The collapsing of the sky happened only once in the eyes of outsiders, but it was actually a continuous phenomenon.
The Heavenly Order was strong. Every time the sky broke, it would repair it instantly.
However, Damien and the homunculus were too strong. As fast as the Heavenly Ordered repaired the sky, they destroyed it.
BOOM!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The homunculus' spear was like a shotgun. The creature stabbed over and over again, its rhythm changing from fast to slow as it changed to a power output of each strike so precisely that it was practically magic.
Meanwhile, Damien used his fists to match it.
The laws he'd mastered, laced with Void Energy, swirled around his fists like contained galaxies. Despite the fact that Damien was using physical power against a weapon made of law energy, he kept up well.
He was able to match a majority of the homunculus' strikes. While his power fell short, his speed was able to barely match it.
He used everything in his inventory to make it so.
Whether it be something like precise mana usage to stimulate his body or the most basic technique of using lightning to enhance reaction speed, Damien used it all.
Because even the smallest effect still had effect. When everything stacked together and formed one combined buff, it gave Damien what he needed to stand toe to toe with a God.
At least, a God that was restricted by its continued presence in the physical world.
BANG!
Damien blocked an attack, striking back in the same instant.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
The homunculus used its spear of light to block every fuse he threw. With the sound of metal clashing against metal, massive waves of force spread for tens of millions of kilometers, making the sky rumble dangerously.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
'I can't do any damage.'
Damien and the homunculus moved so fast they were like shooting stars across the night sky. Watching from the ground, nobody could distinguish them from two light trails dancing together.
However, this was a deadly clash, more so for Damien than the homunculus.
No matter how he attacked, he couldn't find a way to break through the homunculus' defense. Even when he was able to strike its body, it felt more like he struck iron as a mortal.
A nigh-impenetrable body and spear and law skills that were beyond what a normal genius could display.
The homunculus made the reason for its existence incredibly clear.
And the thought Damien had as he tried to find a way to deal damage to it was…
'...is this what it's like to fight me?'
Disregarding his inability to deal damage, he was doing quite well.
His body wasn't as impenetrable as the creature's, but it was pretty much the same.
His skin and muscles burned several times, but they'd regenerate just as fast.
The homunculus was definitely strong enough to injure him, but it couldn't accumulate enough damage to kill him.
'It's a stalemate.'
Damien was slightly on the losing side, but for the most part, it was a stalemate.
'The thing is, I know how to kill it.'
After fighting it for so long, he'd already seen through it.
The soulless soul that powered the homunculus was the very key to defeating it.
A soul without an ego, yet without another owner. It was an unnatural phenomenon, something disallowed by the Heavenly Order.
Every soul had an identity. For a homunculus to be created was to remove that identity and replace it with something man-made.
If Damien wanted to take it apart, he just needed to target that man-made aspect and use Existence to return it to nature.
In that case, either the original ego would return, or the soul would be shattered, returned to the Wheel of Samsara.
It was a foolproof strategy, but it wasn't executable.
Why?
Because Damien didn't have enough control over Existence.
'If I want to do that, I need to be in direct contact with its soul. I can't do it as I please right now.'
How could he get to its soul when he couldn't even get through its body?
That was the dilemma Damien was currently facing.
And he didn't see any proper solutions to the problem.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The battle in the sky became hard to ignore as it zoomed through the darkness.
The fluctuations given off by the two combatants were monstrous, and the effects of their collisions eventually stopped affecting the sky alone.
The ground rumbled and shook. Buildings got scarily close to crumbling, forcing people to crouch in corners and cover their necks, hoping they survived.
Most of the Aerian army was forced to stay in the shelter of their strongholds, unable to handle the force of the mana radiating from the sky.
However, the 12 Elders and the other Demigods among them immediately set out, helping as many people cope with the catastrophe as possible.
'Damn.'
Damien clicked his tongue.
He noticed quickly when the sounds of panic reached his ears.
'I have to take the fight higher.'
He flipped backward and let his mana follow his retreat.
As the homunculus approached, he slightly lowered his body, and as it stabbed out with its spear, he sent an uppercut into its chin, blasting out all the mana contained in his arm when he made contact.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
"Khhh…!"
Damien gritted his teeth.
The homunculus was thrown higher into the sky as he hoped, but he wasn't completely safe either.
Its spear had punctured his shoulder as he focused on landing a hit.
When it was thrown into the air, the spear ripped through his shoulder, leaving an open gash that was spurting out blood.
Damien sent Void Energy into his shoulder as it healed, removing all the corrosive mana that was fed into him.
At the same time, he pushed upward and met the homunculus several hundred thousand kilometers higher in the sky, at a location where their fight wouldn't affect those uninvolved.
Naturally, the homunculus didn't care about where they fought. Its only order was to slaughter the man standing in the sky. It didn't have the intelligence to target the innocent to draw him in.
Therefore, as it saw him approaching, it once again prepared to strike.
Light gathered around the tip of its spear, swirling into a golden tornado.
It pushed out, concentrating its strength into the swirling mana, and thrusted its spear.
VOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
A massive beam of light slammed into Damien and went straight through him.
He was burned. Bad. The burns dug into his skin and bones, into the very cells that made up his body, and made sure not a single inch of his physical form remained unharmed.
"FUCK!"
Damien roared, but internally. His vocal cords were burned, so he couldn't actually shout it.
That hurt.
A lot.
But he wasn't knocked out of commission.
Even in this state, the Ananta Matrix existed.
And as long as the Ananta Matrix existed, he could fight.
VOOOOOOOM!
Mana gathered around his charred body.
It carried traces of the world, traces of Existence, traces of the Void.
Damien didn't know what he was about to do.
He was just gathering his mana and following his instinct to form it into an attack.
But whatever was about to happen as a result of his actions…
…was going to be apocalyptic.
