Fan Shen's vision swam. His body was breaking apart, the stolen divinities within him writhing in agony. But even now, his golden eyes burned with defiance.
"LIES!" he roared. "We're the SAME! Both of us took what wasn't ours! Both of us climbed over corpses to reach this point! Don't you DARE look down on me!"
Fan Shen raised the Human Emperor Sword high. "I will show it to you."
Yun Lintian's eyes narrowed.
Fan Shen's broken form suddenly stopped mid-air. Golden light erupted from his chest—a radiance that didn't belong to any of the stolen divinities.
It was something purer.
The Power of Mortals.
Countless strands of golden energy surged from the void itself, weaving into Fan Shen's wounds. His shattered bones knitted back together. His torn flesh regenerated. His aura—already monstrous—exploded outward in a tidal wave of raw power.
Yun Lintian instinctively raised the God Slaying Sword to block—
The shockwave hurled him backward for the first time in the battle. His boots carved trenches through space itself before he stabilized. His eyes flickered with rare surprise.
Not just any faith—this was the collective belief of mortals across countless worlds. The unyielding will of humanity. The power of those who defied gods.
Fan Shen floated amidst the golden light, his body now fully healed. His grin was no longer just mad—it was triumphant.
"You feel it, don't you?" Fan Shen's voice boomed, layered with the whispers of millions. "This power doesn't belong to any god. It belongs to humanity!"
Yun Lintian's grip tightened on his sword. He did feel it. The energy wasn't just coming from Fan Shen—it was pouring in from everywhere. From distant worlds where mortals struggled. From forgotten realms where humans defied fate.
It didn't matter if they worshipped Fan Shen or not.
As long as they believed—in themselves, in their dreams, in their defiance—their faith fueled him.
"This is the true power I stole," Fan Shen sneered. "Not from gods—but from the mortals they looked down on!"
Yun Lintian barely blocked the punch in time, but the force sent him skidding back again. The God Slaying Sword trembled in his grip.
Fan Shen didn't stop.
Each strike carried the weight of humanity's defiance. The collective will of countless souls who refused to bow. The power scaled with their belief—and right now, across the cosmos, mortals were fighting.
And Fan Shen fed on it.
"SEE THIS?!" Fan Shen roared as his fist slammed into Yun Lintian's gut. "THIS IS WHAT YOU REALLY STOLE FROM THEM!"
Yun Lintian coughed blood—golden blood. His divine essence splattered across the void.
Fan Shen's laughter shook the stars. "HOW DOES IT FEEL?! TO FINALLY BLEED?!"
Yun Lintian wiped his mouth, his mismatched eyes darkening.
Fan Shen didn't give him time to recover.
The Human Emperor Sword came down—now drenched in the golden light of mortal faith. The blade hummed with the voices of a thousand rebellions, a million dreams, a billion unbroken wills.
Yun Lintian raised the God Slaying Sword—
The collision split the cosmos.
Space ripped apart like torn fabric. Time stuttered. Distant galaxies imploded from the aftershocks.
As the dust settled, Yun Lintian was battered with injuries. Fan Shen didn't give him a breather as he continued to attack Yun Lintian.
Fan Shen's golden eyes burned with madness as he pressed his advantage. Every strike from his Human Emperor Sword carried the weight of countless mortal wills, forcing Yun Lintian back step by step.
"You see now?!" Fan Shen roared, his voice layered with the echoes of millions. "This is the power of true belief! The power that will make me the Creator!"
Yun Lintian blocked another devastating slash, his boots grinding against the fabric of space itself. The impact sent cracks spiderwebbing through the void around them.
"Once I kill you," Fan Shen snarled, "I'll take everything! The power of the gods, the faith of mortals—I'll reshape this world into one where I am the only god!"
Yun Lintian didn't respond. His mismatched eyes remained calm even as golden blood trickled from his lips.
Fan Shen's grin turned feral. "What? Nothing to say? Or have you finally accepted your death?"
Yun Lintian exhaled sharply—then moved.
His body blurred, not with speed, but with something deeper—adaptation. Every clash, every exchange, had been teaching him. Fan Shen's power was immense, but Yun Lintian was learning.
The God Slaying Sword met the Human Emperor Sword in a shower of sparks. This time, Yun Lintian didn't retreat.
Fan Shen's eyes widened slightly.
Yun Lintian's left hand shot forward, palm glowing with a swirling vortex of black and white energy—the Power of Chaos.
The blast struck Fan Shen square in the chest, hurling him back through the void. Stars shattered in his wake as he tumbled uncontrollably.
For the first time in minutes, Yun Lintian had countered.
Fan Shen snarled as he stabilized himself. Golden light surged around him, healing his wounds instantly. "You think a single hit means anything?! I am limitless!"
Yun Lintian finally spoke, his voice steady.
"As I said. You're just borrowing."
Before Fan Shen could retort, Yun Lintian raised the God Slaying Sword. The power of the eight divine beasts merged into the blade, their power fusing with the Chaos energy already swirling within it.
"Let's see how long your faith lasts," Yun Lintian said quietly.
The first strike carved a canyon through the void. Fan Shen barely blocked, but the force sent him skidding back.
The second strike came before he could recover. The Human Emperor Sword trembled in his grip.
The third strike shattered Fan Shen's guard entirely. His golden blood sprayed across the cosmos.
"IMPOSSIBLE!" Fan Shen roared. "I HAVE THE POWER OF ALL MORTALS!"
Yun Lintian didn't stop. His sword moved with perfect precision, each slash carrying the combined might of the eight divine beasts and the Power of Chaos.
Fan Shen was forced back again and again. His healing couldn't keep up. His golden aura flickered—not from lack of faith, but from overload.
"NO! I REFUSE TO LOSE!"
With a desperate roar, Fan Shen detonated the faith energy within him. The explosion tore through space, forcing Yun Lintian to raise his sword in defense.