Meanwhile, on the other side, the atmosphere between Raize and Ophis was somewhat complex.
Facing Raize's all-devouring, domineering aura, Ophis merely frowned slightly. A trace of puzzled light flickered through her hollow, indifferent eyes.
"Your essence is somewhat strange. There is something interesting within you that attracts me. I want it."
Ophis blinked her obsidian-like, beautiful and pure eyes and spoke abruptly, very proactively extending her fair little hand toward Raize.
That gesture was just like a child seeing a beloved toy, opening her arms to signal for Raize to give it to her.
The stronger the dragon, the purer it was. Ophis was exactly such an existence—if she wanted something, she would simply take it.
"Oh? You feel it too? Are you interested in this?"
Facing Ophis's childlike behavior, the corner of Raize's mouth curled upward slightly, a mysterious glint flashing through his pupils.
A silvery, mercury-like array pattern depicting a white double-serpent-entwined staff appeared behind Raize, immediately causing Ophis's eyes to widen.
At the same time, sensing the resonance of that mysterious power from Raize, a corresponding resonance unconsciously arose around Ophis as well. The phantom of an ouroboros appeared, coiling around her and holding her within its embrace.
Thump, thump, thump…
Their hearts beat violently at the same time, cheering, as if some extraordinary existence before them resonated with their very beings.
"This feeling… Are you also a snake? But no… that's not quite right…" For the first time, complex emotions appeared in Ophis's large eyes—curiosity, surprise, confusion, and a hint of joy.
In her long dragon life, this was likely the first time Ophis had experienced so many emotions at once.
"You have not truly been born yet. You are merely an infant… no, just an embryo."
Ophis perceived a fragment of the essence behind the mysterious power of the pattern behind Raize. The man before her was not a true [Snake] yet. Though different from her, he was very similar—merely the embryo of a powerful being yet to be born.
The complex emotions in her eyes gradually dissipated, leaving only the pure joy of a child.
If he was already at this level as an embryo, how powerful would he be once truly hatched?
"I've decided. I want you. With you, I can definitely defeat Great Red."
Ophis saw hope—hope of reclaiming the dimensional gap. As long as she could obtain this being and keep him by her side to nurture slowly, reaching her level would only take time.
The little dragon lacked neither time nor patience. Compared to the hopeless Khaos Brigade, the existence before her was clearly the optimal choice.
"Is that so? If you want to obtain me, you'd better be prepared to defeat me first."
Wave-like imprints emerged one by one around Raize. Those mysterious symbols landed upon the skin of his body, flickering with arcane brilliance and emitting eerie oscillating power.
With boundless battle lust toward the strong in his eyes, Raize bared his fangs at one of the world's top-tier powerhouses, eager to test the sharpness of his claws upon her.
Hearing this, Ophis frowned slightly, a ripple of confusion surfacing in her otherwise placid gaze. "Embryo, do you wish to fight me?"
"In your current state, you have no chance of victory. I am undefeated."
"Is that so? Then why were you driven out of the dimensional gap by Great Red?"
Raize raised an eyebrow, unconvinced by her claim of invincibility, his expression turning somewhat teasing.
The Ouroboros of infinite power—this was the true essence of Ophis's strength. In every respect, she was flawlessly powerful.
Even Shiva, the God of Destruction and one of the strongest beings in the world, had admitted that he was no match for her. In direct confrontation, even a large group of transcendents combined would not be her equal.
"Hmph… I wasn't defeated by Great Red!"
Raize's teasing made Ophis puff her cheeks slightly. For the first time, lively emotion appeared in her clear, bright eyes.
If she and Great Red fought with full force, it would be enough to destroy the dimensional gap—something Ophis absolutely did not wish to see.
But the undeniable fact remained: she had indeed lost to Great Red and had been shamefully driven out.
Having her defeat by that detestable red dragon mentioned to her face made Ophis genuinely a little angry.
"Enough. A loss is a loss—let's drop the idle talk. After one battle, the victor takes everything of the defeated. If you can fight me to your heart's content, then after you win, I'll grant any request you have!"
"Even helping you defeat Great Red!"
Ever since acquiring the Universe of Gold, Raize's inner passion for battle seemed to burn ever hotter. The souls within the castle, slaughtering and devouring one another as his cells, transformed into nourishment that endlessly supplied him.
That feverish battle intent—one he would not suffer negative effects from—was something Raize greatly relished.
The souls within the Demon Castle were constantly fighting. As their master, how could he be someone who could remain idle? His wild power yearned to be unleashed.
"Haah!!"
Mobilizing the anger emotions of the souls within the Universe of Gold and pouring them all into his body, Raize roared. That fury transformed into psychic power capable of interfering with material reality.
Vast, inexhaustible power surged within him. At the [Active] tier, he was at his most volatile state.
The activity of both mind and flesh increased at an unimaginable speed. The surrounding world rapidly lost its motion, as if Raize were standing within a realm where time itself had stopped.
Bzzzzzz——!
The air vibrated violently. Space itself let out a mournful cry, as though the world were weeping.
With fanatical rage blazing in his eyes, Raize's physical speed surpassed one hundred times the speed of sound and was still increasing. His strength, enhanced by psychic power, was no longer quantifiable—shattering an island spanning hundreds of kilometers with a single punch would pose no difficulty.
In this terrifying state, Raize lightly lifted his foot.
Space began to tremble uneasily, rippling like a water surface struck by a stone, producing oscillations on the verge of shattering.
The next instant—
"—!"
All sound was flung far behind.
The petite, jet-black girl—Ophis—was sent flying by a single punch from Raize, instantly smashing through everything within dozens of kilometers and carving a massive trench across the ground.
Boom boom boom boom boom boom boom————!!!!
Only several seconds later did the deafening roar finally arrive, thunderous enough to rupture the internal organs of any living being.
The air was torn apart, forming ferocious atmospheric fault lines. Countless buildings within the space were directly lifted into the sky and shattered.
Using ultimate power, he had driven all microscopic force directly into Ophis. What occurred was merely the vibration produced by the residual shock.
At this moment, the otherworld here began to show ominous changes. Tiny cracks flickered briefly within the void.
But this level of destruction alone was not enough to decide the outcome.
Raize stood at the forefront, smiling as he stared directly at the petite figure ahead.
Crash, crash…
Countless rocks and debris rained down from the sky, striking the ground like a deluge and triggering powerful seismic aftershocks.
Ophis stood atop the ruins as if nothing had happened. She gazed at Raize with interest, treating their battle as mere play between dragons.
Even after taking that attack, her body showed no obvious injuries—if anything, it was as though there had never been any injury to begin with.
No matter how pure she was, her opponent was still merely an unhatched embryo. Using full strength against an embryo would be somewhat undignified for a dragon.
But since he wished to fight, Ophis would oblige. Dragons were the crystallization of power; communicating through strength was the most natural thing.
"Embryo, your physical strength already surpasses that of the Two Heavenly Dragons."
Ophis offered this evaluation of his physique. In this state, Raize's power continued to grow, and once psychic force could influence reality, it became this terrifying.
In this world, Raize could already be counted among the ranks of the world's powerful.
"But it is still not enough. To knock me down, you cannot do it yet." A clear smile appeared at the corner of Ophis's mouth. The more outstanding Raize became, the more her heart was stirred by his potential.
She now eagerly anticipated him displaying even more strength that would delight her. Her gaze was like that of watching a young beast clumsily learning to walk, observing his growth with keen interest.
"As expected of the Infinite Dragon God. Since you see me as an embryo, then you'd better properly endure a child's tantrum~"
Facing Ophis's casual dismissal of his strength and her expectant gaze, Raize felt no anger at all. Instead, he was filled with joy at encountering an existence that could play with him, delighting in it.
High-density spiritual light flickered within his eyes, as though hell itself resided within them.
That gaze alone was enough to shatter the souls of ordinary beings.
"Emmmm, where did Raize run off to? I clearly saw him go out with Hellscythe, so how did he disappear just after I went to grab a beer?"