The sky began to pulsate and glow brightly as a group of divine-level warriors rushed down to greet Alex.
Nate took a quick glance, noting that there were at least a dozen of them, all seemingly in the early golden core stage.
"Who is this?" one of them asked, gesturing to Nate. "Did he actually dare to fight you? Does he have a death wish?"
"Judging by his attire, he doesn't seem like anyone of importance," another warrior replied. "Alex, do you need some help? This man is nothing. Just say the word, and we'll get rid of him for you."
They all hoped to flatter Alex by offering to help him.
Nate rolled his eyes. "Do you really need all these people to help you kill me?" he taunted Alex. "You really must be weak."
"I don't need help to deal with you," Alex replied, sneering at him. "You have always underestimated me." He took a step forward to stand toe to toe with Nate.
A few divine level warriors looked at Nate, yelling criticism at him, trying to distract him so that he would let his guard down. Nate was angry, but he knew better than to let them succeed. He had to keep an eye on Alex's movements at all times, because he was the real threat.
In front of him, Alex raised his hand, and a long staff appeared. The celestial staff was filled with cold air, and an unexpected pressure hit Nate, shocking him.
"How can this be?" he wondered out loud. "How can there be a divine relic on this insignificant planet with depleted spiritual energy?"
The moment he saw the staff, he knew he was in trouble.
The staff slowly grew longer as Alex pointed it at Nate. "Come," he said. "Let's see what's stronger—your relic or my staff."
Nate had nowhere to retreat to. He was already next to the ocean, which was where he was the strongest. Besides, there was no escaping from all these golden core warriors gathered around him. And even if he could, Alex would soon catch up to him.
He gritted his teeth and held up his own relic. A huge python covered in ice suddenly appeared on the surface of the sea. Then, when he opened his arms wider, the sea split in two. The waves on both sides rose into the sky, sweeping up like boiling water, almost dragging the few warriors on both sides into the depths of the sea. The two that were closest to the waves were so scared that their faces turned pale. They hadn't expected this at all—the guy they had mocked earlier was so much stronger than they had given him credit for. Now they were glad that Alex had insisted on handling him by himself.
The onlookers covered themselves and each other with their inner power, hoping that would be enough to protect them. Finally, they had a better understanding of Nate's background and abilities. Clearly, he must be a powerful warrior from another galaxy, because they couldn't believe that anyone in their own galaxy had that kind of strength.
Among these bystanders were a couple of warriors with four golden cores, but Nate was stronger than them, and they didn't understand why.
Still, they believed that between them, they would be able to help Alex defeat Nate.
As the fight went on, the python suddenly broke through the water's surface and opened its mouth, spitting at Alex.
"A spirit beast dares to show off in front of me?" Alex asked, scowling at it. Then he lifted the staff and slammed it down with substantial force, summoning a sea serpent and sending it rushing toward the python.
The moment Nate saw the serpent, he knew he was doomed. It was now a battle between the serpent and the python, and the python clearly didn't stand a chance.
In no time, the sea serpent used its fork tongue to pull the python up from the surface of the sea, stirring up a monstrous wave. Then it tore the python apart and swallowed it.
Everyone watched as the fight ended abruptly, with the python completely defeated. Finally, the head and tail of the serpent went limp and began to dissipate into the air.
The relic in Nate's hand had also lost its luster the moment the python's spirit had dissipated. He looked at it in disbelief. In just one round, his relic had lost its spirit, and its power had been disintegrated. A feeling of despair and defeat washed over him.
He wondered how a planet that no longer had much spiritual energy left could be home to such a powerful warrior. Is he really a native of Earth? he thought. Throwing the relic toward Alex, he turned around and fled.
Even without a spirit, the Python was still a powerful relic. It carried an unparalleled ability as it rushed toward Alex. Right before it reached him, it split into five sharp spikes aimed straight at his limbs and head.
Nate only hoped that it would delay Alex long enough for him to make a getaway off the planet. If he just had enough time to turn into a ray of light that could shoot out of the Earth's atmosphere, then he would be free.