(The mechanism of action of blood burning technology will be explained in the next chapter.)
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The battles that were taking place near the path where Aeon had been thrown came to a halt. Both the Demonic Path disciples and the Academy students stared in horror at this scene. When the Academy students recognized Aeon—the strongest person in the first year—they were shocked. Just who the hell was strong enough to send him flying and leave him in such a miserable state?
They turned their gazes toward the gate that had been destroyed by Aeon's impact. Both the Demonic Path and the Academy students saw a figure slowly appearing. He took one slow step at a time, yet with each step he crossed a distance of a hundred meters.
When the Demonic Path disciples saw who it was, they erupted into fanatical cheers upon recognizing Nick.
He was the strongest person of the new generation among them. Even the older inner disciples in the sect feared and dreaded him.
Their eyes were filled with fanaticism and madness when they saw Nick's current state. They had only heard of this transformation through rumors—the younger generation had never seen it before. This was the secret art of the founder's bloodline of their sect—**Essence Discharge and Reversal**—and only one person in each generation was qualified to learn it.
Meanwhile, the faces of the Academy students turned pale from the pressure and bloodlust that Nick was releasing before them… they had never seen someone this terrifying. Their wills shattered and completely collapsed…
They began retreating slowly, then fled in different directions. When the Demonic Path disciples saw this, they began laughing madly as they chased after them. The morale of the Demonic Path rose sharply, and they grew even more crazed and extreme, while the Academy students' morale dropped—especially as they saw their companions fleeing. Anyone who tried to hold their ground, upon seeing their friends run, followed them without hesitation.
Nick did not care about what was happening around him. To him, they were merely insects unworthy of his attention. He turned his gaze toward Aeon, who was buried under the rubble. He was in no hurry to kill him; rather, he would play with him like a cat playing with a mouse in a corner.
In Nick's view, this form was indeed powerful—far too powerful for someone like Aeon to handle. The only reason he had transformed into this state was because Aeon would threaten his corpses, and it would take a long time to heal them to return to their peak. Even some of the precious essence he had injected into those corpses would be lost. This was a price he could not afford to pay for a meaningless fight.
Aeon began to rise, pushing the rubble away from himself, then quickly checked his body. There were several fractures in his ribcage, but he could still fight like this—it would not affect him much.
He began walking forward, rotating his shoulder slightly, then turned his gaze toward Nick, who was standing more than a hundred meters away, watching him calmly.
"Well, that was a bit excessive…" he tilted his head slightly, then said, "I'm not someone who fails to return favors, so get ready—and be careful, I might kill you in one strike." His eyes were filled with rising battle intent. Perhaps aside from Arthur, who had barely pressured him, this was the first time in his generation that he had found an opponent who threatened his life. Therefore, he would give it his all without holding back.
"Blood Burn Technique—Frenzy," his voice was low.
Aeon tore off his robe, then—
He roared fiercely toward the sky. His roar echoed for hundreds of meters around him. The Demonic Path disciples who had been chasing the Academy students stopped and turned toward Aeon, who was growling as his hair surged violently.
The veins on Aeon's body began to bulge out forcefully. One could see blood surging violently within them. His skin turned intensely red, his eyes narrowed even more than before, and his body slightly expanded—barely noticeable. His aura, which had once been calm like a lake, had now become like a raging, boundless sea.
Nick was shocked by the sudden pressure that fell upon him. He felt as if an ancient beast had set its eyes on him. His body tensed instantly when Aeon suddenly disappeared from before him and his instincts screamed danger.
Nick threw a powerful punch forward—just as he did, Aeon's fist appeared in front of him as well.
Their fists collided, shattering the ground beneath them and creating a massive crater.
Nick felt shock when he realized that Aeon's punch had pushed him half a step back.
"This is impossible…" Nick said, his eyes wide with disbelief. His body, which he was so proud of, had been shaken by a mere human?
"AAAH!" Nick roared as he further enhanced his strength and pushed Aeon's fist back, but it stopped precisely midway—he could not push any further.
"You lowly human!! How dare you resist me!" This drove him into complete madness. He threw his other fist toward Aeon—
But Aeon did not dodge. Instead, he smirked mockingly, then kicked Nick's leg, causing his body to tilt toward the ground.
Nick was surprised by this seemingly foolish move, but before he could recover—
A palm struck his face violently and smashed him into the ground.
A slap…
The onlookers froze from this sudden turn. Nick—their top expert, a being they could only look up to and could not even meet his gaze because of his brilliance—had been slapped?
Aeon stepped back and stood there, looking at Nick, who began to rise, unable to believe what had just happened to him. The ground had imprinted the shape of Nick's head… like a historical fact that had been immortalized there…
When he felt the pain on his cheek, he roared hysterically at this unprecedented humiliation… but in the middle of his scream—
Aeon vanished from his spot and appeared in front of him. Before Nick could react, he was slapped again, cutting off his hysterical scream and sending him flying like a projectile into one of the buildings, which collapsed on top of him.
"Can't you just fight quietly? Why do you have to scream every minute? That's annoying. Are you a spoiled child?" Aeon said mockingly as he walked toward Nick's location.