''Y-you know who that thing is?"
Maximus felt a strange sense of unease when the mysterious woman that suddenly appeared said that.
His curiosity got the better of him.
"Miss, who is that?"
"Hmm?"
Pandora turned around with a surprised look. She dropped the bomb on Maximus and everyone else.
"You can't recognize your own younger brother after he turned into a monster?"
"My brother?"
Maximus asked with an incredulous look on his face. He balled his palms into fists, and his unease intensified.
"You're saying... that thing's Gregory?"
Pandora only shrugged in response.
"Go ask that thing."
Gregory didn't take kindly to Pandora's dismissive attitude. The dark mist exploded once more.
"Dieee!!!"
He lashed out with his claws.
Fswoosh!
The space shook as Gregory unleashed claw beams filled to the brim with corruption and corrosive powers. The claw beams expanded rapidly like an expanding field of dark lightning.
As the claw beams gouged the ground, everyone watched as the claw beams got close to Pandora.
Those claw beams were highly-packed dense energy attacks. Maximus and the other Saint realm experts around him could feel a power that could split the sea and cut mountains in two. Meanwhile, Pandora pursed her lips in disdain. She didn't bother to use magic or battle techniques on the energy attacks. Instead, she slapped the incoming beams.
Bang!
It was like somebody smashed a church bell hard, the resulting sonic waves and shockwaves shattered the durable ground, and the walls crumbled as a strong wind erupted with Pandora as the center.
"Young Master! Watch out!"
The experts around Maximus immediately covered him with mana, and protective techniques, the rubble and sharp shrapnel propelled by the impact weren't a laughing matter.
The other guards weren't as lucky when they got knocked out by the shockwave.
Other than Maximus and the other Saint realm experts, everyone got knocked out cold.
"Holy Gods above..."
Maximus and his escorts sucked in a cold breath of air.
"With just the shockwave..."
The other Saint realm experts gulped. They lost their initial composure.
"That's the young master? He can produce such powerful shockwaves at will?"
Maximus watched as claw beams continued raining down on Pandora's position. He couldn't avert his gaze from the storm of dark energy and dust.
"Hahaha!"
Meanwhile, Gregory laughed out loud. He looked around and saw his handiwork, the guards were knocked out cold and those who can put up a defense barely held on to their current positions.
"Look! Behold my great power! This is all my power! Hahaha!"
He licked his sharp teeth with his impossibly long tongue. Screw becoming a monster, if it means he could obtain greater power, turning into a bug would also be a desirable choice.
He was just a petty Grandmaster at first. Because of his injuries, he was on a steady path to a crippled life. Now, he became the strongest fighter excluding his father.
Augmented by this malevolent energy, he's arguably stronger than even his father.
"Hahaha!"
Gregory laughed maniacally only to freeze up when he violently coughed up blood.
A sickening pain shot through his stomach and his arms wrapped tightly around it. It was all he could do to not collapse and wither in misery on the ground.
Desperate for some form of relief he sought out every solution. Ignoring it, working through it, using it to fuel strength. But nothing seemed to work. It took him a minute or two to gather his composure, but conflicting thoughts still plagued his mind.
Fighting through the pain was becoming increasingly difficult, but above all else, it became increasingly annoying to have to deal with. He thought everything would be alright after acquiring this strength.
Cough cough!
He spat out more blood. Tormented by his anguish, he grumbled.
"Damn, even after eating so many people I haven't recovered yet?"
Upon hearing Gregory's words it was then Maximus and the others finally knew why this monster attacked the humans.
Gregory was eating humans to recover from his internal injuries.
Maximus's expression sank as he revealed a look of utter sadness.
His younger brother was suffering so much from his injuries.
"Gregory is a monster?''
He smiled bitterly. His face went pale.
Gregory, utterly unrepentant, wiped the blood away from his mouth as he snickered.
"Well, it's okay. I should be fine after eating a few more humans. With this kind of power, I can do whatever I want..."
Then, somebody replied.
"Yeah?"
A nonchalant voice came from within the storm of dark claw beams and dust.
"This level of power, and you're already satisfied?"
The others looked at the spot where it was raining claw beams just a moment ago. Strangely enough, the claw beams stopped as if they were met with an indomitable wall. Slowly but surely, the beams were pushed back as Pandora revealed himself. Her green eyes were still as a lake's surface. She looked at the petrified Gregory and she sneered.
"If this is the power you are gloating over, boy, have I got news for you..."
She clenched down on the claw beam she was holding off.
Shatter
The claw beams around her burst under her sheer strength. She extinguished the beams and dispersed them in bits of dark light.
Aside from her slightly disheveled clothes, she came out without a scratch.
"I hope you're ready to get whooped as I'm a little bit pissed off chasing this thing for days already.''
"What..."
Gregory watched as his proud attacks failed to do anything. His opponent thwarted him easily. He was at a complete loss.
"Yo-you've got to be kidding me, that was my full-power attack..."
"S-strong.."
Meanwhile, Maximus clenched his fists tighter.
"Is this for real?''
The other Saint realm experts around him dared to say nothing. They exchanged a look with each other and they looked down with bitter smiles. They knew they could defend against Gregory's all-out attack, however, they were also humble enough to know they wouldn't have been able to come out on top looking so suave even if they worked together.
If they were by themselves.
The eight experts shook their heads with even bitter smiles. The youngest among them is 60 years old. Meanwhile, that guy looked like she was still in her 20s.
She's so young, yet, she was this strong?
Could it be? Is she a Demigod?
Nobody wanted to imagine that scenario. However, their instincts told them that was the only explanation. Only if they knew her real identity, they wouldn't be so shocked.
Maximus and his escorts were befuddled. Even Gregory was suspicious. He's a peak Saint realm monster empowered by malevolent energy. Theoretically, he should have been invincible around here.
However, Pandora easily smashed his attacks apart in under a second.
"She has to be in the Demigod realm."
Upon realizing this truth, Gregory's bloody throat felt dry as he voiced that out in a hoarse tone.
"How is that possible?..."
His ugly mug couldn't hide his disbelief. Pandora just shrugged.
"That's why who gave you the confidence in the first place?"
Gregory roared angrily.
"I am an apex Saint realm expert! You shouldn't have been able to hold a candle against me!"
Pandora had an annoyed look on her face, she stopped and slowly spelled out her next sentence.
"Not only you're delusional you are trash."
Her words pierced Gregory's heart like long spears. The monster's happiness from gaining a power-up fell apart like scattered clouds. His body trembled.
He started inching backward. He could still feel his amplified power, the power that surpassed his past self hundreds of times. However, he's not proud, not anymore.
"N...no..."
His sanity started unraveling.
"That can't be! This power is mine! It's all mine! I am the strongest there is! I am stronger than you! Yeah! Stronger than youuuu!!!"
"You! You!!"
The dark energy swirled violently as he lashed out at his surroundings. Soon, he was covered in a dark mist.
"You're jealous of me! You must have done something underhanded, didn't you?! Didn't you?!!!"
Gregory deluded himself and he laughed in a hoarse voice.
"Yeah! That has to be it! You're not stronger than me! You're weaker than me!"
Maximus and his guards couldn't bear to look at his pathetic display. They looked at Gregory with sad eyes which fueled his rage even more and he disliked Pandora even more even when it was his first time meeting her.
'Kill her! Tear her apart! Eat her and you'll become the strongest! Eat!!! Eat!!! Kill! Eat!!!!'
These sentences kept repeating in Gregory's mind forcing him to act despite feeling the difference between them.
''Ahhhhhh!'' His body shot toward Pandora like a bullet train.
Swoosh!
However, Pandora was calm and simply shouted.
''Stop!"
Her voice command echoed with a magical force. When her voice reached Gregory, the monster got stopped in his tracks.
His claws were just inches away from her chest. No matter how hard Gregory exerted himself, his claws wouldn't pierce into Pandora's chest or move forward!
"What's going on?!"
Gregory shrieked in anger at Pandora.
"What did you do?!"
Pandora chortled and she gave Gregory a curt glance. Then, she turned his head the other way.
''What a pitiful man.''
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