The Monarch-Chapter 591: Challenger of the heavens[3]

The lightning descended upon Kayden without any hesitation or mercy, completely destroying space-time along its entire path—not even a single centimeter was spared. The shockwaves were capable of annihilating thousands of galaxies, the zone they occupied trembled, and the universe itself quaked under the presence of that lightning.

Meanwhile, Kayden’s sixth sense continued to grow endlessly. The universe had permanently removed his limiter, and he could feel that his very soul was no longer tethered to it. At this moment, Kayden had become an independent entity—something he had spent so long trying to achieve, only to have it given to him freely by the heavens.

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In truth, he had been practically isolated from the universe at this moment. His sixth sense was expanding without any visible limit, and in the blink of an eye, Kayden reached a range of five trillion kilometers—surpassing any eighth-realm mage who had ever existed in this universe. But even that wasn’t the most insane part; it was the sheer amount of mana he could now gather.

Kayden could now perform the conversion using the fundamental law of equilibrium at a rate of 150,000 times. This meant that, in a single instant, he could accumulate 75% of the mana contained in a galaxy like the Milky Way. It was such an absurd amount of mana that Kayden became a colossal sun of pure energy, floating in the void.

In a minuscule amount of time, Kayden had gathered more mana than what existed across dozens of galaxies. His entire domain was filled with mana, and all across it, monstrous entities were emerging. Dragons made purely of mana soared through the void, consuming everything in an infinite cycle of destruction and evolution.

In the blink of an eye, beasts that previously could not surpass the fifth realm were now reaching the seventh and eighth with ease. However, they would ultimately perish at this level due to a lack of mana. Kayden found it insane that they couldn’t reach the peak of this universe, even with the mana of dozens of galaxies at their disposal. But he dismissed the thought—this wasn’t his priority at the moment.

All the mana and creatures were swallowed by a lightning strike spanning tens of millions of kilometers. The mere presence of this strike clashed directly with the lightning that was descending upon Kayden. At this moment, space-time had already been entirely shattered. Kayden was facing the same lightning in an infinite number of timelines.

"Why is its movement the same in all timelines?" A murmur spread among the gods who understood even a little about souls.

"How long has it been since we’ve seen an existence at this level of power?"

"Remember who your patron is."

This last voice silenced most of the doubts. None of them were foolish enough to anger Hypnos.

The clash between the two lightning strikes was not merely a collision of powers but an event that transcended the very structure of the universe. At the moment of impact, a colorless fissure opened at the heart of the battle, absorbing all light and distorting space as if reality itself was being rewritten.

Time froze, advanced, and regressed all at once. Invisible waves spread in all directions, obliterating countless galaxies without any explosion—they simply ceased to exist.

The gods watched in absolute silence, incapable of comprehending what they were witnessing, for no known logic or principle could explain it. At one moment, it seemed as if the heavens’ lightning had crushed Kayden, leaving no trace of him. In the next instant, his lightning consumed everything, devouring the very concept of existence around him.

The universe wavered between being and non-being, as though it teetered on the edge of collapse—until finally, a final shockwave tore through all dimensions simultaneously, sealing the fate of this confrontation.

Kayden emerged victorious... in every timeline. There was not a single moment across space-time where Kayden had lost. He had consolidated his strength in every possible confrontation offered by the heavens.

This was utterly insane.

At that moment, Kollen stood frozen, unable to express any reaction—this went far beyond even his wildest expectations.

"Congratulations on overcoming the first lightning strike."

Another figure placed a lightning bolt on his finger at that moment and greeted Kayden. It seemed this was far from being just a single test—Kayden was undergoing something entirely different.

The second lightning strike descended like divine punishment upon the entire universe.

This one was unlike any before—it was a lightning bolt imbued with mental power.

It caused not a single centimeter of damage to the universe. It did not divide the timeline. It was simply a slow-moving lightning bolt, yet, for a few seconds, it became the center of the entire universe.

Millions of mages perished just from looking at it longer than they should have. Their heads simply exploded from within without any explanation. These were the madmen who had managed to gaze directly at the lightning. The rest weren’t even capable of placing their eyes upon it—their minds collapsed just from the presence of the lightning within the universe.

Kayden immediately understood that this would be a battle of the mind.

He didn’t convert even a single centimeter of his sixth sense into mana—it would be useless.

This wouldn’t be a battle of raw power.

His mind calmed entirely.

At this moment, he was in the most comfortable state possible for this confrontation.

The lightning entered his mind and pierced directly into his head.

Instantly, Kayden felt the pressure of an entire universe bearing down on him.

It was as if all the gods and mages in this universe had fixed their eyes upon him.

His back immediately bent under the weight, and he found himself falling to his knees in the middle of space.

The pressure on his body was immense. But just as a steel bar does not bend, Kayden did not falter.

Either his mind would break, or he would triumph—there was no middle ground.

This was the mentality that a challenger of the heavens was required to have.

Time passed slowly as Kayden lifted himself, centimeter by centimeter, each hour.

It was an excruciatingly painful and prolonged process.

It was the same as lifting an entire galaxy upon his shoulders.

His entire body was sore and drenched in sweat.

There wasn’t a single centimeter of him that was not under this absurd pressure.