Chapter 180: The Ultimate Contest of Power!!
Blast raised his hand, and spatial energy surged instantly. He attempted to manipulate the fabric of space where Saitama and King were fighting, hoping to project the visual data onto a screen of light.
However, in the very next heartbeat, a violent wave of backlash hit him. The spatial screen before his eyes detonated into a shower of raw energy particles.
Blast himself suffered a significant spiritual rebound. It felt as if the sheer magnitude of the energy from that distant battlefield had used his own screen as a conduit to strike him directly. Blood leaked from the corner of his mouth.
"Oi, oi... this is getting a little too ridiculous, isn't it?"
Blast muttered a shocked complaint, while offering a silent apology in his heart.
Sorry, King. I can't be your referee anymore.
In my current state, I've lost even the right to be a spectator.
"Man... anyone who knows me thinks I'm Blast, the protector of Earth. Anyone who doesn't probably thinks I'm just out here cosplaying as space junk."
Thinking about how he didn't even qualify as dust compared to the two titans fighting in the distance, he felt a wave of helplessness.
We're all technically human... how is the gap this wide?
In Blast's view, the distance between himself and the bottom-ranked S-Class heroes was already a vast canyon—wider than the gap between a hero and a civilian.
But now, compared to Saitama and King, the difference felt like comparing a human being to a paramecium.
.................
At the Center of the Void.
Everything was silent. Everything was dead.
The spatial turbulence continued to pour out like a torrential river, silver tides of chaos carrying the power to annihilate reality.
Yet, in the very heart of this chaotic ocean, there existed a vacuum zone nearly ten kilometers wide.
In that zone, all laws of physics had ceased to function. Even space itself seemed not to exist. It was a domain constructed entirely by two forces of absolute, infinite magnitude.
Saitama and King were past the point of testing each other. They were seeing red. Every punch and kick was a raw, primal display of physical violence.
Currently, every single one of the Bald Demon's strikes was a Serious Punch at his current peak—strikes far more powerful than the one that had "parted the clouds" of Earth in the original records.
There were no flashy energy beams. No blinding special effects. There was only the most extreme contest of raw strength.
Saitama didn't need to follow rules; he was the rule.
King didn't need to follow rules either; his "disgusting" [Infinite Evolution] was his license to ignore reality.
A fist blurred through the void. Saitama didn't dodge; he took the blow squarely to the face.
The power behind the hit was enough to make even the invincible Saitama feel a sharp spike of pain. A trickle of crimson blood began to leak from his nose.
He wiped his face, staring at the red stain on his glove. The excitement on his face was so intense it was practically manic.
"It's been a long time since I've seen my own blood. Three years... this is the first time. I'm really grateful to you, King."
As he spoke, Saitama's surging emotions caused the power within him to skyrocket. His aura intensified several times over in a split second.
King's pupils constricted. Before he could even twitch, Saitama's clenched fist slammed into his face.
CRACK!
The crisp sound of bone shattering echoed. After his most recent power-up, the force behind the Bald Demon's fist had become horrific. A single hit pulverized half of King's skull on impact.
[Extreme Regeneration] and [Infinite Evolution] triggered instantly.
Amidst a dual flash of green and white light, King's face was restored to perfection in an instant. Not only that, but the Aura radiating from him grew even more ferocious.
Hearing Saitama's words, King smiled. Though on his domineering, majestic face, a smile always looked a bit stiff and intimidating.
"You're grateful to me? I feel the same way. We're best friends, after all, Saitama."
The two warriors, who acknowledged each other as equals and friends, locked eyes. No more words were needed. They raised their fists simultaneously.
Everything was understood.
BANG!
BANG!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!
In this "True Warrior's Arena" constructed from their own clashing energies, the shockwaves no longer dissipated into the distance. Instead, they were trapped within the zone, bouncing back and forth, intensifying the pressure within the arena.
The speed of their punching was beyond measure. To a normal observer, their movements would appear relatively static because they were moving so fast the human brain couldn't process the frames.
King's fist smashed into Saitama's nose, making blood spray and cracking the bridge of his bone.
But the Bald Demon was a freak of nature. His injuries would mysteriously vanish in an instant. Even he didn't know why; he was just a walking cheat code.
And as he took damage, Saitama's fighting spirit soared higher, and his strength began a frantic, exponential climb.
The empowered Saitama threw a counter-punch that literally bored a hole through King's cranium. King's bloodshot eyeballs were sent flying into the void.
But the synchronized activation of King's two passive skills didn't just heal him—it evolved him.
[Extreme Regeneration] gave him the sustain to stay in the fight indefinitely.
[Infinite Evolution] allowed him to match the pace of Saitama's legendary growth.
King hadn't realized how "broken" this passive was at first, but he did now.
When an empowered Saitama landed a punch, the moment the damage was dealt, [Infinite Evolution] calculated the new power level and boosted King's own physical durability and strength to match that exact tier.
In the original story, Cosmic Garou tried to copy Saitama's strength, but he couldn't grow as fast as the Bald Demon. He was always one step behind.
But here? Both of them were powering up in perfect synchronization!!