by L. M. Kerr
'She won't be enough, I'll need to step in or he'll die pretty quickly. Also… I can't just let so many good Points go untaken, not when they are offering themselves up to me.' He rushed forward, his blade held at the ready.
'As for Brandon and Byron…' Micheal's eyes flashed cooly and he withdrew some items from his Spatial Ring mid-sprint,
A pair of Hard Diamond Throwing Knives and a basketball-sized, glowing, blue Mana Lantern.
The lantern was a special Artifact that could be acquired for several thousand Points from the Shop. It drew in ambient energy from the surroundings to create a cool, peaceful environment, enhancing the energy in the air. For people that used Abilities that could sense 'Mana,' a special type of natural energy that was essentially another form of Ki, a Mana Lantern could be considered very useful.
'Operating a Mana Body required a fine-tuned level of control, drawing upon the ambient Mana in the environment.' The thought flashed in his mind, something he'd learned over the years. There were multiple Abilities, some non-Type, that allowed one to form a Mana Body, something that became somewhat popular on the Second Layer and beyond.
'It sure would be a shame if something caused the nearby Mana to fluctuate and upset your control.'
Without hesitating, he hurled the Mana Lantern at Lord Byron. A second after, just as he had almost crossed the distance between himself and Officer Martin, he threw the pair of Hard Diamond Throwing Knives after it in an arc. The knives were deadly and sharp, but had something else that was unique about them that almost no one in the First Layer would be aware of.
When they came into contact with Mana, they would react violently. The more concentrated the Mana, the more violent the reaction.
And the Mana Lantern that Micheal had thrown just so happened to have a central core part containing some very concentrated Mana...
"Hup!" Micheal's Steelborn Sword stabbed forward as he entered the fray, slamming into a pair of curved daggers that Silent Viper was wielding, forcing her back.
At the same time, his Hard Diamond Throwing Knives collided with the Mana Lantern, just a few meters away from where Pirate Lord Byron and Boss Shigun were duking it out, with Lord Brandon rushing in to join the fray after blasting aside a few stray Morenkai.
"..."
WHOOSH
BOOOOOM
.
Chapter 68: Absorb
A wave of energy swept over the ground floor and shook the entire area. This energy felt very similar to Ki, but also very different. It was as if the two were opposite sides on the same coin, closely related but not the same.
The wave shook the air and then flashed beyond the boundaries of the building spreading out. It encompassed the base of the nearby skyscrapers and everything within roughly 100 meters before finally fizzling out.
The wave was almost imperceptible. It didn't break or damage anything, nor did it harm any humans or Morenkai within range. All it did was destabilize the area for a few seconds. A destabilization that would only be felt if one was in the midst of intense cultivation or if one happened to be drawing upon the latent energy in the environment, in any of its forms.
As the wave of energy swept past Micheal, his eyes tightened ever so slightly.
"Huh!" He then ignored it completely as he attacked Silent Viper, his Steelborn Sword flashing.
CLANG
CLANG
A series of metallic echoes sounded off as his blade collided with her daggers over and over. Micheal went all out with each blow, holding back nothing as he attacked her.
And every blow, the B Ranked Silent Viper managed to ward off his attacks, guiding the sword away and lashing out with an attack of her own.
In just a split second, Micheal swung at her 5 times and she managed to block his attack 5 times. Each attack of his, coated in a layer of Sword Energy, managed to chip away at her daggers. Her weapons must've been very high quality, able to withstand multiple impacts.
Whenever his sword came near her chest, Silent Viper's body swerved unnaturally, her Lesser Vampire Type Ability giving her unnatural grace.
He grunted silently as he felt his arm start to reach a breaking point. His rapid attacks placed too much of a burden on him, his body unable to keep up with his mind.
'She's got some type of reaction speed boosting Ability. Her skill with those daggers is nothing much, but her body is at least half again as strong as mine.' He made the observation as he ducked backwards, dodging one of her black daggers.
CLANG
Another second passed.
After three more exchanges, Micheal began to get a feel for her fighting style. He discovered multiple faults in her guard and movement.
'She depends on her reaction speed far too much and has neglected expanding upon the basics.' His eyes flashed as he realized this,
'The only problem…' He thought as he ducked and rolled backwards, narrowly dodging one of her daggers,
'…is the poison on her weapons. Avoiding even a scratch is unfeasible if I want to hit her.' He zeroed in on the curved dagger that had missed him.
The end of it was stained with some type of black powder or liquid.
Silent Viper was known for her graceful technique and her deadly 'Fangs' as she called her weapons. Each one was coated with a different type of deadly poison purchased from the Shop. No one knew which exact ones she used, but both of them were fatal within minutes.
All it took was a single cut for her to take down her enemies.
Micheal flicked his eyes to the right, taking in the results of the explosion he had caused.
Lord Byron was down on one knee, blood dripping from his mouth. The glow that had surrounded his body earlier was nowhere to be seen as the man sat, stunned. In the moment that the ambient mana grew unstable, his control of his Mana Body Type Ability had gone haywire.
In the future, people that had Mana Bodies grew used to people trying to disrupt their concentration. Tactics like the one Micheal used would have little effect to those that trained and prepared for it, resolving this major weakness.
However, down here on the First Layer, very few people had Mana Bodies, and no one really knew how to, or even thought it was possible to, disrupt them. As a result, people with Mana Bodies never trained to defend against the ambient Mana being disrupted.
Boss Shigun took advantage of Byron's state, dealing a heavy blow to the man's chest and knocking him backwards. Before he could finish the job, Lord Brandon rushed back into the fray.
The two of them were currently fighting it out, with Shigun slowly gaining the upper hand. His Titan body might be covered in gashes and injuries, but the man fought with ferocity that was rarely witnessed on the First Layer.
Instinctively, Micheal ducked as he turned his attention back to Silent Viper, casually dodging a knife she had thrown.
'I can't outspeed her and my body won't be able to keep up in any type of drawn-out fight.' He stared at her and shrugged.
He then spun to his left and sprinted forward, ignoring her entirely as he ran to aid Officer Martin.
"Hey!" He ignored an angry yelp, the first word he'd heard out of her, as he dashed towards the other B Rankers. Silent Viper stood stunned for a moment, his unexpected break for it taking her by surprise. She then rapidly gave chase, something Micheal noted as he ran off.
Martin was currently facing down against Bloody Iron Arm Cain and Ravager Jason, aided rather ineffectively by the remaining C Ranked guards. The Ravager had transformed into a huge, hulking grey-skinned Arkian bear, while Cain's body was gleaming, his Steel Body Type Ability active.
Both enemy B Rankers didn't use weapons, preferring to use their fists, or claws in Jason's case, to great effect.
"On your six!" Micheal yelled out loud as he came up behind Martin, charging directly at the towering form of Ravager Jason.
"Careful!" Martin replied, sounding harried as he swung his enormous hammer into the blocking arms of Cain, knocking the man backwards. Cain ignored most o
f the attack as he launched his own blow, kicking Martin in the chest.
The blow sent the Offensive Team Leader backwards two meters, blood spurting from his lips. His body was in slightly worse shape than Shigun's, largely due to him having to put his focus on dodging all of Silent Vipers strikes, leaving him vulnerable to other attacks. Silent Viper was now preoccupied with Micheal, but a large amount of damage had already been dealt.
Ravager Jason had been charging forward in his Arkian bear form to take advantage of the opening Cain made. However, when he saw Micheal sprint in to intercept him, the man welcomed that, his bear face smiling grotesquely.
"GROWLL!" The bear charged at him, opening his arms wide in a bear hug. At the same time, a warm brown layer of light covered the bear in a protective aura, coming from some type of defensive Artifact.
Micheal's eyes narrowed as he swung his blade forward, running right into the attack range of the hulking bear.
The bear slammed down immediately, its claws stabbing towards Micheal's head.
Micheal stepped into the attack, his body sliding forward as he kicked down hard, his rapid movement change almost unsettling to look at.
Because of that abrupt jump, the bear's claws missed him by a couple of inches. The burst of wind the attack created whipped across Micheal's neck, fluttering his hair.
Jason immediately noticed this. Instead of pulling back, he went all out, smashing his arms together to crush Micheal.
Normally, someone that was trapped between the arms of an enormous bear would try to duck backwards and avoid being crushed. In Jason's eyes, he fully expected Micheal to do this, and was launching himself forward to prevent that.
Micheal, however, reacted almost entirely the opposite.
He jumped up into Jason's grasp. The Ravager managed to close his arms on both of Micheal's legs, trapping him.
At the same time that he did that, Micheal's Steelborn Sword cut through the air, coated in a Layer of Sword Energy as it stabbed towards the huge bear's face.
'A suicide attack?!' Jason's eyes widened as he saw this, immediately trying to pull back.
The B Ranker had faith that the Protective Aura that was covering his body thanks to his Brown Shield Necklace would be enough to block most attacks Micheal launched. Arkian Bears already had naturally thick skin and very dense bones. Just like with Morenkai, normal swords wouldn't even leave a mark.
However, if a sword managed to smash into his eye or a vulnerable part of his face, it could leave a seriously debilitating or even permanent injury. If the attacker put his full force behind it, ignoring his own safety…
The huge bear immediately jerked backwards, kicking off the ground as Jason did his best to avoid colliding with him. His bear arms flew wide open as he flailed, trying to bring them up to protect his face, and subsequently freeing Micheal.
Micheal smiled, his blade cutting right towards the bear's face.
And then, at the last instant, he raised his leg and planted his foot firmly on the flailing bear's chest…
And backflipped off it, his blade whirling around as he pulled back, missing the bear's head entirely.
"Huh?!" Jason stuttered, taken aback. His huge bear body continued to dodge back, skidding on the floor.
WHOOSH
Not a moment later, two curved daggers slashed through the air right where Micheal had been, just barely missing his body. The lean form of Silent Viper appeared, attacking in a failed ambush as she tried to strike at Micheal while his back was turned.
THUNK
Micheal's body twirled through the air as he landed down on the ground smoothly, sliding back a few meters as he came to a halt.
In his hands… his Steelborn Sword was nowhere to be seen.
thud
.
—-Points Obtained—-
4,782
.
A notification went off as Michael looked forward.
In front of him, the B Ranked Silent Viper tumbled to the floor, her body collapsing. His Steelborn Sword was currently quivering in her skull, blood pooling out of the wound as she fell to the ground.
Killed instantly.
'Amateurs.' He shook his head slightly but without arrogance, making an honest observation. It wasn't as if he had expected genius tactics or coordination, but for one of the strongest teams in his Cluster, they failed to meet his expectations.
Silent Viper was a stealthy attacker that would almost certainly chase after him and attack him when he was vulnerable. A simple ploy to get himself in a vulnerable looking situation and appear open had been all it took to lure her in and take her by surprise.
After he flipped up, he stabbed down and threw his sword, the strike lightning fast. Silent Viper had been caught defenseless, unable to react in time, even with her enhancements.
'I didn't even need to reveal my Life Orbs.' He smiled, his eyes shining as he looked past Silent Viper's dead body, back at Ravager Jason.
The feeling of being in a large scale group fight against multiple powerful opponents brought out an eagerness in Micheal that he hadn't felt in some time. Fighting against Xavier or Brandon one on one, or even many Morenkai, simply wasn't the same.
One of the things he loved about the apocalypse was the interesting powers, the fantastic Abilities, that people wielded.
Fighting against groups of enemies and having to adapt his tactics or strategies to that, and then subsequently winning… it set his blood to boiling with excitement.
"GROWWLL!" When Jason saw Silent Viper's corpse, the huge bear let out a roar, its body shaking as it realized it had been tricked. Instead of blindly charging forward, the large bear moved over to her body, stepped in front of it.
SMASH
Bits of blood and gore splattered out as the bear crushed Silent Viper's head, obliterating what was left of her upper body.
Micheal's Steelborn Sword finally gave way, the damage it had accumulated over time from his powerful but corrosive Sword Energy and from combat proving too much. It exploded into shards of broken metal, covered in gore and blood as Jason growled, flinging Silent Viper away.
'You're weaponless now.' The bear seemed to be conveying, picking up steam as he began to charge at Micheal.
Micheal shrugged and tapped on his Spatial Ring, looking supremely unconcerned with the massive bear that was charging at him. Despite that, his eyes constantly scanned the bear and his surroundings, keeping tabs on everything.
In the background, Morenkai were starting to pour into the ground floor.
The duel between the three A Rankers was ongoing, now positioned almost directly behind Micheal. Lord Byron was just now recovering, suffering from several serious injuries thanks to Boss Shigun. Lord Brandon was still violently clashing with Shigun, a battle of attrition taking place as the two powerful warriors landed blow after blow on each other.
Bloody Iron Arm Cain was locked in a similar battle with Officer Martin, but on the winning side. Martin's injuries were far too fierce for him to stand a reasonable chance as Cain forced the man back on the defensive, raining blow after blow.
Sophia had successfully trapped all of the gunmen of the Black Flag Pirates using her Fairy Eyes.
She then had them all commit suicide, tricking them into thinking they were shooting an enemy. A few of the stronger willed ones had managed to resist her Ability at first, but eventually subsumed as she focused.
The effort had a toll on her, causing her to become pale-faced from exhaustion as she rested for a few moments, trying to recover.
Micheal took this all in in a scant second, his heart pounding.
He flicked his wrist.
Immediately, two White Steel Swords appeared, pulled from his Spatial Ring, the weapons he had scored off of Xavier.
He then took several quick jumps backward and off to the side, positioning himself carefully.
Not a moment later, the massive form of the several tons heavy bear crashed directly into him. As Micheal felt this, he di
dn't try to dodge. All he did was raise his two swords, coating each in a layer of Sword Energy as they pointed at the bear's shoulders, and then utter a single mental command.
'Impact Absorb!'
.
Chapter 69: Finish
For the first time against an enemy, Micheal activated his Impact Release Ability.
WHOOSH
As the hulking form of the Arkian Bear slammed into him, thousands of pounds of muscle and anger, Micheal felt a type of cool energy seep into his soul. This energy carried with it a sort of mystical feeling, magical. Different from the natural Ki that flowed within his veins.
In the span of just part of a second, a large swarm of that cool energy was stored in his soul. A perfect mirror of the impact that slammed into his body, sending him barreling backwards.
Right before he was hit, Micheal jumped forward, his arms thrusting out. He took full advantage of the reckless charge to land an attack of his own.
SHKKK
Before the bear had even reached him, Micheal had positioned his White Steel Swords, jerking them to be aimed at the shoulders of Ravager Jason's bear form. Just as the bear was about to hit him, Micheal abruptly jerked the blades to point inward.
He forced his arms to move so quickly he managed to damage the ligaments and muscles in both. The extremely abrupt movement was something he had committed to memory, from when his body was far, far stronger in the original timeline. This type of movement in his current body was impossible to perform unscathed.
At the same time, as he was hit, he pulled his legs up, using them to cushion and absorb the blow.
'Gotcha.' Micheal's only thought as he was blown backwards was one of grim satisfaction.
Micheal's left leg broke in 8 spots and his right leg broke in 9. His lower body, including hips, femur, and parts of his spine all cracked or bruised, his low Endurance notwithstanding. A wave of pain washed over him as he was rammed by the bear, pain that he forcibly ignored.
