Although it wasn't the first time he had pushed his dragon fire to its maximum power, there was no doubt that back in the Demon Slayer world, his dragon fire was nowhere near as powerful as it was now.
Ever since returning to the Dungeon Fighter Online world and spending time with Seria, Ryuji had clearly felt his learning ability significantly enhanced, along with his comprehension. Even basic training could prompt autonomous growth in his body.
One could say that as long as he had the desire to become stronger, he would noticeably grow stronger.
This feeling was especially pronounced when he was near Seria.
Back in the Demon Slayer world, pushing his dragon fire to the limit might have covered an area roughly the size of a commercial street. But now...
At least three streets!
Despite all that, Ryuji felt somewhat helpless.
"When will I be able to destroy a city with a single strike?"
Uttering these words, the flames swirling around Ryuji's body were nearing a tangible state, almost forming a suit of armor made of fire.
Ryuji also felt his teeth itching, and the nails on his hands seemed to be growing. A terrifying power was awakening within his body, increasing the more he pushed his Dragon Fire.
But he didn't know how to truly unlock this power. However, for now, this was enough!
Raising his greatsword, even with the protection of his aura, the titanium-alloy greatsword was beginning to show signs of melting. The ground where he stood had been burned into magma.
He was certain that, although he didn't know how powerful the Red Dragon Queen's flames were, his dragon fire was probably no longer purely Red Dragon Fire.
Everyone in the entire camp saw Ryuji enveloped in flames. While this was normal for Ryuji, he usually didn't push it to this extent. But in this world, where gods and magic truly existed, Ryuji, bathed in flames, stood out starkly in the darkness, looking truly divine!
Especially with Ryuji's 'just', 'benevolent', and 'fair' morality and character, coupled with his immense power, the ordinary people who relied on Ryuji to eat again and live like human beings once more were already looking at him as if he were a god.
"How interesting..."
Seeing the look in these people's eyes, Ryuji became even more convinced of his thoughts.
Ideology didn't matter. For most people, the ideology that allowed them to live well was the good ideology.
But for Ryuji...
"You guys are just tools I use to pick up women!"
A wild smile spread across Ryuji's face. His inner chuunibyou heart was fiercely ignited by this feeling of reverence. He didn't want to give up the beautiful women of this world, nor did he want to share them; he wanted to possess them for himself.
And as luck would have it, this world was terribly rotten!
Then let him become the king! Since these women were incredibly stupid yet still to want to save the world, let him become king in his own way!
"Recount the Genesis."
Ryuji, his inner chuunibyou burning fiercely, watched as more and people surged out, observing the enemies in the distance whose eyes already showed fear. Flames began to coil around the greatsword in his hand.
"The night is profound, all fear its dark terror."
The flames transferred from Ryuji's body onto the titanium-alloy greatsword in his hand. The supposedly incredibly durable titanium-alloy greatsword started to crack but was forcibly held in shape by the power within the dragon fire. The fragmented blade gleamed with fiery light. A dragon's roar emanated from the greatsword as Ryuji slowly raised it.
"Yet man wields blazing fire to tear through the darkness! Is such a world not akin to the Primordial Chaos of antiquity?!"
Ryuji's hand rotated the hilt. The power of the flames surged once more, reaching the upper limit of his control.... however, this was not the upper limit of the power he could activate.
Although he felt his stamina was depleted, the power continuously welling up inside him told him he was mistaken.
There was still power within his body; it was his brain and spirit, that believed he had reached his limit.
So, Ryuji, who hadn't had time to think of better lines, just said whatever came to his mind.
"Heavenly Fire Judgment: Blazing Inferno!"
So, he roared swinging his greatsword towards the oncoming mercenaries and the nobles' private soldiers.
"Destroy the evil!"
A giant dragon burst forth from Ryuji's greatsword the moment he swung it, spreading wings hundreds of meters wide, roaring as it charged towards the soldiers, who were struck dumb with terror. They desperately pulled their reins or tried to activate their magical artifacts, but it was already too late.
The dragon, traveling hundreds of meters per second, reached them in an instant. These people didn't even have time to chant spells or seek cover before the fiery dragon swept past their bodies.
The first people it passed were momentarily stunned because they were unharmed. But when they looked in confusion at the receding dragon, they saw their fingers, their armor, their warhorses beginning to burn.
Yet they felt nothing. Only when their fingers turned to ash did they understand.
They were already dead, burned to death. Their bodies just hadn't realized it yet.
And so, without pain, without the sensation of scorching heat, their bodies turned into red specks of light in the wind stirred by the dragon's wings, scattering into the air.
However, they were the luckiest batch. Because after sweeping past a hundred meters or so, the dragon's power was finally exhausted. Under the terrified gazes of the mercenaries, the dragon crashed onto the ground.
The next moment, a red sphere of light expanded where the dragon landed. There was no sound, only shockwaves and impact. The people around opened their mouths wide, but no scream could be heard.
The violent airflow blew away everyone in the vicinity. Centered on the dragon's impact point, everything within a hundred-meter radius was swallowed by the raging flames, instantly turning to flying ash. The knights and mercenaries who were relatively close were blown away in an instant.
The moment these people were sent flying, their internal organs and brains were shattered. The next moment, the shockwave carrying intense heat ignited their bodies, so that when they landed, they had become chunks of charcoal.
But what filled the remaining people with despair was that this fiery sphere continued to expand and expand, lasting a full three seconds before completely vanishing, leaving behind a sea of continuously burning flames.
Within this sea of fire, nothing remained except for constantly dispersing golden specks of light and endless flames.
The flames engulfed the sight and hearts of all who remained. And when Ryuji, holding the heavily cracked greatsword, slowly walked into the flames and raised the greatsword once more...
"RUN AWAY!!!"
"That's a God! We're fighting against a God!"
"Flee!!"
"That's simply not human!!"
The remaining mercenaries and private soldiers began to flee frantically. They weren't unfamiliar with mages bombarding battlefields, but mages needed incantations, needed rituals! Nothing like the person before them, who could unleash such violent power just by swinging a greatsword!
This was simply not a power mortals should possess!
They had originally thought this was just a operation to rob a rich guy. They just needed to swarm him, chop Ryuji and any resisters to death with random blows, then they could freely rape the women inside and plunder the camp's treasures.
But the one thing they never considered was having to fight someone so strong he seemed inhuman!
That was simply not something they could oppose!
What right did they, such people, have to fight someone who could annihilate most of them in a single encounter?!
Therefore, without even touching a single hair on Ryuji's head, the survivors retreated. But some were so terrified their legs gave way, collapsing to the ground, completely unable to flee. They could only stare in horror towards Ryuji's direction, continuously wailing.
Ryuji shook his hand. After using that move, he truly felt tired. But he could sense that if he wanted to, he could still unleash such an attack two or three more times consecutively.
This feeling was very strange, as if he hadn't fully tapped into the power within his body.
But Ryuji knew this was probably because of Seria.
If he underwent some limit-pushing training now, or was forced into a desperate situation, his combat power would probably skyrocket.
"Although the lines were indeed awkward and it was my fault for not preparing them properly, but saying I'm not human is going too far, right?"
Ryuji rotated the greatsword in his hand. The titanium-alloy greatsword was also ruined. Honestly, he was in a bind. Few weapons from the real world could remain intact in his hands. Whenever he pushed his dragon fire to the limit, the sword in his hand suffered.
This time, the sword didn't directly shatter into pieces and fly off entirely because he had 'leveled up' a bit at the Putian Shaolin Temple, improving his energy control.
He was currently manipulating the flames to continuously melt the fragments within the titanium-alloy greatsword, trying to reforge it to avoid being weaponless after unleashing another powerful attack.
"Seriously, it's about time I looked for some special weapons. If not, should I go to Rias's world to get one? Or find a good weapon in the Arad world?"
Rubbing his chin, watching his greatsword return to its original shape, Ryuji also breathed a sigh of relief.
Although it certainly wouldn't regain its original strength, being usable was enough. His requirements for weapons were just that they be usable.
"Mm, but since we've already torn up the pretense, there's no need to be polite anymore."
Sheathing his greatsword, Ryuji looked at his subordinates who had run over. Looking at the fiery scene Ryuji had created, the only thing left in their eyes towards him was awe.
"Prepare yourselves. We're going to conquer this kingdom. After all, we've captured the princess and defeated the minister's forces. Everyone, follow. I don't have time to protect you."
Ryuji said this very casually. Although some among his subordinates felt this idea was extremely rash, even irresponsible, but the habit of obeying Ryuji developed over this period, combined with the grand spectacle Ryuji had just created, completely erased their concerns, replaced by fanatical roars.
~~~~~~~~~~
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