Chapter 1959: The Final Battle - Maria VS Gabriel [2] |
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"I hope you don’t try that again."
As Maria spoke, her sword swung forward. Gabriel and the Archangels instantly recreated dimensional barriers around their bodies, strong enough to withstand the simultaneous explosion of multiple stars. And yet—
CLAAASH!
Maria’s Oblivion Choir merged with her Myriad Firmaments Sword Soul Dream Heart Art, slicing through planes and dimensions alike. The blade cut straight into the golden mask representing Uriel.
"GAAAAHHHH!"
Completely ignoring their defenses, Maria appeared right in front of them. Her sword, forged entirely from sound, shattered the power Uriel could exert over the Cosmic Monarch’s Embodiment.
"YOU!"
Gabriel roared and rapidly channeled the power granted to him, elevating it to an entirely new level.
RUMBLE!
The titanic Cosmic Monarch body surged with overwhelming power, its muscles swelling massively. All six weapons struck Maria at once, unleashing a devastating barrage of golden celestial strikes amplified to cosmic scale.
CLASH! CLASH! CLASH! CLASH!
"Ngh! Strong... but I can keep up!"
Though dozens of bleeding wounds covered her body, Maria swiftly swung her Oblivion Choir Blade. She embodied the Three Paths and unleashed every ounce of swordsmanship she had learned, now merged with Susanoo—who had become the Domain of Blades within the cosmic radiance—and Jonathan, the Domain of Holy Swords.
Through these two Living Domains, Maria’s swordsmanship evolved to a whole new level. She could hear the voices of everyone cheering for her, urging her not to give up.
"Maria! Take my blade!" Susanoo roared.
"We cannot fight that thing alone. Please, take my power as well!" Jonathan urged.
Their swords compressed into a radiant golden katana that manifested in her hands. Maria swung it down, clashing against all six of Gabriel’s divine weapons.
Michael and Camael, who had been watching closely, rushed forward to join the fray, assisting Maria in the titanic battle.
Michael’s Holy Light Lance and Camael’s Blazing Sword intercepted the golden sword and white hammer that Gabriel and the Archangels wielded together.
CLASH! CLASH! CLASH!
Meanwhile, Maria continued unleashing the techniques she had mastered since her days in Murim and the beginning of her cultivation path.
Seven-colored lights bloomed from her chest, forming a black hole that transformed into a beautiful lotus. From its center, a third sword emerged.
"Use my bark as a sword, Maria!"
"My garden shall bless this blade with beauty and brilliance!"
Emeraldine and Oberon forged a third Domain Sword for her. Maria instantly created a third arm to grasp it.
CLAAASH!
With three swords and two Archangels fighting by her side, Maria finally began pushing back against Gabriel’s relentless assault.
"Nnnggh! W-What is this?! You think you can...! Hahaha! Don’t be ridiculous!"
Gabriel struggled for a moment, but then a crimson light erupted from within his body. From the spot where Uriel’s golden mask rested, a crimson eye opened.
TRUUUM!
A dreadful wave of madness and chaos slammed into Maria and the two Archangels, hurling them back through the stars.
Her gigantic body collided with a nearby gas giant, causing it to collapse and explode instantly. Space debris and stardust scattered in every direction.
BOOOM!
"What was that...?!"
Maria quickly rose to her feet atop the destroyed rocky core of the gas giant and glared at the descending titan.
She saw the crimson eye embedded in the cosmic body—its power both ominous and disturbingly familiar.
"He’s evolving into an Outer God too!" Maria said. "I knew it, this bastard...!"
"Brother Gabriel is an Outer God?!" Camael asked, stunned. "But that’s...!"
"I should have guessed," Michael said bitterly. "His obsession with devouring everything must have come from him. Gabriel was always jealous of my achievements. He was power-hungry. He most likely accepted the Seed of Madness inside him and used his authority as a Cosmic Herald to willingly turn himself into a half-Outer God. All so he could corrupt Father by infecting him with his own madness."
"Yes, that’s right! And I no longer need to hide it, my dear brothers!" Gabriel laughed as he descended, clashing violently against Maria.
He kicked her face with monstrous force while his six weapons rushed forward, stabbing and tearing her body apart piece by piece.
"With the combined power of an Outer God and the Heavenly Father’s Cosmic Monarch Authority, I am invincible! I am the strongest! Maria, your struggle is utterly hopeless!"
"Did you forget something?!"
Maria headbutted Gabriel’s golden mask with brutal force, sending the titan flying.
He crashed into a nearby star, triggering a massive explosion that sent tremors across the fabric of space. Moments later, a black hole began to form behind him, slowly pulling at his body.
"I am also an Outer God—and a Cosmic Monarch! I never relinquished my Authority, and I will show you!"
Using Dream Soaring Blade, Maria tore through reality and teleported in front of Gabriel through the Dream Plane. He responded by seizing the spacetime roots of the black hole and hurling it straight into her face.
As the immense gravitational forces pulled at her, Maria swung all three blades at once. She sliced through the spacetime root within the black hole and instantly mended the rift, causing the black hole to vanish.
"Tch!"
Gabriel spun midair, his six titanic weapons blazing with starlight as they slammed into Maria’s shoulder and head. Blades, hammers, and axes pummeled her relentlessly, and her body bled profusely.
Yet her blood quickly converged and coalesced into yet another sword, a fourth great blade infused with the immense power of multiple Domains.
"Maria, grab it!"
"Mother, it can also shoot bullets!"
Scarlet and Ernestina had used their Domains to forge Maria’s fourth sword: the Sword of Blood.
Wielding four swords now, Maria pressed her counterattack, pushing Gabriel back further and further. As Ernestina had promised, once the blade absorbed enough of her blood, it unleashed hundreds of planet-sized bullets that tore into Gabriel’s monstrous form, covering him in dozens of bleeding holes.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
"Damn it! What is this?! Do something, you bastards!"
After witnessing Maria’s true power, Gabriel began to panic. He forcefully seized control of his brothers, who had clearly grown terrified of her strength. The four remaining masks spoke in cold, robotic voices as Gabriel’s will overrode their own.
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