Book 3: Chapter 133 (4) |
Though this fool was childish, *chuunibyou*, and loved playing hero,
Whenever he said “trust me,” no one would hesitate or doubt him.
“You better come back safe, Leon.”
“Mm, our daughters are waiting for us at home.”
Roswitha nodded, descending slowly to place Leon on a clear street, then withdrawing with Rebecca and the others to a safe area.
They landed on a high building, some distance from Leon’s battlefield, where the Primal Nightmare’s tendrils couldn’t reach for now.
Claudia walked slowly to the edge of the building, looking toward the war-torn Upper District.
“He’s going to use the Nine Hells Gate, isn’t he?”
“All nine gates?”
“Yes.”
“But he’s not a dragon. Without a heart-protecting dragon scale, forcibly opening the ninth gate will cause the massive energy backlash to destroy his heart in an instant.”
The *Nine Hells Gate* tome was organized by Claudia and passed to Leon by their master, so she knew the consequences of opening the ninth gate all too well.
Even Claudia, with her heart-protecting dragon scale, had only reached the eighth gate.
Opening the ninth gate required not just effort but exceptional talent.
“A heart-protecting dragon scale…”
Silver strands brushed the beauty’s cheek. She looked at the black figure, her lips curling slightly,
“He has one.”
“What—”
Claudia, briefly stunned, quickly understood, “So he survived back then because of your heart-protecting dragon scale.”
“Yes… so, he’ll win. He definitely will.”
Claudia sighed softly, as if recalling her lovesick sister.
But now wasn’t the time for sentiment.
She turned her gaze to the battlefield, where Leon was gradually opening the Nine Hells Gate.
“Blood Boil, Bone Surge, Godspeed, Star Inertia, Sun Chaser.”
“From the second gate to the sixth, these five moves greatly enhance the user’s physical capabilities and enable corresponding offensive techniques.”
“But the seventh and eighth gates aren’t for offense.”
“Seventh Gate: Twilight Sanctuary, Eighth Gate: Rebirth Radiance. The former is for defense, the latter for rapidly healing the user’s injuries.”
“Both moves are preparations for the ninth gate.”
“Because opening the ninth gate causes energy to backlash against the user, Twilight Sanctuary and Rebirth Radiance help mitigate it slightly.”
“But even so, nearly all practitioners stop at the eighth gate.”
“Either limited by talent or unwilling to risk that *all-or-nothing strike*.”
“And Leon, not even a dragon, is going to open the ninth gate? This is truly exciting.”
Claudia exhaled slowly, watching Leon, who was about to unleash the ninth gate, and continued,
“The final page of the *Nine Hells Gate* has this passage:”
On the distant battlefield, the man stood resolute, like an immovable deity.
“After crossing the nine layers of hell, all things return to zero, and paradise is within reach—”
Red steam rose slowly from his skin, as if the blood in his veins was no longer blood but vivid, molten lava.
And lightning, like an old friend, still accompanied him even in this moment.
“When twilight fades, and radiance falls—”
He leaned forward slightly, like a lion preparing to pounce.
The Primal Nightmare sensed the immense power erupting from Leon and swung its sky-blocking tendrils toward him.
Leon had been waiting for this moment.
He stomped his right foot, launching forward, a surging force spreading around him, his *devastating* will seeming to crush everything in its path.
“The deep night is his only armor—”
The blood-red steam transformed into a majestic lion, charging at the terrifying monster.
“So, Nine Hells, Ninth Gate, this move is named—”
The mad lion roared, shaking the cosmos.
“Night Armor!!”