Chapter 1545 1545. Virus
Noah could sense Heaven and Earth"s influence above him. He felt their intentions, and part of his mind prepared for the inevitable clash. Yet, most of his focus remained on Madame Canson.
"One problem at the time," Noah thought before glancing at his blades.
The Demonic Sword had benefitted from his growth. It was in the quasi-rank 8 stage now. Instead, the white sword didn"t improve. It remained a rank 7 inscribed weapon in the upper tier.
"I guess I"m going to lose you," Noah thought while inspecting the white blade.
He had already fixed it with his dark matter multiple times, but the blade was about to reach its limits. Noah"s higher energy had almost replaced more than half of its original structure.
Madame Canson didn"t waste time with words. The all-absorbing black sphere had disappeared, so she could finally start attacking her dangerous opponent.
A series of three meters tall crystal armors grew around her. It didn"t matter that the palace was crumbling under her feet. Madame Canson could create those puppets from the very air that surrounded her.
The puppets intensified Madame Canson"s aura and allowed her to take control of her surroundings. Her influence gave birth to more crystals, which continued to generate humanoid armors.
Madame Canson"s power multiplied once the army formed. She seemed able to increase her influence at will and draw energy from the potential contained in the matter around her.
"What"s her individuality?" Noah wondered at the sight of the puppets.
He had initially thought that she could only boost the power of her underlings, but the truth appeared to be far different.
"She is spreading her existence into the area," Noah concluded. "She plants seeds that can generate copies of her law."
The memories of his battle against Miss Nine surged in his mind. Noah couldn"t help but find similarities between Madame Canson and her. It seemed that the rank 8 expert had infected her underling, transforming her power into her weaker copy.
"Did you get it?" Madame Canson asked in a voice that carried no emotions. "I am the puppet master. I can transform anything in the world into my copy. My underlings even gain a share of my understanding."
"You are a virus," Noah replied.
"No," Madame Canson snorted. "I show the path to those with no hope to reach the higher ranks. I"m a savior capable of turning even the most useless a.s.set into a valuable resource."
Noah and Madame Canson had similar laws, but their effects differed on how they empowered their surroundings. Madame Canson created copies of her existence and implanted them into her underlings, while Noah forced the matter to evolve and reach its true potential.
Defeating Madame Canson had suddenly gained a second meaning. Noah had to kill her to obtain his revenge, but he also wanted to prove that his law was superior.
"Don"t hold anything back," Noah ordered through the mental connection. "We need to have enough power to face Heaven and Earth afterward."
His companions followed his orders and prepared for the imminent clash. Snore filled the area with a sea of violent dark matter, Duanlong activated its pulling force, and the Demonic Sword covered itself with higher energy.
The army of puppets surrounding Madame Canson lifted their arms to create a wall of crystals, but Noah"s Blood Companions destroyed it in a matter of instants.
The new dark matter had empowered Snore and Duanlong far beyond Madame Canson"s expectations. Their innate abilities could shatter and destroy her crystals in seconds, and even her puppets began to suffer from the same fate.
Madame Canson tried to join her hands, but a series of crystals suddenly materialized in front of her. Night became visible for a fraction of an instant before shattering her defense and merging with the world again.
The expert tried to attack again, but a shadow materialized in front of her. Madame Canson promptly covered her surroundings with crystals, but a sharp force cut through them and reached her skin.
Crystals had tried to s.h.i.+eld her from that attack, but they had been unable to stop Noah"s sharpness. Madame Canson"s eyes widened when she saw a long vertical cut opening on her torso.
Madame Canson"s robe was a rank 8 defensive item in the lower tier. She had created crystals in front of her, and a series of crystals also covered her skin.
However, Noah"s simple slash had cut through all her defenses and had reached her skin. Nothing in Madame Canson"s a.r.s.enal had managed to stop that attack.
A chill ran down Madame Canson"s spine. She had never underestimated Noah, even after he had pushed his power inside the eighth rank. Still, she was supposedly stronger than any other newly advanced existence!
That belief didn"t apply to Noah. His techniques and companions were already able to hurt rank 8 magical beasts when he was in the seventh rank. The power that they could express now was insane.
Madame Canson tried to jump backward and use her puppets as meat s.h.i.+elds, but a series of roots spread from Noah"s figure and corroded everything on his path.
Noah had a clean line of sight. The roots entangled themselves around his swords, and a dense layer of liquid dark matter covered his entire figure while he pulled his blades back.
Before Madame Canson could escape, Noah thrust his weapons, making their tips converge on the same spot. A clanging noise resounded in the environment, and a wave of sharpness spread through the entire area, reducing most of the puppets into debris.
That was only one of the consequences of Noah"s attack. His real blow had consisted of a straight singularity that had connected his blades to Madame Canson.
A storm of purple crystals raged through the sky, but Noah didn"t move his gaze away from his opponent. Madame Canson wore an angry expression while she looked at the hole in her body. Noah"s attack had pierced the right part of her chest from side to side, severing her right arm in the process.
Purple crystals covered Madame Canson"s insides. Blood flowed normally, but she had deployed a defensive spell meant to protect her internal organs.
Noah"s eyes sharpened at that sight. That technique could counter his Shadow Domain. It seemed that Madame Canson had studied Miss Nine"s reports and had deployed a countermeasure to his trump card.
The liquid dark matter around Noah took the shape of the fiendish armor, and a cold grin appeared on his helmet. He was taunting the expert. He wouldn"t even need the Shadow Domain if the battle continued like that.
Madame Canson soon dispersed her anger and called back all the crystals that she had spread into the environment. Even a few cultivators fighting high in the sky saw their power falling when their crystals left their bodies to return to their leader.
Duanlong landed in front of Noah and raised its monstrous mouth. The dragon captured part of the crystals with its pulling force, but they seemed able to resist that type of power.
It was as if they wanted to reunite with Madame Canson. That desire made them ignore any external force and hindrance.
The storm of crystals engulfed Noah, but Snore soon appeared above him and spread its wings to protect him from the event. He could safely observe Madame Canson"s transformation once the creature blocked that waterfall of power.
Madame Canson"s skin morphed. It gained gla.s.s-like properties and began to radiate purple light. Her eyes started to s.h.i.+ne, and her size increased as more crystals fused with her figure.
The expert transformed into one of her puppets, but she maintained her facial features. Still, her existence seemed on the verge of exploding now. Noah could see how her influence had begun to crystalize the entire region.