Chapter 40
Chapter 40
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 40
Chapter Title: The Legend #5
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What would twenty years in a solitary cell, untouched by sunlight, be like?
It was hard to imagine.
How he had perceived the flow of time, what emotions he had felt during that period—none of it could be fathomed.
Malice.
It wasn't just the power of Famine that filled his black aura with darkness. Gerard's deep-seated resentment and rage had stained the light of his aura pitch-black.
When Gerard sent several Lycanthrope soldiers flying with his first attack, Chris knew instinctively.
Ordinary soldiers could not handle this man. Considering the strange power he wielded, they were more likely to fuel his strength than to wear him down.
Pointless sacrifices were out of the question. It was time for Chris himself to step forward, despite the risk.
Chris and Gerard clashed head-on. Caitlin joined in with a slight delay, covering Chris's weaknesses while simultaneously striking at Gerard's openings.
A coordinated assault wasn't something one could do with just anyone. Not only did their rhythms have to match, but they also had to be intimately familiar with each other's fighting styles. A poorly executed team-up could fail to mesh, creating unexpected vulnerabilities instead.
Chris and Caitlin's assault was flawless. The two knew each other all too well. It was no exaggeration to say that their two separate bodies moved as one.
Amidst the storm of relentless attacks, Gerard didn't yield an inch. As if proving why he was called the strongest Lycanthrope twenty years ago, he blocked or deflected every one of Chris and Caitlin's strikes. Their exchange was so exquisite it was as if the three were performing a single dance.
The Lycanthrope soldiers didn't dare to interfere in the trio's circular dance. Felicia, too, gathered magic in her hands but found there was little she could do.
Ingong calmed his breath and observed. Even he, who had sparred evenly with Caitlin, couldn't blend into that combined assault. If he were to jump in now, he might disrupt the flow of their attack and create an opening for the enemy.
‘The power of Famine.’
Gerard had drained the life force of the Lycanthrope soldiers. Seeing his black aura strengthen, however slightly, right after, it was safe to assume he had stolen their vitality.
‘Direct contact is required.’
But simply touching them wasn't enough. It took time. The man had muttered the command "Deplete," a counterpart to Ingong's "Conquer." Perhaps that, too, was part of the process.
The Knight of Famine.
He could only think of him as such now. Gerard was the man in the black robe, shrouded in dark energy, from the stone tablet's illustration—the inheritor of Famine's power.
Were the four figures in the drawing not on the same side? Were they hostile to each other? Or was it that only Conquest was ostracized by the other three?
“Under the King's Flag!”
Ingong cut off his thoughts and unleashed the power of Conquest. The moment he struck the ground with his dwarven dagger, a pure white energy erupted and enveloped Chris and Caitlin.
A change occurred in the movements of Chris, Caitlin, and Gerard, which had been interlocked like a precision machine.
Chris and Caitlin were momentarily startled by the sudden support but quickly adapted to their newly strengthened bodies. They pressed Gerard even faster than before.
Gerard failed to seize the moment of their surprise. He glared at Ingong from within his own black aura, which had surged in resonance.
The Knight of Conquest.
Gerard said nothing, but Ingong heard his voice. The gale created by Chris and Caitlin's joint attack erased even the trace of the sound, but Ingong would not forget that voice.
The dance woven by the three grew more violent.
Gerard, who had been precariously holding his ground between the two, suddenly burst into mad laughter and released a far greater power of Famine than before.
For an instant, the black energy took a distinct form. It touched Caitlin's dark blue aura and Chris's blue aura, weakly exerting the power of Famine. It put a brake on their movements.
Chris shook off the Famine by strengthening his aura, but Caitlin could not. Her movements froze for a split second, and Gerard did not miss the opening.
It was a momentary change in the midst of a high-speed exchange. Gerard's gaze, after powerfully parrying Chris's blow head-on, turned to Caitlin. Unbeknownst even to Caitlin, who was facing him directly, Gerard's advancing step struck the ground. His left arm snaked into Caitlin's guard like a serpent. Chris's eyes widened. Caitlin felt Gerard's palm touch her abdomen. And then her balance shattered.
“Caitlin!”
Felicia screamed. Caitlin's slender body was launched into the air, and Chris threw another punch at Gerard.
Gerard didn't meet the punch. Instead, he pushed off the ground and leaped, positioning himself above the airborne Caitlin. A lightning-fast strike slammed into her stomach once more!
*CRASH!*
Caitlin was driven vertically into the ground. A spray of red blood blossomed in the air with the roar, and screams and shrieks erupted simultaneously.
Gerard landed on the ground. Even then, he brought up a knee and drove it down into the convulsing Caitlin. She coughed up more blood, and Chris roared like a beast.
Gerard looked at Chris. With a single hand, he exerted monstrous strength and hurled Caitlin toward him.
Chris became cold. Gritting his teeth as if swallowing tears of blood, he moved his feet. Instead of catching Caitlin, he took a step toward Gerard. Just as Caitlin tumbled to the ground again, he traded blows with Gerard.
A deafening sonic boom shook the air. The blue and jet-black auras became one and exploded, and the ground, unable to withstand the violence, collapsed.
Felicia ran, risking the danger. She embraced the convulsing Caitlin on the ground. Karak and Seira, who had quickly followed, and White Eagle, who had flown in at some point, protected Felicia's back.
The light faded. Chris coughed up blood, as did Gerard. The result of their devastating blows colliding was not an explosion, but each striking the other's chest.
Chris threw another punch. It lacked the power of the first but still carried a fierce momentum, and Gerard, once again, did not evade. Unlike Chris, he still had one more move left.
Beast Transformation.
The true power of the Lycanthropes.
Gerard's torso swelled. A triumphant roar burst from the mouth of a savage wolf.
Chris's and Gerard's strikes slammed into each other. The exchange of blows instantly turned into a frantic brawl.
The ground shook once more. The force behind each punch tore through the air, and the fragments of aura that burst forth destroyed everything they touched. The clash between the two alone began to reshape the surrounding terrain.
It was a period of no more than a minute, but at the end of that time, which felt like tens, or hundreds, of minutes, Chris could no longer stand firm. His blue aura, flickering precariously like a candle about to go out, died down, and his knees buckled.
Gerard's hand caught Chris. He was a mess himself, but he was in far better shape.
He looked at Chris. With a gentle smile unimaginable in the current situation, he opened his lips. He activated the power of Famine!
Gigantic Piston!
At that moment when everyone was frozen, a pure white aura exploded.
Ingong had been focusing intently on Gerard ever since the battle began. The moment Chris's aura faded, an opening had appeared in Gerard's defense. Just as he was reveling in his victory, Ingong kicked off the ground and threw a punch.
The giant's fist sent tremors not only through the air but through the entire area. And Ingong knew instinctively. It was a glancing blow. The strike aimed at the center of Gerard's chest had only managed to hit his left shoulder, and more than half of the white shockwave slid off the black aura and shot into the empty air.
Gerard looked at Ingong. Ingong looked back at Gerard. It wasn't over yet. Though it was a glancing blow, Gigantic Piston had harmed Gerard's body. This very moment was the only chance Ingong had!
Earthquaker roared. The Dragon Blood he had activated for Gigantic Piston fueled Ingong's fighting spirit. The instant their eyes met, Ingong's attacks poured down on Gerard.
Gerard was undeniably strong. In terms of martial skill alone, he was on a level far above Ingong.
But he was tired. The brawl with Chris had worn down his body, and Gigantic Piston had shattered what little stamina he had left.
So, it had to end now. If Ingong fell, there would be no next time.
Gerard couldn't use his left arm. Ingong aimed for that weakness, unleashing a flurry of flashy and fast attacks. Every time the two opposing auras of pure white and pitch black clashed, a terrifying sonic boom filled the air.
The power of Conquest and the power of Famine also clashed. The surging power of Conquest crushed the draining power brought forth by Famine.
Delia and the Lycanthropes tended to Chris and Caitlin. Felicia used all her strength in a healing spell to treat Caitlin, and the Lycanthrope soldiers formed a circle of encirclement once more.
To Gerard, Ingong was a disaster he hadn't accounted for. If it weren't for him, the situation would have ended the moment he defeated Chris. No matter how many tens or hundreds of ordinary Lycanthrope soldiers there were, they couldn't have held Gerard.
Conquest. The Knight of Conquest.
Anger rose. It wasn't just Gerard's personal anger. Famine was furious. It expressed a powerful mix of love and hate for the pure white energy, for the power of Conquest that opposed it.
*BOOM!*
The auras exploded once more, but it was slightly different this time. Gerard's right hand, spinning rapidly as if using the repulsive force, snaked into Ingong's guard. By the time Ingong realized it, the man's palm was already on his chest.
The blow that had brought down Caitlin.
Beast God Fist Secret Art: Arang.
A technique that drove an aura like a starving wolf directly into the enemy's body, causing it to collapse from within.
The attack was a success. The jet-black aura opened its greedy maw toward Ingong, just as it had with Caitlin, and Ingong spat up black blood.
But Ingong didn't fly back through the air. He stumbled backward, and White Eagle supported his back. Instead of falling or being sent flying, Ingong gritted his teeth and raised his head.
Gerard looked at Ingong. And at that moment, Daphne, who had looked up as if drawn by something, shouted with all her might.
“Spirit Bloom!”
She was rushed. It didn't fully connect. There wasn't even time to wait for the spirit's power to be fully activated. But Daphne's magic gave Ingong the strength to take one more step.
Ingong took a step forward. With trembling legs, he stomped the ground and thrust out a palm.
Something he had just learned. Something that was only level 1.
But it was enough.
Beast God Fist Secret Art: Arang.
A pure white aura pierced Gerard's body. The moment Arang detonated, Gerard's eyes widened in shock as he coughed up blood, and Ingong took another step forward. He threw another punch toward the chest of the retreating Gerard!
Fist of Explosion.
Not of the Beast God Fist, but of the Sura God Fist!
The pure white aura struck Gerard's chest.
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