Lord of Annihilation

Floating in the void of space with his right hand clutching onto the golden sword of the Formician was Alex Hellwig.

His body covered in whitish-blue flames radiated with incomparable heat and brutality. The sheer aura radiating off of his body faintly twisted the space surrounding his body. Wearing an expressionless face, he spoke in a dominant tone.

"A single ant dares to act so arrogantly." His voice could actually be 'heard' by the others.

Being able to talk in the vacuum of space! 

If someone had said such a thing before the advent of the Ascension, he would've been considered mad or written him off as a lunatic. 

However! 

With the proliferation of spiritual energy and the existence of soul power, such inconceivable things have actually become possible!

To explain this situation consider this example; An average human can only lift a weight of 75-100Kg, while a professional bodybuilder can lift anywhere from 300-700kg. Any more than this is generally considered to be out of human ability. 

However, if one were to bring soul power into this equation, then this seemingly impossible task becomes entirely possible! 

As long as one possesses sufficient soul power and, a body that can withstand and effectively use the said soul power, then theoretically one can lift 'any' amount of weight!

Why is that?

Well, all limitations exist in this Universe due to the presence of the Rules. 'The Rules of Causality' states that all Effects must have a respective Cause. And spiritual energy is the medium by which these Rules are enacted.

But then, why do Awakened Beings able to perform such wondrous and mystical things?

This is because Soul Power is a mystical energy that has the ability to circumvent the Rules. It allows the user to manipulate and even rise above the very Rules limiting them. 

As one's cultivation increased in Stages, the number of Rules they can circumvent and manipulate also increase in rank. This allows them to possess strength and skills that are wondrous in nature.

Stage 1 beings can easily perform superhuman feats and have absolute control over their own body. Laser rifles or Plasma-charge bombs have no effect against their strengths.

Stage 2 beings possess sufficient strength to fight against an armada. They are also able to control a small portion of the area surrounding them.

Their bodies are strong enough to face mechs head-on and their soul powers are potent enough to nullify the energy produced by nukes!

Stage 3 beings have the strength to affect a planet, being able to manipulate and control their surroundings

Tasks such as breaking mountains or splitting seas can be effortlessly completed. In fact, if they go all out, they have the strength to destroy a planet!

While this may sound incredibly powerful and fearsome, it is only theoretically possible. Doing so in the real world depends on a lot of factors.

Soul Power and Spiritual Energy are inherently two different types of energy; as such there exists a certain amount of conflict and 'wastage' between these two energies. 

In short words, the denser the spiritual energy, the weaker the effects of soul power, and the harder it is to circumvent the Rules (spiritual energy is the medium of Rules.)

Mankind and its territories, having only recently added to the greater part of the Universe are considered to be 'young/new territory'. As such, the total amount of spiritual energy present is still very, very less when compared to the other areas of the Universe.

This is why Stage 1 and Stage 2 beings are able to use a greater part of their power while facing lesser limitations. Stage 3 beings would be considered to be godly with the power to single-handedly eradicate Mankind.

In fact, with the scarcity of spiritual energy a Stage 4 and higher beings would not be able to enter this newly added territory. 

If they do so, not only will they instantly die but that specific portion of the Universe will also collapse! This is also a type of Rule.

That being said, there are no absolutes. With the vastness of the Universe, there might exist some incomprehensible being that is able to circumvent such limitations.

Reverting back to the story.

During the past year, Alex had undergone intensive nurturing and training and has already broken through into Stage 2.

He was currently at Mid-Level Stage 2 and had gained preliminary control over his surroundings. With this, not only was he able to survive in the vacuum of space, and was also able to transmit his voice.

『Arrogant human, let go!』 the Formician Warrior was incensed by Alex's interruption and was thoroughly enraged. Exerting the entirety of its strength, it tried to pry away its sword from Alex's grip. 

However, no matter how much strength or effort is put into the task, the sword did not move. Caught within Alex's grip, the sword seemed to be immovable.

"This is the limits of your strength?" Alex taunted. He raised his chin and arrogantly scoffed: "What a joke."

Although the Formician was unable to understand his words, it could understand his taunt. Releasing its grasp over the sword, it clenched its hands and threw a punch towards Alex.

Grayish-black energy leaked from its body and condensed around its fists. Invisible winds formed around its fist, as it instantly neared Alex's face, seemingly having teleported.

BANG!

With a resounding sound, the punch landed… on the golden sword. At the very moment his opponent had moved, Alex had calculated the trajectory of its strike and intercepted its attack with the sword.

A sneering smile formed on his face as Alex spoke: "Low-Level Stage 2?"

"How pathetic." He laughed and responded with a punch of his own. 

Whitish-blue flames condensed around his left hands and the punch landed on the Formician's armored body. It was completely unable to react to Alex's movement and stood blankly.

A tremendous amount of heat and force struck the unresponsive Formician. However, the smile on Alex's face disappeared and was replaced by a serious look.

The golden patterns on its armor suddenly brightened and a strange ripple spread outwards, covering it. The force and heat behind Alex's attack were completely absorbed and dispersed by the armor.

The Formician finally managed to react, and instantly backed away. Its face and back were drenched by the 'metaphorical' cold sweat as it finally came to realize that this human before it was different from the rest.

'Wha-what was the attack? I couldn't even see it!' it thought in panic. Calming itself down, it rationally responded.

'I must warn the others.' Its large, black eyes shined with intelligence as its antennae buzzed with an invisible current.

Alex's hawk-like gaze bored into the Formician. Without turning back, he instructed the rifleman behind him.

"Immediately retreat and warn the people on the ship to prepare for battle. These bastards are already done with the other ship and are heading towards this one."

Zaine raised his head and looked towards the distance. He could see the dense swarm of invaders transporting the last remains of the BS-Lawson and turning their ships in his direction. 

He silently gulped and soundlessly nodded his head. Turning around, he continued to rush towards his original destination.

'I must warn the others!'

---------------

Alex who had part of his attention focused on Zaine finally retreated his focus on seeing him leave. He then raised both of his hands and moved his soul power.

"[Fireball]" Calmly uttering the name of the spell, he threw a dozen fireballs towards the Formician.

Burning with a calm blue flame, the fireballs rapidly closed in on the Formician.

'Such power! I must evade that!' The Formician instantly realized the lethality of the attack and responded. 

Strengthening its body with soul power, its body flashed and moved sideways by a few dozen meters, completely evading the barrage of fireballs.

Seeing its response, Alex did not frown. In fact, an arrogant and provocative smile formed on his face. Opening his mouth he spoke

"Oh, did I mention? My [Fireballs] are not normal." He snapped his finger and continued: "They have a homing function."

The calm blue fireballs suddenly shifted their direction and turned towards the Formician. Not only that, but they also sped up.

'What?!' The Formician's eyes shrunk in shock, as it retreated once again. Not daring to expose its back to this fearsome enemy, it hurriedly sidestepped and tried to evade once more.

Unfortunately, the speed and power of the fireballs had become too great. They converged on the body of the Formician and simultaneously exploded into a mass of colorful lights. Heat waves that were sufficient to melt iron spread out from the center of the explosion.

Seeing this, Alex let out a sigh of relief. 'Thankfully, the fireballs had sufficient time to gather strength. If they were destroyed earlier, they would not be this potent.'

Dispersing the gathered soul power in his hands, Alex thought: 'This should be enough to penetrate its armor and kill it, right?'

However, the very next instant a scowl formed on his face. 

'You've got to be kidding me!'

The effects of the explosion finally disappeared and exposed the other party. The Formician stood still with its arms covering its head in a guard stance. 

Its body stood uninjured and its black-colored armor was completely undamaged.