Third Arc: Herald of Destruction.
Successor of Hope
-Destruction Territory, Destruction Realm –
Phoenix floated in front of Percy, flames flickering around as he gazed at Percy with what appeared to be mild interest.
"People mistake what the three great Birds of stand for. They believe that fire is for offense, earth is for defense, that wind is for speed and water is healing. But of course, very few grasp the true essence of our power. "
Percy listened intently as he nodded his head wherever necessary.
Phoenix spread his hand, palm up as a small spark ignited. "Because fire burns, does not mean it is destruction. Fire in truth is healing. The Vermillion Bird is the strongest out of all of us, and it's flames are the ultimate healing power!"
"then you have the Golden Crow. Among the three of us, it's flames are the most destructive. That is why fire has two attributes, to heal and to destroy. The Phoenix balances between the two other birds. My flames are both destruction and healing. The DarkFlame is even more destructive than the Golden Flames of Annihilation that the Golden Crow burns. And my flames of Nirvana are even more powerful at healing than the Vermillion Bird. That is why the Phoenix is known as the Yin Yang Bird, the one that balances between life and death! "
The Phoenix rose to its feet and slammed its palms together. "I have to test you, to see if you are truly worthy of my flames! Pass this test and prove your worth, and I will grant you the three drops of lifeblood that I have left!"
Percy frowned at it's words. "A test? But as I am right now, I don't have any of my power's left. They've been split apart from me and given to the two clones of me that are still alive in the Realm of Chaos. "
The Phoenix nodded its head.
"I am already aware of that. However, this is a trial to test how well you can handle the fires of the Phoenix. For someone who possesses the Divine tree of Enlightenment that is born from the power's of Lord Yggdrasil, the flames should be within your power to withstand. However, if you prove weak and unable to truly wield the power of the elements when you race the Flames of the Phoenix, they will be merciless and swallow you whole! "
Percy swallowed with a sense of unease. He had never had much cause to fear fire, due to the Lifeblood of Poseidon making him almost immune to the searing strength of any kind of flame. So while he wasn't completely safe from fire, he was hard to burn and that had always reassured him. But now, if he proved to be weak, he had no doubt that the Phoenix wouldn't hesitate to burn him to ashes. He might be remarkable, talented, and very unique in the Chaos Dimension. But without a doubt, to the Phoenix, he was nothing special. An ancient beast like that had already seen everything there was to see in the world. It would have already seen countless geniuses like Percy, so what if he died?
Percy gulped, then nodded his head as he spoke. "Yes, I'll take your tests! "
The Phoenix smiled and Percy waited for it to lead him to the trial ground.
Yet the world before Percy's eyes spun once again. Moments later, the darkness entirely disappeared, and the world around him impressively transformed into a field of deep red.
The scene before his eyes stunned him for a long time.
The ground under his feet appeared to be a deep red color; as if it was paved by terrifying red-hot steel. The ground was uneven; disorderly boulders were scattered around and mountains of varying heights were layered one after another. Even the mountain's surface was crimson, as if it could spew out flames which could reach the heavens at any time. Looking upwards, the sky was also a field of deep red.
Stalks of ember were distributed across every direction on the fire-red colored ground. Some of the embers were only a few inches tall, while some had even shot up for over ten meters in height. On both sides, pools after pools of red-colored lava bubbled like boiling water… Drawing out an incomparably terrifying scene of a lava purgatory.
Unquestionably, the wind here was scorching hot as the air's temperature reached a terrifying height. Just with the temperature here alone, let alone an profound practitioner of the Mortal Realm, even if a profound practitioner of the Overgod Realm exhausted all his strength, he would only be able to barely endure.
But the temperature here to Percy could only be described with one word:
Comfortable!
Comfortable to the extent that it was the same as leisurely soaking inside warm water.
The Tree of Yggdrasil, the ultimate counter to every elemental energy! Not even the essence of Destruction could harm Percy while this power was active, and similarly, even though he currently didn't have any of his other power's, just this alone was enough to resist the flames!
Percy felt like he had stepped into the purgatory. Unbeknownst to him, the sounds of churning magma next to him were actually the ferocious growls of a Purgatory Demon.
Purgatory Demon?
The Phoenix's spirit had mentioned previously that the first stage was the Purgatory Flame Demon, yet only volcanoes and magma existed and there wasn't even the slightest hint of life within his line of sight.
Percy trudged slowly ahead. Only within the flames of hell could Percy truly understand exactly how amazing his ability to withstand fire was. Others could barely hold out in this environment with their profound strength, but he simply didn't feel any sort of discomfort. Unaffected by the high temperature or the flames, it wouldn't be unfair in the slightest to say that this was a power which could rebel against the heavens.
It was at his tenth step when he suddenly stopped in his tracks and looked left towards a deep pool of lava. The red lava emanated a shockingly high temperature. The lava churned violently, rose higher and higher, and grew fiercer by the moment…. Suddenly, the pool overflowed and a large chunk of lava savagely broke loose with a deafening sound. A gigantic body covered in flames rose high from the lava and landed in front of Percy with an ear-shattering boom.
This was a flame giant whose entire body was on fire. It was a whole thirty-three meters tall, had a body that was burning entirely in red-hot flames, and had two ferocious eyes on either side of its head. Atop its head, there were also two horns of fire that were ten metres long and a golden mark that seemed to shine from the middle of these horns.
Percy quickly stepped back and looked up at the unreasonably tall flame giant…. Was this the Purgatory Flame Demon that the Phoenix spoke of?
He scanned it with his spirit sense and his eyes widened slightly as he sucked in a breath of air.
It was a level 1000 Overgod!
Originally, as a low level Overgod, just a pitiful level one Overgod, Percy could not contend against a Peak Minor Overgod Realm that had strength comparable to Thalia. However, if it was purely a fire beast, then this might not necessarily be the case!
The Purgatory Flame Demon gave a loud roar as its eyes locked onto Percy. Beneath its eyes was a gigantic mouth which hurled out a dozen super-sized fireballs as it screeched and flew towards him.
Percy stood where he was; unmoving, allowing the fireballs to land on him.
Poof, poof, poof, poof…
The fireballs exploded successively as they came into contact with Percy's body. The flames' force was violently released, but after it touched Percy's body, they became like stones that sank to the bottom of the sea, and burned out without a sound without causing the slightest bit of harm to Percy. Within the explosive flashes of fire, Percy rushed towards the Purgatory Flame Demon, and appeared in front of it within a split second…. However, facing the Purgatory Flame Demon which was around a hundred feet, his body seemed far too miniscule and he could barely be considered to have reached the bottom of its foot. With a low growl, he activated "Asura State" and ruthlessly smashed condensed profound energy above its calf.
BAM!
This heavy strike was similar to hitting a heavy ancient bronze bell, and the recoil caused great pain to the bones of Percy's hands. However, the calf that had just been struck by the Purgatory Flame Demon was barely affected and only the flame there was snuffed out momentarily to then reignite a moment later.
What a tough body… Percy secretly gasped. After all, this Purgatory Flame Demon was a high-level Overgod Beast. Even with Asura State activated, his strongest all-out attack was fundamentally unable cause it much harm. If this was to continue, even if the Purgatory Flame Demon's attacks might have no effect on him, his attacks wouldn't cause it any harm either.
Since the palm couldn't injure it, then…
Percy stroked his left hand and the Divine tree of enlightenment twisted and all the energy of destruction within it slowly solidified and transformed into a divine sword of Destruction. There wasn't enough energy to create a Heavy Sword, but Percy was already adept with all kinds of weapons, so even a short sword was very useful. Concentrating his profound energy, he stabbed ruthlessly at the Purgatory Flame Demon.
While he did not truly comprehend the concept of Destruction Energy , he knew that the level of destruction energy was on equal level to the flames of the True Phoenix. One could only imagine how precious and rare a sword made of Pure Destruction energy, must be. With this Divine Destruction Sword in hand, even if one didn't apply any profound energy, even if the person wielding it was only a normal person, it could directly split open the defense of an Olympian Realm practitioner.
Riiip~~~
In the split second the Divine Destruction Sword slashed onto the body of the Purgatory Flame Demon, Percy heard a tiger's vague growl. A vast area of flames where the Purgatory Flame Demon had been struck were instantaneously extinguished for a moment to reveal its pitch black body. A large chunk of flesh had also been directly chopped by the Divine Destruction Sword; mixed with the flames, it flew far into the distance.
"ROAARRRRR!"
The pain that the Purgatory Flame Demon had eaten violently enraged its temper and it took a step towards Percy. Meanwhile, a sky full of flames rained densely with a wave of its claws, blanketing the area within a hundred-foot radius. Originally, a minor Overgod Beast shouldn't have the capability of such a large area-of-effect fire attack, but the Purgatory Flame Demon's firepower had been multiplied many times due to the fiery environment.
To Percy, this rain of fire was of no consequence. But the heavy step that the Purgatory Flame Demon took was something Percy could not easily endure. As a result, he was sent flying and landed a hundred feet away. However, the Purgatory Flame Demon's lack of agility was fully displayed to Percy. Without waiting for his body to stabilize, he rushed back towards the rain of fire and meteorites. He increased his speed to the maximum, continually left afterimages with Moon god's Moonlight Flash. Real and false shadows interlaced, causing confusion at the Purgatory Flame Demon's feet as Percy landed hit after hit on its calf.
The Purgatory Flame Demon became increasingly violent after being injured again and again. It released its flames in a frenzy and the persistent force of the flames turned the surrounding area into an ocean of fire. Every step Percy took into a meter tall blaze was as if he was treading on level ground without the slightest trace of injury. The Purgatory Flame Demon had a large bulky frame so it moved slowly and every time it attacked with its limbs, Percy dodged with ease. Every time he turned illusory, he would slash at the Purgatory Flame Demon's calf to carve off a large chunk of flesh.
RIIIIIIP!
With another ruthless blow, the sword pierced deep into the sole of the Purgatory Flame Demon's foot. The Purgatory Flame Demon let out an enraged, ear-splitting roar as the flames above its right fist suddenly surged before smashing at the ground.
A dangerous atmosphere came from above and Percy looked upwards. Immediately after, he backed away ten places with Moon god's Moonlight Flash without any further thought.
BOOM!
The Purgatory Flame Demon's blazing descended and triggered a series of gigantic explosions. The noise was not inferior to the explosion of a Bomb. Although Percy evaded it, he was still hit by the impact of the aftermath. The suffocating pressure made him take several steps backwards, and he stepped into the pool of lava behind him.
The edge of the pool of lava was very shallow and barely reached Percy's calves. He did not rush up again, but held the Divine Destruction Sword and stood in the lava as he knitted his brow; he suddenly realized that despite slashing more than thirty wounds on the Purgatory Flame Demon's body with his sword, they had completely vanished.
"This beast possesses extremely powerful recuperative abilities in this blazing environment. Not only are its flames unquenchable, even its normal injuries will heal within a short period of time. At most, it needs five to six breaths' time to recover from the injuries I've caused. Even if i continue to proceed in this way for a hundred years, it is still fundamentally impossible to cause it any substantial harm."
Percy observed coldly, but after he finished speaking, he paused for quite a while and then suddenly shouted: "I've got it! Attacking the gold mark on its head! That's the location of its weak point."
Percy lifted his head and saw the blinding golden dot between the middle of its horns.
"Its profound aura is the weakest at that area so that should be its weak point." He murmured to himself as he continued staring.
Percy tilted his head, but still stood in place for a long time without doing anything. It was because this Purgatory Flame Demon was thirty-three meters tall. With his current profound strength, even under the effect of Asura State, the highest he could leap was only twenty to twenty five meters; he was definitely unable to touch its forehead.
"It seems that I have no other choice but to take a chance and give it a try!"
Percy clenched his teeth, and walked to the Purgatory Flame Demon's front with slow steps. After contending with it for a long time, another sense of danger came from above his head. The Purgatory Flame Demon had already raised its right fist, and fiercely smashed toward Percy's position.
This was the moment that Percy had been waiting for. With one Moon god's Moonlight Flash, he moved to a distance of approximately ten paces back in an instant, and dodged the center of the Purgatory Flame Demon's blazing fist assault. Immediately after, he took a deep breath just a moment before the fist landed and jumped with all his might, directly reaching a height of more than twenty meters.
BOOM!
There was a loud crash below. Even in midair, he could still feel the shocking wave of energy from beneath his feet. As the Purgatory Flame Demon smashed its fist onto the ground, its body bent down and its forehead dropped to a height of around eighteen meters high… Which was diagonally beneath Percy.
While in mid-air, unless one had reached the True Overgod Realm and could use their profound energy to become airborne, it was impossible to find leverage for one's self in mid-air.. Let alone move in mid-air, even the direction one would fall was difficult to control. However, this was not the case for Percy. His body swayed, and activated the Moon god's Moonlight Flash to suddenly shift around seven meters sideways in midair; precisely moving directly above the Purgatory Flame Demon's head. His body fell straight down as he also tightly clutched the Divine Destruction Sword in his hands…
"Oblivion Asura… First Style… Oblivion Slash… HAAH!"
The Divine Destruction Sword suddenly released an intense light as an incomparably loud and clear roar resounded throughout this purgatory. Amidst the roar and Percy's battle cry, the Divine Destruction Sword pointed precisely at the spot of light on the Purgatory Flame Demon's forehead while carrying the power of Oblivion Style Asura Arts and pierced in as if slicing tofu…. The meter long sword's body completely plunged in and even the hilt followed in right after under the extremely berserking power of the strike.
Percy fell onto the ground and quickly shut his Asura State as he gasped for breath. Yet the Purgatory Flame Demon's body was already frozen in place. A moment later, it suddenly let out an incomparably anguished roar of despair. Its gigantic frame slowly fell forward and crashed onto the floor with an explosively loud sound.
The flames on its body extinguished quickly, until all that was left were a few small embers that revealed its large black body. Soon after, even its body began to disintegrate and everything dissipated as if made of vapor. On the red floor, only the Divine Destruction Sword that had killed it in one strike was left.
"Suc…. Success!" Percy picked up the Divine Destruction Sword and heaved a long sigh.
And at this time, the scenery before him suddenly distorted. In the midst of the distortion, it spun in a blur, and when everything had finally stabilized, the red land, volcanoes and pools of lava…. All of it disappeared. What replaced it was an expanse of nothingness, a wilderness so flat that there wasn't any uneven land to be seen.
The Phoenix spoke again.
"Second stage of the trial: Arrows of the Phoenix."
AN. : the reason for my varied updates is that I'm having difficulty with planning out the scenes. However, my partner who had helped me plan the story originally, is lending me a hand, so hopefully I won't have any trouble with writing more chapters for a while. Do excuse your poor author. Also, he may update the other stories he's written while he's back, though I don't know for sure.