“Heh.” Contrary to expectations, Razznik’s lips parted in a pleased grin when the Twilight Wolves bared their fangs. The Chaos God smirked as he rested his broadsword against his shoulder. “Good. Your eyes finally have a bit of life to them.” Razznik then crouched low, his voice almost a growl as he said, “Then, I do not have to hold back any longer.”
Before anyone could process the meaning of that absurd statement, Razznik exploded forward, cutting down toward Kashi in the blink of an eye.
BANG! “You?” Razznik’s eyes gleamed as he studied Hektor, who had blocked his path with a shield. Fully committing to the fight, fire blazed in Razznik’s eyes as he challenged, “Back for more?”
Amid the sparks, Hektor glared at Razznik with a measured gaze. “This time will be different,” roared Hektor as he activated Sram’s Mark. Hektor’s muscles contracted as the war goddess’ power flowed through him. He then roared as he pushed back against his shield, shockingly sending Razznik sliding backward.
Seizing his opportunity, Hektor swung his sword immediately after. At first, it appeared he was swinging at thin air, but to everyone’s surprise, a thin gash appeared on Razznik’s right arm afterward.
Hektor’s Transcendent ability was [ Definite Cut ] , an ability that ensured he would always strike any target within his ten-meters domain. It was an absolutely absurd Transcendent ability, hampered only by the facts that he could only use it for thirty seconds every hour, and the attack was halved on impact. Against regular foes, the second restriction was not so bad, but against a monster like Razznik, it was the difference between a light injury and nothing at all.
Keeping his limitations in mind, Hektor rapidly swung his sword, looking to inflict as many injuries as possible in the short time.
“[Harden]!” In response to Hektor’s threat, Razznik cast a quick spell on his clothes, temporarily increasing their toughness for a brief period. He then spread out his mana to pick out any disturbances in the air. As expected, he soon sensed a slight disruption around him. Several ki-blades appeared a few inches around him and swung down at him at lightning speed.
Having sensed the dangers, Razznik avoided the cuts aimed at his head while allowing the others to strike his body. Just as he was dodging, Razznik shot out a stream of flames to the side.
Vwoosh! A blonde swordswoman cut through the flames, the embers dancing around her as she cut down at Razznik.
Clang! Razznik could have parried the strike, but sensing danger, he only blocked and used the force to slide back a few meters. Whoosh. It turned out to be the right decision as a second Shoko leaped over the first, and swung her blade.
“Shoko Style, [NET!]” Shoko’s sword flashed countless times in the span of a second, sending out a dense crisscross of sword ki’s down at Razznik.
Faced with the onslaught, Razznik was about to swing his sword, but he was forced to duck when one of Hektor’s strikes went for a throat. That brief moment stole his chance to swing, but Razznik did not falter. A white mandala appeared around his left fist as he punched the air. “[Gale!]”
Vwoosh! A mana-fueled hurricane blasted out of the mandala, shattering the sword net to pieces. In the air, Shoko-2 quickly sidestepped out of the way, barely avoiding the blast in time.
Despite rebuffing the two Shokos’ attacks, Razznik did not dare relax as a third Shoko ran out from behind Shoko-1 to his right just as he unleashed Gale. Shoko-3 quickly dropped to a low stance. Her head drooped low, long hair fluttering down as she held the hilt of her sword, whose edge was pointed toward the sky. Surging ki rushed toward her feet and then exploded, catapulting her toward Razznik!
Rather than panic, Razznik’s lips spread in a grin as he stomped the ground. “[Iron Dome!]” A mandala instantaneously appeared beneath him, and an iron half-sphere shot out and then enclosed him within.
BANG! A loud cry like an artillery shell striking iron rang out as Shoko struck the dome. Shockingly, the dome shattered on impact, sending shrapnel flying in all directions.
Slice! Shoko did not react as several pieces of shrapnel dug into her flesh. Instead, she shot into the dome without a moment’s hesitation.
Sching! A thrust blade met Shoko’s charge. Any lesser warrior would have gotten skewered by their own pace. Shoko, however, snorted as she lightly danced along the earth, effectively slipping past the blade. She then unleashed several attacks in tandem, moving like a ballerina within the enclosed space.
Razznik, for his part, let go of his sword once his thrust missed and rapidly punched out, parrying Shoko’s sword with well-timed hits. He then punched out several ki-blasts to obliterate the opponent.
The enclosed space prevented either from extravagant movement, so Shoko easily tracked his attacks as she darted around him.
Meanwhile, Razznik monitored Shoko’s breath as he parried her rapid attacks. As a swordsman, he recognized the one-breath technique that accompanied a combo attack like this. Basically, a swordsman would unleash a series of connecting blows that was very hard for enemies to stop deflections and blocks only served to increase the combo. However, they could only unleash these attacks under a single breath. The combo would end once the breath left their lungs.
Of course, it was easier said than done to monitor an opponent’s breath during the heat of battle. However, who was Razznik? The madman dedicated over a thousand years to honing his combat techniques. Keeping track of one heartbeat was nothing to him.
It happened very quickly. Shoko eventually could not hold on any longer and let out a breath. As soon as she did, she ended up slowing down by a fraction. To warriors on their level, that fraction was more than fatal!
Razznik calmly slapped Shoko-3’s sword to the side and then threw a devastating blow at her exposed chest. Shoko-3 coughed up blood as she blasted through the iron dome, shattering it even more.
Seeing that she did not evaporate on contact, Razznik quickly gave chase, picking up his sword as he shot out of the dome. However, he had barely taken two steps outside the dome when he sensed something wrong. Trusting his instincts, Razznik immediately pulled to a stop, and then looked to the sky.
“Too late!” Shoko-2, who was airborne, roared as white ki-gathered around her sword. Just then, Shoko-1 and Shoko-3 disappeared, turning into dense ki that shot into the real Shoko’s sword.
Only then did Razznik realize that Shoko had also broken through to become a Transcendent. However, in her case, rather than a domain, her Transcendent skill strengthened her Gemini skill, turning her clones into real bodies that had to be killed to be destroyed.
Sweat visibly pooled on Shoko’s face as she struggled to contain the torrential, explosive ki contained within her sword. Fortunately, she did not have to hold it long. “[Swallow Fall!]” cried Shoko as she swung her sword. A loud cry escaped the swordswoman’s sword as a swallow-shaped ki-construct shot out towards Razznik with death in its eyes.
Razznik’s gaze turned grim. He was about to change position, but three deadly ki-blades aimed at his neck stabbed out around him. Furthermore, several arrows zipped towards his position, their formation densest just inches away from him.
Razznik glared at the archer, Leila Lightwood, who smiled at him from over three hundred meters away. “Hmph! Do you all think this can hold me!?” The Chaos God smirked as dark flames enveloped his sword. His eyes burned with flames as he prepared to swing at Shoko.
“Not today. [Gravi-Bomb!]” Just before Razznik could swing, Absalon appeared in the sky above him and unleashed his gravity spell. The overwhelming magical signature revealed that Absalon had also transcended. Like Shoko, his Transcendence upgraded his Gravity-related skills, making it such that he could insta-cast them with less mana.
With Absalon as the node, gravity suddenly tripled around a five-meter radius.
Stolen story; please report.
The unfamiliar weight buckled Razznik’s arm for a moment, preventing him from launching his attack. Shokō’s swallow, which was already on a downward trend accelerated under the gravity’s influence.
BOOM! Several layers of earth erupted once the swallow struck! The impact’s shockwave sent everyone flying or sliding several feet backward.
Despite the explosion, everyone’s expression turned ugly. Just before impact, they saw ground crack open beneath Razznik’s feet, sucking him in.
Meanwhile, beneath the earth, Razznik utilized [Earth Escape] to zip across the battlefield toward Hektor. He had to get rid of the youth’s annoying interference! Razznik had just decided his course of action when the ground suddenly spit him out several meters away from Hektor.
The ejected Razznik scanned the mana traces to Hogosha and Stryke, who were channeling magic through the earth. Both Hogosha and Stryke had transcended, giving them more abilities from their shared bloodline. The duo could now manipulate the earth as freely as their fusion form even while separated. Of course, the scope and power of their ability still paled compared to their fused version.
Razznik was annoyed by the duo’s interference, but he did not have time to teach the meddlers a lesson as the Prince of Darkness descended from the sky with maddened laughter.
“Hey! Dumbo! Eat this!” Syèl laughed as he spread out his hands. Splurt! Blood burst out from several tiny gashes in the vampire’s arms and hardened into iron-like snake tendrils that shot towards Razznik.
Razznik’s eyes lit up as he quickly dodged in a zig-zag pattern. Bam! Bam! Bam! The blood snakes repeatedly struck the ground as they failed to hit the dodging god, but Syèl was not perturbed.
The Vampire Prince folded his wings and shot down toward Razznik like a missile. Blood pooled around and strengthened Syèl’s wings until they were as hard as diamonds. [Blood Diamond]
While dodging, Razznik swung his blade to meet the missile. BANG! Terrible, shrill cries rang out as Syèl’s bullet continuously struck Razznik’s blade amidst flying sparks.
“You should cool down.” Razznik teased as a blue mandala appeared in his left hand. “Tch.” Before Razznik could fire at Syèl, he cursed and then pointed his hand toward his back.
“Ooop!” Zuri, who had been charging behind Razznik, jerked back when a snow blizzard suddenly blasted toward her. However, after only a momentary pause, she dropped down to all fours as white fur rapidly grew around his arms, legs, and hair. “Go!” With a growl, she charged into the cold.
Shockingly, the blizzard did not appear to have a significant impact on her. How could it? Werewolves possessed strong resistance to mana and elemental attacks.
Zuri’s performance did not end there. The young girl's eyes glittered as she screamed, “[Hyakki Yaju!]” The werewolf’s eyes narrowed as one hundred ephemeral figures shot out from her body. These ‘spirits,’ each from a monster whose soul she absorbed, shot toward the stunned Razznik.
“[Beast Soul Possession!?]” For the first time, Razznik was truly shocked.
“Don’t get surprised yet!” Syèl roared as his wings suddenly shot open, pushing Razznik back. At the same time, several blood tendrils shot out of the ground and wrapped around the Chaos God’s arms.
Annoyed, Razznik grabbed and then chilled the tendrils until they froze solid. He then shattered them, but not before the first of Zuri’s soul monsters slammed into him and exploded.
“Damn it!” Razznik cursed as he swung his broadsword. A 5-meter long ki-scythe blasted out, tearing several souls to pieces. However, many more jumped over, ducked, or flew over the blast before converging upon him. Razznik initiated a retreat, but rocks suddenly shot out of the ground and trapped his legs.
Razznik did not have time to curse at the meddlesome Hogosha and Stryke. Instead, he promptly leaped into the air, using the momentum to shatter the stone bindings. At the same time, he sent out several ki-blows at as many beast souls as he could.
Explosive fireworks erupted in the sky as many souls shattered under the Chaos God’s Imperius judgment. Unfortunately for Razznik, there were just too many souls! The survivors crashed into the airborne god, resulting in a series of explosions that sent Razznik plummeting to the ground.
“This is for bullying Kashi!” A blurry shadow jumped in front of Razznik before he hit the ground and delivered several punches to his midriff. Zuri then roared as she rotated mid-air and kicked Razznik’s head, causing him to crash into the earth like a meteor.
BOOM! The ground shattered from the impact, but Zuri was not done. The werewolf’s claws shone with a silver glint before she swung them down at Razznik. Vwoosh! A set of gigantic ki-scythes shot down, desperately digging up the earth as they slammed into the man below. Zuri’s onslaught continued for several seconds, but then—
“Enough!” BOOOOM! Tremendous amounts of ki suddenly blasted out from Razznik’s position.
The terrible energy pulverized rocks to dust in seconds as it created a mini-crater in the earth. The explosion was as instantaneous as it was powerful. Many Twilight Wolves, who had been rushing forward nearly suffered tremendous damage, but layers of rocky walls shot up in front of everyone.
As the rocks cracked under the onslaught, Kashi finally appeared in front of Zuri and channeled the wind around him. “[Vortex!]” A wind tunnel formed in front of him and funneled the terrible energy harmlessly to the skies above.
Sweat pooled on Kashi’s forehead as he struggled to maintain the vortex. Razznik’s ki eroded the mana supporting the vortex, forcing Kashi to forcefully support it with fresh influx. Realizing the situation was less than ideal, Kashi shouted at Zuri. “Pull back. This mana is corrosive!”
“Okay!” Zuri, trained extensively by Rider, did not question Kashi’s order, and instead, sprouted wings from one of her few remaining beast souls before flying away.
Kashi’s expression, meanwhile turned grim as he examined the black mass of swirling corrosive ki. The draconian coated himself in mana once Zuri reached a safe distance and released the vortex.
Cht, cht, cht. Kashi examined the corrosive ki eating away at his mana. Fortunately, the rate at which it devoured his mana-coating was slower than the rate at which he could replenish it. ‘Mm. I can manage it. I won’t let you recover.’ Having affirmed his survival, Kashi cut through the black mass like a cannon.
Boom! Kashi landed in a small enclosure within the swirling ki, where he saw Razznik smiling at him like a demon.
The Chaos God’s clothes had shattered beyond recognition in the previous onslaught, leaving him bare up top, and with half-tattered pants. Strangely, rather than beaten, Razznik’s devilish eyes shone with the light of a hungry beast faced with a buffet.
“It is that wolf, wasn’t it?” Razznik asked a strange question once Kashi landed. However, his tone carried a certainty that did not fit an imploration. “I found it strange that you three did not join the attack, but it still felt like I was fighting Suzuki the whole time. The timings of each attack: so precise. Rather than a group of people, it felt like I was fighting one man in separate bodies.” Though certain of his conjecture, Razznik asked, “That wolf-god; she connected your minds to Suzuki’s, did she not?”
Kashi smiled, his silence a confirmation in its own way. Indeed, Kira’s evolution to Nightwind Wolf mutated her mind-reading skill to the extent that she could now connect with multiple people in a close radius. She served as a sort of transit hub for thoughts.
Suzuki took advantage of this by connecting every Twilight Wolf in the area to his mind. The daeben’s battle instincts surpassed everyone present, aside from perhaps Razznik. So, he directed everyone’s attacks, ensuring the Chaos God could not get a moment’s rest.
Naturally, such a skill took a large toll on Kira’s mind, so she could not move around. Nor could Suzuki, who needed to keep a holistic view of the battlefield to ensure nothing went wrong. As a result, Kashi had to wait behind this entire time to protect the duo against any sneak attacks. Fortunately, everything went as planned, allowing them to deal some real damage to Razznik. At the very least, they forced him to waste tons of mana and ki healing his injuries and countering their attacks.
At this rate, they just had to wear Razznik down a little longer until he ran out of energy. Wolves famously tired their prey out pouncing for the kill.
Razznik, who had figured out the Twilight Wolves’ strategy stabbed his broadsword into the earth. With a soft exhale, he packed his unruly hair and securely tied it. The Chaos God then smiled as he cracked his knuckles and looked at Kashi. “Ten minutes until sun-up. Let’s see if you have what it takes.”
Kashi, in turn, cracked a grin as he clenched his claws. “You’re not paying attention. It’s not what I’ve got. It’s what we’ve got.”
With those words, both men charged toward each other for the defining clash!