Maxine narrowed her eyes for a moment after hearing Joshua's question. He hasn't seen me fight more than a single attack. So, how does he know that I am holding back? Is he bluffing or did he glean something from my killing intent? It's also possible he has some videos of when I was fighting on Earth. That would definitely explain how he knows.
In the end, Maxine smiled as she dismissed those thoughts and asked Joshua, "Perhaps, but only if you are up to my standard. Anyways, how did you figure out that I have been holding back this whole time?"
"The way you move hints that your fighting style revolves around speed and agility, and that war scythe is not compatible with it. Hence it is unlikely that it is your primary weapon," Joshua answered confidently, "If I had to guess, your weapon of choice is either a sword or blade. Next, your killing intent is quite intense indicating that you have been in multiple situations that required you to kill numberous opponents. To do that, you would need to be quite skilled in the first place. Lastly, the look in your eyes hasn't shown the slightest hint of fear while watching us fight. It's as if you don't consider myself or anyone else here to be a threat."
"Very good analysis," Maxine commented, "But you are wrong on your last point, I am not fully confident that I can beat you. Mostly because I haven't seen you fighting seriously. That's why I asked if you were going to fight seriously or not."
"That's reasonable," Joshua answered, "I don't want to fight seriously unless I have to. The others could find a weakness in my techniques. So how about we probe each other's skill first and let things play out from there?"
"Fine by me," Maxine replied confidently.
Maxine didn't have much time to get comfortable as the AI announced, "Joshua Keniph vs Maxine Levings." Oh, yeah. I forgot that Buck Wilder was on the opposite end of the tournament bracket. It makes sense that we would be called up fairly fast.
Simultaneously, Maxine and Joshual leapt onto the arena. Instead of bringing out the war scythe from her dimensional pouch, she retrieved her Twilight Iron Blades and got into a loose fighting stance. Her change of weapons surprised a large number of people in the stands, but grandma Victoria seemed pleased.
"So, you are going to fight seriously," Joshua said with a small smile, "It would be rude of me not to do the same." Two extra sets of arms appeared on his back. Really? Is he trying to be an asura?
"Cool trick," Maxine praised, "Now, let me show you mine." After forming her essence armor, she expanded her shadow to cover half of the arena and spawned dozens of barbed tendrils out of it.
"Are you two ready?" the AI asked and both Maxine and Joshua nodded their heads, "Good, begin!"
Joshua stared at the tendrils around Maxine, but otherwise stood his ground. I can't really blame him for not wanting to charge into this. It's like throwing yourself into a field of thorn bushes. Maxine charged forward and her expanded shadow and barbed tendrils moved with her. Her intent was to bind him up with the barbed tendrils and introduce him to her new attack.
Unfortunately, Joshua was wary of her barbed tendrils and lashed out at the ones that got to close as he began charging at her. Well since he is coming to me. I might as well give him a proper greeting. Maxine created numberous crescent moon blades using her essence and had them orbit around both of her Twilight Iron Blades. Small cyclones of crescent moon blades formed around her weapons.
Once Joshua was in range, she lashed out at him. Joshua retaliated by unleashing a flurry of blows in an obvious attempt to knock away her attack, but his essence-created arms got shredded the second they came into contact with Bladed-Cyclones around her Twilight Iron Blades. Just as I thought, his fake arms are not protected by the forcefield. That makes it far easier to destroy them with my new technique, Bladed-Cyclone.
Unfortunately, Joshua appeared to have predicted this as literal hundreds of ethereal fists rapidly formed in the air around him. As he retreated, these ethereal fists were being hurled at Maxine and she knew that she couldn't dodge all them. She forced to stop wasting her focus on her shadow and let the tendrils vanish.
Maxine swung her blade at the ethereal fists and released a Bladed-Cyclone to cut a swatch through the fists to form a gap that she could jump through. Once she was through the gap, she nearly did a double take when she saw the number of arms that Joshua had this time. She counted twenty and he began charging at her. This could be problematic.
Maxine hurled her remaining Bladed-Cyclone at Joshua as more as a distraction than an attack and used the Phantasmal Steps of the Shadow Cat to make distance between herself and Joshua to turn this fight into a ranged onet. As skilled as she was, she wouldn't be able to defend against twenty fists in close quarters.
Maxine's Bladed-Cyclone gouged out a small path on the arena's floor as it hurtled at Joshua, but he kicked down with his right leg to jump to the left in order to avoid it. However, she didn't even get to gain much distance before all of his palms opened up revealing small glowing orbs. You've got to be shitting me. A hail of essence bolts were unleashed from his palms as Maxine dodged for all she was worth and hacked essence bolts that she couldn't dodge with her Twilight Iron Blades. Thank god, he is just firing them blindly. If he actually sealed off my movements using a little strategy, I would be screwed.
However regardless of her internal complaints, Maxine was slowly getting excited and after dodging for nearly a full minute, she began joyously laughing. She knew it would anger Joshua to be laughed at, but she couldn't help herself. She was having a lot of fun.
As expected, Joshua clearly became quite angry that Maxine was laughing and to her surprise, his skin became a greyish color as an opaline gem formed on his forehead. I knew it! He's the one Guan was told me about that has the Shadow Lord Form. Although I am a bit surprised he has the same version of it as I do. I wonder what brought that about? Regardless, this means he is finally going all out.
Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.
"Finally," Maxine said while continueing to dodge his attacks, "Now, I can bring out my 'pet' without feeling like I am bullying you. Come forth, Tiamat." A draconic roar erupted from Maxine's shadow as it enlarged and brought forth her dragon. She intentinally made it emerge slowly and used verbal commands as means to present fake flaws in her abilities.
Joshua increased the intensity of his attacks at Maxine to defeat her quickly. It was clear that he didn't want to face her dragon, but Maxine evaded to stand behind her dragon's head. The attacks that hit her dragon barely even scorched it's scales. So, that's what fantasy novels meant by saying as tough as dragon scales. Dragons are such a cheaty race. Wait, wouldn't that same durability travel over to my dragon essence armor?
Joshua tried to get a shot on Maxine, but she kept out of his line of sight. Eventually he got enraged and roared, "Cowardly!"
"Yeah, sure. It's totally cowardly and not wise to use an obstacle to avoid getting hit," Maxine said sarcastically from behind her dragon as it finished emerging from her shadow.
Joshua looked like he wanted to yell at Maxine again, but her dragon had already cocked it's head back as it took a deep breath. "You might want to dodge," Maxine suggested right before her dragon unleashed it's dragon's breath.
Instead of dodging, Joshua unleashed a flurry of punches with only his limbs made of essence at the dragon fire breath. Stupid. Even if he can defend it like that, he will waste a lot more essence restoring his essence arms than if he were to just dodge. Hell, it would be more efficient to form a Spining Rumble Barrier than it is to fucking punch fire. This is no doubt an ingrained response taught by his teacher in the event that he can't avoid an attack. Now I am starting to wonder. Who the fuck taught him that if he can't dodge an attack that he is to punch it? I really want to meet the 'genius' that taught him that one.
While Maxine was watching Joshua frantically attacking her dragon's fire breath, she heard Elder Ezekiel's voice resound in her head, "I want you to lose. Name your price." She was instantly enraged. Both herself and Joshua wanted an honest fight and Elder Ezekiel's attempt at bribing her was an insult to both of them.
"Resurect my mother," Maxine responded coldly via spiritual sense and apparently her demand was returned with silence. She expected that since she gave him an impossible task, but it really was the only thing that she would throw this fight for. She glanced over towards him and saw his face red with anger.
Maxine looked at where Joshua was standing and was impressed when she discovered that he hadn't been teleported out. However his essence arms were mostly melted and it left him with only his original pair left. He was panting heavily. That strongly suggested that his essence reserves were low. He has endurance. I will give him that. But regardless, he looks like he is about to collapse from exhaustion and he has no one to blame other than himself. He just made too many stupid mistakes. Creating arms made of essence and hurling all of those essence bolts were a gamble since they both of those use up essence like mad. And his idiotic idea of trying to punch dragon's fire as a means of defense was a retarded waste of essence. On the other hand, my essence usage was far more conservative in comparison. I still have nearly 70 percent of my essence left while from the looks of it he has maybe twenty precent left, if that. However when Maxine stared at his eyes, she saw that he hadn't given up.
"If you have a trump card, I suggest that you use it now," Maxine suggested as she stood next to her dragon.
Joshua looked at Maxine for a moment before a small smile crept onto his face as small silver lightning bolts arced across his flesh. Isn't that the trick uncle Zeph uses to move fast? Maxine instantly got into a defensive stance, but she was a moment too late as Joshua turned into an electric blurr that was coming straight at her.
Maxine tried to avoid his rush, but he was simply too fast. He unleashed a flurry of blows and she was only able to defend against half of them. Shit! He's too much faster than me while using that technique. My dragon can't even attack because it could hit me instead of him due to his speed. She released a powerful burst of essence to repel him away from her, so that she could catch her breath.
"If you have a trump card, I suggest that you use it now," Joshua said with a playful grin as he threw her own statement back at her.
"I don't need to," Maxine stated confidently and shadow tendrils wrapped around her, "Tiamat, Scorched Earth!" Joshua's expression darkened as he rushed at her, but he was too late. She had just finished covering herself with a layer of shadow tendrils and kept adding onto it. She was intent on making the barrier of shadow tendrils around her at least four foot thick in every direction except down.
While Joshua relentlessly attacked Maxine's ever thickening defences, her dragon spread it's wings wide and took flight. It soared two hundred feet above the arena and breathed fire down to bathe the arena in flames. Joshua became frantic with his assault, but his actions were in vain as he was bathed in dragon fire. He only lasted bare moments before being teleported out of the arena.
"Winner, Maxine Levings," the AI announced, "Maintenance crews report to the arena."
Maxine dissolved the dome and saw that the arena, besides the place she formed her dome of shadow tendrils, was sheet of red hot molten rock. She expanded her shadow and said loudly to her dragon, "Tiamat, return." Her dragon landed on her expanded shadow and entered it as slowly as it emerged.
As Maxine leapt out of the arena, she heard Elder Ezekiel roar as he came to his feet, "I object to Maxine's victory! She clearly violated the rules of this tournament by using a powerful tamed dragon!" She quickly became angry again. That asshole! Can't he just face the fact that I won fairly and his grandson lost.
"Apologies, elder Ezekiel, but you are mistaken. While the creature Maxine summoned was indeed powerful, it was only an extremely well crafted construct. I determined this by scanning the construct's body as it was summoned and I discovered that it lacked DNA of any kind. Thus, this one determined that the 'dragon' was a construct," the AI announced, "I can show you a copy of it's essence signature and biological makeup if you desire to confirm this for yourself." Thank you, Mr. AI for not revealing how much of a strain it is to control my dragon. If you did, the Shadow Lords would at least suspect that I have a special variation to the Shadow Lord Form when combined with everything else that they know about me.
"That's not necessary," elder Ezekiel growled as he waved his hand in dismissal and he sat back down, "I retract my previous objection."
Maxine sat in her seat before meditating to recover as much of her essence as possible. She had used up a lot more essence than she had wanted to in the match against Joshua, but she didn't regret it. The fight had been far more challenging than she had expected. Fortunately, I don't think Jenifer Krell is as capable as Joshua, but there is no guarantee of that. If she is, there is no way that I will be winning this tournament, but getting second place shouldn't be too hard. It's just fighting two well-trained opponents is too draining and I won't have the stamina or essence to face a third. Even with a rest break, my match against Buck Wilder will be hard. I better watch his fighting style carefully to see if he has any repetative moves. In any case, I won't have the luxury of testing techniques against him.