A storm unlike anything the Qin Nation army had ever seen suddenly swept across the battlefield.
'Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!'
Countless razor-sharp gusts tore through the air, shrieking as they sliced through space. Tornadoes rapidly formed, ten meters tall, a hundred meters, a thousand. One after another, they grew larger and more numerous, surging forward with unstoppable force.
In moments, they were already bearing down on Senju Hashirama and the others.
Everyone's expression turned grim.
"Sage Art: Deep Forest Bloom!"
"Sage Art: Sandstorm Heavenfall!"
"Sage Art: Infernal Flame!"
"Sage Art: Frozen World!"
Roars echoed one after another as everyone unleashed their strongest techniques. The power of earth, fire, wind, and water erupted all at once, crashing toward the advancing tornadoes.
A heartbeat later, the attacks collided.
'Boom!!'
The immense energies ground against each other, canceling one another out with violent explosions.
The Qin Nation army's faces grew increasingly solemn. They had gathered the strength of countless experts, yet they still couldn't suppress a casual swing from a single opponent.
It was beyond comprehension. It felt as though an invisible barrier separated their power from his, one that could never be broken.
"He's... too strong!" Even Qin Nation's Kage-level experts stared in disbelief.
Meanwhile, Yasuo simply stood there with his sword in hand. Once every attack in the sky had dissipated, he calmly took another step forward.
"Steel Tempest."
His body twisted and vanished into a streak of light.
The next instant, he appeared in the very center of the Qin Nation army.
His sudden arrival shocked everyone. They immediately roared and launched another wave of attacks.
But Yasuo's calmness... his speed... his swordsmanship... his overwhelming strength... left everyone speechless.
He was simply too powerful. No matter who stood before him, he needed only a single strike. And not one person could withstand it.
Minato Namikaze flashed above him using the Flying Thunder God Technique, a Sage Art Rasengan already formed in his hand. Before it could land, Yasuo's sword sliced straight through the Rasengan.
Then he slammed the hilt into Minato's head, smashing him into the ground.
Hashirama rushed in for close combat. Yasuo answered with a single thrust. His blade pierced straight through Hashirama's abdomen, instantly taking him out of the fight.
His figure became a blur, flashing endlessly through the battlefield. Every time he appeared, someone fell.
Barely a dozen breaths later... only one person remained standing.
"Glory walks beside me. I refuse to believe that after regaining my full strength... I can still lose."
His voice was calm yet imposing, and a chilling aura spread from him.
The fallen soldiers of the Qin Nation struggled to rise, but they quickly realized an invisible force was constantly eroding their bodies. They couldn't even move.
The helplessness drove them into despair.
Yasuo continued walking forward. No one could stop him. Everywhere he passed, people lay helpless on the ground.
His strength had gone beyond everyone's understanding. It filled them with fear.
By the end of the battle, every time Yasuo took one step forward, the fearless Qin Nation soldiers took one step back. Not because they were afraid, but because they knew it was pointless.
The man before them had already surpassed humanity itself. He seemed to exist in an entirely different world, so close, yet completely unreachable.
---
Inside the Nie Kingdom...
The moment the scenery before his eyes shifted, Yhwach found himself standing in an entirely different world.
"So... this is the Nie Kingdom?" His pupils contracted.
Suspended high in the sky, he looked out over the vast world beneath him, utterly stunned. Above the heavens floated thirty-six enormous vortexes, each radiating brilliant light. They filled him with awe, and fear. A crushing, multidimensional pressure weighed upon his soul, bringing with it an indescribable sense of terror.
He knew exactly what those thirty-six vortexes represented: the power of the world itself.
"It's my first time here too." Li Yuanli scanned the surroundings. "But after passing through the Realm Gate, we've indeed arrived in King Chengdui's world, the Nie Kingdom."
As he spoke, his right hand trembled slightly. Several strange winged insects flew from his sleeve and disappeared into the distance at incredible speed.
Just then, a thunderous rumble echoed across the world.
Yhwach looked down, his face changing dramatically. "What's happening?"
The mountains below were splitting apart, and the endless earth shook violently. Massive cracks spread across the land, while blazing waves of scorching air rolled through the sky.
Elsewhere, lightning rained down from dark clouds, reducing vast stretches of land to charred wastelands. The oceans rose into towering tidal waves that crashed onto the continents, swallowing everything in their path.
Tornadoes raged everywhere. Volcanoes erupted. Earthquakes shook the land without end.
The enormous world beneath their feet looked like it had reached the end of its lifespan. It was falling apart, collapsing toward destruction.
Looking up again, Yhwach noticed that even the crimson sun had begun to glow with an eerie purple light. Beautiful, yet terrifying.
"This world is dying." Li Yuanli narrowed his eyes and shot downward. "So we don't have much time."
Yhwach blinked. "Don't have much time? For what?"
But Li Yuanli had already disappeared into the distance.
Yhwach hurried after him, bombarding him with questions.
This world was unimaginably vast, far larger than the world of the Shinigami. Countless civilizations existed side by side, somehow blending together despite seeming completely incompatible. Nothing made sense. Never in his life had he had so many questions.
"We're looking for the Fire of Civilization," Li Yuanli answered while flying. "We're here to take over this world."
"...Take over?" Yhwach froze. Then his eyes widened.
'Take over?'
If Li Yuanli had used those words, then that meant another King could inherit this world. Could he... could he do the same?
"This is a King's World," Li Yuanli said. "A world you'll never truly understand. When two Kings fight, the loser loses everything."
Li Yuanli paused briefly before continuing. "Either their world is destroyed... or it's taken over by the victorious King of the same race."
Yhwach's pupils shrank.
"Only a King of the same race can take over a fallen King's world. No one else will ever have that opportunity."
Li Yuanli's cold words shattered Yhwach's hopes. It was obvious he had seen straight through Yhwach's thoughts.
"So only Kings can inherit a world..." Yhwach asked quietly. "Then... what exactly is a King?"
He had too many questions.
Just then, Li Yuanli's eyes lit up. "Over here. I found it."
(End of Chapter)
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