City of Sin

Book 4, 66B

Embracing Fate(2)

Balibali produced an earth-shattering cry of rage, frozen muscles suddenly twitching as they turned hard as steel. Richard’s slash hit an arm, but all he could do was make it bleed before his own body trembled as he was bounced back several metres by a huge force.

The barbarian youth roared once more, the sword in his hand cutting in Richard’s direction. Navy blue sword light pressed down against Richard’s body; try as he might to dodge, a complete escape was impossible. His left shoulder started bleeding.

This was the first time he had been injured ever since he arrived at Klandor.

Balibali raised his sword once more and roared, the light flooding towards Richard like a tide. However, this time he was prepared; he dodged the attacks unbelievably quickly, instacasting spells to defend himself when he could not. The barbarian had turned extremely serious at this point, a hint of respect emerging on his face. Only now did he understand why Richard had told him to give it his all in the battle; although the Norlander was much lower than him in terms of level, the incredible combat techniques made up for the difference.

He was already using the Wrath of the Ocean, an ability he had been enlightened on after withstanding the impact of cliff waves day and night. His aura came in powerful waves that increased his speed, strength, and defence. Without this ability, he was a much weaker warrior.

The coldness on Richard’s face had vanished at some point in time, replaced by a burning insanity. His dodges and attacks were almost instinctive even as his blessings were worked to their fullest, draining a huge amount of his stamina every second. By the time he escaped the drowning waves he looked battered and exhausted, but the elven sword and the Twin of Destiny found their way into his hands for a counterattack.

Compared to the all-encompassing attack of the barbarian, Richard looked rather plain and unhurried. It was only a slash here and a spell there, but one flame arrow and Balibali was left howling in pain. Seeing the same crimson rays engulfing the long sword in Richard’s hand, he lost confidence in his body that was tougher than steel.

Lightning bolts fell down from time to time, forcing him to pause for a moment as the scorching pain left him paralysed. Richard’s long sword that was now burning in abyssal fire managed to nick him at every instance. Still, the barbarian’s ferocity allowed him to control his body and return the strike.

Red, yellow, and blue lights flashed in the sky as blood splattered onto the ground. Richard gradually felt his body going numb, while Balibali was starting to lose his fight against the abyssal flames that had pierced into his body and were corroding him from within. Barely a few minutes after the battle had started, the barbarian youth coughed up a mouthful of blood and the two of them separated into different corners.

Balibali couldn’t stand on his own any longer, having to use his sword for support. Richard wasn’t any better, panting hard as he leaned on his staff and took out the Book of Holding with trembling hands. Blood immediately stained the pages.

Richard shook the book with force, pouring the mana from within it into the Mana Armament rune. Lightning flashed around his body once more, giving him the strength to stand. However, he had already sustained dozens of different wounds, the deepest even showing bone. The force of energy from the rune caused blood to start pouring out of all his wounds.

“You’re... Hurt...” the barbarian youth huffed out, voice muting halfway.

“And you’re better than me?” Richard asked sarcastically.

Balibali suddenly took a deep breath, face turning red as he puked out a pool of blood. His aura suddenly grew more vigorous right after, evidently the result of a secret technique to stimulate potential. “I CAN STILL PUNCH YOU LIKE A MAN!” he roared, letting go of his sword and clenching his fist as he hobbled in Richard’s direction. He decided using his fist would be enough, mages were known to be fragile.

Richard sneered, burying the Twin of Destiny in the ground as he charged forward himself. He avoided the roaring punch of the barbarian, leaning under the attack. Balibali felt himself being hoisted into the air before firmly crashing into the ground, leaving him concussed for a moment. Richard grabbed him by the hair and repeatedly smashed his head into the ground.

*Thud! Thud! Thud!* A hole had been smashed into the ground, blood dyeing the soil red even as small pebbles were crushed into gravel. The strength of Balibali’s skull far exceeded Richard’s expectations; he was doing damage to the flesh and muscles, but barbarians could quickly heal from anything that didn’t break their bones.

The barbarian suddenly howled, lifting his head abruptly to knock into Richard’s chin. Richard was sent flying back like a pebble, blacking out in the process. It felt like he drifted in the air for a long time before his back hit something hard.

The second consciousness was forced to take over his body, the blessing of wisdom reminding him that only a short time had passed since he had been sent flying away. His eyes and ears weren’t working for the moment, but he could feel the tremble of the earth as Balibali approached slowly. Fallen on his back, it was as though his body had been emptied out completely. His wounds weren’t even hurting anymore, replaced by a numbing cold.

His eyelids grew heavy from the empty feeling, making him want to let go of everything and just fall asleep. He slowly lost consciousness... Until a few scenes flashed across his mind.

Balibali could see Richard on the ground a few steps away, blood constantly flowing out from his mouth and nose with the chin already deformed. The burning light in the youth’s eyes was almost extinguished, tense muscles beginning to relax. He was about to go unconscious. The barbarian dragged his heavy body forward, wanting to knock Richard out to obtain the final victory. He would then take the boy back to his tribe and have the shaman treat him before sending him back to Norland.

This Norlander was a true warrior, worthy of his respect. At least in terms of willpower and courage, he was worthy of Mountainsea.

However, it was at this moment that he saw a pea-sized flame form on Richard’s fingertip. It was barely even flickering, but this battle had taught him well to steer clear of any flames Richard released regardless of size. He couldn’t help but stop in his footsteps.

“AAHH!” Richard sat up abruptly, howling like a beast as the finger pressed into his thigh. Abyssal flames had the ability to corrode the soul, and with his consciousness almost faded away he didn’t have any defences left. The instant pain was unbearable, no matter how strong his will was.

By the time the flame burnt out, it had left a bright scar. Still, the pain had woken him up from the verge of unconsciousness. He used the last of his energy to stand up. “I... still... have strength. Here’s... Annihilation!”

Balibali saw a fuzzy blue moon appear above Richard’s head, a layer of dark blue moonlight surrounding the half-elf’s body as he struck forward with his arm.

He was using his body as the sword!

‘He’s a lunatic!’ was all the barbarian could think before he was sent flying into the sky. By the time he landed on the ground, he knew he would not be getting up anytime soon. He was defeated by a level 14 mage? It felt like a poor dream.

Richard staggered a few steps back, throwing up some blood before he crumbled to the ground. His mana and energy had long since been depleted; the only power he could draw on now was moonforce.

Annihilation was the secret sword he had always understood the most, mainly because Gaton’s demonstration of it had been much better than the rest. The others were manuals to learn from, but he had experienced the soul of the blue moon.

Balibali was on the ground while Richard could force himself to sit. The outcome of this tragic battle had already been determined. The two youths didn’t talk for some time, just panting heavily as they tried to regain some strength.

However, it wasn’t long before Richard suddenly took in a deep breath and an alert expression crossed his face. A strong stench of decay filled the air, as though a heap of rotten meat had been dropped nearby.

Balibali opened his eyes, a look of extreme fear crossing his face, “Heisa!”

A hoarse laughter rang from afar as an extremely ugly barbarian that looked no different from a beast dashed over. The stench of decay grew stronger as he approached, growing so dense it left one wanting to puke.

Heisa wiped the sweat off his forehead and laughed, “Well, the journey was a little exhausting but it seems like I came at just the right time.”

He stared at Richard with his green eyes, licking his lips with his forked tongue, “You’re the promised person? Richard was the name? Very impressive, defeating Balibali like that. If you were allowed to grow for two more years, I’m afraid I wouldn’t be your opponent. Haha!

“But of course, you won’t have any chance to grow!”