Chapter 536: Black And Blue
*Bang*
Ray was still giving Seth a hard time, and the Dark God was mainly relying on the Dark Sword to fend off the Brute Kings volley of attacks. Seth's greatest weapon was his mind, but with him shaken and disoriented, he couldn't even rely on his brain for comfort. A Scholar was useless without his or her ability to think. And Seth was pretty useless right now. With his mind feeding off the distraction the Absolute Queen had fed him, Seth found it hard to focus on the immediate threat before him.
The furiously attacking Ray suddenly took a huge step back, and his avatar stepped back with him. He pulled back his forearm and gathered power into it, with his avatar mirroring his actions. For the avatar threw its arm – the arm wielding the fire pitchfork – back with the same kind of eagerness Ray was displaying. With a defiant roar Ray threw out his favorite technique and showed why he was called one of the youngest genius gods alive. For he had modeled Splintering Fist so it could be used with a weapon!
"Splintering Fist!"
As sudden brightness that eclipsed the darkness of both the Dark Sword and the Dark God engulfed a 100 meter radius. A great burning sensation rocked the entire world of Zandor and had everyone sweating bullets.
Alexis's imprint quickly switched to defense mode sensing that danger was coming, and a great barrier was activated. The barrier shielded the people from the scorching heat that could cause heat strokes at the very least, and burn off the weaker ones if given the opportunity. Of course Seth could avoid holding back and display this level of carelessness because he knew that the people will be protected. Otherwise he wouldn't have done this.
If the Zandorians who were nowhere near the scene of the crime were suffering from the repercussions by just being witnesses, then it was obvious that the one facing the full brunt of the attack, god or not, was in big trouble.
Seth's expression was full of trepidation when he saw the large trident flying towards him. The Dark Sword which was in his hand, the weapon that had never expressed anxiety in its life began to quake slightly, and a bit of its power was shaved off. With their combined power they should be able to take this on and survive. It will shave off a great deal of their power, but it was better than dying. Seth couldn't rely on Dark Marker because he had pulled most of his aura into himself to combat the weakness he was experiencing due to Alexis's schemes – the revelation of his Godhead's secret. Because of that, most of the remaining darkness belonged to the Dark Sword. Besides, Ray's strike looked like it would cover a large area. Even if he used Dark Marker, he may not be able to get out of its range.
"Dark Barrier," Seth took a deep breath before summoning the power of the Dark Sword with his to employ a defensive technique he was rarely forced to use. Apart from the Son of Light, Geb and Osiris, Seth had never used this technique against another god.
A small barrier dense with darkness clouded Seth and kept him under its sinister hide. It pulsated with every millisecond that passed and radiated an air of strength that was difficult to face. It was merely a shield, but one couldn't help but wonder if it could consume.
Once the shield was erected, a bit of Seth's confidence returned to him. Sometimes he forgot how strong this shield was because he hardly ever used it. However before he could sigh in relief a powerful wave rocked him from within. He felt the beating of his heart, and every cells within himself lose power, and a powerlessness he couldn't quite understand was forced upon him. He heard his name within himself. It was a call from a power that was difficult to resist. For Zandor's World Will had been given power over him; it had been given the power to suppress the one who didn't belong! For Butler Fin had presented the title of the dark one to Zandor as one to be restricted, and the ancient power of this world that was once greater than all wasn't to be trifled with.
"No!" Seth screamed in desperation. The shield before him lost a great deal of strength, only becoming half as strong as what it was. But Ray's pitchfork cared little for the Dark God's current state of mind. With a merciless burst it crashed into the Dark Barrier.
*Whack*
*Boom*
A massive explosion that rocked the world of Zandor was heard from the sky above the Northern Empire. Men and women shook in fear, and children clutched the feet of their parents in horror. The great fire that burned in the sky above; the great fire that pushed away the darkness of the Dark God was consuming even single entity it touched. The barrier around the empires trembled, and threatened to break, but ultimately they stood firm. One couldn't help but wonder what would have happened if Zandor itself was the target. It would have surely been destroyed!
The fire in the sky burned for a while. Maybe it was just ten seconds. Maybe it was twenty, or it could have even been thirty. No one knew for it felt like eternity watching those flames dominate the sky and cast away the darkness their eyes had grown accustomed to in this short time.
Once the fire died away the darkness that dominated Zandor slowly receded. It flickered repeatedly like a dying candlelight. Clearly whatever was keeping it stable was losing strength. The eyes of the Zandorians brightened in eager expectation. They knew what this meant. A Fire God was facing a Dark God. Darkness dominated for a long time, but now light was returning to the world. Surely the Fire God was currently on top. This was good news! However, Seth's power wasn't the only thing to decline.
"Her image has gotten weaker," Duke Essandor squinted and pointed out whilst looking at Alexis's imprint. The formerly bright figure of the Absolute Queen was now much dimmer than before. Although it didn't flicker unstably like the dark domain, it wasn't far off.
"It must have taken a great deal of power to protect us from that strike," Sir Blunt wiped the sweat off his forehead and said. That was terrifying. Everything he had witnessed today was beyond his understanding and much greater than he could comprehend.
"Yeah. Whoever this Brute King is, his power is amazing." Duke Essandor couldn't help praising the god he had never met before. And he couldn't help wondering if there was a chance for him to get to half that god's level.
Of course none of Zandor knew that if it wasn't for Butler Fin and Indra's efforts, the Dark God's power would still be dominating Zandor somewhat. They only understood what they could see, not what they could not.
*Cough*
Back in the skies above, Seth coughed up a great deal of blood. He kept himself up by clutching onto a small slender looking stick. His left side of his body was in tatters, and his limbs were missing. For his left arm and left leg had been destroyed in that strike. Seth's dark aura had been fully withdrawn to heal the wounds and it engulfed the injured left side quickly to do its job. As for the Dark Sword, it wasn't any better off. For the stick Seth was holding on to wasn't actually a stick, but the Dark Sword!
Half its hilt was missing, and its blade had been reduced to the size of a rapier. It was because it was so greatly fractured that the dark domain around Zandor was flickering so. For the Dark Sword had almost been destroyed in that attack.
In contrast to the broken figures of Seth and the Dark Sword, Ray looked hale and hearty. His avatar was no more due to the fact that Ray had exhausted most of his strength, but he was largely unharmed. Although he panted heavily and took many deep breaths, he had the upper hand here. He calmed his breathing and gathered the remnants of his power. He needed to keep the pressure on.
"Kid, can you hear me?" Suddenly the voice of Butler Fin resounded in Ray's head, and the Brute King momentarily put away his plans of a rampant assault.
"Mentor! I can hear you. Are you okay?" Ray asked. He couldn't help but worry about his mentor because he knew that whatever Butler Fin was doing to weaken Seth had to be challenging.
"I am fine kid, just a bit exhausted" Butler Fin's weary yet healthy voice indicated that he was okay.
"I need you to hold on for a while. Just monitor Seth right now. You have beaten him black and blue so he should be severely wounded and shouldn't be a challenge for you. In just a few seconds, I require that you strike him with your full power. I will alert you when it is time" Butler Fin ordered his ward.
"Sorry mentor, I barely have enough in me to strike at half my power. Unless I attack in continuous bursts, I wouldn't be able to finish him off." Ray smiled bitterly and confessed. He would be a liar to say that he was capable of what his Mentor was asking of him. Even weakened, Seth was a great opponent.
"That isn't an issue. You are a god remember? You only need the spiritual energy of mortals to regain your strength." Butler Fin said, and Ray's eyes snapped open in surprise.
"You mean…"Ray could guess what was going to happen. Then his mind went back to Alexis's words and how she said Zandorians needed to do one last thing for her. But she never said what that thing was.
"Yes kid. Your wife would handle that for you." Butler Fin's chuckle was difficult to ignore since it came straight to Ray's mind. As if on cue Alexis's imprint sprang back to life and spoke to Zandorians once more.
"Zandorians, the Dark God must be weakened by now, but so is the Brute King. He cannot do this alone. He needs your help. I need you to believe in the Brute King. I need you to call his name and trust him for just this moment. You have the chance to fuel the power of a god. The power to defend your home is in your hands. You and only you, can kill the Dark God!"
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone