His next punch came like a sledgehammer, his chain-covered fist slamming forcefully toward Chayil with force and terrifying speed.
Chayil barely managed to deflect it with his pipe, but the sheer force rattled his arms.
Gorvex didn't stop. He swung again, his fists crashing down like wrecking balls.
Chayil ducked, dodged, and countered as best he could, trying to push back against Gorvex's relentless attacks. He was struggling, each strike landing harder than the last.
Gorvex was overpowering him with raw strength. The floor beneath them cracked under the pressure of his blows.
"You can't keep dodging forever," Gorvex taunted. "Sooner or later, I'll crush you!"
Chayil gritted his teeth. He had to find an opening, something to exploit.
Gorvex swung again, this time with both fists, aiming to crush Chayil between them.
But Chayil saw it coming and he smirked.
At the last second, he leaps high, forward and causes Gorvex's fists to collide with each other. The chains tangling momentarily.
"Ughh!" Gorvex grunted, his rhythm thrown off as his attacks faltered.
That was the opening Chayil had been waiting for.
Chayil raised his pipe high, and brought it down hard on Gorvex's shoulder, aiming for the joint.
The pipe connected with a bone-crunching impact.
Gorvex roared in pain, staggering backward, his arm hanging limply at his side.
Chayil didn't give him a chance to recover.
He followed up with a quick smash on the right side of Gorvex.
Gorvex tried to counter, swinging his right iron hand, aiming at Chayil.
But Chayil stooped low to escape from it and simultaneously smashed the back of Gorvex's right knee.
Gorvex had no choice but to kneel, overwhelmed by the solid blows from Chayil.
Chayil raised his pipe for one final strike. "Next time, don't get arrogant in the middle of a fight," Chayil said as he smashed Gorvex's head.
"THUD!"
Gorvex crumpled, his body finally giving in to the onslaught. His chains fell limp, clattering uselessly onto the ground.
Chayil stood over him, his grip on the pipe still firm. His heart pounded in his chest, but he kept his focus sharp.
When the others saw this, they froze, unable to believe what they were witnessing. The leader of one of the strongest slave hunter groups was on the ground in front of a Verdant.
"Impossible!" echoed the thoughts of the Mad Clan members.
Gorvex laughed while lying on the ground. "Hahaha! You're arrogant, Verdant! You and your kind are nothing but worthless. You're barely worthy of the air you breathe, you cursed people!"
He paused, his grin widening as he eyed Chayil. "I didn't think I'd have to use my trump card on the likes of you… but here we are."
Chayil gripped his pipe. His every muscle was coiled to strike.
But then he froze as Gorvex's aura swelled. Slowly, Chayil stepped back, reassessing his approach against this surge.
Chayil felt a strange heaviness as if the air around him had thinned. 'What is this?' he thought, unsettled. It was the first time he'd ever experienced anything like it.
Gorvex's eyes reddened with strain as he struggled to push himself up, raising both palms
Then he let out a powerful scream.
[Whirlwind Chain!]
From the palms of Gorvex, numerous and massive chains erupted, spiraling slowly at first, then faster and faster, until they twisted into a powerful whirlwind.
As the whirlwind grew larger, its reach expanded, and the members of the Mad Clan began to panic, scattering in every direction to escape.
"We're doomed! Nothing can stop him now—he's going to destroy everything around him!" one of the Mad Clan members shouted.
The rest of the clan scrambled back, widening the distance between themselves and their leader.
Naisha approached Chayil, still wrapped in the blanket.
"We should retreat," she said. "In the end, we're no match for someone with abilities."
But Chayil just grinned. "Who said I'm defeated?" he replied.
Naisha blinked, caught off guard. "Huh? Don't you see his ability?"
The whirlwind of chains surrounding Gorvex slowly tore through everything in its path. Trees splintered and rocks shattered.
From a distance, Naisha watched Chayil intently.
'Is he seriously thinking of stopping that?' she murmured. "Hey, get back!" she yelled, panic rising as she saw him tighten his grip on the metal pipe.
But Chayil wasn't retreating. Instead, he was stepping even closer to the storm of whirling chains, his eyes locked on Gorvex.
'Is he insane?' Naisha whispered under her breath, struggling to understand his calm in the face of such danger.
The chains tore through the air, capable of shredding anything—or anyone—foolish enough to approach.
Yet Chayil's face remained unreadable.
He carefully positioned himself between two large boulders and tracked the chains with intense concentration.
He was waiting for something, though Naisha couldn't fathom what.
"Come on, let's go!" Naisha shouted, struggling against the fierce winds as she forced her way closer.
Chayil stood rooted to the ground. His eyes locked on the vortex of chains spiraling out of control.
The whirlwind had grown into a monstrous force, smashing trees and splintering rocks around them.
After a moment, he ripped strips from his shirt and wrapped them tightly around his hands, preparing himself.
Naisha's eyes narrowed as she watched his stubborn defiance.
"Are you out of your mind? That thing will kill you! You can't stop it!" she shouted, her voice barely piercing the chaos.
"Yup. I know," Chayil answered calmly, standing firm as the deadly cyclone continued its relentless spin around Gorvex.
"Then why are you doing this?" Naisha demanded.
A strange smile crept across Chayil's face. His eyes glinted with an intensity that bordered on madness.
"Because it's fun," he replied as his face lit with a sadistic thrill.
Then it happened—a split-second opening.
The chains struck a massive boulder. Chayil's eyes narrowed, and without hesitation, he leaped and drove the base of his metal pipe into the ground beside the giant stone, angling it sharply at 45 degrees, aligning it with the trajectory of the whirling chains.
The bottom end of the pipe dug deep into the earth, steadying itself against the metal storm rushing his way.
'He's doing the impossible,' Naisha thought, still unsure. 'The force of those chains should snap the pipe in an instant… shouldn't it?'
And then, the chains struck.