Chapter 200: A Parting Gift
Looking at the small figure who had chosen to retreat, Underworld King Pluton exhaled scorching air from its nostrils.
It brandished the bone cleaver in its hand and sneered.
"You want to run now? Too late."
Its crimson eyes burned in the darkness.
"In my world, there is nowhere for you to escape. I will personally cut off your head and replace it with a pig's!"
Sonic only laughed coldly.
His figure gradually rose higher, standing beneath the dim, pitch black sky.
He slowly lifted his right hand.
At that moment, the power inside his body gathered in his palm.
A black purple sphere appeared there, spinning violently. Several pale star rings revolved around it, giving it the appearance of some ominous miniature planet.
For some reason, Sonic suddenly spoke in a cold voice.
"This is a parting gift."
The moment his words fell, the Great Spiral Wheel left his hand.
It slid down through the air in silence, like an insignificant star falling through a lightless night.
Then it arrived in front of the Underworld King.
In the next instant, it exploded.
The power contained within it burst outward all at once.
A violent detonation centered on that single point, spreading in every direction. Brilliant light erupted like daylight, devouring everything around it in an instant.
The roar did not stop.
Even Satoru Suzuki's position was affected by the blast.
When he turned his head toward that blazing white light, unimaginable shock appeared in his eyes.
Even so, he had no intention of admitting defeat.
Farther away, Lightning Max, Stinger, and Death Gatling were already too stunned to speak.
The battle had completely exceeded their understanding.
Amidst their shock, however, they were still worried about Mumen Rider's safety.
"I hope he's safe..."
When the piercing daylight finally faded, Underworld King Pluton's figure was revealed once more.
Its entire body was covered in blood.
But to it, those injuries were only superficial wounds.
On the other hand, the dense army of stitched Monsters that had surrounded the battlefield had all been reduced to ash.
Standing in the dark sky and looking down, Sonic held his sword in one hand.
He had no intention of dragging this out any further.
"Asuramaru," he said in his heart, "lend me your power."
"Watch your attitude. Say please next time!"
Asuramaru snapped back unhappily, but he still controlled the Demon Power and sent it flooding through Sonic's limbs and bones.
At the same time, Ittō Shura and Demon Lord Possession activated.
Sonic, who was already above Dragon level, instantly broke through that layer of restraint and stepped into peak Dragon level.
Feeling the power currently surging inside him, Sonic had a clear sensation.
He could kill his former self in an instant.
This improvement was not small.
It was the difference between mud and clouds.
Inside the sword, Asuramaru wondered whether Sonic could reach God level if he activated Demonization and sounded the horn as well.
Excluding Saitama, a being capable of destroying the world could already be regarded as God level in this world.
Holding the sword in one hand, Sonic looked down through the mask on his face.
Below, the Underworld King's scorched body had already healed rapidly. It stood amid the ruins and roared toward the sky.
"Is that all you can do, loach?!"
Facing the insult, Sonic only laughed coldly.
Endless darkness wrapped around the sword in his hand once more.
He switched to a two handed grip.
"Breath of Darkness, Eighth Form."
Then Sonic dove downward.
Behind him, darkness spread like a descending curtain, as if a heavenly river of night were falling to swallow everything below.
"Daikokuten!"
Facing this strike, the Underworld King sensed death.
But it did not retreat.
Instead, it roared and compressed its power to the limit.
"Hellfire!"
With a leap, the ground beneath Pluton cracked apart.
Its massive body shot upward in an instant.
In everyone's sight, that extreme darkness collided with the burning flames in midair.
Sonic gripped the sword with both hands and pushed his power to the limit.
He intended to end everything with this one strike.
At that moment, time seemed to freeze.
The world lost its color.
Only that sword bloomed with endless darkness.
"One Sword Rakshasa!"
In an instant, darkness swallowed the flames.
Above the ruined sky, only darkness remained eternal.
When everything finally returned to calm, the Underworld King's shattered body fell from the air in pieces.
Chunks of flesh scattered across the ground like rain.
Sonic landed and stood in place, his breathing slightly heavy.
At the same time, the system notification sounded in Asuramaru's mind.
[Ding! Intense negative emotions detected from Dragon level Monster Underworld King before death. Gained 500,000 emotion points!]
[This kill obtained 250,000 Demon Power. Fifty percent will be fed back to the Sword Master.]
The moment the system notification faded, Demon Power once again flooded into Sonic's limbs and bones.
Even though all his abilities had been deactivated, his current base strength had still stepped into peak Dragon level.
Feeling the power within his body, Sonic knew that although he was no longer as strong as he had been during that final strike, this was still a complete transformation.
But he did not savor it for long.
His target shifted to Satoru Suzuki.
In several flashes, Sonic arrived in front of him.
At this moment, Satoru Suzuki had also reached low Dragon level.
But when Sonic's kick came, Satoru was completely unable to resist.
Before he could even react, he was kicked to the ground.
Sonic looked down at him.
Killing intent surfaced in his eyes.
"You also gained Asuramaru's recognition, didn't you?"
His voice was cold.
"I'll give you two choices."
"Submit or die."
Facing Sonic's undisguised killing intent, Satoru immediately stood up from the ground.
There was no fear in his eyes.
Even though he knew the gap between them was like a chasm, he still had the courage to draw his sword from its sheath.
His answer was unwavering.
"I would rather die than submit."
Hearing that answer, Sonic stood in place without speaking.
He simply released his killing intent, letting it shroud Satoru and press down on him.
The pressure was suffocating.
Only when the overjoyed Lightning Max, Stinger, and Death Gatling arrived did Sonic finally stop.
Sensing Satoru's unshaken will, Sonic withdrew his killing intent.
"I won't kill you."
His eyes remained sharp.
"But remember this. The one who will eventually obtain all of Asuramaru's power will definitely be me."
Satoru, who had struggled to stand, still carried the same determination in his eyes.
"Then I'll tell you this too."
His voice was steady.
"Even if I die, I will struggle until the last moment."
The two looked at each other.
At that moment, the space could no longer support itself and began collapsing rapidly.
The remaining buildings, along with everyone trapped inside, returned to the original location in City Y.
The instant they appeared, Sonic's figure flashed and vanished from the spot.
Satoru could not help panting heavily.
The killing intent from earlier had truly made it difficult for him to breathe.
Nearby, Lightning Max, Stinger, and Death Gatling hurried forward after seeing that he was all right.
They shared the joy of surviving the disaster.
But at the same time, doubts lingered in their hearts.
What exactly had those two been talking about?
Just then, Bang, who had originally been in City Z, finally arrived as well.
When he saw Satoru Suzuki standing there unharmed, the anxiety on his aged face finally eased.
As long as he was safe.
.....
[If you don't want to wait for the next update, read 50 chapters ahead on P@treon.]
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