MIGHT AS WELL BE OP Chapter 977: Temporal Paradox Creation

The instant Aaaninja triggered Time Splintering, time particles followed his command like obedient offspring before their parent, while reality bent to his will as if he were its maker, and in the following instant, existence and reality shattered into numerous streams of time, each one a shimmering golden river emitting a dazzling golden glow capable of blinding onlookers right away, yet only Aaaninja perceived it, leaving everyone else under the impression that absolutely nothing was occurring.

Within Aaaninja's field of view, everything transformed, as time decelerated, existence lagged, order dragged, and reality crawled, making it feel like he had entered a completely separate layer of existence, as if he had escaped the world's boundaries into a concealed realm accessible only to him for viewing and manipulation.

Countless possibilities unfolded across these endless timelines, but one fact remained unchanged: in every single one, Lucian and Aaaninja clashed in combat, though not merely clashing—they were locked in a single suspended instant. Each version of Lucian across the timelines unleashed the Nothingness Technique, whereas the multiple Aaaninjas from those timelines experimented with endless ways to block, dodge, retaliate, or endure.

Without question, several Aaaninjas managed to withstand Lucian's Nothingness Katana Technique. The primary Aaaninja fixed his Eyes Of Genesis on one of those gleaming golden streams, then he promptly brought it to life through sheer intent, choosing it like pulling a lone strand from an endless weave.

Right when he imposed his will, reality turned upside down, as if it had malfunctioned against itself, time quaked wildly beneath Aaaninja's absurd mastery, and the very next instant, the strike poised to strike Aaaninja's form disappeared completely, as if he had never occupied that space.

Absolutely nothing transpired, the earth failed to split open, no blade scars ripped across the heavens or ground, no rift formed, no blast wave surged out—simply utter destruction and obliteration, quiet and total.

Lucian's gaze sharpened when he noticed his assault had failed to connect. 'Did this fellow just alter reality?' he wondered inwardly, having sensed a twist in reality at the final fraction of a second, subtle, dim, and almost undetectable, yet he had detected it all the same.

Time Splintering enabled Aaaninja to divide instants into diverging multiple timelines, granting him the ability to pick which path to pursue, and once selected, the events from that chosen timeline at that exact juncture would be imposed onto his own reality, as if they had always unfolded that way.

Aaaninja drew inspiration for this ability from observing the River Of Time firsthand. Though he remained too feeble to dominate something as vast as the River Of Time or harness it to boost his strength outright—otherwise, he would have employed it against Lucian much earlier—proximity and study of its ceaseless current had still imparted valuable insights.

In truth, how many individuals could manipulate timelines with such ease? Those who could would number no more than the fingers on one hand.

'My mana reserves have suffered a blow,' Aaaninja reflected silently, having expended almost twenty percent of his mana just to execute that one technique, since forging and imposing timelines before supplanting reality with their results proved no simple feat.

Nevertheless, he showed no reluctance; even with eighty percent of his mana left, his total capacity was immense and defied normal understanding. A fresh surge of mana burst from him, with time particles swirling around in frenzied loops and eddies, and Lucian wasted no time, blurring away in retreat since he couldn't predict Aaaninja's next move.

As Aaaninja uttered those words, a ferocious explosion of time particles surged out in a force that erased all and unleashed devastating might. Over an area spanning hundreds of kilometers, time raged wildly and without restraint, decelerating, halting, speeding up, advancing age, turning backward, decaying, shattering into frenzy, transforming the battleground into a disordered zone where the rules of time had utterly broken down.

Lucian clenched his jaw as his life force drained away before his eyes, his form aging at an alarming rate and velocity. He sensed his muscles softening, his bones growing fragile, his mana dwindling swiftly, and even his katana rusting under time's influence as if ages had compressed into moments.

He swiftly drew on space to attempt teleporting outside the reach of this turbulent Time Storm, but such efforts proved useless, for space too fell under the sway of Aaaninja's technique and warped beneath time's dominance, rendering flight all but unattainable.

Aaaninja streaked ahead in a haze through the tempest, his sword slicing toward Lucian's throat in a quick silvery curve. Indeed, in this instant, Lucian could scarcely budge. Lucian observed the incoming strike aimed at his neck, yet no hint of peril showed in his eyes, for immobility didn't imply he lacked a contingency.

A sly grin crossed his face as he whispered, his lips pale and feeble, his tone aged and raspy, his once-dark hair fully silvered now that he teetered on the edge of his lifespan, mere minutes from demise.

His mana detonated in a tremendous release, crashing into Aaaninja like a charging beast, but Aaaninja simply faded away via Time Slip. The instant after, Event Rewriting reshaped the whole battlefield, causing Aaaninja's Time Storm to crumble as if it had never been. Under normal circumstances, any harm inflicted would persist, but Lucian's Event Rewriting nullified it entirely, undoing every effect.

Lucian sensed his vitality surging back, his frame now surging with vigor anew, his sallow and creased skin smoothing out as youth restored him, his stature normalizing, his silver locks darkening to black again, his elderly timbre shifting to a youthful and firm one.

His dark eyes turned to Aaaninja, a broad grin spreading across his features as he declared, since the moment had arrived for him to strike back.

Lucian had devised this ability right then and there. It essentially mirrored Aaaninja's Temporal Erasure, but Lucian's extraordinary aptitude let him craft a comparable power on the fly, molding ideas into actuality with alarming simplicity.

In the following instant, mana erupted from his center like a burst levee. Aaaninja felt his very being endangered, needing no warning to realize he faced the identical doom he had once inflicted on Lucian.

Lacking any delay, he invoked yet another technique, his mana surging from within as he countered the approaching assault.

Time particles heeded his directive, space shuddered fiercely as he hastily formed a Temporal Paradox right there, permitting Lucian's technique to take effect while Aaaninja himself persisted within time, both nullified and intact at once, thus enduring the strike unscathed.