"Don't you possess a combined divine power similar to that of the Peacock King? This is perfect! Don't be afraid, take my sword first!"
In the blink of an eye, Fudo Myoo raised his demon-subduing sword and slashed down at Adam! The crimson flames immediately burned even more fiercely, and in an instant, waves of fire rolled for thousands of miles! The raging fire seemed to have become a soaring fire dragon, suppressing heaven and earth! This flame was enough to burn the earth, evaporate the oceans, and even burn the entire planet to ashes!
The first of the eight great Vidyarajas of the Mitra Group, the Saint Immovable One—his combat power is far more than just a standard "Vidyaraja level"!
The Bodhisattva dared to send Acala down with only a thousand heavenly soldiers because he wanted Acala to kill two god-level combatants!
291: He saved your life from death.
The symbolic weapon of Acala, the sword that dispels the three poisons of greed, anger, and ignorance, and eradicates the shackles of the mortal world—the Kurikara sword.
In the Mithra Group's corporate myth, the Kurikara sword is considered a divine sword capable of cleaving even Vajra. At the same time, in the Mithra Group's culture, Vajra is also an indestructible object forged from "wisdom." In other words, this is a divine sword that can cut through even wisdom.
As the divine sword swung down towards Adam's head, even before it touched him, Adam immediately felt an immense and terrifying heat. The flames emanating from the sword began to burn and crack his flawless body bit by bit.
This is outrageous! Adam, as a perfect being, had a body essentially forged from the Philosopher's Stone! How could the Philosopher's Stone be cracked by fire?!
But it did happen. This event immediately made Adam sense an immense crisis. So, seeing the fiery sword of Fudo Myoo hurtling towards him like an unstoppable, soaring fire dragon, Adam made a swift decision, immediately unleashing his full power to meet the sword head-on!
The power of the Ming King and the ultimate life form collided like a storm, and the aftershocks shot into the sky, not only shattering the sky above New Yatu once again, but also causing the entire city to collapse and explode in all directions.
With a wrathful gaze, he vanquished demons without mercy! Even though there were still eight million civilians in New Yatu, Fudo Myoo showed no hesitation. His battle prowess erupted instantly; his crimson flame sword unleashed eighty-four thousand strikes in a single breath, unleashing one hundred and eight deadly techniques in space!
By the second breath, Adam's Star-Breaking Fist had been completely shattered by the Immovable King's divine sword. What Vajra, what Philosopher's Stone, what immortal gold, what the body of a perfect being—all shattered, shattered, shattered!
The power of Fudo Myoo is truly unmatched! The exchange lasted only two breaths, yet countless sword strikes had riddled Adam with wounds, and the raging crimson flames had cracked Adam's perfect golden body. The strongest battle god in the Mithra Group's military system had completely suppressed Adam's aura!
Moreover, the flames of Fudo Myoo did not simply burn Adam. When it burned him, Adam felt immense pain that not only tormented his body but also began to burn his mind and soul, causing him excruciating agony!
"It's alright, Adam. My song will be your wings (strength)!"
Fortunately, Adam wasn't alone. Lilith sang her song again.
Even when the world comes to an end, my love, I will never let go of your hand! For love is as strong as death, and passion as firm as the underworld! Its flame cannot be extinguished even if the seven seas were filled!
"I offer my love from the bottom of my heart, and no matter how many times it goes wrong, it will make my beloved rise up and fight again!"
Lilith's song flowed onto Adam, instantly healing his slashed and burned body. Before the third breath had even finished, his injuries were completely healed. It seemed Adam's battle with Fudo Myoo would still be quite a fight.
At the same time, this unrestrained and intense battle caused their destructive energy to sweep further in all directions. Even the hardest metal structures in New Yatu were swallowed up by the aftershocks, suffering complete annihilation. Clearly, for Adam and Fudo Myoo, the destruction of anything didn't affect the amount of power they needed to unleash in their battle. They had no time to care about their surroundings or the unfortunate victims; they only wanted to unleash their power relentlessly, obliterating anything that stood in their way!
Wherever they trod, they left behind deep craters and craters; wherever they went, they turned into ruins or burned into lava. The intense heat transformed what were once city streets into rivers of fire. Their powerful energy radiated far and wide. More terrifying than cosmic radiation, any life that touched them was instantly annihilated.
Countless explosions of flame and thunderbolts erupted; the battle between the King and the gods, every wisp of its aftershock, possessed enough power to obliterate an entire street. And these were merely excess forces released from the truly destructive attacks. In a mere instant, half the city was engulfed in flames. Such destructive power could kill even a god, let alone the most vulnerable civilians.
If the eight million ordinary people of New Jersey were directly exposed to the aftershocks of such a battle, they would certainly die instantly. Without Hayden, Karen, and Pania, those eight million people would have been annihilated in an instant!
First, while Adam and Fudo Myoo were wasting time talking nonsense, Karen's divine power had already gathered all the remaining eight million people in the city into one urban area, forcing them to be as crowded together as possible to reduce the area occupied. This was very uncomfortable, but there was no other way in just a few minutes.
With the citizens gathered in the same urban area, Hayden's next "great project" could begin.
All "Great Projects" rituals are manifestations of modern arcane industrial power. For example, a warship requires countless related people and factories, a vast amount of industry and labor. A "Great Project" ritual doesn't eliminate these elements; rather, it's the sum of all these elements and forms. Theoretically, it can accomplish an infinite number of things, possessing limitless power… but in reality, it must still be built upon actual consumption and fundamental principles. To accomplish something using this highest level of arcane art, the ritual master must first understand how to do it, and with extreme precision.
Last time at the Dead Sea, Hayden had already suppressed Hecate with [Great Project], but as soon as the opponent's name dropped, the magic malfunctioned. That was an example of how difficult [Great Project] can be to deal with.
The aftershocks of the battle now descending from the sky are more terrifying than anything Hayden and his companions have ever fought in their lives, capable of destroying almost everything they possess. Hayden cannot conjure something out of thin air that he didn't originally have. His abilities, relatively speaking, were developed through normal learning, upgrading, and advancement; things he didn't have before won't suddenly appear now.
So now the question is: when the strongest attack in history comes down, what is the strongest, toughest, and most likely thing Hayden has that can withstand the aftershocks of the attack and protect the people?
The answer is actually surprisingly simple. It's something Hayden drew upon from Adam—life itself.
Hayden and his companions, almost all of them possess magical powers related to "life." Hayden himself is immortal, having conquered death, and Angela provides him with endless life force. The others are also exploring the subject of "life" in their own ways; for example, Karen's "Dream Flower" is an example. Moreover, they have recently been developing a "life network" system that aims for "harmony between man and nature."
At this moment, it is clear that Hayden has the means to advance the "Great Project".
Standing in the center of a crowd of eight million people, Hayden raised his Moon Staff in his right hand and cradled Panya's head in his left. He had everything ready. He was about to create life.
Hayden would unite the entire metropolis of New Seattle and its remaining eight million citizens with his own immortality to create a life! To make the city a life, an immortal life, to withstand the aftermath of the battle!
How can this be done? Of course it can be done! Wasn't that how New Sprout City was built in the first place? The city and its citizens are integrated; it is, of course, a living entity!
So Hayden now joined in with his own life, and stepped forward to the very front of the line! He used his immortality to make everyone else immortal, to withstand this inevitable attack!
it's time.
“He who loves his life too much will lose it, but he who sacrifices his life will gain it. I wish to be like a seed that falls into the ground and produces many seeds of life.”
Raising his staff, Hayden began his incantation, the secret fire burning and glowing in his eyes like a supernova explosion.
"Rejoice, mountains! Rejoice, earth! Sing, Emerald City (New Aretu)! For evil will not befall you, nor will disaster touch your bricks. Fear not the terrors of the day, nor the arrows of the night. For I have sheltered you with my wings—for my life is your life!"
Then the radiance of the secret fire spread from Hayden's body, desperately expanding outwards, stretching and enveloping the eight million citizens of New Jersey.
In the next instant, a shockwave of death swept through the city where everyone was gathered, instantly incinerating hundreds of thousands of people—but they did not die! After a swift and brief period of agony, they found their bodies being healed at an incredible speed. Whether burned to a crisp or reduced to a pulp, they were completely healed and fully restored in an instant.
That's right, this is Hayden's groundbreaking genius! It's not advisable to use a large shield to forcibly protect all the citizens of New Yatu from the aftershocks of attacks. It would consume too much resources and the shield would be broken very quickly, and then everyone would die again. This is obviously not suitable. So instead of stacking armor, it's better to stack regeneration!
After the eight million people of New Jersey merged with Hayden's immortality, they gained a regenerative power that would never easily die, because Hayden himself would share the damage and regenerate with them. Just as Hayden himself would not easily die from the aftershocks, as long as Hayden himself did not die, and as long as he could continue to regenerate with everyone, these eight million people would also never die!
Hayden, with Angela's aura constantly flowing within him and having been resurrected from death once, already possessed near-limitless super regenerative abilities. In terms of defensive capabilities, he was inferior to Adam Cardmont in his current state. But in terms of regenerative power alone, he was even superior to Adam!
The combined regeneration of Adam and Lilith was already enough to withstand the attack of Fudo Myoo. What about Hayden?
So even Fudo Myo-o and Adam, who were locked in fierce battle, couldn't help but be surprised when they caught a glimpse of what Hayden was seeing.
Even Fudō Myō-ō praised him, saying, "Kōjaku Myō-ō has indeed found a good son-in-law."
Although Adam didn't speak, he secretly admired Hayden. The selfish Adam couldn't possibly have conceived of Hayden's plan to merge himself with eight million others, suffering injury and regeneration simultaneously. Even with Hayden's near-immortality, such a scenario would still be incredibly dangerous. Moreover, the pain wouldn't be reduced; it might even be increased.
However, Fudo Myo-o was not entirely praising Hayden.
"Unfortunately, the Peacock King and his daughter and son-in-law are both ignorant of the big picture, preoccupied with petty benevolence and righteousness, but unaware of the greater good." The Immovable King looked at Adam again and said coldly, "This reckless behavior without understanding the greater good will ultimately lead them to suffer the same karmic retribution as you."
Adam wasn't about to listen to that. He was currently fighting the Immovable King's Divine Sword with only his fists, and although he was at a disadvantage, he was far from being defeated. After all, Adam now had Lilith's loving support, and his energy and regenerative power were inexhaustible. He was already invincible!
...But if Adam is truly invincible, why is it that now, as a perfect being, he can vaguely sense the shadow of death and the "feeling" that is pressing down on his shoulders more and more heavily?
When his senses told him time and again that a crisis was imminent, that he was not only unable to defeat Fudo Myoo, but would even die at his hands, how could Adam not worry?
Finally, after the tenth round of combat, Adam and Fudo Myoo clashed once more, automatically separating by three kilometers. Even with their god-level power, they were forced to stop and catch their breath. But at that very moment, Fudo Myoo spoke to Adam again.
“The Bodhisattva threw the vajra before, but you resisted it. Of course, he already knew that you had extremely strong regenerative power.”
He said coldly again. This King Ming was as if his expression was automatically locked.
"Now that the Bodhisattva already knows, do you think he will send a wrathful deity who cannot break your rebirth to punish you?"
Needless to say, the answer is definitely no. This is also what worries Adam the most right now. But they've fought ten rounds, and Adam's perfect body has been regenerating normally with the support of Lilith's singing, so... it should be fine, right?
The thought had barely crossed his mind when a surge of intense pain and intense heat erupted from Adam's body, which should have been perfectly regenerated! Cracks began to appear all over his golden, flawless form.
“I have already slashed you three thousand six hundred times. The Red Lotus Karmic Fire will burn with the three poisons of greed, anger, and ignorance within you as fuel. Your selfish and self-serving hearts will intensify the Red Lotus Karmic Fire. No matter how strong your small love is, it cannot overcome the great righteousness and love of the Bodhisattva.”
The expressionless Fudo Myoo delivered these words with great righteous indignation.
"As for the son-in-law of the Peacock King, his act of using his own regeneration to save the people with petty acts of righteousness and benevolence will also backfire on him. Although he does not have as deep a karmic burden as you, he has greatly underestimated the greed and selfishness of human nature. He has recklessly linked the sins of eight million people with his own, and when the fire of karma ignites, he will surely die as well."
"Adam Smith, you have lost."
The words had barely left his lips when the Crimson Lotus Flame of Fudo Myoo, mixed with Adam's blood, erupted from the cracks in his body. The intense heat nearly shattered his entire golden, perfect form from the inside out. Moreover, no matter how much support Lilith provided from behind, it seemed to only intensify the Crimson Lotus Flame.
Meanwhile, just as Fudo Myoo had said, Hayden's situation was also clearly deteriorating. His not-so-invincible body was beginning to show cracks similar to Adam's.
Could it be that Hayden will also explode and die like this!?
The answer is—no!
No, it's not because Hayden is stronger, nor because he has gained a new advantage, but because Hayden had already considered the power of Fudo Myoo, and because he indeed possesses more wisdom and imagination than Adam. This is because Hayden has always been more adept at achieving his goals through selfless and altruistic means.
So at this moment, facing the karmic fire surging from within him, threatening to burn him to ashes, Hayden did something very strange—he actually lifted the head of Pania, who had been holding him from the beginning with a completely bewildered expression, high into the air, and then shouted:
"Pania, now, I will make you the core of [New Yatu]!"
292: Crowned with love and compassion
Although Adam didn't possess Hayden's precognitive abilities, since becoming a perfect being, the ultimate life form, he had at least gained some more acute "biological instincts." Just as wild beasts sense omens before disaster strikes, Adam Cardomion could now feel the shadow of death looming over him.
He had a premonition that he might die. He had honestly told Hayden before that he felt his chance of survival was only 20%, and these were absolutely true. Even so, given Adam's character, even if his chance of survival was now less than 20%, he certainly wouldn't obediently give up and wait to die. Even knowing that his chances of survival were slim, he still had the will not give up.
With such ambition to reach the top of the world, how could they not have the will to survive until the very last moment?
"If Mithra himself came, I might accept my fate. But a mere Vidyaraja (a high-ranking deity) thinks he can kill me alone?"
While forcefully activating his divine power, Adam quickly pulled out his pre-prepared backup plan.
"My beloved people! My new humans! Come and help me!"
The moment the words were spoken, the nearly one million Brain Gods scattered throughout New Jersey reacted immediately. They flew in from all corners of the city, arriving just in time, and consciously connected their divine power, combining their strengths!
In those ten rounds of combat, Adam realized one thing: the power, output, and energy intensity of Fudo Myoo were actually weaker than his own. This was to be expected, after all, a Myoo is a Myoo, while Adam and Lilith already possessed god-level power!
But why, even though Adam was stronger, was he at a disadvantage in his battle against Fudo Myoo? Perhaps this is the true realm of combat. Just as Peacock Myoo could kill a Bodhisattva at close range, the Myoos are the true fighting gods of the Mithra Group.
Since Fudo Myo-ō is better able to understand and control the rhythm and flow of the battle than Adam, and since he is clear about his opponent's strength and can bring his skills to the limit, thus gaining the initiative and advantage in the battle... then even if Adam's power is stronger than that of Fudo Myo-ō, Fudo Myo-ō will certainly be able to gain the upper hand.
Adam couldn't conjure up King-level combat skills and a complete state of mastery out of thin air. Therefore, he only had one option. He could only think of one way to turn the tide:
"Come, my people! Transfer more power to me!"
He wanted to unleash even greater power to completely overwhelm the techniques of Fudo Myoo!
Nearly a million Brain Gods immediately flew towards Adam, connecting and gathering divine power, operating beyond their limits, using pure energy equivalent to the souls of a hundred million humans to suppress and extinguish the Crimson Lotus Karmic Fire that was about to erupt within Adam's body. At the same time, Lilith sang an even more powerful song, soaring straight into the sky—and in the blink of an eye! Adam exhaled a breath of molten steel, completely suppressing the karmic fire within his body!
Because these nearly one million Brain Gods had offered Adam all their prayers and devotion. This pure and supreme power of faith and the selfless essence of their souls helped Adam suppress the three poisons of greed, anger, and ignorance. Deep within his mind and soul, those "toxins" had been suppressed by a golden energy of faith, and the fires of karma naturally ceased to burn.
Adam's supernatural powers suppressed the karmic fire!
But Hayden, on the other hand, clearly couldn't simply copy the same tactics. Because Hayden obviously couldn't receive the same fervent adoration and selfless devotion as Adam. The eight million citizens of New Seattle were now united around Hayden. They had despair, fear, and the will to survive, but few could project positive hope and expectation onto Hayden. After all, Hayden had only ever been a mercenary in New Seattle, not some Batman of New Seattle.
Hayden is not a god or hero in the eyes of the people of New Seattle. And as Adam just said, even if you risk your life to help others, people may not necessarily be grateful to you or even worship you.
...But when has Hayden ever cared about such trivial matters?
"Adam, your biggest misunderstanding is that I don't actually want people to be grateful to me or worship me."
Hayden whispered, "Continue to expand your consciousness and soul, to take in the despair, fear and pain of eight million people into your life."
So the karmic fire of eight million people also burned in Hayden's body, burning his blood like lava, turning his internal organs into ashes, and constantly spewing out bursts.
But Hayden didn't die. The intense heat of the karmic fire couldn't kill him. He had consumed elixirs of immortality, practiced the life-and-death secrets of the Smoke Mirror technique, and had Angela's eternal aura wafting through his soul. To try and roast Hayden to death now would probably have to lock him in the sun first.
He was simply in pain. The karma of eight million people burned him like flames—ah, this pain surpassed everything, nothing could withstand it. It was an unimaginable pain, an indelible pain. It was the pain of carrying the death and despair of eight hundred people on his shoulders. Hayden couldn't even faint from the pain. Perhaps fainting would have been better, because every cell in his body was desperately demanding release… Death would have been more merciful than this pain.
But Hayden cannot die. If he dies, eight million people will suffer the same fate. Panya and Karen might even be caught up in it. At this moment, Hayden has this responsibility, a responsibility that even death is not allowed to bear.
Since Hayden possesses immortal life and immortal power... the only difficulty he faces at this moment is pain.
What we need to solve now is suffering through a "great project".
"Pry open the clutches of greed, free yourself from troubles and return to peace. Let light illuminate ignorance and repel the shadows of suffering!"
So now the one chanting the spell is no longer Hayden, but Karen.
When Hayden was in so much pain that he wished he could die, the only person who could help him complete the remaining ritual steps was Karen!
That being said, if we want to make good use of the hearts and minds of the citizens of New Jersey, we naturally need users who are in favor of the people, and we need someone to play the core role of the people of New Jersey in the ceremony.
Hayden wasn't really suited to be the core figure. Although he'd lived in New Jersey for ten years, he lacked a strong emotional connection to the city. Karen? She was even less suitable. She was a born goddess. Compassionate and courageous, she lacked the genuine connection to the people.
Fortunately, there is someone here who is more suitable to be the citizen representative of New Seattle than Hayden and Karen.
"Sing, Panya!"
Hayden was still suffering, so Karen spoke to Pania.
“Angela cannot sing before the gods, so you must become the core of this ceremony, the core of the collective consciousness of the people of New Yatu! Go and sing for Hayden, and use your song to blow away his pain!”
With all the gods focused on Neo-Yatu, Angela couldn't possibly sing in front of everyone. So now, the only singing mage left on Hayden's side was Pania—thankfully, she still had one head! Thankfully, even a god with only one head can sing loudly!
The next instant, her mind was connected to the collective mental life of eight million citizens of New Jersey by Karen's divine power. The thoughts of eight million people—all their current pain, fear, panic, sorrow... all these negative emotions—flowed into Panya's little head all at once.
The despair and terror that makes one scream and weep, the fear that cannot be expressed in words, the inability to think rationally in absolute panic… these are the three poisons, these are “afflictions.” Today, New Jersey is suffering such great turmoil, and everyone faces the threat of death. If there are still people who do not feel any affliction or terror, then it can only be said that this person truly possesses the transcendent mindset of a saint. Unfortunately, most people do not have this mindset.
Now, all eight million people are gathered together by Karen's divine power and cannot move around (this method is somewhat forceful, but there is no other way for the time being). However, since their bodies cannot move around, their minds will be even more terrified. The three poisons of fear and affliction become the fuel for the Red Lotus Karmic Fire, which will burn Hayden and everyone else to death.
Fortunately, Panya had confronted the negative emotions of millions of people and escaped their clutches, defeating them. Moreover, she was particularly carefree, fearless, almost devoid of greed, and even lacking much attachment to worldly things. Therefore, at this moment, the three poisons and karmic fire did not cause her much pain or affect her.
After she was immersed in the terror and panic of eight million people, Pania did not join in the horror. Instead, she suddenly realized what she needed to do and why Hayden and Karen wanted her to do it.
Taking a deep breath (though how one could breathe with only their head remaining was a very strange question), Pania began to sing loudly, her voice beautiful:
"I sing of the blood that surges across the earth,"
"And those brave warriors who shed their blood;"