Chapter 1588: Black cocoon
Chapter 1588: Black cocoon
“AAAARRGGGHHHH!”
Cain roared with all his might, veins bulging across his arms and neck as he pushed the Shooting Star Dragon Halberd down. The weapon tore through the tidal wave of nightmarish energy that Reverend Madness had unleashed, scattering tendrils of black destruction into fragments. For an instant, it appeared as though time itself paused—if only to highlight the utter disbelief clouding the ancient fiend’s face.
The force behind Cain’s blow was so overwhelming that Reverend Madness could do nothing but watch, eyes wide. A heartbeat later, the halberd’s blade slammed into him, carving so deeply across his torso that it nearly bisected him from shoulder to hip.
“BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMM!”
The halberd’s momentum did not halt with the initial impact. As the weapon reached the ground, all the built-up power erupted in a fierce explosion that detonated right against Reverend Madness’s already-critical wounds. His body flailed through the air like a shattered rag doll, crashing through jagged terrain and leaving a trail of blood in his wake. Only then did the roiling waves of destruction recede, granting a glimpse of the condition of both warriors.
Cain, panting heavily, remained standing amid the debris. He had pushed his body far beyond safe limits—blood vessels had burst in his arms and legs, and ragged tears of muscle still leaked fresh blood.
The reckless usage of the Concept of Gluttony and the Concept of Rage had exacted a terrible toll on his flesh, but he was not incapacitated. Instead, faint pulses of vitality coursed through him, fueled by his Concept of Life. These threads of life energy knitted at least some of his wounds, preventing his condition from spiraling into dangerous territory.
Reverend Madness lay thousands of meters away, sprawled in a crater of rubble. The slash across his chest had torn into both lungs, leaving no doubt that he should be dead—blood flooded from the gaping wound, and patches of charred skin testified to the scorching star flames that had lanced through him. His heart did not seem to beat, his lungs did not inflate, and the light had vanished from his eyes.
Yet Cain refused to assume victory. He knew his foe was no ordinary opponent. “This is an Archdeity,” he reminded himself, “one who has survived for half a billion years.”