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Exactly as Azazel had warned, Vali was already teetering on the edge of losing control.
Juggernaut Drive—a power even more forbidden than Balance Breaker.
If Balance Breaker represented the miraculous blessing bestowed when the wielder's feelings and wishes reached their utmost limit, then Juggernaut Drive was an infernal gift summoned at the cost of one's very life, triggered when emotions peaked beyond a breaking point.
It consumed the wielder's life force as fuel, shattering the seal binding the ancient draconic soul imprisoned within the Sacred Gear, granting power capable of rivaling gods, albeit only temporarily.
In other words, Vali, now entering Juggernaut Drive, essentially possessed the full might of Albion at his prime.
Moreover, as this extreme state was typically born from rage and hatred, the wielder inevitably plunged into a pit of madness, relentlessly fighting until life itself burned away.
As matters stood, Vali's eyes no longer held even a shred of reason.
—ROOOOOOOAAAAARRRRRR!
Another earth-shattering roar pierced the sky. After exchanging tens of thousands of devastating blows at close range, Keikain Bokue finally delivered a full-powered strike, blasting Vali back several thousand meters, opening some distance.
The young man furrowed his brow slightly.
Even amidst fierce combat, the wounds on his chest had already ceased bleeding, beginning to regenerate on their own without needing the assistance of Cellular Reconstruction.
Yet, compared to earlier, several fresh wounds had emerged during his brutal exchange with Vali's Juggernaut Drive form.
Though none were severe enough to be genuinely concerning, something else drew Bokue's attention.
Simply put, compared to the previous Balance Breaker state, Vali's Juggernaut Drive had clearly become far more resilient.
Not only had the frequency of Divide drastically increased—removing the earlier ten-second cooldown—but even the gear's upper limit for storing absorbed power had surged dramatically.
Previously, Vali had only used Divide once before his Sacred Gear overloaded at eighty percent capacity. Now, having entered Juggernaut Drive, he'd unleashed Divide more than ten times without showing signs of slowing—in fact, he was growing stronger as the fight dragged on.
What was going on?
Just as Bokue struggled to grasp the situation, a small magic circle appeared near his ear.
The gentle voice of the young crimson-haired Maou sounded clearly.
"Good afternoon. Can you hear me, Bokue-kun?"
"…Sirzechs?" Bokue quickly grasped the situation. "What's going on? I'm not exactly free for a casual chat right now."
"I know. It's about the White Dragon Emperor's current state. I'll let Azazel-san explain."
Briefly leaving it at that, Sirzechs appeared to transfer the communication to someone else.
Two seconds later, the familiar, easygoing voice of the Governor-General of Fallen Angels rang out.
"Hey~ It's me. I see Vali's already duking it out with you. Listen, I've got two really crucial things I need to tell you about this troublesome situation."
"Then make it quick."
Bokue punched away Vali once again as he spoke, ascending even higher to buy himself a brief respite.
Azazel cleared his throat and got straight to the point.
"First up is Vali's current state. As you can see, Juggernaut Drive removes the cooldown, drastically boosts speed and strength, but at the steep cost of rapidly burning through the user's lifespan."
"But thanks to Vali inheriting the bloodline of the previous Maou Lucifer, his innate magical power is enormous. He can substitute magic energy in place of life force, delaying the fatal toll of Juggernaut Drive. Still, even with this, he can't keep it up indefinitely."
Huh?
Bokue paused for a brief moment.
He wasn't skeptical of Azazel's words. Rather, given that Vali had already sustained Juggernaut Drive for quite a while… unless…
Ah, he understood now.
After brief consideration, Bokue suddenly realized why Vali's Juggernaut Drive form had become so "tough" all of a sudden.
To put it bluntly, Vali was channeling all the power stolen from Bokue into maintaining his Juggernaut Drive—rapidly consuming Bokue's stolen spiritual energy as fuel, achieving a precarious equilibrium between rapid absorption and massive expenditure.
Azazel continued.
"Secondly, since Vali hasn't fully mastered this form yet, entering Juggernaut Drive invariably leads to severe berserking. The longer he's left unchecked, the more frenzied he'll become, fighting recklessly until his life burns out completely."
"…I see."
Bokue murmured softly, gaze fixed towards the distant horizon, where the massive form of the White Dragon Emperor once again shot skyward, hurtling through a cluster of toppled mountains at blinding speed, closing rapidly.
"A berserk, mindless combat machine, capable of endlessly turning stolen energy into fuel to sustain Juggernaut Drive. A self-perpetuating cycle of violence, huh… That means there's only one real solution left."
"Huh? What are you planning?"
Azazel, being so far away, couldn't read Bokue's intentions from mere sound alone, only aware he intended some decisive action.
Bokue didn't reply.
He silently stared at the massive white dragon charging at him with ferocious speed—and completely withdrew his spiritual pressure.
No longer assuming a fighting stance, Bokue pressed his palms together in a meditative position. His aura settled into absolute tranquility, akin to an ocean untouched by the slightest ripple.
Yet the oppressive presence radiating from him intensified exponentially.
—ROOOOOOAAAARRRRRR!!!
Seemingly sensing the overwhelming threat, the White Dragon Emperor opened its colossal jaws in fury, a highly compressed magical beam forming inside.
At this moment, both sides intuitively understood one thing—
This would be their final clash.
Both would stake everything on this ultimate, mightiest, strongest attack!
—Whoosh—
Bokue exhaled softly, dense golden spiritual energy coalescing visibly as white mist in the air.
When he reopened his eyes, the dark brown irises had fully transformed, dyed golden by immense spiritual pressure.
[Spiritual Power Rotation: 750,000 Horses Strength]
[Limitless Tremor Zen]!!!
A punch thrust forward, its momentum so immense it seemed entirely silent.
Yet, after this single blow, neither mountains nor Juggernaut Drive remained before him.
Only calm skies and drifting dust.
❁❁❁❁
Ten minutes later, atop the mountain peak where the defensive barrier had dispersed, Vali slowly opened his eyes.
Before him stretched endless blue skies, and beneath him the hard, rough ground.
Instinctively, he tried to sit up, but sharp, agonizing pain surged through every inch of his body, forcing him back down instantly.
—Damn, that hurt.
"Easy now, Vali. Just stay lying down for a bit. You got yourself messed up pretty badly."
A familiar, carefree uncle-voice drifted from above. Short, black-gold hair soon entered Vali's field of view.
The silver-haired youth barely turned his head.
"Azazel… Why're you here?"
"Meh~ Don't ask me, I'm clueless. It was Bokue-kun who dragged you back here."
The Fallen Angel Governor shrugged irresponsibly.
Bokue… The Red Dragon Emperor?!
Vali jolted slightly, memories flooding back at Azazel's words. He turned painfully to his side.
Though lying on the ground limited his view, he easily spotted the guy who'd nearly pummeled him half to death. Bokue was casually seated nearby, surrounded by a throng of concerned, beautiful girls fussing over him.
Seemingly sensing Vali's gaze, Bokue turned slightly, waving casually.
"Yo, awake already? Congrats, the surgery was a success! You're officially a cute girl now."
"GO TO HELL…" Vali cursed softly, perhaps uttering a vulgar phrase for the first time in his life, weakly rolling his eyes at the guy—who also had quite a few fresh wounds visible.
"I'll admit defeat this time. But you don't seem much better off yourself."
Bokue glanced down at his wounds, then casually stood up with one hand.
[Cellular Reconstruction]
A flash of golden aura, and all wounds instantly healed, even his torn clothing reappeared immaculate.
Looking at the stunned silver-haired youth lying there, Bokue nonchalantly shrugged.
"Actually, I was just leaving those wounds for you to see."
"Oh, and I patched your injuries up a bit, too. You won't die—but take it easy for a while."
"Alright, I'm starving. It's already past noon, and I haven't had lunch yet. Let's head back~"
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