"No wonder it's a Sun Authority star spirit… the sheer weight behind that attack is insane." Bracing himself against the star beast's massive claw, the ground beneath Riku's feet caved in violently.
He'd expected the star beasts to be powerful, but not this powerful. Even in his current state, far above an average three-digit, the undiluted strength took him by surprise. Earlier, he'd easily overpowered the Lord of the White Night before she'd even unleashed her Sun Authority, and yet…
"But I'm not about to lose," Riku's eyes flashed. He activated Heaven Shift, vanishing instantly. The star beast's enormous paw crashed down onto the ground, shaking the entire game world and carving out enormous craters.
At the same time, Riku reappeared in front of the star beast's colossal head, golden energy blazing around him. In a flash, it shifted to gold-red, destructive energy swirling as he condensed it into a massive energy cannon.
In the next instant, a gold-red blast detonated at point-blank range against the star beast, the shockwave warping space and sky alike, sending the star beast flying.
BOOOOM!
A deafening explosion tore through the arena, erasing almost everything in its path. If this had happened outside the game space, an entire galaxy would've been wiped out.
"Heh, space manipulation, what a pain. But in my game world, even a dragon has to bow down," the Lord of the White Night said with a snap of her fan. A torrent of sun flames rose in a cyclone, heat waves twisting the air and space as they surged toward Riku.
"Sorry, your flames don't work on me," Riku grinned, unleashing golden phoenix fire to meet her sun flames head-on, turning the arena into a true inferno; any weaker being would be instantly vaporised.
"That's not necessarily true. I'm a Sun God now, after all. Facing someone like you, who, for reasons I still don't get, can wield Phoenix Flames, but is still fundamentally human and can't draw out the fire's full power, I'm confident. If you had Golden Crow flames, I'd be wary. But Phoenix Flames? Their strength is all in regeneration. And most importantly, your current power is no match for me with my Sun Authority fully unleashed!" she declared with a touch of elegance.
As she spoke, silver light blazed, solar storms swirling and surging past the Phoenix Flames, driving toward Riku.
Even so, Phoenix Flames are inexhaustible and refuse to be extinguished. The two legendary fires clashed and tangled, neither able to overwhelm the other. The battle of flames alone wouldn't decide a victor any time soon.
ROOOAR!
But the star beasts weren't alone; several others, each with a unique form, howled and charged at Riku in a flurry of crimson light.
Even the star beast Riku had just been blasted away, had only suffered minor injuries and was already rejoining the fray.
Yet Riku, wielding all his powers, showed no sign of weakening. In fact, no matter how often he was grievously wounded or even killed, he recovered instantly stronger each time. The fusion of Saiyan and Phoenix blood was truly broken!
After a short while, the entire battlefield looked like it had been turned upside down, scorched, cratered, and devastated everywhere.
"This brat… he just gets stronger the more pressure he's under. Or is he using me and my star beasts as a whetstone to sharpen himself?" the Lord of the White Night finally realised, her face troubled. She'd "killed" Riku several times, but not only did he show no pain, his fighting spirit only grew, his attacks becoming sharper and more relentless; he'd gone from being fully suppressed to handling everything with ease. She realised he was using her and the star beasts to power up!
"Hey, brat, that's enough! Stop!" She finally snapped her fan shut and called out.
Instantly, the star beasts stopped mid-fight and retreated behind her. Riku also halted, his body still sheathed in gold-red flames as he looked her way.
"What's this? Are you admitting defeat, Lord of the White Night? You were only just starting to show your true kingly presence," Riku said with a relaxed smile.
"Brat, neither of us can kill the other; there's no point dragging this out." Her face showed only frustration.
As the primordial star spirit, unless one possessed the power to destroy the multiverse in an instant, it was impossible to kill her. The star beasts were immortal as well.
And as for Riku, unless a two-digit level existence intervened, there was almost no chance of killing him. With her current strength, it was utterly hopeless.
So, it was just two immortals fighting endlessly… Pointless. Even if they fought for a million years, there would be no victor.
"I'm not interested in stealing your perpetual motion mechanism, can't even take it if I tried. Honestly, it's the [Heavenly Army]'s job, not mine. Why should I bother with a losing task?" the Lord of the White Night muttered sourly.
"So, let's call this match off." She spoke calmly.
"So even the Lord of the White Night knows when to give up, huh?" Riku replied with a wry grin.
She glared at him, wishing she could punch him in the face.
"What do you mean, give up?! I killed you several times, didn't I? It's only because I don't want to waste any more time that I'm letting this end as a draw! You're the first person I've ever let off that easily!" she huffed, feeling this "draw" was already doing Riku a favour. If the Halloween Queen found out, she'd definitely get laughed at!
Being mocked by that woman was intolerable. But since she truly couldn't find a way to defeat Riku, this was all she could do.
Her stubborn pride made Riku's mouth curl into a sly smile as he delivered a line that made her want to jump up and throttle him.
"Lord of the White Night, I don't think you were ever 'beating' me, only for things to somehow end in a draw. If anything, I was starting to gain the advantage," Riku said lightly.
"Hmph! Brat, are you looking to get beaten down a thousand more times?" she threatened, brow twitching.
"Let's not, it's boring to fight someone who's lost their fighting spirit." Riku shook his head, then raised a finger and smiled. "So let's put everything we have into one last attack."
"Hmm?!" The Lord of the White Night was annoyed at first, but then noticed how Riku was aiming his right hand at her and the star beasts. Her eyes narrowed, unease creeping in.
Does he still have some secret weapon? Another transformation? An unknown power or artefact?
As she puzzled over Riku's trump card, his confident, wild voice rang out, and her eyes finally went wide, her expression changing at last!
--
A pillar of aurora erupted from the centre of Riku's palm, sweeping across the entire game world, annihilating everything in its path as it barreled straight toward the Lord of the White Night and her star beasts.
"Oh no, this power… Is that a Pseudo Star Map Creation?!" As the aurora beam surged toward her, the Lord of the White Night's pupils shrank violently, shock written all over her face.
[A Pseudo Star Map Creation] This is a world-axiom level authority among the gods! It's not something that just anyone can possess. Owning a Pseudo Star Map Creation is enough to create an entirely new pantheon from scratch!
And yet, Riku, a mere human, actually brought it out. It was simply unbelievable!
Within the Little Garden, the number of known Pseudo Star Map Creations can be counted on one hand!
"And this power… is this a one-hit-kill, world-overwriting Pseudo Star Map Creation?!"
The Lord of the White Night's mind was a torrent of turmoil.
But even in her shock, neither she nor the star beasts tried to evade. The sudden aurora beam had already locked onto them at this distance, and even with her current strength, it was impossible to escape.
BOOOOOOM !!
In the next instant, the aurora pillar pierced straight through the earth, shattered the sky, and utterly destroyed the Lord of the White Night's game world. The star beasts were obliterated and returned to the Sun Authority, and the shadows of the fish and ship faded back into nothingness. The anomalies permitted by the sun were restored to normal.
When everything finally settled, the Lord of the White Night and Riku both reappeared in the Little Garden.
The Lord of the White Night was wrapped tightly in endless sun flames, her figure completely obscured because, in that instant, her clothing had been disintegrated without a trace. Even the fan in her hand was gone, leaving her looking quite miserable.
Riku, on the other hand, was surrounded by phoenix flames, entirely unscathed.
Right now, the Lord of the White Night glared daggers at Riku, while he only smiled at her with a faintly amused air. The atmosphere was tense and strange.
Elsewhere, the Black Dragon King Juntan watched the two of them, shock and doubt filling his face as he looked from one to the other.
When Riku and the Lord of the White Night had both vanished, Juntan guessed that Riku had been pulled into a game world. Although he wanted to believe his leader, Riku, could win, his rational side knew the Lord of the White Night was far stronger.
Now both had returned, and both radiated a power that left Juntan feeling the weight of it. Clearly, the Lord of the White Night had unleashed her Authority, and Riku had revealed an even greater power.
But Juntan could still tell that the Lord of the White Night's power, when her Authority was fully released, surpassed Riku's, which was only natural.
As for that strange fire, Juntan couldn't even tell what it was, clearly something extraordinary. Even so, it shouldn't have been enough to turn the tables. After all, this was the Lord of the White Night!
But what was with this atmosphere? It looked like the Lord of the White Night had taken a serious loss!
Juntan stared at the two of them in total confusion, unable to imagine what could have happened inside the game world.
"You really hid your hand well, didn't you?" After a long silence, the Lord of the White Night finally allowed the sun flames to fade, revealing a brand new purple robe as she glanced meaningfully at Riku.
"Not only do you have a Divine Tool that fuses the power of three pure-blood dragon kinds, but you also have that terrifying transformation, a perpetual motion mechanism, phoenix flames and, in the end, you even unleashed a Pseudo Star Map Creation."
A Pseudo Star Map Creation with a one-hit-kill effect, even if a double-digit opponent took it head-on, they'd be grievously wounded at the very least. That's how broken a Pseudo Star Map Creation is!
It's like the [Buddhist Sect]'s Shakyamuni, who possesses the Pseudo Star Map Creation [Three Thousand Worlds], which could even seal her Heliocentric Theory Authority!
"Without some trump cards, there's no way I'd be so relaxed facing the Lord of the White Night," Riku replied, spreading his hands, looking nonchalant.
"This duel, though you did have the advantage at the end, was still a draw. But, kid, you actually destroyed my precious game world! I'll settle that score with you another time." The Lord of the White Night frowned, her expressionless face. This was the truth, even if she was fiercely proud and didn't want the Halloween Queen to laugh at her, she couldn't deny it.
Against an almost-unkillable opponent wielding a Pseudo Star Map Creation, there was simply no way for her to win, not even when her prized game world was destroyed.
Of course, Riku couldn't truly defeat her, either. Both of them were practically immortal monsters.
"Huh?!" Juntan's eyes went wide, disbelief written across his face. The Lord of the White Night actually admitted she got the short end of the stick? And that her whole game world was destroyed?!
"Hey, what's with all the fuss? Can't you be a little more composed?" Riku raised an eyebrow, admonishing him.
"Uh…." Juntan immediately plastered on an awkward smile, going silent, though his heart was a whirlwind. My leader… do you even realise what you've done? This is the kind of thing that could shake all of Little Garden! To have the Lord of the White Night admit she lost out, this would stun the entire divine community!
"Maybe I should just silence you. I'd rather this not get out," the Lord of the White Night remarked, glancing expressionlessly at Juntan.
Juntan froze in terror.
"Killing this dumb dragon wouldn't be so bad. But he's a member of my community now, so I can't let you do as you please," Riku replied with a shake of his head.
"Click, fine, whatever." The Lord of the White Night smacked her lips in annoyance, granting Riku some face.
"Kid, even though you got the better of me this time, the Sun War is about to start. Unveiling your trump cards now isn't the wisest move," she said coldly. "Next time, I won't hold back. The same trick won't work twice. And that thing you'd best not reveal to anyone. At the very least, wait until the Sun War has started before you show it off."
"No matter what, you're a contestant in the Sun War. During this period, I'm obligated to protect your safety. But I'd rather not have the nuisance of the [Heavenly Army] on my hands either."
With that, the Lord of the White Night clapped her hands, and a refined wooden door appeared behind her, rippling with spatial power.
"No need to worry yourself over that. Like I said before, the divine community isn't where you belong. My side is. If you ever feel like it, you're welcome in my community," Riku said, his voice serious.
"You're not strong enough yet." The Lord of the White Night paused, then replied calmly.
Before Riku could say anything else, she stepped through the wooden door, which vanished immediately after.
"Not strong enough, huh… I'm not so sure about that," Riku murmured, the corners of his mouth curling upward. The fact that she said this meant their fight and his words had gotten through to her, a success, in its own way.
Next, all he needed to do was announce his power to the Lord of the White Night and to all of Little Garden.