Chapter 374 One Sword... Just One Sword

"Buzz... buzz... buzz..."

Pink energy shimmering with an eerie luster radiated outward from the priest's body like a shockwave.

The familiar mechanical voice rang out continuously in Xia Nan's mind. The [Dream Weaving Corridor] was rapidly charging at a rate of 0.0003% per second.

But he felt no joy. Instead, he found the situation increasingly troublesome.

Since his [Dream Weaving Corridor] terminal automatically absorbed the energy of any gemstone he touched, this escaping pink light was precious fuel.

But for any adventurer without similar equipment, it was a constant mental check applied to their willpower every single second.

Failing even one round would plunge them into a charmed state.

From there, the relentless energy waves would seamlessly crush the victim's will, dragging their mind completely into the abyss of corruption.

Xia Nan didn't know what his opponent was trying to do, but reality wasn't a game. He wasn't about to stand there like an idiot and watch the "cutscene" play out.

Whatever Moin was trying to do, Xia Nan wouldn't let him succeed so easily.

However, the old priest had clearly anticipated this.

Almost the instant he forced the gemstone into his chest, a translucent pink shield emerged around him once more, protecting his brightly glowing, ruined body.

It blocked Xia Nan's attempt to interrupt the process.

"Crack..."

Beneath the sharp whine of high-frequency energy, a strange, crisp sound echoed through the air—like ice freezing over.

Within the shield, the pure white holy fire burning on Moin's body had silently extinguished.

In its place, crystalline particles rapidly spread across his body, originating from the gemstone embedded in the center of his chest.

The old man didn't make a sound.

He just stood there, staring at Xia Nan through the shield with eyes glowing so intensely pink that the pupils were nearly invisible.

Five seconds? Ten?

Enduring the pink energy waves surging through the Church like a rolling tide, Xia Nan's hyper-focused concentration seemed to blur the very concept of time.

His meticulous Perception, along with his physically enhanced sight and hearing, allowed him to catch the crisp friction of growing crystals colliding beneath the sharp whine of the energy. He could see the clusters of pink crystalline particles spreading across Moin's skin like a creeping fungal colony.

The degree of corruption was clearly much deeper than that of the innkeeper, the blacksmith, or the believers he had just killed.

Silvery-white hair fell away in silence. The crystalline particles, boasting exaggerated physical resistance, spread all the way to the top of his skull, completely enveloping his body.

Even his blown-off left arm regrew as a limb made entirely of condensed crystals.

When the massive energy drain prompted him to retract the protective pink shield...

...the figure standing inside no longer bore any resemblance to the kindly priest of the small town.

All that remained was a pink crystalline humanoid made entirely of countless gemstone granules—a sight terrifying enough to kill someone with trypophobia on the spot.

"Adventurer... your strength is much greater than I imagined..."

The voice rasping from his throat was no longer low and hoarse. It sounded like a simulated tone warped by pure energy, raising goosebumps across the skin.

'You have a Stage 2 as well?'

Xia Nan raised an eyebrow as he looked at the hideous, crystal-encased figure before him, but he couldn't be bothered to waste words.

The phantom of a Winter Wolf coalesced behind him, and he charged forward in an instant.

His speed was as fast as ever, but he remained appropriately cautious.

The [Deathline] ring, the [Tears of Spring Breath] necklace, and even the Snake-Scale Arm Shield on his left arm were all primed for defense.

After Xia Nan had used [Gravity Control] to interrupt his spellcasting and inflict heavy injuries, Moin had directly entered a crystallized Stage 2.

Xia Nan didn't know if this current state had a time limit, nor had he figured out its specific abilities.

Based on his previous combat experience against the crystal-infected, he could logically assume that Moin's physical attributes had been massively enhanced—particularly his Strength and explosive power. The crystalline particles covering his body acted like a layer of iron plating over his skin, granting him extreme physical defense.

But exactly how much his physical attributes had been buffed, and whether his physical resistance differed from the previous crystal-infected still required further testing in battle.

Howl—

The high, drawn-out howl of a wolf suddenly closed the distance, and a dusky, grayish-black wolf fang slashed through the air in a perfect arc.

[Fang Hunt] + [Spinning Slash]!

As expected, the priest beneath the blade showed no sign of dodging. He raised his right arm directly into the path of the sword light.

"Clang!"

An ear-piercing shriek of hard objects colliding erupted amid a fleeting shower of pink sparks.

Footsteps staggered backward, stamping a web of cracks into the Church floor.

Xia Nan's exaggerated speed—moving so fast he left only an afterimage—carried a ferocious impact that forced the priest to step back to bleed off the kinetic force.

At the same time, however, the right arm that took the blade head-on remained completely unharmed.

An attack buffed by the combination of two Mastery-tier combat techniques had been blocked perfectly, leaving nothing more than a shallow sword mark on his arm.

The recoil from striking such a hard object sent faint tremors through Xia Nan's hands gripping the hilt. Fortunately, he had prepared for this, so the sword didn't fly from his grasp.

Even so, watching his full-strength strike be forcibly stopped made his gaze involuntarily falter.

The goal behind this strike... ending the battle right away would have been ideal, but its main purpose had been to test Moin's crystallized physical durability.

Since he couldn't even one-shot the crystallized believers from earlier, he naturally didn't expect the priest's defense to be any weaker.

What he had hoped to see was his blade piercing the crystalline defense on the man's skin to some degree.

If a single slash could shave off a third or even a fourth of the crystal armor, even if it didn't completely break through, that would be completely acceptable.

That way, he would only need to strike the same spot three or four more times to shatter the defense entirely, exposing the fragile flesh beneath the gemstone plating to his blade.

But judging by the damage of this first strike, creating a breach would require hacking at the exact same spot on the priest's body over a dozen times in a row.

And Moin obviously wouldn't just stand there like a punching bag and let him attack.

In such a high-intensity battle, would Xia Nan really get that many chances to strike?

He wasn't sure.

Clearly... his improvised battle plan needed major revisions.

Howl—

The wolf's howl dipped, only to abruptly rise again.

With [Fang Hunt] at its core, Xia Nan had long since developed a combat style focused on speed and mobility. He had no intention of getting bogged down in a standing brawl.

The instant his blade fell, he stomped his right leg hard against the ground and retreated rapidly backward as a black wolf phantom.

And at that very moment, the crystal man who had forcibly tanked his sword strike suddenly moved.

Boom—

The stone tiles beneath Moin's feet shattered completely. The Pastel Gemstone in the center of his chest throbbed and flashed like a beating heart, pumping raw energy.

An explosive boom echoed through the Church.

Suffused in pink light, Moin transformed into a pink blur, charging violently toward the rapidly retreating Xia Nan.

His immense physical defense meant he didn't have to worry about the inertial backlash of exerting too much force. He fired forward like a cannonball from a barrel.

Ever since he reached the Novice tier in [Fang Hunt], this was the first time Xia Nan had encountered an enemy who could not only react but even match his instantaneous burst of speed.

He might have been shocked, but his combat instincts, bolstered by both body and soul, moved a step faster than his thoughts.

He planted his feet like brakes. The thick leather boots ground violently against the floor, leaving two scorched skid marks on the stone tiles.

Simultaneously, he thrust his left arm forward, meeting the incoming impact head-on with the pitch-black surface of the [Darkscale Coiled Guard].

"Bang!"

The two figures collided violently!

The blue-grade equipment absorbed most of the damage, sparing Xia Nan from feeling much pain.

But Moin's heavy, crystal-wrapped body hit him like a speeding freight train.

Caught before he could properly stabilize mid-[Fang Hunt], Xia Nan was sent flying high into the air once again.

Thoughts flashed through his mind.

This time, he didn't immediately activate [Tidal Stabilization] to mitigate the knockback effect on his body.

Instead, he let his body spin and flip through the air, only drifting down lightly like a feather once he had put a safe distance between himself and Moin.

The good news: his attack had perfectly achieved its objective. A single exchange had given Xia Nan a solid estimate of Moin's current physical defense, Strength, and explosive power.

The bad news: the enemy's physical fortitude was far stronger than he had anticipated.

'How should I handle this?'

From what he knew, the [Fang Hunt] + [Spinning Slash] combo would need to hit the exact same spot multiple times to break the defense. Considering Moin's absurd performance just now, that wasn't an execution he could easily pull off.

'Maybe I should try [Gravity Etching]?'

Since it was force-field damage, it might prove more useful than pure physical attacks.

Even though he seemed to be at a slight disadvantage, Xia Nan maintained a perfectly calm and composed state of mind.

He still had unplayed trump cards.

Setting aside the [Fate Coin], which only had one use left, the cooldown for [Ember Echoes] had already finished. As long as his vitality dropped below 33.3%, he could activate it at any time, achieving a qualitative leap in combat power.

And just as Xia Nan steadied himself and pondered, the pink light in the air suddenly fluctuated unnaturally.

A painfully bright pink glare coalesced at Moin's chest.

Through his Perception, a sensation of extreme danger radiated from ahead.

Xia Nan didn't even have time to use [Fang Hunt] to reposition. He kicked off hard, throwing himself to the side.

In the next second, a blinding pink beam of light erupted from the gemstone on Moin's chest, sweeping right through where he had just stood.

"Voom!"

The scorching beam skimmed dangerously over the still-unconscious Margaret and Thordin. The half-open Church doors further back offered no resistance whatsoever; as the blast smashed through, it left a perfectly round, smoking hole with charred edges.

"Wait, you have ranged attacks too?"

Xia Nan looked a bit ragged after narrowly dodging the beam. Using the momentum from his dive, he rolled across the floor and climbed to his feet, his black hair and clothes now coated in dust and wood splinters.

Fortunately, an attack of such power seemed to take a heavy toll on Moin as well.

He could clearly see that after firing the beam, the gemstone on the priest's chest had noticeably dimmed, flickering as it siphoned pink energy from the surrounding air.

He obviously wasn't going to pass up this opportunity.

Amid the echoing wolf howl, Xia Nan charged in once again.

His combat instincts silently revealed themselves.

Unlike his straightforward assault from earlier, he had learned his lesson. As he closed the distance to the enemy, he arced his trajectory, curving his approach toward the flank.

Moin possessed explosive power, but it relied entirely on brute force and reckless charges. He had no profound technique.

But Xia Nan was different.

The Mastery-tier [Fang Hunt] made him move with the true agility of a Winter Wolf prowling the snowy plains.

Like a wolf's paws touching the earth, his figure immediately became erratic, making his exact route nearly impossible to track.

The pink crystal-covered priest froze in place. His head swiveled, trying to follow the rapidly approaching blur, but he couldn't find an opening to launch an attack.

The blade fell once more.

And just as before, Moin raised his right arm to block.

But this time was different. Compared to the full-strength strike that had previously left a mark on his crystalline skin, the power behind this slash was significantly weaker.

Though confused, the priest didn't have the luxury to overthink in the heat of the moment. Taking advantage of the brief pause in Xia Nan's attack, he channeled power into his left arm and threw a punch forceful enough to pierce solid rock.

He struck nothing but empty air.

Beneath his knuckles was nothing but compressed, screaming air and the fading afterimage of a black wolf's swaying mane.

Xia Nan himself had used the momentum of his sword strike to slide out of the way, dodging seamlessly to Moin's rear flank.

Voom—

A highly condensed ochre-red light gathered on the surface of the blade. [Spinning Slash] flared again, and the force-field energy of [Gravity Etching] exploded outward like a firework. As the blade sliced through the air, it trailed a half-circle of expanding sword light.

It landed directly on Moin's neck.

Under the crushing pressure of a force-field energy that ignored physical defense—acting almost like "true damage"—the highly durable pink crystals shattered instantly.

The crystalline skin that would have required over a dozen strikes just to scratch was instantly torn apart, exposing the pink-tinged flesh and blood beneath.

Blood oozed from the wound.

Having delivered the strike, Xia Nan didn't linger. He violently wrenched himself back, leaving Moin's retaliatory punch to smash into thin air once again.

'It works!'

A sharp howl filled with agony and rage echoed in his ears. Retreating to a safe distance, Xia Nan gasped for breath. Staring at the bleeding wound on the back of Moin's neck, the thought echoed in his mind.

He had only one use of [Gravity Etching] left.

One sword... he just needed the chance to strike one more time.

To hit the enemy's neck.

And he would be able to end this battle.