Chapter 178: Gate of Death, OPEN!!
Looking at Saitama's suddenly sharp, angular face and the overwhelming sense of crisis flooding his heart, King realized instantly: this was no feint. This was a Serious Punch!
Perfect... I wanted to test this anyway... I want to see if my base form can withstand a Serious Punch!
King had already tested the "Normal Series." Even the Consecutive Normal Punches had been handled with relative ease. It was safe to say that King's current base state already eclipsed the non-evolved, casual version of the Bald Demon.
This made sense. In the original story, Saitama in his base form couldn't even kill Cosmic Garou with a direct hit. Before his exponential growth kicked in, that version of Saitama was definitely weaker than the current King.
Facing the coming storm, King didn't hesitate. He raised his fist high, a blinding golden light erupting from his knuckles like a localized sun.
"Imperial Fist!"
The two fists collided in the silence of the void. In an instant, the heavens changed color. An unparalleled energy storm spiraled outward from their point of impact.
With no atmosphere to dampen the force, the energy expanded at a terrifying rate, blanketing a thousand kilometers in a heartbeat. Countless massive asteroids were caught in the wake and pulverized into subatomic dust.
King was launched backward, a blurred streak of motion, until he slammed into a distant, drifting moonlet.
He looked down at his left arm, which was currently dangling uselessly at his side. His expression remained stoic despite the damage.
It seems... my base form still isn't enough to trade blows with the Serious Series.
King's right arm had suffered a total comminuted fracture. The bones inside were crushed into a powder as fine as the sugar on a rice cracker.
Compared to his earlier state—where a Serious Punch would have turned him into a cloud of red mist—King's durability had improved massively. Now, taking a direct hit only cost him a limb.
But the most important factor was this: King still hadn't used his full power.
Green light flickered across his skin. The mangled, twisted arm snapped back into its original shape, healed instantly.
A warm current welled up from deep within his cells, flowing through his limbs and bones, constantly reinforcing his frame. His stats were steadily climbing.
Since that's the case...
"Eight Inner Gates: Eighth Gate of Death — OPEN!!"
His Life Force exploded outward in a violent surge. Crimson steam billowed from every pore, and King's presence skyrocketed. The sheer weight of his pressure caused the space around him to tremble and distort uncontrollably.
The dark, silent starry sky was stained a deep, pulsing blood-red in an instant. His solidified Aura filled the sector, effectively transforming the surrounding space into King's personal domain.
Sensing the staggering weight of the new aura, a smile finally spread across Saitama's serious face. His white cape snapped violently in the wind of King's energy.
"That's quite the aura, King. You really are something else. I guess I have to get a little more serious too!"
King and Saitama looked at each other. No more words were needed. Everything was understood in that single gaze.
Between the Strong, there is mutual respect.
When a warrior climbs the highest peak, he first feels the rush of achievement, followed quickly by the freezing wind of solitude. It is a loneliness born of being the only one at the summit.
That loneliness only grows as he looks down and sees that no one else can even reach the foothills.
But in this moment, as he turned his head and saw another standing on an equal peak across from him... the joy was enough to drive him mad.
Both figures shot forward simultaneously. A yellow streak and a red streak collided in the void.
"Serious Series: Omnidirectional Serious Punch!"
Saitama kicked off the vacuum. His figure began to flicker and weave through the stars, teleporting tens of thousands of times in a single heartbeat, leaving a trail of high-velocity afterimages around King.
These weren't mere phantoms. In the split second each afterimage was left behind, a fully charged Serious Punch was unleashed.
In the next heartbeat, thousands upon thousands of Serious Punches rained down on King from every conceivable angle!
♧♧♧
-> 20 Advanced chapters Now Available on Patreon!!
-> https://www.patreon.com/c/Segais
(Just remove the hyphen to access patreon normally)
If you like this novel please consider leaving a review that's help the story a lot Thank you