The Author's POV

'I'm hurt?'

Staring at his hands, which were soaked in his own blood, Jezebeth was left in wonder. He hadn't expected his attack to be as devastating as it had been.

If not for his armor, he probably would've sustained heavier injuries.

It came from out of nowhere, and he was barely able to resist it. Raising his head to stare at Ren, who was huffing and puffing, Jezebeth felt something boiling inside of him.

'Right… It's not good if I don't reciprocate his intentions.'

Seeing that the attack had taken a toll on him, Jezebeth suppressed his injuries and forced himself forward. With a subtle blur of his vision, he saw Ren's back in front of him, and he reached out with his palm forward.

Golden runes enveloped his palm, and the space around his hand shattered.

A blade immediately blocked the hand just as it was about to reach Ren's back. He didn't know when, but Ren had suddenly turned around and slashed with his sword.

The two stared at each other silently as the space around them started to crumble.

There were no words exchanged with each other like before. Neither left any time to spare any words as they distanced themselves from each other and attacked one another.

BOOOM—! The attacks were devastating, shattering the space around them and creating large waves in the air that spread throughout the entire sky.

Everything beneath them tore apart, and the land disintegrated at their every exchange.

Neither of the two held any advantage. While Jezebeth was indeed injured from the previous strike, Ren had exhausted himself in the process, evening things out.

SHIIIIIIING—!

A bright glow of terrifying pressure suddenly headed Jezebeth's way. It was fast—extremely so. In a matter of seconds, it was upon him, and just as it was about to graze his nose, Jezebeth placed his palm against the side of the glow, and the glow shattered into a fine dust.

Swoosh!

Sensing something behind him, Jezebeth's body twisted as he kicked, and his foot hit something soft.

"Umpf!"

Overhearing something, Jezebeth knew that his hit had landed, and when he came to, he saw Ren's figure hurl away from him in the sky.

He didn't waste a single second of that moment.

Locking his eyes on Ren's figure, Jezebeth pressed his finger forward, and a gigantic crack formed a couple of meters ahead of Ren.

A large projection of his finger appeared from within the crack, and as if it had been timed just right, it moved down and directly pressed against Ren's moving figure.

BOOOM—!

The attack landed squarely on Ren's body, and he spat a mouthful of blood as his body continued to hurl away from Jezebeth.

Ren's body took the full force of the attack, and as his body continued to fly away from him, he spat out a mouthful of blood and coughed up more.

Jezebeth did not pass up such an opportunity and followed him from behind, eventually appearing right in front of him and pressing his hand against his face as he did so.

Swoosh—!

Attempting to contort his body and evade Jezebeth's hand, Ren acted swiftly but fell slightly short. His efforts proved futile as Jezebeth's hand firmly made contact with his face and grasped onto it tightly.

BANG—!

Exerting an immense force, Jezebeth's hand unleashed a surge of power, propelling Ren's body through the air with great momentum. Seizing the opportunity without hesitation, Jezebeth swiftly positioned himself directly beneath Ren, extending his knee in a forceful thrust.

"Aukh!"

Spit flew from Ren's mouth as he landed directly on Jezebeth's knee.

Though faint, Jezebeth could make out a faint cracking sound, and he knew that Ren had sustained some injuries.

Still… He didn't let go.

Jezebeth wasn't the type of person to show mercy to those against him.

Grabbing Ren by the hair, he raised his head toward him and punched at his face.

BANG—!

His fist landed squarely in his face.

BANG—!

He didn't stop at just one punch.

BANG—!

Jezebeth's fist was encased in a white and black glow as he continued to punch Ren's face with all of his strength while simultaneously driving his fist further forward.

BANG—!

It wasn't long before his fist was coated in Ren's blood as it dripped down from his fist.

The warm, viscous fluid trickled down, forming streams that traced intricate patterns along his fingers, carrying with it the evidence of the fierce impact.

A metallic scent filled the air, mingling with the intensity of the moment, as Jezebeth's resolute gaze remained fixed upon the sight.

The sight of Ren's blood became a stark reminder of all the struggle he had to go through just to get to this point, etching a lasting impression upon Jezebeth's conscience even as the battle raged on.

Extending his hand forward and staring at Ren's limping figure in front of him, Jezebeth tried to reach out with his hand to absorb the laws in his body, but just as he tried, as Jezebeth's hand inched closer, a sudden rift materialized in the surrounding space, originating from the vicinity of his arm.

Within the crevice, a spectral manifestation of a sword took shape, its gleaming presence amplifying the already charged atmosphere.

WIIIIIIIIING—!

Jezebeth was left with no other option, so he let go of Ren's body as it descended from the sky.

satisfied with what he did, Jezebeth pressed his hands together, and that was when two large projections manifested around the area Ren

directly onto Ren's

BOOOOM—!

gigantic explosion, Ren's figure came crashing down from the sky, landing against the ground

have done

of anxiety coming from those beneath. He didn't pay much attention to

touch the ground, he looked down, and that was where he caught sight of Ren lying down in the

leaked down from the side of his mouth, and his

that, his eyes were wide open, and they were locked directly at

WIIIING—!

As expected.

something flashed right behind him. Twisting his body, Jexezbeth was just barely able to avoid the incoming attack, but just as he did,

BAANG—!

back of his head, and his head was brought up once more before he saw the ground coming

BAANG—!

familiar taste. One that he didn't particularly like, but as he tried to move his body, his head was pulled at again, and once again, his head came

BAANG—!

at the forearm

breaking, and whatever was grasping at his head let

Jezebeth caught sight of Ren's arm, which was bent at

on the offensive again. As if he was going to let such an opportunity go

was injured, Jezebeth aimed

Swoosh!

directly at the side of Ren's exposed abdomen. Complex golden runes manifested

BANG—!

the air, blocking his vision, but with one swipe of his hand, the dust settled, and when he looked to see the aftermath of his attack, he was surprised to see his fist hitting against the side of Ren's knee, which was raised up in front

golden runes revolved around

Swoosh!

at him from above, and Jezebeth retrieved his fist back and counterattacked with a kick, which Ren avoided by

BANG—!

them, and before they

sky above them began to dim, and all that they were able

cared as they continued

BANG—!

on Jezebeth's face, sending him crashing against the ground. Ren took the moment to distance himself from him

Rumble! Rumble!

air that was close to him began to twist, and all of a sudden, a powerful force erupted from out of his body and engulfed everything that was in its

Cr— Crack!

formed in the area above him, and the tip of a sword

immediately after the tip appeared, the ground began to crack, and the air started

that was contained within his body began to drain at a rapid rate, he did not give up

"Ukh!"

and his expression started to distort. Even so, his efforts began to pay off, and the sword quickly

surrounding them came to a sudden standstill, and the world around them

Creack! Creak!

his bones creaking under the immense pressure that the sword was producing, but he didn't care and fixed his eyes on Jezebeth, who was staring at

"Go."

palm, he pointed his finger at

Rumble! Rumble!

massively, and the earth around them collapsed. Wherever the sword passed, it would

maintained an unwavering composure, fixating

succumbing to a serene stillness that permeated both his external surroundings and the recesses

looked to have given up, but Ren knew... he knew that

world, intertwining with the tranquility of

directly behind the sword, his hand instinctively reaching

"..."

*Grip*

dumbfounded as the unstoppable momentum

situation to sink in, as the sixth movement,

the astonishment

"Argkhhhhh!"

that pierced the air, the armor encasing Jezebeth's body shattered, revealing the raw, sinewy contours of his musculature

muscles pulsated with an imposing presence, exuding

upon Ren, Jezebeth's hand began to move with a deliberate purpose, manipulating the sword's trajectory until it aligned menacingly with

"I.. h… how?!"

Ren was

as he clenched his teeth, power began to erupt from

sword shattered into hundreds of pieces, and he puked up blood.

"Pfttt."

a result, and it was right then that

of pure instinct, he moved his hand away

BANG—!

felt his blood boil at the collision, but he

a

BANG—!

once again connected with something, and the surroundings

BANG—!

quite a while until, eventually,

"Seal."

ground and coiled around Ren's body like snakes. The chains came from everywhere. Above him, the side of the crater, and beneath the ground, coiling around every part of his body and trapping him

golden runes covered his entire body. The chains that were surrounding him showed signs of cracking, but they didn't break immediately, and that was what

that moment, he appeared right in front of Ren and punched

BANG—!

up. The chains

he looked down, he saw Ren's body coming at him from

appeared all over his hand, and just as Ren's body

Swoosh!

that Jezebeth was barely able to

against the side of his cheek, Jezebeth's vision distorted, spinning wildly as he found himself

of his descent was nothing short of astonishing; a faint vapor cloud appeared behind him

"!!"

disbelief at the sight that awaited him—a vast multitude of sword projections adorned with intricate golden runes erupted from the very ground, their razor-sharp

of the spectacle sent shockwaves through Jezebeth's core, forcing him to employ every available resource