Even after being cut in half, the colossal Raikōhō still measured nearly fifty meters across—and with terrifying force, it hurtled straight toward Vali.
Suspended in midair, Vali had no choice but to thrust both hands forward and catch it head-on.
The impact was overwhelming.
The sheer force drove him downward without mercy, pressing him closer and closer to the ground until his feet sank deep into the earth, crushing the terrain around him.
Violent arcs of electricity tore through the surroundings, carving jagged, scorched trails across the land with no discernible pattern.
Holding the massive Raikōhō in his hands, Vali's body bent under the pressure. Sparks burst continuously from the gauntlets of his White Dragon Emperor Armor, making it clear that even in Balance Breaker, the strain was reaching its limits.
"Reflect!"
The voice of Albion echoed from the jewels embedded across the armor. In an instant, a powerful energy field surged outward from Vali's body.
With a furious roar, he unleashed it—
—and blasted the massive Raikōhō away!
"BOOOOOOM—!"
The deflected sphere crashed into an open stretch of land not far away. A blinding flash erupted first—then, in the next instant, an overwhelming explosion of light and heat detonated outward.
Lightning tore across the battlefield in wild arcs. Any single strand of that power was enough to annihilate mid- to high-ranking devils or angels with ease.
The ground trembled violently.
When the dust settled, a new scar had been etched into the map of the town—a massive black void. A crater several kilometers wide, plunging so deep that its bottom was impossible to see.
"Hah… hah… hah…"
Vali gasped for breath, staring at the distant crater.
Then he looked down at his arms—
His gauntlets were gone.
Completely destroyed.
A flicker of lingering fear crossed his face.
"…What a terrifying attack. Even after being halved, it still had that kind of power. I couldn't even fully control its trajectory after using Reflect…"
The Sacred Gear Divine Dividing wasn't limited to halving.
That was merely its core ability.
One of its trump cards—Reflect—could bounce back an enemy's energy-based attack. A simple concept, yet brutally effective.
Under normal circumstances, the reflected power could be redirected straight back at the opponent.
But that Raikōhō had been far too powerful.
Vali had used everything he had just to knock it away—he simply didn't have the strength left to guide where it went.
In fact, he couldn't help but wonder—
If that massive lightning sphere hadn't already been weakened by Divide…
Would he even have been able to stop it at all?
Still—
The result proved that he had gambled correctly.
The timing of Divine Dividing's halving effect had been perfect.
It had weakened both his opponent's defense and attack at the same time, allowing him to intercept it head-on.
A flawless exchange.
On the surface, it looked like a trade of damage—but compared to what he had suffered, Ren should have been far worse off.
"After taking that many of my full-power beams… no matter how strong he is, he shouldn't have come out of that unscathed."
Vali turned his gaze toward another part of the battlefield, where dust and debris still hung thick in the air.
He didn't believe that attack had killed Ren.
But as long as Ren was more injured than he was—
Then this fight would be his victory.
Clap… clap… clap…
The sound of slow, deliberate applause echoed from within the dust cloud.
As a figure gradually emerged—
Vali's eyes widened.
Then widened further—
Until disbelief completely overtook his face.
Ren stepped out of the haze.
His breathing was steady.
His bare upper body—completely unmarked.
Not a single wound.
His long crimson hair swayed in the wind, his condition… flawless.
Vali had imagined countless outcomes.
But this—
This was something he had never even considered.
Ren wasn't just less injured than expected.
He wasn't injured at all.
At most, a thin layer of dust clung to his skin.
"That's impossible!" Vali shouted, his composure cracking. "Even if you're as strong as a god or demon—taking an attack like that head-on without defending, even a Demon King would've been injured! How are you completely fine?!"
For someone as rational as Vali, such a reaction was rare.
But what stood before him defied logic.
He himself was an Ultimate-class devil—just below the level of a Demon King.
Combined with Balance Breaker, even if he wasn't particularly skilled in demonic techniques, that earlier barrage had absolutely been powerful enough to injure a Demon King.
Ren had been directly hit.
So how—
How could he be completely unharmed?
"Well… you probably won't believe this," Ren said calmly, as if stating something trivial, "but I have an ability that completely nullifies any attack from opponents weaker than me."
He paused slightly, then added:
"You're strong. But right now, you're still below me. So your attacks don't work."
Vali's expression darkened.
He didn't believe a word of it.
"If that's true," Vali shot back immediately, "then why did my attack hurt you earlier?"
He was referring to when he had first activated Balance Breaker—when his punch had sent Ren flying.
"At that time, your power was equal to—or even above—mine in my normal state," Ren replied evenly. "But after I entered my Half-Oni Transformation, I surpassed you again."
"…Then why," Vali pressed, his voice tightening, "did you bother using a defensive spell just now instead of just standing there and taking it?"
Ren actually paused to think about it.
Then, after a moment, he answered honestly:
"Because… the way you looked, getting all fired up like that… if I just stood there and let you hit me, it might've been a bit too discouraging."
A beat of silence.
Then—
"…So you were just toying with me? Like this is some kind of game?!"
Vali's anger surged.
"Fine. Fine!
"If what you're saying is true—if your Sacred Gear lets you nullify attacks from anyone weaker than you—then all I have to do is surpass you again!
"As long as my power exceeds yours, I can hurt you… I can kill you!"
Hearing those words, Albion immediately realized what Vali intended.
"Vali, stop! This fight has already drained too much of your magic and mental strength. If you use that power now—you'll lose control!"
But Vali ignored him completely.
Instead, he began to chant.
"I, who awaken—
—the Two Heavenly Dragons robbed of all by the law of domination—
—with endless envy, and a heart that longs for illusion—
—I shall walk the path of the supreme White Dragon—!"
Ren had been about to point out that his "King of Arrogance" was his own innate ability—not a Sacred Gear—
But the moment he felt the aura erupting from Vali once again—
His words stopped.
Because that power—
Was rising even faster than before.
Ren's lips curved into a faint smile.
He swallowed the words he had been about to say.
Because now—
Things were getting interesting.