Enraged beyond restraint, Araksha let out a guttural roar that rattled the chamber.
With a violent motion, it reached behind its back and tore its own armor apart, blackened plates ripping free with the sound of grinding bone and metal. The fragments clattered across the floor as if discarded trash. From beneath the torn plating, a third sword emerged, sealed deep against its spine.
Araksha wrapped its clawed hand around the hilt.
The moment the blade cleared its sheath, the chamber reacted.
The mana in the air collapsed inward.
It didn't disperse or explode. It vanished, dragged screaming toward the sword's edge as if gravity itself had bent. Floating particles of mana twisted into spirals, then were swallowed whole. Even the ambient energy clinging to the walls thinned, leaving behind a suffocating emptiness.
Nullfang had awakened.
The blade was matte black, its surface swallowing light instead of reflecting it. Strange runes crawled along its length, pulsing like a heartbeat. The weapon didn't hum or glow; it devoured, silently and relentlessly.
Araksha's eyes burned with savage delight.
"Let's see you block this, human!"
It swung.
There was no wind. No sound at first.
The air itself vanished where the blade passed.
Mana collapsed instantly, crushed into nothingness, leaving behind a void-like distortion that tore across the chamber. The pressure wave detonated a heartbeat later, slamming into the walls with a concussive boom.
Ashan moved.
Steel met steel again, faster than thunder, louder than explosions.
The collision sent shockwaves rippling outward, pulverizing stone and igniting sparks that bloomed into clouds of glowing dust. Each strike shattered the air, compressing it until it screamed.
Nullfang howled hungrily, its black edge clawing at Ashan's body, attempting to rip the energy straight from his core.
Nothing happened.
Ashan didn't even flinch.
Nullfang slid past him, grazing cloth, skimming skin, but stealing nothing.
Confusion flickered across Araksha's twisted face.
Ashan's lips curved into a faint grin.
'So that's it,' he thought calmly. 'This sword devours mana. Perfect counter to spellcasters.'
His Byakugan traced the pull of Nullfang clearly, watching how it bent mana currents toward itself like a sinkhole.
'But I completely converted everything.'
He twisted his body, seven blades moving in flawless synchronization.
There is no mana left in him.
Only chakra.
Only cursed energy.
Because of that, the sword's greatest power, its absolute theft, found nothing to grasp.
Nullfang, lethal against mages and demons alike, became little more than a sharp piece of metal in this exchange.
Ashan's smile widened.
'I turned all mana into cursed energy and chakra. There's nothing for this sword to drain. That makes me immune to its core function.'
Araksha swung again, faster this time, carving deadly arcs with Nullfang. Each strike dragged the surrounding mana into collapse, leaving scars of emptiness in the air.
Ashan stepped into the storm.
His seven blades blurred, faster than human perception.
Lightning erupted.
Ashan funneled Lightning Release directly into his swords. Chakra surged along the metal, electric blue arcs crawling across every edge. The weapons hummed violently, vibrating with compressed power.
Each blade now carried the destructive force of a Chidori-level strike.
Every block became an impact weapon.
Every feint crackled with lethal voltage.
Steel met steel again, and lightning exploded outward, branching across the chamber walls and floor. The smell of ozone flooded the air.
Araksha recoiled slightly, shock flashing through its eyes.
'The sword… it isn't stopping him.'
The demon lunged, fury boiling over.
All three swords moved together now—Veyra, Solen, and Nullfang, spinning into a full Reaper's Waltz, unleashed without restraint. A tornado of cutting shockwaves erupted, overlapping and intersecting, shredding everything in their path.
The chamber screamed under the assault.
Ashan moved inside the storm.
Seven blades flashed.
One sword under his arm stabbed upward, lightning crackling as it pierced through a shockwave and detonated against Araksha's guard. Another sword spun horizontally, releasing a short-range lightning arc that lashed across the demon's ribs.
The blade in Ashan's mouth descended like a spear of lightning, aimed with terrifying precision.
Araksha staggered.
Electricity tore into its flesh, searing through muscle and bone. Where lightning struck, regeneration faltered, flesh melting instead of knitting.
The demon snarled in disbelief.
'Impossible… my sword!'
Its thoughts screamed as it swung Nullfang wildly.
'It should be draining him! Crushing him! Why is it useless?!'
Ashan's feet glided across the fractured floor, dodging Solen's paralyzing strikes by fractions of an inch. He pivoted effortlessly, torso twisting, hips rotating, seven blades moving as a single system.
Then he spun.
A full seven-sword rotation.
Each blade acted as a conductor, channeling lightning into a spiraling surge. The energy lashed outward like electric serpents, snapping and tearing through the storm of shockwaves.
The air around them exploded with sound.
Metal groaned.
Sparks rained down like a blazing storm.
Araksha tried to counter, pushing its sword style to the limit. Every strike grew faster, heavier, more desperate. Its sword sense screamed warnings nonstop.
But Ashan met every attack.
Speed met speed.
Precision met precision.
The demon's technique was refined, honed over centuries, but it had underestimated one thing.
The integration of Seven Sword Style with lightning.
This wasn't just multiple blades.
This was synchronized destruction.
In that instant, Araksha understood.
The energy flowing through Ashan wasn't mana.
There wasn't even a trace of it.
'No mana…' The realization struck like a curse.
'Then Nullfang is meaningless. Even with my sword style… I can't breach his defense.'
Ashan charged.
It was over before the demon could fully react.
All seven swords thrust forward simultaneously.
Veyra and Solen crossed instinctively to block. Nullfang swung to counter, but Ashan's cursed energy washed over the blade, suppressing its effect entirely.
The impact detonated.
Lightning tore through Araksha's defenses, blades striking critical points with merciless accuracy. Black blood hissed as electricity vaporized it instantly.
Araksha screamed.
Its body was thrown backward, crashing into the chamber wall before collapsing to one knee. Its strength faltered, movements sluggish, coordination shattered.
Ashan didn't stop.
He leapt.
Spinning in midair, he brought the sword in his mouth down in a single, electrified thrust, piercing cleanly through Araksha's chest.
The impact was catastrophic.
Sparks erupted in every direction. The chamber shook violently, stone cracking as if struck by an earthquake. Araksha's arms flew wide, swords clattering to the floor as its body convulsed violently.
Still, it refused to fall.
"RAAAAGH!"
[Demonic Overclock]
Muscles bulged grotesquely, veins glowing as Araksha forced its body beyond safe limits. Speed doubled. Power spiked.
But it was too late.
The accumulated damage, the shattered rhythm, the disrupted sword sense, all of it caught up at once.
Ashan landed smoothly.
He didn't hesitate.
He rotated, seven blades spinning around him like a cyclone. Lightning concentrated, compressing, surging toward the tip of the sword clenched between his teeth.
With a sharp pivot, he plunged the blade into Araksha's chest one final time.
The body convulsed violently.
Blood sizzled and vaporized under the electricity.
The demon's roar echoed once, then collapsed into a hollow gurgle.
Araksha staggered back, barely keeping itself upright as it leaned against the wall. Its body was covered in countless wounds. Burned flesh smoked. Regeneration struggled, barely managing to stop the bleeding.
Ashan walked toward it slowly.
There was no hurry in his steps.
A merciless grin stretched across his face.
"It seems like my seven sword technique overcame yours," he said calmly. "Thanks to you, I finally got to test it properly."
His gaze dropped.
Nullfang lay a few feet away.
Ashan bent down and picked it up, weighing it in his hand.
"A decent sword," he mused. "Since I defeated you, I'll keep this as a reward."
Araksha glared at him, burning hatred flooding its eyes.
'That human…That technique…'
'There's only one way left.'
Either it or its other half had to die and transfer power.
Only then could one of them kill this monster.
Ashan sent Nullfang into his pocket dimension.
Then he clapped.
Slowly.
Mockingly.
"I'll admit it," he said. "You caused me trouble. Without my sword technique, I wouldn't have beaten you in a sword fight."
"So what now?" Araksha sneered weakly.
Ashan crossed his arms.
"Now I meet your other half."
Araksha's eyes widened.
"How did you.."
Ashan raised his hand.
The air thickened.
His eyes bled crimson as the three curved blades in his Sharingan began to spin.
From the darkness, a shimmer rose. Violet-red lines traced through the air. Ribs cracked into existence, forming a massive skeletal cage of energy.
A spine assembled piece by piece.
A towering skeletal giant emerged, eyes blazing scarlet.
Araksha froze.
"What… is this majestic thing?" it whispered. "A hell knight… come to drag me into dawn?"
Ashan smiled beneath his mask.
"This is Susanoo," he said. "The essence of my will."
The giant raised its fist.
Ashan put his mask back on.
"Let's meet your other part," he said softly. "Shall we?"