The Goddess of Eternal Night
The darkness of night writhed and squirmed like the tentacles of an octopus, alive with unnatural vitality.
Nyx wrapped Rene Davis’s body in layers of Polar Night energy.
『Such petty tricks cannot touch me.』
“Foolish man. To dare belittle the power of Yeo as mere trickery instead of kneeling before its source.”
Shrrrrk!
The power of Polar Night surged even more violently.
A curtain of darkness rose like a tidal wave, stretching dozens of meters high before crashing down upon Rene Davis.
Sonic Blade & Sword Break
Fusion Qigong
Howling Sword
The aura blade coating his sword split into hundreds of strands, slicing the Polar Night energy into tiny fragments.
The wave of darkness that had been rushing forward was shredded into pieces too small for the eye to follow.
“Even if you close your eyes, you cannot escape the night.”
What should have been completely shattered by the aura blades did not vanish. Instead, the remnants of Polar Night clung stubbornly to every part of the giant’s body.
Dark Barrier
A violet barrier rose like a coating over his armor, blocking the Polar Night energy.
『Hmph. Such cheap tricks.』
“Whether it’s a cheap trick or not, we shall see.”
Ziiiip!
Strange tearing sounds erupted across the surface of the barrier.
The countless fragmented pieces of Polar Night created cracks in the violet membrane and burrowed even deeper.
“What the—? Goddess, you had a move like this?”
“His source is a power that defies order. How could any shadow cast by light compare to the original?”
『Comparing this power to a mere shadow? How insolent!』
Rene slammed his foot into the ground.
Earthquake & Great Seismic Kick
Fusion Qigong
World Break
The earth began to collapse outward from the point of impact.
The beautiful scenery of Paris that Rene Davis had once boasted about sank beneath the ground. Crimson lava erupted in its place, painting a scene straight out of hell.
A 5-star magic, Earthquake, fused with the pinnacle of physical techniques, Great Seismic Kick. By rupturing the ley lines, he had triggered a catastrophe.
The Polar Night energy Nyx had infused was washed away by the lava.
In terms of pure quality, Polar Night was far superior. Yet Rene managed to sweep away a significant portion of Nyx’s power through sheer overwhelming output.
“Tch.”
Nyx’s form trembled.
World Break had done more than simply push back the Polar Night energy. Hundreds of meters around the point of impact had been completely obliterated. From the long fissures in the earth, heat comparable to the flames of hell surged upward, threatening us.
Nyx raised Polar Night once more to shield her entire body.
『Why did that arrogant mouth of yours stop? Keep talking.』
“Don’t speak to the Goddess like that.”
Cloud Flow Steps
I stepped lightly across the shattered ground and dashed forward at high speed.
The heat was nothing. I didn’t even need to circulate my protective energy. To be precise, the penalty from Overdrive made it difficult to use, but simply employing a movement technique while in motion was enough.
That was more than sufficient.
My metal reflective gloves completely blocked the heat. I closed the distance and arrived right in front of Rene Davis, who had just used World Break.
『Insolent fool. You dare face me head-on?』
“If that’s what you want.”
『Then it will be your body that pays the price.』
The steel giant reached out.
Grrrrrrk!
A bizarre scraping sound assaulted my ears.
『Y-You wench!』
“You should first learn the proper etiquette when addressing a goddess.”
Nyx let out a short sigh.
The fragments of Polar Night that World Break had failed to completely shake off were now embedded throughout the steel giant’s body. They constantly interfered with the flow of dark mana.
His reaction was a beat too slow.
Giant’s Arm
Dragon Form
Herculean Strength
My body, already enhanced by every available buff including God’s Wrath.
I combined the power of the dragon race with the ability I had gained from the Cyclops.
The massively enlarged arm smashed into the steel giant’s chest.
Kwaaaaang!
The chest caved in deeply.
“Why aren’t you staggering?”
『Insolent baaaaaastard!』
Rene Davis quickly restored the integrated Eiffel Tower. He raised his shield and charged forward.
“Boasting about power you can’t even control properly.”
I used Blink.
His posture had collapsed from the reckless charge. I struck at his exposed back.
Another explosive impact rang out, and the steel giant staggered violently.
“Can you tell who the truly insolent one is now?”
I curled my lip in a smirk.
Boom! Boom!
Explosions erupted in rapid succession.
Flame Beat & Dark Flower
Fusion Qigong
Demon Flower
Hellish flowers wreathed in flame bloomed from every direction.
It was an attack that covered a vast area.
Rene Davis scattered his dark mana and caught his breath.
Why?!
His hands trembled faintly.
The enormous amount of dark mana he had gained by synchronizing with the Eiffel Tower. He now possessed power far greater than when he had been called Europe’s strongest player.
A power great enough to slice through mountains, trigger earthquakes with a single kick, and silence even the fiercest hailstorm with a mere gesture.
He had obtained authority comparable to that of a Constellation.
Then why can’t I defeat a single bastard like him?!
Burst Flame & Maelstrom
Fusion Qigong
Fire Tornado
The air grew scorching hot.
Blue flames swirled violently, reducing everything they touched to ash.
This was the pinnacle of flame drawn out through Fusion Qigong. Its power surpassed even 5-star skills. Even without borrowing the Eiffel Tower’s strength, it had once reduced a 60th-floor boss monster to dust.
Having grown several times—no, more than ten times stronger than his original self, the destructive power of his magic should have increased accordingly.
It should have.
Swoosh—!
Black energy sliced the flaming storm cleanly in half.
“Why? Is something not working out?”
『Don’t get cocky.』
The subspace that had once recreated Paris was now nothing but ash and crimson lava. The aftershocks of the exchange between the two of us had already turned the entire area into a vision of hell.
The mana granted to Rene was powerful enough to destroy the world.
The problem was that such world-shaking power felt no stronger than a gentle breeze in front of Jinho.
Jinho, having broken through the flaming storm, thrust his hand forward.
Concentrated internal energy brushed against the armor.
Crack!
The arm formed from the Eiffel Tower’s remains shattered with a grotesque sound.
Rene consumed dark mana to desperately hold the collapsing limb together.
Countless attacks flew back and forth between them.
Determining the victor and the defeated was not difficult.
The giant’s size had shrunk by nearly ten meters.
On the other hand, Jinho remained completely unscathed.
The seemingly infinite output of dark mana had noticeably diminished.
Kuk. So that’s how it is.
Rene swallowed a bitter smile.
He had been intoxicated by the overwhelming volume of dark mana he couldn’t fully control. After fusing with the Eiffel Tower’s remains, he had been drunk on the colossal amount of mana that seemed capable of splitting the sky itself and had simply poured out attacks mindlessly.
That had been his mistake.
Jinho moved as if he knew every single one of his attack patterns, either destroying the magic or redirecting it.
It doesn’t matter how he saw through it.
Rene’s eyes grew cold.
The excitement that had come from wielding such overwhelming power rapidly cooled.
The battle that had taken place inside the subspace flashed through his mind.
In terms of technique, I am several steps behind.
It was an unpleasant truth to admit.
Rene had immersed himself in every skill book imaginable to maximize the efficiency of Fusion Qigong. Not only that, he had analyzed the properties of every skill to draw out their maximum potential.
The tower he had built after changing class to Almighty was completely useless before Jinho.
He possesses more skills than me and handles multiple different energies.
Seon magic. Martial arts. Polar Night. Physical techniques. On top of that, he wielded all sorts of strange powers I couldn’t even identify, constantly creating new variables.
Rene quickly accepted what he had been ignoring until now.
If I can’t win in a battle of wits, I’ll crush him with raw power.
Relying solely on Fusion Qigong would never let him catch up to Jinho.
His greatest advantage was the enormous mana and output he had gained from synchronizing with the Eiffel Tower.
Rather than trying to control the bloated mana with precision, the best way to maximize his strength was to release it with all his might.
Wind Blade & Mana Blast
Fusion Qigong
Stormbringer
A blade of wind compressed to the extreme.
Rene layered an aura blade on top of it.
Whoooosh—!
A sword dozens of meters long drew a massive arc as it crashed into the ground.
The condensed storm was released, sweeping across the already ruined earth.
A strange light flickered across Jinho’s eyes.
The Truth Eyes that could read the flow of mana, qi, and divine power.
After reading the flow of Stormbringer with Truth Eyes, he launched an attack at the point where the mana was most concentrated.
The condensed wind shook violently from side to side.
Rene made no attempt to hold the scattering blade together. Instead, he poured more mana into it and caused the sword to explode, detonating the energy mixed with the aura blade right in front of his opponent.
“Tsk.”
A pure explosion of power.
He couldn’t destroy the wide-area barrage of wind and aura blades, so he was forced to block it head-on.
『Did you not anticipate this situation?』
Rene cast Stormbringer again.
He made full use of his overwhelming mana output to pressure Jinho.
“I thought this would be easy. As expected, even a rotten fish is still a sea bass.”
Jinho took a step forward.
Because he had pushed forward recklessly, fragments of the aura blade grazed his forearm.
Blood sprayed out, but he didn’t stop.
“From here on, it’s a battle of endurance. Isn’t that right?”
Just as Rene released his mana at maximum output, Jinho advanced while slicing through the tidal wave of power rushing toward him.
The flashy techniques and the shockwaves created during their exchanges had decreased, but the battle had become more intense than ever before.
The fight had devolved into a brutal slugfest.
Splat!
Everything below his elbow was severed by Stormbringer.
He used Mutation to stop the bleeding and activated his ultra-regeneration to restore the arm.
His right arm regrew as if time itself were rewinding.
With his left hand, he gathered his internal energy.
Hundred Beasts Emperor Martial Arts — 9th Form
Spirit Turtle Qigong Cannon
He released the condensed energy wave.
Kwa-duk!
The giant’s shoulder caved in deeply, but the damaged area quickly swelled back out.
『Persistent bastard. You still refuse to fall.』
“That’s my line.”
It had already been half a day since the battle began inside the subspace.
He had half-destroyed the Eiffel Tower monster, dismantled the overwhelming firepower of Fusion Qigong, and was now engaged in a brutal slugfest.
The number of times he had regenerated his wounds was beyond counting. If he gathered all the flesh that had been blown off and then restored, it might be enough to build several people.
Thanks to the Primordial Dragon Heart, he didn’t feel any shortage of mana. But stamina and mental strength were not infinite.
It was strange that his body hadn’t collapsed yet. He endured the war of attrition with superhuman willpower.
Rene’s situation was no better.
The giant had shrunk down to five meters.
No, at this point it was almost embarrassing to even call it a giant.
When he thought back to the enormous mana and output that had poured out of the Eiffel Tower, the current sight felt utterly pathetic.
But—
『It seems even that regeneration ability of yours has its limits.』
Confidence had returned to Rene’s voice.
-Do you have any special moves left?
“If I didn’t in a situation like this, I’d deserve to die.”
That’s right.
I still had one final trump card.
“Goddess, let’s do it.”
-What do you mean by “it”?
Nyx’s eyes filled with suspicion.