"This attack honors my fallen comrade. Face my wrath—[FLAME MODE]!"
Hovering high above, Kars unexpectedly invoked Esidisi's signature Mode. Yet, for one capable of freely reshaping his body, reproducing the skills of a companion who'd shared ten thousand years of history was hardly unusual.
The next moment, crimson veins erupted from Kars's body, intertwining violently in midair until they coalesced into a grotesque, blood-red tendril, lashing downward at Ray Chu with lightning speed.
Intense heat surged through the tentacle, searing the air and leaving a shimmering trail of heat distortion in its wake.
Faced with such a savage strike, Ray Chu stretched out both hands, conjuring a massive Hamon bubble. Unlike before, this sphere spun with breathtaking speed, hurtling forward to meet the incoming tentacle head-on.
The clash sparked violently midair, the two opposing forces locked in fierce stalemate, crackling sharply.
"Heh! For a mere human, you've truly outdone yourself—but that's all you're capable of."
With a powerful sweep of his newly grown wings, Kars unleashed twin cyclones spinning furiously in opposite directions. The compressed torrents of air tore through space like razors, shredding a massive boulder into dust in the blink of an eye.
Kars gave his opponent no chance to evade, having already calculated precisely that Ray Chu would absorb the full brunt of this attack.
"[DIVINE SANDSTORM]!"—the ultimate wind technique of his fellow Pillar Man, Wamuu—tore viciously across the earth, gouging a deep furrow in the ground. Ray Chu lay sprawled at the far end of this devastated trench.
Just as Kars was about to savor his victory, his expression froze. He'd abruptly noticed Ray Chu bore none of the severe wounds he'd anticipated.
"Hmph. Compared to a certain ancient fellow known as the ultimate evil, your skills seem rather tame." A strike fatal to ordinary humans had barely drawn a trickle of blood from the corner of Ray Chu's mouth. Having undergone rigorous martial arts training and shielded by Hamon, Ray Chu shrugged off the destructive force with astonishing resilience.
Kars seethed inwardly. After twenty thousand years of striving to become the Ultimate Life Form, he found himself envying a human who would scarcely live a century.
Ray Chu rose steadily, raising a finger toward the sun, uttering words destined to be remembered by all present: "Whether human or your so-called Ultimate Life Form, we're all simply beings who've advanced a couple steps further along the path of evolution—nothing to brag about. The true purpose of life is to continually strive forward, not wallow in past glories or present achievements!"
"Utter nonsense! How can a lowly creature like you comprehend my greatness? Humans are nothing but parasites infesting this planet—you've no right to its bounty!"
Kars's twenty-thousand-year lifespan far exceeded the recorded history of mankind. He'd witnessed humanity rise from primitive ignorance to industrial civilization, even marveled at their rapid evolution. But for most of his life, humans had been mere slaves, lowly creatures steeped in greed and folly—fodder for vampires serving as Pillar Men's food. Deep in his heart, he'd never viewed humans as worthy opponents.
Even Hamon warriors were simply larger insects—effortlessly crushed beneath his feet.
Deciding he'd wasted enough words, Kars resolved to annihilate the bothersome Hamon warrior once and for all. His arms trembled violently, muscles splitting apart to sprout twin scythe-like blades of rapidly vibrating bone. He plunged downward, slashing with ferocious speed.
"[LIGHT SLIP BLADES]!" Having evolved into the Ultimate Life Form, this move now boasted devastating power, surpassing anything he'd wielded before.
Yet, unexpectedly, Ray Chu didn't confront him directly. Instead, he spun around and sprinted off into the distance.
"That's right—run! With your strength, you can defeat Kars someday. You'll be humanity's savior!"
"Fire! Provide cover for Ray!" Speedwagon shouted urgently. Immediately, a barrage of bullets erupted, streaking toward Kars.
His eyes, as precise as astronomical telescopes, easily tracked every projectile—he could even count the hairs on a fly mid-flight. With blinding speed, Kars's blade-arms whirled in shadowy arcs, effortlessly slicing each bullet in half before they could reach him.
Ignoring the insignificant soldiers he could crush at leisure, Kars unfurled his wings, soaring after Ray Chu.
Speedwagon and the others watched helplessly as both figures vanished over the horizon.
To Kars's astonishment, Ray Chu's pace greatly exceeded his expectations, rivaling even his own flight speed.
More shocking still was how this pursuit lasted hours—from dawn till midday. Their chase led straight through an active battlefield between Allied and German forces, both armies engaged in fierce combat until the two uninvited guests suddenly burst onto the scene.
Ray Chu, though swift, drew little attention amidst the chaos on the ground. Kars, however, flying overhead in monstrous form, threw both sides into panic. A storm of bullets and shells rained upon him, infuriating him enough to destroy several German aircraft in retaliation.
Ironically, due to their fewer numbers, the Allies narrowly escaped the same fate. For Kars, now the Ultimate Life Form, his previous alliance with the Führer held no meaning—these obstructive German soldiers were mere nuisances to be exterminated.
Within ten minutes, the pair blazed straight through the battlefield, leaving unprecedented devastation in their wake—casualties surpassing an hour's worth of fighting between the two armies.
Then Ray Chu resumed his marathon. Thanks to relentless early-morning training, his speed was matched by exceptional endurance. Crossing forests, lakes, mountains, and plains, his relentless pace carried him halfway across France.
Another two or three hours later, they reached the volcanic Auvergne region, just west of the city of Clermont-Ferrand in central France.
This volcanic area sprawled across more than thirty kilometers of the Dôme Plateau. Here, lava streams cascaded dramatically through rugged valleys, forming fiery rivers that covered the rocky landscape.
Ray Chu halted atop an exposed stretch of rock, molten rivers clearly visible on either side. Folding his wings, Kars landed a hundred meters away.
"Why stop running now? Out of stamina already?" A smug expression crossed Kars's face. Then he suddenly snorted, glancing suspiciously around. "…Or is that exactly what you want me to think? You deliberately led me here, hoping to kill me using the volcano—maybe even planning to trigger an eruption to blast me straight into space..."
"Am I right? Am I right?! Tell me—am I right, am I right, am I right?!"
Kars's bizarre voice reverberated madly across the valley, shaking the cliffs and sending molten rock into an angry, seething frenzy.