Chapter 655: The One

Damian let out a low, cold laugh.

He slowly raised his face, meeting Sol’s gaze despite the overwhelming pressure bearing down on his body. His knee remained buried in the cracked ground, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. Yet the amusement in his eyes was unmistakable.

"Honestly, this is an amazing inheritance."

He chuckled, wiping the blood from his lips with the back of his hand.

"If I hadn’t experienced its capabilities for myself, I wouldn’t have believed something this overpowered could exist."

His smile widened.

"However... I’m overpowered too!"

Buzz!

A violent surge of dark aura erupted from his body, spreading across the battlefield before shooting into the heavens. The pressure that had been weighing him down began to fluctuate, and the surrounding ground trembled beneath the sudden increase in his power.

Then a third eye opened on his forehead.

Its iris was crimson, its pupil narrow and vertical. Unlike Damian’s other eyes, however, this one moved independently, shifting its gaze toward Sol with an unsettling awareness.

A cold chuckle escaped from it.

"So this is the wielder of the Pride inheritance... Not too shabby!"

The crimson eye narrowed.

Buzz!

Sol’s face twisted with displeasure. But his expression changed further when he noticed Damian slowly rising to his feet.

The pressure of Imperial Decree intensified.

"I SAID ON YOUR KNEES!"

The heavens seemed to respond.

An immense force descended upon Damian, pressing against his body from every direction. The ground beneath his feet sank, and visible cracks spread outward, widening into enormous fissures.

Yet Damian continued rising.

His muscles tightened, and the black scales covering his body began to darken. Pieces of black armour materialized around his shoulders, chest, and forearms, burning into existence like fragments of an ancient armour being forged directly onto his body.

His robes were reinforced by the armour, while the darkness spreading across his skin became increasingly pronounced.

Asura Body!

Dark Knight Physiology!

Dark King Physiology!

Black Dragon Physiology!

Four different enhancements activated in rapid succession and his physical strength surged.

The black armour settled over his transformed body, and the crimson eye on his forehead glowed with an eerie brilliance. His fangs became visible as his lips stretched into a wide grin.

Damian finally stood upright.

Sol’s eyes narrowed as Damian glared at him.

"You are inferior!"

He reached out with one hand.

BLACK HOLE!

Buzz!

A violent suction force erupted from Damian’s palm.

The air twisted toward him, and the surrounding debris was dragged across the ground. Sol’s airborne figure wobbled dangerously as the invisible force attempted to pull him toward Damian.

His expression changed.

The suction was considerably stronger than he had anticipated. But that wasn’t what surprised him most.

It was Damian’s resistance.

Even under the full pressure of Imperial Decree, the Prince of Lust was standing upright through sheer physical strength. His body was resisting an ability that had forced Gods to their knees.

Sol’s eyes narrowed further.

’The Abyssal inheritance is more powerful than I would like to admit.’

Despite the situation, his thoughts remained composed.

’Even worse, my power is already weakened because it’s nighttime. This is the worst possible time to fight him.’

Leo’s familiar voice rang inside his mind.

’Shall we withdraw?’

Sol chuckled inwardly and shook his head.

’The Prince of Pride cannot fall to a mere demigod. No matter what inheritance he possesses.’

Leo’s response came almost immediately.

’Fool. Look up and tell me what you see!’

Sol’s expression changed. His gaze shifted toward the heavens. Only then did he notice the dark clouds gathering above the battlefield.

They had been concealed beneath the violent fluctuations of their powers, but now the sky was almost entirely covered. Crimson lightning crawled through the darkness, illuminating the clouds with intermittent flashes.

Sol’s pupils contracted.

"Tribulation Lightning... This brat has unlocked this much?!"

His expression finally turned ugly.

Tribulation Lightning targeted the soul directly. Even someone as powerful as Sol would not emerge unscathed if struck by it. And with his power already restricted by the God-Slaying Arrays, taking a direct hit could prove disastrous.

’Now you see why I’m worried,’ Leo warned telepathically. ’Everything is against you. We barely have eight minutes before we have to deal with it!’

Sol’s expression remained cold, but his thoughts were no longer as relaxed.

Across the battlefield, Damian had also noticed the change in his opponent’s expression.

He frowned.

’He noticed it.’

He had been trying to keep the Tribulation Lightning concealed until it was ready to descend. Unfortunately, the sheer intensity of their confrontation had made that increasingly difficult.

The Abyss’s voice emerged from the crimson eye on his forehead.

"We will have to focus on keeping him here. There is nothing to worry about."

Damian nodded slightly.

"I agree... All we have to do is keep him here, and victory is certainly ours!"

Sol’s gaze shifted back toward him. It was considerably colder than before.

"Unfortunately, I cannot afford to hold back anymore. I will be fighting to kill from now on."

Buzz!

An intense crimson flame exploded from Sol’s body.

It shot into the heavens like a pillar, swallowing the surrounding golden radiance. His enormous frame began twisting and changing within the flames. His muscles expanded, his shoulders broadened, and his entire body underwent a violent transformation.

The flames eventually receded.

What emerged was no longer the Sol Damian had been fighting.

His body had grown considerably bulkier, with charred black skin covering his enormous frame. Cracks ran across his body, glowing with an amber liquid that resembled molten lava. His shoulders were broad enough to make the surrounding pillars appear insignificant, and his muscular arms looked capable of crushing mountains.

He now stood approximately twenty feet tall. Even dragons would have appeared small beside his monstrous physique and the pressure radiating from him was suffocating.

Sol slowly raised his head.

"The One..." Amber fumes escaped from the corners of his lips.

Swish!

His massive frame vanished and Damian’s eyes widened.

Sol appeared above him, his enormous fist descending with terrifying speed. To Damian, it felt as though the heavens themselves were collapsing.

He immediately raised both hands.

BOOOOOOM!

His palms caught Sol’s fist and the impact was catastrophic.

Damian’s arms screamed in pain as the force travelled through his entire body. His feet sank into the ground, and the earth beneath him collapsed into a massive crater.

Within seconds, the depression expanded to a depth of nearly a hundred metres.

A violent shockwave erupted from the impact, its sound resembling the explosion of a nuclear warhead. The surrounding structures were swept away, and the remaining walls of the Imperial Palace crumbled beneath the pressure.

Damian gritted his teeth. Then he felt something scorching beneath his legs.

His eyes shifted downward.

Lava!

Molten earth had begun pooling beneath his feet. He glanced toward the sides.

The ground was changing. Cracks spread in every direction, and rivers of lava began spilling into the enormous crater. Some erupted violently from the earth, shooting upward like enormous fountains before raining down across the battlefield.

Sol’s voice shook the heavens.

"THE WORLD IS MY TOY, AND THE BATTLEFIELD IS MY PLAYGROUND!"

His enormous body radiated an overwhelming amber light.

"I AM THE ONE TRUE GOD!"

Flame burst!

Damian’s body exploded into purple flames. He disappeared from the crater and reappeared high above the battlefield.

His eyes widened.

The entire region surrounding the Imperial Palace had changed. The once magnificent palace grounds had become a devastated landscape of shattered earth and molten rivers. Lava flowed between enormous fissures, while several streams shot into the sky before crashing back down.

The battlefield had become a volcanic wasteland.

Damian’s expression darkened.

’So this is the true power of The One.’

He had barely finished the thought when a voice reached his ears.

"Inferior scum..."

Damian’s head turned.

"PAY ATTENTION!"

It was too late. Sol’s fist struck him.

BOOOOOOM!

Damian’s body shot through the air and he broke the sound barrier twice. The impact sent him hurtling across the battlefield at an incredible speed, his body smashing through the Illusionary Heaven Mirror Barrier that had concealed the battle from the rest of the Imperial Capital.

The transparent barrier shattered.

Countless fragments of distorted light scattered across the sky before disappearing.

At almost the same moment, Abel released Leo. The black dragon immediately vanished from the battlefield, retreating before the surrounding demons could witness his presence.

Damian, however, had no such luxury. His body continued travelling uncontrollably through the air. He crossed hundreds of miles before gravity finally began pulling him downward. He crashed through the upper floors of a building, tore through another structure, and continued smashing through the city.

By the time his body finally struck the ground, approximately twenty buildings had been destroyed along his path.

A massive cloud of dust rose into the night and silence followed.

Damian lay at the centre of the destruction and his vision blurred. His entire body ached, and every attempt to move sent waves of unbearable pain through him.

He tried to raise an arm but nothing happened.

His bones were broken, all of them.

Even breathing had become exceedingly difficult. Each breath felt as though something sharp was digging into his chest, and blood continued flowing from his mouth.

For several moments, Damian could only stare at the night sky.

’Damn...’

He had underestimated Sol.

The explosion had not gone unnoticed.

Across the Imperial Capital, the Dukes and Princes who had been patrolling the streets immediately turned toward the Imperial Palace.

The destruction of the Mirror Barrier had exposed the battlefield to the entire city.

And what they saw left them stunned.

The palace grounds had been transformed into a volcanic wasteland. Rivers of lava flowed across the shattered earth, while enormous pillars of smoke rose into the night.

At the centre of it all stood Sol. His twenty-foot frame remained suspended above the battlefield, his charred body radiating amber light.

Nearby, Rin and Biron had abandoned their confrontation with Leo. Both spirit beasts immediately rushed toward the direction of the final explosion and their movements were frantic.

The Dukes watched them disappear into the distance. Then the realization began to settle.

The Prince of Lust had been fighting Sol alone!

Duke Paimon’s eyes widened.

"The Prince of Lust..."

He stared at the enormous figure hovering above the ruined palace.

"Did he lose?"

Astaroth’s expression was considerably worse.

"He was fighting Sol alone?"

The fact that Damian had lost was surprising enough. But the realization that he had confronted the Prince of Pride without the support of the other Princes was even more astonishing.

Nearby, Kazier and Belial stared at Sol’s transformed figure.

Aien had stopped reclining, while Brolly’s usual appetite seemed to have disappeared entirely.

They had all encountered this power before. None of them needed an explanation to understand what it meant.

Kazier clenched his fists.

"That fool..."

Belial remained silent, his green eyes fixed on the battlefield.

Aien’s expression darkened.

Brolly slowly lowered the food in his hand.

They had come to help hunt Sol, but Damian had rushed ahead and confronted him alone and now the consequences were before their eyes.

It was an extremely foolish decision.