Chapter 328: This Time, It Will Be Cool

To his shock, he discovered that the wound on his cheek showed no signs of healing whatsoever!

“Healing Ban!”

Galeos spat out those two words, gritting his teeth.

And at that moment.

Standing opposite him, the scarred and blood-soaked Lance suddenly burst into laughter.

This was the true source of his confidence, the reason he dared to stay and fight this Upper Heroic Spirit Species to the bitter end!

Because he knew.

No matter how ridiculously stacked the enemy’s shields and Recovery Specializations were in terms of defense…

Before his own mechanics, they were all useless!

The Melting Gold Armor Shattering in his hands could forcibly destroy defenses.

And the burn from his Ash Dragon Breath could inflict a Healing Ban status!

This was the core of the Crimson Dragon Source Material’s brutish, overwhelming combat style.

In a battle between peers within the Material Realm…

He was absolutely confident that he could tear through any defense, make anyone bleed, and then die!

Moreover, in the instant his spear tip had grazed his opponent’s cheek…

Lance had finally figured out the detailed Attributes of the man’s Armor.

[Armed Armor: Eroded Scale Bronze Full Armor (Resistance Threshold: 16)]

[Core Equipment Effect: Provides the wearer with a permanent 50-point reduction to physical/Energy damage. Simultaneously, the armor instantly converts all passively received melee physical impact force into a highly toxic miasma, which is then reflected and sprayed out over a large area, inflicting counter-damage on the attacker.]

‘His Armor is stripped, and I’ve figured out his gear.’

‘It’s time to end this.’

At that moment.

He instantly and unhesitatingly ignited the Pale Embers that had been stored in his Source Melting Furnace!

As a pale white flame began to burn fiercely within him…

The shocking, fatal wounds on Lance’s body began to reshape and heal at a terrifying speed visible to the naked eye.

In the blink of an eye, his physical condition was restored to its peak.

The moment this Power erupted, Lance did not hesitate.

Crimson Transformation – Dragon Form State, activate!

Hunting King’s Extreme Will – Desperate Breathless Death Struggle, engage!

At that instant, Galeos’s nerves began to throb wildly.

Extreme danger!

He watched as two translucent Dragon Horns suddenly forced their way out of Lance’s forehead.

Great gouts of silvery-red, high-temperature steam mixed with searing sparks spewed violently from his mouth and nose with every ragged breath.

Spurred on by both the Dragon Form State and Desperate Breathless Death Struggle…

The layer of Dragon Remains Crystal originally covering Lance’s body began to crack and disintegrate inch by inch, unable to withstand theraging Energy.

But what poured from those cracks was no longer blood.

It was a glowing, silvery-red liquid stream of fire!

At that moment, streaks of silvery-red lightning even began to flash and writhe madly around the two menacing Dragon Horns!

SSSSS…

The ground beneath Lance’s feet, paved with solid bronze, was being seared by such terrifyingly high temperatures…

That it actually began to soften and melt.

Large patches of molten light spread across the floor.

The blood that had been flowing in the purple veins was instantly vaporized by the intense heat, skipping the boiling process entirely.

With Lance at the center…

Countless fine, silvery-red streams of fire, so dense they seemed tangible, appeared in the surrounding space.

These streams spun around him at high speed, as if an elemental storm capable of tearing space itself apart was rapidly forming within the narrow hall.

Sensing this strangely familiar power…

Galeos’s pupils were finally filled with shock.

The turn of events had completely exceeded his comprehension.

“The Dragon Hunting Breathing Technique?!”

Galeos cried out in alarm, his voice laced with disbelief.

“Are you insane?!”

“As a True Dragon Species, you dare to learn this Forbidden Breathing Technique?!”

However…

The only response to the king’s shocked question was not an explanation.

It was…

A fist carrying an unstoppable momentum!

Azure Dragon Extreme Intent Style: Fallen Dragon Shattering!

This unrestrained punch compressed all the converging violent air currents and the fiery storm into his fist, which then came crashing down on Galeos.

BOOM!

Under this force, Galeos’s massive body was lifted clean off its feet and sent flying.

He shattered more than a dozen sturdy bronze kneeling statues in mid-air…

Before finally slamming hard into the bronze wall at the far end of the hall.

Under the tremendous impact, the bronze wall cracked, with a dense web of fissures spreading outwards from him as the epicenter.

“You damned luna—”

“How dare you…!!”

Galeos let out a world-shaking roar from within the rubble.

An Upper Heroic Spirit indeed.

Even after taking a heavy blow from Lance’s Desperate Breathless Death Struggle state, he could still forcibly stabilize himself and attempt to struggle free from the crater in the wall.

But…

How could Lance possibly give him any chance to catch his breath!

The second punch arrived in an instant!

Just as Galeos staggered one step out of the rubble…

Lance’s figure, wreathed in silvery-red streams of fire, appeared before him again as if by teleportation, closing the distance instantly.

Azure Dragon Extreme Intent Style: Twisting Dragon Drill!

This time…

‘This is going to be epic!’

Lance clenched his right fist tightly at his waist.

Under the gaze of Galeos’s rapidly dilating pupils…

He twisted his fist, and a Spiral Dark Force, mixed with the Ash Dragon Breath hot enough to melt steel…

Drilled viciously upwards, from bottom to top, into Galeos’s jawbone!

The Power of this punch was simply too terrifying.

It not only completely shattered Galeos’s defenses…

But it also knocked the Bronze Tyrant off his feet, sending his entire body soaring straight toward the sky!

The moment he became airborne…

Galeos’s eyes…

Instantly lost all focus from the terrifying impact of the blow.

His pupils were filled with a dazed confusion.

This Bronze Dragon had been forcibly knocked into a stunned state by this Complete Rising Dragon Fist.

BOOM!

Galeos’s unconscious, massive body slammed violently into the hall’s towering, cloud-piercing dome.

The surrounding dome, forged from countless huge pieces of bronze…

Began to groan and twist under the shockwaves from the punch, then shattered and collapsed inch by inch.

Hundreds, thousands of bronze fragments and rocks rained down crazily towards the hall below.

But Lance paid them no mind.

He kicked off the ground, his body shooting up like a rocket.

He caught up to Galeos’s body as it was in freefall from the collapsed dome.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Nieve, hiding outside the Energy Wall…

Could only see that deep within the continually collapsing hall…

Every flash of movement was accompanied by a deafening roar.

And one after another, huge, man-shaped craters were being smashed into the surrounding solid rock of the mountain.

Until…

The very last second of the countdown.

Galeos was smashed directly into the giant Bronze Throne at the center of the hall!

RUUUUUMBLE!!!

The massive Hydra Throne, meticulously assembled from countless sharp bronze clusters…

Collapsed with a deafening crash under the impact.

Lance’s figure finally came to a halt.

“Hah… hah… hah…”

He gasped for air, his lungs feeling like shredded bellows.

At this point…

The majestic Dragon Remains Crystal Armor on his body had completely shattered and fallen away, revealing his lean, muscular upper body.

As the countdown ended…

His majestic Dark Gold Dragon Pupils quickly faded, and the Dragon Horns on his forehead retracted.

Lance had completely entered the Heartless Melting Furnace mode, his Life Force forcibly drained.

‘This monster’s stacked defense… is fucking ridiculously tough.’

Lance looked at the distant ruins and thought with a sense of relief.

In those ten seconds of Desperate Breathless Death Struggle, he had squeezed out nearly every last drop of his Power.

Only then had he managed to overwhelm and kill this monster, with its fortress-wall-thick HP bar, in the very last second.

An Upper Heroic Spirit whose name was still sung in tales was no joke.

A health pool like that was certainly worthy of the Legends surrounding his former life.

But, as he breathed a sigh of relief…

A trace of doubt also rose in Lance’s mind.

‘Something’s very strange.’

He quickly replayed the battle in his head.

He compared it to the intel he had gathered from the veteran captain, Julius, about subduing other Heroic Spirit Species.

The strength of an Upper Heroic Spirit was supposed to be terrifying.

His original strategy…

Was to exploit the Ouroboros Ring’s daily reset mechanic.

He had been prepared to sacrifice two lives…

By activating Desperate Breathless Death Struggle twice for ten seconds each, just for a chance to forcibly execute an Upper Heroic Spirit of this caliber.

But, he never expected…

That he would succeed in a single day…

Using just one desperate burst.

‘Could it be…’

‘That the so-called power of an Upper Heroic Spirit is just an exaggerated myth spread through rumors by ignorant Adventurers?’

Lance frowned.

Galeos, the Bronze Tyrant, was undeniably powerful.

It was just that…

His seemingly insurmountable strength appeared to be focused entirely on the “defensive” side.

The kind of Armor that could nullify massive amounts of damage, coupled with an insane Life Recovery Speed…

Was indeed a source of despair for conventional Professionals who could only chip away at health with physical attacks.

However, the destructive force Galeos displayed on the “offensive” side…

While still astonishing, was far from the level where Lance couldn’t even fight back.

And as luck would have it…

The Essence Traits and Ethereal Abilities Lance currently possessed…

Were, in terms of mechanics, a perfect counter to this type of tanky opponent who relied on stacking defenses to frustrate enemies.

Could this be considered… a counter on a whole other level in terms of matchups?

Just as Lance was feeling relieved about taking down an Upper Heroic Spirit in one go…

And was preparing to sit down and rest for a bit…

Suddenly!

His pupils contracted sharply.

His previously relaxed nerves instantly tensed to their absolute limit.

This wasn’t just because he suddenly saw a notification from his Outer World True Vision.

It was because!

From within the dust-filled bronze ruins…

Came the hair-raising sound of scraping rubble.

And then…

Under Lance’s incredulous gaze…

A bronze arm…

Shot out from the depths of the rubble.

It violently pushed aside a huge chunk of bronze resting on top of it, sending it crashing to the side.

‘He’s not dead?!’

Lance’s heart sank as he watched the towering figure slowly rise from the ruins.