Chapter 427: Revelations in the Ash

Scott exhaled a cloud of smoke that merged with the ash domain around them. His expression remained unchanged, but his eyes narrowed.

"So you came prepared," said Scott, letting out a laugh that echoed through the silence. "How cute. Thinking that knowing our names is enough to defeat us is the classic mistake of Council elders."

Stephen lightly shook his right hand, causing the black toxins to evaporate from his knuckles. His metallic skin gleamed under the distorted light.

"If you know who we are, you know that poison is just one tool in my arsenal," said Stephen, taking a step forward. "’Calamity’ isn’t a title they handed me in an office, Vane."

Elder Vane raised both hands, and the dense ash covering the plaza condensed into dozens of sharp spears hovering in midair, aimed at the chests of both men.

"I didn’t come here to play games, Stephen," said Elder Vane in a stern voice. "The Federation deployed a spatial isolation barrier around this sector. Neither you nor Scott can call for backup, and the boy inside the building has nowhere to run."

"Spatial barrier?" Stephen burst into a laugh that rattled the glass walls of the complex. "You old bastard, I don’t need backup to crush a walking corpse like you."

Before the ash spears launched, Stephen vanished from sight. The violence of his step shattered the concrete within a ten-meter radius.

"[Adaptive Body: Absolute Density Type]," Stephen’s voice boomed directly above the Elder.

His body mass multiplied in a fraction of a second. The air whistled as his fist descended like a meteor toward the old man’s head.

Elder Vane reacted, crossing his arms and deploying a wall of compressed ash to block the strike. However, the physical force of the impact could not be dissipated. The shockwave obliterated the surrounding asphalt, blasting the Federation guards back as the barrier began to crack under the pressure.

The cracks in the compressed ash expanded under the pressure of Stephen’s fist.

"[Ash Domain: Gray Incineration]," said Elder Vane in a heavy voice.

The fissures in the wall began glowing with white heat. The ash surrounding Stephen turned into a tide of microscopic embers that clung to his skin. The heat generated exceeded the melting point of steel, forcing Stephen’s density to give way by a millimeter.

Capitalizing on that fraction of a second, Elder Vane thrust both palms forward and unleashed a detonation of incandescent ash.

BOOOM!

The shockwave sent Stephen flying backward. The giant crossed his arms to absorb the impact, skidding over twenty meters across the ruined ground before coming to a halt. The surface of his arms smoked, revealing minor burns that immediately began to regenerate.

"A miniature ignition technique built into the domain..." said Stephen, dusting off his shoulder with a smirk. "Not bad for an old man who ought to be in a nursing home."

Elder Vane floated down until his feet touched the concrete, keeping the gray cloud swirling around him.

"I told you, Stephen," said Elder Vane. "I came prepared to deal with a monster like you."

Scott took a couple of steps forward, pulling his hands from his pockets as he released a trail of smoke.

"Stephen, if you don’t finish him off, I’ll have to deal with him," said Scott, looking down on the ash cloud with disdain.

Stephen spat a streak of blood onto the ground and crossed his arms with a feral grin.

"Shut up, idiot," said Stephen. "I’m just getting warmed up."

Elder Vane narrowed his eyes as an icy chill ran down his spine. A premonition of doom consumed him, as though something catastrophic were about to unleash.

Stephen straightened up, letting out a laugh that rattled the complex’s windows.

"Imagine forcing me to get serious..." said Stephen, locking his bloodthirsty eyes onto the old man. "You can tell the old bastards at the Federation that they can be proud for forcing me to use this: [Relentless Hunter]."

Stephen’s muscles swelled and tore in an unrestrained surge of growth. Razor-sharp fangs erupted from his gums, while his hands and feet mutated, sprouting metallic claws several inches long. His silhouette took on the form of a massive lion standing over ten feet tall.

Stephen threw his head back and unleashed a deafening roar.

GROAAR!

The sonic shockwave was so devastating that the air vibrated like a bomb detonation. The surrounding Federation guards collapsed, convulsing as the acoustic pressure exploded their brains from the inside out.

Witnessing the spectacle, Elder Vane wiped every trace of arrogance from his face and dropped into a defensive stance, sensing a threat to his life.

"When Platinums fight, there can only be death and destruction, old man..." said Stephen in a beastly voice that shook the ground. "You asked for this. Now feel my wrath."

Elder Vane channeled the entirety of his mana, causing the ash dome to collapse and compress into the palm of his right hand.

"[Forbidden Technique: Astral Ash Execution]!" screamed Elder Vane, thrusting forward a spear of incandescent gray light that tore through space.

Stephen made no attempt to dodge. With a roar, he charged head-on, delivering a fist strike into the ultimate attack.

BOOOOOOM!

The collision triggered a cataclysmic explosion. The shockwave swept away nearby vehicles, pulverized the steel framework, and blasted both combatants to opposite ends of the plaza amidst a plume of fire and dust.

As the smoke began to clear, Elder Vane forced himself back to his feet with difficulty, panting as he clutched his fractured arm. Looking up, a smirk filled with arrogance spread across his face.

Before him, Stephen lay amidst the ruins. The impact from the Astral Ash Execution had obliterated the upper left half of his torso: his metallic ribs were shattered, his internal organs exposed, and blood poured from the wound.

"Stupid monster," said Elder Vane, letting out a wheezing laugh. "No matter how vast your strength is, no one survives the destruction of half their body."

Yet, against all odds, the massive lion pushed himself up. Stephen dug his claws into the rubble and raised his gaze, flashing a feral grin through his fangs.

"Didn’t I tell you?" said Stephen, his raspy voice shaking the foundations. "This was just a warmup."

[Relentless Hunter] did not carry that name by chance. The true nature of the ability lay in its stacking effect: the more damage and severe injuries the hunter sustained, the stronger, faster, and more destructive his power grew.

At that moment, Stephen’s secondary ability reacted in synergy.

"[Adaptive Body]," muttered Stephen.

Muscles, bones, and internal organs reconstructed at hyper-accelerated speed. Within three seconds, the wound vanished, exposing an even denser metallic skin and an overwhelming aura that eclipsed the area.

Stephen took a step forward as the atmosphere around him dyed itself a suffocating red.

"My domain is called [Massacre]," said Stephen, locking his golden eyes onto the terrified old man. "Enjoy it."