As soon as she finished speaking, Guanyin Bodhisattva was seized by [Reincarnation] and pulled into the golden sun and the spinning gears of time. Although Guanyin Bodhisattva resisted desperately, the invisible gravity of this [Reincarnation] system still enveloped her, spinning her violently, like throwing beans into a millstone, trapping her, and completely crushing and grinding her.
Reincarnation is like a giant millstone, driven by the flow of time, crushing people's souls like beans, and then transforming them into new forms according to Mithras's will.
Guanyin Bodhisattva was arrested and defeated.
Manjushri Bodhisattva was arrested and defeated.
Samantabhadra Bodhisattva was arrested and defeated.
The remaining few powerful figures were easily absorbed into [Reincarnation] and wiped out!
Only Kallen was still activating the Five-Colored Divine Light, struggling desperately.
Undoubtedly, if one is caught by [Reincarnation], it's all over.
But trying to understand this kind of illogical and great magic is futile; it's unlikely that it will be easy to misunderstand it in the short term.
What solutions are available?
Even spacetime has been distorted; what method can possibly resist it?!
"Why are you struggling, Karen?"
Mithra calmly said, sitting upright at the center of the illusory universe,
"Because of your karmic connection with your husband, I won't immediately use [Reincarnation] to completely erase your current memories and personality; I'll only handle it slightly. There's no need to resist so fiercely right now."
Stop joking, you BL-obsessed deadbeat! I'm not playing along with this brainwashing plot!
Karen was both shocked and furious, yet she couldn't find a way to break Mitra's [Reincarnation] power. The pull of [Reincarnation] was like the gravity of the sun. Its immense mass could warp space and rob people of all freedom of movement. Being drawn to [Reincarnation] was like being drawn to the sun; gravity bound Karen's hands and feet like invisible ropes.
Mithra's divine power and Karen's divine power are actually quite similar in nature, but the difference in their mass is enormous. Although she also has "mass" and five-colored radiance, it is suppressed by Mithra's [Reincarnation] gravity and is basically ineffective.
Because light can be swallowed up and obscured by stronger light.
An overwhelming force was about to pull Karen in. This fact alone was undeniable.
Now, Karen is finally at her wit's end.
As she was being pulled along by the cycle of reincarnation, she heard Mithra say from the center of the cycle:
"Life, which comes from birth and then departs, may it go toward the light. At the end of the future, there will surely be the light of Nirvana that shines upon all."
What should we do now? What should we do?
Karen wasn't particularly afraid of death, and she had mentally prepared herself for things to go wrong before coming. But now, a strong sense of fear welled up inside her. It wasn't because Karen was afraid of death, but because she suddenly realized that if Mitra captured her and brainwashed her with [Reincarnation], she wouldn't be the only one to suffer.
She is not alone now. If she is captured by [Reincarnation], what will happen to the baby in her womb...?
(no)
She absolutely cannot lose here!
The fear welling up from the bottom of her heart, and the power brought by this fear and love, was what spurred Kallen to pull herself together and desperately activate the [Five-Colored Divine Light] to resist!
Since we can't find a solution or avoid it, let's just fight it head-on!
Then something incredible happened.
Mitra was calmly adjusting [Reincarnation], preparing to capture Karen precisely. However, suddenly, he sensed some strange energy shifts.
A strange change is distorting the [Reincarnation] around Karen and trying to grab her gravity. A surge of power overflows, filling Karen's body and resisting the external spacetime distortion—even carving out a path for her to escape within the distortion!
Is there any reason for this?
“Oh, I see.” Mitra then looked at Karen carefully and immediately understood, “...It’s your child. It hasn’t been born yet, so it’s not in the cycle of reincarnation. It’s already connected to the divine spacetime of the outer universe, transmitting power from outside the universe, which can distort my cycle of reincarnation to capture it.”
As soon as she finished speaking, Mitra waved to Kallen again. A second and third wave of gravity surged forth—but they couldn't reach her. The child Kallen and Hayden were carrying still possessed protective power. The gentle gravity of love dispelled the gravity of [Reincarnation], supporting Kallen.
Now that things had come to this, Karen knew that staying in this wretched place was just asking for trouble. She was the type to be decisive when necessary, and immediately seized the brief opportunity the child had given her, turning and fleeing!
Karen's power was already close to that of a Bodhisattva. Although running away was shameful, she still ran extremely fast! In the blink of an eye, she had already reached the edge of this artificial universe and was about to escape Mitra's secret chamber.
“You two are really good at surprising me.” Mitra shook his head and pointed at Karen’s back from a distance. A strong gravitational wave immediately shot out from his index finger.
Even with her exceptional talent, Kallen was still just a junior member of the divine society; even if her talent was comparable to Mitra's, she was still four hundred years behind in terms of accumulated experience. Therefore, if Mitra were to land a slightly serious attack on her, Kallen would undoubtedly be defeated. This strike would surely extinguish all of Kallen's ability to resist, leaving no possibility of even a miracle.
Everything will come to an end.
However—provided that he watches helplessly as his daughter suffers a painful and desperate end.
Will he stand by and watch Karen be defeated and become a puppet that Mitra can easily brainwash?
This is impossible.
Just as Mitra's gravitational torrent was about to strike Karen's back, a sword light suddenly shone there. Gravity—a stellar-level gravitational pull—was severed by the sword of cleaving light and dispersed like mist.
A terrifying, utterly terrifying consciousness arose simultaneously, as if a wall had suddenly been erected in the universe, infinitely high above, infinitely deep below, infinitely far to the left, and infinitely far to the right, severing all life, drying up streams, extinguishing flames, stopping strong winds, drying up the earth, and destroying life.
This is what is meant by cutting it off with a sword.
The term "斩" (zhǎn) means "to kill".
The world's strongest sword has already stood behind Kallen, protecting her.
"Mitra, what do you intend to do to my daughter?"
The Peacock King has arrived.
426: The Strongest Man in the World (Part 1)
Just as Karen was in grave danger, the Peacock King arrived in time to save his daughter.
Strange, why would the Peacock King appear here?
The reason is actually quite simple. Since Guanyin Bodhisattva was able to sneak in with a small team of assassins, and since Mithra allowed this team of assassins to break in, then the Peacock King could certainly find a way to get in as well.
Moreover, Mithra seemed completely unsurprised by the Peacock King's sudden visit. Could it be that his emotionless, double pupils truly saw through everything that would happen in the past and future?
"Samael."
Mithra glanced at the uninvited guest and said listlessly,
"You're no longer a player in this era's game. What are you trying to prove with something so outdated?"
Indeed. As Mithra said, the Peacock King, the strongest of the "Old Era," is completely unable to compete with the invincible Ultimate Mithra of the "New Era."
The Peacock King's strongest sword strike could kill a Bodhisattva, yet Mithra casually flicked his wrist, sending three Bodhisattvas to the millstone of reincarnation to be ground into soybean milk. The difference in their power is immeasurable. No matter how skilled the Peacock King is in battle, he should be no match for Mithra.
His ability to sever Mithra's [Reincarnation] gravitational field with a single sword strike is already an incredible achievement. After all, other bodhisattvas were captured and instantly killed. Mithra possesses even greater power. The Peacock King, however, should be unable to advance any further. He cannot compete with Mithra on the same stage.
...I don't think that's possible, is it?
The Peacock King did not answer Mitra's question. He only said to his daughter behind him, "Karen, leave the moon quickly and return to Newbeam City. I will handle Mitra."
Karen was taken aback, then immediately shook her head: "Father, I want to fight alongside you."
"There's no need. Besides, you don't have enough ability yet," the Peacock King said calmly. "Staying here will only hinder my performance. You should leave quickly."
While there was some truth to that, Karen was still puzzled and slightly resentful: "Father, are you even capable of fighting Mithra?"
This is something that can't possibly be true, right?
Even Mitra looked at the Peacock King and Karen with curiosity. Then, he understood: "So that's how it is, there's this trick too. But it's useless."
However, the Peacock King ignored him.
Therefore, the current situation left Kallen extremely hesitant. She had long known that her father possessed astonishing power, but rationally she also knew that Mitra was even stronger and more astonishing than that power… However, the Peacock King was not wrong either. With Kallen's current strength, which would allow her to be captured by [Reincarnation], keeping her would only hinder the Peacock King's performance, causing him to lose even his one in ten thousand chance of victory!
Should I leave or not?
Thinking of this, Karen looked at her father's back again... Her father was like a god who could kill all life in the world, tall and invincible... Mitra may be the ruler of all things, but this feeling of being the strongest war god is something that only her father, the Peacock King, possesses in the whole world.
In the deepest part of Karen's heart, the Peacock King will always be the person she respects and loves the most.
...Perhaps the Peacock King really could accomplish the impossible, create a miracle, and just like that, kill Mithra?
After much thought, Karen was still worried about her father and finally couldn't help but ask, "Father, you're not going to sacrifice yourself to save me, are you?"
The Peacock King did not answer his daughter's question.
The person who answered Karen's question was not her father.
"Silly daughter, you have so little faith in your father. Would he lie to you? Okay, let's put it another way, even if you don't trust your father, we've got your mother involved too. Don't you trust her either?"
Suddenly, the goddess Hela emerged from outside the secret chamber, strolled leisurely to stand beside the Peacock King, and spoke to Karen in a serious tone.
Karen was even more surprised, almost shocked: "Mom!? What are you doing here!?"
The strongest Mingwang, Peacock, might still be able to kill a Bodhisattva, so isn't Hela, a minor deity, just courting death by coming here?
“You don’t understand. My dear daughter, your father actually needs me by his side to unleash his full potential. I am his biggest winning factor.”
Hela said with a smile.
But Karen really didn't know whether she should trust her most unreliable biological mother.
Fortunately, the Peacock King finally spoke: "Karen, whatever you decide, you should at least leave here now. Even if it's just to go somewhere safer to watch the battle. If you really want to do something, wait until I'm truly defeated before you make your move."
Karen was speechless and turned to leave.
Inside the secret chamber, in this illusory, artificial universe, only Mithra, the Peacock King, and Hela remain.
Mitra didn't intervene to stop Karen again. Everything was going according to plan—or at least that's what he claimed—he simply observed the Peacock King and Hela for a moment, then said thoughtfully:
"Fallen angels from outer space, monsters who are neither alive nor dead and cannot even enter the cycle of reincarnation. Your era has long passed. But as long as you don't cause trouble and sit quietly to the side, I can allow you to witness the dawn of a new era. I have no need to, and will not, exterminate you."
The Peacock King did not speak, but simply shook his head.
However, Hela wasn't as composed. She directly mocked, "Mitra, is it because your precognitive eyes see a one in ten thousand chance of you being defeated and dying, that you're afraid to fight us, husband and wife?"
“Nonsense.” Mitra glanced at Hela. “I saw it all. You will come, you will rescue your daughter, you will use all your might, and… you will be defeated by me.”
"However, since we are about to engage in battle with the Outer Gods' army, I am willing to conduct a practical test with you first. After all, it is indeed difficult to find a true substitute for an angel."
No sooner had he finished speaking than Mitra waved his hand again. A truly terrifying thing immediately followed.
Without any outward manifestation, without any strange divine power or spatial fluctuations, Mitra, along with the Peacock King and Hela, was suddenly moved out of the secret chamber, instantly teleported from the palace inside the moon, and moved to the surface of the moon.
...Not only that, but also terrifyingly powerful beings were instantly pulled over by Mithra from various distances. Their towering figures filled the lunar surface with divine radiance.
It is the Wing King.
Kundali, the King of Light, has blue skin, one face and eight arms. His hands are in mudras, and his remaining six hands hold various divine weapons such as a vajra, a wheel, a trident, and a sword, demonstrating his immense power.
Yamantaka, with blue skin, six faces, six arms, and six legs, displays extreme wrath, carries flames on his back, and wields weapons such as a halberd, bow, rope, sword, arrow, and club, demonstrating his immense power.
Vajrayaksha, with black skin, three heads and six arms, five glaring eyes, holds a vajra bell, a vajra pestle, and a bow and arrow. There is also a vajra pestle in his navel... well, showing his great power.
Hayagriva, with red skin, wears a skull necklace, has three open eyes, and snakes coil around his wrists. He holds a skull bowl and a skull staff, and his fierce appearance is terrifying, which also shows his great power.
The Invincible King, with yellow skin, four faces and four arms, all with furrowed brows and angry expressions, hair like fire, muttering incantations in a low voice, his hands forming hand seals, and holding an axe and a trident. These were surely to demonstrate his immense power.
Vajrapani, the Great Wisdom King, is entirely the color of emptiness. He has only one head but eighteen arms, one right hand holding an umbrella and the other left hand holding a vajra. He is probably the least popular of the Eight Great Wisdom Kings.
At last,
Of course, it is the famous and renowned Fudo Myo-o, who has always been on par with the Peacock King, is considered the most important among the Eight Great Myo-o, and is also the strongest directly under Mithra himself.
Unlike other wrathful deities, he did not appear standing, but rather seated in mid-air. Furthermore, unlike the other wrathful deities with their exaggerated heads and arms, he possessed only a head and two arms like an ordinary person, and held no weapon. He appeared remarkably calm.
Even without using any transformation effects, each of the Myō-ō (myō-ō) was over three meters tall. It's rare for someone to intentionally adjust their genes like that... unless they were a true, specifically designed, new god designed for combat from the very beginning.
The so-called Myō-ō (with the exception of the ancient god Peacock) are all new gods who display such immense power. They are super combat modifiers specially designed and conditioned.
"...Oh dear, all eight Great Wisdom Kings are here. You've made such a big fuss?" Even Hela was taken aback. "Huh? Where's the Three-fold Wisdom King?"
“He’s busy dealing with the trouble your son-in-law caused in Japan, killing a Susanoo or something, and he happens to be an old friend of both of yours,” Mithra said calmly. “Seven Vidyarajas are enough to defeat you. After all, this is just a practical test before the main showdown with the external gods.”
As space shifted, the situation changed. The seven Vidyarajas surrounded Peacock and Karen, while Mithra was already far away, retreating two thousand kilometers away, having withdrawn from the battlefield.
"Seven Bright Kings".
Finally, the Peacock King spoke.
"Mitra, do you think you can defeat me and Hela with this little force?"
This small force—this dismissive statement clearly insulted the seven Ming Kings. Several of them glared angrily at the Peacock King.
"Don't boast yet," Mitra replied calmly. "They were all strengthened after I completed my [Reincarnation]. Although they are all Kings, they all possess the power of a God-level being, which is more than enough to overwhelm even angels."
The seven supreme deities, all manifesting in their true forms, surrounded the Peacock King and Hela. Each of them exuded divine might, pressing down on the Peacock King and Hela with overwhelming pressure. Logically, even if the Peacock King was also a deity, and the strongest one at that, he should have been severely suppressed.
However, the Peacock King remained calm and composed.
"Do I have to fight you dogs before I kill my master?"