"Ha ha. Is this the fist of a human being?"
A power that had nothing to envy magic. And it wasn't something that could be resolved with a single blow. Ethella threw punches relentlessly, holding her breath. Every time her solid fist struck the dense darkness, her wrist twisted, but the impact her opponent received was several times greater.
Arcane gritted his teeth and regained his focus. Ethella's punch was powerful, but the nature of the impact was unique. It didn't destroy the surface but generated shockwaves inside. The problem lay in the interference caused by the superposition of these shockwaves.
"It's a series of waves. This is dangerous."
[Krrr!]
The moment Ethella, who got even closer, struck the golem's stomach with the palm of her hand, creating a massive shockwave that caused 400 interferences. This meant that the shockwaves inside were 400 times stronger than Ethella's control.
The golem, which looked like it had swallowed a bomb, swelled as if it was about to explode.
[Kuuu!]
Arcane frowned and maintained his focus. If the spiritual zone was destroyed, the Dark Golem would collapse. When the tremor of the golem, which struggled against the shockwaves, became less frequent, Ethella bit her lip.
"Was it not enough after all? I should have overlaid it a little more."
The Yin-Yang Wave Fist ability used a wave technique to overlay interference on the opponent's body and then send a powerful shockwave after reaching the peak. Although it had the disadvantage of taking time to reach the peak, once the final blow was received, the amount of shock was terrifying.
However, Arcane resisted. The dark golem had endured shock that was 400 times greater than a warrior's impact, but Arcane's mental resilience wavered slightly.
"Not bad, girl."
"This won't end here. You should surrender now."
"Ha, ha, ha! It seems there's still energy left. I'm glad for that. I'll enjoy the opportunity to stretch my body properly after so long."
Arcane raised his hand, and the dark spiders began to seep into the body of the dark golem. The growing dark golem finally pierced the sky-covering catastrophe.
Ethella felt dizzy. The dark golem she saw now was none other than the notorious figure that Arcane had confronted against numerous nations. A medium-sized city would be destroyed in a matter of days.
"What do you think? Impressive, isn't it? Whether it's a Wave technique or whatever, you'll have to hit it frequently. The abyss of my golem is deeper than the ocean."
If it were a giant golem over 10 meters tall, it was questionable if the shockwave could expand. But Ethella clenched her fists enough to crumble. As if they had become the light of the world. Even if death awaited her, she had to keep going.
[Kuu!]
The dark golem roared and advanced. Despite its larger size, its speed remained the same. The fact that it could move at the speed of thought was the main reason why the dark golem was classified as overwhelmingly powerful.
Boom!
The dark golem's fist crashed into the spot where Ethella was standing. An earthquake occurred, causing trees to fall and the ground to shake as if hundreds of moles were passing underground.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Consecutive blows struck the ground, creating shockwaves that shook the earth, causing havoc everywhere. Just as the sixth blow was about to descend, Ethella bent her knees and jumped onto the golem's arm, raising her arms over her shoulders and delivering a powerful punch to the golem.
Rrrrrrrr!
It was the technique of the Celestial Enlightenment of the Five Yin-Yang Rays.
"Gahhh!"
Continuous flashes erupted in Arcane's mind. More than 30 impacts per second shook him. Assuming that 300 waves would spread in a second, with a 2-second impact time until landing, approximately 600 waves would spread. This would generate around 3,000 interferences. However, the essence of the Five Thunder Strikes, which was in the final blow, was what really mattered. What would happen if it were allowed to reach there? Considering the properties of interference, refraction, and reflection, how many interferences would be generated 2 seconds later?
'68,000 times'
The amplified impact would explode within him over 68,000 times stronger, including Ethella's power. Arcane felt his hair stand on end. But strangely, the corner of his mouth curled sinisterly.
"Haha! I finally feel alive now."
He had no intentions of fleeing. If the enemy was strong, then he could crush it with even greater power. How he had longed for this moment. The glory of the past, where he competed with countless geniuses, passed like a lighthouse.
Rrrr!
The dark golem twisted its waist like a whip. Ethella, who had landed on the ground, also joined her hands to her sides. The energy from the final move of the Celestial Thunder of the Five Yin-Yang Rays technique flowed through her palms. As the dark golem's strike approached, Ethella gritted her teeth and extended her two palms.
"Lightning Field!"
Ruuuuuuuum!
Mushroom clouds erupted from the center of the mountain range. Within a 20-meter radius, all the trees were uprooted, and the lush forest turned into a wasteland.
***
The stars in the night sky shone brightly. Ethella blinked as she received the starlight filtering through the branches of the trees.
"...."
How much time had passed?
Or rather, how far had she been thrown?
All the trees in the place where she landed were completely shattered.
Amidst a desolate scene, Ethella, lying with an outstretched arm, couldn't move a finger. Her muscles contracted beyond her control. She couldn't even feel anything in the tips of her fingers and toes.
"Master..."
Ethella was in a state of combat incapacity.
"The archmage is truly powerful."
Even with the Yin and Yang Wave and fists, it wasn't enough to block the dark magic the archmage was casting.
Is this what's considered catastrophic magic?
The feeling of not being able to vanquish the evil haunted her mind and heart.
If she had overlaid the waves a bit more, if she had fully mastered the Celestial Enlightenment of the Five Yin-Yang Rays, she could have increased the power even further...
"Sob, sob..."
Ethella raised her trembling arm to cover her eyes. Hot tears flowed like a waterfall.
"I'm sorry, Master..."
Ethella's sobs echoed through the mountains.
***
In the complex terrain of the forest, Shirone and Kanis didn't lose sight of each other's position. Instead of being intense, they were cautious and focused on psychological warfare rather than crossfire. The subtle balance between the opposing properties of light and darkness could change the course of the battle in an instant. The question was who would launch the first attack.
The pressure falls more on Kanis. Since he specializes in dark magic, he's looking for an opportunity to counterattack, but Shirone doesn't give him the slightest chance. He uses tactical movements to keep him on edge, not giving ground. Through brainwave communication, Havist's thoughts were transmitted.
[He's definitely formidable. Not just anyone can keep a cool head in a combat situation like this.]
[What if we try to deceive him and get closer? We need to create a surprise factor. We can't go on like this.]
[Hmmm. It's like chess with mirrors.]
The strategy of mirroring the opponent's speech until halfway through the confrontation doesn't widen the gap in power. But if you can't handle the pressure and make a mistake, the opponent immediately seizes that opening. However, if the opponent maintains their pace until the end, you have to pay the price of yielding the initiative.
[Havist, what do you think?]
[Hmm? Oh, yes, the longer time goes on, the more disadvantaged we'll be. Let's act proactively.]
The response transmitted through the mental channel was a bit slower than usual, so Kanis, with Dark Port deployed, asked: [What's going on?]
[I felt seismic waves a while ago. It was about 2 kilometers from here.]
Havist, whose vibration senses were highly developed, could perceive vibrations and indeed distinguish them in terms of what he saw, heard, and even knew.
[Seismic waves?]
[I'm still feeling it. The impact was strong enough; it seems like it's Arcane. Probably, he unleashed powerful dark magic.]
[The Master? But the Power of Darkness is a secret weapon. What could this mean? It could have a good or bad meaning. The good meaning would be that the Master's condition is exceptionally good. The bad meaning would be that he encountered an opponent strong enough to unleash the Power of Darkness even in those circumstances.]
[If it's a strong opponent... Alpeas?]
[For now, it seems reasonable to think so. Anyway, we need to move now. If Arcane has encountered Alpeas, we must ensure this place is in order.]
[Understood. Let's start.]
Kanis approached and closed the gap. Contrary to Shirone's expectations, Shirone also advanced without retreating. Capturing the changes in the flow immediately and maintaining the initiative was a kind of instinctive feedback.
Kanis cast dark magic. The shadow had the characteristic singularity of a mage, just as Kanis was a specialized double-edged blade in attack.
When Shirone fired his Photon Cannon, the dark magic eroded like rocks battered by the wind. Even though light was the natural enemy of darkness, Kanis was a master of dark magic. Though he could use magic from all branches, he wasn't lacking in advanced tactics.
"Let's hold the position. He won't be able to use magic of that level indefinitely. If we can endure, the tide will change."
As anticipated by Kanis, Shirone's mental fatigue was building up. Despite the superiority in terms of attributes, defense against dark magic couldn't be underestimated.
'I need more power.'
The photon energy suffered inevitable losses due to its high activity. Therefore, Shirone compressed the photons faster than they were being lost, increasing their mass. Though it was a method that consumed a lot of mental energy, the power increased significantly, and the white light sphere trembled and grew in size.
Since photons are so active, losses occur inevitably. Therefore, Shirone gained mass by compressing the photons faster than they were lost. It was a method that consumed a lot of mental energy, but the power was even stronger, and the white light sphere swayed dizzily and grew in size.
Kanis immediately noticed the change.
[What is that?]
[His power has strengthened. Leave this to me.]
Havist, who was in front of Kanis, assumed a strong stance in his abdomen. When the massive Photon Cannon pierced his stomach, he covered both hands and pressed the photons. However, the photons didn't break, and instead, they emitted a hollow sound as Havist flew through the forest.
Kanis's expression changed drastically.
[Havist, are you okay?]
[More or less. Damn, this is heavy. It's a murder weapon, isn't it?]
Shirone fired the Photon Cannon over the back of his head. Then, he created photons on both shoulders. In total, three powerful Photon Cannons quivered in his position. Havist, as if he was saying he wouldn't back down from the momentum, extended his arms and shouted.
"Hehehe! It tickles! Is this just your final move?"
"No. Up until now, it's been practice."
"..."
Havist's voice was abruptly cut off. When the Photon Cannon, now twice as powerful as before, was fired, the pillars in the flash's path shattered as it passed by. Kanis's mental channel accelerated to the limit, and Havist's thoughts flowed.
[Havist, we have to dodge this.]
[If we start dodging, we'll lose the initiative. This is a fight we can't back down from.]
[I can't help it!]
[I can stop him. I'll absorb your mental energy.]
[Damn it! Seriously, Havist, you're a headache!]
When Kanis squeezed his mental energy, Havist's body swelled enormously. His belly opened, and a shadow resembling a beast's mouth roared toward the three photon cannons.
"Raaaawr!"
Light clashed with darkness.
***
Creas was a warm southern city, and it was currently summer. However, at the top of an impassable bridge, a snowstorm covered everything.
Eruki and Neid adjusted their coats. Because of the blizzard obscuring their view, the figures of Siena and Lucas looked blurry.
"Ugh. It's so cold. What's going on? Why did Professor Siena cast magic?"
"Maybe she's regained her sanity? She might have woken up when she fell off the cliff."