King Elbas had finally managed to isolate Divine Demons' existence. His body couldn't feed on the world's energy anymore, so the expert slowly lost power as he remained inside the golden prison.
Fergie, Luke, Wilfred, and Noah's companions focused on taking care of the azure energy that still lingered in the area. They didn't know how Divine Demon would react to that prison, so they wanted to disperse his source of power before it was too late.
Instead, Noah and King Elbas remained near the golden cocoon. They trusted Divine Demon too much to believe that those restraints could hold him. The cultivator would break free of the prison sooner or later, and they had to be there to stop him.
Minutes of silence disrupted only by the exchanges of the other experts passed while Divine Demon remained inside the golden prison. Noah and King Elbas never moved their eyes from that structure, and their hands shot whenever they saw an azure spot appearing among that blinding radiance.
Noah neared every azure spot and touched them with his right hand to send black roots. He instructed the parasite to eat Divine Demon's energy, and King Elbas helped in the process by making the prison immune to the magical plant.
The roots seeped inside the golden prison and destroyed every trace of Divine Demon's energy. Noah had to make the parasite feed on far more power to make it suitable for the task, but the magical plant ended up performing better than he expected.
The Demonic Form had evolved alongside his existence. The parasite fed on his energy, so his growth would improve the quality of its meals.
The parasite's corrosive aura also benefitted from Noah's ambition. The roots could damage liquid stage tissues if he d.e.s.i.r.ed, and the battle against Divine Demon required those features.
King Elbas and Noah continued to restrain Divine Demon, but their efforts didn't seem to lead anywhere. They could sense the expert struggling inside the prison, which confirmed that his mental instability was still in control of his body.
Their struggles intensified after their companions took care of all the azure energy in the area. Divine Demon only had the power contained inside his body at that point, but he never stopped unleashing his physical might to break free.
"How can a rank 8 existence be so unstable?" King Elbas wondered while adding inscriptions to the golden prison.
"Our flaws only intensify as we reach higher stages of the cultivation journey," Noah sighed while continuing to send black roots inside the golden prison.
The parasite didn't feed on the golden power, but its roots continued to shatter whenever they met the human figure restrained inside it. They always managed to absorb part of Divine Demon's energy, but they eventually fell apart after a few seconds.
Divine Demon was still wary of external threats even from inside the prison. His confused state didn't affect his experience as a warrior.
The blue spots eventually stopped appearing on the golden prison, but Noah and King Elbas didn't dare to relax. They could sense that Divine Demon had yet to regain his clarity, so they remained outside of the inscriptions to act as the first line of defense.
Wilfred, Fergie, and Luke quickly flew behind them. Snore, Night, and Duanlong did the same, but they waited for Noah's orders. They didn't attack nor activate their innate abilities in front of such a threat.
Tense minutes went by until a deafening silence filled the area. No sound came out of the golden prison, and even Divine Demon's aura stopped trying to surpass those restrictions.
"Did we win?" Wilfred asked, but Noah limited himself to shake his head.
Divine Demon was too strong to lose due to those poor techniques. The expert had used trump cards and secret abilities in the past. Noah could only hope that he didn't deploy them.
His hopes quickly shattered since an explosion resounded from inside the golden prison. A tremor ran through the various inscriptions and bent their shape, but nothing came out of them.
A second tremor then spread through the golden halo, but Noah ignored that event too. He had King Elbas by his side, so he would always understand whenever a formation was to fail his expectations.
The third tremor made the golden prison fall apart. Shards made of golden light fell toward the ground as those restraints crumbled. King Elbas wore a surprised expression at that scene, but his curiosity soon took the place of his arrogance.
Noah tightened his grip on the Demonic Sword and the sword-shaped roots. He was ready for Divine Demon's return, and he wouldn't hold anything back against the expert.
Wilfred, Luke, Fergie, and the companions did the same, but they remained behind Noah. They trusted him enough to have the first attack of the assault, especially since he had higher chances of sparing Divine Demon's life.
The cocoon of light soon broke. An azure crack spread through the remaining golden light and opened a passage that led to the insides of the prison. A figure soon came out of that tunnel, and the experts eventually became able to witness Divine Demon in all his might.
The world didn't give Divine Demon any energy, but azure light came out of his body and gave birth to the same amount of power that he usually gathered from the world.
His monstrous features had vanished. His nails and canines had retracted, and he had also shortened. The expert had returned the Divine Demon that they had always known, but his gaze expressed pure coldness.
"You are far from being back, right?" Noah asked while tilting his blades toward Wilfred.
"I'm always myself," Divine Demon replied, but his voice was strange.
Divine Demon wasn't speaking normally. His tone morphed and gained different features throughout his lines. No one could understand where those different voices came from.
"Don't worry," Noah replied while keeping his swords pointed toward Divine Demon. "I won't trust you so easily."
"You would be right," Divine Demon announced, and the world in their eyes changed.
"I've never seen something like this," Noah commented at that sight.
Everything in the experts' vision transformed. Azure lights filled the sky and morphed to take the shape of different techniques. Divine Demon's aura had filled the region in an instant, and his power had given birth to countless small azure spheres that floated throughout the battlefield.
"I seek victories," Divine Demon announced in his strange voice.
The lumps of azure light began to gain a purpose, and Noah's team tried to suppress them. However, those attacks detonated before Divine Demon's opponents could do anything about it.
A wave of energy forced Noah, King Elbas, Wilfred, Luke, and Fergie to slam on the ground. The two hybrids were mostly fine, and even Fergie managed to remain at his peak.
The same didn't apply to Luke and King Elbas. Luke suffered severe injuries, while King Elbas ended up with his back on the ground as he experienced the terror generated by his opponent.
Divine Demon remained high in the sky. His hand rose and gathered azure energy that created an array of azure spheres that gained different natures. Those attacks transformed into multiple abilities as they locked on the various opponents.
Noah prepared for the imminent clash, but a shadow suddenly appeared behind Divine Demon. A massive pig slammed on the expert's back and flung him far beyond the edges of the region.