"This is... Heavenly Strike?"
Seeing this power with exactly the same nature as what she had released, Jibril's pupils contracted sharply.
How was this possible? The opponent had only seen Heavenly Strike once, and it had been only tens of seconds. How did he learn Heavenly Strike in such a short time?
Before she could understand the situation before her, she saw another spear of light appear beside Ryuga, followed by the next one, and another.
Although the energy scale was weaker than normal Heavenly Strike, those were undoubtedly all Heavenly Strike-natured power.
Soon, the spears of light directly changed from one to a matrix-like forest of spears.
Though dozens of independent attacks, they combined under mutual resonance into one larger, stronger spear of light.
Through such arrangement and combination, Heavenly Strike's power multiplied, achieving power far exceeding simple addition.
Seeing this familiar scene, Jibril was even more astonished.
Combining individual Heavenly Strikes through resonance to gain power far exceeding additive calculation was clearly the Flügel race's strongest ultimate technique.
The Flügel, with only sixth-place individual spirit adaptability, became the dominant race in the No Game No Life world precisely by relying on this combination technique.
Giant species that individual Flügel couldn't defeat could be easily subjugated by just four or five Flügel combining Heavenly Strike.
Dragon spirit species that individual Flügel couldn't even scratch could be easily subjugated by dozens of Flügel combining Heavenly Strike.
Even legendary divine species could potentially be subjugated by a small squad of two hundred Flügel combining Heavenly Strike.
If Heavenly Strike was the greatest trump card of individual Flügel, then combined Heavenly Strike was the greatest trump card of all Flügel.
For over ten thousand years, the Flügel had dominated the world with this innate ability, virtually unopposed.
However, this technique unique to the Flügel was completely cracked just from being seen once.
The opponent not only learned Heavenly Strike on the spot but even learned combined Heavenly Strike.
Just as Jibril was shocked and wanted to ask Ryuga how he did it, Ryuga finally spoke.
"True power doesn't have a fixed standard. Some things, even if demonstrated, you might not understand."
For example, the Victory Sword technique, or the Holy Sword of the Stars - those were things beyond Jibril's current understanding.
"Since you want to see true power, let's demonstrate it in a way you're familiar with!"
Saying this, golden light emerged in Ryuga's palm, and the aura unique to war god divinity rose, forming a brilliantly shining golden spear.
"If I'm not mistaken, your Flügel's body functions should be based on the manifestation of the Heavenly Strike technique. Your individual Heavenly Strike is actually just a basic component of collective Heavenly Strike."
After casually revealing the key to Flügel power, he gripped the war god spear in his hand.
"However, this isn't your Flügel's true power, nor your strongest power."
"What do you mean?"
Jibril looked completely puzzled.
She herself was Flügel, so how could Ryuga speak as if he understood Flügel better than herself?
"I mean that even collective Heavenly Strike is actually just part of an ultimate technique. The technique finally formed is your Flügel's true power. It's just that usually, you lack the necessary conditions, so you haven't noticed this power."
"Necessary conditions?"
Jibril was even more confused.
Could the Flügel have some hidden power?
"The key lies in the war god's power."
Ryuga raised the spear containing war god divine power, and the previously prepared spear forest immediately followed like vassals at the golden spear's flanks.
The collective Heavenly Strike technique became mere accompaniment at this moment, while the war god's spear became the main body.
This scene was so smooth and natural that it seemed as if from the beginning, collective Heavenly Strike was a technique designed to amplify the war god spear's power.
"Although lacking Artosh's key data, working backward from the Heavenly Strike technique, I can roughly deduce this move to about seventy-eighty percent."
Saying this, Ryuga pointed the golden spear's tip at Jibril.
Under the divine power fluctuations, Jibril only felt a tremendous force before her that could explode like a supernova at any moment.
The incredibly familiar weapon plus suffocating pressure made Jibril almost unable to breathe.
But she didn't call for a stop. On the contrary, she widened her eyes, desperately observing the scene before her.
She had a premonition that she could see power by Ryuga's side that she had never seen before.
Indeed, a scene like heaven and earth changing occurred.
"Using war god power as the core, commanding all Heavenly Strike techniques, this is a skill that can bring war god power to its extreme."
Dazzling light flashed, and a golden light pillar grazed Jibril's body, all venting onto the earth behind her.
"Although only a pseudo-canon, it's still worthy of the name Divine Strike!"
Accompanying Ryuga's words, the blazing light beam tore through the earth and split the stars.
"Boom——!!!"
Golden light once again enveloped the entire moon, and the huge dust cloud raised submerged half the moon.
In one night, two consecutive celestial phenomena, even the most confident physicists couldn't give convincing reasons, finally only able to use supernova explosions in the same direction or collective hallucinations to appease the public.
But soon, as the golden holy light disappeared and the golden spear-like phantom vanished, after all the dust on the moon's surface settled, these expert explanations could no longer work.
Even the most gullible people wouldn't believe that so-called supernova explosions or collective hallucinations were the real reasons.
Because, anyone not blind could see by looking up at the night sky - that moon clearly missing a corner.
Like a small fan-shaped piece cut off by a sharp knife, a corner of the moon was broken!
[Tohsaka Rin: "Am I seeing this wrong?"]
[Tohsaka Rin: "Ryuga-sama actually... shattered the moon?!"]
Looking at the round satellite missing a corner on screen, Tohsaka Rin was completely shocked.
Just what level had Ryuga's strength reached?
He could actually change a planet's appearance?
"This level can't be called shattering. For the moon, it's not even close to a fatal wound."
Ryuga shook his head calmly, correcting Tohsaka Rin's exaggerated terminology.
"Just looking at power, this strike is far from the original's effect. It seems the energy invested was still too little."
The original author once mentioned that the Divine Strike released by war god Artosh could pierce through more than ten planets in one go.
Now, with magic power far lower than the opponent's, and alone undertaking both the war god and all Flügel's work, Ryuga perfectly replicated the nature of that ultimate kill, obtaining the skill Pseudo-Canon: Divine Strike.
Using minimal energy, he recreated the strongest Divine Strike.
Although the power hadn't completely reached planet-busting level, the effect was already satisfactory to Ryuga.
"Divine Strike!"
Witnessing this god-like power firsthand, Jibril's expression became completely stunned.
The cursed power Ryuga used this time wasn't even one-twentieth of her previous output, yet the destruction he caused far exceeded Heavenly Strike's power.
When the Divine Strike's light beam grazed past her, Jibril experienced the premonition of death.
After feeling the power of Pseudo-Canon: Divine Strike up close, she was absolutely certain that if this strike's power hadn't shot into space after piercing the earth, the moon's disaster area would have been much larger.
If the opponent went all out, destroying the satellite beneath their feet wasn't impossible.
"If... this Divine Strike is truly the ultimate technique used by Artosh-sama."
Recalling Ryuga's previous words, Jibril looked at Ryuga with increasingly shocked and horrified eyes.
"Then wouldn't it mean Ryuga-sama deduced even the most secret Divine Strike just by observing Heavenly Strike once?"
Only now did she finally understand what Ryuga's previous words meant.
For the Flügel, the strongest technique used by war god Artosh - [Divine Strike] - naturally represented true power.
But thinking carefully, one could understand.
Compared to the so-called [Divine Strike], Ryuga, who could comprehend [Divine Strike] with just one glance, was the key representing true power.
Although somewhat contrary to her common sense, at this moment, even the most stubborn Flügel would have to admit:
In technique mastery, Ryuga before her indeed possessed talent that could crush Artosh.
The so-called strongest war god was at least not the strongest in this aspect!
"Ry-Ryuga-sama!"
Realizing this, Jibril looked at Ryuga with extremely fervent eyes, her face carrying fanatical flush.
"How about it? Did you see what you wanted?"
Ryuga inquired.
"I saw it, and Ryuga-sama gave me even more than I wanted~"
Jibril showed an extremely satisfied expression, as if she had just been filled up.
"Good, then let's go back."
Ryuga spoke.
This battlefield had completed its mission.
"Please wait! Ryuga-sama... no, my lord!"
At this moment, the loli-state Jibril actively reached out and grabbed Ryuga's sleeve.
Then, she very seriously knelt down.
The pair of wings at her waist submissively pressed against her body, drooping to the ground, and the geometric halo above her head also moved slightly backward.
This was the submissive posture Flügel would only show to their master.
"Before this, please allow me, Flügel Extra Individual Jibril, to formally pledge loyalty to you!"
"This pledge has nothing to do with our previous agreement, but is my personal judgment that you are a lord worth giving everything to follow. Your wisdom and power are both too profound. Please allow me to serve as your attendant and follow in your footsteps."
To be continued...
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