Chapter 289 - 287: Toying With

Chapter 289: Chapter 287: Toying With

Close-quarters combat was the only way to fully showcase the two Warriors’ combat skills and battle experience.

Duane and Thomsen’s swordsmanship clash grew increasingly fierce. The aftershocks of their splattering Fighting Qi riddled the ground and the city wall with countless holes.

As time went on, Duane gradually gained the upper hand.

His Swordsmanship was perfect in both offense and defense. Even when Thomsen managed to create a rare opening, Duane would evade with an exquisite Body Skill.

Thomsen, on the other hand, was finding it increasingly difficult to cope with the fast strikes of Duane’s nimble Swordsmanship.

After all, this was a high-intensity battle where the focus and endurance of one’s Spiritual Power were crucial.

"Breaking Army Slash!"

Duane found his opening. A powerful surge of Fighting Qi condensed into a massive Light Saber and blasted forward.

Thomsen narrowly avoided it.

The Light Saber slammed into the city wall, carving a massive gash into it.

Thomsen seized the opportunity to counterattack. "Ashen Cross Judgment!"

His entire body seemed to burst into flames. With a swing of his Sword, a cross-shaped stream of Fighting Qi, like a tangible river of fire, shot out. The dust on the ground crystallized instantly upon contact.

"Sword Rain Storm!"

A second violent explosion erupted from within the smoke and dust.

Duane’s body swayed slightly. Fine cracks appeared on the Scale Armor of his right arm, and a trickle of blood seeped out.

Thomsen, however, was overwhelmed by the impact, stumbling back several steps as his War Boots plowed deep gouges into the ground.

A surge of hot blood rose from his chest. Though he managed to swallow most of it, a trickle still escaped from the corner of his mouth.

The spectating Black Armored Knights gasped in astonishment. Orisien, in particular, had a bad feeling—they had never seen the Chief Judge so utterly dominated in Swordsmanship.

"Nothing special!"

Duane taunted coldly, his fighting spirit soaring.

A flash of anger crossed Thomsen’s face. He suddenly dropped his Sword and attacked with his palm.

At that moment, his Fire Attribute Fighting Qi seemed to sublimate, its red glow intensifying to a searing white.

Thomsen slammed both palms onto the ground, and as if triggering the magma deep below, countless pillars of lava erupted within a hundred-meter radius.

The earth trembled! The earth melted! The earth roared!

"Molten Core Collapse!"

He raised his palms and pushed forward. The lava coalesced into a colossal humanoid figure, which brought a palm down from the sky.

Duane’s expression turned grim. Steeling himself, a Long Spear appeared in his hand. "Rainbow Piercing!"

High-Pressure Fighting Qi gathered at the tip of the spear, and as he thrust, it let out a sharp, explosive crack.

The Rainbow Piercing Strike pierced through the giant lava palm, and the resulting shockwave of qi disintegrated it.

However, the Long Spear in his hand, unable to withstand the ferocious Fighting Qi, shattered and disintegrated.

Watching the rain of lava fall, Duane activated his Pupil of Collapse, compressing the globules that posed a threat to him until they hung suspended in mid-air, as if frozen in time.

"Wind-Held!"

Duane quickly cast the Level 4 Magic. It allowed him to use the wind as an extension of his own hands, letting him hold external objects and grant them a certain velocity.

In simple terms, it was a form of telekinesis.

Under the control of Wind-Held, the falling lava rain changed its trajectory, hurtling toward Thomsen.

Thomsen was gasping for breath. That last attack had consumed a great deal of his energy; now, less than forty percent of his Fighting Qi remained.

He hadn’t expected Duane’s counterattack to be so swift, nor so bizarre in nature.

"Impossible!"

’Only a Level 8 Mage can move external objects with powerful Spiritual Power. How is he doing that?’

There was no time for Thomsen to think. He scrambled to the side, desperately dodging the incoming rain of lava.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The "raindrops" struck the ground like superheated munitions, exploding in massive heatwaves. When they hit the churning water of the moat, a thick, hazy steam instantly filled the air.

Everyone’s vision was obscured, including Thomsen’s.

But his rich combat experience screamed of an endless sense of crisis, as if his opponent could take his life at any moment.

’Don’t panic!’

’I still have a trump card!’

’My vision is blocked, but so is his!’

Thomsen forced himself to calm down, his nerves taut as he tried to scan his surroundings.

WHOOSH!

A stone shot toward him, fraying his nerves and making him counterattack reflexively.

At the same time, the ground itself seemed to come alive. Countless earthen spears shot up from below, forcing Thomsen to constantly shift his position.

’This guy is a Mage too! And with an Earth-Piercing Spear Array of this scale, his Mage Level can’t be low!’

Thomsen leaped into the air, avoiding a two-meter-long earthen spear. If he were to be pierced, it would be troublesome even with his Fighting Qi Armor.

But at that very moment, he heard the sharp whistle of wind by his ear. Duane’s figure had appeared at his side.

’Crap!’

Thomsen’s eyes flew open. He twisted his body and raised his Sword to block.

"Thunderous Triple Slash, first slash!"

The Sword, imbued with immense power, slammed against Thomsen’s Longsword, the shockwave causing blood to stream from his mouth and nose.

Thomsen was sent flying by the tremendous force. He crashed into the ground like a cannonball, carving a trench dozens of meters long.

Duane closed in immediately. "Second slash!"

"Stop, I..."

Thomsen couldn’t say any more before he was engulfed by a furious blast of lightning. The Longsword he had barely managed to raise was knocked from his grasp.

Duane’s Longsword struck Thomsen’s body. The powerful force of the qi tore through his Fighting Qi Armor and bore down on his physical body.

Just then, an earthen-yellow barrier lit up around Thomsen—the Earth Magic Guardian Armor.

But how could a mere Level 5 Magic withstand Duane’s attack? It was shattered in an instant.

Thomsen was sent flying once again, all of his ribs broken and blood gushing from his wounds.

Duane took a deep breath. "Third slash!"

He leaped high into the air, bringing his Longsword down in a chopping motion.

Each strike of the Thunderous Triple Slash was more ferocious than the last. The final slash was even imbued with a "Thunderous" effect, which perfectly complemented Duane’s Fighting Qi Attribute.

The strike was like divine punishment descending upon the world. A pillar of blue-white lightning crashed down, blanketing the sky and making the very earth shake!

Duane landed steadily. The shockwave blew away all the surrounding steam.

To everyone’s shock, only Duane remained standing on the battlefield.

Before him, in the middle of a crater five or six meters in diameter, Thomsen lay on his back. His clothes were reduced to tattered rags, and his body was charred black.

Duane stood at the edge of the crater, looking down at him. "It seems your strength isn’t enough to back up your arrogance."

"You... you can’t kill me!"

Thomsen opened his mouth. Weak and powerless, he had to endure the searing pain to force out the words.

"I am the Chief Judge of the Holy Radiance Church Court. Killing me will do you no good."

He struggled to get up, but with every bone in his body broken, he was completely immobilized.

"The Holy Radiance Church Court will not tolerate one of its Chief Judges dying out here. They will directly pressure the Pruck Royal Family, demanding they strip you of your title and Territory."

"You’re strong, but can you fight the entire Church Court alone? What about your Territory? Your followers? They will all die because of your recklessness!"

Duane remained expressionless. In truth, he had already considered this problem on his way here.

His principle for handling this was to make the Church Court feel the pain, but not enough to make them fight to the death. At the same time, he had to let his people vent their anger and not doubt his sense of justice.

As for Thomsen, and...

Duane looked toward Orisien.

The moment Orisien saw Duane’s gaze land on him, he jolted in terror and cried out, "You can’t kill me! I’m the Holy Son of the Church Court! My status is even higher than the Chief Judge’s!"

Duane’s eyes lit up, and the corners of his mouth curled into a slight smile.

"Orisien, and you, Thomsen. Only one of you can live today. Who’s brave enough to die for the other?"

These words left Orisien and Thomsen stunned, their hearts pounding wildly.

Duane smiled, retrieving two Big Ring Sabers from his Void Space. He tossed one in front of Orisien and let the other fall by Thomsen’s hand.

"Come now. If you don’t want to make things difficult for the other, you can always end your own life."

Duane said in a relaxed tone, "Although, if one of you really has to live, I think it will be Orisien. After all, he can still move, whereas the Chief Judge cannot."

Orisien stared daggers at Duane. "You’re a Demon!"

Duane laughed heartily. "I’ll give you one minute. Raymond, count down for me!"

"Right!"

Raymond stepped forward and began to count aloud.

At first, Orisien didn’t move. Soon, however, his gaze fell upon the Big Ring Saber before him.

When Raymond called out "forty," a look of grim resolve flashed across Orisien’s face. He slowly reached out and gripped the saber’s hilt.

Duane reminded them, "That’s fifty seconds."

Orisien suddenly lifted the saber and walked to the edge of the crater, looking down at the completely immobile Thomsen below.

"Fifty-five... fifty-six..."

"Don’t blame me, Chief Judge! I can’t die!"

Orisien raised the Big Ring Saber, leaped into the air, and brought it down in a vicious chop.

But just then, the Fighting Qi that Thomsen had gathered in his mouth formed a sharp dagger and shot straight for Orisien’s throat.

At that very instant, Duane moved as well.

He appeared in a flash between the two, kicking Orisien away while simultaneously blocking Thomsen’s fatal blow, before landing steadily on his feet.

CLAP. CLAP. CLAP...

Duane couldn’t help but laugh and applaud. "Brilliant! Truly brilliant!"