Epic of Ice Dragon: Reborn As An Ice Dragon With A System - Chapter 2323 2323: Oda Nobunaga's Endless Castle [41]
—–
“UUUAAAAGGGHH! BASTARDS! YOU FILTHY MONGRELS!!! WHO…! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU’RE TOUCHING WITH YOUR NASTY HANDS?!”
The Celestial Path Venerable grew frenzied as he felt the sharp claws of Ruby and Tyrfing’s thunderous blade piercing his shoulders. His entire body surged with intense heat, radiating a blinding glow that scorched the air around him. He summoned Gungnir to his right hand, swinging it forward at lightning speed several times in succession, piercing the bodies of both foes simultaneously with devastating force.
“{Gungnir – Spear of the Eternal Eye Arts}: {Odin’s Perpetual Mark}!”
CLASH! CLASH! CLASH! CLASH! CLASH!
His left eye glowed with brilliant silver light, as the power of Time pierced their bodies. Ruby and Hrimvaldr felt their regeneration halt entirely, every wound bleeding profusely, leaking their vital energy in shimmering streams.
“Uuuaaggh! D-Damn it!”
Hrimvaldr screamed, his Aura surging despite the damage he endured. His body’s energies fluctuated wildly, and the wounds began absorbing the cursed miasma permeating the air, drawing it into his system. To his astonishment, he used this dark energy to repair himself, stitching his torn flesh with threads of corrupted power.
“I can do this?!”
This was an unseen ability, one he hadn’t known he possessed, akin to Ruby’s own power. As the first Vampire Dragon and a direct creation of the Venerable, Hrimvaldr was a prototype designed to absorb distorted, corrupted energies for immense power. The realization hit him like a bolt of lightning, stirring memories of his creation.
However, the Venerable had long discarded this concept, deeming it unstable. Hrimvaldr, recalling these truths through his flowing memories, saw his eyes turn deep red even in his golden form, which flickered unsteadily. Clinging to that golden spark, he imbued it with every ounce of strength he could muster, his resolve burning brighter than ever.
“HAAAAAHHH!”
He roared mightily, his body erupting with immense power, pushing the Venerable back and causing him to miss his next strike. His draconic fists rained down, pummeling Deus with dozens of explosive punches that spread cracks across his body of materialized light, each impact echoing like thunder in the chaotic battlefield.
BAAM! BAAM! BAAM! BAAM!
“You dare strike me, you beast?!”
Deus screamed furiously, swiftly wielding Mjolnir and Gungnir to parry and pierce Hrimvaldr’s arms. The weapons crushed his fingers, impaled his hands, and tore chunks of flesh from his limbs, which refused to regenerate as blinding light seared his skin, leaving smoldering wounds.
“Hrimvaldr is doing his best, pushing him with his life on the line…! Augustus died because I hesitated too long. I must go beyond, further than this!”
Ruby’s crimson eyes spiraled wildly as her Aura erupted with vast quantities of cursed and blood energies, divine power weaving them into a swirl of dark, crepuscular hues that pulsed with otherworldly menace. Her heart pounded with the weight of her fallen comrade’s sacrifice.
“Whatever you’re doing, IT WILL NOT WORK!”
Deus gathered his power, piercing Ruby’s hand with Gungnir and attempting to obliterate it by unleashing all his energy at once. Tyrfing countered, slicing through his arm, splattering golden blood that sizzled upon contact with the ground.
“GAAAAHHH!”
He screamed in agony as the sword cut through nerves and muscles, though it shattered before reaching bone. Seizing the moment, Ruby attacked, her Ascendancy Law overflowing. She felt her mother’s spectral arms around her neck, a comforting embrace that steadied her power and sharpened her focus.
“{Rampaging Bloodthirsty Abyss Claws}!”
Ruby combined all her skills, imbuing her claws with such intensity that they glowed with the dimensional power of this accursed realm. Drawing on martial arts and combat techniques learned from Drake and Rakasha, she swung her claws with precision, each strike resonating with the weight of her training and resolve.
SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH!
“AAAAAAGGGHHHHHH!”
Deus screamed in horror and disbelief, his body assaulted by hundreds of slashing attacks. Cracks and deep wounds marred his form, golden blood splattering everywhere, burning Ruby’s skin as she pressed forward relentlessly, undeterred by the searing pain.
Hrimvaldr refused to falter, even with his arms destroyed. Gathering power into his fingertips, he used his broken limbs and protruding bones as makeshift spears, stabbing into the Venerable’s wounds to exacerbate them, each thrust fueled by desperate determination.
“BASTARD! DIEEEEEE!!!”
CLASH! CLASH! CLASH! CLASH! CLASH!
Deus was utterly overwhelmed, the damage undeniable. His magic and techniques faltered, interrupted by relentless pain and continuous assaults that left him no time to counter.
“Y-YOUUUUU!!!”
He roared, his Aura exploding into golden flames of celestial energy that scorched Hrimvaldr and Ruby. Yet, even as their flesh burned, they pressed on, cleaving through his body. Hrimvaldr grabbed Deus’s severed arm as Ruby sliced it apart with her claws, their combined ferocity a testament to their unbreakable will.
SLAAASH!
“AAAAARRGGGHH! M-MY ARM!”
In desperation, the Venerable summoned all his remaining power, manifesting a massive Formation followed by a Dominion to trap them both, intent on finishing them once and for all.
“{Divine Celestial Dominion}: {Heavenly God’s Pantheon}!”
FLAAASH!
“W-Wha…?!”
“Ungh?!”
Hrimvaldr and Ruby, bleeding and burning at their limits, found themselves ensnared within a radiant Dominion, its blinding light searing their bodies with agonizing intensity.
“You will pay for this insolence! You will pay for dragging out this pointless battle for so long! I was supposed to kill you quickly and move on! How are you so strong?! This cannot be! You will pay!”
Deus roared furiously, his voice thick with frustration and rage. Hrimvaldr and Ruby watched in disbelief as statues rose across the sky-like Dominion, crafted from ancient white marble and shaped as gods, each radiating a fragment of divine power.
“You know why it’s called Heavenly God’s Pantheon?! Well, you’re about to find out!”
Deus laughed maniacally, as the heavily wounded Hrimvaldr and Ruby saw the statues glow brightly, charging toward them by the dozens, their divine aura overwhelming the air with oppressive might.
“R-Ruby! Are you okay?!”
“T-The light…! Uuggh…! I-I can’t…!”
Hrimvaldr gritted his teeth, glancing at the advancing statues and at Ruby, his heart pounding with fear and determination to protect her against the divine onslaught.
—–
