"Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom—!"
In the Bright Red World, successive explosions echoed along the banks of the Mana River, causing the pale flames to incessantly transform into waves of fire that began to spread in all directions intermixed with abundant dust and fierce winds.
Although the scale of the explosions wasn't enormous, the power behind it was impressive. It dug one pit after another into the ground of the riverbank, turning it into a pockmarked landscape.
There, Friagne hovered above the flow of Mana River with his arms crossed over his chest, resembling an aristocrat enjoying a spectacle. A faint smile lingered on his lips, which made him look enchanting enough to captivate any onlooker.
Around him, dolls of various sizes, large and small, floated like an array with their mechanical hands reaching down toward the riverbank. In their hands, they gathered pale flames, raining down like a curtain of fire onto the area below.
"Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom—!"
Explosions reverberated continuously, intensifying the gusts of wind and shockwaves, sweeping in all directions.
The scene was exceptionally breathtaking.
The bombardment of explosions seemed endless.
It wasn't until much later that the dolls arranged around Friagne ceased their assault. The fire waves below gradually dissipated, and the forceful winds and thick dust settled.
Observing the riverbank below, now pitted and uneven, Friagne's expression remained unchanged. He spread out his hands in a somewhat helpless gesture and spoke. "This is just the prologue, at most a casual greeting. It shouldn't be too much for you to handle, right?"
As his words fell, from the center of the uneven riverbank, where the dust had yet to completely dissipate, a voice with a sly tone followed. "Why would that be? Shouldn't we let Crimson Lord-Sama thoroughly enjoy himself before concluding, according to proper etiquette?"
With the utterance of these words, the dust below seemed to be sliced in half by an invisible blade, splitting with a sudden white line as the center and it dispersed entirely.
Fang Li slowly retracted the dagger he had swung, raised his head, and looked upward with a faint smile playing on his lips.
Upon closer inspection, numerous craters surrounded Fang Li, but the ground directly beneath him remained intact.
"He blocked it?" Friagne squinted slightly, muttering, "No, he must have dodged all of them, right?"
That's correct.
The dense barrage just now wasn't blocked by Fang Li but entirely dodged.
"You are indeed not an ordinary human," Friagne said, somewhat jokingly. "Being able to dodge such a dense attack, not even that little Flame-Haired Burning-Eyed brat could manage that."
"It's just a difference in fighting style," Fang Li shrugged while saying, "Shana is a direct attacker, and I'm a speed type relying on unpredictability. Letting the opponent's attacks completely miss is the right way to fight for me; there's no need to waste effort in blocking something that can be easily evaded."
"In that case, I am the opportunist, moving in for the kill type," Friagne said in a relaxed tone. "Once an opportunity presents itself, I strike with a lethal attack without the slightest hesitation— that's me."
As he said this, Friagne extended his hand and snapped his fingers.
Instantly, the dolls around him all moved as if guided by an invisible thread, collectively rushing towards Fang Li. Only four or five dolls remained at Friagne's side.
The charging dolls directed their hands toward the ground below, where a myriad of pale flames fluctuated. Gathering into projectiles, they once again transformed into a barrage, descending like a sky-covering rain of fire.
"Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom—!"
The dense fireballs struck the earth, triggering continuous and violent explosions. The force upheaved soil, flipped the atmosphere, and unleashed a robust gust of wind carrying abundant debris, sweeping in all directions.
However, in the next moment, amid the ongoing explosions, a figure, swift as the wind, rode the fire wave, advancing towards the incoming legion of dolls.
Shortly afterward, Fang Li's figure transformed into a phantom, and the phantom split into multiple shadows, resembling a division into a thousand soldiers and ten thousand horses.
"Flashing Scabbard-Instant Prison!"
Phantoms soared into the sky, facing the incoming Dolls. The sharp dagger in Fang Li's hand became a blade of light and shadow, ruthlessly slashing at each Doll.
"Pū chī— Pū Chī— Pū Chī—!"
Amidst the slashing sounds, the Dolls were severed one after another, transforming into fragments. Instead of blood, gears and components sprayed out from their bodies.
Subsequently, countless phantom figures, each having slaughtered the incoming Doll legion, converged in mid-air and rushed towards Friagne. They reached him with a swift change in his expression.
"The opportunist moving in for the kill type?" Fang Li's voice echoed clearly in Friagne's ears.
"Well, that seems to suit my style."
Having said that, Fang Li's sharp dagger transformed into a blade of light, flashing briefly in mid-air and slashing toward Friagne.
The blade's edge was both frigid and bright.
"Flashing Scabbard-Nanaya!"
A slash, resembling the aurora, tore through the sonic barrier, its beauty akin to moonlight.
The extremely fast slash caught Friagne, a Crimson World Crimson Lord, entirely off guard. His pupils contracted sharply; he attempted to dodge, but it was too late.
Just as Fang Li had claimed, it was a lethal blow.
Before such an extremely fast slash, even a Crimson World Crimson Lord like Friagne seemed vulnerable. He could only grit his teeth and make a move.
What kind of move?
Swaying.
"Dīng Líng..."
A melodious ringtone suddenly echoed.
It emanated from Friagne's hand.
In Friagne's hand, a delicately crafted and beautiful glass bell appeared at some point. With Friagne's movement, it emitted a pleasant ringtone.
At the moment the ringtone resounded, the Dolls left around Friagne suddenly emitted a soft white glow.
Immediately after, they burst open.
"Bang—!"
A thunder-like explosion resounded in the area.
Above the Mana River, a massive explosion, larger than any previous, suddenly occurred. A white fire wave surged, flooding the surroundings.
The atmosphere was effortlessly shaken around.
The river below was overturned crisply.
Amidst the grand explosion, the firelight illuminated the static space, appearing dazzling.
Then, two figures simultaneously flew out from the center of the explosion, suspended in mid-air from both ends of the pale fire wave, facing each other.
In the intense clash, fiery sparks erupted within the gaze of the adversaries.
...