Consuming Earths, Devouring Skies

Ze’Ya’s raised palm slammed downwards. This palm seemed slow, remarkably slow, but in reality, it was exceptionally fast. It appeared to contain a myriad of illusory plant life that embodied a myriad of laws.

Bam!

A small, subtle sound that was difficult to hear even if you were a few steps away was released. In a fraction of second, a mountain of plant life seemed to have materialized into existence. It was only momentary, but it was as if the heavens had transformed into a world of flora and fauna!

The thin barrier collapsed into millions of trillions of dust particles.

Dracula’s earlier wave of his sleeve, however, replied as if he expected as much. The crimson dust that was originally the barrier froze and then, each dust particle transformed into a drop of blood. These drops of blood were standard size, causing a world of blood to be quickly constructed. However, this world of blood seemed to be both vastly large, larger than a sub-realm, yet smaller than a particle of dust.

Its size gave off a surreal, heaven-creating feeling, unable to be appropriately comprehended. As if a small drop of blood contained a realm of its own, a realm of blood.

As Ezekiel gazed at this blood, his mind spun. A needle-like stabbing sensation emerged from his temples. It became frustratingly difficult to conceive a thought. All thoughts he attempted to form seemed to become obsessed with blood, as if blood was his heaven and earth.

Ze’Ya smiled. To others, this drop of blood may be a vast world or a speck of dust, but to him, it was merely a drop of blood no larger than any other. This drop of blood simply gave the illusion of many.

"You think using your minor heaven in such a way will work against me? Crimson Devil Monarch, don’t be a disappointment." Softly chuckling, he tapped his foot in mid-air. This tap caused the realm the to tremble briefly.

The drop of blood dissipated into nothingness.

Dracula didn’t seem too bothered by the blood’s destruction. Instead, he stepped forward as he grasped with his right hand. Three drops of blood emerged from nothingness and rotated in place before him. These three drops of blood were multi-colored, each containing a heaven of their own.

Ze’Ya replied, his emerald eyes turned into emerald suns that shone upon all in sight, including the three drops. This gaze was domineering, heaven-establishing, and soul-stirring! It contained infinite and varied forms of life, all of which were plant-based. The three drops trembled and seemed to slowly dissipate as they were bathed in light.

"..." Dracula’s eyes suddenly turned into a sea of blood, no longer containing any light within, but just an unfathomable abyss of blood. He opened his mouth wide and breathed outwards lightly. A blood mist shot forward.

This blood mist was the size of a child’s fist, but it released an aura of a deep abyss that seemed never-ending and heaven-rivaling!

Ze’Ya, for the first time, retreated, but his smile and eyes suffused with battle intent never faded. Yet, they also contained a hint of surprise.

This exchange may have taken a while to describe, but it occurred in a small fraction of a literal second.

Ze’Ya formed a palm and slapped forward while retreating, producing an emerald rose that met the blood mist. A collision occurred. Normally, a small rose and a bit of blood mist should’ve been underwhelming and lackluster, but the moment these two objects met, the heavens stilled.

All those not heavenly cultivators within the three realms froze. Their senses, bodies, lives, and souls simply froze. For half a second, it was as if the heavens paused to make corrections to all living things, to ensure their continued existence despite the conflict!

When that half-second ended, an explosion erupted with the two as the center. This explosion was vast. Describing it as vast may be inaccurate. It was utterly titanic, encapsulating half the entire titan realm that was the Crimson Devil Realm!

"Hahahaha!" Ze’Ya’s laughter was clear even amidst this explosion. An explosion of emerald and blood-colored light that washed away half the realm with half its population!

"A battle between Heavenly Monarchs is..." Ezekiel had never personally witnessed a battle in real life between two monarchs going all out. The sheer simplicity of their attacks followed by their overwhelming might was soul-stirring, causing him to pant.

Luckily, the battle took place in the Crimson Devil Realm; the two external realms were untouched as a result.

"To think you would use your Heavenly Dao Source so early, and so desperately too! Truly disappointing!" Ze’Ya’s voice echoed, but it seemed to contain a hint of exhaustion. He had been caught off guard by the sudden eruption and detonation of Dracula’s Heavenly Dao Source.

His figure emerged as the two lights faded to reveal a space that no longer contained realm properties. It was as if the Border Expanse had sliced into the realm, no longer keeping the Crimson Devil Realm and the two external realms connected.

The cost?

Half of the Crimson Devil Realm.

Ze’Ya stood amidst this Border Expanse area, blood dripping down from his lips like a slow river. His clothing was shredded, revealing only tattered robes and a gaunt figure beneath. The emerald light in his eyes was visibly dim, and his breathing was heavy. Surrounding him defensively was a thin barrier of bright green.

Ze’Ya was injured!

Another figure was revealed, a crimson-eyed, pale-skinned man with an indifferent expression. Unlike Ze’Ya, he wasn’t bleeding, but his left arm and leg had vanished. A faint trace of emerald light was invading his flesh, preventing it from healing, leaving only odd flesh-wiggling to occur at the ends. Even within his eyes, an emerald rose silhouette flickered.

Dracula’s actions were tantamount to a desperate attack, betting mostly all of it on this. His Minor Heaven was based around the Mortal Law of Blood, but Ze’Ya’s was the World Law of Wood. Regardless of any circumstance, their base strength was already vastly different, and this didn’t even factor in experience.

"Ezekiel...you truly have come prepared." Dracula softly said, his gaze was the pinnacle of calm as he gazed upwards. Ezekiel matched his gaze, revealing a sovereign’s dominance within. It contained boundless confidence despite looking at a heaven-rivaling existence!

"I regret not taking action before, and I will die because of my mistake. However," Dracula inhaled and exhaled, no longer considering Ze’Ya as an obstacle, "I will not make the same mistake twice."

At the moment, Ze’Ya may seem to be in greater condition, but that was furthest from the truth. He had to utilize his own Heavenly Dao Source to counter Dracula, leaving his minor heaven in shambles and his cultivation unstable. Even his Heavenly Dao Source was severely injured, if it wasn’t for his law being based on a World Law, his cultivation might have suffered a decrease, indefinitely.

"What?!" At the moment, Ze’Ya was oddly shocked as his cultivation base seemed to be stalled by some force. His eyes shrunk to a needle-point as he roared, "You disgrace of a heavenly cultivator! Ezekiel, FLEE!!!" The concern within his voice was deep and profound, like a father calling out to his son.

He tried to turn his body but realized his cultivation, and his body was being hindered by an ancient, overwhelming force. This force wasn’t too lethal, even under it, all it could do was restrict him for second or two, but that was more than enough.

"Too late." Dracula didn’t bother, the tower mark on his glabella seemed to manifest once more in reality, but no longer did it merely stand upright proudly, but released a soul aura bordering on hellish! This tower had eighteen sections...almost as if it had eighteen floors!

Ezekiel felt his soul experience an electrifying shock, his cultivation base erupting fully as he retreated. "How did he build an eighteen floor Hell Altar!?!?" Ezekiel’s mind was spinning as he was looking at the unbelievable. The Hell Path was outlawed by the entirety of all heavens! It shouldn’t exist!!!

"Unless..." As his thoughts reached a certain point, his heart turned cold and his eyes were, for the first time in his life, suffused with fear! Even with half a titan realm of distance between them, he felt shaken and insecure!

The tower that manifested was no bigger than a baseball, but it contained fluctuations that made all souls bow without question!

"I, Dracula Vladislaus, give my soul to eternal damnation in exchange for a request!" He did not speak the common language, but something that seemed oddly demonic, as if he was conjuring an existence from the depths of hell.

"My request, SEAL HIS EXISTENCE TO THE ETERNAL!" A light of madness effused from his eyes as they turned from a sea of blood to a sea of hell! It was as if hell itself was taking over his entirety! The wretched screams of damned souls, filled with regret, pain, unspeakable horror, and eternal restlessness echoed.

He pointed at Ezekiel in his madness, and at the corners of his lips was a calm smile. This smile was oddly peaceful, contradicting the deep resolve and madness his eyes revealed.