Chapter 2586: The Nightmare Sacred King’s Ancestor Power

"Second Gear!"

The moment those words echoed across the sky, Cain’s figure surged forward with explosive force, blasting apart the frozen ocean that had encased him as massive chunks of ice—each the size of entire islands—were hurled into the air and scattered across the horizon.

The violent release of power distorted the atmosphere, sending shockwaves rippling outward while the Nightmare Sacred King immediately adjusted his stance, his instincts sharpening as he recognized that the battle had entered a far more dangerous phase.

The Scarlet King had already demonstrated too many strange and unpredictable abilities, and although deep down he kept looking down on the man, the Nighamre Sacred King had begun to take this battle more seriously.

The Sacred King’s eyes narrowed, and for a fleeting moment, confusion flickered within them, because while Cain’s speed was undeniably extraordinary, it had not increased to the degree one would expect from such a dramatic declaration.

The movement was faster, yes, but not overwhelmingly so, which left the Nightmare Sacred King questioning what the true nature of this "Second Gear" really was. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

However, there was no time to dwell on uncertainty.

Cain was already upon him.

The Scarlet King closed the distance in an instant, his blade engulfed in white flames as it descended in a lethal arc aimed directly at the Sacred King’s head.

The Nightmare Sacred King reacted immediately, his wings reshaping as their edges sharpened into razor-like extensions capable of slicing through nearly anything in existence. He brought them forward to intercept the strike, fully confident in their durability.

The moment the wings collided with the blade, that confidence shattered.

The Nightmare Sacred King’s eyes widened as an unimaginable force surged through his defenses, as if he had just clashed against the core of a dwarf star.

The overwhelming weight behind the strike crushed his wings downward, overwhelming their structure despite their incredible resilience, and in the next instant, his entire body was sent flying through the sky like a broken doll, blood trailing behind him in a crimson arc.

Even as he tumbled through the air, the Nightmare Sacred King forced himself to focus, analyzing Cain’s state with ruthless precision. His gaze sharpened as he observed how light bent unnaturally around the Scarlet King’s body, how space itself seemed to distort under the pressure of his presence, and how an immense, almost absurd mass now accompanied his every movement.

Understanding struck him with sudden clarity.

Cain had not merely increased his speed.

He had increased his effective mass without sacrificing that speed.

A terrifying realization formed in his mind as the Scarlet King reappeared before him once more, his blade already descending in another devastating strike that bypassed his defenses and sent him rolling through the sky again, each impact unleashing explosive shockwaves that tore through the fabric of reality itself.

The air fractured under the pressure, leaving behind jagged distortions that led into nothingness, as though existence could no longer sustain the force being unleashed.

Force was the product of mass and acceleration.

And now, Cain embodied both to an extreme.

Every swing of his blade carried enough power to send a Sacred King of Chaos and Order hurtling through the heavens, and each clash resonated like the collision of celestial bodies.

His scarlet eyes burned with relentless intensity as the Wings of Chaos flared behind him, propelling him forward again and again as he unleashed a continuous barrage of attacks that drove the Nightmare Sacred King across the sky of the Ninth Realm.

Wherever they passed, destruction followed.

Rivers collapsed, clouds evaporated, and the very sky cracked under the strain of their battle, leaving behind scars that would take ages to heal.

Yet even as Cain dominated the exchange, there was a price.

Within his body, his organs were being pushed to their absolute limits. Through his profound understanding of the Asura Form, he had forced the Fourth Realm version of that power beyond its natural boundaries, triggering what he now called Second Gear. This transformation exponentially increased his crushing power, amplifying it further with every heartbeat, but it also multiplied the strain on his body to a dangerous degree.

Each pulse of his heart brought him closer to collapse.

Without the support of the Rebirth Flame, his heart and the rest of his internal organs would have already ruptured under the pressure, and even with his overwhelming regenerative abilities, maintaining this state was becoming increasingly difficult. Pain surged through him with every movement, yet he refused to slow down, because he understood one crucial truth.

If he lost momentum now, the Nightmare Sacred King would seize control of the battle again.

And this time, he might not survive.

The storm of destruction continued to intensify as Cain’s relentless assault forced more blood from the Nightmare Sacred King, staining the sky in dark crimson streaks. However, just as the Scarlet King’s offensive reached its peak, the crimson pentagram behind the Sacred King flared once more, releasing a surge of Ancestor Power that caused his form to shift again.

His six wings condensed and transformed into two massive, thick appendages, each resembling a colossal bastard sword forged from living flesh and energy.

When Cain’s blade descended once more, those wings moved with terrifying precision.

The collision that followed shattered a vast portion of the sky, as though reality itself had been struck by a hammer, sending cracks spreading outward like fractured glass. This time, however, the Nightmare Sacred King did not yield.

The transformation had elevated his striking power to match Cain’s.

The two forces clashed and locked together, neither side giving ground as their weapons pressed against each other, unleashing waves of energy that distorted everything around them.

Cain clenched his teeth as he pushed forward with everything he had, his heartbeat accelerating as his mass and power continued to rise, yet no matter how much strength he poured into the clash, he could not overpower his opponent.

The Nightmare Sacred King had adapted.

The energy between them built rapidly, growing more violent with each passing second until it reached a breaking point, and in a sudden burst, both warriors were thrown backward. Yet neither hesitated, and in the very next instant, they launched themselves forward again, colliding with renewed ferocity.

Their weapons clashed repeatedly, each strike an attempt to overwhelm the other, but neither could gain the upper hand.

However, the balance was not truly equal.

The Nightmare Sacred King remained stable, his power sustained by his Ancestor Force, while Cain’s condition continued to deteriorate. Maintaining Second Gear required him to push his heart into overdrive, and with each passing second, the backlash grew closer, threatening to cripple him from within.

And then, the situation worsened.

The crimson pentagram behind the Nightmare Sacred King flared once again, feeding even more power into his transformed wings, making them larger, faster, and far more destructive.

With a roar of fury, the Nightmare Sacred King surged forward, and one of his massive wings struck Cain’s blade with overwhelming force, knocking it aside. Before Cain could recover, the second wing followed immediately, slicing forward with lethal precision.

The strike landed cleanly.

It cut through the Omnissiah Sacred Armor, tore into Cain’s flesh, and sent him crashing toward the ground like a falling star, his body trailing destruction as he plummeted into the shattered world below.