Azure-blue Aura enveloped the newly formed Snakeine stone pillars like a giant hand.
These pillars had been shrouded in thick black mist.
Under the influence of [Core Enforcer], the grotesque Snakes barely maintained their form.
Soon, they dissolved back into scattered stone pillars.
This was because [Core Enforcer] had nullified the Snake Lord's Rule Ability.
The Snake Lord's eyelids twitched violently.
It recognized this—the same ability that had previously disrupted its powers, rendering them unusable!
It never expected this green creature could achieve such a feat so effortlessly.
After all, it was now present in its true form, wielding abilities far surpassing those of its avatars.
Yet, judging by Zygarde's demeanor, this seemed like a trivial matter, requiring no real effort.
The next moment, boundless earthy-yellow Aura shimmered under the radiant light, turning golden as it billowed through the air.
Countless uniformly sized arrowheads materialized, all aimed at the Snake Lord in the sky.
Each one gleamed with lethal sharpness.[Thousand Arrows] was a technique specifically designed to counter airborne creatures, and its power was extraordinary.
The Snake Lord's heart pounded in terror as it desperately twisted its massive body, fleeing with incredible speed.
Despite its mountainous size, it could traverse countless miles in an instant.
Yet, it had long been locked onto by Zygarde.
In the blink of an eye, countless arrows tore through the sky, as if an entire army was in pursuit of the Snake Lord.
The distance between them rapidly closed.
The Snake Lord abruptly turned its head, only to see the terrifying arrows closing in—each one brimming with overwhelming energy.
Its pupils trembled violently.
In that moment, countless thoughts flashed through the Snake Lord's mind.
It thought of its lost territory.
It thought of its own arrogance.
It thought… it should never have made an enemy of that human!
"BOOM!!"
A deafening explosion erupted from the Snake Lord's position, the shockwave surging outward in all directions.
Visibly, its colossal body—comparable to the sun and moon—was obliterated in an instant. Every inch of its flesh was annihilated under the devastating force, erased from existence.
Its death did not cause excessive destruction to the terrain below.
Because most of its flesh had been utterly dispersed by [Thousand Arrows]—some even wiped from the world entirely.
This was absolute power!
Both the Snake Lord and the Rock Lord stood at the apex of the food chain in the Dark Continent, even in the entire Hunter World.
They were nearly immortal, with infinite lifespans, capable of annihilating entire regions with a mere gesture.
Yet, even such beings—before the likes of Primal Groudon and other Tier-One Legendaries—had only two fates: submission or utter destruction.
Because from the very beginning, they had chosen the wrong opponent!
...
On the imagined continent, everyone stood frozen, staring blankly at the distant horizon, where the scenery had drastically changed.
Not only had the colossal Snake and towering mountain that once dominated the sky and earth vanished, but even the endless storm clouds and torrential rain had dissipated without a trace.
Sunlight once again bathed the land.
The enemy had been completely eradicated.
Only the three towering pillars of light remained, standing indomitable.
"W-we… won?!"
After a long silence, a voice filled with joy shattered the pin-drop stillness.
As if a switch had been flipped, the scene erupted into a cacophony of noise.
Yet one thing was certain—every face bore genuine elation and awe.
They were overjoyed at Akira's victory, yet equally stunned by his overwhelming strength.
"So this… is the world's strongest."
Cheadle adjusted her glasses, her gaze still fixed on the distant sky.
"Hohoho… As expected, my judgment was correct."
Netero narrowed his eyes, chuckling softly.
His warm gaze seemed to pierce through the distance, as if he could see the legendary figure on the battlefield, revered by all.
Even now, he still remembered that night— the night he first met Akira.
Back then, he had only sensed that Akira was extraordinary. But as time passed and he learned more, he finally understood just how formidable Akira truly was.
For humanity to have Akira… was humanity's greatest fortune.
From this day onward, the three slowly fading pillars of light would be etched deep into everyone's hearts.
No one would forget this earth-shattering spectacle—they had all witnessed history firsthand.
This was an absolute honor, an opportunity granted to no one else.
After this battle, everyone finally understood that "the world's strongest" was not merely the strongest across the six continents—
it was something far beyond.Even the true "Strongest in the World"
Though it remains unknown whether any creature in the world surpasses Akira, one thing is clear to all—the Dark Continent is by no means a forbidden zone for humanity!
Even humans possess the potential to explore, even conquer it.
Akira stands like a banner upon the land known as the "Dark Continent," inspiring reverence in every heart...
...
On the Dark Continent.
Far, far away from the battlefield.
This was a land of deathly silence, where signs of life were rare, and desolation stretched in all directions.
Feeling the oppressive aura upon him completely vanish, Don's expression shifted slightly as he continued staring in that direction.
'To defeat such an enemy so effortlessly...'
Don clicked his tongue in disbelief.
Looking back now, during their sparring match, Akira hadn't just held back—he might as well have been holding back an ocean.
Forget that colossal steel beast.
Had Akira summoned even one of those three creatures that appeared earlier,
A mere sneeze from them would have been enough to erase him from existence.
For some reason, he had a strong intuition.
If Akira truly wanted to kill him, his Nen Ability might not be enough to bring him back.
He could easily ensure Don's permanent death.
This was a sixth sense that resonated from the depths of his soul!
---
Deep within the Dark Continent,
This was a place devoid of light, as if only an endless black night existed, with scarcely any brightness to be seen.
The territory was vast, dotted with countless city-like structures resembling those of humans.
But within them dwelled all manner of bizarre Snakeine creatures.
Strangely, they possessed intelligence and lived on this land in ways eerily similar to humans.
And in the deepest reaches lay an abyss of absolute darkness, where anything that entered would be utterly devoured.
This was the domain of the Snake Lord.
The grotesque creatures within were also its creations, forged through its Rule Ability.
In a sense, the territory and its inhabitants reflected the characteristics of the [Lord].
For example, the Snake Lord's domain was filled with all kinds of peculiar snakes, while the environment was shrouded in thick black mist.
Everything proceeded as usual, with no signs of abnormality.
Then, in the next moment—
Countless Snakes melted away like snow under scorching sunlight, their bodies rapidly dissolving until they were nothing but pools of blood.
The dense black mist also dissipated at an alarming rate, the environment gradually returning to normal.
As if mirroring this phenomenon,
The Rock Lord's territory was undergoing the same transformation.
Numerous stone creatures, shrouded in black mist like [Evil Mountains], began to melt away.
Many things within the territory vanished as well, as though they had never existed.
All these things shared one common trait—
They were products of the Snake Lord or the Rock Lord, created through their respective Rule Abilities.
Now that both the Snake Lord and the Rock Lord had perished, these Rule Ability constructs naturally crumbled.
The territories of the two Lords were vast, and such a massive upheaval instantly drew the attention of countless hidden observers.
Over countless years, this land had seen the rise of one [Lord] after another.
Deaths among the [Lords] were nearly unheard of—but not entirely nonexistent.
Thus, though they were shocked beyond measure, they still understood what had happened.
A [Lord] had died!
No—two, simultaneously.
This was something unprecedented in the long river of time.
...
In a certain extradimensional space,Countless phantom figures emerged here, their forms obscured by thick, ink-like darkness.
They resembled the flickering black-and-white static of an old television, dizzying to the eye at just a glance.
It felt as though one's very soul might be sucked in.
"The Snake Lord and the Rock Lord are dead," a hoarse voice spoke.
The words carried little emotion beyond a trace of surprise, sounding almost robotic.
Hearing this, the other shadowy figures remained motionless, showing no reaction.
Though their true appearances were indiscernible, their general shapes could be vaguely distinguished.
Some were minuscule, like pebbles by the roadside.
Others towered immensely, rivaling the sun, moon, and stars.
Yet one thing was certain—within this realm, they all represented the pinnacle of power in this world.
And now, two such beings had inexplicably perished today.
"Could they have destroyed each other?" another voice chimed in.
Only a [Lord] could challenge another [Lord] in battle.
Thus, it was highly possible that the Snake Lord and the Rock Lord had clashed.
But mutual annihilation seemed too extreme.
At the very least, they couldn't fathom what could drive two Lords to fight to the death.
The phantoms murmured among themselves, eventually concluding that the two Lords likely battled each other.
There was no other explanation.
Then, an eerie voice cut through the chatter.
At its sound, the other [Lords] instinctively fell silent, as though wary.
"It was another creature's doing."
A simple statement, nothing more. The speaker was sparing with words, unwilling to elaborate.
This single sentence overturned the conclusion the others had just reached.
Elevating the complexity of the matter to another level.
Another creature did this?
What creature could that be?
Aside from [Lords], what being could possess such power—perhaps even far surpass it?
To slay two [Lords] simultaneously...
The strength required was beyond their imagination.
For a moment, the space returned to silence, so quiet a pin drop would echo.
"Could it... could it have been... that one?"
A hesitant voice whispered cautiously, laced with disbelief.
The other [Lords] subtly stiffened, brows furrowing invisibly.
They knew exactly who "that one" referred to.
"That one" was, by their shared understanding, the most powerful existence in the world.
A being surpassing even the [Lords].
The Demon King!
If these [Lords] were perpetually blocked by an invisible barrier, their strength stagnant...
Then the Demon King was one who had half-stepped past that barrier, far exceeding them in power.
If they had to theorize a being capable of slaying two [Lords], the Demon King was the only possibility.
Only it could wield such might.
Fortunately, the Demon King, despite its overwhelming power, had long slumbered out of boredom, unable to find worthy opponents.
Thus, they didn't have to live in constant fear.
The [Lord] who had earlier declared "another creature's doing" merely frowned.
It offered no further explanation.
Its ability only extended this far—it couldn't discern the true culprit.
After a long while, the alternate dimension returned to tranquility, now empty save for countless scattered spatial fragments floating in the void.
This incident cast a thick shadow over the hearts of every [Lord].
They dared not investigate further.
If the Demon King truly intended to strike against them, this would be an earth-shattering matter.
Thus, unbeknownst to Akira, the Demon King had already taken the blame for him, becoming an object of vigilance for numerous [Lords].
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