Zhao Qingcang's figure moved like lightning, shuttling between the seven mountain-like giant snake heads. With every flash, a spatial rift was left in the air—a scar left behind by space being violently torn apart.

"Shatter-Space Fist!"

Zhao Qingcang let out a low shout, and a heart-palpitating gray light erupted from his simple black gauntlets. Hanging upside down in midair, he slammed down fiercely toward the snake head that had just finished spewing toxic mist.

Crack!

Space shattered.

Under this single punch, the snake head—large enough to swallow a tank whole—was blasted into dust along with the surrounding space. A foul rain of blood mixed with shattered flesh poured down, dyeing the sea for miles around red.

However, there was no joy on Zhao Qingcang's aged face.

He saw granules of flesh squirming frantically at the severed neck.

"Hiss—"

Accompanied by the sound of growing bones, in less than three seconds, a new snake head covered in slime forced its way back out.

Zhao Qingcang's chest heaved violently.

Even though he was an SS-Rank Expert possessing a Space-type ability known as the ultimate offensive force, facing a monster with such abnormal regenerative power inevitably left him feeling a sense of powerlessness.

This was not a battle at all.

This was fighting against some kind of immortal rule.

"What terrifying self-healing power..."

The cloudiness in Zhao Qingcang's eyes cleared, replaced by a resolute, sharp glare. He brought his hands together, and the spatial power around him boiled to a Peak, forcefully bending even the surrounding light and gathering it into his palms.

A destructive aura permeated the air over this region of the sea.

"Then try this!"

"Ultimate Move—【Starry Return to the Void】!"

With a furious roar, he pulled his hands outward.

Heaven and earth fell silent.

Then, a black sphere, only the size of a fist yet pitch-black to the extreme, appeared right in the center of Yamata no Orochi's massive body.

It was a miniature black hole.

Although small, it possessed gravitational force capable of devouring everything.

"Hmm?!"

Qinze Taichiro let out a soft murmur of surprise.

All seven snake heads simultaneously revealed a trace of solemnity.

The next second.

Terrifying gravity erupted.

Seawater, air, light, and even Yamata no Orochi's indestructible physical body were mercilessly pulled toward that black point.

"Roar—!!!"

Yamata no Orochi roared in fury.

Its island-sized body began to twist and deform under the gravitational pull of the black hole. Hard scales shattered, thick muscles tore, and vast amounts of flesh were peeled away, swallowed into the endless void.

Gandalf had once used this move with the help of the legendary weapon 【Eternal Judgment】.

Back then, with a single blast of 【Starry Return to the Void】, he had not only instant-killed a Hell-level BOSS, but even Thor from the Freedom Federation had nearly died.

Now that Marshal Zhao was using it himself, the effort required was countless times greater.

In an instant.

More than half of Yamata no Orochi's towering body vanished, leaving behind only an incomplete skeleton and a few teetering heads, looking utterly miserable.

"Is it over?"

In the distance, the generals of Great Xia watching the battle via satellite transmission gripped the edges of their tables until their knuckles turned white.

On the sea surface.

Zhao Qingcang hovered in midair, gasping heavily for breath.

This single strike had nearly drained fifty percent of his mana, consuming an immense amount of energy.

He stared at the remaining whirlpool of the spinning black hole.

Expressionless, there was not a trace of joy on his face.

Because he knew that this move alone was utterly incapable of killing Qinze Taichiro.

Sure enough, a moment later.

Deep within the battered skeleton, an eerie purple light lit up.

Even with only half his body remaining, Qinze Taichiro's tone remained relaxed.

"The power of this move indeed exceeded my expectations..."

"Unfortunate... it falls just a bit short in the end."

In the next second, the purple light flared dramatically.

Under Zhao Qingcang's solemn gaze, the body that was originally on the brink of collapse rapidly expanded.

Broken bones reconnected, torn muscles regenerated, and shattered scales were remade.

Ten seconds.

Ten seconds.

That despair-inducing Yamata no Orochi reappeared completely unharmed above the sea surface. Because of the heavy injury it had just suffered, its aura had become even more violent and dangerous.

Zhao Qingcang took a deep breath, feeling somewhat helpless.

Based on physical body alone, no one among the world's SS-Rank Experts could stand against it.

"The warm-up is over."

Qinze Taichiro swayed his seven massive heads, revenge burning fiercely in every pair of eyes.

"Next, it's my turn."

...

The battle raged on for a full hour.

This stretch of the sea had transformed into a boiling pot of blood soup.

Zhao Qingcang was advanced in age after all, and with the massive exertion from using 【Starry Return to the Void】 earlier, he was now at the end of his tether.

His movements were no longer nimble, and the frequency of his spatial jumps grew lower and lower. His marshal's military uniform was tattered beyond recognition, with several deep bone-exposing wounds on his chest, blood staining half his body red.

On the other hand, Qinze Taichiro...

Although his heads had been shattered several times by Zhao Qingcang, under his abnormal regenerative power, he maintained his Peak state.

As one waned and the other waxed, Zhao Qingcang began to fall at a disadvantage.

"Bang!"

It was another fierce collision.

Zhao Qingcang was struck by a thick snake tail, crashing straight into the sea and sending up a towering column of water.

A moment later, he burst out of the water in a wretched state, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

Qinze Taichiro looked down at the old man from above, a look of regret appearing on his giant snake face.

"Zhao Qingcang, you're old."

"If you had lived in our era, I believe you would have been a worthy opponent."

"Unfortunate that the current you is completely unable to force out my full power!"

He shook his head, a sense of loneliness of the strong in his voice.

Just then, an aged yet calm and unhurried voice echoed above the vast ocean.

"What if you add me to the mix?"

Qinze Taichiro's seven pairs of crimson slit pupils contracted.

This voice...

It was too familiar!

So familiar that his blood, which had already cooled, began to boil once more.

He turned his head and looked toward the source of the voice.

High in the sky in the distance, an old man stood hovering at some point unknown.

The old man wore a faded old-style military uniform; though thin, his back was straight as a pole, like a sharp sword thrust between heaven and earth.

He held no godly weapon or sharp weapon in his hands, only a plain standard-issue longsword.

Yet such an old man on the verge of the grave exuded an aura that caused heaven and earth to change color.

That was Sword Intent pushed to the ultimate extreme.

Glorious through the ages, irresistibly sharp.

When Qinze Taichiro saw that figure, a look of surprise appeared on his giant snake face, and he even unconsciously dispersed the attack he was building up.

"Deng... Qi... he?"

He read out that name word by word.

"You're actually not dead yet?"