The only thing Kang regretted was using his acid bomb because it cost him 800 blood; otherwise, he would have been way ahead.
At the very least, Kang knew how far ahead he was compared to Argon since Argon kept consuming blood to create defenses that could block his attacks, which slightly improved his mood.
'I should be above 3800 blood now while he should be below 3000 at the very least. I should probably ask him since he might have the answer to what I need to know.' Proceeding with his plan, Kang waited for Argon to reconstruct his body.
"If you don't mind, help me out a little. Are Mana Cores the same as Mana Stones?" Watching Argon stand up, Kang didn't hesitate to ask right away, fearing Argon would attack him if there was nothing to stop him.
"I unfortunately don't know what Mana Stones are, but I believe they could be the same thing if you consider the difference between our races."
"Well, thank you. I have one more question before we continue: is there a way to get rid of the corrupt mana in the atmosphere?"
"It's fine. It's not like you can leave until we're done, but why would you get rid of that? Just purify the mana and absorb it to strengthen your body so it can withstand it. Unfortunately, I no longer know the method since I never needed it after becoming a blood fiend."
"You may ask the next blood fiend once you transcend your limits. He might know better."
"Thank you. We can continue, then." Hearing Argon's response, Kang thanked him before charging at him right away, knowing that giving him any chance could lead to death—something Kang didn't want to experience right now, or maybe not at all.
Although Kang took the initiative, Argon was so strong that Kang couldn't predict his every move. As a result, Kang found his sword repeatedly caught by a tendril. Still, it wasn't too hard for Kang to find a solution since this wasn't his first time experiencing it.
Swiftly throwing the sword to his left hand, Kang caught the tendril with his right before using it to pull Argon toward him. Surprisingly, Argon's weight far surpassed his imagination, causing him to fail since the strength of one arm wasn't enough to pull his opponent.
'Holy shit, that was close…' Throwing Argon's tendril aside, Kang lowered his upper body before pushing back, dodging Argon's sword, which almost cost him his life. Looking around, Kang swiftly retreated before changing the form of his weapon once more.
'Fuck, this is risky but worth it if I want to deal with these damn tendrils…' Using Precision, Kang separated the sword into two curved daggers. Even though it was his first time using such a weapon, he needed it urgently because he believed it would be the best choice to deal with Argon's bloody defenses.
"Not a bad decision, but how about this?" Responding to Kang's actions, Argon discarded his current weapon before creating two daggers to match his opponent. As the fight continued, Argon's move caused Kang to lose the upper hand since he had to defend against the tendrils while deflecting the daggers.
Pushed to the edge, Kang found himself trying to influence his blood to take action and defend against Argon's tendrils by forming similar ones. Unfortunately, Kang's efforts were in vain since he didn't have full control over his blood.
'Fuck, this is getting insanely hard compared to before.' Noting Argon's ruthlessness, Kang continued thinking about a solution while actively engaging in combat with him. Due to Kang's immense potential, he was slowly improving during the battle, and while he couldn't feel it, Argon did, thanks to his greater experience.
As the battle continued, Kang finally found a solution to the annoying tendrils. Using his Lifesteal ability, Kang caused his tendrils to shoot at Argon, whose tendrils switched from attack to defense in response.
"It looks like you've found a decent solution." Watching Kang's tendrils attack him, Argon spoke. While he had the upper hand stats-wise, his weapons were weaker compared to Kang's acid weapons. With his tendrils out of the way, Argon met his fifth death, painting a smile across Kang's face even though he was only halfway through the trial.
"May I ask how much blood you have left, if you don't mind?" Looking at the recovering Argon beside him, Kang used his foot to shoot a wave of blood toward Argon in an attempt to blind him before activating Lifesteal, causing tendrils to shoot at his target, who casually defended himself.
"Such a rude way to get what you want. Let me teach you some respect!" Extending his neck, Argon's head flew high above for reasons Kang couldn't understand. Witnessing the bizarre act, Kang looked up to see Argon's lion head accelerating toward his own.
"That's a terrible idea!" Seizing the opportunity, Kang swung his daggers at Argon's neck only to watch him twist and wrap around his arm, restricting it as Argon's head came crashing down against his own.
"How can you judge when you barely know anything about blood fiends?" Responding to Kang, Argon shot a tendril toward his opponent's neck, swiftly wrapping around it. Lifting him up, Argon shot another tendril to catch Kang's lower body before violently pulling and pushing, tearing Argon's body in half in the process. [-500 Blood | Remaining Blood: 3500]
"When your opponent shows respect, you maintain the same degree of respect. That's what we call a knight's honor. Don't try petty tricks to achieve victory, especially with someone who's actively teaching you and pointing out your shortcomings."
"Regarding your question, I have no blood left. You have to kill me 10 times to pass."
"Apologies for my behavior. I thought using my surroundings to my advantage was fair." Hearing the answer, Kang briefly apologized before launching another assault. Time passed slowly as the battle raged on. Kang managed to secure one kill, then another, until he reached the eighth.
Right after the eighth kill, Argon's behavior drastically changed, shifting from passive defense and offense to only active offense. The difference pushed Kang to his limits for a while until he was able to adjust to the new level of combat. About three hours later, Kang beheaded Argon once again.
While he was successful, it didn't come without a cost—he died four times, dropping his blood to 1500. Still, he was glad he had made it this far.
"It was a pleasure to meet you, Kang. Are you ready for the final fight?" Knowing this would be their last meeting if he was defeated, Argon called Kang by his name, revealing he had known it from the start.
"Amazing! How are you doing that?" Watching Argon manipulate the blood sea around them to form giant tendrils, Kang didn't hesitate to ask. Soon enough, the tendrils began forming a circular cage around them.
"This is blood control. It's no different from forming or altering your body's shape, as you've seen before." Taking an offensive stance, Argon answered before charging at his opponent. Shortly after, the battle resumed with Argon having the upper hand due to his mobilizing abilities, something Kang was unfamiliar with.
But like Argon, Kang had his own methods and trump cards. Among Argon's attacks, alteration was the most frustrating thing for Kang to deal with. Soon enough, Kang met his first demise, leaving him with two more attempts.
The battle resumed, and soon Kang found himself using Precision and Compression to counter Argon's alterations. Using his final trump card, Kang closed his eyes before crushing one of the daggers in his hand, causing a bright explosion to envelop them both.
While it couldn't compare to a full bomb, it served its purpose by blinding Argon. Taking advantage of Argon's blindness, Kang managed to take his head for the last time as the system's noise echoed in his ears.
[Ding!]
[Trial Quest Cleared: Defeat the 1st Blood Knight]
[Reward: Transcendence and full mastery of the blood]
[Failure: -5000 Blood]
[-4000 Blood | Remaining Blood: 17,640]
[Ding!]
[Class upgraded to {Transcended Blood Knight(E)}]
[Class evolution path is now unavailable]
[Class upgrade requirements set to 50,000 blood]
Ignoring the system messages, Kang breathed a sigh of relief. While his stamina was nearly infinite, his mind couldn't keep up, even though his potential was EX. Sitting down, Kang relaxed for a while since he had nothing to do. Soon enough, Argon appeared before him once again to congratulate him.
Just like before, Argon turned into a stream of blood before merging with Kang. Soon enough, another message appeared before Kang, making him smile.
[Class upgrade complete, all stats increased by 20!]
A little later, Kang found himself back at the rift.