Chapter 565: Simple Blade
Both of them stared at each other deeply for a few beats. Northern's gaze was unwavering, shooting sparks that met the intense crimson eyes of the Lieutenant.
Lieutenant Dante, after glaring down at Northern for a couple seconds more, finally exhaled, a steamy air flowing out his nose.
He turned away, slowly took his sword and swung back. He pushed a leg forward and leaned his upper body towards that leg.
Northern watched him with a brow slightly raised.
Whish!
His eyes flew wide open as the Lieutenant blasted away. Then something happened.
The Lieutenant slashed his sword upward, cleaving a Rabid Rot in twain; instantly, every Rabid Rot on the expanse was cleaved in twain.
Before everybody else, all they saw was the Lieutenant turning to a blur, and a slash suddenly transmitting to all the monsters.
They were all led to think that the Lieutenant had moved faster than the speed of light and delivered all the strikes.
'His ability uses speed as deceit...' Northern grinned.
Of course, everything had perfectly unfolded before his eyes.
Lieutenant Dante only attacked a single monster. However, that single strike somehow managed to channel into every other monster of the same type with blinding speed.
And all the monsters dropped dead at the same time.
His only mistake was...
Northern's grin widened.
....he gave Northern something to copy.
[Talent, Phantom Sword (SSS) has been found]
[Do you want to copy Talent for 5,000 talent fragments]
'Oh? Another prodigy. So freaking expensive.'
He looked up at the Lieutenant, who sheathed his sword with steeze.
'I guess I kind of understand how his ability works.'
The Lieutenant's ability, although no one could see it, delivers echoes of his strike to every other monster.
What baffled Northern was that it was only the echo of the strike; there's no way it should be as powerful as the main strike, and the large area he was able to cover should be impossible.
But when he thought about the fact that this man is a Paragon.
'Well, I guess they are called Paragons for a reason.' He sighed and let go of his thoughts as everyone moved towards the Lieutenant.
The only monster left was the one standing in the middle, like a statue.
"My Liege, we can take it down-"
Shane said as she landed behind Lieutenant Dante, but she was not allowed to complete her statement.
"Step back."
The Lieutenant commanded immediately as she and the other two landed behind him.
Without any questions, they leaped away several times until they were standing around Northern.
The Lieutenant glanced back to look at all of them gathered around Northern. He looked to his other side-his left.
Sighting Alystren who was standing alone.
"It's better for you to go behind the white-haired kid."
He spoke, his voice audibly traveling through the air despite the distance between them without having to strain.
Alystren frowned a bit but did not complain; he jumped back. Only when he landed next to Northern did he understand why the Lieutenant said what he said.
As a Savant, almost a Sage, he could tell clearly when someone was stronger than he was.
Before, his judgment was clouded; while Northern seemed threatening, he was of a lower rank and Alystren's senses could vividly tell.
As they could also-right now-vividly tell him that Northern is of a higher rank.
He gulped, confused.
'This is insane. I leave him for barely an hour and he's already a Sage?'
Lieutenant Dante faced the statued monster, fixing a cold and powerful gaze towards its head. He pulled out his sword with one hand.
And joined his second hand as he raised the sword over his head.
He closed his eyes and breathed, drowning everything around him in a sea of silence.
"In the solitude of steel, I find my resolve.
One edge, one purpose.
A blade knows no distraction, no hesitation; it carves its truth into the world with a single intent.
Where others see complexity, I see clarity-a path drawn in one unbroken line, undivided, undeniable.
This is the singularity of the sword:
A moment of pure focus that yields simplicity,
And in that simplicity, I wield strength unyielding."
"Fall. Simple Blade."
The Lieutenant swung down his sword.
Swish.
It was almost a silent sword, like the wind screeching.
As the Lieutenant's sword fell, a thin red line appeared on the maelstrom, running down the middle of its body.
A second later, it divided, falling apart with a vicious and overwhelming spray of crimson
ichor.
[Talent, Phantom Sword (SSS) has been found]
[Do you want to copy Talent for 5,000 talent fragments]
Northern looked with squinted eyes, and suddenly extended his hand forward, expanding Void Force and pushing it forward.
None of them knew what was coming. The Lieutenant's subordinates had instinctively glared at him with dark faces, thinking he wanted to attack their leader from behind. But they were not given a chance to react; before they could, the entire landscape trembled.
In the aftermath of the tremendous sword slash the Lieutenant had used, as the red line touched the ground-beats after the monster's body had fallen apart-it tore the ground into two with such straight precision.
In a fraction of a second, the cleave ran invisibly, in a straight line that separated the ground, however, was deflected by Northern's hand-the invisible air, Void Force.
The Lieutenant looked back, slightly amazed but not showing it.
'He really did deflect that...'
Northern meanwhile had a strained frown. It was the same exact thing with the Emperor of
Luinngard Empire.
And it made him understand to a certain degree why they can't just go all out.
The effect of two Paragons battling each other would probably easily destroy any city they
were in.
'Damned Paragons.' Northern was slightly jealous.
But immediately, he thought about it. He had no reason to be jealous.
He might not be a Paragon by rank yet, but he is strong enough to beat one.
At least judging so far by what he had seen of the two Paragons, if he went all out with all his cards... he didn't even have to use all.
The way he was now, with the Power of Chaos and Void unification, and most importantly the new boon the system upgrade gave him? He would beat the shit out of any of them.
So when he does become a Paragon, he was sure. He would be the strongest Paragon to ever
exist.
And not just that. Northern was sure. He would be the first to reach the Genesis rank and become a Zenith.
"I will stand at the very top of them all," he muttered inaudibly with a small grin, sparks
igniting in his eyes.