CHAPTER 60: THE SOVEREIGN'S VICTORY
Impernos raised his hands to the sky. The sky darkened, clouds scattered. An indescribable power was gathering above them.
"ULTIMATE TECHNIQUE – ATOM METEORS! "
He shouted with all his might: "Now you will die!"
Suddenly, three giant meteors appeared in the sky. They were so massive they blocked out the sun. Each one possessed the power to break down everything it struck to the atomic level.
Bay X looked up at the sky. Three meteors were descending upon him.
"Three meteors?" A smile appeared on his lips. "Interesting... But I have the power to stop them all. This isn't enough!"
He closed his eyes, summoning the power within.
"DRAGON AURA! "
His power instantly doubled. The red aura radiating from his body illuminated everything around him. His regeneration speed had also doubled.
He raised his spear into the air. Suddenly, two more tips appeared on the spear. It became a three-headed spear, resembling a dragon's claw.
"THREE-HEADED DRAGON ATTACK! "
He swung his spear with all his might. Three energy waves shot from the spear, tearing through the air toward the meteors.
BAM! BAM! BAM!
Impernos watched without blinking. "I can feel it... Your power has doubled. But this won't be enough!"
The meteors were descending at full speed toward Bay X's location. At that moment, the three-headed dragon attack collided with the meteors.
BOOOOMMMM!
A massive explosion erupted in the sky. But the meteors didn't stop.
Each meteor had the power to destroy an entire city. Bay X's attack wasn't enough to stop them.
Bay X's eyes widened. "T-This is impossible! Why didn't they stop?" He looked around desperately. "What do I do? They're all coming at me!"
Impernos's voice rang with victory: "Not even your regeneration can save you now. This is over!"
A final spark of hope flickered in Bay X's eyes. "No! I can still fight!"
He gathered all his power, preparing for his final technique.
"ULTIMATE TECHNIQUE – DRAGON DIMENSION! "
The area around him began to vibrate. Suddenly, Bay X vanished.
Impernos's eyes widened like saucers. "HA? WHERE DID HE GO?"
A voice echoed from a different dimension: "I am now beyond time. You cannot reach me for one minute."
The meteors struck the area where Bay X had been. But nothing happened. The meteors disappeared into the space-time orbit.
Impernos gritted his teeth. "Damn it! Because the area he was in passed beyond time, the meteors were lost in the space-time orbit."
The meteors vanished instantly.
Bay X's voice came from the different dimension: "I'm sorry Impernos, but this battle is over now."
Suddenly, an attack came from the different dimension.
"DRAGON BREATH! "
Impernos's eyes widened. "Faster than before! This can't be!"
He couldn't react in time. He took the hit.
BOOOOMMMM!
A massive energy explosion... When the energy dissipated, Impernos lay on the ground. His chest was torn open, covered in blood everywhere. He was motionless.
Bay X's voice echoed victoriously from the different dimension: "Finally, even you took damage. So your defense isn't impenetrable after all. At least not by me!"
There were twenty seconds left until his technique ended.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
The victorious expression on Bay X's face turned to astonishment.
Impernos was slowly rising to his feet.
Bay X's voice trembled: "H-How? How are you not dead? That attack tore you apart! You should be dead!"
Impernos's wounds opened a little more with each word, and he coughed blood. But his voice was still strong.
"I'll show you... why they used to call me 'Sovereign.'"
Bay X couldn't believe it. "This is meaningless! This battle is over! I won!"
A painful smile appeared on Impernos's lips. "This ego of yours... will cause your defeat. Know this."
Bay X launched one final attack. "Take this then!"
Two attacks came from the different dimension this time. One vertical, one horizontal. A double attack.
BOM! BOM!
Both struck Impernos.
Impernos knelt down. But he didn't fall. His body was completely torn apart, shattered.
"I have to admit..." he said with difficulty, "this is the first time I've seen my body like this. But this is enough. Because one minute is up."
At that moment, Bay X fell from the Dragon Dimension back to the normal dimension.
Bay X immediately composed himself. "I may have returned to the normal dimension. But in your current state, it's impossible for you to defeat me! And I won't stop!"
He closed his eyes, summoning all his power.
"DOMAIN EXPANSION – DRAGON KING DOMAIN! "
Instantly, a massive domain spanning fifty kilometers opened. Inside was like hell itself. Everything was blood red. Lava spewed from the ground, the sky was covered in fire clouds.
Impernos looked around in astonishment. "You still have this much energy left?"
At that moment, he froze.
From his right and left, two giant dragons rose. Their eyes blazed with fire, smoke coming from their mouths.
Impernos's eyes widened: "W-What is this?"
And from the center, Bay X rose on the back of the Dragon King. The king's scales shone like gold, its eyes filled with wisdom and power.
Bay X shouted proudly: "I didn't expend any energy in the Dragon Dimension! So I still have as much energy as when I first opened my Ultimate Technique! And now... it's time for the finale!"
He spread his arms wide.
"DUAL DRAGON ATTACK! "
The dragons on the right and left opened their mouths simultaneously. Red energy gathered in their mouths, concentrated, glowed. And with all their might, they sent two massive beams.
The beams were so powerful that even the domain trembled. And with all their force, they struck Impernos.
BOOOOMMMMM!
A red energy explosion... Then it disappeared.
The scene that emerged was horrifying. Impernos's chest was cracked, about to be pierced. It was about to shatter.
Bay X didn't stop. "It's not over yet! Attack!"
The two dragons struck Impernos with their heads, using all their might.
BOOOOMMMM!
Another explosion...
Impernos lay on the ground. But he still wasn't dead.
Bay X's voice was frenzied: "H-HOW ARE YOU NOT DYING, DAMN IT? WHAT KIND OF ENDURANCE IS THIS?"
Impernos rose to his feet, coughing blood. There was an unquenchable fire in his eyes.
"Come on... make your final attack!"
Bay X went mad with rage. He would make his final attack.
"DRAGON KING'S FINAL ATTACK! "
The dragon he was riding attacked with all its might. Impernos opened his arms and welcomed it.
The dragon's head struck Impernos.
BOOOOMMMM!
The collision was so powerful that, even though there were still twenty seconds left until the domain ended, the domain dispersed.
Bay X looked around in shock. "H-How? There were still twenty seconds left?"
A massive flash of light...
Then, fizzz...
The light slowly faded.
The scene that emerged was horrifying.
Bay X was barely standing. But the situation wasn't the same for Impernos.
He had fallen to both knees. One arm was completely severed, the other about to break. His chest was completely shattered.
Bay X took a deep breath. "You really are... as powerful as Sabo praised." He paused, then added: "But it's over. I won."
He turned his back and began to walk.
He thought to himself: I won. I've proven once again that I am the strongest.
At that moment, he felt a stir behind him.
He instantly turned around.
Impernos had partially risen.
Bay X's eyes widened: "H-HOW?"
Impernos spoke with difficulty. There was a strange smile on his lips. "You were right... IT'S OVER!"
He spread his arms.
"DOMAIN EXPANSION – TRANSPARENT WORLD! "
A transparent dome suddenly enveloped their location.
Bay X looked around and let out a mocking laugh. "What kind of domain is this? We're in the same place, everything's just transparent." He continued mockingly: "How pathetic, how miserable a domain!"
But then he froze.
Impernos had completely regenerated. His arm had returned, his chest had closed. He stood tall as if nothing had happened.
Bay X couldn't believe it: "You regenerated? How did you do that? How can you regenerate?"
At that moment, Impernos appeared right in front of Bay X.
He whispered in his ear: "Atom Fist. "
And with all his might, he struck Bay X.
Bay X instantly dispersed down to his atoms.
This time, not two seconds, but a full four seconds later, he regenerated and stood up.
Bay X was breathless: "Your power has doubled, and now you can regenerate." He asked: "How long is this domain's duration?"
Impernos answered coldly: "Thirty-five seconds. More than enough to kill you."
Bay X gritted his teeth: "Thirty-five seconds... So if I last that long, I win." He challenged: "Come on then."
Impernos suddenly used a technique.
"TRAP! "
An energy trap caught Bay X and began to squeeze him.
Bay X spoke with difficulty: "A-ahh... This technique..."
At that moment, Impernos used another technique.
"ULTIMATE TECHNIQUE – ATOM METEORS! "
The dome of the domain suddenly opened. Only the transparent walls remained. The sky reappeared, and the meteors appeared.
Bay X was surprised: "How is this possible? At the beginning of the battle, you couldn't use any techniques while using the Trap technique?"
Impernos explained: "This power is unique to my domain."
He used another technique.
"GRAVITY ACCELERATION! "
He placed his hand on the ground. The atom meteors falling from the sky suddenly accelerated three times faster.
Bay X understood: "Now I get it. Normally, you can't use a summoning ultimate technique inside a domain. Because the domain is another world. But this domain remains in the same location; it doesn't open to another world." He admitted: "This domain... is incredibly powerful."
But he didn't give up.
"I WON'T GIVE UP EITHER!"
He shouted with all his might. He shattered the trap.
But it was too late.
The atom meteors were about to fall.
Bay X gathered his power one last time. "DRAGON AURA! "
His power instantly increased. He would use his final technique.
"DRAGON KING'S FINAL SPEAR ATTACK! "
Shouting with all his might, he made six attacks. Each attack destroyed one atom meteor.
BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!
The sky filled with meteor fragments.
But the last meteor wasn't completely destroyed.
And with all its force, it struck Bay X.
BOOOOMMMM!
In his final moment, Bay X understood. "Now I understand why Sabo said 'it cancels regeneration.' I've been broken down to my atoms, and since this meteor will be on top of me when it hits the ground... I won't be able to regenerate." He whispered his final words: "In one word... MAGNIFICENT. Ahhh!"
BOOOOMMMM!
The meteor struck the ground. A massive dust cloud rose.
The dust cloud slowly dissipated.
The domain closed.
Impernos walked slowly to the meteor. There was no trace of Bay X. Only the meteor and sparks scattered around...
Impernos took a deep breath. There was a mixture of respect and sorrow in his eyes.
"You were strong, Holy Knight." He paused, then added his final words: "It wasn't me who defeated you. It was your ego. If, instead of saying 'I won,' you had come and torn me apart at the last moment, you would have won. If you hadn't been so arrogant, I couldn't have won this battle."
He bowed his head.
"Thank you..."