Shenzhou, Jiuyou
When Kevin plunged the Might of An-Utu into Leo Ash's body, the first one to notice that something was wrong was, in fact, Kevin himself, the one closest to him.
Though Leo Ash had managed to put up a defense in time, he couldn't stop the strike from the Might of An-Utu from shattering it and piercing his flesh.
As he looked into Leo Ash's unwilling eyes, Kevin actually felt a hint of guilt.
However, in order to bring Leo Ash back to World Serpent headquarters, Kevin mercilessly prepared to unleash the power of the Might of An-Utu and burn Leo Ash half to death.
Yet, in that very instant, the Might of An-Utu in his hand suddenly flew out of his grasp.
?!
As Kevin struggled to recall the blade to his hand, the moment he grasped the hilt again, he seemed to sense something and took a sharp step back.
The Herrscher of Flame's core within the Might of An-Utu had, after being processed by the Previous Era's researchers, theoretically become a 'dead' core.
But the Gem of Haste connected to it was, without a doubt, a 'living' core.
Just by holding the hilt, Kevin could feel the Gem of Haste trembling in fear.
This was an 'emotion' Kevin hadn't felt from the gem since he'd emerged from his seclusion today.
What's more, it wasn't just the Gem of Haste. Even 'Kevin Kaslana' himself was terrified of the boy whose body he had just pierced.
Objectively speaking, when he saw that Leo Ash could use such a powerful move and then immediately act as if nothing had happened, remaining basically unharmed with his energy reserves full, Kevin had indeed been surprised.
But that surprise was more along the lines of 'Guys, I've really found a treasure,' rather than the shock of 'Damn, this kid is terrifying, he must not be allowed to live.'
But now, Kevin was genuinely a little scared.
Or, to be more precise, the Honkai Beast factors within Kevin's body were scared of Leo Ash.
All the various Honkai Beast factors within him were now conveying a single message to Kevin.
The enemy before him was extremely dangerous!
For a power to be considered dangerous by a 'Chimera' formed from so many potent Honkai Beast factors, and by a living Gem of Haste, Kevin could only think of one possibility.
"I never expected... that you would be the one to obtain this power."
Seeing the Oath of Judah fly to Leo Ash's side, Kevin's expression grew incredibly solemn.
"Leo Ash, are you still conscious?"
Leo Ash, whose body had been run through by Kevin, suddenly seemed as if he had just woken up, his eyes clearing in an instant.
Then, ignoring the wound in his abdomen, he grinned and waved his left hand, speaking cheerfully to Kevin.
"Of course I'm conscious, Mr. Kevin."
"And I've consciously determined..."
"—that what I want to do right now is beat the shit out of you, you son of a bitch who's trying to surrender to the Honkai."
"Cry out my name, Kevin."
"For I am—the [Herrscher of Binding]!"
...
Kevin didn't know what state of mind Leo Ash was in to say such a thing, but it seemed this battle was now unavoidable.
As Leo Ash's power finished spreading, a crimson field enveloped the two of them on the battlefield.
And Kevin, who had once stepped into the Field of Binding before, immediately felt his energy levels being suppressed.
In their era, someone within Fire Moth had once proposed a question after the tragedy of the Herrscher of Binding.
Back then, the Herrscher of Binding had a field with a mere one-hundred-kilometer radius, and it had already caused catastrophic casualties for Fire Moth.
So, what would happen if a host who 'knew how to use their power' became the Herrscher of Binding?
At the time, no one gave a detailed answer to that question.
All Kevin knew was that afterward, Fire Moth initiated Project Chimera, having Kevin fuse with even more Honkai Beast factors in an attempt to artificially create a savior.
And now, a Herrscher of Binding who 'knew how to fight' had appeared before him.
Just by facing this Herrscher directly, Kevin felt that he was now...
—even more thrilled.
Although he had only met Leo Ash for a few minutes, the qualities Leo Ash had displayed in that short time had already made Kevin incredibly optimistic.
And now, the strong-willed and exceptionally powerful Leo Ash had become the Herrscher of Binding. This was a tremendous piece of good news, both for Kevin and for this era.
As long as Leo Ash could suppress the Herrscher Personality immediately, the human side would gain an incredibly powerful combatant.
But, excitement aside, Kevin also had to face an inescapable reality.
This Herrscher of Binding was dead serious about cutting him down.
If Leo Ash had been controlled by the Honkai, then the Honkai, which had been targeting Kevin since before his return, would absolutely make Leo Ash fight Kevin to the death, now that he had a chance to win.
If Leo Ash was not controlled by the Honkai, then Kevin, who had just run him through, would still be treated as a target.
This fight was happening no matter what, and under these circumstances, Kevin actually felt a hint of...
Unease.
This time, the feeling of unease didn't come from his Honkai Beast factors.
Looking at the boy standing there, smiling and waving at him, Kevin was genuinely a little unsettled.
He hoped someone would surpass him, but that depended on the situation.
The kind of surpassing Kevin hoped for was someone who could pin Diabolic Kevin to the ground and beat him to a pulp, telling him he didn't need to carry out that bullshit Stigmata Project.
But the current Kevin had only recovered a portion of his power thanks to Chiyou.
Unable to activate his Diabolic form, Kevin couldn't use his full strength.
Surpassing the 'Parvati' Kevin was clearly not enough.
But in this era, no one with strength equivalent to 'Diabolic' Kevin had been born.
In other words, the only person who could test Leo Ash at this level was Kevin himself.
If he got taken apart by Leo Ash here and now...
Somehow, this whole test felt a little off.
But soon, Kevin had no time to ponder such things.
Leo Ash, who had been smiling, suddenly saw his expression turn ice-cold.
And the wound on his body, in that instant, healed right before Kevin's eyes.
At the same time, the Stigmata on Leo Ash's right hand changed from the letter D to a symbol that was not a character.
On the back of Leo Ash's right hand, an iron cross wrapped in chains had now appeared.
From the moment he regained his memories, Leo Ash had felt that his current state was very strange.
Less than three months ago, realizing he might be chosen as a Herrscher, Leo Ash had immediately forced himself to forget his sorrowful past.
From that point on, the 'reborn' Leo Ash who thought he had just been transported to this world, and the 'Avenger' Leo Ash, had effectively become two different personalities due to this crude action.
It was precisely because Leo Ash had two personalities that he had recently gained the ability to 'simultaneously converse with the System in his head and his companions outside.'
And now, after Leo Ash awakened as the Herrscher of Binding, the Honkai had no choice but to select the Avenger personality and transform it into the Herrscher Personality.
But the 'reborn' Leo Ash's control over the body was unaffected.
Whether it was the 'Avenger' Leo Ash or the 'reborn' Leo Ash, both were fundamentally Leo Ash.
Having seen through the Honkai's trick, the two, who were originally one personality forcibly split, tacitly chose not to fight each other.
As for why Leo Ash didn't charge Kevin and go all out from the start, it was purely because he was running a test.
A test to see if he, as the Herrscher of Binding, could use his own powers normally within this peculiar Field of Binding.
The result of the test was, to Leo Ash's slight annoyance, a bit troublesome.
The Field of Binding, much like Theresa's Divine Grace Field, weakened the energy levels of both friend and foe alike.
The first time Leo Ash secretly tried to use a Powerful Healing Spell with instant cast on his wound, it failed immediately because the energy couldn't coalesce.
But soon, Leo Ash came up with a solution.
The Field of Binding would weaken the energy on his body. So, as long as he prevented the Field from directly touching his body, it would be fine.
And as it happened, Leo Ash had a second barrier ability: [Phantasmagoria].
After enveloping his wound with Phantasmagoria, Leo Ash successfully channeled mana over the injury, instantly healing his not-so-serious wound.
Having confirmed his combat methods, Leo Ash didn't hesitate and charged forward with the Seven Thunders of Retribution.
The current Kevin was in a state where 'his power had been halved by their prior efforts,' he had 'only consumed half of Chiyou,' and he 'hadn't fully digested the energy.'
Compared to the peak Diabolic Kevin, the current Kevin was practically a second-rate cripple.
Rather than the trouble of challenging the strongest Kevin in the future, Leo Ash certainly felt that it would be much more convenient to cut this old dog down and kill him right here and now.
"Hmm?"
Seeing Leo Ash charge straight at him with a Divine Key, Kevin frowned slightly.
*Strange, Leo Ash used clever tactics like playing dead before. Why is he now daring to engage me in close-quarters combat when he knows he's inferior to me in a melee?*
*...Has he truly been dominated by the Honkai, unable to make rational judgments?*
At this thought, Kevin let out a helpless sigh as he parried Leo Ash's blow.
"Leo Ash, you've fallen to darkness."
"The real you wouldn't fight me with such crude methods."
"Oh, really?"
Seeing frost begin to gradually appear on the Seven Thunders of Retribution, Leo Ash smiled happily.
"But the scales in my heart are telling me..."
"—the choice I've made is, without a doubt, the correct one!"
As he said this, Kevin saw a crimson glow suddenly appear on the Seven Thunders of Retribution, a weapon whose energy should have been weakened.
And this glow was the exact same color as the light currently filling this unusual Field of Binding.
After a flash of crimson light, crackling lightning began to appear on the blade of the Seven Thunders of Retribution.
*The Seven Thunders of Retribution can still function normally?!*
Realizing that the Divine Key hadn't been weakened, Kevin didn't dare to be careless for even a second and kicked Leo Ash away.
Leo Ash could have used Royal Guard to block the blow.
But he judged that creating distance from Kevin wasn't a bad thing right now.
After sending Leo Ash flying with a single kick, Kevin immediately forced the power within his body, channeling it into the Might of An-Utu.
Previously, when Leo Ash fought Kevin, he was worried that Kevin would adapt to their fighting rhythm, which was why he forced himself to use his uncertain ultimate attack, seeking a quick end to the battle.
Now, the tables had turned.
Kevin, inside the Field of Binding, was now the one who 'couldn't afford to drag things out.'
If he remained in the Field of Binding for too long, even if its current intensity was slightly weaker than the one from fifty thousand years ago, he would sooner or later be stripped of all his power.
Whether it was for the Stigmata Project or to face Leo Ash in his strongest state, Kevin did not want to be defeated by the boy before him at this time.
He had to end this quickly.
Moreover, within this field, the An-Utu Unleashed from the Might of An-Utu was far weaker than usual.
*I must find a major opening in Leo Ash's defense. Only then will I have the chance to strike him down and escape the battlefield with the Quantum Teleportation System.*
*But...*
After Leo Ash was sent flying, Kevin looked at the [Oath of Judah], which had been motionless before but was now suddenly flying towards him on its own, and felt that this was going to be a little bit difficult.
After the Oath of Judah arrived, Leo Ash, now the Herrscher of Binding, could feel a connection forming between himself and the Divine Key.
Even without touching it, he could control the Oath of Judah to attack.
Therefore, the moment Leo Ash was sent flying, he directed the Oath of Judah to charge straight at Kevin.
With Leo Ash's precise control, the Key of Binding in mid-air released over a dozen Soulium chains, attempting to bind Kevin's body.
"...Troublesome."
Both Kevin and the Might of An-Utu in his hand had already had their energy levels reduced by the Field of Binding.
Facing the Key of Binding, which could also weaken energy, Kevin had no doubt that after being weakened twice, the destructive power of his Key of Destruction would be reduced from a cannon to a cigarette lighter.
For this reason, Kevin didn't stubbornly choose a head-on confrontation this time, but decisively retreated.
Unfortunately, this...
—was also within Leo Ash's calculations.
Leo Ash, having recalled his past, was undoubtedly in a state of emotional outburst.
Even with his Mind Like Still Water ability, he couldn't deny that his emotions were truly running wild right now.
[Sphere - The Wavering Scales] had a negative effect: 'If the holder becomes overly attached to certain emotions, they will be swept away by those emotions and lose their ability to judge.'
Leo Ash, who had already been 'swept away by emotions' due to the hatred in his heart, was acting completely normal right now purely because he had two personalities.
It was a fact that the Avenger personality had been swept away by emotions and had now lost its accurate judgment.
But what did that have to do with the reborn personality that was currently fighting?
With a scapegoat personality paying the price, even if Leo Ash was in a berserk state, he could use this method to drive the Wavering Scales, making correct judgments while wielding powerful Dimensional Energy.
Kevin had indeed dodged the Key of Binding's attack.
But at the same time, Leo Ash, who had been sent flying by Kevin, had placed his hand on the ground and already launched his follow-up assault.
Glyph - Lord of Dread, Glyph - Dominus.Odio, Glyph - Dominus.Aetas, activate!
Activating all three Dominus Glyphs within his body simultaneously, Leo Ash's hair instantly turned from black to snow-white.
At the same time, with his eyes glowing red, Leo Ash poured the power of the Glyphs combined with his own into the ground. Kevin, who had just dodged the Key of Binding's attack, suddenly felt a sense of crisis approaching him.
Leo Ash, who had activated three Dominus Glyphs at once, could feel a severe internal injury instantly appear within his body.
At the same time, his energy levels were continuously dropping.
But for such a great price, he naturally obtained an incomparably terrifying power.
At this moment, he had temporarily gained power equivalent to the demon lord Dracula.
Although this state of advent, which would cause grievous harm to his body, could only be maintained for a few minutes, a few minutes...
—was more than enough for him to defeat the formidable enemy before him!
Sensing that something was amiss, Kevin immediately activated the power of Parvati, condensing countless ice and snow chaoses to surround himself.
At any other time, Kevin would never have used such a wasteful move.
But now, trapped within the Field of Binding, Kevin's movements were sealed.
No matter how experienced a fighter he was, in a relatively confined space, Kevin couldn't possibly rely on footwork to perfectly dodge an attack coming from an unknown direction.
Leo Ash, having temporarily gained the power of a demon lord through the Glyphs, was now pouring a massive amount of mana into the ground.
However, the mana, which should have been weakened to almost nothing by the Field of Binding, underwent a dramatic change at this moment due to Leo Ash's manipulation.
"This is...!"
Kevin, who had just finished condensing his shield, watched in shock as countless terrifying beams of light and a large number of magical spheres erupted from the ground beneath his feet, a rare look of astonishment on his face.
If these were just ordinary energy attacks, Kevin would certainly be confident in blocking them all.
Even if a few attacks slipped through and hit him, he could rely on the regenerative abilities granted by his super-variable factors to completely heal the wounds in a short time.
But now, facing the beams of light erupting from the ground and the magical spheres that exploded mid-air into fragments that shot out in all directions, Kevin's heart skipped a beat.
If his senses weren't deceiving him, then...
—every one of these light beams and energy sphere fragments contained a hint of the Herrscher of Binding's power????
This wasn't right.
The Herrscher of Binding's power weakens other energies. In other words, unless Leo Ash attacked with the Herrscher of Binding's energy from the start, such an attack would have its power weakened by the Herrscher of Binding's own energy, leading to internal attrition and near-zero attack power.
Besides, wasn't the Herrscher of Binding's power being used by Leo Ash to maintain the Field of Binding?
Could it be that after deploying the field, Leo Ash still had some of his Herrscher authority left over?
But no matter how many questions filled Kevin's mind, he had to face Leo Ash's attack.
This attack was terrifyingly strong. If he didn't deal with it seriously, Kevin estimated that after his combat power was weakened, he might actually be killed on the spot by Leo Ash within this field.
And Leo Ash, facing the now-defensive Kevin, made his next move.
He placed two fingers of his left hand on his forehead, and four types of energy—mana, Dimensional Energy, Herrscher energy, and Honkai Energy—simultaneously began to gather at his fingertips.
The magical sphere fragments thrown by Leo Ash using Dominus.Aetas and the rain of light beams released by Dominus.Odio did indeed, as Kevin had sensed, gather the two special powers of mana and the Herrscher of Binding's authority.
And Leo Ash, possessing the Precision Control skill, could use this ability to perfectly envelop the beams and magical spheres with the Herrscher of Binding's power on the outside, while placing the highly destructive mana on the inside of the attack.
In this situation, when the two non-interfering energies hit an enemy, the Herrscher of Binding's power would first break through the enemy's defenses and lower their energy levels, and then the mana would corrode the enemy's body, causing significant damage.
Of course, with so many attacks, the old Leo Ash would certainly not have been able to use Precision Control to adjust the gap between the two energies for each one.
But after activating its ability, the Wavering Scales not only provided the Sphere Holder with powerful Dimensional Energy but also allowed them to make precisely correct judgments.
This 'correct judgment' encompassed many actions, and with this buff, accurately judging the interval between two energies in a single attack was no longer particularly difficult.
Kevin, now constantly bombarded by these attacks, was finally experiencing just how terrifying the 'Herrscher of Binding' could be when they got serious.
Compared to the original Herrscher of Binding whose field had a radius of 100 kilometers, the field used by the current Leo Ash, while not large, was far more destructive than its predecessor.
Just like now, Kevin, forced onto the defensive by this rain of light and magical sphere fragments, still had his defenses broken by some attacks, which melted away the Honkai Beast carapace granted by his super-variable factors and blasted away his flesh and blood.
Faced with these not-so-serious injuries, Kevin immediately made a decision.
He had to defeat Leo Ash as quickly as possible.
*Even if my body gets blown to bits, I absolutely cannot delay any longer.*
*After all, I can feel it now...*
*—at Leo Ash's fingertips, an incomparably terrifying power is gathering!*
Kevin, wielding the Might of An-Utu, lunged at his enemy, having already unleashed the greatsword's power in an instant.
But at the same time, just as he was about to unleash a slash at Leo Ash from a distance, Kevin suddenly felt a heavy blow from behind, which unexpectedly created an opening.
*That's... the Oath of Judah?!*
Feeling the Honkai Energy within his body stagnate for a moment, Kevin instantly understood what had just happened.
*But, that's not right.*
*It's not that I didn't notice the Oath of Judah nearby. It's because my own speed is faster than the Key of Binding's, so I judged that I could hit Leo Ash with the Might of An-Utu before the Key of Binding could strike.*
*Could it be...*
*That previous attack wasn't meant to hit me, but just to create the illusion that 'the Oath of Judah can only fly this fast'?*
Kevin's judgment was not wrong.
Leo Ash had summoned the Oath of Judah not only to buy time and force Kevin back, but also with the thought of 'making the Oath of Judah fly a bit slower to see if he could trick Kevin.'
Under normal circumstances, Kevin would likely not have fallen for such a simple trick.
But now, within this field, both Kevin's energy and the strength of his super-variable factors were declining.
Under these circumstances, busy dealing with Leo Ash's strange moves, Kevin naturally couldn't make the same perfectly precise judgments as usual.
And that, at a time when every second counted, was enough to be fatal.
Before Kevin could reassess the situation, Leo Ash had already launched his attack.
Using the Dominus Glyphs to launch a long-range attack on the enemy was not only a means to weaken their energy levels, but Leo Ash also had a very obvious plan—to stall for time.
The powerful move, Special Beam Cannon, required a certain amount of time to gather energy.
It was precisely because Kevin sensed that the energy intensity of the Special Beam Cannon was too high that he wanted to charge forward recklessly and interrupt Leo Ash's attack.
As for why he didn't use the Might of An-Utu's long-range flame sword qi mode to attack Leo Ash...
—with the Field of Binding currently enveloping them both, Kevin, being the one at a disadvantage, would find that any flame sword qi he launched would probably be weakened to an pathetic state mid-air.
But unfortunately, while Kevin made what seemed to be the correct judgment, it was all within Leo Ash's calculations.
Having completed his setup, Leo Ash, now with his energy fully gathered, finally fired this incredibly powerful strike at Kevin.
"Binding..."
"—Beam Cannon!"
As multiple energies fused together, the blow struck Kevin's body with perfect accuracy.
After being hit, Kevin immediately felt those energies erupt completely within his body.
Leo Ash, who had long understood the 'essence of explosion' from the Sea Tiger Destructive Punch, had added explosive properties to this Beam Cannon, successfully causing these different energies to start running rampant inside Kevin's body.
Kevin, whose injuries were not originally serious, now felt all kinds of power wreaking havoc within him...
—and he became noticeably more ferocious.
His body was in excruciating pain, but because of that, Kevin knew he couldn't delay any longer.
From the moment the Field of Binding descended, the relationship between him and Leo Ash had shifted from hunter and prey to prey and hunter.
He was the one at a disadvantage now. If he didn't go all out, Kevin felt he wouldn't even be able to escape.
But before Kevin could make his move, Leo Ash, relying on the Wavering Scales, had already made the correct judgment in advance.
Kevin was the strongest in history. This 'strongest' didn't just refer to his power; his skills, experience, and fighting spirit had all been honed to their peak over tens of thousands of years.
Even if the current Kevin was suppressed by Leo Ash due to a lack of energy, he was absolutely not an opponent Leo Ash could underestimate.
There was a high probability that Kevin would ignore the power of the Beam Cannon and risk everything in a desperate attack, so...
—*I'll end this with this move!*
Before Kevin's Might of An-Utu could cut into Leo Ash's body, Leo Ash, having tossed the Seven Thunders of Retribution into the air, had already crossed his hands in front of himself.
"Grand..."
"—Cross!"
When the Might of An-Utu touched Leo Ash's body, Kevin was incredibly chagrined to find that the invincible Key of Destruction could no longer cut into Leo Ash's body even a single inch.
At the same time, he felt as if he was being pulled in by some force, crashing towards Leo Ash.
This Grand Cross that Leo Ash had unleashed was too rushed to incorporate other powers.
But a Grand Cross with a [Holy] attribute, released using the [Demonic] attribute of a demon lord's mana, was in itself an incredibly bizarre thing.
In Kevin's eyes, the large energy cross that appeared behind Leo Ash, originally exuding a sense of sanctity, gradually became stained with a blood-like hue, giving him an incredibly eerie feeling.
But the current Kevin had no time to care about such trivial details.
He didn't understand.
Why couldn't the invincible Might of An-Utu cut into Leo Ash's skin at all?
Having missed his only chance to attack, Kevin was now like Wendy had been just hours before, sent flying by the Grand Cross, only to be pulled back to Leo Ash's side, repeating the cycle of being sent flying → pulled in → sent flying again.
The damage the Grand Cross dealt to Kevin wasn't very heavy.
But at this point, after being repeatedly tricked and attacked by Leo Ash's various methods, Kevin had to admit...
—he was now truly, incredibly weak.
Precise calculation abilities, an endless stream of techniques, powerful control, and—the authority of the Herrscher of Binding.
He had really found a treasure this time.
It's just that this treasure... was a bit too aggressive.
Objectively speaking, the power Kevin had displayed in this battle was less than thirty percent of his full strength.
Compared to Diabolic Kevin, the proportion of power the current Kevin could exert was even lower.
But a battle is a battle, and an opponent won't go easy on you for such reasons.
At that moment, catching the Seven Thunders of Retribution as it fell from the air, Leo Ash poured all the remaining Honkai Energy in his body into the blade.
Even now, Leo Ash still didn't know how to use the Zeroth Power of the Seven Thunders of Retribution.
But considering Raven could cripple Otto's body with a single shot from its gun form, then...
—*perhaps if I just pour enough Honkai Energy into it, I too can unleash a sufficiently powerful attack.*
This time, facing his enemy, Kevin once again squeezed out the power within him and swung the Might of An-Utu at his opponent.
But facing this terrifying attack, Leo Ash did not dodge. Instead, holding the tachi, he swung a horizontal slash directly at Kevin.
The next moment, the Field of Binding, less than two minutes after its arrival, dissipated from everyone's sight.
Su, who had just been discussing how to break the field to stop the fight, saw something he never wanted to see, something he had never imagined.
Leo Ash, who had exchanged powerful blows with Kevin at the end, was hit by Kevin's An-Utu Unleashed and sent flying by the strike.
And Kevin, who in Su's eyes was not necessarily going to lose, had his energy massively depleted by Leo Ash and suffered wounds that could not be repaired in a short time...
—and was sliced in two, his upper and lower body severed by a single strike from Leo Ash's Seven Thunders of Retribution, which had been imbued with the energy of the Herrscher of Binding.
......