194 Chapter 194: The Heavens and Earth Roar (1/2)

”Just as strong as the legends say you are, huh?”

Despite my predicament, I couldn't help but smile.

In the distance, Selina frowned in puzzlement. ”You…you are laughing?”

No, I was ripping off lines from an old anime that was adapted from a legendary visual novel, but she didn't have to know that. Instead, I merely grinned at Hades and jumped away before his scythe could reach me.

The ground where I was lying on was completely pulverized, but I made use of the debris as makeshift footholds, jumping from one to the other and ascending higher and higher. I managed to reach a balcony of the building we currently resided in, an expansive area that was once filled with an artificially created garden with expensive plants and flowers.

Hades emerged out of the hole in the ceiling and leaped toward me, brandishing his Annihilation in an intimidating manner as he bellowed.

”I never told you, did I?” I asked as I turned to face him. There was still quite some time before he reached the balcony, and I had a clear sight of him through the hole in the ceiling. His bulk was working against him right now, making it difficult for him to clear the huge distance in one bound. The debris, which I had used to propel myself to such a huge height, would simply crumble under his weight. ”My most powerful techniques aren't my sword techniques. I'm more of a ranged fighter. Sagittarius.”

A black bow materialized in my left hand and a flaming arrow in my right. I fitted Alnasl to the string and pulled it back as far as I could before I took aim at the charging spirit.

Hades didn't seem to care that I had a flaming arrow pointed right at his chest. Roaring, he continued coming straight at me.

”Alnasl.”

I released the bowstring. The flaming arrow flew from my fingers and struck the rapidly approaching Hades squarely in his chest before exploding into a supernova of fiery light that seared all the way into the heavens and temporarily lighting up the night sky with a crimson blaze.

Hades howled as he was consumed by the inferno, his immolated body dropping like a rock and crashing onto the ground below. He vanished in an explosion of fiery debris, disappearing in a crater that continued to be consumed by ravenous flames.

”Hades actually got blasted back from that?”

I caught sight of Selina, who was now finding herself being pressured by a reinvigorated Anastasia. She was deflecting the latter's poisoned blades from her bodysuit and face, but she couldn't help but turn toward the raging inferno in my direction. Her eyes widened as she watched the smoldering silhouette of Hades bathed in crimson flames, breathing heavily as he knelt within the inferno. The Assassin turned her gaze back to me.

”Who exactly is that boy? Is he actually summoning spirit weapons?”

I ignored her awestruck dread and focused on my opponent, my brow wrinkling in a frown. Despite taking a direct hit from Alnasl and being incinerated, Hades was still quite very clearly alive. Shaking my head, I sighed in disbelief.

”Normal spirits would already be dead from that.”

Hades raised his head and screamed at me. The entire surroundings shattered, the inferno enveloping him actually dissipating from the sheer force of his sonic assault, and even so high above, I was thrown off my feet when I was buffeted by his thunderous voice.

”Ugh!” I raised my hands as if to defend myself. Then I turned around and began bounding away. I could hear Hades coming after me, launching himself upward like a bullet and smashing through the ceiling, creating a second hole.

I skidded across to the other end of the balcony, realizing that I was cornered. Behind me, Hades cleaved trees and plants unfortunate enough to be in his path, rampaging through the luxurious garden and uprooting the meticulously tended shrubs in his berserk fury. Despite the ample cover the flora provided, Hades managed to reach me.

I suddenly spun around and jumped, dodging a fatal blow from Annihilation. Landing on my feet, I took several hops back, refusing to take my eyes off my opponent. Hades continued, undaunted, both his halberd and his body tearing trees out by their roots and hurling them across the open space.

”You move pretty well even with a huge body,” I remarked bitterly when I saw that the terrain wasn't able to slow him down one bit.

Amidst my retreat, I raised both my hands and focused mana into them, completing another summoning spell.

”Chains of Andromeda!” I yelled. The heavy chains materialized above Hades, descending upon him and restraining him. I tightened the chains as much as I could, wrapping the heavy metal around his body and binding his limbs. I tossed the chains in four different directions, focusing my mana and manifesting four giant nails to anchor them into the ground. Hades struggled against his restraints, but the chains held firm, refusing to budge.

”Gemini!”

The twin swords appeared in my hands again. I threw them at Hades' exposed chest and shoulders, but they spun away after being deflected by the giant's rock-hard skin. Gritting my teeth, I summoned a second pair of Gemini twin swords and charged them with mana. Scraping my foot against the ground, I threw the both of them with all my might.

”Castor! Pollux!”

All four Gemini twin swords spun around and struck the trapped Hades before exploding into black and white infernos that engulfed the black goliath.

Hades let out an enraged scream of pain as the black and white flames licked his skin.

”W…what?!”

Unable to contain her surprise, Selina spun around to witness the setback her contracted spirit had just experienced. Anastasia seized the opportunity to close in and stab her with her daggers, but Selina almost casually deflected them by striking the former's forearm and then kicking her in the gut. Fortunately, Anastasia whirled around gracefully to avoid her enemy's foot and lashed out with her other dagger, forcing Selina to block it with her sword.

Damn…so close! If Anastasia had cut her, even just a little, we would have won the battle there and then!

There was no time for me to gloat, however. Hades was still alive. I had to finish this right now if I could. Sprinting forward, I summoned Gemini again.

Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please clickfor visiting.

”Vermillion Phoenix!” I shouted.

The chibi Vermillion Phoenix materialize right above my shoulder, the miniature version of my Celestial Guardian flapping his fiery wings and following me. Satisfied that he knew what I wanted, I leaped high up into the sky.

The chibi Vermillion Phoenix ghosted over both my Gemini swords and enchanted them with his flames. The black and white blades glowed red-hot for a moment and then they transformed, much like Hades' Pluto transforming into Annihilation. The blades grew and elongated, lengthening past my head and then took on the shape of wings. Endowed with the fiery aspect of Vermilion Phoenix, even as I raised both swords high up, against the night sky it seemed almost as if I had produced a pair of fiery phoenix wings that held me aloft for a brief moment.

Anastasia later told me that I looked like an angel of fire. Nah. That was my dad's title. I had no intention of taking it from him.