[Ryan's POV]
Considering that I had just sent seven of its comrades to the afterlife—where I'm pretty sure they'd be damned to eternal hell, and too fast for even they themselves to process—the demigod leader was sweating buckets from the sheer pressure of the situation. I say this literally as I look at his face while he's sending that move of his. It was an interesting form of attack where he had combined dark and spatial elements to form a wave of energy rippling toward me.
'Ryan, now is not the time to get sidetracked,' I hastily thought as the Dark-Walker's attack drew closer.
Of course, I had time to think all of this mostly because whatever they tried to dish out really came out as slow, so very slow that I had time to derail my thoughts into something else. Really though... were these guys the elite demon forces sent by that pesky demon god to hunt for Yddra? If they were this weak, I don't think said god is getting his investment worth of search value...
'Poor guy, I kinda feel bad for him,' I thought as I got into a proper stance to deal with this interesting mesh of an attack.
My response to the demigod's introduction to the battlefield wasn't much, to be honest. I just stood as I was, raised my blade in front of me vertically, and swung.
My blade, in conjunction with the mana filled with intent that I had infused into the simple swing, was meant to 'Cut' the attack and disperse it.
And when the attack arrived, just as intended, my sword cut right through it like a knife through butter—an action that left the demigod shaken in shock, but not for long as it began muttering something which then led to the space around the current 100m battlefield to change drastically.
What was a small clearing around the outpost cave that had been interwoven with the jungle's normal appearance and life drastically turned dreary and dark. The sun from above completely disappeared, the trees that had surrounded us disintegrated into ash, and all fauna and plant life simply withered away.
Realizing what this new environment foretold, with my sword in my left hand, I cast a relocation spell on Shion who was behind me, just as fast as the environment was changing, since she wouldn't be able to handle the adverse life-draining characteristics of this particular domain of the demigod.
'So this is how a domain looks like, eh?' I thought as I took my time to look around and observe. 'But isn't it a bit too small?' I wondered when I noticed that the domain had not expanded more than exactly 300 meters around us, which was weird in and of itself.
I mean, normal demigods, even the weakest ones, were termed as absolute beings in the mortal plane, and there was no other way to put it. For even the weakest demigod, the domain that they acquired upon ranking up to their level was as small as 500 meters to around 1 kilometer, depending on various factors such as materials used up when they ranked up, their talent, their unique circumstances, etc. For one to be termed as a demigod, someone who was at the peak of EX-ranked had to consolidate their core and will accordingly to enforce their will on their immediate surroundings with the use of their very own energy, thus making a domain.
So for this Class-1 demigod's domain to be so small, I wond—
'Aaaah shit, now I know why...' I thought as I recalled my first few actions before I confronted these demons.
And judging from what I assumed to be the confused and pained look of the demigod before me, it was also experiencing the difficulty of wanting to naturally expand its domain to its maximum size but being unable to, since "something" was pressing it down and preventing it from expanding.
And that something? It was the isolation barriers I had cast around the outpost and a few more meters around it to give me ample space to work with.
"Yikes, Codex, I didn't think that casting simple isolation barriers could restrict a domain," I muttered while addressing the dictionary in me.
"Indeed, my lord. Considering that you're powering the barrier with a minuscule amount of primordial mana alongside higher quality and enhanced mana from your main and sub-cores respectively, it's bound to be sturdier than what any Class-1 or Class-2 demigod can manage," Codex replied, silently acknowledging the capabilities I had, considering the effort I had made back in isolation.
With that in mind, I was basically the bane of any and all demigods. And sadly for the poor guy, if he did not wake up to his current reality, he was in for a massive world of hurt.
I simply stood there facing the demigod and the other twelve Dark-Walkers who thought they still had a chance, giving them time—around five minutes—to acclimate themselves to their new situation, where even their leader's domain was rendered partially useless since it was now at half efficiency or even less, just from a mere isolation barrier!
"Well... I've given you more than enough time," I spoke out loud in their unique language frequency, an action that still put them off guard, hearing a human speak directly with their means. "You guys better be ready, 'cause you're gonna die..." I said, and moved.
WHOOSH!
My form blurred as I crossed the distance to the nearest Dark-Walker in the span of a heartbeat. The creature barely had time to register my approach before my blade was already in motion, executing a perfect horizontal slash across its midsection.
SHLICK!
The sound of my sword parting flesh and chitin was barely audible, but the aftermath was unmistakable. The Dark-Walker's upper body slid slowly from its lower half, a look of utter confusion frozen on its grotesque features before both halves collapsed to the ground with a wet THUD.
The remaining demons reacted with surprising coordination—testament to their training if not their power. Four immediately flanked me while the others, including the demigod, began weaving complex patterns with their clawed hands, clearly preparing ranged attacks.
SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!
Three of the flanking demons attacked simultaneously from different angles, their talons leaving trails of corrupted darkness in the air. Their movements would have been blindingly fast to most beings on this planet, but to me, they might as well have been moving through molasses.
I pivoted smoothly, my blade describing a perfect circle around my body—a technique called "Horizon Cut." The sword left a momentary ring of blue-white energy in its wake as it passed through all three attackers at precisely neck height.
And as expected, three heads hit the ground in perfect synchronization, followed a half-second later by their bodies. Black ichor sprayed in artful arcs, spattering the ashen ground in patterns that almost resembled calligraphy.
The fourth flanker hesitated, witnessing the fate of its companions. That moment of indecision cost it dearly.
My blade pierced its chest with pinpoint accuracy, driving through what passed for its heart before exiting between its shoulder blades. The demon's compound eyes dimmed as death claimed it, its body sagging around my sword like a puppet with cut strings.
With a casual flick, I dislodged the corpse from my blade and turned my attention to the ranged attackers, who had finally completed their preparations.
VWOOOOM! VWOOOOM! VWOOOOM!
Multiple bolts of malignant energy—each a different hue of corruption—streaked toward me from the remaining eight Dark-Walkers. The air sizzled and warped around these projectiles, carrying enough destructive force to level a small town.
I didn't bother dodging. Instead, I executed a technique called "Wind Wheel"—a series of precisely calculated slashes so fast they appeared as a single movement. My blade left afterimages as it intercepted each energy bolt, slicing them into harmless fragments that dissipated before reaching me.
The demons' compound eyes widened in what could only be described as fear. Their most powerful attacks, neutralized with casual ease, as if I were merely swatting away insects.
CRACK! BOOM!
The ground beneath two of the Dark-Walkers suddenly erupted as I channeled a small portion of earth-element mana through my feet into the soil. Jagged spikes of stone impaled the demons from below, lifting their writhing forms several meters into the air before I severed their suffering with precisely thrown mana blades.
Five down, eight to go.
The remaining demons abandoned their ranged tactics and rushed me en masse—a desperate strategy that spoke volumes about their deteriorating morale. Six regular Dark-Walkers converged on my position from all directions, while the demigod and one other hung back, clearly reassessing their approach.
SWISH! SLASH! THUNK!
My blade danced through the air with mathematical precision, each movement flowing into the next with liquid grace. Arms, legs, heads—demon parts flew in all directions as I employed a technique called "Flowing River," a style designed for multiple opponents where each strike sets up the next in an endless chain of perfectly efficient movements.
One demon managed to graze my shoulder with its talons, tearing the fabric of my clothing but failing to penetrate the defensive layers of mana I had instinctively wrapped around my body.
"Too slow," I commented, driving my blade through its jaw and up into its brain case with a precise thrust.
The creature spasmed once before going limp, joining its comrades in death. I spun away from its collapsing form, already focused on the next target.
The final regular Dark-Walker, witnessing the annihilation of its fellows, turned to flee. It made precisely three steps before I appeared directly in its path, having used a basic spatial movement technique.
"Running already?" I asked, almost conversationally. "We're just getting started."
SCHLICK!
The demon's head separated from its shoulders with surgical precision, its body continuing forward for another step before toppling forward.
Eleven down. Only the demigod and its apparent lieutenant remained.
The lieutenant charged, moving with greater speed and purpose than its fallen comrades. Its form flickered and phased, attempting to use spatial distortion to make its movements unpredictable.
WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!
Its attacks came from multiple angles simultaneously—a sophisticated technique that would have overwhelmed most opponents. But I simply stood my ground, sword moving with minimal, efficient motions to intercept each strike.
After allowing this to continue for several seconds—more to assess its capabilities than out of any real concern—I decided to end it.
"Sword Flash," I whispered, executing the technique that had dispatched the first two sentries.
SHIIIING!
A single, blindingly fast stroke. The lieutenant froze mid-attack, its body perfectly still for a moment before slowly separating along a diagonal line from shoulder to hip. The two halves fell away from each other, revealing a cut so clean it seemed almost surgical.
And then there was one.
The demigod Dark-Walker regarded me with a mixture of fear and confusion. In less than a minute, I had systematically eliminated its entire squad—elite warriors who had terrorized this forest for centuries.
"Impossible," it hissed in its alien language. "What manner of human are you?"
I smiled thinly. "Just a newbie swordsman, really."
The demigod's response was a roar of defiance as it unleashed its full power. The domain around us darkened further, gravity increasing as space itself warped under the creature's influence. It grew in size, chitinous armor sprouting additional spikes and its compound eyes glowing with malevolent energy.
The demigod attacked with everything it had—spatial rends that could slice through reality itself, bolts of corrupted energy that could wither a forest in seconds, physical strikes enhanced by demonic power to shatter mountains. The display was impressive, the raw destructive potential staggering by this world's standards.
But to me, it was simply... insufficient.
I countered each attack with minimal movement, my blade finding the perfect angle to deflect, disperse, or nullify every offensive attempt. Where the demigod was all fury and power, I was all for economy and precision.
"Is that all?" I asked after allowing this to continue for nearly a minute.
The demigod's response was to gather all its remaining power into a single, devastating attack—a sphere of concentrated negative energy that would annihilate everything within a kilometer radius if released.
"Die, human!" it snarled, hurling the death sphere toward me.
VWOOOOOOM!
The attack moved with surprising speed, warping the very air around it. I might have been impressed if I hadn't seen far more dangerous techniques during my training.
"Wind Wheel," I stated calmly, executing the technique with greater precision than before.
SHIIIIIING!
My blade moved in a perfect pattern, slicing the death sphere into increasingly smaller fragments until it dissipated entirely, leaving nothing but a gentle breeze in its wake.
The demigod stared in disbelief, its compound eyes wide with incomprehension. "How...?"
"Sword Flash," I replied simply.
A single stroke, too fast for even the demigod to perceive. For a moment, nothing seemed to happen. Then a thin line appeared at its neck, slowly widening as its head tilted backward at an unnatural angle. THUD!
The demigod's head hit the ground, its body following a moment later. The domain around us flickered and faded, reality reasserting itself as the power sustaining the demonic space dissipated.
But I wasn't finished. These weren't ordinary demons—they were scouts with direct connections to their masters. I could sense the faint magical signatures embedded in their flesh, designed to force resurrection or at least relay information back to their superiors upon death.
Kneeling beside the demigod's corpse, I traced a complex pattern in the air above it. Golden runes materialized at my fingertips, forming a seal designed to contain and neutralize the demonic essence.
"Soul Seal," I murmured, pressing the completed formation into the creature's chest.
SIZZLE!
The runes sank into the dead flesh, spreading throughout the body like golden veins before fading from view. The magical signature I had detected earlier flickered and died, the connection to its demonic master severed permanently.
Methodically, I repeated this process with each fallen Dark-Walker, ensuring that none would return and no information would reach their superiors. The entire procedure took less than five minutes—a necessary precaution to ensure the safety of The Groove Canopy and, by extension, Yddra.
Once finished, I dispelled the isolation barrier with a casual wave of my hand. The forest around me shimmered back into view, life and vitality returning to the area as if the demonic domain had never existed.
I found Shion waiting outside, but she wasn't alone.
"Ryan! You're alive!!" she exclaimed, approaching me excitedly and almost ramming into me had I not dodged.
She was accompanied by her parents, both of whom I assumed had been called once she saw her change in scenery happen too fast and realized she could not enter the isolation barrier I had set up.
"What happened? Where are the Dark-Walkers?" Haruk asked with a frown and concerned face. I assumed he had extended his senses, but they were returning nothing by my estimation. The same was true for his wife, Scheya, who wore a more confused expression than the worried one displayed by her husband.
"Done and dusted. I killed them off, actually. One of them was a demigod, and once it began deploying its domain, I quickly sent Shion outside the isolation barrier since the domain itself had a particular life force draining effect that would have sucked her dry..." I replied casually and began walking back to the Groove Guardian's domain to confirm that the protective barrier around their territory, as well as the surrounding perimeter of Yddra's domain, was properly secured. I didn't want any level of beings to even come close, you know, since I needed said fragment alive and well.
The Groove Guardian family, however, remained rooted to the spot, shell-shocked and morbidly appalled at my actions.
Scheya, trying to overcome her reeling mind, asked quickly before she misunderstood anything:
"Ww...waa..waaait," she literally stammered from her incredulousness, trying to process what she had heard their goddess's friend say. "You...you killed them? All of them? How? That's impossible! There was a demigod in there, for crying out loud! It's the reason why my husband and I are here, to make sure it stayed dead, to counter their soul-resurrect ability cast on them by their leaders...!!" She spoke what she and her family were thinking.
"It's not that hard, you know. Just cast an isolation barrier, use a few simple sword skills and techniques, and easy peasy lemon squeezy, all twenty problems are done with..." I replied with a shrug and continued on, not caring if they followed since I was in a rush to finish my work and look into other matters.
Seriously, I really wondered why they were so surprised at my actions, considering it was normal for my level. What would have been abnormal was not being able to kill that team fast enough, and I thought I had done it all in good time and patted myself on the back.