Chapter 44: Speed
On the square lined with stone sculptures, cotton-like objects drifted past. Due to Veroni's ability, the entire square fell silent. Amu lay in ambush at the edge of the square, ready in case other enemies suddenly appeared.
Su Xiao stood at the center of the square, behind him a stone sculpture of a bird spreading its wings to take flight. Across from him was the black-armored guard wielding a pair of hook-blades.
These two hook-blades were about a meter long, their curves somewhat twisted, like two bent hooks. The inner edge of each hook was the blade, while the outer edge was lined with barbs, used to lock onto an enemy's weapon.
Those who used such strange weapons were either complete amateurs or true experts. Clearly, the black-armored guard belonged to the latter category. Despite wearing full-body armor, he showed no signs of clumsiness; instead, he appeared swift, agile, and immensely powerful.
"Basana (unknown language)."
The black-armored guard extended his arms, performing a sword salute that Su Xiao had never seen before.
Boom!
Stone chips flew from beneath the black-armored guard's feet. In an instant, he vanished from Su Xiao's sight.
Su Xiao activated his instinct ability to its fullest. A sharp pain pricked at his neck, and he immediately swung Dragon-Slashing Flash to his side.
Clang!
The sound of metal clashing created a shockwave that cracked the surrounding stone sculptures.
Su Xiao's feet sank slightly into the ground as blood seeped from his shoulder.
Crack, crack, crack...
The blades scraped against each other. Su Xiao had blocked a hook-blade strike from his right, but the shape of the weapon was too peculiar. It wasn't a straight hook; it curved downward in a twisted manner. He couldn't predict its trajectory in their first exchange.
Even though Su Xiao had already covered his shoulder with a crystal layer, the tip of the hook-blade still pierced through, creating a wound about three centimeters deep—a minor injury at best.
At that moment, Su Xiao held Dragon-Slashing Flash pressed against his arm, the blade facing outward, blocking the hook-blade from cutting further.
But unexpectedly, the black-armored guard pushed the hook-blade forward. The weapon was C-shaped, making it impossible to fully parry.
Pfft!
The hook-blade pierced through Su Xiao's shoulder. The black-armored guard's speed was so incredible that even Su Xiao's initial block had been a fraction too slow. If not for his extensive combat experience, his head would have already been severed.
The hook-blade followed a semicircular trajectory, penetrating Su Xiao's shoulder and emerging from his back. Remember, the other side of the hook-blade was covered in barbs. Stabbing in was easy, but pulling it out could tear off half of Su Xiao's shoulder.
Click.
The black-armored guard pushed the hook-blade in his other hand forward, using the barbs on the back to lock onto Dragon-Slashing Flash.
'Bladeless.'
Dragon-Slashing Flash suddenly emitted a sharp ring, and the entire blade erupted with blinding blue light. But instead of retreating, the black-armored guard pulled back hard, intending to yank the hook-blade out of Su Xiao's shoulder by force.
Bang!
A sonic boom sounded as a blur shot between Su Xiao and the black-armored guard, leaving a hole in the latter's right arm. It was Banishment.
The force in the black-armored guard's arm slackened. Seizing the opportunity, the blue light from Dragon-Slashing Flash enveloped the guard's right arm, followed by a grating, teeth-clenching sound as black armor fragments flew everywhere.
The black-armored guard leaped back several times. He glanced at his right arm, now severed at the elbow, and narrowed his eyes behind his helmet.
Su Xiao pressed Dragon-Slashing Flash against the hook-blade, assumed an odd stance, and then exerted force with his entire body.
Crack!
The hook-blade lodged in his shoulder snapped. He slapped his shoulder, and the broken, barbed hook-blade pierced through his flesh, embedding itself into a stone sculpture.
Su Xiao flexed his sword-wielding right arm. Earlier, because the enemy's speed was too fast, he hadn't been able to fully leverage his blade technique's advantages. If the distance between them was two to five meters, Su Xiao had the upper hand. But if it was less than a meter, the advantage went to the black-armored guard with his strange weapons.
Having already suffered once, Su Xiao wouldn't let the enemy get that close again. The next time he was pierced, it might be his head.
Confirming that the wound on his shoulder wouldn't affect his sword swings, Su Xiao lunged forward. Before he even reached the enemy, a dense barrage of blade auras slashed toward the black-armored guard.
In an instant, the square was filled with crisscrossing blade auras, while the hook-blade sent out crescent-shaped silver energy slashes.
Boom!
Su Xiao was sent flying out of the melee. He landed in a crouch, sliding more than ten meters before stopping.
Hum~
A slashing sound came from beside Su Xiao's ear. He immediately turned his head with all his might, but even so, he felt a stinging pain on his cheek. A thin line of blood appeared on his face.
Several dozen meters away, Veroni was lying flat on a nearly ten-meter-tall stone sculpture, trying to curl herself into a ball. She had no interest in watching the fight. Both Su Xiao and the black-armored guard were too fast. Even if Veroni tried to sense them, she couldn't track their movements. It was a battle of gods; she could only hide here, trembling, praying that Su Xiao would win.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Three consecutive stone sculptures shattered. Su Xiao stood amidst the rubble, scanning his surroundings. The enemy's speed had become almost incomprehensible. And it wasn't a constant speed; it was gradually increasing as the fight went on.
At this point, the black-armored guard was at least three times faster than at the start of the battle.
Pfft.
A gash appeared on Su Xiao's chest. Before the wound appeared, he had already raised Dragon-Slashing Flash in front of him, but it hadn't fully blocked the hook-blade.
Su Xiao's mind raced. He knew this couldn't continue. If the enemy's speed increased any further, it would completely exceed the limits of his instinct. Then he would have to rely on luck to defend or attack.
The black-armored guard's speed had already achieved a stealth-like effect. He had vanished from Su Xiao's sight. If not for the occasional cracking of stone slabs on the square, Su Xiao couldn't even determine the enemy's general direction.
Even now, Su Xiao couldn't understand how the enemy's speed could reach such a level. It almost defied his comprehension.
Pah~
A piece of gravel fell. About a dozen meters away, a stone sculpture rapidly crumbled.
Seeing the falling debris, Su Xiao's confusion vanished. It wasn't that the black-armored guard's speed was incomprehensible; it was that his own speed had slowed down. His neural reaction speed, perception speed, dynamic vision—all had become slower.
The wounds on his body throbbed with pain. Su Xiao took a deep breath. He only had one chance. He couldn't solve the problem of his own slowing yet, but he could make the enemy slow down too.
The black-armored guard was incredibly strong. Several times, he had nearly severed Su Xiao's head. But his defense wasn't astonishing. For an ordinary fifth-rank contractor, the black-armored guard's defense was nearly impenetrable. But for Su Xiao, wielding Dragon-Slashing Flash, the guard's formidable defense was meaningless. The countless Paradise Coins he had invested in Dragon-Slashing Flash would definitely allow him to shatter the enemy.
Pfft!
Another gash appeared on Su Xiao's back. This wound was deep. Without the crystal layer's protection, it would have reached his spine.
Su Xiao stumbled forward half a step. Dragon-Slashing Flash flipped in his hand. He gripped the sword with both hands, the tip pointing at the ground.
Inhale, exhale...
Everything around Su Xiao slowed down even more. He could even see the floating dust particles. Clearly, the enemy's ability could no longer be masked by the environment.
A hook-blade suddenly appeared in front of Su Xiao.
'Blade Path Sword: Time.'
Su Xiao thrust the longsword downward, stabbing it into the ground. A wave of energy spread out.
Thump!
It was as if an invisible hammer struck the area around Su Xiao. The black-armored guard's figure suddenly appeared, followed by three crisp sounds of metal clashing.
Three intersecting slashes hung in the air. The black-armored guard stood frozen in place.
"Got you."
The muscles in Su Xiao's sword-wielding right arm bulged slightly as he delivered a full-powered slash at the black-armored guard.
Zheng!
A blue slash, nearly ten meters wide, flew diagonally into the sky. It severed the spire of a building half a kilometer away before disappearing from sight.
Tinkle~
Half of a broken hook-blade fell to the ground. Black blood sprayed from the black-armored guard's throat. He fell to one knee with a thud, and the black blood gushed out even more. The next moment, Dragon-Slashing Flash pierced through the black-armored guard's head.