**Chapter 137: Crushing Blow**
Boom——!
A bone-chilling Ice Mist erupted before my eyes, and the rock-solid extreme ice beneath me suddenly cracked open. The knight, clad in heavy armor and nearly armed to the teeth, was nearly embed in the ice from the impact. bl**d leaked from his mouth and nose, quickly freezing as it hit the cold surface. Ice chips, along with a few of his teeth, flew straight at my face, and I tilted my head just in time to avoid the icy shrapnel.
“Ugh—”
After a painful grunt, the golden halo around the knight began to fade rapidly. His armor twisted and deformed from that ruthless strike. I had broken his right hand, and his arm looked like it had been yanked off. Even so, this guy still attempted to struggle against me. In the blink of an eye, his left-hand punch came at me, but it lacked strength. I simply pushed it back down with one hand.
“An immortal?”
I tilted my head, curious. Before he could respond, I swiftly released the broken arm and pulled back slightly, delivering a punch right to his face.
Bong, bong, bong, bong——
“You’re not bad…”
With that punch, I nearly pushed the knight’s entire head into the ice. Amidst the metallic clangs, his golden helmet crumpled against his face, the visor shattered, revealing a flat nose and bulging eyes—a gruesome yet oddly youthful face.
Uh-oh…
I suddenly felt alarmed.
That might have been too much…
He looked like a high-ranking knight. I was hoping to ask him a few questions.
I can’t k*ll him off right here!
Under the helmet, he seemed to have a rather handsome face.
Hmm…
If I hadn’t thrown that punch, he would theoretically be quite handsome—fair-skinned and all.
“But compared to that certain guy I know, you’re not much of an immortal, are you?”
Ah, can he hear me?
The knight had stopped struggling.
His limbs lay limply at his sides, and he was sprawled out in the fissure of the ice, dark red bl**d seeping from the gaps in his armor, freezing instantly in the cold. His eyes stared wide open, mouth agape as if trying to shout, but no sound came out—his eyes were fiery red, and he couldn’t even catch his breath.
So, with a “crack,” I grabbed his chest plate and pulled him out of the ice crack. I heard a couple more “cracks” beneath my feet as the fissures expanded. It felt like the ice could give way at any moment. I stepped into Moon Step, shifting us both to safety, then lifted him high enough to meet my gaze. However, his feet still trailed on the ice, lacking the strength to stand anymore.
Darn…
Why does it look so cool when characters do this in anime?
“Hey, wake up.”
I lightly punched him in the chest.
That punch was gentle—no more strength for me!
I heard a “thud” as the knight’s chest plate caved in just a little. His eyes rolled back slightly, jaw hanging open wider, and with a cough, he spewed out a mist of bl**d. I reacted quickly, sidestepping to avoid it.
“Cough, cough, cough—uh…”
After the hit, the knight finally managed to catch his breath.
“Ugh ah ah ah—!!”
But then he began screaming as if he were about to devour me, his eyes filled with anger burning like fire.
“What are you screaming about?”
I smacked his head with a “slap.”
Again, I didn’t dare to use force.
At least that stopped the screaming.
“Looks like you’ve still got some spirit.”
Relief washed over me…
I was worried one careless move might crush him—what a hassle.
“Now, first things first, quiet down and listen. I have a few questions for you.”
By the way, is this guy a guy or a girl…?
I couldn’t quite place it.
“Despicable… evil… scoundrel—!”
Out of nowhere, the knight attacked.
“How dare you! How dare you!!!”
In a seemingly mad rage, he suddenly raised his left hand, the crimson glow in his eyes shining brightly, bl**d in his mouth, unleashing an astonishing killing intent once again. Suddenly, “vroom,” a Divine Miracle formed in his palm, a shining golden blade nearly two meters long erupted forth, slicing through the air toward my cheek with the force of a tempest.
“Tsk…”
This guy’s tougher than he looks.
I didn’t blink, staring him down.
In the blink of an eye, my previously slightly blue eyes turned a glaring scarlet.
Swish——
The shining blade whizzed past my head, the shockwave blowing ice chips everywhere. The knight, seeing this, slightly curled the corners of his lips, as if to smile, but the very next moment, his face turned to one of shock, as if he saw something unfathomable.
Whoosh!
In a heartbeat, the head that had been cut through by the blade suddenly twisted like an illusion before dissipating into seven or eight black ravens, swirling around him.
But the horror was that only his head seemed to disappear; the rest of his body remained stationary before him, standing straight as ever. The neck where the head had been was an abyssal darkness, and my white, delicate hand gripped his tightly like a vice, refusing to loosen.
“Evil… demon…”
“You… you monstrous creature—”
This terrifying scene left the knight stammering, completely speechless. Yet, my head obviously hadn’t fallen off; in fact, I hadn’t moved an inch. His attack was simply engulfed by the power of Oblivion, not landing on me at all.
“I told you to stop shouting…”
As the circling ravens gathered back above my head, I withdrew the power of Oblivion, released my grip, and with a swift kick, sent the knight flying through the air, tumbling far away, nearly about to fall off the icy mountain.
In his panic, he instinctively clung tightly to a jutting shard of ice at the cliff edge, his lower half dangling in the void, gritting his teeth to avoid plummeting. I noticed him and in one Moon Step, appeared right in front of him. The knight glanced up in shock, and in the next instant, the Frost Order rapidly gathered in my right hand. With a harsh “crack-crack,” a gleaming extreme ice scythe was firmly in my grasp.
“You’re starting to annoy me.”
Thud——
With a swift motion, the sharp blade of the scythe pierced through his palm, nailing his left hand firmly to the icy spike. Fresh bl**d flowed from the wound, only to freeze over instantly, turning his hand a dark purple under the spread of frost.
“Ugh… ah…”
He couldn’t even scream.
His suppressed roars sounded like goats bleating, making me frown.
Standing above him, I looked down at the pitiful knight, a mock-serious tone in my voice: “So, can we talk now?”
“Pfft——”
To my surprise, he suddenly raised his head and spat a glob of bl**d at me.
The spit barely left his mouth; he looked utterly weak, sticky bl**d trailing down his chin, freezing into icicles. Yet despite it all, he looked at me and suddenly gave a mad grin.
“Hey ha… ahaha…”
The smile was as insane as it was grave: “You’re doomed… How dare you stand against the Church’s army… you’ll face the consequences… Killing me won’t do you any good, no matter who you are… or how powerful you are… you underestimate us… From now on, the Church will hunt you down relentlessly…”
“Heh.”
I chuckled.
He dared to threaten me?
Threats are my least favorite thing!
“Do you have any idea what happened to the last Church army that tried to k*ll me?”
I looked at him with interest, tapping my chin, and pretended to think. Then, I clapped my hands together: “Oh right! I remember they were called the Graceful Scales… huh? They were your strongest army, right? Did anyone sent to the Eastern Continent ever come back?”
