It was Xia Duo who struck. From the moment You successfully drew their opponent’s attention, she had suppressed her aura and presence to the absolute minimum, firing this long-calculated arrow from a cunning angle behind the group.
Since she had comprehended the “Intent of the Arrow” during that previous battle, this was the first time she had unleashed it with full strength in actual combat.
With Xia Duo’s current strength, achieving a state of complete single-mindedness where she and her bow were one required a significant amount of preparation time.
As long as she had enough time to charge the shot, she was certain her attack would not be inferior to that of a Saint Rank powerhouse like Lions.
However, Xia Duo’s plan was thwarted this time. Yuta’s dragonized right claw rose with incredible speed, precisely seizing the shaft of the arrow formed from battle qi.
In that instant, the tip of the arrow was less than a centimeter from his burning eye socket, yet it could not advance a fraction further.
“A fine sneak attack, Number Sixteen.” Yuta turned his head toward Xia Duo, the greyish-white flames in his eye sockets reflecting the fading light of the arrow. “Unfortunately... the current me has long since surpassed your understanding of ‘strength.’”
“You damned monster!” A monstrous rage ignited within Imira’s vertical pupils, and her blue scales bristled from her fury. “What exactly did you do to my kin?!”
Accompanied by a deafening dragon’s roar, she slammed her front claw violently against the ground.
In an instant, the earth beneath Yuta’s feet surged like a raging ocean. The hard rock turned into a liquid vortex, hurling countless sharp rock spikes from all directions to trap Yuta in a lethal cage.
“Your kin? How pathetic... you don’t even know that traitors have appeared within your own clan. Well... I suppose I’m not in much of a position to talk about him~ Now, they have already been converted into energy within my body, becoming stepping stones for me to reach greater heights!”
Facing Imira’s wrath, Yuta unhurriedly unfurled the wings on his back. His claw-like left arm suddenly swelled to twice its original size, and the sharp tips of his claws ignited with the greyish-white Fire of Death.
With a sweep of his claw, death energy spread like a plague. Everywhere it passed, the rock spikes summoned by Imira crumbled into ash.
Even more terrifyingly, this power actually followed the path of Imira’s spell, spreading across the ground and threatening to entwine her body.
Imira watched in horror as the energy approached like a venomous snake. She instantly tensed her muscles, attempting to use her mana to forcibly interrupt the erosion of the death power.
However, even with her Saint Rank mana, she found herself unable to block it in the slightest.
Just as the grey shadow was about to touch her front claw, a silver barrier suddenly expanded in front of her, blocking all of the death power.
“Let me handle this. After mixing with his own power, this fellow’s death power can no longer be contained by ordinary means,” You said in a low voice.
“Clever.” Yuta flapped his wings appreciatively. “This is a brand-new power I obtained from that lord—the perfect fusion of life and death!”
He suddenly spread his arms, and a blinding light erupted from his chest. “Let me show you! The current me!”
As he roared, the sound of tearing flesh echoed from all four walls of the hall.
One twisted figure after another crawled out from the shadows behind Yuta. Some retained dragon characteristics, while others appeared in elven form, but all of them bore the same horrific signs of fusion as Yuta.
“These are... the guards from the hatching area!?” Imira recognized several of the figures. These elite warriors, who were supposed to be the guardians of the dragon core, had now been turned into twisted monsters.
“I see... Cantia is using the bodies of dragons and elves for fusion experiments. And Yuta...” You looked at the twisted figure standing at the forefront and said coldly, “You are her most successful masterpiece.”
Yuta let out a piercing laugh upon hearing this. “Masterpiece? No, You, this is evolution! Unlike the power you begged for like a dog, that lord has bestowed upon us power that transcends racial boundaries!”
“‘That lord’ again? Does he mean Cantia... or...” Hearing Yuta’s words, Starlight’s brow furrowed as countless possibilities flashed through his mind.
“Go, my servants!” Yuta waved his arm violently and commanded loudly. “Crush these meddling ants! As for that old geezer... I will entertain him personally.”
“Senior You, do you need my assistance? Your body...” Starlight looked at You with concern.
“No. Just as Yuta said, having me face him is the best choice. Go and protect Lian. I know what I’m doing.” You waved his hand with a smile, then turned back toward Yuta. “Since you’ve invited me, then let’s begin.”
The moment his voice fell, You’s figure vanished from where he stood. In the next second, he and Yuta appeared at the other end of the hall.
The intense impact caused the air around them to warp, erupting in a series of deafening booms.
In this first exchange between two powerhouses who had been famous for a thousand years, the mere aftershocks of their attacks pulverized everything in the vicinity.
You’s figure flickered like a ghost before Yuta, his long silver hair dancing like a waterfall amidst the surging mana.
He raised his right hand slightly, and a pure silver light blade condensed out of thin air, slashing directly toward Yuta’s neck.
“Heh...”
Yuta let out a savage grin. Pitch-black death power coiled around the claws of his left arm as he forcibly blocked You’s strike.
Two diametrically opposed energies collided in mid-air, tearing countless tiny rifts into the surrounding space.
“So many years have passed, and you still only know these little tricks?”
Yuta mocked him. His free right claw suddenly clenched, and several black vines sprouted from the ground beneath You’s feet, coiling around his legs like venomous snakes.
You’s eyes narrowed. Silver light flashed beneath his feet as his body instantly retreated several meters. At the same time, he waved his hand, and a streak of silver light severed all the approaching vines.
However, those severed vines turned into a cloud of grey mist in the air, transforming back into several blades in the blink of an eye and lunging toward him again.
You was slightly startled. He hadn't expected his attack to be unable to completely stop Yuta’s offensive.
One had to know that his power was infused with a trace of the Night God’s power. Even if it couldn't compare to Transcendent Power, it was certainly no weaker than ordinary secondary elements.
“It seems you truly have mastered something extraordinary,” You said in a low voice.
“This is only the beginning!” Yuta laughed madly, his wings beating as he slammed into You like a cannonball.
You’s expression remained unchanged. His hands formed a seal in front of his chest, and countless silver runes lit up on his body as he engaged Yuta in battle.
...
“Boom!!!”
While the two top-tier experts fought, Starlight and the others were also plunged into an unprecedentedly bitter struggle.
The twisted fusion monsters surged forward like a tide, each radiating a suffocating pressure.
“Back to back! Don’t get separated!” Starlight shouted. He raised his hands, and the power of frost spread across the ground, freezing the first few monsters into ice sculptures.
On the other side, several fire dragons appeared out of thin air, weaving through the monster swarm and incinerating everything in their path.
In this situation, using the Shadow of Annihilation would have been the most effective way to quickly clear these dense, small-scale monsters.
However, because Starlight had used dark elements in the previous two battles, the dark element reserves in his body were still far from being restored to their optimal state.
This was unavoidable; as long as he hadn't reached the Saint Rank, even though he could use Ultimate Power, the efficiency of his extraction and synthesis was still lacking.
Beside him, Xia Duo fired several battle qi arrows in succession, precisely hitting the eyes of several monsters.
But those monsters merely shook their heads, and the arrows were completely swallowed by their writhing flesh. This made Xia Duo even more anxious. “Damn it! These things won't die!”
During the earlier standoff, Lian had successfully helped Wu Hua recover some of her stamina. Now, they had two Saint Rank combatants on their side.
“This can't go on!”
Wu Hua wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, her daggers dancing into a blur of silver light. Any monster that approached her was sliced into pieces. “Their regeneration is too insane!”
Rate on N.U.
