Chapter 550: It Is Not Enough
Northern could feel it. His body was reading it as much as he was trying his best to read it with his mind. It was just like when he had fought with Night Terror.
Every difficult threat was perceived by his body and was, in a way, overcome. This one, of course, was taking longer because it was a very intricate ability.
One that he could not even figure out completely how it worked.
Northern had first thought about using Erasure to lock the elf's ability. But it wouldn't be a fair ability. Honestly, he wanted to consider deleting the ability.
Because there was no fun in locking an opponent's ability.
Right now, what he wanted was for them to fight with their full strength. Let them give it their all. So he could crush their peak and climb above it.
That way, he would enjoy crushing them more. His eyes glinted with malicious enjoyment as he thought about it.
But something kept bothering Northern.
Why was Void Force failing? Why?
Amidst his puzzled thoughts, the elf came again, silent as ever, his blade of wind materializing out of thin air.
Northern's body instinctively reacted, dodging to the side, but once again, he felt the familiar sting as the invisible attack grazed him.
Blood trickled down his arm, but Northern's grin widened, his mind racing.
He had faced entities whose power dwarfed this elf's, and each time, he had come out on top. This was no different.
Except... it was.
"Why can't I sense it again?" Northern muttered under his breath, his gaze locking onto the elf as the wind shifted once more, obscuring the cult leader's presence.
His Void Force should have activated by now, stretching the distance between him and the threat. But the attacks slipped through, bypassing his defense.
The elf appeared again, this time with a wicked grin.
"Struggling, aren't you?" he taunted, his voice carried by the wind. "Your abilities and speed are useless against the Gale. You're not as invincible as you think."
Northern's eyes narrowed. "We'll see about that."
The elf disappeared once more, but this time, Northern was prepared.
He closed his eyes, shutting out the distraction of the swirling winds, and focused.
His Void Force wasn't reacting because it couldn't register the attack. The wind wasn't just hiding the elf-it was masking the intent behind the attack itself.
Whispering Gale was manipulating not just the air, but the pressure around the attacks, displacing them just enough that Northern's ability couldn't fully comprehend them as immediate threats.
It was like trying to grasp smoke-by the time you felt it, it was already gone.
Northern's eyes shot open. 'So that's it.'
He couldn't rely on Void Force to save him this time.
He'd have to fight without it—at least until he could break through the elf's wind distortion.
'It was a good thing I met Jeci that time; if not, this would have been quite an issue.'
Northern could fight without having to use the Void Force. And he could fight very well, so to say!
The elf struck again, a gust of wind slicing toward Northern's back.
This time, Northern moved preemptively, twisting his body just before the pressure built up, avoiding the brunt of the attack.
The wind grazed his shoulder, but the cut was shallow.
"You're getting desperate," Northern called out, his voice cold. "If you think this wind is enough to stop me, you're wrong."
The elf reappeared in front of him, his face twisted in anger. "You dismissed the one thing that was keeping you safe from my attacks; how foolish of you. You can never beat me."
He wasn't surprised the man noticed Void Force; in fact, he now understood why the elf had been attacking the way he had been.
It was quite obvious. He had understood from the beginning that his normal attacks would never reach Northern.
'He is a brilliant fighter, I wouldn't lie,' Northern for a moment was caught in amusement. Northern's grin returned, sharp and dangerous. "I don't need Void Force to crush you."
The elf's eyes flared with fury, and the winds around him intensified, whipping into a frenzy. The air pressure grew heavy, suffocating, and Northern felt the weight of the Whispering Gale closing in on him from all sides. The elf was going all out now.
Northern's grip tightened on Stainless, his mind clearing.
He had been holding back, trying to figure out the elf's tricks. But now, there was no need for
that.
He had learned enough.
As the elf vanished once more into the wind, Northern made his move.
His body blurred with speed, his enhanced physical abilities pushing him beyond the limits of
most beings.
He wasn't waiting for the attack this time-he was going on the offensive.
The elf reappeared to strike, but Northern was already there.
His blade met the elf's wind blade, and the air crackled with energy as the two forces collided.
But Northern didn't stop. He twisted, bringing Stainless down in a devastating arc, black
flames erupting from the sword and scorching the ground.
The elf leaped back, but Northern followed, his movements fluid and relentless.
Each strike was faster, more precise, pushing the elf further and further back.
The cult leader's once confident expression was beginning to falter.
"You're-impossible!" the elf spat, his voice trembling with frustration as he tried to keep up with Northern's relentless assault.
Northern's grin widened. "Now, I'm just getting started."
He swung Stainless once more, this time aiming not for the elf, but for the air itself.
Black flames exploded outward, disrupting the flow of the wind and scattering the
Whispering Gale.
The elf's control over the wind faltered for a split second.
And that was all Northern needed.
In a blur of motion, he closed the distance between them, driving his knee into the elf's gut.
The cult leader gasped in pain, his wind blade flickering and fading as his concentration
broke.
Northern didn't let up. He grabbed the elf by the collar, lifting him off the ground with one hand, his eyes cold and merciless.
"I told you," Northern said, his voice low and dangerous. "You're not as clever as you think." The elf struggled, trying to summon the wind again, but Northern's grip tightened, and his
presence overwhelmed the cult leader.
The winds began to die down, the air growing still around them.
"You... can't... stop the wind," the elf choked out, his voice barely a whisper.
Northern's grin turned into a sneer. "Watch me."
With a final, brutal motion, Northern slammed the elf into the ground, the impact cracking
the stone beneath them.
The cult leader's body went limp, his control over the wind shattering completely.
Northern stared down at the elf with a cold intensity. He raised his sword up, pointing its edge
towards the elf.
His eyes glowed with the cold light of a killer's gaze.
As he was about to drive the blade into the elf's throat, a voice suddenly called.
"Northern!!"
His sword stopped just at the throat of the elf.
"What have you done, Northern?" Shin stared around, horrified at the way bodies in pools of
blood littered the ground.
Northern furrowed his brows and raised his head nonchalantly.
[You have copied talent Whispering Gale (A) for 600 talent fragments]