Chapter: 0.5 seconds later, Douglas appeared over ten meters to the right, his sword-umbrella already in a closed state. To open it again would take at least 2 seconds.
With a crackling sound, a bolt of lightning suddenly struck down, landing beside Su Xiao, who was currently turned sideways.
Electric arcs spread along the ground. A long blade covered in cracks was embedded in the earth, pieced together from countless fragments—the same blade that had vanished from Douglas's hand moments ago.
After shattering into pieces, this blade had merged into the lightning. If the lightning struck an enemy, it meant the long blade had pierced the enemy's body—a single attack with a dual effect.
Su Xiao executed a horizontal slash, shattering the fragmented blade embedded in the ground.
After delivering this slash, Su Xiao held his long blade horizontally across his body, slightly lowering his stance while fixing his gaze on Douglas, who was over ten meters away.
The moment Su Xiao locked onto him, Douglas felt a prickling sensation on his back, as if needles were stabbing him. His instincts screamed warnings—if he couldn't dodge this strike, he would surely die.
Douglas silently counted in his mind. A faint fluctuation came from the sword-umbrella in his hand—it could be used again. This eased his tension slightly.
As Su Xiao watched Douglas, he slowly inhaled. He rarely built up momentum when using his blade, but this enemy was different. The opponent refused to engage in close combat, giving him the chance to gather power.
'Blade Path Sword: Flow.'
Su Xiao slashed forward. An ethereal wind scar appeared, and almost simultaneously, Douglas opened his sword-umbrella.
Clang!
A sharp ringing sound echoed. A slash mark appeared on the wall behind Douglas and the ceiling, its depth unknown.
Meanwhile, on the surface, a slash mark suddenly flew out from the ground. It first diagonally severed the roof of a residential building, then cut through the lighthouse at the distant dock before vanishing into the horizon.
Inside the underground space, the lightning dissipated. Douglas closed his sword-umbrella, now standing on a glass pillar. He was grateful to have dodged that strike—otherwise, with his constitution, he would have been dead.
Drip, drip~
Blood dripped down. Douglas glanced at his chest. Even a slight graze from that slash had completely cut open his chest.
A thread of lightning was drawn from the sword-umbrella, quickly stitching the wound on Douglas's chest.
"Finally... it's done."
Douglas released the now-damaged sword-umbrella, which dissolved into the air. He clapped his hands together with a sharp smack. The next instant, a blinding light engulfed the underground space. Lightning spread, converged, compressed, and finally exploded.
Boom!
The lightning swallowed everything. After more than ten seconds, the glaring light faded. Douglas, who had been crouching, stood up. Due to severe exhaustion, he nearly collapsed. A black crack appeared behind him, and black tentacles emerged from it, wrapping around his left arm.
"No matter how strong you are, there has to be a limit. At least... make me bleed."
The veins on Douglas's neck bulged as he stared at a massive hexagonal crystal sphere in the distance.
With a crackling sound, the massive crystal sphere shattered. Su Xiao pulled a lightning spike from his shoulder and casually tossed it aside. Blood dripped down his right arm.
Su Xiao looked at the black tentacles coiled around Douglas's arm. This was part of the Fusion Origin. For some reason, he felt it had changed—as if it had... come alive?
"I'd rather have let Hao Mei deal with you."
Leaving these words, Douglas was pulled into the black crack behind him. He was feeling a bit defeated.
In truth, Douglas was not weak. His combat power was only slightly inferior to Hao Mei's. In a life-or-death battle, it was uncertain who would win, given Douglas's many techniques.
However, Douglas relied on elemental power to gather lightning—an innate ability of his. This lightning had devastating lethality and incredible speed.
This lightning posed little threat to Su Xiao. Such lightning, driven by elemental power, had its power (weili) reduced by 40% due to his absolute magic immunity. Combined with Su Xiao's survivability, the final lethality was predictable.