Even after killing Sylvius, Damien didn't stop. His original goal was to psychologically attack the enemies with a show of strength, but his unfamiliarity with his own power disallowed this circumstance from becoming reality.
Now that the battle had ended, he needed to accomplish that original purpose. And along with that, he needed to find better test dummies to help him understand his strength before he challenged people above his level.
Damien's targets were now those on the weaker side of things, at similar levels to him. Against them, he wouldn't have to worry about the prospect of losing. He would be able to thoroughly understand at least how to utilize his Void Mana's suppression effect properly.
In the previous battle, he'd tried using it to enhance his weapon and fists, and he'd tried to use it intrusively, but neither of these methods seemed viable. The former was simply wasting the ability's potential, while the latter took far too long to take effect.
Even when Sylvius died, the Void Mana, suppression only slightly inhibited him. It was likely he didn't even realize that his mana was being somewhat suppressed. When battles were timed by the second, an ability that took many minutes to activate wasn't viable at all.
Therefore, he needed more testing. To use thousands of 4th class beings as testing dummies, who could be so bold besides Damien?
Nevertheless, he moved with a goal in mind and wouldn't stop until it was accomplished. Mirage flashed once more, Hel appearing in his hand.
One almost began to feel sorry for his enemies.
***
When Damien killed Sylvius, it didn't cause as major of a shock on the battlefield as it would've in normal times. The situation was far too chaotic, making it hard for people to even notice this feat.
However, his allies were plenty shocked by what they saw. They naturally didn't want to see Damien die early by overestimating himself, so they'd been splitting their attention to watch his battle from the beginning.
Now that it was over, they could only marvel at his talent. A newly ascended 4th class killing someone in the middle of the same realm, wasn't that too exaggerated?!
It had to be known, the difference between levels in 4th class was immense, and one's experience level alone didn't account for the entirety of their strength.
At 4th class, the level on one's status came to represent how defined their existence was more than what their actual strength level was. True strength came from not only this, but also law comprehension.
This was why the denizens of the Cloud Plane termed this realm as Law Connection and Law Sea. A high level no longer meant strong strength.
But in this case, Sylvius was surely a man who spent a great deal of time perfecting his Lightning Laws. If not, there was no way he'd be able to fend off Damien's silver Heavenly Lightning by relying on comprehension alone.
For Damien to slay a character like this upon just ascending was mind-boggling.
Perhaps even Aishia would only be able to stand evenly matched to the current Damien.
However, they didn't have much time to dwell on this topic. After affirming that Damien's life wouldn't be in danger, each of those eight individuals returned to battle, putting their whole focus into defending and outlasting the horde in front of them.
Really, to expect 9 people to fend off thousands of enemies with similar strength wasn't practical at all. The only reason they were able to continue moving with confidence was because they weren't alone in this battle.
With Damien's previous aid, Rose and Ruyue were able to combine their efforts to slaughter the rest of the troops in their zone. Without 4th classes on their backs, it was far too easy.
Afterward, they rushed into the adjacent zones, combining forces with those present to rapidly extinguish the enemy. Especially when the Bloody Cavalry met with Rose and Ruyue's troops, they formed an unstoppable force.
And with these 3rd classes gaining the upper hand, the remaining allied 4th class beings no longer had to stay reserved. Hundreds of allies rushed towards Damien's battle, ready to provide aid!
4th class beings spread so far that they blotted out the sky. With these newly arrived helpers, it was far easier for the previous 8 individuals to retain their strength while they fought.
In a battle of attrition against a large number of enemies, wasting mana was a deadly mistake.
The only exception to this rule was Damien himself. When he first began his onslaught, it'd taken him more than just a few minutes to kill a being at the same level as him. However, things were different now.
With every enemy he killed, his speed rapidly increased. The Void Mana flaring around his body became more dignified, signifying Damien's increased control over it.
In fact, this mana was slowly spreading into the distance rather than being congregated around Damien's body. During his most recent battle, he'd accidentally stumbled upon a viable method to utilize this ability.
The Mirror Domain spread into the horizon, shattering space into small crystalline shards that danced through the air like spirits. Any concept of distance and direction was thrown into disarray, even time becoming muddled in certain areas.
Under this atmosphere, a normal practitioner wouldn't even be able to stand up straight, but these 4th classes were different. Damien's domain was powerful in its own right, but it shared the same overarching problem as every other ability he had.
It wasn't supported by Laws.
Due to this, even though they were still suppressed, even the weakest of 4th classes were able to put up some resistance against it.
When Damien realized this, he spread his Void Mana and incorporated it into his domain. If he couldn't match their laws, he indiscriminately suppress theirs until they matched his level!
His current opponent, a young woman who looked around 20, was facing this very suppression.
The Ice Laws she spent so much time arduously cultivating for the past 50 years since her ascension were suppressed near the level they were at when she first started sending them. This feeling was like losing something incredibly precious, putting a mental burden on her that only made her bad situation exponentially worse.
"P-please…spare me…" She stammered. Her eyes were big and watery, giving off an exceedingly innocent feeling.
While her looks weren't anything heaven-defying, she was beautiful in her own right. Especially with her current expression, she made one feel the inexplicable desire of wanting to protect.
But facing this woman's charms, Damien was unmoved. More than that, he was disgusted.
Ever since his ascension, he'd been marveling at the greatness of 4th class in comparison to its predecessors. In some sense, he'd put this power level on a pedestal and subconsciously expected those who reached it to display behavior fitting for their positions.
Sylvius was a good example of this. He ardently trained for who knows how long, and even though he ended up dead at Damien's hands, he never showed a sign of weakness even in his last moment.
It wasn't even just him. Most of Asgard's troops were the same.
It was people like this woman, those who submitted to Niflheim, that gave in to fear and cowardice. Even if they were true 4th class beings, even the 11th Elder of the Xue Clan was better than them in Damien's eyes.
His sword moved without mercy, the woman's head flying into the air soon after. Watching the fountain of blood that sprayed out from her neck, Damien scoffed.
"It's good to know that I won't have to kill humanity's future in my crusade against the Nox. The type of people that willingly submit to their oppression…aren't even worth a second of my time."
His gaze moved away, focusing on the larger battlefield. The suppression force of his domain was the most practical utilization of Void Mana he could sustain at his current level. If so, there was no need for him to continue wasting time on small fries and cowards.
His body moved, heading to a more central area. Now that he had the method, it was time to flex it in front of some worthy opponents.
