Long Tianho moved forward with the spear.
The spear thrust forward in a precision strike targeting Baki's heart. The speed was incomparable to his unarmed attacks and the weapon extended his reach, magnified his power, and moved like an extension of his own body.
Baki sidestepped and the spear tip passed so close it sliced through his shirt and drew a thin line of blood across his chest.
Long Tianho pulled the spear back and thrust again in one fluid motion at Baki's throat. Baki leaned back and the tip cut through empty air where his neck had been a fraction of a second earlier.
Long Tianho stepped forward and thrust a third time. Baki twisted his body and the spear passed by his shoulder. He grabbed the shaft with both hands.
Long Tianho rotated the spear immediately. The dragon coiling around the shaft had scales and each one was sharp enough to cut. They tore into Baki's palms as the spear spun, but Baki held on as blood ran down his wrists.
Long Tianho yanked the spear back hard and pulled Baki forward, then drove his knee into Baki's stomach.
Baki grunted and released his grip. Long Tianho swept the spear low at ankle height and Baki jumped over it, but Long Tianho had already reversed the motion and brought the spear up. The shaft caught Baki in the chest while he was still airborne.
Baki flew backward and crashed through a wooden pillar. The structure cracked and toppled and Baki rolled away before it could crush him, then pushed himself to his feet.
His chest was bleeding where the shaft had struck and his hands were shredded from grabbing the scaled shaft. His breathing was labored.
Long Tianho walked forward slowly with the spear held at a ready position. "You cannot win this."
Baki wiped blood from his mouth. "We'll see about that."
He charged forward.
Long Tianho thrust at his face and Baki ducked under it, closing the distance and throwing a hook at Long Tianho's ribs. Long Tianho shifted the spear horizontally and blocked with the shaft. The impact rang out like a bell.
Baki threw his other fist immediately and Long Tianho stepped back, creating distance. As he moved, the butt of the spear drove into Baki's stomach and Baki doubled over. Long Tianho spun the spear and slammed the shaft against the side of Baki's head.
Baki's vision exploded into white light and he stumbled sideways. Long Tianho thrust the spear at his chest.
Baki's perception sharpened to inhuman levels. He saw Long Tianho's muscles tense and saw the minute adjustment of his grip. He saw the spear tip begin its forward motion.
In that half-second gap between unconscious reaction and conscious processing, Baki moved.
One moment he was in the spear's path and the next he was to the side with his fist already buried in Long Tianho's ribs.
Long Tianho's eyes went wide and the spear thrust continued, hitting nothing but air. Pain exploded in his side as two ribs cracked.
He stumbled back and gasped for air. "That technique again."
Baki's muscles screamed and his mind felt like it was tearing apart at the seams. He had used the technique too many times tonight and his body could not take much more.
Long Tianho recovered quickly. He spun the spear and thrust at Baki's legs. Baki jumped back but the spear tip grazed his thigh, cutting deep through skin and muscle. Blood ran down his leg.
Baki's leg nearly buckled and he grabbed the spear shaft, ignoring the scales cutting his palms. He held firm and stepped in close, then headbutted Long Tianho.
Their foreheads collided with a crack and Long Tianho's nose exploded with blood, but he did not let go of the spear. He drove his knee into Baki's wounded thigh.
Baki's grip loosened and Long Tianho yanked the spear free, then thrust at Baki's throat.
Baki leaned back and the spear tip passed inches from his neck. He grabbed Long Tianho's wrist and twisted hard. Long Tianho's grip shifted but did not break and he kicked Baki in the chest.
Baki flew back and crashed into a stone fountain. The fountain shattered and water sprayed everywhere, mixing with blood on the ground.
Baki got up slowly. His thigh was bleeding heavily and his hands were mangled. His vision was starting to blur.
Long Tianho approached with the spear ready. "You are remarkable, but flesh cannot defeat this weapon."
"Then I will break it," Baki said.
"Many have tried and all have failed."
Long Tianho thrust at Baki's legs and Baki jumped back. Long Tianho thrust higher at his chest immediately and Baki swatted the spear aside with his forearm. The sharp edge cut deep into his arm and blood ran down to his hand.
Baki ignored the pain and rushed forward. Long Tianho pulled the spear back and stepped diagonally as his wrist rotated smoothly. The spear traveled in a curve and the movement looked off-target at first, but then the spear tip slipped past Baki's guard and cut across his chest.
Baki gasped and blood poured from the new wound. He stumbled back.
Long Tianho gave him no time to recover. He feinted a high thrust and Baki raised his arms to protect his head. Long Tianho rotated the spear behind his back in a fluid motion and swept low. The shaft hit Baki's legs hard.
Baki's legs buckled and he fell to one knee.
Long Tianho brought the spear up for a downward thrust. The tip descended toward Baki's skull.
Baki rolled to the side at the last instant and the spear tip drove into the stone ground where his head had been. Cracks spread from the impact point like a spider web.
Baki got to his feet and charged again. Long Tianho pulled the spear free and delivered a quick jab with barely any body movement. Baki moved to block.
Long Tianho thrust with full force. The real attack came while Baki was still reacting to the feint and the spear tip punched through Baki's guard, stabbing into his shoulder.
Baki groaned and blood ran down the spear shaft. He grabbed the shaft with both hands and held it in place despite the scales shredding his palms. Long Tianho tried to pull it free but Baki held tight.
Baki stepped forward and drove himself further onto the spear to close the distance.
Long Tianho's eyes widened. "You are insane."
Baki drove his knee into Long Tianho's stomach three times in rapid succession. Long Tianho grunted but did not release the spear.
Baki pulled himself off the spear and blood poured from the shoulder wound. He threw a hook at Long Tianho's face.
Long Tianho rotated the spear in a tight arc with just his wrist. The shaft intercepted Baki's punch and deflected it, redirecting the force away.
Long Tianho thrust at Baki's gut immediately. Baki twisted and the spear passed by his side close enough that he felt the wind of its passage. He grabbed Long Tianho's arm and threw him with a hip toss.
Long Tianho hit the ground hard but rolled immediately. As he rose, he swept the spear in a wide arc.
The sweep generated power from his legs through his hips into his arms. The spear shaft came at Baki low and fast. Baki tried to jump but his wounded leg could not generate enough power.
The shaft hit his legs and his stance broke. He fell to the ground.
Long Tianho moved on him immediately and the spear thrust downward like a striking snake.
The spear descended toward Baki's heart and Long Tianho was committed to the strike with his perception locked onto where Baki was.
In the half-second gap, Baki moved.
Baki vanished from beneath the spear and the tip hit empty ground, sinking two inches into stone. Pain exploded in Long Tianho's jaw as Baki's uppercut connected from an impossible angle.
Long Tianho's head snapped back and blood filled his mouth. He stumbled but kept his grip on the spear.
Baki's mind was on fire and his muscles felt like they were tearing themselves apart from the inside. His body would not survive another use of that technique.
Long Tianho recovered and thrust at him. Baki barely dodged and the spear tip grazed his side, cutting deep. Blood ran from the wound and added to the growing pool beneath his feet.
"With how much you're abusing these techniques," Long Tianho said as he breathed hard. "Your brain should have turned into fry." He wiped blood from his mouth. "But how are you doing this? I don't understand."
Baki pushed himself to his feet. His vision was blurring and blood covered his entire body. Every breath sent spikes of pain through his cracked ribs.
Ever since he was a kid, he was different. He knew this. The reason behind his tragedy was his greatest gift too. Demonic brain, it was never a curse. He understands it. But he is at his limits. Even the demonic brain is failing now. Even after unlocking technique mastery, it isn't enough. He could not use that technique again and he could not get close while Long Tianho had that spear. He needed something else. Something more powerful.
Long Tianho moved in a short burst that was too fast for normal eyes to track. He appeared to the side and completely broke Baki's line of sight. The spear thrust from the new angle.
Baki barely moved in time and the spear tip cut across his cheek instead of punching through his skull. He threw a wild punch but Long Tianho had already moved again.
Long Tianho executed another burst step and thrust from another impossible angle.
The spear caught Baki in the ribs with a shallow but painful strike. Baki turned but Long Tianho was already moving again.
Long Tianho burst forward and thrust at Baki's thigh. The strike connected and Baki dropped to one knee as blood ran freely down his leg.
Long Tianho stopped moving and stood a few feet away with his spear ready. "Can you even stand?"
Baki pushed himself up with visible effort and his legs trembled, but he assumed a fighting stance anyway. "I told you I never lose."
"Everyone loses eventually." Long Tianho's expression was almost pitying. "You have fought well, better than anyone I have faced, but this is the end."
He charged forward and the spear thrust in a continuous sequence. The first thrust came at Baki's chest and Baki moved his body slightly. The second thrust followed immediately and adjusted by millimeters to track his movement. Baki swatted it aside with his mangled hand and the third thrust came before he could recover.
The fourth thrust cut his forearm and the sixth cut his other arm. The seventh punched through his guard and stabbed into his stomach.
Baki grabbed the spear shaft with both hands and stopped it from going deeper. Blood ran from his stomach wound hot and fast. Long Tianho tried to pull the spear back but Baki held on, even as the scales cut deeper into his already-ruined palms.
Baki pulled himself forward along the spear shaft. Long Tianho tried to stop him but Baki kept coming. He got close enough and threw a desperate hook that caught Long Tianho on the temple.
Long Tianho's vision blurred and his grip loosened.
Baki pulled the spear out of his stomach and shoved Long Tianho back. Both stumbled away from each other.
They were both breathing hard now. Long Tianho had various bruises and cuts from earlier exchanges, including two cracked ribs and a large purple bruise near his chest, but he was still mostly functional.
Baki was covered in multiple stab wounds with shredded hands, a bleeding thigh, and a stomach wound. His earlier injuries from Hou Qing and the other fights had never healed and he was running on nothing but willpower now.
Long Tianho began moving the spear in tight movements and thrust through gaps that looked too small for the weapon to fit through. The spear seemed to have no width as it slipped past blocks as if it were made of water rather than steel.
One thrust came through the gap between Baki's arm and body and cut his side. Another came through the space below his elbow and stabbed his ribs. A third came through a gap Baki did not even see and hit his shoulder.
Baki tried to close the distance but Long Tianho was already moving. He stepped around Baki at high speed and circled like a predator. The spear maintained constant pressure and thrust from different angles as Long Tianho moved.
Baki tried to track him but Long Tianho was too fast. The circle was complete before Baki could react properly.
Long Tianho performed a fast crescent motion with the spear while circling behind Baki at near-blur speed. Baki reacted to the first motion and turned to face it. The real thrust was already coming from behind and the spear tip punched into his back.
Baki groaned and spun around, throwing a wild backhand that missed. Long Tianho had already pulled back and reset his position.
Baki was reaching his limit. Blood loss was making him dizzy and his movements were sluggish. His breathing was ragged.
If he did not do something now, he was dead.
Long Tianho saw victory within his grasp. He lowered his stance as his legs coiled beneath him and torque built through his hips and shoulders. He read Baki's micro-movements and saw the slight shift of weight, the adjustment of posture, and the position of the hands.
This would be the killing blow.
Long Tianho launched forward with three-stage acceleration through his legs, then hips, then torso. His entire power chain compressed into one perfect line and the spear thrust forward with devastating force, aimed directly at Baki's heart.
Baki saw it coming. At that moment, Baki had decided it.
"This is the only move I got…and I have to take it."
Baki took a step forward to meet the attack and his body began to change. His muscles tensed in a specific pattern that was not the pattern of his previous techniques but something beyond both.
His joints locked into position and his entire skeletal structure aligned into a single straight line from his foot through his spine to his fist.
Long Tianho's spear came at his chest and would pierce his heart in less than a second. At the final instant, Long Tianho saw the change in Baki's eyes and a primal instinct screamed danger at him.
He pulled the spear back and positioned it horizontally in front of his chest in a desperate block.
Baki had already drawn his fist back. Every joint in his body was locked and his entire body weight, all his remaining strength, and every technique he had ever learned concentrated into a single point.
His fist shot forward.
The fist accelerated so fast it broke the sound barrier, then broke it again. The air around his fist compressed violently and created a visible shockwave that distorted everything around it.
The fist moved so fast it became invisible to the naked eye.
A thunderous crack split the night sky as multiple sonic booms rolled across the compound like thunder. Windows shattered in buildings hundreds of feet away.
The fist collided with the spear shaft.
For a fraction of a second, the legendary weapon held as the metal shaft groaned under impossible force. The dragon coiling around it seemed to scream silently.
Then it shattered.
The weapon exploded into fragments and the dragon coil split apart. Metal shards flew in all directions like shrapnel and embedded themselves in trees and stone. The sound of breaking metal rang out like a death knell.
The force continued through the broken spear and slammed into Long Tianho's chest.
Long Tianho's eyes went wide as his ribs shattered like glass and his sternum cracked down the middle. The force compressed his chest cavity and crushed organs. Blood exploded from his mouth.
His feet left the ground.
Long Tianho's body flew backward as if hit by an artillery shell and crashed through a stone wall. The wall exploded into rubble and he continued through the next courtyard, his body smashing through a decorative gate and reducing it to splinters. He flew through another wall and left a man-sized hole.
His body slammed into the side of the main building with such force that the entire structure shook. Windows shattered on three floors and cracks spread across the facade like lightning. Part of the roof collapsed.
Long Tianho's body fell from the impact crater and dropped to the ground far below. He landed in a broken heap and did not move.
Silence fell over the compound.
Fragments of the legendary spear lay scattered across the courtyard and the dragon that had coiled around its shaft was now nothing but shattered segments, forever separated.
Baki stood with his fist still extended and his arm smoking from the friction. The skin on his knuckles had completely burned away and exposed muscle and bone beneath. Blood dripped from the exposed flesh.
He had done it. Multiple sonic booms from a single strike and something no human should be capable of.
His right arm hung useless at his side with fractured bones and torn muscles. It's completely destroyed.
Baki looked at the broken spear fragments and smiled despite the cost.
From the edge of the courtyard, Hou Qing stood frozen in shock. He had been watching the entire fight and had seen his brother defeated.
"Impossible," Hou Qing whispered. "Brother, how could this happen?"
Long Tianho did not move. His massive form lay still in the rubble of the building and was backlit by moonlight.