CHAPTER 618: THE SLASH THAT WILL END EVERYTHING

Aldrian closed his eyes, and time around him seemed to move in slow motion—much slower than his thoughts. The sounds around him became muffled before falling completely silent. The falling drops of water slowed. The blowing wind slowed. Every being seemed to come to a stop.

He concentrated, taking a stance as if preparing to slash, his hand gripping the hilt of the Sword of the End.

His comprehension worked swiftly as he perfected the strongest technique in this moment, the sword technique he had created with the intent to end all things. There was nothing that could withstand this slash. Everything would meet its end.

At this moment, he strengthened the technique with even greater comprehension and laws, integrating everything he had come to understand over time. He wanted this to become a much stronger technique, one that would truly deserve the name "of the End." Even if he stood against the gods, they too would meet their end.

There is nothing that can escape my will.

If my will is the end, then the end it is.

While Aldrian remained still with his eyes closed, fully concentrated, Tarius had already formed a single, massive sword, far larger than any spear he had conjured earlier, and it was still growing stronger. The massive energy vortex continued drawing in the energy of the entire world to empower the blade.

The red giant sword exuded an aura that could be sensed across the world. Its power had been fully amplified by Tarius, who was truly furious. He no longer cared if Aldrian attacked now.

He had already abandoned his defense and focused solely on creating his most powerful attack. He no longer cared about the consequences, his fury had reached its peak. He, the great god, wounded by a mortal?

He would be a laughingstock among the gods. Even if he succeeded in achieving his goal in this lowest heaven, he would still become a subject of ridicule.

A god, wounded by a mortal in battle!

Just imagining it made his blood boil, and his rage would not subside until the mortal, and anyone who had witnessed this battle was obliterated. He poured everything into this ultimate strike, one powerful enough to change the world forever.

The onlookers could also sense it. The eye, filled with uncontrollable fury, was preparing to unleash its strongest attack yet. Its power was far beyond anything it had released before. This time, the intent was clear: to destroy everything in existence.

Across the continent, people strengthened their prayers as all eyes turned to Aldrian. They knew that this strike from the Eye was unlike anything before, terrifying in its sheer power. And yet, they still placed their hope in Aldrian. They believed he could stand against it.

They had been watching the battle from the beginning knew Aldrian had the strength to challenge a god. That alone filled them with deep optimism.

Especially the leaders of the major powers, who truly believed he was the one foretold in prophecy, felt certain he would succeed. He was the light that would drive away the darkness, just as the prophecy had said.

The three women, Sylphia, Baek Jimin, and Angelica stood together, watching Aldrian’s towering avatar. All of them prayed that he could endure the attack... and defeat the Eye.

While the people continued to pray for Aldrian’s victory, the swords across the continent and even beyond suddenly trembled. A powerful sword will surged from the Barisan continent, and countless swords rose into the air, all pointing in the same direction.

Even the cultivators above the sea who wielded swords lost control of their weapons, which slipped from their hands or flew out of their scabbards. All of them pointed toward Barisan, leaving the cultivators in shock.

The leaders of each faction watched the spectacle with astonished expressions. They knew exactly what this meant.

"This is a sword will," said a blond-haired man, his voice slightly trembling. His gaze shook as he took in the sight, and even his own high divine-grade sword floated into the air, pointing toward the Barisan continent.

For his sword to respond to this sword will from such a distance, this was truly the strongest sword will he had ever seen or sensed. He could also see that every sword in the region, regardless of grade, reacted the same way. All of them floated and pointed toward the Barisan continent.

His heart trembled as he looked at the massive avatar. If they survived this calamity, he truly wanted to meet the man who, since earlier, had shown them the power to stand against an immortal.

Tarius, too, felt the overwhelming sword will. A sharp sense of danger ran through him, yet his fury did not waver—in fact, it grew stronger. He would not allow a mere mortal to keep pushing him, a being who stood above all, into feeling like he was on the weaker side of this battle.

Sensing that the giant sword now held enough power to obliterate everything, with nothing capable of stopping it, he pointed the weapon directly at Aldrian’s real figure. He would make sure that everything about Aldrian was erased.

"DIE, YOU INSECT!"

Tarius’s voice roared as he finally launched the sword and at the same time, the seventh heavenly lightning strike descended upon Aldrian. The lightning, shaped like a massive dragon, came crashing down with power already considered to be at the level of the immortals.

Seeing the giant sword falling at incredible speed, people across the world tightened their clasped hands, bracing for the worst. Their prayers grew stronger as the sword drew closer—closer to the world, closer to Aldrian. But Aldrian remained still.

The seventh heavenly lightning strike was nearly upon him, yet it was as if time had stopped. His eyes were still closed.

"This is the end."

He finally moved his sword in a slow, deliberate slashing motion, and his avatar followed suit. The seventh heavenly lightning strike collided with the Sword of the End, and the lightning instantly surged into him. This strike was unlike the ones before. With the power of an immortal behind it, the attack took a heavy toll on Aldrian’s body.

He felt the searing pain of electrocution tear through him, but he ignored it. Gritting his teeth, he endured the torment as the lightning wreaked havoc inside him.

He would withstand it.

He had to.

He would take this heavenly lightning along with his own, and pour it into the sword technique.

"Your Majesty."

He didn’t know why, but he heard the voices of his past followers, filled with support and reverence, just before he finally unleashed his technique.

The slash that would end all.

Slash of the End.

In real time, the people saw Aldrian make his move, and at that moment, a sudden chill ran through them. Goosebumps rose across their skin, as if they instinctively knew this attack was on an entirely different scale from anything before!

The massive avatar mirroring Aldrian’s movements was moments away from unleashing the technique.

At that very moment, Sylphia, watching with a prayerful expression, froze as her eyes began to tremble.

She didn’t know if it was a hallucination or an illusion, but she suddenly saw a figure overlapping with the giant avatar. She could not see the figure’s face, and yet, deep in her heart, she could not explain why, but she felt certain it was Aldrian.

The figure appeared more mature and wore a regal robe she had never seen on Aldrian before. The sight confused her.

Then, just a second later, the figure vanished, right as the slash was unleashed.

WHOOOOSH!

The instant the Slash of the End was unleashed, it was as if the world lost all its color for a split second. A massive wave of slashing energy burst forth from the manifestation of the Sword of the End in the avatar’s hand.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The slash carved destruction through everything in its path. Space itself split apart with a sound like shattering glass. Even the void was torn open, revealing darkness behind darkness.

All things that stood before it—heaven and earth’s energy, divine energy, wind, time, and space, were cut by the slash.

Though it did not bring as much visible chaos as the giant sword, everyone could sense one thing clearly.

This slash was far more terrifying!

Tarius, upon finally witnessing the Slash of the End unleashed, widened the giant eye, an expression more intense than any he had shown before. The incoming slash was infused with many laws and deep comprehension, but what struck him most was the will embedded within it.

A will that everything in its path would come to an end.

Simple... yet unimaginably difficult to realize.

And yet, he could feel it. This slash carried the undeniable power to bring about "the end."

The will of "the end" itself.

In that moment, he forgot his fury. He forgot the reason he had come here.

Clang! Crash! Crash! Rumble!

The slash energy collided with the giant sword, and the sword instantly broke, shattering from the tip to the base of the hilt. The point of impact did not create the same widespread destruction as their earlier clashes. Instead, it was as if the giant sword, having lost all the power it had gathered, shattered the moment it touched the Slash of the End.

But the slash did not stop there. After breaking the sword, it continued forward, flying straight toward the giant eye in the sky.

Tarius, still stunned by the complexity of the Slash of the End, did not even react as he watched the giant sword shatter. He could only watch as the slash energy reached the eye.

"Truly... what are you—"

Crash! Rumble!

Before he could finish the thought, the slash struck the eye with overwhelming force.