Rise of the Cosmic_Emperor

It didn't take long before the group Hal was in became engaged in conflict.

The Dystopian Hal was facing on more of a one-on-one note was giving off the pressure of a Late-stage Phenomenon beast realm which would normally have meant he surpassed a human cultivator in terms of physical prowess.

Everyone in the Dystopian continent cultivated like beasts and hence used Demon Beast cultivation realms.

(It's not that different from the cultivation realms you already know but you can check the auxiliary chapter if you are unfamiliar)

They absorbed cosmic energy for the primary purpose of strengthening their body.

While they housed cosmic energy in their bodies like human cultivators, they could not harness it in the same way. They could not use skills, or cosmic attacks, or cosmic phenomenon attacks.

They could not form cosmic Armaments.

They could however imbue cosmic energy into the element they were naturally attuned with..

*Boom*

Hal had just struck his Dystopian opponent with a cosmic attack and said opponent grinned maniacally before leaping right at the attack without any attempt at dodging.

Thanks to his incredibly sturdy skin as per his nature, he (the Dystopian) did not suffer any damage from the attack.

But as this was not the first time he was saving a Dystopian cultivator, Hal knew what to expect and the cosmic attack had only been to create a cover so that he could summon his cosmic Armament and swing for a fatal hit.

*Bam!*

His sword cosmic Armament was caught mid-swing in his opponent's fist that was now coated with dark material that was a sign of his physical prowess. His physique if you will.

All Dystopian cultivators had Beast physiques. Whether they were born with human forms or they attained human form after they cultivated to the Aurora Beast realm.

Once a Demon Beast attains human form at the Aurora Beast realm, they still retain their beast forms which would have been enhanced further and can revert to it whenever it suits them or even merely use a hybrid form.

However, at that point, it is no longer referred to as a Beast form (at least not commonly) instead, it becomes a beast physique that can actually be stripped and cultivated by a human cultivator.

Take, for example, Brysen Holger (chapter 45) from back when Hal attacked the Holger estate, who had cultivated a Beast physique given to him by the master who we all now know to be Arya.

It was not just human cultivators who could cultivate beast physiques.

In fact, with the amount of detest the Haron continent had for all things beast-related, it was not common to see someone making use of a beast physique.

The Dystopians were the ones who stripped Beast physiques from one another but usually as a trophy for their victory over the one being stripped.

After all, they could have more than one beast physique.

Although, the more beast physiques a Dystopian acquires, the more evident the side effects.

Anyway, this particular dystopian as well as the others Hal and his group were facing were definitely not Demon beasts who gained human form since they were still only at the Phenomenon Beast realm.

No, they had been born with human forms.

Which meant their physiques were still undeveloped pending advancements to the Aurora Beast realm.

Anyway,

Hal smiled and pulled his sword which was in the fist of his Dystopian opponent and the opponent's eyes widened in surprise at the strength Hal possessed.

The strength that saw him successfully pull his sword away from his (the Dystopian's) grasp.

And yet, he was clearly still at the peak stage of the cosmic phenomenon realm.

The pulling of the sword had cut the inside of the Dystopian's fist but thanks to the manifestation of his physique which had covered his hand, the injury was minimal and could very well be ignored.

And then Hal vanished from his sights.

The Dystopian's eyes like many who had fallen prey to Hal's attacks over the course of the two months he had spent in this expedition was widened in surprise at that speed and when Hal next appeared, he was kicking the side of his face.

However, fast as Hal was, his opponent still managed to raise his hand and defend against the kick successfully with his hand still encased in his physique.

Or more accurately, the defense stopped Hal from kicking his opponent's head clean off his shoulders but the kick was still so heavy that it sent the Dystopian flying away and trying his best to attain stability.

By the time he was stable, Hal was already punching towards his face, and once again as he had done to protect his head, the Dystopian raised his arms to protect his face but that had never been Hal's target.

Why would he make his attack so obvious when his opponent had shown he was quick enough to defend against such?

No, Hal had spent so much time on the battlefield that he knew how to think on his feet.

He kept the right fist which had been moving more slowly than normal in front of his opponent's protected face to strike with his left fist charged with the height of cosmic energy and sink it into his midsection.

"Ack" groaned the Dystopian as he spat blood but his defense slipped enough for Hal to now charge his stationary right fist with Cosmic energy and sink it into his opponent's now unprotected face.

Smashing his nose and making it as bloody as it could ever be after a powerful one-hit strike.

As the Dystopian was sent back a few more meters thanks to the punch, another Dystopian expert who was among those not yet involved in combat and were awaiting the best time to overwhelm the intruders, looked shocked.

All the other Haron intruders were fighting with skills and cosmic phenomenon so as to avoid close combat which they all knew Dystopians excelled at thanks to their Physiques and this young man was making it as physical as he possibly could.

And he was not only holding his own against someone who should be more capable than him physically, but he was also absolutely decimating him.

The Dystopian decided this was as good a time as any to interfere and overwhelm this human monster but he had only taken one step towards the battling duo when something whooshed in his direction.

"Ack" he groaned as something connected with his midsection and he looked down to see a broadsword with a golden handle and silver hilt sticking out of him.

He had not seen Hal throw it.

The throw had been too fast for his eye to possibly follow.

But he knew,

With absolute certainty,

That it was the human monster who had killed him.

His legs gave out and he keeled backward mostly because it was the direction the force of the throw had directed him towards.

As he fell, Hal was also piercing his cosmic Armament into the midsection of the one whose face he had bashed in. Dousing the last spark of life remaining within him.

Then he straightened up and walked towards his second kill to pull out the Artifact that was a gift from his baby girl before cracking his neck and grinning at the rest not yet involved in the battle as he spoke for the first time since this battle started,

"What's with those scared-looking faces? Come on, that was dumb luck. A fluke. I can't surely defeat all five of you if you come at me together... Can I?"