Chương 33: Chapter IX Verse III — The Sovereign vs the Red Devil

Shuten Dooji charged with a roar, expecting a head-on clash. Instead, Galan dropped low, sliding across the stage in a near-frictionless glide. His feet smashed into the oni's legs, tumbling the champion forward. Before Shuten Dooji could recover, Galan twisted with inhuman speed. He punched the air, and a pillar of razor-sharp obsidian erupted from the stage floor, launching the oni high into the air. Galan rose to one knee, summoning a divine bow.

As Shuten Dooji reached the apex of his flight, Galan released five consecutive arrows of white light. They struck with thunderous impacts, repeatedly pinning the oni against the stage's shield as he fell, causing him to land softly on the floor. Shuten Dooji rose, trembling.

"Shit... that actually hurt."

"Didn't expect that, did ya?" Galan smirked.

"Hah! Definitely not a Japanese fighting style. Tell me, foreign god... how long have you been fighting?"

"My whole life. Seventy-five years of taking names and lives. Want to see more? I promise I won't avoid a direct fight this time." Galan settled into a Bajicuen stance, relaxed but firm.

"Come at me." Shuten Dooji laughed, baring his fangs.

"Well then... let's go!" He lunged, a crimson engine of fury. He unleashed a torrent of blows, each fist a warhammer. But Galan met the onslaught head-on. His parries were precise redirections, turning aside the oni's raw power with ease. They became a blur of motion, a chaotic exchange that left the audience breathless. Frustrated, Shuten Dooji unleashed a devastating roundhouse kick. Galan caught his ankle in an iron grip.

He spun, accelerating until the oni was a helpless red blur, then launched him high into the air. Shuten Dooji screamed as he slammed against the ceiling shield. Before he could fall, Galan leaped, intercepting him mid-air. He seized the oni, locked his legs around his neck, and channeled a blast of wind directly above them. They plummeted like a living meteor. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

They crashed into the stage with a shattering quake. Shuten Dooji took the full brunt of the impact. Galan rolled away, standing gracefully as the oni struggled to rise.

"Really? That's it?" Galan asked.

"Ugh... what do you mean?" Shuten Dooji wheezed, getting to his feet.

"I can still fight!" Galan checked the state of his opponent's shield. Sixty layers. Too risky,"Nah, you'd get sent straight to the Spirit Realm by my next attack." He sighed.

"I really don't want to do this... but it's the only way." He snapped his fingers. Six ethereal tendrils erupted from his back and slammed into Shuten Dooji. Instead of hurting him, they surged with restorative energy, refilling his magical shield to full strength in an instant. Those with the eyes to see it gasped.

"Phew. How are you feeling?" Shuten Dooji stood tall, feeling the renewed protection.

"It feels quite great, actually... Hah! Guess I'm ready for round two." After hearing his defiant words, Galan summoned his cursed scythe, the weapon radiating a deathly aura that chilled the air. The mortals in the crowd went silent, sensing the primal danger.

"Come on, then." Galan grinned.

"See what happens." Shuten Dooji roared and charged. Galan sidestepped the rush and became a whirlwind of steel. He danced around the champion, his scythe leaving trails of darkness as he delivered a blinding flurry of strikes. Each slice was exact, testing the defenses while marking the body. Shuten Dooji swung wildly, hitting only afterimages. At the forty-ninth slice, Galan flowed past him with a final cut, spinning to the center of the stage. The oni stumbled to a halt, his body covered in dark energy.

Meanwhile, Galan raised the scythe, preparing to cast one of his most powerful ultimate spells. A palpable chill swept through the hall. The lights flickered wildly. Shadows seeped from the air itself, flowing toward Galan. A primal terror gripped the crowd, the instinctual fear of a final judgment. Chain-like tendrils of pure shadow erupted from the floor, wrapping around Shuten Dooji. He struggled, straining against the bonds, but they held him fast, forcing him to his knees. A captured titan.

Galan stood calm in the eye of the storm. He rotated the scythe, its aura intensifying. Above the oni, the torso of a giant skeletal figure manifested, wrapping glowing purple threads around the helpless champion. Galan opened his eyes. The amusement was gone. Only the cold finality of a judge remained.

"Let the night reclaim him... sever life from fate!" He swung the scythe. A blast of pure death spread through the hall. The skeletal figure pulled the threads tight. Shuten Dooji roared one last time as the threads snapped. The oni's shield absorbed heavy amounts of damage, taking the full, devastating force of the attack in place of his soul. The skeleton vanished into the shadows. The hall fell silent, waiting to see if the champion had survived.