Smoke curled from Arayn’s fists, rising in thin, wispy tendrils. This was his new technique. A technique he had just learned. The principle was simple. He coated his hands with two layers of mana.

  The first was a protective layer, shielding his fists from his own destructive power. The second was pure explosive mana, ready to detonate on impact.

  He had learned it quickly. Too quickly. Mastering [Calamity Step: Destructive Mirage] had already given him insight into explosive mana. He understood how it worked, how to control it, how to shape it. With the [Corlust Eyes of Demonic Arsenal] guiding him, breaking down every detail, every movement, he had perfected it in an instant.

  This technique had one weakness. [Explosive Fist], a technique born in the heat of battle, only had Grade D.

  It wouldn’t kill Valen. He knew that. However, it would be enough to push him further.

  Arayn’s gaze locked onto his sword, lying amidst the ruins in the distance. That was his goal. His body was battered, his wounds deep. Though he moved well, each motion carried the weight of unseen damage. He could feel it; his body was failing.

  Now that Valen was far, this was his chance.

  He kicked off the ground, leaping toward the shattered remains of a house where his sword lay. The wind rushed past him. Just a little more—

  A spear whistled through the air. Before he could react, it tore through his torso.

  Pain exploded in his chest. His momentum broke. He hit the ground and rolled, blood splattering the dust-covered ruins. His breath came ragged, sharp, but his fingers curled around the hilt of his sword. At least, he had it now.

  Valen clicked his tongue. "Tch. Missed your heart," he muttered, eyes narrowing. Then, a smirk curled on his lips. "No matter. I'll finish this with all my might."

  He spread his arms wide as he began to chant:

  "O sacred dominion, keeper of righteous fury—unveil thy might, purge the wicked, and let divinity reign within me! [Demonic Ascension]!"

  Blinding radiance erupted from his body. Golden lines traced across his skin like divine inscriptions, pulsing with an overwhelming presence. His wounds sealed instantly, his muscles surged with renewed strength, and his very being seemed to vibrate with immense power.

  This was [Demonic Ascension], Valen's trump card. After receiving a sermon from the Second Heavenly Demon, he harbored no doubt anymore and used his class skill.

  The ground trembled beneath his feet. Then, with terrifying speed, he launched himself toward Arayn.

  Arayn gripped his sword. "Consume my lifespan, Sanguine!"

  A sudden pull deep within him. It was as if something vital was being drained away, siphoned into the blade. The sensation was cold, hollowing, but almost instantly, his wounds sealed. Strength flooded his limbs.

  He sprang to his feet, his sword whistling through the air in a vicious arc. The blade rushed toward Valen’s neck, but just before it could carve into flesh, Valen twisted his body midair, narrowly evading the strike.

  In the same breath, Valen’s fist shot toward Arayn’s face. Arayn reacted on instinct, arching his back, the knuckle grazing past him.

  Valen landed behind him, his hands already reaching for his spear. With a swift motion, he yanked it free from the ground.

  Both warriors turned at the same time.

  Valen lunged, spear thrusting forward. Arayn’s sword swung to meet it.

  Steel met steel.

  A shockwave exploded from the impact, rippling through the battlefield. Then, with sheer brute force, Valen pressed forward—overpowering Arayn and sending him hurtling backward.

  Arayn's feet scraped against the dirt as he skidded backward, his body straining to slow the momentum. Before he could fully regain control, Valen was already airborne, descending like a falling star.

  The spear came down in a deadly arc.

  Arayn twisted his body, spinning to the side as he surged forward, slipping past Valen's descending attack.

  The spear crashed into the ground, shattering the earth beneath it. Dust and debris shot into the air.

  Arayn moved like a shadow, his sword slicing toward Valen’s exposed back, but Valen reacted in an instant. His foot snapped out—

  A brutal kick slammed into Arayn’s torso.

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  The impact sent Arayn hurtling like a cannonball. He crashed into the remains of a standing house. Wood and stone exploded outward, the structure collapsing in on itself, burying Arayn in a cloud of dust and rubble.

  Arayn burst from the wreckage, his armored form streaked with dust and debris. He didn’t hesitate.

  "Consume my lifespan, Sanguine."

  A familiar sensation gripped him—something inside being drained, devoured. His organs, bruised and battered from the impact, knitted back together in an instant. The pain dulled. His body was whole again.

  Arayn had just felt the raw, crushing power of a Heavenly Demon-class skill. Even now, with the Conquest Demon form bolstering him, even with the amplified damage from his Demon Hunter class, he couldn’t match Valen’s sheer strength. The difference was staggering. Yet—

  Arayn’s grip tightened on his sword.

  If this skill was truly invincible, Valen would have used it from the beginning. There had to be a catch.

  Mana.

  Valen had healed himself multiple times throughout the fight. And now, he was maintaining the overwhelming force of his transformation. Even if his mana pool was deep, it wasn't endless. Eventually, he would drain himself.

  That was Arayn’s opening.

  He exhaled slowly.

  To win, he had to wear Valen down. He had to inflict damage without taking any in return.

  It was a brutal challenge, but exhilarating.

  Valen lunged forward, eyes burning with amusement.

  "Did you just think you have a chance to win? I have bad news for you!" His spear shot forward, aimed at Arayn’s chest.

  Arayn sidestepped, feeling the wind of the thrust graze past. He swung his sword in retaliation, but Valen twisted his neck, narrowly avoiding the blade. Without breaking momentum, Valen yanked his spear back, spun on his heel, and swept it in a wide arc, aiming to cleave through Arayn in one motion, but Arayn wasn’t there.

  Arayn had already leaped, soaring above the deadly swing. Midair, he realigned his blade, ready to strike, but Valen was faster. He pulled his spear back, its shaft intercepting the descending sword.

  Valen grinned. "Now that I’ve used my trump card, I’ll finish this quickly!"

  He shoved against Arayn’s sword with sheer force, sending him hurtling backward. Arayn hit the ground hard, skidding across the dirt, leaving a long trench in his wake.

  Valen exhaled, rolling his shoulders. His confidence soared. He could hit Arayn now. He would hit him.

  He planted his feet, and his spear began to glow.

  Mana flooded into it, coiling around the shaft like liquid fire. The air rippled with heat as streaks of blue lightning crackled along the weapon’s length. The spear chirped like a bird, the energy building, pulsing, twisting like a caged beast waiting to be unleashed. The ground beneath Valen splintered as his aura expanded, warping the very air around him.

  He pointed the spear at Arayn, his grin widening. "Let’s end this."

  Arayn’s gaze locked onto the immense energy swirling around Valen’s spear. The sheer pressure distorted the air, the blue lightning crackling in violent arcs. It was enough power to annihilate anything in its path. Yet, Arayn almost laughed.

  He pressed his chest, stifling the amusement that threatened to spill out. He was wary of Valen’s strength, yes. The power of the Heavenly Demon class was overwhelming. However, if Valen intended to end this with one massive attack, that meant one thing.

  He was giving Arayn the opening he needed.

  Arayn straightened, rolling his shoulders, feeling the exhaustion gnaw at his body, but they didn’t matter. Not now. Not when the moment he had been waiting for had finally arrived.

  He gripped his sword with both hands, its familiar weight grounding him. Then, he raised it high above his head.

  A deep crimson glow flickered at the blade’s edge. It pulsed, slow at first, then faster, growing brighter with each heartbeat. The air around him thickened as the energy coalesced, forming a dense aura that crackled and hissed.

  The ruins around them trembled. Dust and debris lifted from the ground, swirling around him in a rising vortex. The very earth beneath his feet groaned in protest as the energy built, the deep red light illuminating his Conquest Demon armor, making the glowing patterns shimmer like molten veins.

  "Hahaha, you are actually going to compete with me directly? I guess you are getting desperate, huh? Alright, I will show you the might of my skill class, [Demonic Ascension]!" Valen exclaimed.

  Arayn exhaled slowly, his crimson eyes locked onto Valen’s. "Come," he said calmly.

  Valen roared as he hurled his spear, the weapon spinning like a meteor through the air. The abyssal energy wrapped around it churned with a terrifying force, distorting space itself as it carved a path toward Arayn.

  "[Abyssal Lance]!" Valen’s voice thundered, the very name of the technique carrying the weight of destruction.

  Arayn did not waver. With both hands gripping his sword, he brought it down in a devastating arc. A crimson crescent of energy erupted from the blade, slicing through the air like a god’s judgment.

  [Conquest Sword Art: First Form – Impose]!

  The two forces met.

  The moment they collided, the world seemed to freeze. The ground beneath them cracked and split, sending fissures racing outward. The air howled as shockwaves exploded from the point of impact, tearing apart the ruins and sending debris spiraling into the sky.

  The abyssal spear groaned, its blue-black energy writhing like a living thing against the crimson arc. For a breathless second, they held each other in a deadly stalemate. Then, the arc surged forward.

  Like a relentless tide, the crimson energy devoured the darkness, depleting the spear's power. The crimson arc was now advancing toward him.

  Valen’s eyes widened, disbelief carved into his face.

  "Impossible—!"

  His words were cut short as the crimson arc crashed into him.

  The explosion swallowed him whole, a blinding eruption of red and black that painted the battlefield in destruction. The force of it sent shockwaves tearing through the land, uprooting stone and dust, reducing the remnants of the ruins to rubble.

  For a long moment, the only sound was the howling wind. Then, as the dust began to settle, Valen’s figure stood amidst the devastation—mangled but unbroken.

  His skin had been burned away in places, revealing raw, red flesh beneath. Half his body was missing, severed by the force of Arayn’s attack, yet his [Demonic Ascension] aura still clung to him, warping and shifting like a living entity, refusing to let him fall.

  Valen’s lips curled into a grimace as he raised his remaining hand, his voice a rasping whisper laced with power.

  "Hear me, Holy Light… Mend what is lost, restore what is mine…"

  The moment the chant left his lips, the air around him twisted. His severed flesh began to reform, muscles knitting together, skin crawling back over exposed wounds like writhing serpents of shadow. Bones cracked and realigned, and in mere seconds, his body was whole again—as if he had never been injured at all.

  Valen exhaled slowly, rolling his shoulders, testing his restored body. Then, he lifted his gaze back to Arayn.