"Pat… pat…"
Blood streamed down in steady drops as the dust cleared, revealing the scene at the center of the battlefield.
Lucien was drenched in blood, with half of his body torn away. His amethyst eyes—glimmering like fractured gems—locked fiercely onto his opponent. Numerous shimmering multicolored threads were wrapped around him, and waves of intense heat radiated from every inch of his battered form.
Across from him, Li Chong lay amid shattered rubble. His right hand was severed, his ribs exposed through the torn flesh of his abdomen. He forced himself upright, coughing blood that splattered onto the ground.
His reddened eyes burned with brutality.
Even he had been pushed to such a state.
"This fight was thrilling," Li Chong growled, "but it ends now."
He raised his head, staring coldly at Lucien. The blue steam billowing from his body shifted into a deep red, the color intensifying with every heartbeat.
An overwhelming pressure surged outward, sweeping across all of Fuyuki City. It forced Gilgamesh, Artoria, Nameless, and every combatant engaged elsewhere to halt and turn toward the source of the monstrous presence.
Li Chong planted his right foot forward, lowered his stance, and pressed his left hand to the ground. Red steam roared around him as cracks resembling molten lava spread across his skin. Behind him, a towering red dragon-shaped aura reared its head, roaring silently over the battlefield.
The ground trembled. The atmosphere warped.
A violent gale swept past. Lucien tilted his head back as his short blue hair fluttered wildly.
The steam around his body peeled away under the pressure.
The oppressive chill struck him with full force.
With half his missing body rapidly regenerating, Lucien drew his hands to his waist, forming a firm calyx. A sphere of blinding energy expanded between his palms, several white rays shooting outward and lighting up the sky.
A tremendous amount of power gathered and compressed.
"Eight Inner Gates Formation."
The air twisted as Li Chong launched himself forward, the colossal red dragon behind him following his charge, rising like an unending inferno descending in judgment.
"Night Guy."
"Kamehameha!"
A massive blue beam burst out, meeting the descending red dragon head-on. The collision instantly blew open a crater hundreds of meters wide, spreading outward in shockwaves. A violent storm of wind tore across the land.
The sky split into red and blue, both forces rising in intensity.
Lucien's feet drilled deeper into the ground as he was pushed back. Blood streamed from his mouth and nose. His expression twisted with strain as he poured every last drop of power into the attack.
"Die for me!"
He roared, forcing out his remaining strength.
"I'll admit you're strong… but this is your limit!"
The Kamehameha trembled and began to collapse as the red dragon compressed the blue beam, drawing closer and closer.
"Damn it…"
Cracks split across Lucien's entire body. Even his strongest attack couldn't suppress the overwhelming force pressing against him.
The blue beam snapped apart under pressure.
The red dragon crashed down.
Lucien's hands burst apart, and his chest caved in before Li Chong's final strike stomped him into the earth. The colossal crater collapsed three more times, and a towering mushroom cloud rose into the sky.
A tidal wave of destruction swept outward. Half of Fuyuki City vanished beneath the impact.
The land was stripped down to deep layers of soil and stone, forming a massive crater like a meteor had struck.
At the center, the red steam still burned.
Li Chong glared down at Lucien, whose broken body was embedded in the ground, barely recognizable, held together by torn threads of flesh. Li Chong raised him by the head and lifted him close.
"Opening the last gate—the Gate of Death—means burning your life," Li Chong said coldly. "The end is always the same: death."
"But once you die, I get one hundred thousand exchange points. I recover everything… and gain even more."
"To force me to go all out, you should feel honored."
Li Chong looked down with arrogant certainty. In his eyes, Lucien Graves was already a corpse.
As for the consequences of the Gate of Death? With a hundred thousand points, it simply didn't matter.
"Damage Transfer."
Held in Li Chong's grip, Lucien smiled weakly.
Li Chong's body suddenly convulsed. A torrent of damage crashed into him, ripping him apart as wounds exploded across his flesh.
Blood erupted in sheets.
His legs gave out, and he collapsed. The red steam dispersed, leaving his eyes wide in disbelief.
His injuries had worsened in an instant.
"You…"
He managed to utter one word before vomiting blood mixed with pieces of his own organs.
Lucien, lying on the ground, was also in tatters—covered in multicolored threads—but his body was regenerating rapidly before Li Chong's fading eyes.
"Damage Transfer… one-time use."
He read the description silently as it appeared before him:
"Transfers damage received by the user to another living target and restores half of the user's strength. Note: Ineffective against opponents with special protective items or innate defenses. Current level is low and only works on living beings. Cannot influence natural forces or phenomena. Higher levels increase effectiveness."
Lucien sighed as he read the details.
The name alone had sounded incredibly powerful.
But the limitations were severe.
Only effective against targets with weaker true strength? Using enhancements like battle music to inflate his power didn't count toward the requirement?
And if the opponent had any defensive item, it might not work at all?
Lucien understood immediately: to unlock its true potential, the ability needed a higher level.
Only then could it become true Speech of Law.
Like a god declaring, "Let there be light," and light manifesting instantly.
But the method to increase the level?
There was no explanation.
He continued drawing rewards.
"Fifty boxes of Cuban cigars."
"High-quality tobacco products crafted with precision…"
Lucien's eyes lit up.
Cigars—especially Cuban ones—were associated with powerful, confident men. It suited him perfectly.
"One bus."
"One laptop."
The last two draws were unimpressive.
He didn't even know how to drive a bus.
And without a signal, the laptop was useless.
He selected a cigar, lit it, and inhaled. It took a moment to adjust to the taste, but it was undeniably excellent.
His body rose gently, and he transformed into a streak of golden lightning, disappearing from the crater.
The aftermath of the battle was catastrophic. Half of Fuyuki City had been erased from the map.
First, two meteorites had fallen, nearly leveling everything. Those had been destroyed.
Then, the final clash reduced half the city to ruins.
For Fuyuki City, it was utter devastation.
_____
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