Chapter 24 - Beerus vs Meliodas

"No time for breaks folks! For this next round, we have Beerus vs Meliodas! Also, I'll buff Meliodas so this can be more exciting or whatever."

Meliodas stretched his body, preparing for the fight. Meanwhile, Beerus yawned and took a quick nap.

"Good luck!" Meliodas gave Beerus a thumbs up.

"Yeah yeah, let's just get this over with."

"EVERYONE READY? BEGIN!!!"

In an instant, the platform erupted with activity. Meliodas dashed forward with blinding speed, his steps leaving faint afterimages behind. His movements were fluid, each step a testament to his extensive combat experience. With a swift, graceful motion, he unsheathed Lostvayne, its blade gleaming brightly.

Beerus cracked open an eye. His ears twitched again, catching the faint sound of Meliodas' approach. With a barely perceptible sigh, he shifted into a more upright position. He raised an eyebrow, a gesture of mild curiosity at best.

As Meliodas closed the distance between them, Beerus finally stirred. With a casual flick of his wrist, he sent a wave of energy hurtling towards his opponent. The energy wave crackled with immense power, tearing through the air with frightening speed. Meliodas reacted swiftly, his agility allowing him to dodge the attack with a hair's breadth to spare.

"Wow! They don't call you God of destruction for nothing!"

The shockwave from Beerus' attack swept over the battlefield, stirring up dust and debris. Meliodas used the cover to vanish from sight, his presence becoming a mystery.

"Hm... now where did you go?"

Beerus looked around, trying to find a sign to where he was. Then suddenly, Meliodas came from behind. Beerus turned around and shot a simple ki blast, blasting him away. However, it was a clone! As the real Meliodas rushed in, he held the blade over his head as he prepared to strike it down.

"Take this!"

Despite that, Beerus easily dodged it, stepping to the side. While Meliodas was confused, Beerus grabbed him by the shirt before throwing him at the pillar.

"Argh!"

Beerus smirked, his hands behind his back.

"Is that all?"

"Not in the slightest!"

Meliodas rushed towards him, six clones splitting out of him as he did so. Beerus yawned, pointing his hand towards Meliodas.

"Let's just get this over with. HAKAI."

Beerus shot a ball of destruction towards Meliodas. However, in a surprising turn of events, Meliodas and his clones swung their swords towards the ball of destruction.

The hakai ball, once targeted at Meliodas, now became a deadly projectile hurtling back towards Beerus with surprising speed. Caught off guard, Beerus narrowly evaded its path, but not without consequence. The sphere grazed his cheek, leaving behind a noticeable cut.

The hakai ball crashed onto the ground roughly a dozen meters away, erupting into a devastating explosion that sent shockwaves rippling through the platform. The explosion illuminated the entire platform, bathing it in a brilliant purple glow that seemed to highlight every detail of the platform. The radiant purple light cast eerie, shifting shadows across Meliodas, Beerus, and the others watching from the sidelines.

"Wow, the writing quality has definitely got an improvement!" Seiko shouted into a microphone that he has definitely had in the past few chapters.

Goku looked in awe, getting a bit excited watching the fight.

"Wow! This Meliodas guy is really strong! He's even got Beerus fired up! What do you think, Vegeta?"

He turned towards Vegeta, waiting for his response.

"This is Beerus we're talking about. I don't know about you kakarot, but I think the ending of this match is certain." Vegeta crossed his arms.

'Though, that technique. It might prove an actual challenge to Beerus. This is getting interesting!' He smirked.

Beerus wiped the blood off of his cheek, looking at Meliodas annoyed. A sly grin curled across Beerus' lips as he channeled his energy, initiating a dramatic power-up. A vivid purple aura enveloped him, crackling with an immense surge of power that resonated throughout the entire platform.

"Congratulations 'Meliodas', you have earned the right to see 1% of my power."

Meliodas's heart was racing seeing Beerus's power up. He grinned, a sign of worry in his face.

"T-This is only 1%? I can't imagine your full power!"

Beerus surged forward with increadible speed, aiming a devastating punch straight at Meliodas. By a hair's breadth, Meliodas managed to evade the oncoming strike, swiftly ducking to escape the powerful force of the blow. While the punch didn't connect, the sheer pressure and force behind it were enough to send shockwaves through the platform, making the ground beneath them tremble in response to Beerus's power.

Meliodas jumped back, taking a breather.

'I'd better not get hit..' He thought.

He lunged at Beerus, his sword arcing towards him. However, Beerus displayed astonishing reflexes, effortlessly catching the blade mid-swing. In a swift counter, Beerus delivered a powerful punch to Meliodas's gut, or so he thought. To Beerus's surprise, the Meliodas he had struck was yet another clone, vanishing into smoke.

Just as Beerus turned to face the real Meliodas, Meliodas reappeared behind him, attempting to strike his blind spot. Without even glancing, Beerus executed a precise kick, only for once again, it to be a clone.

"I'm getting tired of this cat and mouse game."

Beerus gazed upward, only to be met with a swarm of thirty Meliodas clones descending upon him from the skies like a meteor shower. Swiftly, he swatted one of them aside with a powerful backhand, his hand connecting with the clone's face with a resounding impact.

One of the Meliodas clones grabbed another from the midst of the clone swarm, catapulting their fellow clone directly toward Beerus.

Beerus nimbly dodged to the side, kicking the clone in the stomach with the force to send it flying back into the swarm of clones.

"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!"

Beerus's aura intensified, crackling with unfathomable power as he lifted his hands, summoning a relentless torrent of hundreds, even thousands of ki blasts that streaked through the air toward the swarm of Meliodas clones. The clones reacted swiftly, their blades a blur as they deflected and redirected the incoming ki blasts, sending them hurtling back toward Beerus.

"Annoying!" Beerus shouted.

Beerus skillfully evaded the onslaught of ki blasts, his movements a dance of evasion and counterattacks. He expertly kicked and swatted away the ki blasts that threatened to hit him.

The Meliodas clones had finally landed, surrounding Beerus. Beerus was now starting to get a bit pissed off, his aura getting more powerful.

Beerus drew in a deep breath, gathering an immense reservoir of energy within himself, before unleashing a deafening roar that reverberated across the battlefield. The sheer force of his shout sent shockwaves rippling through the air, pushing back the swarm of Meliodas clones and gradually disintegrating them one by one.

As the echoes of Beerus's roar faded away, there remained only the real Meliodas who had been brought to his knees by the overwhelming display of power. His clothes were tattered and ripped by the roar. He also seemed to have cuts and bruises around his body.

"D-Damn it..." Meliodas groaned in pain.

Beerus smirked, putting his hands behind his back.

"Was that your last party trick?"

Determined, Meliodas gradually rose to his feet, his arm throbbing in pain. Gritting his teeth against the discomfort, he made a resolute decision. He cast aside his prized weapon, LostVayne, and tore away the tattered remnants of his shirt.

"I'm not done!"

Meliodas charged forward, his fist propelled toward Beerus with unwavering resolve. Beerus swiftly responded by launching his own fist, meeting Meliodas's attack head-on. The collision of their fists sent shockwaves through the platform, causing it to tremble immensely.

Meliodas pulled his arm back, a groan of pain escaping his lips as the battle began to take its toll on his body. Despite the pain, however, he continued to push through.

Meliodas wasted no time, launching another attack in the form of a powerful uppercut. However, Beerus displayed his unmatched agility, gracefully sidestepping the attack and seizing the opportunity to deliver a swift yet devastating punch to Meliodas's gut.

The force of Beerus's counterattack sent Meliodas hurtling through the air, but he quickly managed to regain control of his flight, halting himself mid-air before landing on his knees. Pain coursed through his body, evident by the blood he spat up, and he clutched his stomach, gritting his teeth in agony as he tried to recover from the powerful blow.

"Wow, despite being severely outclassed, Meliodas just keeps on pushing!" Kazuma watched in awe.

In a lightning-fast maneuver, Meliodas reappeared behind Beerus, his leg arcing toward the deity's head with blinding speed. Yet, Beerus was unyielding, ducking under the incoming kick with impeccable timing. Seizing the moment, Beerus retaliated by launching a powerful punch aimed at Meliodas's face.

Meliodas reacted swiftly, blocking the punch with his forearm, but the sheer force of the blow sent shockwaves of impact coursing through his body. Despite his defensive effort, the power behind Beerus's attack was undeniable.

"Argh!" He groaned in pain.

Beerus swiftly unleashed another punch, but Meliodas displayed incredible agility by ducking underneath it. Seizing the opportunity, he retaliated with a lightning-quick uppercut that connected with Beerus's chin. The powerful strike sent Beerus soaring into the air, tumbling uncontrollably for a few moments before he finally crashed back to the platform.

Beerus, wiping away a trickle of blood from his nose, gazed at Meliodas with a mixture of surprise and renewed respect.

"You... made me bleed?"

Everyone was in shock, especially Goku and Vegeta.

"Vegeta! Did you see that!?"

"Of course I did Kakarot! He did something that not even we can't do! Make Beerus bleed!!"

"But how!? I thought he was for sure weaker than Beerus!"

Then, Seiko spoke up, smiling widely.

"This is one of his most powerful abilities, Revenge Counter. Simply put, he can soak up damage and unleash it back onto his opponent. Normally, this would have a limitation. He could only do this with his sword. But due to my buff, he can do it with just anything. He still has his other abilities locked when he does this, though."

"What else did you exactly buff?" Kazuma looked towards him.

"Just about everything. This way, the fight can be more exciting."

With a confident smirk, Beerus tapped into even greater reserves of power, his energy surging to new heights. The platform itself quaked and shuddered in response to the overwhelming force emanating from him, setting the stage for an even more intense battle.

"Now this... this is exciting!! SHOW ME WHAT YOU GOT!!!"