Chapter 653: The Second Evolution’s Power ( Bonus )

Roderick threw another punch without answering, this time from a lower angle.

Lian moved out of its path with a short movement, but Roderick immediately turned his elbow and sent it toward his side.

[Tyrant Body]

Roderick’s body structure strengthened the main joints and bones of his body with mana, which was why even his elbows, knees, and shoulders could be used as powerful weapons.

The young Vorhelm placed his forearm in front of the elbow.

The second collision happened.

Then the young Ashen raised his right knee, but this time, Lian moved first and placed his palm on his shoulder, changing the knee’s direction with a short push.

At that same moment, his left fist struck his opponent’s side.

BOOM!

Roderick moved several meters backward, the soles of his shoes slid across the stone surface, and he finally regained his balance.

He looked at Lian for several seconds.

How much has his strength increased?

In their last battle, he had managed to land heavy strikes on Lian using the stored power of King’s Reprisal and his own Class ability.

But now, even their normal clashes were difficult to compare.

"Do you still want to continue?" Lian lowered his hand.

Roderick clenched his teeth.

"Shut up."

Then he attacked again, this time, his steps were shorter, he did not intend to repeat the same mistake from their previous battle.

He remembered how Lian had broken the chain of Tyrant’s Advance by changing the slope of the icy ground.

So while moving, he sent part of his mana into the ground to detect any changes before placing his foot down.

But this time, Lian did not use ice and took a small treasure out of his storage space.

[Core of the Fallen Star]

This S-Rank treasure, which he had obtained at the southern spring, allowed him to change gravity within specific areas.

Its power depended on the amount of mana consumed, and changing gravity over large areas required much more energy.

But right now, he only intended to affect a small area.

Roderick took his second step, and just as he was shifting his body weight for the third step, the gravity beneath his right foot increased.

Not enough to pin him to the ground, but just enough to change the way his body weight shifted for a moment.

But that small change was enough.

His chain of movements was disrupted, his right shoulder lowered slightly, and part of his gathered momentum was lost.

Lian moved, and his right fist struck his side.

BAAANG!

The young Ashen was thrown several meters to the left, but before falling, he struck the ground with his palm and turned his body.

He landed on one knee.

He let out a short breath and then fixed his gaze on the young Vorhelm.

"What did you do?"

"I just made you a little heavier and lighter." Lian shrugged.

Roderick frowned.

He knew very well that Lian had previously possessed the ability to control ice, but he had never felt such a change in the force acting on his own body.

A new skill?

But he still did not know where it came from, and Lian had no intention of explaining further.

Roderick stood up again, this time, before moving, he shifted his weight between his feet several times.

Then he moved forward with shorter steps, he was trying to maintain his balance even if gravity changed.

Lian noticed the adjustment in his movements.

’He’s still the same Roderick, at least he learns from his mistakes.’

When the distance became shorter, Roderick stopped advancing and moved directly into close combat, sending his right fist toward Lian’s face.

Vorhelm moved out of its path, but his enemy immediately changed the punch into an elbow strike.

Lian raised his forearm, and the collision happened, and at that same moment, dense mana formed behind Roderick’s other fist.

[Crushing Decree]

Lian remembered the skill.

The first strike transferred compressed mana to the target’s surface, and a moment later, a second explosion occurred from that same point.

This time, he had no intention of taking it directly.

His palm struck Roderick’s wrist and changed the punch’s direction by several centimeters, the strike passed beside Lian’s body and hit the stone pillar behind him.

CRACK!

For a moment, nothing important happened.

Then...BOOOOM!

The middle section of the pillar broke from within, and broken stones fell onto the road.

Roderick was still preparing to launch his next attack, but Lian had already moved, and his left fist went toward his chest.

The young Ashen raised his forearm.

[King’s Reprisal]

But just as he received the strike, a gray figure appeared along the path of Lian’s previous punch.

Roderick narrowed his eyes.

What?

The gray figure repeated the same movement.

BOOM!

The second strike hit Roderick’s forearm, forcing him to stop his counterattack halfway.

But it was not over yet, another gray figure formed along the same path, and a moment later, the third punch landed.

BAAANG!

This time, Roderick’s defense opened, and Lian used the opportunity to drive his right knee into his stomach.

His body bent backward, he took several unsteady steps, and finally managed to remain standing.

Lian lowered his hand.

[Funeral of the Nameless]

This new skill created up to two gray figures from the path of a single attack, the figures were not independent beings; they only repeated the same attack after a short delay, with power depending on the amount of mana consumed.

Because of this, even after defending against the first strike, Roderick still had to consider the paths of the following attacks.

Roderick looked at Lian for several seconds, a thin line of blood ran down from the corner of his mouth, and he wiped it away with the back of his hand.

"Another trick?"

"Didn’t you like it?" Lian smiled.

Roderick did not answer, but something in his gaze had changed, he was no longer only trying to defeat Lian.

He wanted to understand how the same young man whom no one had once considered important could now stand against him with such calmness.

And worst of all, why did Lian still not seem to be taking the battle seriously even after receiving several heavy strikes?

He took a deep breath and then clenched his fingers.

"I thought I wouldn’t have to use this anymore."

"Oh? You still have something left?" The young Vorhelm raised an eyebrow.

Roderick raised his gaze.

"I’m no longer the same Roderick from the Shattered Crown Examination."

And at that moment, the mana flow around his body changed, at first, a faint light appeared along his arms and shoulders.

Then the normal color of mana slowly disappeared and was replaced by white and golden light.

A heavy pressure formed in the surroundings, and small stones around his feet began to shake, even the air near his body changed for a moment.

Lian narrowed his eyes.

Ascended Mana?

Ascended Mana was a stage above normal mana that Awakened could reach after their Second Evolution.

Its nature was still mana, but its quality was much higher, which was why using it could increase the power of normal skills several times.

He had seen this energy before, when he had returned to the Vorhelm Family for his sister’s birthday celebration and fought with his older brother.

The first time he had seen Ascended Mana was during his battle with Cassius.

But Roderick was Level 40, and if he had truly managed to bring his mana to this stage, the meaning was clear, he really had completed his Second Evolution.

Roderick raised his right fist, and white and golden light gathered around his knuckles.

"This time, you’ll understand the real difference."

Lian looked at the energy around his body for a moment and then gave a faint smile.

"How nice, then you won’t have any excuses left."

The young Ashen said nothing this time and simply placed his right foot forward.

[Imperial Edict: Kneel]

A heavy pressure settled over the area.

Small stones were pressed against the ground, and the mana around Roderick became denser.

Lian felt greater resistance against his body when he moved; it was as if the area near Roderick had been filled with heavy layers of energy.

This skill did not control the opponent’s mind.

By releasing dense mana into an area around himself, Roderick made it harder for his enemy to move and change direction.

Farther away, Rindo, who was standing on the northern platform, was forced to lean on his spear for a moment.

"What is this?"

Two let out a low growl and took several steps back.

But the young Vorhelm simply took one step forward, and the pressure beneath his feet increased.

He activated [Core of the Fallen Star].

Gravity changed in a small area around his body, reducing part of the heaviness that made it difficult for him to move.

Of course, Roderick’s pressure did not completely disappear, because not all of it came from gravity, but this much was enough.

He took his second step.

Roderick frowned.

"How—"

"Did you think I’d actually kneel just because you told me to?"

Lian closed the distance and sent his right fist toward Roderick, but this time, his enemy did not retreat.

White and golden mana flowed along his body, and by turning his shoulder, he changed the direction of the strike.

Then he moved forward with a quick movement.

[Thronebreaker Sequence]

The first impact came from his shoulder, and a heavy force struck Lian’s chest, before he could counterattack, Roderick’s elbow came down from a higher angle.

Lian raised his forearm.

CRACK!

The strike was redirected, but this was exactly the reaction Roderick had wanted from the beginning, and by turning his body, he sent the final punch upward toward the open part of Lian’s defense.