General Deadblade stepped forward, stopping beside the Supergiant without a word. A voice echoed in his mind—it was the Supergiant speaking telepathically.
"This one is strong—and his equipment is formidable. The wooden staff in his right hand and the two rings on his left are all cosmic-tier artifacts, or at least close to that level. Your warblade is also a cosmic artifact. You understand what kind of power that entails."
Only items imbued with authority and power could be considered true cosmic artifacts.
When Thanos forged General Deadblade's warblade, he infused it with a sliver of Sharpness Authority and a faint trace of Death's Power, granting it immense destructive capability. That weapon—the blade that can cut through anything—was what elevated General Deadblade to the leader of the Black Order.
"Attack! Kill him!"
With a sharp cry, General Deadblade lunged at Abel once more, wielding his warblade like both a weapon and an impenetrable shield.
At the same time, the Supergiant's eyes shone with a blinding white light. Her immense psychic energy erupted into the sky, condensing into an invisible mental storm that crashed down on Abel's mind.
Abel's eyes dulled for a moment before turning cold and emotionless. Occlumency had completely sealed off his mind and spirit, forming an impenetrable mental defense.
He swung his left hand forward sharply—the Ring of Frost glowed with icy blue radiance, summoning a wall of jagged ice spears and shards that surged forward like an unstoppable tidal wave, aiming straight for General Deadblade.
But when the frozen barrage reached him, Deadblade merely swung his warblade, cleaving a path through the ice as if it were paper. Without hesitation, he charged forward along the opening.
Abel flicked his wand.
Disintegration Rays!
Six beams of dark energy shot out from the tip of his wand, zigzagging through the air at sharp angles. Four of them targeted General Deadblade from different directions, while the other two streaked toward the Supergiant at high speed.
Though the Supergiant possessed terrifying mental abilities, her physical combat prowess was lacking. Caught off guard by the attack, she was forced to break her psychic hold on Abel in order to defend herself.
For the first time since the battle began, Abel could breathe freely.
Deadblade, however, remained unfazed. His warblade danced in his hands, parrying the disintegration rays one after another, scattering them harmlessly into the void.
Seeing this, Abel's gaze sharpened. There was no time to hesitate—he needed to end this before the Supergiant regained control and turned the tide.
His killing intent surged. The most unforgivable curse was unleashed.
Cruciatus Curse!
A dark green arc of energy shot from his wand, striking Deadblade's warblade.
This time, the energy coursed through the weapon, snaking along its surface like living vines before burrowing deep into the hidden core of the blade.
"AAAAAGHHH!"
A bloodcurdling scream tore from Deadblade's throat. He fell to his knees, convulsing uncontrollably. His warblade slipped from his grasp, embedding itself in the ground.
Abel wasted no time—he cast the Cruciatus Curse again, this time targeting Deadblade's body directly.
But something was wrong.
Instead of writhing in agony, Deadblade was simply blasted backward. The spell had no effect.
What's going on?
The first curse had worked—why not the second?
There was no time to analyze it. Abel raised his wand again.
Expulso!
A rapid flick of his wrist, and the tip of his wand crackled with fiery red light. Dozens of explosive bolts shot forward like a storm, pelting Deadblade and the Supergiant in a relentless bombardment.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The battlefield quaked under the relentless detonations.
Without his warblade, General Deadblade was just an alien with heightened durability and self-healing abilities. He could withstand the explosions, but he was forced onto the defensive, unable to regain his footing. His warblade remained embedded in the ground, just out of reach.
The Supergiant, on the other hand, was in an even worse position.
Her abilities lay in the realm of the mind—unlike Ebony Maw, she lacked telekinetic powers to control the physical world. If they had been fighting in a city, she could have manipulated entire crowds into human shields, turned armies against themselves, or forced Abel's allies to fight each other.
But here, in the desolate wilderness, with no one else around, her psychic power was useless. And with Abel's mind fortified against her abilities, she was completely at his mercy.
The battle was turning against them.
"Damn it, damn it… Deadblade! Protect me!"
Faced with imminent death, the Supergiant made a desperate decision.
She poured her full psychic power into General Deadblade's mind, overriding his will and forcing him to act as her shield.
The half-crippled warrior roared mindlessly, throwing himself in front of the Supergiant, enduring the full brunt of Abel's relentless bombardment.
BOOM!
The explosions continued. The battlefield was nothing but a wasteland of scorched earth and shattered rock.
Then, finally… silence.
Abel exhaled, steadying his breath.
He surveyed the devastation before him. The ground was reduced to rubble, a cratered wasteland. Slowly, he stepped forward to inspect the remains of his enemies.
But before he could reach them—
A familiar blue gravitational beam descended from the sky.
The Supergiant, battered and half-dead but still breathing, was pulled upward into the beam, along with what remained of General Deadblade—nothing but a shattered husk of bone and flesh.
Even his warblade was retrieved, vanishing into the light.
Abel could only watch as the beam shot skyward. The enemy ship broke through the atmosphere, its engines roaring as it made a space jump—vanishing in the blink of an eye.
They had escaped.
Abel clenched his fists. A moment longer, and he could have finished them. But this battle… this battle was over.
For now.