THE VILLAIN'S POV Chapter 809 The Pursuer (2)

"This makes no sense."

Thanatos failed to comprehend the chaos unfolding before him.

He therefore released even greater amounts of his power, intent on utterly demolishing Frey.

Then an event transpired that completely soured his face.

Out of thin air—

Frey's form burst forth with a dazzling light.

Shadows formed a cocoon that expanded outward, enveloping him entirely inside.

It grew bigger and bigger, looming like a gigantic heavenly object right in front of Thanatos.

Shock gripped him tightly.

His eyes quivered uncontrollably.

"That's impossible…"

His voice came out weighed down, refusing to believe his own eyes.

"He… is breaking through?"

"Right in the heat of combat—directly before me?!"

For some reason...

Frey had surpassed the boundaries of SSS Rank: Throne of Post-Existence, boldly advancing to the subsequent realm—

Pulse of Chaos.

"Don't mess with me!!!"

Thanatos bellowed in fury.

Seven gigantic skulls appeared in a flash, encircling the cocoon on every side.

All the skulls bared their fangs at once...

Igniting the cocoon in a hellish blaze of dark blue flames.

A thunderous blast rattled the skies.

Yet from the heart of those azure fires—

Frey vaulted into the air.

His figure radiated a ferocious dark energy, forged in the Chaos Stage he had newly attained.

"I no longer understand anything that's happening here."

Overwhelmed by blazing anger, Thanatos charged at Frey once more.

"How can he break through this quickly—in the middle of battle, no less?!"

Clutching his six scythes tightly, Thanatos lunged ahead, resolved to obliterate his foe and reveal his hidden truth.

However, Frey unleashed a colossal wave of darkness that engulfed him entirely, compelling Thanatos to fall back.

With the explosive boost from his abrupt advancement, Frey fully transitioned from guarding to attacking.

His aura surged to twice its previous intensity.

His attacks grew immensely more potent—capable of matching Thanatos blow for blow.

They traded strikes at horrifying velocities.

Each weapon collision released devastating shockwaves that crumbled the earth, tearing it asunder until the terrain cracked and floated apart.

Frey handled the Shadowbolt Spear with superior skill and might, summoning boundless black lightning from above to batter Thanatos.

Thanatos countered the assault and retaliated with tempests of blue flames, launching them to crash against the bolts.

The opposing powers clashed over and over.

The warriors propelled themselves through the field like doomsday comets.

One embodied a comet of shadowy lightning and ominous aura.

The other, a comet wreathed in deadly azure inferno.

Space itself warped into a cracked web from the strain of their radiating presences.

No terrain could withstand the escalating fury of their confrontation any longer.

In the midst of the turmoil, Thanatos stared at his rival in utter astonishment.

Despite Frey's entry into the second stage, Thanatos retained his edge.

Yet Frey's strength kept climbing relentlessly.

It surged onward—like pursuing Thanatos' power, striving to equal it.

'Breaking through this swiftly… amid such circumstances… during combat… utterly impossible.'

As blue flames roared around his form, Thanatos battled Frey with murderous resolve.

Suddenly, a revelation pierced his thoughts.

"Impossible… unless…"

He whispered to himself.

"…he can break the limits."

In that instant, Thanatos caught a glimpse of the truth behind it all.

Inside Frey's body, Nameless observed the clash… scrutinizing each tiny aspect for any surprises.

His senses were incredibly acute—keen enough to have already figured out Thanatos' reasoning.

"He's starting to grasp what's going on… sooner than I anticipated," Nameless murmured softly, his eyes moving to Frey.

"But that's alright. He's held up much stronger than I anticipated."

Nameless squinted his eyes a bit, then looked toward the blade plunged into the crimson emptiness within Frey.

Frey had withstood every assault Thanatos unleashed so far.

He had endured through pure willpower alone.

Even amid excruciating agony, his determination kept him going.

Such was the might of one who had committed to his destiny.

The very might that convinced Nameless to aid him.

At the same time, as Thanatos poured out all his might, he sensed it.

The power exploding upward second by second.

Behind Frey, a profound shadow extended—shaping into something entirely unfamiliar.

Nameless existed in an age far beyond Thanatos' time.

Thus, Thanatos remained ignorant of him.

He failed to see that the opponent facing him wasn't the worthless idiot he had assumed...

Yet a beast wielding powers that transcended the limits of imagination.

The way Frey's strength kept surging upward…

The speed at which he shattered barriers right before Thanatos' gaze…

The secret rested in the last legacy Frey obtained from Nameless.

"For this power to trigger, your foe must vastly outmatch you… or you won't gain its full benefits."

Nameless declared while an eerie dark glow enveloped Frey's form.

"The ultimate phase… the zenith of Shadow Adaptation."

"The Pursuer."

In that instant, the seventh phase unveiled itself—the real motive behind Frey selecting Thanatos as prey.

"The Pursuer stands as the mightiest reality-shattering power I ever commanded."

"It embodies the absolute peak of the Law of Chaos."

"This power ignites solely when the enemy vastly surpasses the user."

"Its impact is straightforward."

Nameless' gaze shimmered with icy, shadowy brilliance.

"The stronger the foe, the more the Pursuer drives its host to elevated realms of strength matching the enemy—fully mirroring them."

"It launches the chase right as combat erupts… persisting until the host matches the enemy's might."

This marked the supreme apex of Nameless' might... the exact power that let him rattle the world during his clash with Agaroth eons past.

In his duel with the Demon King, their confrontation morphed into a relentless hunt.

Agaroth held the edge at the outset.

However, Nameless surged in power mid-battle, evening the odds via the Pursuer's force.

Still, Agaroth wielded his own phenomenal gift—one enabling nonstop evolution against a strengthening rival.

Their powers clashed in an apparent infinite loop.

Agaroth powered up.

Nameless chased and overtook him.

Then the Demon King adapted once more, seizing back superiority.

Such was their grueling struggle for ages...

Until Agaroth ascended to a horrifying height Nameless could no longer match.

Thus concluded their epic conflict.

"The Pursuer defines ultimate adaptation."

"Thanatos, at the SSS rank's climax, makes him the ideal mark for this power."

Clashing with Thanatos guaranteed Frey's strength would skyrocket.

Vanquishing him would erase one of their paramount dangers.

Such a fiend must never roam unchecked.

"The Pursuer will render you immensely mightier… provided you hold out and persist as long as you can."

"Now it all hinges on you alone, Frey."

This explained Nameless' directive to withstand and shield himself maximally.

Should the scheme falter, Nameless planned to step in and rescue him.

Yet luckily—

Frey surpassed all his projections.

"He's no longer some fragile mortal to crush and discard."

"He's evolved into something utterly superior."

Nameless murmured, pleased by the spectacle unfolding.

Frey's might kept escalating.

Going forward like this…

He could even breach beyond the second phase.

"The Pursuer won't halt till you equal his power."

"Press on—and refuse to crumble."

Frey caught Nameless' counsel amid the fray.

A savage, murderous grin crept under his mask as his strength exploded wildly.

"This round… the outcome shifts."

His tone deepened as he unleashed his full assault.

"It must."

"Defeat is no longer an option."

Victory alone…

Or oblivion.

Now the clash edged into its climactic phase.