Chapter 2277: 2277. Rules

Decumia followed Noah with her eyes, but a new surge of power forced her to bring her attention to the pig. The Foolery's cultivation level was striving toward the solid stage again, but a fart interrupted the process and brought it back to its previous heights.

"What are you trying to accomplish?" Decumia asked before her usual smile reappeared on her face. "You have my interest, but you need to do far more to defeat me."

"Ignorants shouldn't speak!" The Foolery announced. "Steven has given me the power to overcome my limits. Even Xavier would have to acknowledge my value now."

King Elbas and Divine Architect obviously heard that conversation. Their battle had already begun, even if they weren't actually fighting.

Their clash had started when their assets first met on the battlefield. The help they could provide to their respective sides was an extension of their power, so they could decide a winner without falling into a series of exchanges.

Keeping attention on the entirety of the battlefield was mandatory for those two experts due to their essential role. King Elbas and Decumia had noticed Steven's death, but their seemingly tense balance shook when they heard the Foolery.

Divine Architect's crystal eyes flickered with white light when she noticed that King Elbas' complete concentration wavered for a second. That event didn't lead to a proper distraction, but it was enough to attract Divine Architect's attention.

Of course, Divine Architect knew that the Foolery had a significant influence on King Elbas' sanity, but his dark expression now carried something deeper than a simple annoyance. He seemed to resent the curiosity trying to take over his mind.

"It's unbecoming of your role to experience such strong feelings," Divine Architect commented. "All the members of your organization share this flaw, but I didn't expect you to be afflicted so deeply by it."

"Are you worried about me now?" King Elbas mocked as he kept his attention on the Foolery. His curiosity was reacting on its own, but he despised what he was learning.

"Nonsense," Divine Architect sighed. "I was only pointing out another field where I'm superior."

"Superior," King Elbas repeated. "Shall we make a bet?"

"Do you really think that pig can defeat Decumia?" Divine Architect asked.

"Would you be interested in it?" King Elbas wondered.

"No," Divine Architect firmly replied. "Bets are pointless when the higher plane has reached this state."

"That stoic attitude is a flaw," King Elbas stated.

"Only an ignorant would say that," Divine Architect replied.

"Well, I don't need you to accept to win," King Elbas declared. "I made you experience defeat once already. The pig's battle will remind you of that feeling."

"You use "victory" too casually," Divine Architect uttered. "The bigger plan still escapes your vision."

"Remember those words when the feeling returns," King Elbas snorted.

His curiosity had brought answers that gave birth to intense annoyance inside his mind. King Elbas knew what kind of power the Foolery had achieved.

King Elbas had his personal classification of powers, abilities, and worlds. He stood alone in his own category, but his organization had many experts worthy of unique labels.

Noah, Sword Saint, and Alexander were obviously among them, but King Elbas had come up with an even more unique category. Still, only Pellio and Divine Demon had fallen under that label, at least until now. The Foolery had just joined them.

Decumia and the Foolery didn't do much while King Elbas and Divine Architect argued. The Decumia limited herself to watching the pig accumulating and losing energy without ever leading anywhere.

The process had been interesting at first, but Decumia grew bored of it after hearing the seventh fart. It was clear that the Foolery couldn't achieve the breakthrough in its current state.

"Stop it already," Decumia announced as she unfolded her aura and applied her chaos to her surroundings.

The sky behind Decumia regained its white shades now that her chaos shielded it from the waves of hunger that flowed through the area. The Foolery had already failed to influence its main target, but that issue didn't bother it.

"I need more power," The Foolery exclaimed before pointing its dark eyes toward Decumia. "You will push me to the peak."

"Ooh?" Decumia murmured in a curious tone. "And how would I do that?"

"By feeding me your chaos," The Foolery declared before releasing another fart and shooting forward.

Decumia couldn't help but notice how the pig's speed had significantly increased. The Foolery wasn't as fast as Noah, but it remained an opponent that average solid stage cultivators would struggle to follow.

Of course, Decumia wasn't one of those average cultivators. Part of the damage that Steven had inflicted on her world still afflicted her power, but she remained one of the greatest experts among Heaven and Earth's army. She didn't even have to take the battle seriously to follow the Foolery.

The pig charged ahead while folding its wings to create a straightforward charge that had every intention of squashing Decumia. However, the latter easily sidestepped the attack and smiled at the sight of the Foolery crashing into the sky.

The white layer didn't suffer any damage, but its white shades disappeared again now that the Foolery was touching its surface. The chaos that had floated right above the sky vanished due to the pig's aura, leaving Heaven and Earth relatively powerless in that part of the battlefield.

Decumia shook her head without retracting her smile. The sheer power radiated during the impact had caused a slight reaction in her survival instincts, but that was still too little to worry her. She even opened her mouth to voice a few mocking words that suited her world, but the Foolery didn't let her speak.

Another fart came out of the Foolery, but Decumia's eyes widened in surprise when she saw that the smelly gas had shot out of its right wing. That limb had no real orifices, but she couldn't deny what had happened.

What followed the fart shocked Decumia even more. The pushing force generated by the release of the smelly gas made the Foolery shoot toward its left and sprint toward Decumia again.

The sprint was far faster than before, but it still fell short in Decumia's eyes. The delay caused by her surprise didn't prevent her from dodging the incoming charge with another precise sidestep.

The Foolery crossed Decumia's position without even coming close to hitting her. Its figure started flying deeper into the void and threatened to leave the battlefield altogether, but its head performed a sharp turn upward, and the gesture gave birth to another fart.

The gas allowed the Foolery to reverse its momentum completely. The pig shot toward Decumia again, and the latter remained speechless in front of that movement technique. The farts were odd but okay. The issue came from how easily the Foolery ignored basic regulation of the space-time array.

A powerful and quick sprint would typically take a while to disperse its momentum. The cultivators and other experts changed direction by applying an even stronger force, which led to short seconds of complete stasis.

The Foolery was ignoring those rules. Its farts made it change direction instantaneously, without even having to disperse the momentum accumulated until then. Actually, it seemed that the pig was sorting that energy to collect it inside its world.