Consuming Earths, Devouring Skies

"Ga!! Gaaa! Gawkkk! Ga..." the sounds of choking echoed heavily in the surroundings. Everyone was shocked as they turned to the origin of the sounds.

Freya was clutching at her throat. Water shot forth from her mouth in small gushes as if she had just received C.P.R. and had just regained the ability to breathe. However, unlike the mortal world, the water seemed endless. A small puddle had already formed beneath her.

Her sword had dropped solidly on the floor, and her eyes widened in shock and disbelief. There was a moment in one’s life when death seemed imminent. This moment would induce all sorts of sensations and emotions, from regret to anger to enlightenment. However, all Freya felt was fear and...confusion.

’Why am I drowning?’ These four words echoed endlessly in her head like a rapidly fired weapon. It battered her mind into an uncontrollable state; her aura and heavenly might losing its effectiveness as her thoughts continued to spiral.

It was like someone had implanted these words to create disorder between her thoughts and her actions. The world seemed to vanish as she felt surrounded by water. It battered her body with soft pats and entered her many holes relentlessly.

With her free hand, she grabbed her nostrils and pinched in hopes of closing them in the way a mortal would try to hold their breath underwater. Her other hand went from clutching at her throat too tightly gripping her mouth shut. However, between her fingers and hushed vomits, water seeped out like an endless flood.

The Heavenly Monarchs and their subordinates were stunned into observance. There was no exception.

It was a few full seconds before the young girl reacted. Her eyes had long since opened after Yan Zaizen’s blue light seemed to flash within the world.

"Lady Freya!" Her words caused space to tremble. Those words seemed to send a surging wave of energy into Freya’s body, and even further into her soul. Only when it reached those two did the hacking coughs of Freya slow down.

"This?" The young girl was stunned. She flashed like a ghost beside Freya. Her hand pressed heavily on Freya’s shoulder, and a unique energy flowed into Freya without restraint. It was like antibodies that targeted any heterogenous auras not of Freya’s and eradicated it ruthlessly.

A few more seconds passed as everyone’s expression turned solemn, and the atmosphere became strange and uneasy. The main reason was because Freya’s coughing didn’t decrease but had increased instead. Beneath her feet was already a ten-meter wide thin layer of water. Even the young girl’s efforts seemed useless.

A grim expression emerged on her face, and her eyes were icy-cold. However, a pride in her was unwilling. This art, this attack, it wasn’t something she couldn’t defend against! If she couldn’t handle this, wouldn’t it mean her own strength was lacking?!

It was as if she took it as a personal challenge. However, while she tested out her methods, Freya’s suffering increased by the second. The pool had already reached everyone’s feet, and her eyes had reached the peak of desperation. Heavenly Monarchs can’t die from drowning; their bodies lived off the essence of heaven, not air or water. This was even true to those at the True Essence Realm, let alone Heavenly Monarchs.

Yet despite this fact, she was drowning. Her long dormant lungs were working, her body was suffering, and she felt all the sensations a mortal would and should feel.

The Ruin Emperor saw Freya, and his heart quivered slightly. He couldn’t imagine how it’d feel to be drowning but to be unable to die. The even more shocking thing was no one besides the young girl was trying to help. They didn’t even ask Yan Zaizen to cease his art.

As for Yan Zaizen, when he saw this, he shook his head. These people...

It was only after a full minute did the young girl look to Yan Zaizen, her cold gaze seemed like the frozen tundras were born from them, "What did you do?" Her question made Yan Zaizen not know whether to laugh or cry. Not only did she not ask Yan Zaizen to cancel his art, she asked what he did!

It’s like she didn’t care about Freya at all despite their alliance. However, how was Yan Zaizen to know that Freya was the weakest and an add-on at the last minute. To the overall goal, she truly mattered little. They barely had relations with her force.

Perhaps only the bare-footed young man, Sect Master Sanji, would have some interest. However, they all knew that she had romantically rejected Sanji countless times and gave him no face about it. It was that very reason that they all knew. Hell, pretty much every Heavenly Monarch and Commander in their region knew...likely even some of the smaller cultivators too.

Therefore, Sanji had an elated smile on his face while watching her suffer. Surprisingly, this young man before him didn’t look too bad. If it wasn’t inappropriate, and his death day was obviously set by the heavens, he wouldn’t mind having a drink later.

Yan Zaizen didn’t bother with Sanji’s thoughts, so he simply answered, "Soul, Yin, Illusions, Water, and Space." Those were the laws incorporated in this self-devised art of his. It was incredibly profound, exhibiting a perfect cohesion of their expressions of power.

When those words were said, everyone stilled.

What?!

Four World Laws?!

Yan Zaizen only smiled. He was quite curious how this young girl would go about canceling his art. He had devised this during those two months, which in his spacetime zone was more like two hundred years. In truth, he had created a whole host of different arts he couldn’t wait to try. Unfortunately, they weren’t as subtle as this, and most were incredibly violent or wildly disturbing.

With a light of enlightenment, the young girl once more sent her energy into Freya. It took a full thirteen seconds before Freya spat her last mouthful of water. Then, the water on the floor vanished like ghosts in the wind. It was like the wetness and movement of the water was all fake.

A relieved sound resounded from Freya’s body as she sat down like a helpless damsel on the deck of the ship. She didn’t even bother to care about how she sat on the floor or dirtied her outfit. She just felt a wave of euphoria and relief overcome her.

’It was truly comforting to breathe.’

If any heavenly cultivator heard her, they’d be shocked and disgusted. They didn’t need air. It’s coarse and filled with impurities of the atmosphere and loose particles. You could breathe in dung particulates, remains of the dead, or even microscopic lifeforms. This was why no cultivator dared to ’breathe.’

Even the act of breathing was stimulated for those who were once Mortals. Yan Zaizen often ’inhaled’ and ’exhaled’ but he wasn’t genuinely breathing.

The winged woman eyebrows twitched seeing Freya actually breathe like a mortal. Disgusting.

Sect Master Sanji grew even happier it seemed, there was a gleam of light in his hand as if he was recording this.

"Now, I ask again: what did you need, Ruin Emperor?" Yan Zaizen looked to the Ruin Emperor. Those eyes were calm but it revealed a hint of pity as if saying, ’you lost so much time because of her.’

Was it worth it?