Vol 9. Chapter 76: Dragon Heroic Spirit (4)

No one at Saint Heath Academy—students or teachers—had ever seen a technique like this.

The moment Noa released pressure that surpassed Dragon King level, everyone was left stunned.

“Th-that… what is that technique? Some stronger kind of transformation magic?”

“Her whole body looks more mature, but it doesn’t look like transformation magic. It feels like she’s entered… an entirely new realm.”

“And aside from that unusual dragon pressure, I can’t sense any normal magic fluctuation from her at all. Isn’t that strange?”

“No magic fluctuation? Then what is Noa using to fight in that form?”

…

Voices rose everywhere. Even the academy’s veteran scholars could not figure out what Primordial Mode · Ascension truly was.

But even so, they could clearly feel it—after entering Primordial Mode · Ascension, Noa’s strength had undergone a qualitative leap.

That calm, restrained power seeped steadily from her. In that moment, she was like the origin point of all dragon magic—unfathomable, limitless, brimming with possibility.

Even the Magic Eye, which had been wildly arrogant just moments ago, felt a thread of fear upon witnessing Noa’s Primordial Mode · Ascension.

“This power feels familiar… Is it the power of that other soul inside the girl’s consciousness…?”

Last time, its attempt to possess Noa had failed because another independent, terrifyingly powerful soul existed in her mindscape.

The Magic Eye had been caught off guard and forced to flee in humiliation.

Now the dragon girl had revealed an even more incomprehensible state—one that clearly had something to do with that powerful soul.

“Hundreds of thousands of years ago, my void realm released chaotic power to invade Samael. Back then, chaotic power seems to have successfully corroded a powerful existence on Samael.”

Staring at Noa, the Magic Eye slowly gathered chaotic magic in its hand.

“Oh… I know where that familiarity comes from now. And I finally remember who that other soul in your head really is.”

“Hmph. I don’t understand how you managed to live so long, or why you’re lodging in this girl’s body as a soul.”

“But since you nearly fell to chaotic power hundreds of thousands of years ago, then today... you will still end up corroded!”

With that, the Magic Eye lunged. Its body became a black afterimage as it flashed in front of Noa in an instant.

“S-so fast… It’s even faster than Noa’s Godspeed!”

“That thing in Tucker’s body is getting serious…”

“But isn’t this a bit too absurd?!”

“Looks like it was the right call to retreat earlier. If we kept entangling with it, we’d probably be beaten to death before that cursed power finished corroding us…”

“The gap… is too big.”

“…”

The Magic Eye truly did not want to keep probing.

Even though it mocked its opponent as a loser to chaotic power, its actions showed not a trace of carelessness.

That was why it went all out, intending to end this quickly.

And its power had indeed elevated Tucker’s physical capacity to an unprecedented level.

Even without learning the Nine Hells Gates, it could still surpass Godspeed just by brutally overdrawing Tucker’s lifespan for short-term strength.

“Heh. Shocked stupid by my speed, brat?” the Magic Eye sneered. “This is a level you lowly Samaelians can never reach no matter how you train! Die!!”

And yet...

“Too slow.”

Boom!

The Magic Eye’s flying strike was caught by Noa with what looked like a casual lift of her hand.

Dust and air rippled outward from the sheer impact.

But Noa did not budge. She stood firm as a mountain.

“W-what?”

The Magic Eye reeled, disbelief flashing across its face.

If that blow had landed on the earlier Noa—still in the form of a smaller girl—then at minimum she would have suffered a broken arm and internal injuries.

Yet she had caught it with ease.

“Someone told me to pass a message to you, filthy eyeball,” Noa said coldly. “You’ve got the wrong person. We are not the powerful existence that was corroded by chaotic power back then.”

Noa bent forward, seized the Magic Eye’s wrist with a reverse grip, her voice turning razor-sharp.

“And—don’t you dare mention That One.”

With those words, she kept hold of its wrist and performed a simple shoulder throw, smashing it into the ground.

The entire motion—from start to finish—took only a fraction of a second. The technique itself was plain and unadorned.

Yet the moment the Magic Eye’s back hit the earth, cracks exploded outward from the impact point, spreading rapidly in every direction.

The ground beneath Noa’s feet trembled.

Noa did not release the wrist. She raised her right foot and slammed it down toward the Magic Eye’s chest.

“Damn you, brat!”

Boom!

Her foot hit, kicking up a heavy cloud of dust.

The strike was ruthless and heavy. It was nowhere near the stomp she had used on the ancient mandrill, but if an ordinary person took a blow like this, the best-case outcome would be being crushed into pulp.

When the dust settled, there was no one under her foot.

Noa calmly lifted her head, tossed aside a severed arm in her hand, and looked toward the distance.

There, the Magic Eye—having torn off its own arm—stood with a grim expression.

“For survival,” Noa mocked coldly, “you’re willing to throw away even an arm?”

Drip. Drip.

Black-red blood poured from the thick stump, splattering onto the ground.

The Magic Eye panted, glanced at its missing right arm, and let out a snort.

“I didn’t expect this state of yours to be such a ridiculous boost. Two simple moves, and you can injure me this badly.”

Noa watched the blood flowing from the wound.

It was already black-red.

Tucker’s body had been corroded to a point that was nearly irreversible.

And with the Magic Eye’s reckless abuse, it clearly did not care how badly it destroyed Tucker’s body.

Noa frowned and spoke, voice heavy.

“I can guess how the Magic Eye tempted you, Tucker. You’ve always wanted to prove you’re stronger than me, right? The Magic Eye promised you power to surpass me. But now—whether you truly surpassed me or not…”

Noa raised her hand and pointed at the battered Tucker.

“Just look at what you’ve paid so far. Was it worth it? You lost your body and your will. You hurt the teachers and classmates you saw every day—just for the sake of… surpassing me. Was it worth it?”

Noa repeated the words twice.

She was not lamenting Tucker.

She simply could not understand how someone could take things to such an extreme.

“You do know that Tucker can’t hear you anymore,” the Magic Eye said, its lips stained with blood.

Its face had turned even paler and more grotesque. Veins stood out in its eyes, its expression twisted with rage.

“And what is there to not understand? Weak, stupid cowards crave greater power and trade their souls for it. That’s perfectly normal. Do you really think this boy was intelligent? Don’t make me laugh. I saw his memories. His people are gone. His family is gone. He smashed his own head open, and only one friend even bothered to come see him. Honestly, if his jealousy hadn’t been strong enough—perfect for my use and for nourishing chaotic power—I wouldn’t have bothered tempting a fool like this. His fall is his own fault. I merely gave him a gentle push before he stepped into the abyss. And that kind of stupidity—didn’t that one do it too, hundreds of thousands of years ago?”

Noa’s expression tightened. “What?”

“If your so-called Dragon God wasn’t granted enough power by the Chaos Force, how could he possibly pull off something as world-shaking as opening the heavens and splitting the earth?” the Magic Eye said.

"And yet after using the Chaos Force to create the world, he went and split his own soul into two, leaving behind a good name for future generations—cough, cough.”

As it spoke, the Magic Eye seemed to realize something. It stared at Noa with narrowed eyes, then suddenly shifted its tone, as if it were raging at someone else.

“I know it now. Heh heh… I know it now! You’re the other half the Dragon God split off back then. No wonder I can sense his aura on you. But let me tell you—no matter how great that Dragon God seems in your eyes, the real him is just like Atos: a parasite who offered up his own soul in exchange for power.”

The Magic Eye forgot it was still hovering there, chattering nonstop, and didn’t notice the fury blazing from that soul.

“My god… so you people of Samael have been parasites from the very beginning.”

The Magic Eye sneered coldly.

“So are your parents and sisters—all of you little brats—parasites too?”

How could it use a few short lines to casually demean the two strongest primordial forces in the world?

Boom!

White energy exploded outward from Noa’s body.

Pressure swept across the entire academy, and sacred light illuminated the deep black night sky.

But beneath that holy brilliance was fury that reached the heavens.

Fury born from reverence for the Creator.

Fury born from deep love for her parents and family.

In the next instant, two interwoven strands of wrath surged out from the vast Primordial Force.

“We’re going in, Noa!”