it takes for a mere 9th Floor Contestant to win the Holy Grail War and join the Billion Club… Red."
Kai looked at Mang Jian, who refused to make a move.
If it were anyone else, he would have instantly named him a fool.
But Mang Jian was similar to him in this regard, Kai knew, remembering the intent the Blind Executioner's Reiatsu had carried.
They both were after the Peak.
And that was more information than Kai had gotten out of even Betty Shaw.
Mang Jian was one of the hundred Executioners of the 100 Zanpakuto School and had joined the Billion Club directly on the 11th Floor—after executing a 12th Floor Glitched Order's Contestant.
That's it.
No one knew anything about Mang Jian more than that.
Perhaps, there was nothing to know about him anyway...
Perhaps, he decided to get a Bounty one day and just… did.
So, even if Mang Jian was restricted to a strength that lingered between the 10th and 11th Floor in the Vault of Fear, he was still insanely stronger than a 12th Floor Contestant.
A small smile surfaced on Kai's lips, the golden armor on his body disappearing.
Simultaneously, a blackness surfaced on him as well, its black tendrils lashing out as they covered his entire body, leaving his face and hair in the open.
This was only the beginning, though.
Retrace —
Blood seeped out of Kai, pooling in a few-meter radius around him.
— On!
Beastly roars filled the entire Vault, making Mang Jian tilt his head.
But that tilt wasn't to listen to the beasts, but to sense the nature of Kai's trick.
"… A Reality Marble?" Mang Jian's brows raised. "That's an incredible feat, but… Not enough."
As if that was the cue, Buffs began piling up on Kai, the likes of which had never been possible without releasing Limitless Blood Firmament on the full scale.
…
— Strength: 62
— Agility: 50
— Stamina: 65
— Perception: 63
— Correspondence: 120
— Breath: 110
…
Petyr's Titan Buff. Murasame's Little War Horn. Kaiju's Buff. Deoxys' Normal Forme. Giant's Rage. Dragonair's Dragon Dance. Hogwarts Uniform Set.
All combined with the boost given by Venom.
…
— Strength: 137 [+30%, +5, +7, +25, +10, +7, +3]
— Agility: 86 [+20%, +6, +7, +10, -2, +5]
— Stamina: 128 [+40%, +7, +7, +20, +3]
— Perception: 68 [-50%, +50%, +7, +15]
— Correspondence: 138 [+18]
— Breath: 110
…
A silence fell between the two Contestants as little drops of blood began hovering inches over the ground under the effect of Kai's power.
Mang Jian's finger tightened on his sword as Kai's white hair lengthened, becoming red, his entire face gaining a cursed mark.
He couldn't see Kai, but… he felt him, clearer than everyone else.
Yes, Mang Jian realized, tasting blood on his tongue. This is how a demon must feel.
Kai lifted his head, his slitted, red pupils squinting against the black sclera, as if asking — Is this enough?
And if it wasn't, then…
Kai's over seven feet tall, black, lean figure consumed Murasame and Sounga as Kanshou and Bakuya Overedge appeared in his hands before… he let them go.
"What is Immortality, but a fool's errand…" the Demon King said, grinning, shocking the living breath out of Mang Jian. "Devour… Ayin!"
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