Chapter 74: Broken Limits!

Clang!

Clang!

Clang!

It was unknown how much time had passed; inside Ethan’s illusory arena, the battle between Kenjiro and Lucian seemed unending.

For every strike Lucian made, Kenjiro would parry with his mana Jian, skillfully deflecting the attack.

Unfortunately, despite that, Lucian’s evolved form had not only granted him an increase in size, but his already absurd regeneration and defense levels had amplified as well—

so much so that Kenjiro found it hard to break through his skin.

"Huff~ Huff~"

"Gone are the days when the young respected the old, making an old man like me run about."

"But then again, for letting me move my bones after so long, I still offer my thanks."

Panting for breath, Kenjiro’s face looked pale. His kimono bore several claw marks, and his skin was covered in minor cuts.

Had it been any other regular combatant, they would have long since run out of energy.

However, even though he possessed greater reserves as a 2nd-Circle mage, he too was nearing his limits.

Sensing this, he decided to stall with a few words as he gathered his strength.

"Old man, how dare you talk about yourself like you’re some girl’s grandpa?!"

"In fact, I actually admire your strength."

"So much so that I’ll give you a chance: surrender and admit defeat!"

"If you do, I’ll let you be second-in-command in my monster army, allowing you to hone your sword to your heart’s content."

"All you have to do is surrender."

Saying this, Lucian looked up at Ethan at the top of the arena.

"Isn’t that right, Patriarch of the Smith family? Our deal was only that I had to win three matches!"

"You never said how! If he surrenders, doesn’t that count as my win?!"

Roaring across the arena, Lucian turned back to look at Kenjiro with undisguised greed in his eyes.

After fighting for so long, he had come to realize one thing: this old man was absurdly skilled.

If given enough time, he had the potential to become like those legendary swordsmen in stories who could split the seas and cleave mountains with a single swing of their blade—

so much potential that Lucian only had one thought in mind.

It was the same tactic he had used in his past life whenever he encountered someone as talented as, or more talented than himself:

surrender or die.

If he couldn’t use him, no one could.

With that thought, his gaze shifted back to Ethan.

"Indeed, Lucian, you’re right. If Kenjiro chooses to surrender, I will count it as your win."

"Not only that, but for every one of my members who agrees to follow you, I promise I won’t go after them."

"How about it?"

Curving his lips into a sly smile, Ethan looked down at Lucian with a sneer.

It turned out that this so-called Monster King was much dumber than he had thought.

’Idiot... let’s not forget the fact that all these people are Grandpa’s lifelong friends and comrades in arms.’

’Why would they surrender to a lowlife beast trapped in my illusion without even putting up a true fight,’

’and abandon me—the one who not only gave them newfound strength, but introduced them to the wonderful world of mana?’

’If anyone truly chose to join you, then they were never worthy to stand in my presence in the first place.’

Sitting with his legs crossed, Ethan’s mana sense monitored the battlefield diligently.

In this duel, he had been able to learn a tremendous amount thanks to his Max-Level Comprehension.

Especially regarding Kenjiro’s Boundary-Cleaving Sword, just sitting there observing it, Ethan felt that with his current mana reserves and comprehension,

perhaps he could split the entire monster army with a single sword slash.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t confirm it yet, as there was no immediate opportunity to test it out.

’Sigh~ It’s a pity, though. Just from this battle, I can tell that if Kenjiro hadn’t had his circle manually created by me,’

’perhaps he could have understood the principle of swordsmanship and formed his own circles organically.’

’Unfortunately, all that potential was limited because of this damn beast!’

Recalling how talented the veterans were, in Ethan’s original expectations, each of them had possessed the opportunity to comprehend their own unique principles.

Sadly, because of this impending threat, they couldn’t afford the time.

For a moment, Ethan felt a trace of disappointment.

"Hey, Mr. Kenjiro! Are you going to surrender? If you are, it’s fine, hurry it up; we have to check on the other groups!" yelled Ethan in mock frustration.

"Haha! You joke, Patriarch! How could these old bones of mine dare betray your grace?!"

"Indeed, too much time has passed."

"In that case... let us end this in one move!"

Once again closing his eyes, Kenjiro assumed a sword-drawing stance.

All the remaining mana in his chest began to flow rapidly toward his palms.

His face grew pale and beads of sweat trickled down his forehead, yet Kenjiro did not stop.

Instead, he continued to pour in strength, causing the surrounding space to become unstable.

Under the sheer weight of this mana, the illusory arena began to disintegrate bit by bit.

Utilizing the principle of Density, his mana gathered and compressed—

smaller, smaller, and smaller.

"This is—!" Seeing what was happening, Ethan widened his eyes in surprise.

And Lucian, recognizing the familiar movement, roared in fury and panic!

"Damn it! Do you think I’m going to let you use that move again?!"

"Since you don’t want to take my offer and join me, then die for me, you old man!"

Lunging at Kenjiro, his massive figure seemed to blot out the very sky.

At sixteen feet tall, Kenjiro appeared like a mere ant before him.

Unfortunately, this ant standing in front of him possessed the strike of a dragon!

Reaching the peak of compression and unable to hold it back any longer, Kenjiro unleashed his ultimate attack once more.

"Boundary-Cleaving Sword!"

Boooooom!

With a deafening explosion, everything shattered. Tears appeared in the surrounding space, debris was swept into the air, and the entire arena was engulfed in a cloud of dust.

Under the violent collision of the two forces, the very foundation of the arena was upturned.

Yet the question remained, who had emerged victorious?