Abyssal Awakening-Chapter 990: Leader Of The Underground

The man standing before them looked nothing like the leader of the most mysterious information network in the region.

He looked like a traveller.

A beggar even.

His dark hair fell loosely around his face, slightly messy as if he had little interest in maintaining a noble appearance. A thin scar ran across the bridge of his nose.

Stubble covered his jaw.

Clear signs of neglect.

His clothing was simple despite the wealth he should have commanded as the leader of the Underground.

A dark coat hung loosely over his shoulders. Beneath it was a plain shirt tied with rough lacing at the collar. No symbols. No family crest.

And yet the moment he appeared, Alice’s instincts screamed at her.

Danger.

His posture was relaxed.

Almost lazy.

But that was merely a cover for his true strength.

A crooked smile rested on his lips as he casually held Alice’s wrist, stopping her strike from shattering the realm.

And no matter how Alice tried to pull free...

Unless she went all out, she wouldn’t be able to move.

Most importantly, her gaze flickered upward.

To the Sigils hovering above his head.

Nine.

This man stood at the very pinnacle of humanity.

A power that bordered on the Apostles.

"How did you get here?" Alice narrowed her eyes.

Even if he was a Nine Sigil Lord, she wasn’t about to allow him to grab her so casually.

*BANG!!!

Flames erupted from Alice’s wrist.

The sudden burst of heat forced the man to release his grip as the fire began burning through his skin.

He raised an eyebrow slightly, clearly surprised that the flames were eating through his passive reinforcement.

"Hou hou~ That’s quite the spicy flame." He chuckled.

"Hurts a lot more than Allura’s chicken sh*t fire."

He slammed both palms into the ground.

In an instant, the world shifted.

The lake surface vanished.

They were plunged into the depths of hell.

Volcanoes erupted in the distance while rivers of lava carved through the cracked landscape. Flaming serpents burst from molten lakes, lunging toward the two of them.

"Since you’re stronger than you look." He grinned.

"Why don’t we put some of it to the test before we talk?"

His finger snapped.

"!!!"

Alice’s eyes widened.

Danger.

She twisted her body just in time as a beam of crimson energy tore through the space she had occupied a moment earlier.

Her left arm, despite not being hit, began to distort.

Muscles twisted.

Bones cracked.

With a sickening tear, the arm ripped itself free from her torso.

"Tch!" Clicking her tongue, Alice no longer held back.

Summoning her sword, she stimulated her blood to force the regeneration to activate immediately.

"How many times do you think I’ve faced supposedly immortal people? At this level, countering regeneration is a basic requirement or else you cannot stand at the top." He spoke calmly from behind Alice.

His hand already grabbing her face before throwing her to the other side of the realm.

A smile hung on his lips and he leaned forward.

*BANG!!!

Alice burst from a blood mirror, unleashing a Void Flux – Cleave.

But the man tilted his head slightly.

The blade missed by a hair.

Alice’s Vision activated fully as she analysed every movement.

He didn’t have Zone.

He didn’t have Vision.

It was something else.

Something allowing him to predict and evade her attacks.

Was it raw physical ability?

Regardless, this was no time for her to take things easily! Just that first attack alone told her everything she needed to know.

She had to prove herself before they can talk!

First Resonance!

A violent maelstrom of energy erupted from Alice’s body.

The shockwave blasted outward, sending Miki flying backward.

Flipping through the air, Miki summoned her spear and stabilized herself.

Her pupils trembled as she watched the battle unfold.

She knew Alice was strong.

But she had never seen her fight seriously before.

Alice stepped out from the pillar of fire.

A white dress formed around her body.

Her hair fluttered behind her as spider lily patterns spread across her skin.

With a snap of her fingers, the restraints placed on her arm shattered apart, allowing her regeneration to complete instantly.

He folded his arms in amusement.

’What a freakish regeneration.’

As expected of someone trained by Allura. If she wasn’t capable of at least this much, would be concerned about her legitimacy. Her performance here will dictate how much he is willing to share with her.

*BANG!!!

Alice disappeared.

Not through abilities.

Pure speed.

Physical Resonance!

She appeared above him, her crown burning with deep crimson light.

Cayla activated alongside it.

The man opened his palm. Above it hovered a strange black orb that expanded in an instant.

Alice recognised this sensation and immediately backed away.

A frown hung on her lips.

"How do you know that technique?" Alice questioned immediately, slashing the space around her, cutting the invisible strands that would’ve locked up her body.

Space Lock.

Nyer’s technique.

"Same reaction as Allura. Don’t worry, it’s not something that I was taught. It’s merely something I copied after seeing it once when I was younger."

Then, in the next moment, he grinned and summoned a sword.

Exhaling through the mouth, his eyes focused.

*KRK!!!

Alice immediately raised her guard.

After the first clash, she was pushed back as he followed up with two more.

Unable to counter in time, Alice swiped her finger, creating two void rifts to swallow the attacks.

The man let out a slight laugh before diving into his shadow.

Alice’s eyes darted before detonating a singularity above her, blocking his strike.

’Is that...’ Alyss frowned.

’So you also noticed.’ Alice sighed inwardly.

’Cayla, do you have a guess on what his powers are?’

[A few candidates. But I’ll need to see more.]

Taking a deep breath, Alice swapped out her Sigils.

*RUMBLE!!!

The world lost its colour as she activated Tiamat’s power, surprising the man.

This was no doubt the power belonging to a Lord!

But Alice wasn’t done.

Jumping into the air, she activated Duality along with false Resonance!

Wings unfurled behind her. Strands of energy connecting Alice to this realm.

And above her hand, the power of Tiamat gathered into a single destructive orb.

Alice half expected the man to try and interrupt her but he was simply watching.

Confident in his defence.

Or did he had something else up his sleeve.

Amplification loops appeared in front of her as Alice took aim.

Sparks crackled along her arm as a single mote of blinding light formed at the tip of her finger.

Void Flux!

The man smiled.

A single reflective card appeared between his fingers.

It captured everything Alice was about to fire within its surface.

Then, just as Alice released the attack, he flicked his finger and turned the card around.

". . ."

Alice’s eyes widened.

Why was her Void Flux aimed at her?

Why was she on the ground?

Why was the strange man the one firing it?

The questions flashed through her mind in an instant as she immediately recognized the danger.

Without hesitation she slammed her palms together.

The Void was ripped open as she then activated Tiamat’s ability to supplement the energy needed to block her strike!

With a blinding light, Void Flux was fired.

There was no erupted, no sound. Just the visuals of Alice’s attack firing towards the ground.

"To have this level of power despite not being a Lord, Allura did a fantastic job. But~" The man’s voice echoed out as the light slowly died.

"Knowing her, I also doubt she had much hand in your growth. Maybe just some tips at the start. She’s also been moving around a whole bunch so where would she find the time?

"Seems like most of this is your own talent. Good job." He praised.

The dust settled and Alice could be seen bloodied and bruised, having forced herself to block her own attack.

"Aren’t you just f*cking annoying." Alice spat as her wounds slowly regenerated but the speed was slow.

Even though it was her own attack, ’ownership’ was ripped away from her.

She could no longer control the energy used, even if it originated from her powers.

"I’ve been told that a bunch." He grinned, scratching his chin as he landed on the ground.

Alice resummoned Void Fang as she walked slowly. Her eyes capturing everything the man would throw at her.

He did the same, mirroring her movements.

How uncanny.

He was copying her every move but with better specs since he was a Lord and she wasn’t.

"Seems like you figured out my title. Must be that eye of yours. How fascinating."

"Despite how you look, you know an awful lot." Alice frowned.

"I’ll have you know, some women prefer this look." He smirked.

"Then are you married?"

"..."

"Che, how can you claim people like your look when you don’t have a partner. Based on what you said earlier, you’re an old friend of Miki’s father. Single at this age? Really?" Alice spat out, provoking the man while Cayla took this time to analyse everything there is to know about him.

"Your tongue is just as sharp as Allura’s. Let’s see if you can handle this then." He shrugged, changing his stance.

"Since you have an idea of my power, can you guess who landed this scar on my face?" He pointed at the bridge of his nose.

Even though the mark had faded with time, a nasty sword slash was left behind.

"The only woman to land a permanent hit on this body of mine, Allura. I flirted with her and this was my reward for it. Her anger... that glare... The way she slashed without hesitation. How beautiful. I can’t forget it even to this day." He closed his eyes, immersing himself in the memory.

"She stole my heart that day."

Alice’s eyebrow jumped up.

If Kaden heard him say that...

"But let’s set aside my preferences for now. Defend yourself well, kid." He grinned as a strange silver energy wrapped around his blade.