After the four giants finished their report, they lined up behind the foremost giant, waiting for "their team leader's" instructions.
Just then, Zane's time in his [Glint-GlintFruit] elemental form ran out, and his body reverted to its original form, emerging bare and exposed under the watchful eyes of the five giants from the Celestials unit below.
But Zane didn't show any fear. The moment these five giants appeared, he had already roughly gauged their strength.
The foremost giant, Exitar, who had introduced himself as the team's acting leader, was the strongest—currently even stronger than Zane, having reached the high tier of seven-dimensional power.
Judging from what Zane saw through his [Mangekyo Sharingan], Exitar's energy density was only slightly weaker than that of Arishem.
The remaining four giants' power levels decreased in the order they had reported, with the last to speak, the green giant Jemiah, being the weakest among them, though still at the mid-seven-dimensional level.
Moreover, from Zane's perspective, this smallest green giant's energy felt even more concentrated than that of the previous Destruction Celestial, likely on the verge of breaking into the high-tier seven-dimensional threshold, just as he himself was.
"It seems that this group of giants might be the most powerful combat team within the Celestials unit," Zane quickly deduced, as death energy erupted from his body, radiating a fierce aura.
"Good… this makes things easier."
"I won't have to worry about gathering the energy needed for my breakthrough!"
Zane's eyes glowed a scorching red. To him, this group of giants looked like a convenient supply of energy, perfectly suited to help him advance to the high tier of seven dimensions.
Just as it seemed a fierce battle was about to break out, the foremost giant, Exitar, suddenly looked up at Zane with a curious expression and asked:
"Boss, why do you look like this after unsealing yourself?"
"You're small, like a weak human, and your energy level has dropped by a tier…"
At that moment, the deep-blue-armored giant Ziran nudged the red-armored giant Oneg beside him and whispered, "Brother, something seems off about Lord Arishem…"
Oneg immediately gestured for silence.
But the Calculator Nezarr replied, "Ziran is right! Exitar, this guy isn't our Chief Judge Arishem…"
Before he could finish, Exitar, oblivious as ever, interrupted:
"Then tell me, who else besides our boss could appear in his [Sealed World] before we arrived?"
"If the one above us isn't the boss, then who is it?"
At that moment, Zane, still hovering in the air, revealed a death scythe blazing with black flames.
"The power of death! Our Celestials unit could never possess such formidable death energy!"
The smallest giant, Jemiah, pointed in shock at Zane in the sky, prompting all the giants to look up in unison.
"If that's not the boss, then who is it? Could it be the team leader?"
"No, it's unlikely. The team leader is still dreaming; if he came here, it wouldn't look like this."
The large yellow-and-green-striped giant, Exitar, tilted his head, looking up at Zane in the sky, who appeared to him as tiny as a sesame seed.
It wasn't entirely Exitar's fault that he couldn't recognize Zane. This fourth squad hadn't seen Arishem in a long time. All their reports were transmitted directly via quantum resonance.
Most of them only knew that Arishem had a sealed form of disguise, but had never seen what he looked like underneath it.
So, when they saw a fluctuation in golden energy, they assumed it was a disturbance created by Judge Arishem using his golden [Judgment Book].
Most importantly, they couldn't believe that anyone could defeat their the Celestials leader, the greatest below the eighth dimension.
"Forget it. Whether you're the boss or not, I'm coming up there to check myself…"
Exitar wasn't entirely clueless. Seeing that the person in the sky hadn't responded for a while, he suspected something was off, but his pride refused to believe that Arishem could be defeated.
With that, the giant Exitar flashed, appearing instantly beside Zane in midair. He reached out with his massive left hand, attempting to grab him.
"Looking for Arishem? I'll send you to him, though I'm not sure soulless beings like you will be able to meet him again."
Zane had been thinking of ways to shake off this yellow-green giant; of the five giants below, this one posed a slight threat to him.
But he hadn't expected Exitar to come to him voluntarily. Exitar likely didn't see Zane, a mere mid-level seven-dimensional being, as an equal opponent.
After saying this, Zane transformed into a beam of light, darting past Exitar's head. Exitar quickly shifted to avoid any critical hit.
"That speed… physical speed at light velocity?"
Exitar's years of combat experience helped him dodge the attack, but he was left shaken, his pupils trembling.
He immediately retreated, looking at Zane across from him, and thinking back to Zane's earlier words. Suddenly, he burst into fury:
"You little pest! Stop talking nonsense!"
"As if you could harm Judge Arishem!"
With that, Exitar raised one arm high, his yellow-green armor radiating a divine light that shot out brilliant beams.
A loud rumbling soon echoed from the edges of the Hall of Mirrors world.
Before long, massive planets started converging powerfully, then in an instant, they all condensed into enormous leaden spheres.
Each sphere extended a long, gleaming chain that wrapped around the giant's outstretched arm in layers.
The intense heat distorted and warped the vacuum of space.
Within moments, what remained of the glassy boundary of the Hall of Mirrors, already fractured from Zane's previous battle with Arishem, shattered entirely.
"[Judgment Day] loves to descend upon civilizations full of big talk!"
"So, kid, I'm going to destroy you!"
"[Ten Thousand Stars Hammer]!"
Boom!
Boom!
Boom boom boom!!!
The condensed planets clanged as they collided, shaking loose debris that filled the air above.
Then, like countless giant meteor hammers, Exitar swung them with a twist of the chains, hurling them forcefully toward Zane.
Guarding Exitar's side, they cast thousands of dazzling light trails across the sky, filling the entire space.
"Offensive and defensive, huh?"
"But it's too slow! And with this flashy but dispersed power, how could it hurt me?"
With just one glance through his [Mangekyo Sharingan], Zane identified the weakness in the giant's technique, his eyes gleaming red.
"Let's see, little pest. My strength is closest to the boss's in the Celestials unit, and using it to crush you would be a waste."
"After I kill you, I'll go find out where the boss is."
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