Adams stood tall, his golden eyes burning with an intensity that made the battlefield itself tremble. The four-armed demon, who only moments ago had worn a grin of triumph, now lay sprawled across the broken earth, struggling to comprehend what had just happened. His chest throbbed with pain, a crater-like indentation where Adams' fist had landed.
He staggered to his feet, his red skin bruised and cracked, his four arms twitching as he attempted to regain his composure.
A low growl rumbled from deep within his throat, his monstrous form towering over Adams. But for all his size and ferocity, he seemed to hesitate. There was something about the man before him—a presence so overwhelming, so all-encompassing—that made even this creature of chaos and destruction pause. Yet his arrogance refused to yield.
"You think that little punch is enough to take me down?" the demon spat, blood dripping from his lips. He wiped the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand, his fiery eyes narrowing with renewed fury. "I've slaughtered armies. I've toppled kingdoms. And you... you think you can stand against me?"
Adams didn't respond. He didn't need to. His silence spoke louder than any threat, a chilling stillness that seemed to say, I am beyond you.
With a deafening roar, the four-armed demon charged forward, his massive feet cracking the ground beneath him with each step. His four arms moved in perfect coordination, each wielding a different weapon—a jagged axe in one hand, a spiked club in another, and two swords glowing with a dark, ominous energy. He swung with all his might, each strike aimed to tear Adams apart limb by limb.
But Adams was faster.
As the axe came down, Adams sidestepped, his movements so fluid they seemed almost effortless. The weapon sliced through the air where his head had been only moments before, missing him by mere inches. The spiked club followed next, but Adams was already gone, ducking under the swing and darting behind the demon with speed that was almost inhuman.
The demon barely had time to react before Adams struck again. His fist, glowing with the same golden light as before, connected with the demon's side. The impact sent shockwaves through the demon's body, the force so intense that his bones cracked audibly. The creature howled in agony, staggering sideways, his massive frame buckling under the power of Adams' blow.
But Adams wasn't finished.
Before the demon could recover, Adams was on him again, delivering a series of rapid punches, each one aimed with surgical precision. One to the ribs—crack. Another to the jaw—crunch. Each blow reverberated through the battlefield, the sheer force behind them enough to shatter stone. Blood spurted from the demon's mouth, his once-proud form now hunched and trembling under the relentless assault.
The demon's eyes widened in terror, the realization finally sinking in. He had underestimated this man—this being. Adams wasn't merely strong. He was beyond strength, beyond power. He was something else entirely, something the demon had never encountered before.
"You... what are you?" the demon gasped, his voice trembling with fear as he tried to fend off Adams' attacks.
Adams didn't answer. His expression remained cold, impassive, as if the fight meant nothing to him. With a swift, brutal kick to the demon's knee, Adams sent him crashing to the ground. The demon howled, his leg buckling under him as he collapsed, his once-mighty form now crumpled and broken.
Adams stood over him, his golden eyes glowing with an unearthly light. He raised his hand, the golden energy around his fist flaring brighter, casting a blinding radiance over the battlefield. The demon's eyes widened in terror as he realized what was coming next.
"No... no, please—" the demon began, but Adams' fist came down, cutting off his plea with a sickening crunch. The demon's skull cracked under the force of the blow, his body jerking violently before going limp. Blood pooled beneath him, his once-mighty form reduced to a broken, lifeless heap.
Adams straightened, his face still emotionless, his glowing eyes surveying the battlefield as if the fight had been nothing more than a minor inconvenience. The air around him seemed to crackle with the remnants of his power, the very atmosphere bending to his will.
But behind him, Laden was facing a different battle.
Laden's green eyes, still filled with grief and sorrow, shifted toward the newcomer, his hands trembling as he clutched Aria's lifeless body tighter. Adams, however, was already standing tall, his golden gaze locked onto the intruder with unyielding intensity.
The man's grin widened as he saw Adams' growing tension. He lifted two of his upper arms, gesturing casually toward Aria's still form. "And don't bother trying to save her," he added, his tone almost mocking. "Anyone struck by the Asura Blade is destined to die.
There's no coming back from that... well," his gaze flickered toward Arianna, a glint of curiosity sparking in his eyes, "except for someone with true immortality."
Arianna's heart lurched as his eyes settled on her. The weight of his gaze made her feel as though she had been exposed, laid bare before this powerful, sinister being. She stepped back instinctively, her half-blonde, half-black hair whipping in the wind as her two-toned eyes widened in shock and fear.
Adams' mind raced. The pieces of the puzzle began falling into place with each word the intruder spoke. His gaze darkened, and his jaw clenched as a cold realization settled over him. "You... distracted us," Adams growled, his voice low but filled with fury. "You sent your monsters across the planes, forcing my father and me to leave the God Ascension Plane. Then, while we were gone, you struck.
You sent your minions to kill my mother, knowing it would break my father, weaken him." His fists clenched at his sides, golden energy crackling around his fingers as his aura began to swell. "And now, after weakening us, you've come for my sister. You plan to experiment on her, don't you? You want to study her immortality... treat her like some... guinea pig."
The words left Adams' lips like venom, each one dripping with loathing. His golden eyes blazed, the intensity of his anger transforming the air around him. The battlefield seemed to respond, as the ground beneath him began to crack, and the wind howled violently, swirling around him in a vortex of raw power.
The man with the red skin smiled. It wasn't a smile of amusement—it was a smile of pure malice, of someone who was in control and knew it. His eyes gleamed as he raised his two upper arms, the gesture almost dismissive, while his lower arms remained behind him, poised as if ready to strike at any moment.
"As expected," he said, his voice low and smooth, "of the one destined to become the One Above All." His eyes locked onto Adams, his grin widening ever so slightly. "But I hate to break it to you, boy—you are not the One Above All. Not yet." His smile twisted into something darker, a mockery of Adams' growing power. "So if you know what's good for you, step aside now."
His upper arms slowly lowered, his fingers flexing with eerie calm as his gaze flickered toward Arianna again. "Let me take what I came for—your sister. When you finally reach my level of power, you can come for her. If there's anything left of her by then." His words were ice, each syllable cutting deeper than the last. He turned his focus back to Adams, his eyes glinting with a challenge. "Or..."
The air thickened with tension, and the wind stilled as the man's smile faded, replaced with a cold, calculating expression. "You can choose to stand against me now. Fight me, and die."
Adams' aura surged even higher, golden light flaring around him like a second skin. His fists crackled with divine energy, his eyes glowing brighter as the anger in his chest swelled into a storm of power. But there was no outward reaction, no loud proclamation. Just a calm, focused silence as his muscles tensed, his mind calculating every possible move.
His jaw clenched, his brows furrowed, and for the briefest moment, his lips pressed into a thin line.
Then, Adams spoke, his voice a cold, quiet fury. "If you think I'll let you take my sister, you've already made your last mistake."
The red-skinned man's grin returned, but it no longer held the same confidence. There was something in Adams' voice, in his stance, that made even this monster pause for just a fraction of a second. But then his arrogance returned, and he chuckled, the sound low and menacing.
"Well then," he said, his voice dripping with dark amusement. "Let's see if you have what it takes to challenge me."
As his final words hung in the air, the battlefield seemed to hold its breath. For the briefest of moments, there was a stillness, an anticipation of the clash that was about to unfold. And then, in the blink of an eye, the red-skinned man surged forward, his four arms moving with terrifying speed as he launched the first strike.
But Adams was already there, his golden light cutting through the shadows as their battle began.