4
In the battle between team China and team Devil’s main combat force, everyone’s battle outside of Xuans’ was reaching the climax.
Team China also had someone who had gotten a devil fruit enhancement, Imhotep. He was an undead created using secret rune arts from ancient times. He could not only transform into sand, but also use various secret arts from ancient Egypt. As long as he still had energy, his body would revive without end. However, after spending time in the realm, he knew that there were countless strong people here. His ability may be invincible against ordinary people, but to the peak of the realm, like Zheng, clone Zheng, Xuan and so on, he may be killed instantaneously. After so many movies with team China, he had gotten an enhancement that complemented his innate ability, the Sand-Sand Fruit, also known as the Suna Suna no Mi.
Together with his energy reserves that were over a hundred times that of a human’s, his huge momentum when using it was outrageous, although he couldn't use the fruit’s power without worry like the crossdresser when he used Xuan’s creation.
Unfortunately, Imhotep’s opponent was Hao Tian who happened to be his natural nemesis. This person’s origin was slightly unclear, and seemed to have some relation to Xuan’s genetic structure. He was also very strong, and had been able to innately use Light of the Soul before entering the realm. Although he hit a snag in team China and was toyed with cruelly by Xuan before being rapidly dispatched, his latent potential was great. He had not only entered team Devil, but evolved his telekinetic Light of the Soul as well into Holy Light. It was coincidentally something that greatly harmed Imhotep’s energy. However, for some reason, he didn’t want to get into a fight to the death with Imhotep, instead finding a way to run away. That was why the two had ended up in a stand-off. Otherwise, Imhotep would have been heavily injured by the Holy Light before being able to use his Suna Suna no Mi.
However, Imhotep had already used the Suna Suna no Mi. The area for kilometers around was gradually sandifying, and he had hidden his body within. Every attack would be a huge sandman towering at a hundred meters of height and formed from the sand within a kilometer gathered together. Its body shaking, it would send a fist at Hao Tian like it was swatting an ant.
Hao Tian was indeed exceptional. He was very familiar with Light of the Soul’s usage. He had already had the most basic Light of the Soul, telekinesis, back in the real world. His strength had increased non-stop after entering the realm, his telekinesis skyrocketing in both quality and quantity. When its quality had changed, it had become Holy Light, capable of both attack and defence, and comparable to an Eva’s A.T. Field. Not only that, but as he had been able to use Light of the Soul since long ago, his control over it was shocking once he reached his current level of power. His application of Light of the Soul in every attack and defence was used perfectly, neither too much used nor too little used. Even if it was a long battle and his energy reserves weren’t as abundant as Imhotep, the one who would run out first was Imhotep.
"Heeeeyyyyy, what did I say? Let’s make peace, and let me go! Did I steal your wife? Did I steal your life savings? Seriously, why do you keep on chasing me?" Hao Tian shouted as he kept dodging the enormous fist of sand.
"Cut the
Imhotep wasn’t vague about it. It was hard for him to get off this tiger once he started riding it. The Suna Suna no Mi’s power indeed wasn’t ordinary, being capable of sandifying a kilometer of earth around as soon as it was used. It also gave him some resistance to energy attacks, unlike before when he immediately collapsed upon coming into contact with sand. This sand was obviously able to block the golden light. Although it couldn’t nullify it, it was better than going head-on against it like before. But this was also something restricting him. If he didn’t use the Suna Suna no Mi, he honestly didn’t have the confidence in blocking Hao Tian’s attacks. So, he could only keep suppressing Hao Tian in one shot.
Hao Tian was feeling very aggrieved. For some reason, clone Xuan hadn’t given him a mission for the final battle. Anomalies bred strangeness, and this situation instead made him harbour unease. That was why his first thought after the battle started was not to fight, but flee! The faster, the better! Who knew if clone Xuan was hatching some conspiracy. He didn’t want to become cannon fodder for no good reason, especially in this final battle.
"Please! I really, really don’t want to fight you! Why do you keep forcing me? Why not we just give each other some greetings and be on our merry way running for our lives?" Holy Light was released by Hao Tian again, a ball of golden light destroying a sand palm of twenty to thirty meters in size. Frankly, at this point Hao Tian was getting angry too, which was why he shouted loudly again, and in what was his last attempt.
Imhotep didn’t stop. Rather, he didn’t dare to. He made another over hundred meter tall sand man form again, which blew a sandstorm out as it opened its mouth, burying Hao Tian within.
"Dammit!" Hao Tian gave another roar as his body emitted an eye-piercing golden light again. When the golden light shone upon it, the sand man melted like snow before the sun. Hao Tian was rather angry, as all his attempts at escaping had been stopped by sand mans. He now made the decision to kill, as golden light flowed from his body in an endless stream. He stood there in the air like a small sun as the sand man below him continued to shrink, completely melting back into the sandy ground in a moment like it had been killed, no trace of its existence left.
Hao Tian understood that Imhotep was good at nothing if not his vitality. This attack couldn’t kill him. Without pause, another ball of golden light formed in his hand as he raised it. He tossed it out before giving it a violent kick. The ball didn’t explode, instead shooting towards the sandy ground like a soccer ball.
The golden ball of light turned into a golden liquid when it touched the sandy ground, seeping into the sandy ground. Within moments, the sandy ground suddenly exploded like a liquid explosive, sand within a hundred meters blown into nothingness.
"I’m angry now! You sand monster, I’m not some kind of Buddha. Let’s die together then!"
Hao Tian completely disregarded any fear of clone Xuan. Indignation filled his heart as the Holy Light on his body kept flowing out, an explosion occurring every time some was released. The sandy ground below was filled with craters, and he finally stopped after a long while, panting for breath. Not long after he stopped, the sand below began to shift as another sand man gradually appeared below.
"...Forget it. I don’t even have the energy left to be angry. I can start running after I kill you!" Hao Tian rubbed his temples vexedly. As he spoke, he kicked towards the sand man’s head, and it immediately disintegrated with a flash of golden light. Holy Light truly was an evolved form of Light of the Soul, with its power already surpassing telekinesis. Just this strike had been comparable to Zheng’s Instant Destruction. Although its might was the slightest bit weaker, its damage on energy was better.
His attacks looked vicious and gave Imhotep no chance to retaliate. In actual fact, Imhotep’s heart was starting to calm down. When he had been going all-out to attack before while Hao Tian responded lifelessly, his energy expenditure had been too great. That was why he couldn’t stop even if he wanted to. Now when Hao Tian madly attacked, he had managed to use the sandy ground to swim around. He hadn’t actually been harmed much. The tables had turned. He didn’t care for the conclusion anymore, only thinking of tying Hao Tian down and not letting him run away.
Just like that, golden light flashed continuously on the sandy ground. Every time Hao Tian stopped and wanted to flee, sand would cover the skies and block his path, keeping him here. Imhotep was inwardly pleased, thinking about wearing Hao Tian down to his death like this.
As the two had a stand off for a period of time, a burst of radiant light appeared far off. Suddenly, huge shockwaves appeared on the ground, destroying a hundred meters row of buildings. When the pair looked up, they saw a trio floating in the sky, two identical Xuans and one woman floating nearby. One Xuan had an ancient bell floating above his head.
The three were flying at high speeds, not firing another bullet for a long while. This was because the three were in a different flow of time from others due to the Godseal Board and the Bell of the East Emperor. Every time one tried to restrict the other’s movements, the other side’s ability would cancel it out. The mutual usage had led their attack speeds to look very slow to outsiders. Actually, if someone else was there, they would possibly have been destroyed instantly by the Lambda Driver.
Although the pair’s frequency of attacks was low, the two fired a shot again not long after, leaving two enormous gouges on the ground. Then the two gradually moved away. Unfortunately, the two gouges had appeared to the left and right of the sandy ground. If the attacks had been closer some, Hao Tian and Imhotep would have been hit.
"...Hey Imhotep. What say we decide the victor quickly? What do you think?"
"I think your request is doable…"