Immortal Paladin

[POV: Origin King]

The Origin King’s fury erupted into action.

With a sharp motion, he reached into his pocket dimension and drew forth his Origin Sword. The blade emerged in a flash of divine radiance, its edge humming with the authority of creation itself. Without hesitation, he swung it with all the anger raging inside his heart.

The strike cut through the sky like a falling star.

Da Wei reacted immediately. A sword appeared in his own hand, summoned from his pocket dimension just in time to intercept the attack. Steel met divine power with a deafening crash.

The impact sent Da Wei flying across the sky.

The Origin King did not allow even a breath of distance to remain between them. With a single bound through the air, he crossed the entire gap and reappeared behind his opponent, already swinging the Origin Sword in a lethal arc meant to sever Da Wei’s head.

Yet Da Wei moved as though he had eyes on the back of his skull.

His sword rose behind him in a perfectly timed defense.

Clang.

The blades collided again.

This time, the Origin King noticed something.

There was more resistance.

His gaze flickered briefly toward Da Wei’s body.

The Key was a special artifact. Even broken in half, it retained its value. As long as both fragments existed, it should theoretically be possible to repair it. That meant the piece Da Wei swallowed could still be recovered.

The Origin King attacked again, pouring more power into the next strike. His sword descended like divine judgment.

This time, Da Wei did not merely block.

He parried.

The motion was clean and precise, redirecting the entire attack before countering with a glowing sword technique that cut toward the Origin King’s chest.

The Origin King knocked the counter aside with ease, then he retaliated jus as quickly. His blade crashed into Da Wei’s guard and launched the Holy Emperor backward once more. The Origin King stepped forward again, his movement crossing vast distance in a single stride. His sword rose high above his head before descending with crushing force.

Da Wei blocked perfectly.

Even so, the impact still drove him straight into the ground below.

The earth shattered on contact.

A massive crater formed as Da Wei crashed into the surface.

The Origin King hovered above the devastation, watching carefully.

It was not his imagination.

Da Wei was becoming stronger.

Every second that passed, the resistance in his defenses increased.

Behind them, the battlefield continued to rage.

The chaotic Player Alliance clashed with the Origin King’s forces in violent waves. Crimson demonic flames and swirling dark energies erupted across the field while powerful shockwaves rippled through the air as elites from both sides engaged in brutal combat.

Yet the Origin King’s attention remained entirely fixed on the man in the crater below.

Da Wei looked up at him from the shattered ground.

A mocking smile appeared on his face.

“You know,” Da Wei said lightly, “I expected more from someone who talks so much.”

The Origin King felt a surge of irritation. 

Even though Da Wei was the one staring upward from the crater, the expression on his face made it feel as though he were the one looking down.

The Origin King wanted to hurt him.

He raised one hand toward the distant city.

“Origin Divine Palm.”

The colossal divine hand began forming once again, expanding rapidly as it descended toward the city. Before it could strike, a massive shadow fell across the battlefield. A gigantic figure descended from the sky.

It was Ox-Head.

The monstrous gatekeeper had grown to titanic proportions. His immense form radiated underworld authority as he swung an equally enormous battleaxe upward. The blade crashed against the descending palm. With a thunderous impact, the attack was deflected.

At that exact moment, a voice appeared above the Origin King.

“Hey,” Da Wei said casually.

The Origin King looked up.

“I’m your opponent.”

Da Wei descended from the sky with his sword raised high.

“War Smite.”

The glowing blade crashed down with explosive force. The Origin King blocked the strike instinctively. The power behind it still sent him crashing into the ground and the impact created a crater twice the size of the first one.

Stone and debris erupted outward as the ground shattered beneath him.

The Origin King’s eyes locked onto Da Wei.

“You asked for this.”

The Origin King closed his eyes for a brief moment as he reached inward, drawing upon the deepest core of his existence. The vast reserves of Origin Qi hidden within his being surged upward like an awakened ocean.

“Origin Art: Infinity Wheel.”

A massive wheel manifested behind him. It rotated slowly in the air, radiant symbols forming its outer ring. At its center glowed the unmistakable symbol of infinity, pulsing with endless energy.

The Origin King fed his power into the wheel.

The symbol flared brilliantly.

His body vanished, accelerating to a speed approaching light.

Da Wei barely had time to react.

The Origin King’s sword flashed once, and Da Wei’s head was severed from his body. But the Origin King did not stop. He had heard the stories of Da Wei’s monstrous vitality. So he continued. His sword moved again and again with terrifying precision. Each strike divided flesh, bone, and spirit into smaller fragments.

He carved Da Wei apart repeatedly until the body was reduced to microscopic particles drifting through the air.

The process was executed with absolute control.

Every motion avoided a single floating object nearby.

Half of the Key.

The fragment hovered untouched in the air. The Origin King extended his hand and telekinetically pulled it toward himself before grasping it tightly. There was still the other half. He reached forward with his free hand, extending his senses toward Da Wei’s pocket dimension in order to retrieve the remaining fragment.

His fingers were inches away from tearing it free, when something grabbed his wrist.

The Origin King’s eyes widened slightly.

A hand had seized him.

Before him, Da Wei’s body was already reforming. Flesh, bone, and spirit reassembled themselves at terrifying speed as the Holy Emperor regenerated from the microscopic destruction.

“Not so fast,” Da Wei said calmly.

His clothing transformed instantly. Dark armor formed around his body, accompanied by a flowing pitch-black cape that whipped through the air behind him. His other hand tightened around his sword.

“Immortal Art: Godslayer.”

Da Wei’s sword came crashing down upon the Origin King.

The moment the blade struck, a violent burst of turbulent wind exploded outward from the point of impact. The surrounding air twisted into spiraling shockwaves powerful enough to shatter mountains. Under normal circumstances, such a strike would have driven its target deep into the earth and carved a massive crater across the battlefield.

Yet nothing like that happened.

The force dispersed before it could reach its destination.

The Origin King remained in place, completely unharmed. Da Wei’s sword hovered in the air just above his body, separated by the thinnest visible gap. No matter how much force Da Wei pushed into the strike, the blade refused to descend even a fraction further.

The Origin King looked at the weapon calmly and smiled faintly.

“How futile,” he said.

Da Wei’s brows tightened slightly.

“My Origin Art allows me to manifest the concept of infinity itself,” the Origin King continued. “There are limitations, of course. I possess only a finite amount of Origin Qi, so I cannot maintain it indefinitely But while it remains active, it is quite powerful. Your attack will never reach me. That gap between your blade and my body is not merely space. It is an infinite stretch between two points.”

Da Wei released the Origin King’s wrist and adjusted his grip on his sword. He placed both hands on the hilt and pulled the weapon back before speaking calmly.

“Immortal Art: Exalted Godslayer.”

The sword came down again with even greater power. The impact unleashed a shockwave that tore through the clouds above and shattered the ground below. And yet, just like before, the blade halted in midair.

The invisible gap remained unchanged.

The Origin King did not move even an inch.

“Give me the other half of the Key,” he said calmly. “You cannot break through my defenses.”

Instead of responding immediately, Da Wei suddenly leaped backward. His body glided through the air as he created distance between them.

Then he spoke again.

“Divine Word: Rest.”

The Origin King felt a strange sensation wash over him.

For the briefest moment, his mind grew hazy.

“How?”

His eyes narrowed as his vision shifted slightly. For a split second, he noticed something strange—eyes within eyes, layered pupils blinking inside Da Wei’s gaze like overlapping reflections.

The Origin King blinked and the world shifted.

Suddenly, his body separated in the middle. His torso slid apart as though sliced by an invisible blade. Da Wei’s voice reached him calmly.

“As long as I can see you, you are within my range.”

The Origin King realized what had happened immediately. He had lost a layer of immortality. His body reconstructed itself instantly as resurrection triggered. Flesh and spirit reassembled in the air, restoring him to full form.

Yet something had changed.

A faint pressure now lingered over him.

Da Wei rushed forward again, sword flashing in a rapid storm of strikes. The Origin King raised his weapon to meet the assault, blocking, parrying, and countering with expert precision. Their blades collided repeatedly, each impact shaking the surrounding sky.

In between exchanges, Da Wei continued speaking.

“Divine Word: Rest.”

Again.

And again.

Each time the words were spoken, the Origin King felt that strange disruption flicker across his senses. The fight gradually shifted. With every exchange of swords, Da Wei gained more momentum. His movements grew faster, his power increasing with each passing moment.

The Origin King abruptly disengaged from the clash and shot upward toward the sky.

“Infinity, lend me your speed.”

His body blurred into motion, accelerating past the cloud layer until he vanished into the thick white mass above. Hidden within the clouds, the Origin King closed his eyes briefly.

He prayed.

“O Origin… bestow upon me these clouds.”

His Origin Sense spread outward like an invisible net.

He waited.

Da Wei’s presence pierced through the clouds as the Holy Emperor pursued him.

The timing was perfect.

“With the Privilege of Creation bestowed upon me, I order you.”

The moment Da Wei entered the cloud bank, the Origin King spoke a single command.

“Freeze.”

The entire cloud instantly transformed. Moisture crystallized into solid frost in the blink of an eye. The vast cloud mass hardened into a colossal block of ice, trapping Da Wei within its frozen depths.

The Origin King exhaled softly.

“Infinity… lend me your sight.”

His perception sharpened dramatically. Through his enhanced vision, he could see what lay inside the frozen prison. Da Wei’s body radiated an unusual energy.

The Origin King’s eyes narrowed.

Da Wei was under the influence of a divine ability that continuously increased his power at an exponential rate. But the cost was clear. The technique was burning away his existence itself.

The Origin King stared at the phenomenon with disbelief.

The frozen prison exploded. The massive block of ice vaporized instantly, turning into a cloud of steaming mist. From within the evaporating frost, Da Wei emerged surrounded by blazing divine flames.

The Origin King raised his sword and prayed again.

“O Origin… bestow upon me all of heaven.”

Divine energy surged through him as he thrust his sword forward.

“Origin Divine Lightning.”

A colossal bolt of lightning descended from the heavens and crashed toward Da Wei with devastating force. Da Wei’s pitch-black cape suddenly fluttered outward. The fabric expanded like a living shadow. The lightning struck it and vanished. The cape absorbed the entire attack without resistance.

The Origin King frowned.

“With the Privilege of Creation bestowed upon me, I order you.”

He lifted his sword high into the sky as divine energy surged through the clouds above. Lightning spilled across the heavens.

Then he spoke again.

“Storm.”

The clouds roared violently. Hundreds of lightning bolts erupted downward like spears of divine judgment, striking Da Wei from every direction. Yet every bolt met the same fate. The pitch-black cape spread across Da Wei’s back like a living shield, devouring each strike as though the lightning had never existed.

The Origin King’s eyes narrowed further.

That cape was no ordinary artifact. It had to be some kind of divine relic. And judging by its performance, it was a relic the Origin King had never encountered before.

The Origin King surged forward.

Infinity flowed through his steps as he crossed the distance in a blur. His sword flashed with overwhelming force, cutting through the space where Da Wei was, except he was not there. It was just the cape. The pitch-black garment tore open under his strike, splitting apart like fabric caught in a storm. Yet the moment the Origin King looked closer, he realized something was wrong.

Before he could react, the torn garment shifted.

The fabric dissolved into a dark, amorphous mass that twisted violently. The shadows stretched outward and hardened, forming countless black chains that lashed toward him from every direction.

At the same moment, Da Wei appeared above him.

The Holy Emperor hovered high in the sky, his sword raised toward the heavens.

“Heavenly Punishment.”

The sky split open.

More than a dozen enormous golden swords erupted from the heavens, each one the size of a colossal pillar. Their divine radiance illuminated the entire battlefield as they descended in perfect formation.

Every blade locked onto the Origin King.

“It won’t work,” he declared confidently. “I will kill you if that’s the last thing I do.”

The swords crashed down upon him.

Each impact thundered through the clouds as divine power slammed against the invisible infinity barrier surrounding his body. The attacks could not reach him directly, but their sheer force began grinding against his defenses.

The Origin King felt it clearly.

Each sword strike consumed a portion of his Origin Qi.

Around him, the black chains tightened. They coiled around his limbs and torso, attempting to bind him in place. Their structure was unnatural, neither purely physical nor entirely spiritual.

The Origin King pulled against them with growing force.

The chains resisted.

They were surprisingly durable.

Worse still, they were feeding on his energy. Small portions of his Origin Qi were being devoured every second they remained wrapped around him. With a violent surge of strength, he finally tore free.

The chains snapped apart under the strain.

At the same moment, the clouds surrounding them began to churn violently.

The Origin King extended his will outward.

The vast cloud bank twisted and condensed into enormous forms.

Dragons emerged.

These were not ordinary draconic spirits but cloud-like dragons of the Primordial Age, ancient manifestations that existed before the Shén had ever established their dominion over the cosmos. Their enormous nebulous bodies coiled through the heavens while lightning crackled within their vaporous scales.

The dragons roared.

They unleashed storms of lightning and primordial breath toward Da Wei.

But the remnants of the shattered cape moved again. The broken chains slithered through the sky and reshaped themselves into black swords. Those weapons surged forward with terrifying speed, slicing through the ancient dragons.

One primordial dragon was cleaved apart.

Then another.

Their vast forms dissolved back into cloud and lightning as Da Wei effortlessly dodged the surviving creatures’ breath attacks.

Then Da Wei raised his hand.

“Final Adjudication.”

A massive golden scale materialized behind him.

The scale radiated overwhelming authority as its enormous chains burst outward. Each chain burned with golden fire as it lashed across the sky, binding and scorching the remaining dragons until their forms collapsed entirely.

The Origin King narrowed his eyes.

He had underestimated this man.

Da Wei did not possess the overwhelming grandeur that defined the Six Supremes at their peak. Yet his combat abilities and unpredictable techniques made him extraordinarily dangerous. This fight could not continue indefinitely.

There might be other ways to reach the Heart of the World.

But one thing was certain.

Da Wei had to die.

The Origin King raised his sword slowly.

“O Wheel of Infinity… lend me everything.”

The vast Infinity Wheel behind him began spinning faster. His eyes ignited with brilliant blue light. Cracks spread across his skin as his body struggled to contain the immense power surging through it. Unlike Da Wei’s reckless elevation of strength through self-destruction, the Origin King’s power came from something else entirely.

It was devotion. He had worshiped the Origin for longer than he could remember. He was the favored son of heaven. When he called upon the Origin, reality itself bent to his will. That was what true faith meant. Only when one was truly loved by their god could they claim to be a genuine believer.

Origin Qi erupted from his body in a violent storm.

He swung his sword once.

The blade carved through space itself.

Da Wei’s body disintegrated instantly, reduced to ash by the overwhelming strike.

The Origin King swung again.

The ash scattered across existence.

The fragments were banished into the deepest pits of nonexistence, shredded into particles so small they would never reform. Whatever remained of Da Wei’s soul was scattered into the void or whatever afterlife awaited beings like him.

Silence returned to the sky.

The Origin King exhaled slowly.

“How disappointing,” he muttered. “After all that arrogance, this is how you end?”

He blinked.

The world changed.

The battlefield vanished.

The armies were gone.

The sky was quiet.

The Origin King found himself floating once again above the ruins of the church where the encounter had first begun. Nothing had been destroyed. Nothing had happened. Before him, Da Wei floated calmly in the air, completely unharmed.

Da Wei’s eyes flickered with a mysterious power.

A realization slowly crept into the Origin King’s mind.

He swallowed.

“What did you do?”

Da Wei smiled casually.

“It seems your god likes me too,” he said. He gestured lightly toward his own face. “I mean, I also have an Origin Art.”

The Origin King’s eyes widened slightly. His gaze locked onto Da Wei’s eyes. How had he missed it? Those eyes were the source. Earlier, he had thought he was imagining things when he saw strange reflections within them. But now it was undeniable.

Those eyes were an Origin Art.

His Origin Sense had failed to recognize it immediately because the structure of the technique was unbelievably complex.

A rare feeling crept into the Origin King’s chest.

Nervousness.

How was this even possible?

His voice sharpened as anger overtook the confusion.

“How did you get those eyes?!”

Da Wei answered with the same infuriating calm.

“It’s a very long story,” he said casually. “You would probably get bored of it rather quickly. But what do you think? Any wild guess about my third objective for having this conversation?”

The Origin King gritted his teeth. A cold realization crept through his mind. He had been played. Without another word, he drew his Origin Sword once again from his pocket dimension and attacked. Their battle resumed instantly, the clash of blades echoing across the sky.

It unfolded almost exactly like before.

The first exchange mirrored their earlier confrontation. The Origin King unleashed his techniques, Da Wei responded with his own strange powers, and the battlefield erupted with devastating energy.

Except this time something had changed.

Da Wei performed better. Every movement was sharper. Every counter arrived slightly faster. Every defensive action required less effort than before. 

The Holy Emperor was improving. 

The Origin King pressed forward with overwhelming force. His attacks grew more vicious as he attempted to overwhelm his opponent before that growth became too significant.

Eventually, he succeeded.

Once again, Da Wei’s body was destroyed under the relentless force of the Origin King’s techniques. And once again, the world reset. The Origin King blinked and found himself floating above the ruined church.

Everything returned to the beginning.

The battlefield was gone.

The armies were gone.

Da Wei stood before him again, untouched.

The Holy Emperor clasped his hands loosely behind his back as though delivering a lecture rather than facing an enemy. “Existence is quite strange when you think about it,” Da Wei began thoughtfully. “People spend their entire lives searching for meaning, building kingdoms, forming alliances, fighting wars.”

He gestured lightly around them.

“But in the end, the most convincing illusions are the ones that feel real.”

His eyes focused on the Origin King.

“And right now, you are standing inside one of those.”

Da Wei’s smile returned.

“You have a choice.”

He raised a finger.

“You can keep this conversation going. Keep fighting me. Keep revealing more of your abilities while I learn everything I need to know.”

Then he lowered his hand.

“Or you can walk away.”

His tone remained almost friendly.

“You’ll carry the humiliation with you, of course. But perhaps the next time we meet, you’ll have a better chance.”

The Origin King remained silent. Inside his mind, the truth had already become clear. If the battle continued like this, Da Wei would eventually win. That had been the third objective all along. The provocations, the insults, the absurd displays of power. None of it had been random. Da Wei had orchestrated the entire encounter to gather information.

He had measured the Origin King, studied his abilities, and eventually complete his analysis of the limits of his Origin Art.

And the Origin King had revealed everything willingly.

Like a fool!

The key in Da Wei’s possession had never been meant for negotiation. The Holy Emperor had never intended to trade it. That was why he had pushed so aggressively, provoking every reaction possible.

The Origin King’s thoughts turned toward the Origin itself.

Why?

What had the Origin seen in this man?

There had to be limitations to those eyes. The Origin King could sense it clearly. Da Wei did not possess Origin Qi within his body. The power flowing through him was something entirely different. If that was the case, how was he able to wield an Origin Art?

Da Wei spoke again, interrupting his thoughts.

“Anyway, I’m satisfied with what I learned so far.”

He waved a hand dismissively.

“You may go on your way now. Of course, if you want to keep fighting, I don’t mind. Eventually I’ll succeed in killing you.”

Even now, the provocations continued.

The Origin King stared at him coldly.

“I’m not leaving,” he said, “until I get something from you.”

He summoned his Origin Sword again. But as he prepared to attack, doubt began to creep into his mind. Could he truly afford this risk? He had already revealed so much. And he had no leverage to use.

Da Wei had shown only a portion of his abilities so far. Looking back at their previous battles, the Origin King could clearly tell the Holy Emperor had been holding back far more power than he had revealed.

A dangerous idea surfaced in his mind.

‘What if I attack his city again?’

If he threatened Da Wei’s followers repeatedly, perhaps he could force the Holy Emperor to reveal more of his abilities.

But the thought collapsed almost immediately.

It would change nothing.

No matter what he did, the outcome would simply return to this moment again.

Another thought began forming.

The Origin King lowered his sword slightly and studied Da Wei carefully.

“The ability to see the future is not rare,” he said slowly. “Depending on the weight of destiny attached to that future, it can still be changed. I admire your ability to move destinies. However, something about this still feels strange.”

He gestured around them.

“I can tell this vision you project to me is real. These events truly happened within the paths you showed me. But it does not make sense. If your victory is so certain, then why go through all this trouble? Why not simply challenge me again and again within the alternate realities your ability can create, defeat me with certainty, and end this matter once and for all?”

Silence lingered between them for a moment.

Da Wei’s smile widened.

“Guess.”