MIGHT AS WELL BE OP Chapter 936: City

Emerging from the swirling gale of dust, Lucian advanced with a steady, calculated gait. Black Sword Intent saturated his form, causing the very atmosphere to shrink back as if crushed by the sheer weight of his presence.

'He’s keeping pace with me without even activating his Sword Intent... how very much like a protagonist,' Lucian mused, a subtle smirk playing on his lips. Even acknowledging that Anthony was a walking cheat code, Lucian found it impossible to grasp how the man matched him so casually, devoid of any visible Cultivation enhancement or physical augmentation.

'Is the gap truly this vast?' he questioned himself. He wasn't shocked that Anthony’s weapon hadn't shattered upon meeting his Sword Intent; any common blade would have crumbled into dust instantly. Yet, Anthony’s katana remained flawless. Lucian realized this was due to the weapon's indestructible property—that alone preserved the steel.

'Is he employing his infinity to dampen the Sword Intent against his skin?' Lucian’s eyes sharpened as he scrutinized his foe. 'No... that isn't it.' He discarded the theory immediately. 'Anthony avoids using his infinity because he knows it's pointless in a clash like this. Well, no matter,' he decided.

A grin slowly carved its way across his face as his Sword Intent hit its zenith, erupting toward the heavens like a dark, violent tide. Strands of black energy coiled around him like feral beasts, his battle intent rising in tandem with his resolve. His aura thickened until the world itself seemed to buckle under his will. Someone had to bleed today.

With that final conviction, Lucian took a single step.

The earth groaned under the impossible pressure before disintegrating. Stone fractured and erupted as Lucian lunged forward at a velocity that defied calculation. Distance became an obsolete concept. In less than a nanosecond, he reached Anthony, his katana held high before swinging down like a falling star, the black Sword Intent howling in its wake.

Anthony felt the staggering mass of Lucian’s aura just by being near. It weighed on him like a dying sun. He had to give credit where it was due; the man’s Sword Intent and his mastery over it were exceptionally polished. It was clear Lucian stood at the very threshold of the absolute peak.

However, for Anthony, this was still insufficient. With a calm that bordered on arrogance, Anthony returned his katana to its sheath.

He raised a single finger.

That lone digit intercepted a strike capable of cleaving planets and stars—an attack that could wipe out solar systems without meeting resistance.

In a chaotic explosion of madness, flesh collided with black Sword Intent. Time itself splintered upon impact, freezing as if it feared to move forward. Every surrounding color was bleached away, leaving only a void of absolute nothingness. For the briefest moment in history, a silence stretched out that felt like eternity.

Then, a heartbeat later, reality came rushing back.

Time resumed. Color bled back into the world. And as it did, a literal apocalypse was unleashed upon the realm.

Reality was erased in massive chunks. Entire sectors of the separate plane vanished as the shockwave erupted with blinding speed. Though Klaus had reinforced this dimension, he had clearly failed to account for the devastating power within Lucian’s strike. The Sword Intent sliced through everything, cutting the entire plane in two.

For a split second, the realm teetered on the edge of total collapse.

But it suddenly snapped back together, reality stitching itself shut as if refusing to be destroyed.

As the haze dissipated and the dust settled, two figures became visible. One was shrouded in a storm of black Sword Intent that warped the space around him. The other stood tall and composed, a light smile on his face, having halted a world-ending catastrophe with nothing but a finger.

Lucian’s pupils shrank to needles. He couldn't wrap his mind around the sight. Anthony had blocked a full-power strike, saturated with Sword Intent, using a single finger. He instinctively tried to pull his blade back, but Anthony was faster. Anthony’s fingers clamped onto the edge of Lucian’s katana, his flesh completely unharmed by the Sword Intent trying to shred his skin. With an effortless jerk, he hauled Lucian toward him.

Lucian fought to hold his ground, but it was useless.

Anthony’s physical strength was monstrous, far exceeding Lucian's expectations. He was pulled forward, and the moment his balance faltered, Anthony’s knee left the ground with blinding speed. Before Lucian could react, that knee smashed into his jaw like a hammer hitting an eggshell.

The sound of the world seemed to break. Lucian’s head was whipped to the side, his neck and body following the violent momentum. In the next breath, inertia took over, launching him sideways through the air. He streaked across several kilometers from that single, brutal strike.

Lucian felt his mind slipping toward the dark abyss of unconsciousness. Agony radiated from his broken jaw directly into his brain. Even with his Sword Intent acting as a shield, the raw, crushing pain of that one hit registered clearly.

He couldn't understand it.

Anthony’s power and speed had surpassed everything—every limit Lucian thought existed.

A second later, Lucian’s body smashed through a concrete wall, then another, and another. He tore through a massive glass building that exploded into shards before finally hitting the asphalt. The momentum of that one knee strike was simply... beyond measure.

Without hesitation, Lucian stood up.

He climbed out of the crater his body had smashed into the street. Because he was still wrapped in Sword Intent, the collisions hadn't caused lasting damage. He felt no dizziness or weakness.

His gaze darted around, surveying the new environment. Skyscrapers loomed overhead. Cars filled the streets. A landscape of steel and glass now stretched out where the empty battlefield had been.

It was obvious the setting had shifted to a city. Suddenly, Lucian sensed a presence. His instincts flared, and he looked up.

Anthony was there.

He stood on the edge of a hundred-story rooftop, looking down at Lucian. His white hair whipped in the wind, and his blue eyes shone with a calm, absolute certainty. He didn't speak or move. He simply waited, giving Lucian the chance to make the next move.

An oppressive silence filled the space between them, a heavy clash of wills before the next stage of the storm began.