A Man of Steel Mixed with Water? The Undead Demon Hydra!

Velasco's body vaguely resembled a human, retaining a general human shape, but his entire form was red, like scorching blood.

He had devilish, sharp fangs, a suit of crimson clothing of unknown origin, and a blood-red cloak. On his back, a massive black battle axe rested. His right hand, however, was empty, a stark contrast to the arrogance expected of a hell lord.

Though he was a magician, his muscular body revealed that he was still a formidable fighter.

"Ignorant mortal, since you are so eager to die, I will fulfill your wish!" Velasco sneered.

He opened his remaining left hand, and countless tentacles erupted from his palm, writhing wildly like sharks scenting blood, rushing toward Aaron. They surrounded him from all sides, seemingly intent on wrapping around him and strangling him.

Aaron didn't flinch. He raised his hand and unleashed Bossat's Thunder.

Upon contact, the tentacles scattered and exploded in a powerful burst of energy, sweeping through them. They writhed violently, seemingly alive as they struggled beneath the intense thunder.

"Huh? So it's those Kamar-Taj bastards!" Velasco muttered, narrowing his eyes. A mysterious energy shield appeared around him, absorbing the force of Bossat's Thunder and replacing the tentacles.

But Velasco had clearly underestimated Aaron's attack.

As Bossat's Thunder struck the energy shield, it shattered almost instantly.

Velasco's expression tightened with a newfound respect. "Your attack is impressive. No wonder you have the courage to venture into Hell alone. It seems the Ancient One has trained another worthy disciple."

Despite the praise, Velasco let the lightning strike him, unaffected. "Unfortunately, I've been gifted with an indestructible body by the ancient gods. Your attacks are useless against me!"

His body remained undamaged, save for his shredded robes.

Velasco smoothed out the ruined garment, and in the blink of an eye, it was restored to its original state.

He looked down at Aaron, his tone mocking. "See? This is the difference between you and me! You're powerless against my defenses!"

Aaron stepped forward through the portal, his eyes locked on Velasco.

"Is that so?" Aaron replied. In a flash, he passed through Velasco's chest.

He held the still-beating heart in his hand.

"This is the indestructible body the ancient gods gave you? Is that it?" Aaron taunted. "Maybe you should ask them if it's been watered down."

In terms of raw physical strength, Aaron had never been intimidated by anyone—not even the ancient gods themselves. He could break any opponent's limbs if it came to a physical contest.

Velasco's voice still echoed in his ears, disbelief and confusion clouding his gaze as he looked down at the hole in his chest.

This was the body the ancient gods had given him! No weapon—aside from the divine sword forged by the ancient gods—had ever harmed him. How could he be pierced so easily?

Was it an illusion?

Before he could voice his thoughts, an irresistible force sent him crashing away.

"Master King of Hell!" shouted Nastil and the other demons in shock, their eyes wide in disbelief.

They couldn't believe what they had just seen: Velasco, once a symbol of invincibility, was struck down by an enemy in the blink of an eye!

To the demons, Velasco had never shown any sign of vulnerability.

Nastil, still reeling from the sight, instinctively placed a hand over his own chest. He had just been trying to rely on his physical fitness to defeat his opponent, but now, seeing the devastating power within Aaron's seemingly frail form, he understood just how outmatched they were.

One pair of hands could inflict grave injury on someone as physically powerful as Velasco.

Elsewhere on the battlefield, Illyana, now demonized, didn't hold back when confronting Aaron's duplication.

This time, however, she didn't engage in close combat. Instead, she turned to dark magic—her preferred method of attack.

Illyana skillfully wielded black magic, bringing her hands together. The earth trembled as massive hands emerged, splitting the ground and crashing forward with the force to crush everything in their path.

Aaron's duplication created countless giant swords, controlling them with psychokinesis, and within seconds, they sliced through the demon's hands.

Illyana's screams of pain echoed, but before she could recover, Aaron summoned a flaming giant sword. The sword cleaved through the sky, silencing her cries.

At that moment, Illyana noticed Velasco's injury and cast a hateful glare at Aaron.

In a brief moment of weakness, her human consciousness struggled to regain control. But the demon side quickly overpowered it.

With a shrill roar, dark energy surged from her body, forming a pair of helmets. Roars sounded from behind her as a massive demon—Hydra—emerged.

The Demon Hydra stood over a hundred meters tall with nine heads, its roar echoing into the sky. It was a force of nature, a true terror among demons, its very presence making others recoil in fear.

Hydra, immortal and powerful, often fed on other demons, causing many to avoid its wrath. Its appearance was both a sign of overwhelming power and a warning to all.

With Hydra summoned, Illyana's armor grew more defined, solidifying her demonized form. The armor, unique to her, enhanced her resistance to magic and physical attacks, growing stronger with each use of black magic.

She charged toward Aaron's duplication, while Hydra, under Illyana's frenzied command, attacked him.

Aaron, temporarily distracted by Hydra, turned to face the monster. He knew that defeating the Hydra wouldn't be an easy task.

Velasco, a dark necromancer turned dimensional lord, was no easy foe. It would take more than brute force to destroy him. Only by eradicating him completely—body and soul—could one hope to win.

Meanwhile, Hydra's massive form advanced, and Velasco absorbed energy from the dimension to heal his injured heart, gradually restoring its beat.

His eyes burned with fury as he watched Aaron. His doubts and fears lingered: How could his enemy's body be so powerful? It seemed almost as if Aaron were some kind of self-sustaining humanoid artifact.

Never again would he engage Aaron in close combat.

With this realization, Velasco began to prepare his most potent magic.

As Hydra advanced to entangle Aaron, Velasco quietly gathered energy and healed, biding his time.

On the edge of the battlefield, a figure appeared. The Ancient One.

Though Aaron had insisted he didn't need help, the Ancient One still harbored concern. When the battle between Aaron and Velasco intensified, she arrived, prepared to intervene if necessary.

The Ancient One was well aware of the difficulty in fighting dimensional lords. Even she, powerful as she was, had no hope of winning in their domain.

She knew that Aaron's strength might have surpassed hers—perhaps even that of the King of Gods, Odin—but the territory of a dimensional lord was treacherous. Even the weakest of these beings could unleash unimaginable power within their domain.

That's why the Ancient One had brought the Time Gem, ensuring that no matter what happened, she could assist Aaron if needed.

She observed the battle closely, noting how Velasco was recuperating while Aaron was distracted.

When Aaron, still entangled with Hydra, suddenly opened a portal above the monster's head, he summoned an explosion of energy that wiped out five of Hydra's heads in an instant.

Hydra howled in agony, its remaining heads unleashing a Destruction Beam in retaliation.

But Aaron, reacting swiftly, fell into a portal, dodging the beam and reappearing outside Hydra's range.

Despite its regenerative abilities, Hydra was no match for Aaron's power. The monster's heads began to regenerate, but it was clear to Aaron that only by destroying all nine heads at once could he defeat it.

He considered using atomic recombination to annihilate Hydra, but this wasn't the right place. The dimensional boundary was too dangerous, and energy manipulation here was perilous.

So, Aaron resolved to suppress Hydra instead.

Using his mind, Aaron encased Hydra in Uru metal chains, solidifying them around its massive body. Nine towering Optimus Pillars appeared above, each shining with silver light, and they plunged into Hydra's body, driving deep into the earth.

The chains tightened, and despite Hydra's furious struggles, it was trapped in place, unable to escape.

Aaron's duplication, now fully controlling the chains, sealed Hydra's nine heads, rendering it incapable of further attack.

"Not so tough now, are you?" Aaron taunted.

As this happened, Velasco saw an opportunity. He unleashed all his energy in one devastating attack. A beam of light exploded across the battlefield, blinding everyone in its wake.

Aaron didn't move to escape. Instead, he stood firm, absorbing the attack with a mysterious force.

Velasco's eyes widened in disbelief. "He's absorbing my attack?"

He couldn't fathom how such a monster could exist, especially one capable of draining his immeasurable energy.

Frustrated, Velasco doubled down, pouring more energy into the attack.

Meanwhile, Illyana continued her desperate assault on Aaron's duplication. However, despite her efforts and the monsters she summoned, she was no match for him. Her power was running low, and even as she wielded a giant axe, her demonized form wasn't enough to turn the tide.

Aaron crushed her axe with ease, binding her in place with chains of Han Torak.

Illyana, unable to resist, was rendered helpless.

Seeing this, the remaining demons on the battlefield, terrified by Aaron's overwhelming strength, began to flee. Even Nastil, once confident, turned tail and retreated to Velasco's castle, sending reinforcements but staying far from the battle himself.

He had already died once—he wasn't about to tempt fate again.

The fear that Velasco might actually lose was growing, and Nastil couldn't shake the dread that if Velasco fell, he would be next.

Meanwhile, on the battlefield, Velasco cursed Illyana as useless, then turned his full attention to Aaron.

The battle continued for hours, with neither side breaking.

Even as reinforcements arrived, Velasco began to wonder if he had underestimated Aaron's ability to absorb energy.

The worst-case scenario was becoming all too real.

Would Aaron truly be able to keep absorbing everything Velasco threw at him?

If so, Velasco's chances of victory were dwindling fast.