Silence reigned as the soldiers from both sides saw the outcome of the first clash between their leaders. The Daybreak Universe's warriors smiled as the Samsara Thearch's display of power filled them with confidence.
It was impossible to know the expression that the Beyonder's army had on their faces since they were fused into the vortex of darkness, but a ferocious aura emerged from them, making the Emptiness grow cold.
Evidently, their battle spirit had not weakened. For them, an offense to Nihiliak was the same as offending the Beyonder, and they would punish anyone that dared to defy the might of their divine master.
Zatiel did not care about the reaction of the rest of the army, and his eyes only focused on Nihilak. This initial fight was just a clash of their minds and cultivations, and neither was truly hurt. What he wanted to see was how the Knight would handle defeat.
Nihilak cleaned the blood out of his mouth, and as he saw his bloody hand, a burst of savagery and wild killing intent emerged in his eyes. However, it only lasted a second before a sense of peace and calm returned to his heart.
"My body was made with the flesh, blood, and soul of a Late Stage life form, yet you were able to make me bleed with that game. I must admit that you surpass me regarding cultivation insights, but that matters very little once we enter a physical fight."
Zatiel's eyes grew sharp as he saw the emotional control that Nihilak displayed. Clearly, the Knight considered his body a gift from the Beyonder; therefore, the anger when Zatiel made this one bleed.
However, Nihilak was not only able to extinguish that rage in a second but even admitted that he was inferior to Zatiel in terms of cultivation. Those who accept the enemy's strength will always be more dangerous than those who negate reality due to their weak sense of pride.
The Samsara Thearch's face grew even more solemn when he heard Nihilak's following words.
"Even if by some miracle you were able to surpass me in a fight, it doesn't matter. I do not need to win. I only need to keep you busy long enough for my force to crush yours, and that would not be a problem."
Nihilak's eyes turned toward Venganza and Ezequiel with disdain.
"Isn't that right?"
Nihilak glanced at the vortex of darkness, and the two figures emerged. Those were the other two knights that managed to resist until the very end under the crushing might of the Depravation Universal Sky and Nine x Nine Killer Universe Formation.
As soon as the duo left the vortex of darkness and were able to release their auras, the Emptiness began to tremble since the corruption they unleashed was overwhelming. It was clear to everybody that their powers were nothing short of extraordinary.
"It has been a very long time since I faced enemies that were worthy of seeing my face."
That voice felt like a screech in the ears of the Daybreak Universe's warriors. It did nothing to their body but sought to affect their minds.
"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Ravakir, the Echo of Doom."
The Knight's appearance was truly demonic. His face was a skull with large horns, and an inverted flaming cross was on his forehead.
A mantle of darkness covered the rest of his body, leaving only his long finger covered in putrid blood to the sight.
Although the figure of the Knight was shocking for most of the warriors of the Daybreak Universe, it was especially disturbing for members of the Depravita Race.
Venganza 's eyes narrowed as he focused on Ravakir since he knew this one was like him, an entity born out of negative emotions.
However, unlike the Prima Depravitas, which were able to rise above their nature upon mastering their Concepts, whatever species Ravakir belonged to seemed to have only fallen into an even greater state of deprivation.
He took a deep breath and could not help but clench their fists as he stared at those demonic hands. There was no doubt in the Revenge Thearch's mind that Ravakir was the one that pierced his skull inside the illusion.
"Gentlemen, there is no need for this battle. You should rejoice that the One Above All would allow your pitiful existence to be part of something greater. If you beg for your lives now, I am sure we can find a way to ignore your unruly behavior."
Ravakir's words were extremely insulting, yet it seemed that he honestly expected the warriors from the Daybreak Universe to thank him for the opportunity of begging for their lives.
"Hmph!"
That sneer did not come from the Daybreak Universe's warriors but from the other Knight that rose from the vortex of darkness. Unlike Ravakir's thin figure, this Knight had a massive body covered in imposing dark armor that revealed nothing except for his red flaming eyes.
There was a massive battle ax on his right hand, and just the weight of the weapon was able to twist space-time.
"There is no forgiveness for their kind. When they learned about our divine master's existence from the memories of the insignificant messenger that was Despairion, they should have prepared a ceremony for our arrival. Yet, they dare to fight back."
For the first time, the warriors of the Daybreak Universe heard the true name of Endless Darkness. Hearing that the entity that nearly submerged their home into darkness was just a messenger made sour smiles appear on many faces.
"The divine master gave me the name of Tormentras, the Bringer of Extinction. And before the war is over, you will understand the insignificance of your actions."
Tormentras raised his ax and pointed the edge toward the Emptiness Thearch.
Ezequiel's eyes grew cold as he saw the ax since it was the same weapon that split his body in half inside the illusion. The armor hindered his perception, but the Emptiness Thearch could feel the immense physical power of the Knight in black armor.
The Samsara Thearch, Revenge Thearch, and Emptiness Thearc stared at the three Beyonder's Knights capable of Omnipotence.
Nihilak, Harbinger of Desolation.
Ravakir, the Echo of Doom.
Tormentras, the Bringer of Extinction.
As long as they manage to kill the trio, the Daybreak Universe would have essentially won the war.
However, the same train of thought surely appeared in the Beyonder's army. If they ended the three Thearch, the Daybreak Universe was over.
Zatiel, Venganza, and Ezequiel stared at Nihilak, Ravakir, and Tormentras, and just the clash of their sights made the Emptiness tremble. The pressure the six Middle Stage life forms generated was simply overwhelming.
Burning, killing intent, and fighting will emerge in their eyes, but they do not immediately flash forward. The power of the Reality Override Spell had yet to fully mend the wounds on their bodies and souls, and none of them were willing to start the fight before reaching their peak.
Nihilak glanced at the Daybreak Universe's warriors, all in the open, unleashing their fighting will with mockery before waving his hand.
The vortex of darkness began to slowly dissipate as the link between the bodies and souls of the Beyonder's army faded. The vortex had immense destructive power, but that was only against prey that could not move like universes or enemies taken by surprise. A direct battle would only make them a large target, so there was no need to maintain it.
Without the cover of the darkness, the figures of the Knights and their auras became clear to everybody. There was no way to describe them other than monsters in humanoid and bestial forms.
The Sacred Kings took a deep breath as they stared at their counterparts and felt danger. Despite their immense power, Fourth Real Inheritances, and unique weapons, none could confidently say they could survive a fight with those monsters.
However, there was more than just the Knights that they had to look after since there were dozens of gargantuan monsters with Rank 10 battle power among the billions of troops.
It was time for the Extreme Rank 9 to feel the pressure. Those ravaging beasts with eyes that only depicted savagery and rage would be their enemies.
There was no sense of wisdom in those monsters' eyes, and it was clear to the warriors inside the Samsara Astra Magicae Codex's formations that no matter how much pain or damage they took, their enemies would keep fighting until the end.
As for the rest of the Beyonder's army, they were mindless drones whose sole purpose would be to drain the energy of those with Fourth Realm battle power. Luckily, the Daybreak Army's had its own billions of drones to take care of them.
Other than the roar of the mindless monster, there was no sound in the Emptiness as both forces stared at each other. Every second that passed pushed them closer to the fight.
Finally, after almost three days, the power of the Reality Override Spell vanished.
The Daybreak-Beyonder War began!
