"Dead? How is that possible?" Arnold chuckled softly, shaking his head. "Even though the Singularity of Light is weaker than my Lord, heâs still one of the seven Singularities. Killing him would take considerable effortâeven for my Lord."
"Besides," he continued, "thereâs a rule that binds the Singularities. Theyâre forbidden from using their full power in internal conflicts. If someone breaks that rule, the others will intervene and punish the offender."
Malverna said nothing in response, but inwardly, she acknowledged the truth in his words.
Even from a great distance, she could sense that both sides were holding backâthey hadnât yet unleashed their full strength.
That fact alone was proof enough. If they fought seriously, the entire continent might be reduced to ashes.
In the distance, the Singularity of Lightâs figure was slowly consumed by Nolanâs black flames, vanishing without a trace.
But then, a golden light flickered in the air. From it, the Singularity of Lightâs body reformedâcompletely intact.
Yet his face was deathly pale, as if he had lost a tremendous amount of blood.
How is he this strong?
The Singularity of Light muttered bitterly.
Just how strong is this guy?
Earlier in the battle, he had already used around thirty percent of his total power.
But despite everything he had unleashed, none of his attacks had landedâlet alone wounded his opponent.
On the contrary, he had been on the defensive the entire time.
Just imagining a clash where both of them fought with their full strength made the Singularity of Lightâs heart pound in fear.
Without needing to be told, he already knewâhe would be the first to die.
Taking a deep breath, he gritted his teeth and shouted, "Are you satisfied, Singularity of Chaos? If you still want to fight, then Iâll face you with everything Iâve got! Even if it means destroying this entire continent, I donât care!"
Of course, it was just a bluff. If the masked man got serious, he would no doubt force the other Singularities to step in.
After all, the manâs strength was real, and if the fight went all out, he was certain he would die.
"Oh?" Nolan raised an eyebrow, a playful smile tugging at his lips. "Then letâs go all out. Iâm curious if you meant what you just said."
The Singularity of Light felt his chest tighten, his breathing suddenly ragged.
Before he could react, Nolan opened his palm and raised it toward the sky.
Whoosh!
In the void above, a massive black holeâeasily the size of a ten-story buildingâripped open the sky.
Its terrifying suction immediately began drawing seawater from the ocean below.
Caught directly beneath it, the Singularity of Light felt his body being dragged upward by force.
"Damn it!" he roared.
Buzz!
A golden aura exploded from his body, his eyes shining with blinding light.
The air around him condensed, and the pressure surged sharply.
As he prepared to release his full power, a massive meteorâhundreds of meters wideâsuddenly descended from the sky and slammed into the black hole.
But the impact never came. The meteor was simply devoured, swallowed whole, and vanished into nothingness.
The sudden sight startled both the Singularity of Light and Nolan.
They turned to the right, where a hideous face was taking shape in the air.
It was red, with bulging black eyes and thick eyebrows.
"You two... stop immediately!" it commanded in a thunderous voice.
The Singularity of Lightâs eyes widened. "Singularity of Flame?"
He hadnât expected that man to appear, let alone step in to mediate. Even so, a sense of relief washed over him.
Nolan looked surprised as well. With a snap of his fingers, the black hole above vanished without a trace.
The seawater that had been pulled upward came crashing back down.
"What do you want, Singularity of Flame?" Nolan asked, his tone flat as he crossed his arms.
Of course, he already knew the answerâhe was here to stop the fight between him and the golden-haired old man.
Truthfully, Nolan wasnât very familiar with the Singularity of Flame.
In fact, none of the other Singularitiesâaside from the Singularity of Lightâhad ever interacted with him directly.
It wasnât that Nolan avoided forming connections. It was simply that most Singularities chose to hide their identitiesâjust as he did.
Only the Singularity of Light openly revealed his identity and was widely known by the inhabitants of this continent.
In hindsight, it made perfect sense. Powerful beings naturally preferred to remain in the shadows. Concealing their identities was simply part of who they were.
The Singularity of Light, of course, was the exception. The old man had always enjoyed flaunting his status, a habit that had earned him the dislikeâand even hatredâof the other Singularities.
In response to Nolanâs direct question, the Singularity of Flame felt a surge of anger and resentment.
He was the type to take offense easily, quick to anger. But standing before the masked man and recalling the power he had just witnessed, he forced himself to hold it back.
"Huh..." He exhaled sharply and shot a cold glare at the two of them. "Your battle has seriously endangered the stability of this world. Have you two considered what your actions could lead to?
His eyes moved to the sea below, where dozens of craters and deep gashes scarred the land.
The waters were littered with carcassesâvarious creatures floating lifelessly, including several powerful monsters that had perished in the chaos.
The destruction had clearly devastated the marine ecosystem.
Thankfully, they were far from any populated land. Had this taken place near civilization, the damage could have been catastrophic.
Upon hearing that, the Singularity of Light immediately pointed at Nolan and snapped, "If youâre looking to blame someone, blame him! He started all of thisâdragged me here and attacked without warning. Do you really think Iâd be in this state if he hadnât?"
Although he knew it was his own fault, his pride wouldnât let him back downâso he shifted the blame first.
It was a tactic to seize control of the argument before it could turn against him.
Surprisingly, however, Nolan didnât respond with anger or denial. Instead, he gave a small nod and calmly admitted it. "Yes, it was indeed my fault."
The Singularity of Lightâs expression stiffened. For some reason, an uneasy feeling began to creep into his heart.
"So you admit it?" the Singularity of Flame asked, his eyes narrowing sharply.
He had expected the man to deny it, but instead, he admitted it without hesitation.
Now, curiosity stirred within himâhe wanted to know the reason behind those words.
Remaining calm and composed, Nolan said, "Singularity of Flame, Iâm sure youâve heard the troubling rumors about the Singularity of Light. Heâs repeatedly abused his statusâespecially by using his sonâto suppress other powers across the continent. Tell me, does someone like that truly deserve to be left unchecked?"