The Palm of the Guardian clashed with the Six-Directions Demon Star Formation. It caused cracks to appear on the sphere’s surface, but it was ultimately destroyed by the combined power of the cardinals. 

"Hmph! It’s too soon to call yourself a god, kid. Boys, since he has already know, unleash your true power!” The First Cardinal and his brothers let out roars of anger as their body expanded to ten times their original size. The cloaks were ripped apart by the spikes and scales that formed on their blood-red demonic figures. Black wings sprout from their backs and a tail grew out from their lower backs. Golden tattoos spread across their left arms. 

Although their faces remained the same, their initial tan-colored skins turned blood-red and two black horns appeared on each of their foreheads. The black sphere expanded by tenfold along with their strength. “Prepare to die, Scion of Life!” 

When the cardinals revealed their true forms, the repulsive feeling in Yang Yang’s heart intensified. His icy eyes contrasted with the hot flames around him. As though they reflected his emotions, the flames burned brighter. “You should’ve remained in your human forms. If you did, I would’ve made your death less miserable! Magic-aspect, fusion!” 

The angelic magic-aspect flew back to Yang Yang and turned illusory while overlapping him. It condensed around him until Yang Yang and the magic-aspect were one and same in form. His magical power increased by several folds. It was the most powerful ability that any magus below the Wisdom King level could possess: Aspect Fusion. 

“How is that even possible!? Only Wisdom Kings can fuse with their magic-aspect and completely form their Wisdom King True Body! You’re not even a half-step Wisdom King, people who can fuse with their magic-aspect for a short time!” 

As though he heard a great joke, Yang Yang laughed. “To fuse with one’s magic-aspect depends on the person’s insight into the Wisdom King level or their soul. Perhaps, other Manifest Aspect magus can’t do this, but I can. Now, goodbye.” 

The Palm of the Guardian appeared again while Will O’ Wisp coated it in a many layers of golden flames. The Six-Directions Demon Star Formation sprouted out millions of tentacles that formed into a giant, black hand. It collided with the flaming palm and sent shock waves throughout the land. 

The Arcane Prison World broke apart as the ground was pulled out like a fork to shredded beef. The prisons dismantled like milk from a broken glass. The unconscious bodies of the Sacred Cult flew away like cows during a hurricane. Fortunately, the Flame of Purity had covered the entire Sixteenth Layer and the people were unharmed. Seventh Sister Jade would take the warship and collect any person who would definitely be harmed too much by the shock waves, even with constant healing. 

“Hmph! No matter what kind of monstrous genius you are, you will die today!” 

“Hmph! I heard that line plenty of times before, and yet, I’m still here. Your fate is sealed by speaking those words!” 

“Hmph! Fate is what we make of it! Who are you to decide the fate of others!?” 

“Hmph! I am the Scion of Life, Prince of the Overworld! No one other than me is qualified to decide fate!” 

“Hmph!” 

“Hmph!” 

The two sides were under an intense, cold-snorting contest; however, their collision was on a stalemate. Although Yang Yang was stronger after using Aspect Fusion, the six cardinals were also much stronger than before. They even had traces of the Blood Demon royal bloodline. 

“Boys, it’s time to go for broke! Sacrifice to the God of Fresh Blood! Royal bloodline, burn!” The golden tattoos on each of their left arms glowed brightly. The cardinals spit out bright red blood onto the formation.

The aura of blood transformed into the image of grotesque deity that oozed blood from every orifices. It corrupted the black sphere and turned everything in existence blood-red. The giant hand, which grew scales and oozed out blood, pushed back the flaming palm. “Ahhh!!!” 

“Oh? Are we using external power for help now?” Yang Yang was visibly surprised by the cardinals’ sacrifice of their royal bloodline. “With the Divine Power of Faith, anything and everything is possible.” 

A stream of faithful power entered the Palm of the Guardian. Boom! Boom! Boom! 

The palm exploded along with the formation and the cardinals were forced out. They flew in six different directions, and Yang Yang chased the nearest one, the Third Cardinal. 

“Wait, please! Spare me and-” Without time to finish his sentence, the Third Cardinal’s head was crushed into meat paste. His body tried to regenerate his head, but it was burning away slowly to maximize the pain. The Third Cardinal wanted to scream, but had no mouth. A silent torture, to say the least. 

Yang Yang flew toward the other cardinals and made sure their lives ended miserably as well until the First Cardinal remained. As he look at Yang Yang walking toward him, he shouted, “You are a devil! A devil! The Scion of Life is suppose to be gentle and righteous, holier than everyone else! Yet, you are so cruel! We demons have done nothing to you! Nothing! How can you be the successor to the God of Life!?” 

Yang Yang gripped the demon’s head. “You’re half-right because those traits only apply to living beings. You are deathly and vile. Your kind has hunted me down for eons. It’s only fair that I return the favor.” 

“Fair? You call this fairness? We only seek the truth of magic! To become gods ourselves! On the path to godhood, there are no rights or wrongs, only perspectives! We may have sinned by your standards, but the Overworld had committed atrocities to us as well! Where is our justice and fairness, huh? You are nothing, but a hypocrite!” 

“Is that all?” Yang Yang said indifferently. He grabbed the head even tighter. Cracking sounds like broken egg shells could be audibly heard from the First Cardinal’s head. Blood oozed out of the demon’s head as he struggled to even speak the simplest of words. 

“This... is not over... Your mistake today... will be your... reckoning... Because you...are courting-” The First Cardinal was incinerated from head to toe in an instance. His final words were forever incomplete, but Yang Yang knew exactly what he was about to say. 

“Son of a bitch almost said it.” He looked at the ashes of the once royal demon. “I hate that line the most.” 

The ashes blew in the wind, carrying indignation and hatred with it. It drifted in the air and became one with the ruined world, eternally separated into tiny pieces that will never resemble nor possess its former glory. One can change their course of fate with enough strength, but without that strength, one must resign to their imminent end.