Chapter 2585: Fourth Realm Asura Form - Second Gear

"ARGHHHHH!"

Cain’s roar tore across the battlefield as he drove his body forward with unrelenting force, dragging the Nightmare Sacred King across the shattered land while carving immense scars through the continents beneath them.

The ground fractured endlessly in their wake, splitting into vast canyons that stretched for hundreds of thousands of kilometers, as rivers crumbled and entire regions collapsed under the sheer pressure of their clash. Each movement carried the weight of annihilation, and the Ninth Realm itself seemed to groan as if it were a living thing being pushed beyond its limits.

His heart beat with the force of a supernova, dragging the energy of the world into his body. Every pulse sent a shockwave rippling through the earth and sky alike, shaking the oceans and scattering clouds in violent spirals. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

Even with the protection of the Omnissiah Sacred Treasure and the regenerative power of his Rebirth Flame, Cain could feel the strain on his body reaching dangerous levels, as fine cracks began to spread across his heart under the overwhelming pressure.

Despite the damage accumulating within his flesh and blood, he showed no hesitation, because the part of him that once calculated survival had been completely consumed by something far more primal.

At this moment, there was no strategy left.

There was only the need to kill.

The Nightmare Sacred King’s eyes burned with hatred as he felt the blade sink deeper into his chest, piercing into his heart, the scorching energy within it ravaging his internal organs with ruthless efficiency.

However, the physical wound was only part of the assault, as streams of white fire surged from the weapon and invaded his bloodstream, spreading like a living inferno throughout his body.

The Eternal Flame did not burn flesh; it sought to erase existence itself, dragging both body and consciousness into a state of complete stasis, locking his soul in a state of eternal paralysis.

In response, the Sacred King’s wings lashed out repeatedly with devastating force, each strike carrying enough power to tear apart worlds, yet they were unable to fully penetrate the defenses of the Omnissiah Sacred Treasure or halt Cain’s advance.

"ZNNN!" The sound of tearing flesh echoed as the blade pushed further inward, piercing deeper into his heart, and it was seconds away from penetrating all the way through.

"You damn ant!"

The Nightmare Sacred King’s roar erupted with such fury that the surrounding space trembled violently, and in that instant his life force ignited, surging outward in a catastrophic burst of power.

The crimson pentagram behind him blazed with terrifying brilliance once more as his Ancestor Power flooded his body.

What followed was not a simple transformation, but a fundamental shift in form.

His six wings twisted and fused together into a single massive appendage, forming a grotesque and heavily armored spiked tail that radiated destructive intent. The moment it lashed forward, the difference in power was unmistakable, as the speed and force behind it far exceeded anything he had displayed before.

When the tail collided with Cain, the resulting explosion was deafening, sending the Scarlet King hurtling across the battlefield as the land shattered beneath him. His body tore through the terrain, carving a massive corridor across the continent before crashing violently into the distant shoreline and plunging into the ocean.

For a brief moment, the battlefield fell into a tense stillness.

Cain forced himself upright within the water, his breathing heavy as he glanced down at his chest, where the Omnissiah Sacred Armor had visibly cracked under the impact. Beneath it, the damage was severe, as he could feel his ribs broken and his lungs struggling to function properly.

And to make things worse, there was a frost energy in that tail, and now it was invading his bloodstream through the wounds, trying to freeze him.

"A single attack nearly shattered my chest!" A solemn expression appeared in Cain’s face as a meaningful light crossed his eyes.

The sudden increase in power could only be attributed to one thing.

Ancestor Power.

The transformation of wings into that ice-spiked tail was not merely physical, but an amplification of his fundamental nature, something that elevated his offensive capabilities to a terrifying degree. However, there was no time to dwell on the details, because the Nightmare Sacred King had already reappeared above the ocean, his presence dominating the sky once more.

The pentagram behind him ignited again, and as his wings reformed, massive maws manifested within them, each one pulsing with an ominous energy. From those grotesque openings, a torrent of ice energy poured downward, moving with a speed that left no room for escape.

Cain reacted instantly, launching himself upward, yet the attack reached the ocean first, and in a single moment the vast body of water froze entirely. The transformation was absolute, as an ocean that had existed for millions of years was reduced to a frozen expanse in less than a heartbeat.

This was the true terror of a Fourth Realm existence.

A single action could permanently alter the environment on a planetary scale.

And the ice created by the Nightmare Sacred King was far from ordinary, as its density and temperature were so extreme that even a Fourth Realm body could be trapped within it for ages.

Cain attempted to fight back and break free, but the freezing force caught him, encasing his entire form within the solidified ocean. Even the light in his eye froze.

"Hmph, pathetic!" The Nightmare Sacred King observed the result with clear disdain, his voice carrying cold arrogance as he dismissed the outcome.

Cain had unleashed an entire sequence of powerful techniques only to be suppressed the moment the Sacred King’s Ancestor Power came into play.

Yet just as he prepared to end the fight, something unexpected reached his senses.

"Thump."

A heartbeat.

At first, it was faint, barely perceptible beneath the frozen mass.

"THUMP!"

Then it came again.

"THUMP!" "THUMP!" "THUMP!"

And again.

Each pulse grew stronger, carrying a weight that caused even the Nightmare Sacred King to frown slightly. The ice he had created was meant to freeze not only the body, but the very processes that sustained life, including the flow of thought and the rhythm of the heart. The fact that those beats continued, and were in fact growing in intensity, indicated something abnormal.

As an ancient being who had witnessed countless paths of power, he immediately recognized the influence of the Asura Path, yet what he sensed now went beyond its expected limits. The force contained within those heartbeats was not merely sustaining Cain; it was evolving, expanding into something far more dangerous.

Before he could intervene, the pressure reached a breaking point.

The frozen ocean began to crack, not from external force, but from within, as if it could no longer contain what was trapped inside it. The fractures spread rapidly until the entire structure collapsed inward, unable to withstand the immense density emanating from Cain’s body.

The Nightmare Sacred King instinctively stepped forward, ready to dive into the broken, frozen ocean and reach Cain’s figure at the bottom of it. Yet he halted as Cain’s voice echoed across the battlefield, carrying both authority and overwhelming intensity.

"Fourth Realm Asura Form..."

The words resonated with the rhythm of his heart, each syllable reinforcing the surge of power rising within him.

Then, with a final pulse that shook the heavens themselves, Cain completed the transformation.

"Second Gear."