The situation in the outside world was getting better and worse at the same time.
In the skies, Tiamat battled the Karmic Emperor and Immortal Blood Asura, pushing them back, but on the ground, the Grand Heavens Boundary forces were having difficulty holding off against their enemies.
BANG!
Tang Lingzi was doing her best.
She'd killed tens of enemies already, but the number only kept increasing.
Not only did more and more Nox Lords appear to replenish their waning forces, but the people behind her weren't fighting nearly as well as they were expected to.
The average Nox Lord was stronger than the average Grand Heavens Boundary Demigod.
And the reason behind it was fear.
The fear that was struck in their hearts by this battle, and more than anything, the cowardice that they already held.
Most of these Demigods did not refuse ascension because they had ambitions in the lower universe like Alucard and Tang Lingzi.
They rejected ascension because they were afraid of the Heavenly World. They did not want to go to a place where their worldviews would be shattered, where they realized the peak they reached was just one of many.
That fear led to unstable Divinity, something that could barely be called Divinity by the standards of those without fear.
And because the Nox Lords refused ascension to entertain their personal greed, not out of cowardice or any similar emotion, their Divinities, while corrupt, were stable.
It was a simple difference that didn't show itself in most situations, but now that they were in direct confrontation, it became glaring.
"Alucard!"
Tang Lingzi yelled out, and Alucard responded with action.
He turned around and slammed his arm through the air, sending a wave of Divine Energy rushing forward and splitting the heads of his enemies.
He ignored the ones he was already fighting and made his way back to the frontline.
Meanwhile, Tang Lingzi took over the fight he was already participating in. She was now facing over ten Nox Lords at once, but she refused to lose her momentum.
They didn't have a choice.
One of them had to support the weaker ones among their allies or they'd lose the war even if they won this battle
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
Tang Lingzi could no longer prevent herself from being surrounded. Attacks came from all sides, and like an elephant in the circus, she had no choice but to dance in the ring they formed to stay alive.
'Dammit!'
She didn't know how to get out of this with what they currently had.
She was slowly accumulating injuries, and if she kept expending Divine Energy like this, she would find herself swamped soon.
She would die.
'How do I win?!'
It was hopeless.
Just like everything else, it was hopeless.
But…
'I refuse.'
Tang Lingzi did not have fear in her heart.
Her reason for refusing ascension was even more vain, in a sense.
There was someone in the Heavenly World, someone she adored at one point in her life.
But when they ascended, she realized that she was nowhere near talented enough to stand by their side.
She refused to go to that place until she gained those qualifications. Even if that person had forgotten her already, she refused to face them until she could stand in front of them proudly.
It wasn't a matter of love or affection, but pride.
Tang Lingzi had not reached the limits of her potential.
And she knew that there was a way for her to ascend after refusing.
She didn't know where it was, but "that person"
told her it existed, and she believed them more than she believed her own thoughts.
So until she could reach the place she wanted to be, until she could meet that person again, she refused to die!
"Keuk…!"
She spat out blood as a terrifying sword strike grazed her side and burned her skin.
She twirled and danced, dodging and evading as she took down her enemies, but there were just too many of them.
One died.
Another gash formed on her torso.
Two died.
Her neck was almost severed.
Three died.
Her left arm was crippled, lowering her attack power.
It had been like this the entire time.
If only she had more allies she could count on, if only the Demigods of Grand Heavens Boundary weren't so pathetic…!
Tang Lingzi's eyes widened.
She didn't see them at all.
She killed eight of the ten that surrounded her, but another three had entered the circle before she knew what was happening.
And just as she noticed their existence, another presence appeared behind her.
Just a few inches away.
SHIK!
A sword went through her chest.
Her life force began to dwindle.
'Is this…'
BOOOOOOOOM!
She flared her mana, forcing the Nox Lord who impaled her into the air. She stomped her foot into the ground and shot up in pursuit, barraging him with physical attacks before ripping his heart out of his chest.
She refused to just die.
She already knew what her fate was when that sword ran her through. Her Divinity started leaking out of the wound, so the chance of surviving was nil.
But if she was going to die, she was going to die proudly.
Not for anyone else, but for herself.
BOOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
She didn't explode her core yet. There was still more she could do before the need for that came.
She abandoned her post and ran towards the frontlines, allowing Alucard, who noticed her situation, to take over the battle for her.
She went on a slaughterfest, killing any and every weak Nox Lord she could find to cull their numbers for the remaining forces to deal with once she was gone.
And as her life force dwindled, she saw the battle situation slowly stabilizing.
She smiled wryly.
'It was nice while it lasted…'
She didn't want a sad death, so she didn't think sad thoughts.
It was a shame that she had to go like this, but at least she accomplished something.
Right…?
"Wrong."
A voice came from behind her.
She turned around and swept her claws out to kill the newcomer, but her wrist was caught in an immovable grip.
She looked up in surprise.
"Y-you are…!"
The woman standing there was not a Nox Lord.
She was far too powerful to even be mistaken for one.
She smiled at the dying Tang Lingzi brightly.
"I'm glad you were able to reconcile with death, however, I'm afraid I can't let you die here."
Tang Lingzi's mind was filled with confusion, but before she could ask any questions, a prismatic Divine Energy rushed through her body.
Her wounds were healed, her Divinity was contained, and it felt like she was being magically returned to the state she was in before the battle started.
As she marveled over her sudden return from the brink of death, the woman who healed her looked out on the battlefield with a grin.
"That strange thing up there doesn't need my support anymore, so…"
She raised herself into the air, allowing her mana to billow and her aura to pressure the enemy.
"...why don't I try out my new power?"
