Chapter 4: Clash
Even at midday, the Doom Star exuded a yellowish gloom, the thick gray clouds in the sky seemingly never to disperse. Sparse stone forests of varying heights dotted the plain like scattered stars. Near the Lord's Train, embers drifted in the air. Su Xiao faced a tall figure draped in worn animal hide with antlers, standing dozens of meters apart in a standoff.
The figure's body was covered in light golden fur, slightly long, with a tassel-like flow at the elbows and other joints. Its chin bore a casually trimmed beard, and a gray-white bone mask covered its face. Antlers sprouted from its head, and behind it rested a three-meter-long, egg-thick black metal rod. A dense aura of the Abyss emanated from it—this was an Abyssal weapon.
Yes, this was the Star Realm's honey badger, the combat ceiling of the friendly deity system that saw life and death as trivial and fought at the slightest provocation: the Supreme Peak, Deer God.
Deer God's pupils were golden, a result of long-term absorption of raw Golden Force. Among known powerhouses, only this one dared to directly absorb raw Golden Force.
Golden Force might sound unfamiliar, but Golden Skill Points were not. Golden Skill Points were transformed from raw Golden Force.
In other words, Golden Skill Points were actually a weakened version of "Raw Golden Force." It wasn't that the Paradise factions deliberately weakened it; rather, anyone who added points with it would die, making Golden Skill Points hardly a reward.
The unweakened "Raw Golden Force," though dangerous, possessed the power to continuously break through limits.
Just standing there, Deer God exuded an invisible oppressive aura, as if, once it grasped the Abyssal weapon *Tao Shou*, nothing could withstand its smashing. Strangely, ninety-nine percent of Abyssal weapons would turn on their wielders, but this one was very willing to assist Deer God in battle.
Deer God raised a hand, pointing its index finger at the Lord's Train. The meaning was simple: hand over the Eye Princess.
Su Xiao said nothing. A surge of overwhelming blood energy erupted, making him seem to stand in an invisible sea of blood. Crimson blood energy formed a faint Blood Beast behind him, grinning fiercely at Deer God.
No words were needed. Deer God grasped the hilt of the Abyssal weapon *Tao Shou*. Black tendrils spread from both sides of the hilt, wrapping around Deer God's forearm.
With a thunderous roar, the blood sea aura and golden divine might collided, eroding and suppressing each other. The blood sea had the upper hand, thanks to the aura enhancement from "Supreme Charm"—a rare means of elevating aura rank.
*Thump!*
The earth trembled. Su Xiao and Deer God vanished simultaneously, reappearing less than three meters apart. The mere thought of two melee-type Supreme Peaks clashing was chilling, and it made one break out in a cold sweat for this world.
*Extreme Blade: White Night.*
*Piercing Sun.*
The Dragon-Slaying Flash, infused with technique energy and glowing with golden light, clashed with the ultra-high-temperature, glowing red *Tao Shou* war staff.
*Boom!!!*
A dull roar like a meteor collision spread, followed by a crackling sound like firecrackers—the surrounding world region began to crack. Even a Transcendent World couldn't withstand two Supreme Peaks unleashing ultimate moves the moment they met.
Inside the Lord's Train, it rumbled loudly. The Eye Princess pressed against the window, her thin lips slightly parted in shock at the apocalyptic scene outside. She couldn't help but ask, "What now?"
"What now? Run, of course. What if the train gets damaged? This is one of my boss's most treasured possessions."
Baha looked at the Eye Princess as if she were a fool.
"Huh? We retreat before battle? Is that okay?"
"Then, Princess, please get off and go help."
"Hurry up and drive."
The Eye Princess nodded seriously at Bubu Wang after speaking. Seeing this, Baha chuckled. Before the train door closed, he flew out and swooped down, circling above the battlefield, waiting for an opportunity.
*Crack, crack, crack~*
The longsword and war staff pressed against each other, emitting a harsh grinding sound. Su Xiao felt an irresistible force continuously transferring from the enemy's weapon to the Dragon-Slaying Flash, then spreading to his arm and body. The ground beneath him cracked, and his body began to feel numb.
In reality, Deer God was the truly surprised one. In the past, even against foes of the same rank, anyone daring to meet this strike head-on would be sent flying. The only ones who could withstand it were the Blade Demon of the Void and now this Law Destroyer. Golden light blazed in Deer God's eyes.
*Hum!*
With Su Xiao and Deer God at the center, the space within a thousand kilometers shattered like blast-proof glass, cracks densely packed. Within this range, over thirty gathering places of evil god followers saw at least a hundred thousand of them burst into blood mist simultaneously.
An irresistible force came from Su Xiao's right arm, pushing him back a large step. He spat out a mouthful of blood, his internal organs feeling as if they had split. His bones groaned under the strain.
This wasn't the end. A terrifying wind pressure approached as Deer God swung another strike. This... was good.
*Perfect Block.*
*Clang!!*
Deer God's heavy blow was forcefully blocked and deflected. The sheer force momentarily numbed Deer God's right arm and half its body, forcing it to twist and step back half a step.
*Pfft!*
An Annihilation Blood Spear pierced Deer God's chest, but before it could explode, it was enveloped by a golden force, materializing and failing to shatter.
Cyan Steel Shadow energy surged into Deer God's body. Even with Deer God's endurance, its eyes twitched. Anyone who could withstand the "intense pain" from the awakened Cyan Steel Shadow without roaring was a true tough one.
*Clang, clang, clang, clang...*
The longsword and war staff clashed at super-high speed, the sound of metal ringing. Su Xiao and Deer God moved so fast they temporarily vanished. In just a few minutes, they exchanged thousands of blows, making Deer God's golden pupils even sharper. It hadn't had such a satisfying fight in a long time.
Blood dripped from Su Xiao's chin. His left arm hung limply. He raised his longsword to his armpit and severed the arm. Deer God was momentarily puzzled but grew more cautious. As Su Xiao's crystal left arm formed, Deer God understood.
Two melee-type Supreme Peaks clashing was a disaster for the surrounding world region.
*Extreme Blade: Heavy Moon.*
A pitch-black heavy moon appeared above, its crushing pressure enveloping Deer God, making it hunch slightly.
Even so, Deer God endured the pressure, stomping the earth with thunderous steps as it charged forward. However, this slowed Deer God significantly. Su Xiao leaped back, slashing the air.
*Extreme Blade: Blue Demon.*
*Zheng!!*
A blue-green slash nearly instantly hit Deer God's left eye. But Deer God's combat experience was immense; it immediately closed its left eye. Even so, with Su Xiao's blade's sharpness, a scar slanted across Deer God's left eye. Though it didn't damage the eyeball, it left a deep cut.
With a thunderous roar, a violent golden pressure surged from ahead. Su Xiao felt as if he were submerged in golden liquid, surrounded by endless pressure. Deer God, using its pure physical strength, had assimilated the "concept of force" in the surrounding world region, controlling gravity, attraction, and more.
Yes, when an ability reached its peak, it underwent a qualitative change. Even pure physical strength, when pushed to the limit, produced surprisingly powerful derivatives.
Deer God raised its war staff and slammed it into the ground.
*Boom!!!*
The earth trembled as if struck by a giant. Within hundreds of kilometers, pillars of magma erupted from the ground. Moreover, this single strike cracked the sky, and a semi-transparent fluid seeped from the thousand-meter-long cracks—this was... World Force.
A drop of blood fell from Deer God's chin. Its body bore over a dozen cuts, but its condition only improved. The scorching power from the deep earth and the World Force from the sky cracks converged into Deer God's hand. Though the process seemed lengthy, from the heavy strike to the completion of the convergence, it took less than 1.5 seconds.
With a whoosh, a surging heat appeared in Deer God's hand. It held a three-meter-diameter fireball, which continuously absorbed the earth's heat and World Force.
Su Xiao wasn't trying to interrupt Deer God's move; the earlier ground strike had briefly stunned him with an unknown physical means, though he wasn't injured.
Deer God held a golden-red fireball. Seeing this, Su Xiao's pupils contracted. That thing wasn't a fireball—he was certain. It was a small sun! Deer God had casually created a genuine, albeit miniature, sun!
Deer God made a throwing motion and, with simple directness, hurled the sun forward.
*Rumble!*
The small sun passed, causing the surrounding area to tremble. The ground turned into a liquid magma lake, and the space it passed through was scorched full of holes.
Su Xiao sheathed his longsword. His aura suddenly contracted, and the surrounding world rapidly lost color, suppressed by his technique power.
*Selfless Realm: Extreme.*
Su Xiao slashed. The incoming small sun was split in two, the halves flying past him and rapidly dissipating. This was the annihilation phenomenon caused by the collision of two ultimate forces.
*Whoosh~*
Su Xiao exhaled white mist. This *Selfless Realm: Extreme* slash nearly drained all his energy as a Supreme Peak, especially his soul power. It seemed raising his soul strength to 3000 points needed to be prioritized.
Speaking of which, after advancing to Supreme Peak, improving soul strength wasn't as hard as before. With his current physique, treasures that would have killed him instantly in the past could now be easily endured. A few bottles of conditioning potions would fully restore him.
A sense of danger approached—Deer God was charging. The wind pressure made Su Xiao's hair fly back, giving him a hairstyle like Kingsley's. Several exchanges confirmed that, in a life-or-death battle today, he was no match for Deer God. But this fight skyrocketed his combat experience at the Supreme Peak level.
To put it simply, fighting other Supreme Peaks to the death might grant 1000 combat experience. But this clash with Deer God, even without a decisive outcome, had already boosted his experience by 8000+.
Death approached. Deer God showed no mercy, and neither did Su Xiao.
*Extreme Realm: Star Realm!*
Everything around Su Xiao froze. His longsword slashed through Deer God's neck, dropping its health significantly. But for a deity of this level, decapitation wasn't fatal. In fact, the moment the blade passed, Deer God's self-healing had already restored the wound.
Note: "Regeneration" and "self-healing" are different. Regeneration first produces rotten flesh, then reconstruction. Self-healing is innate, with no risks or side effects. As long as stamina lasts, it continues passively.
However, self-healing stronger than regeneration was unique in the Star Realm.
Su Xiao sheathed his longsword. Intense combat intuition told him that even if he killed Deer God now, it wouldn't truly die, instead triggering unknown dangers. After a brief charge, he kicked Deer God.
*Boom!!!*
Deer God vanished, flying out of the area covered by *Extreme Realm: Star Realm*. Since he couldn't win, he'd temporarily send it away.
A dozen seconds later, Deer God fell from the sky, plowing a thousand-meter-high wave of earth and leaving a dozen-kilometer-long trench. It stopped, half-buried in the ground.
Deer God calmly stood up, holding the war staff *Tao Shou*. It looked around for two reasons: to see where it had landed and to check if anyone else was in sight. Confirming no one was there, it pressed a hand to its chest and vomited a large mouthful of blood. After a few deep breaths, its aura stabilized. As for chasing the Law Destroyer, it had experienced the speed of the Lords' trains in the late Second Era.
...
The Lord's Train sped along. Su Xiao put down the injection gun, feeling his body recover. He sighed in relief. Only a few hours into this world, and he'd already clashed with another Supreme Peak. It seemed this world was destined for a full-on battle.
Looking at the *Book of Original Sin* on the alchemy table, each of the Big Daddy-level Original Sin objects was a death warrant. He hadn't intended to collect them; even opening an Abyssal chest could yield a Big Daddy-level Original Sin object. It was clearly fate.
As Su Xiao wrapped bandages around his right forearm and hand, the faint red glow in his pupils gradually subsided. Just then, the Lord's Train began to slow. He went to the main carriage and found Bubu Wang trying to accelerate, but the train inexplicably slowed to a stop. There was no malfunction.
*Pfft~*
Steam hissed. The train door opened, and an old woman in a gray robe with a severe hunchback boarded. A copper bell hung from a thick rope around her neck, making a clanging sound that dizzy the soul with each step.
Her withered arms and eyes that seemed to burn with magma inside revealed her identity: the Supreme Peak of the Demon Race, the Demon Old Hag.
"Law Destroyer boy, you don't want to fight me now either. So, let me take her. It's the best choice for both of us."
The Demon Old Hag spoke. Her eyes, with black depths and pupils like burning coals, no longer showed indifference but a blazing ambition—the ambition to ascend beyond Supreme.
Many high-ranking members of major factions believed the Demon Race thrived under the Demon Old Hag's shadow, surviving through opportunism.
In reality, most in the Void saw the Demon Race as reliable allies. This was due to their choices. In the First Era, they were allies of the Sun Faction. Since the Sun Faction and the Ancient Dragon Faction declined together, the Demon Race's secret collusion with the Ancient Dragon Faction remained unknown.
In the Second Era, the Demon Race was allied with the Law Destroyers. Smart people saw the pattern: they allied with whichever side was stronger.
However, the Demon Race never expected that the hidden leader behind Arcane Eternal Star, who had never shown himself, was the Supreme Being.
At that point, groveling to Arcane Eternal Star would be too shameful; they'd lose face in the Void. So, what to do? Bribe the major Void newspapers and media to heavily report on Demon warriors killed by Spellcasters.
One thing must be mentioned: in the early and mid-stages of the Law Destroyer vs. Spellcaster war, the Demon Race did contribute. Many low- and mid-ranking members died, but no high-ranking Demons were reported killed in that era's war.
The Demon Race's losses seemed like accepting defeat. They truly hadn't expected the Law Destroyers to meet their match. But accepting defeat didn't mean the Demon high-ranking officials who made the decision would die.
This caused near-fracturing within the Demon Race. Low- and mid-ranking Demons were genuine Law Destroyer allies, hating the high-ranking officials who treated their lives as chips. The high-ranking officials were pure opportunists.
This explained why, in the early stages, Su Xiao deeply felt the Demon Race were true allies of the Law Destroyers. Now, the correct statement was that the low- and mid-ranking Demons, now dead, were blood-sworn allies. Like the Moon Wolves, they had all perished.
In the early and mid-Second Era, the Moon Wolves and Demon Race were blood-sworn allies. But by the late stage, no former Law Destroyer took the Demon Race's blood oath seriously. Everyone had bad friends, and the Demon Race's reputation in the First Era was indeed excellent.
This was why, after Su Xiao reached Absolute Strength and Supreme, the Demon Race went silent. The old Demons knew their place.
If they still clung to Su Xiao as a distant inheritor, unaware of what happened, and emphasized the Demon Race's alliance with the Law Destroyers, they'd be courting death.
Thus, as Su Xiao's Black Maple Tree grew, the Demon Race remained silent. In the mid-stages, the Demon Race's friendship wasn't due to his Law Destroyer identity—that was just an excuse. Ultimately, the Demon Race desperately needed Black Maple Tree yields and knew that killing or capturing Su Xiao wouldn't seize the tree.
At higher levels, some things became clear. The Demon Race's top combatant, the Demon Old Hag, hadn't participated in the Law Destroyer vs. Spellcaster war. In fact, after low-ranking Demons died out, the Demon Race swung to Arcane Eternal Star's side. Only through secret collusion did they avoid being purged after Arcane Eternal Star's victory.
As for the subsequent suppression by Arcane Eternal Star, it was ironic. After years of suppression, the Demon Race remained a top-tier Void power. This was an insult to Arcane Eternal Star.
The Slinster Dwarves were the Law Destroyers' true allies. They faced subsequent suppression and near-annihilation, falling from a first-tier power.
The Star Clan leaned toward the Law Destroyers, seeing them as qualified Void overlords who didn't interfere with other factions—as long as natural elemental or Abyssal forces weren't tampered with, everyone minded their own business.
The Soul Clan held the same stance, even more supportive. But these were just stances; no actual combat forces were sent.
Even so, the Star and Soul Clans were gradually suppressed by Arcane Eternal Star, nearly falling from top-tier to first-tier.
In contrast, the Demon Race, despite suppression, remained top-tier and accumulated enough resources. Their high-ranking officials' decisions regarding the Second Era's grand strategy were truly strong.
They eliminated internal dissent without dirtying their hands and boarded the winning side's ship.
Now, the Demon Race had greater ambitions. After two eras of opportunism, they seemed ready to declare: The Third Era belongs to the Demon Race!
On the train, Su Xiao picked up a bottle of Elemental Brew, uncorked it, and took a long drink. After downing half, he sighed and looked at the Demon Old Hag. "Are you sure you can kill me?"
This statement made the Demon Old Hag's gaze dangerous.
"You fought Deer God to this extent. I can defeat you, but if you're determined to escape, I can't kill you."
As she spoke, the Demon Old Hag had already reached the Eye Princess's side. Distance meant nothing to her. Distance, space, even causality—these could be erased by her ability.
"If you take her, I'll go to the Void and slaughter every last Demon."
Su Xiao spoke the cruelest words in the calmest tone. Hearing this, the Demon Old Hag's aura spread like a hellish demon, and space was covered with magma-like patterns.
If facing anyone else, she would have hissed, "You dare!"
But not to Su Xiao. Because this Law Destroyer truly dared. He was known throughout the Star Realm as a murderous demon. Wiping out the entire Demon Race wasn't a question of whether he could, but that it was his usual method.
The silence was suffocating. After half a minute of standoff, the Demon Old Hag removed her hand from the Eye Princess's shoulder. She looked at Su Xiao with a strange smile, then slowly stepped off the train, her severe hunchback prominent.
Was the Demon Old Hag backing down? Not really. She sensed the eager "Original Sin Causality" ready to engulf Su Xiao. In this situation, she wouldn't fight to the death with a Law Destroyer facing a great calamity in less than a month.
Who said Deer God was the only Supreme Peak in the Star Realm that saw life and death as trivial? This Law Destroyer was even more violent.
The Lord's Train resumed normal operation, speeding across the wilderness. On the train, the Eye Princess suddenly took a deep breath. Under the Demon Old Hag's pressure, she had been so terrified she forgot to breathe.
The more one experiences death, the more one cherishes life. That was the Eye Princess now.
If, before Deer God and the Demon Old Hag appeared, she had harbored thoughts of escaping at the right moment to pursue her freedom, her decision now was clear: she would never leave this train unless she could stay close to the Law Destroyer, White Night.
"Mr. White Night... Lord White Night, you must protect me. I don't want to die at all."
"..."
Su Xiao took a sip of Elemental Brew, regretting the Demon Old Hag's departure. If that old demon had stayed a little longer...
He pulled a Contract Parchment from under the table. He was just moments away from signing it. Unfortunately, the old demon seemed to have some warning ability and decisively left.
[Tip: You have triggered the "World Bounty" of this world.]
[World Bounty: Doom: To achieve Doom (requires a bounty deposit of 200 ounces of Space-Time Force to activate. Due to extreme difficulty, completion will grant a 5000x additional bounty reward).]
Previous "World Bounties" had a base bounty of 50 with a 5000x multiplier, totaling 250,000 ounces of Space-Time Force. This time, the base was 200, and multiplied by 5000, it became 1,000,000 ounces.
As a Supreme Peak, such a bounty was reasonable. Su Xiao checked the three available event bounties.
[Detected three "Event Bounties" currently available for acceptance. Summary as follows: