The Author's POV-Novel

649 Ren's return[3]

As soon as the swords started to fall down toward the ground, the world started to shake as an overwhelming force began pushing down toward the ground.

"Come, let me see how much more you can entertain me."

With an expression that suggested he was looking down on the world, Ren continued to press his hand downward as more and more swords appeared from the void and extended toward the world.

Mana agglomoration; Sky rapture.

This was the name of the move that Ren was utilizing at that very moment.

It was a skill that was exclusive to him and was not a component of the Keiki style. Ren was now able to exert control over all of the psyons that were located within a few kilometers of him as a result of his successful establishment of a stronger connection with the psyons that were present in the atmosphere.

When compared to before, he was on a completely different level right now, at least from a realistic standpoint. He had improved his strength to such a degree that the Keiki style was no longer as useful or significant as it had been in the past.

It was necessary to point out that Ren's current strength had already surpassed that of Grandmaster Keiki when he was in his prime.

The Keiki style, despite the fact that it was still somewhat useful, was not something that he would consider using very frequently anymore.

Xiu! Xiu! Xiu!

As they descended from the void, the tangible sword energies that were as thick and long as a tree all focused their attention on Suriol, who was floating in the air slightly below Ren.

His figure, which had been undergoing a transformation earlier, had already finished morphing and resumed an appearance that was eerily similar to Ren's.

The expression on Suriol's face, which had become identical to that of Ren's, changed to one of bewilderment.

"What's going on?"

He looked up at the sky with shock.

"...The figure that you envy is none other than yourself? How is this possible?"

As soon as Suriol realized that he had transformed back into the previous form he had taken, his heart went through a period of extreme upheaval.

As he processed this information, he was stunned to discover that Ren envied himself the most.

How was this possible?

'No, wait?'

His eyes widened in surprise as he took a moment to process the information stored in his memory.

"Ah, I see...""

Suriol finally cracked a smile as his body once again underwent some changes.

His hair began to change from black to white in a gradual manner as his once blue eyes underwent a change as well, gradually transitioning to a grayish color, and his face lost all expression as it became expressionless.

Suddenly, from deep within Suriol's body, a strange power surged out. At the same time, all kinds of different memories surfaced within his mind, and everything around him lost its color.

As he lifted his head to stare at the incoming sword attacks, his head cocked ever-so-slightly, and he slowly raised his hand above his head.

The sky beneath him ripped into shreds as various black colored swords warped beneath him in a threatening manner as the air around him stirred.

In the time it took for more than a hundred swords to materialize in the space beneath him, the swords that were coming from Ren had already begun to draw closer to him.

"...This should do."

The sword energies that were buried beneath Suriol rose into the air with a single motion of his hand and were precisely directed toward the oncoming storm of swords.

The two attacks quickly collided with one another, and the world slowly started to lose its color.

At the same time that an eerie silence engulfed the entire planet, visible circular pulses that changed color from red to gray and back to red began to spread out across the entire surface of the world.

It was then that it happened.

Booom! Booom! Booom!

The aftermath of the conflict between the two powers resulted in the sky being filled with the deafening sounds of explosion after explosion, while the land beneath it was ripped to pieces and mountains were leveled.

"Get out of the way!"

"Run!"

As a result of the two attacks, the demons and orcs that remained on the ground were quickly ripped to pieces, which caused widespread panic and chaos.

Everyone who was standing there retreated quickly and looked for somewhere to take cover.

As the residual energy from the clash above continued to spread throughout the entirety of the battlefield, no one was safe, whether they were enemies or allies, as many died in a matter of seconds.

It was fortunate that orcs were born with powerful bodies and were not as affected as the demons, who were completely annihilated, their cores included. Nonetheless, the number of orcs seriously injured as a result of their clash was nothing short of small.

It didn't take long for the chaos to calm down, but by the time the lingering energy from Ren and Suriol's exchange had dissipated, the world was already in a state of complete devastation.

The ground beneath them was completely leveled, and thick cracks appeared on the ground beneath them. Further adding to that, all of the vegetation that stood beneath had been completely eradicated.

"Ahh..."

"Ugh..help."

Only the sound of orcs and demons wailing in agony and pleading for assistance could be heard throughout the world.

Unfortunately, no one came to their aid as everyone was focused on the two figures in the air that bore a striking resemblance to one another.

"...I think I just found something very interesting."

Suriol spoke while floating gently in the air and gazed at his new body with awe and fear.

He then gently raised his head to stare at Ren in the sky.

"Who would've thought that there was another part of you."

After catching a glimpse of his memories, Suriol came to know about the other Ren's existence, and with the fact that Ren had experienced his power first hand, Suriol was able to assimilate with the memories of the other Ren extremely well.

It would not be incorrect to say that he was in an entirely different league than he was in the past. The current Ren, who had previously bothered him, no longer appeared as threatening.

Meeting Ren's line of sight, Suriol smiled.

"...I guess it's my turn to say to you to keep me entertained. I hope you last for enough time to appease me."

Suriol gently pointed his finger in Ren's direction.

At that precise instant, sword energy materialized right in front of Ren's head.

Seemingly able to read Suriol's intentions, when the sword suddenly appeared in front of him, it did not present any difficulties for him. Instead, he flicked his hand forward and scattered the energy in front of him.

That being said, a troubled frown soon appeared on his face as he stared at Suriol with a vigilant look.

Ren understood that the situation had turned for the worst, and it wasn't long before the situation turned from worse to dire as Suriol appeared right in front of him with his hand extended toward his face.

Ren was taken aback by his speed, which was on par with teleportation, and as his vision began to be obscured by the approaching hand that was inching closer to his face, he felt his movements become sluggish.

'Not good!'

At that precise moment, Ren became fully aware of the fact that he would die the moment Suriol's hand touched his face as the space around him started to distort and his figure began to fade.

"Nice try."

Despite this, Suriol made a slow turn to the right and advanced his hand in such a way that it appeared as though he could perfectly read his movements. Because of the rapidity of his movements, those who were observing from below were unable to make out what was taking place.

Nonetheless, their confusion was short-lived as they witnessed a figure plummet to the ground at breakneck speed.

Booom!

The earth was torn apart by a subsequent explosion, and a sizable crater was produced on the surface of the ground. After the dust had settled, standing in the middle of the crater was Ren as blood dripped from the side of his mouth.

He wiped the blood in the corner of his mouth and stared toward the sky where Suriol was standing. At the moment, he was looking at his body with wonder as a smile slowly pulled on his face.

"What fascinating power..."

He murmured in a voice loud enough for everyone to hear.

Suriol's attention shifted in Ren's direction and he soon chuckled.

"How about I present you with the same offer that you previously gave me?"

He poked fun at him while his smile gradually expanded into a broad grin.

Word for word, he started to repeat the words that Ren had previously told him.

"I'll give you two choices..."

"We stop this meaningless fight and you submit to me."

"If you choose to attack, I'll kill you."

Ren's expression remained as emotionless as ever as he continued to stare at Suriol. At this precise moment, his body was riddled with wounds, and his body repeatedly twitched.

Those who were observing the scene could plainly see that Ren was at his wit's end, whereas Suriol appeared to be in a significantly better state.

The many people who were watching felt a tightening in their chests, which brought Suriol even more joy; he took in their expression with ecstasy as the grin on his face twisted all the way toward his eyes.

"How about it? Are you willing to submit to me?"

Suriol continued to tease with a broad grin on his face.

Ren, on the other hand, maintained his expressionless gaze fixed upon Suriol while he continued to stare at him in complete silence.

"Huuu..."

It did not take long before his eyes gradually closed, and the hue that had been revolving around his body began to shrink toward his body.

The world came to a sudden standstill as a gentle breeze caused Ren's clothes to flutter.

Ren's silence brought the entire world to a silence as everyone's focus turned on him. His next words would decide the outcome of the war.

The silence continued for what seemed to be an eternity as a stifling and suffocating atmosphere permeated every corner of Immorra.

"So?"

Suriol questioned as he cautiously stared at Ren, who was calmly standing on the surface of the crater.

"Why aren't you answering?"

Hearing Suriol's words, Ren's eyes gradually opened, and he shook his head.

"I'm good."

Shortly after that, a tremendous power erupted from his body, causing the entire world to shake. Simultaneously, a pillar of light emerged from Ren's body and tore through the dark clouds that were above him in the sky.

Pointing his finger in Suriol's direction, Ren mumbled.

"It may still be too early for me to use this move, but I'll give it a go."