"THUD!
"THUD!
"Tsk…Tsk."
Lohan Vertigce stared at the source of the disdainful voice.
A red-haired, handsome teenager with blue eyes and slightly pale skin, holding a teacup, had just stepped out onto the balcony with an indifferent gaze.
Eli surveyed the room, which was now in complete disarray. Three people lay dead on the floor, their chests blackened with holes. Two had gaping wounds on their necks, likely caused by a blade, their faces still frozen in shock. In the front, the remains of a person were scattered in pieces of flesh, bones, and organs, as if they had exploded.
"When did a white-haired seraphim get in?" Eli asked, staring at Vulcan Tanheln, who avoided his gaze, embarrassment etched on his face. His right hand was broken and twisted, his chest full of depressions. Every breath he took twisted his face in pain as he sat in a pool of his own blood.
"My name is—"
"So, what game are you guys playing?" Eli cut off Lohan Vertigce, making him tremble with anger. Lohan Vertigce took a deep breath to calm his rampaging emotions before chuckling lightly at Eli. "Kudsok."
"Wear this," Lohan Vertigce said, handing Eli an ability restraint band. Eli noticed Vulcan Tanheln wearing the same band and understood what had transpired. Kudsok was one of the best ways to settle gang disputes.
[You are affected by Ability Restraint]
[Nullified]
"Since junior brother doesn't look too capable, I think you should take the first note," Lohan Vertigce said proudly, puffing out his chest.
[Inspect Activated]
[Name: Lohan Vertigce]
[Ability: Ice (Element)
[Advanced Battle Arts: Ice Fall (C rank)]
[Stage: Introductory (Ninth Level)]
[Level 6]
[Strength: ??]
[Agility: ??]
[Stamina: ??]
[Skills: ???]
[Equipped: Beetle Monarch Armor]
[Tier: King-Tier ]
[HP: 1500 (+2500 King-Tier Armor)]
"This dude is cheating, and it's an understatement. Even without his armor, he would still win, but it wouldn't be this exaggerated," Eli thought with a smile.
[Crimson Paradise activated]
[Stage: Initial(3rd Level)]
[Conversion rate: 2 Arcane Energy = 20 Stat points]
This Crimson Paradise Advanced Art was his ace, granting him free stat points without expending energy—merely 2 Arcane Energy for such a powerful effect, with no cooldown or duration limit. It was akin to a converter, amplifying energy output from a reactor_it was indeed a cheat.
Eli's vision splintered into a constellation of crimson markers, each flickering like a dying star. The system's analysis blazed across his retinas:
[Beetle Monarch King-Tier Armor]
[Integrity – 78.8% ]
[Vulnerabilities Detected: Near Zero]
[ Unrepaired Damage detected: Chestplace and helmet Visor]
Only two areas pulsed a violent red—the chestplate and the helmet's visor—both already marked as target.
[Arcane Energy Conversion added to Strength]
[Strength: 40= 60]
Eli cleared his mind, banishing every stray thought until only a single image remained: a crimson orb, its surface pulsating with energy, flanked by two massive wings of the same fiery hue. He focused intently, willing the orb's power to flow into his right hand. His muscles tensed, his hand quivering with the effort as he channeled the energy. Now that he was level 5, he could channel even more concentrated power. Eli's right hand bones began to glow.
Eli would not ignore an opportunity to make Lohan Vertigce suffer a loss.
[Hammer Strike Activated]
[–75 Energy]
[425/500 Energy]
"KABOOM!"
Eli's fist landed squarely on Lohan Vertigce's chest. When it connected, Lohan Vertigce staggered backward, his body trembling violently. His face contorted before he spat out a mouthful of blood. His insides had been crushed, even though he was wearing King-Tier Armor.
[Beetle Monarch King-Tier Armor] [–1500 HP]
[–25 HP]
A damage screen popped up over Lohan Vertigce's head as Eli's right hand bones exploded.
[–150 HP]
[HP: 650/1000 HP]
Vulcan Tanheln stared unblinkingly, expecting the same outcome as before. Eli had been bold enough to drink from their cup, even though he knew it was poisoned, but this…
"How is this even possible?" Vulcan Tanheln mumbled. This kid was an immovable mountain, and trying to hurt him was a world of hurt for all of them.
Lohan Vertigce stared at Eli in shock. "You… you cheated."
Vulcan Tanheln looked at Eli with pity. He knew what those eyes meant. Every time he saw Lohan Vertigce make that expression, he knew what followed.
A huge burst of cold wind erupted from Lohan Vertigce, and an unbearable snowstorm descended like the birth of an apocalypse. Vulcan Tanheln gritted his teeth and fell back dozens of kilometers while all the dead on the floor immediately became ice sculptures. The snowstorm was strangely concentrated, driven to a single point. Soon, they were staring at a huge snow tornado with Eli at the center. It happened too quickly, and in the blink of an eye, Eli was assaulted by biting cold that turned him pale and purplish-blue, like a corpse.
"This kid is very interesting."
"BANG!"
Eli took a step back and easily dodged an ice spear. Most things cannot shed their shadow, and Eli could sense shadows even with his eyes closed.
"BANG!"
"BANG!"
"BANG!"
Eli twisted and contorted his body in several strange ways, dodging the countless ice spears, further infuriating Lohan Vertigce.
"Let's see how long you can continue to evade," Lohan Vertigce sneered. A cold wind gushed upwards from the snow tornado, condensing countless huge ice spears. Vulcan Tanheln's heart froze as he stared at the frightening sight that blocked out the sky, looking like the advent of a calamity.
"There is no way young master Eli could survive this with his ability locked... He can't even run away."
"Lohan Vertigce has made us fools."
Anvil Abott was not happy with the turn of events, as it was clear that Lohan Vertigce's ability restraint had been rigged. Only Vulcan Tanheln was thinking of something else, as he was certain young master Eli was still able to use his ability, as he had done that in his presence before. However, he couldn't understand why Lohan Vertigce was making such a huge show of his ability when he could just kill young master Eli without creating such a scene, since young master Eli was obviously not a Level 6.
Vulcan Tanheln couldn't tell for sure, but he thought that Lohan Vertigce was at best Level 5. However, after Lohan Vertigce released an attack fueled by rage, Vulcan felt threatened by it. It wasn't overwhelmingly powerful, but only a Level 6 could threaten a Level 5 in this way. Vulcan felt he could still resist because if it had been a Level 7 or higher, he would not have the will to resist.
"Perhaps he wants to show his might," Vulcan Tanheln thought.
Eli smiled, his blue lips cracking and leaking blood.
"Shadow Wall"
[Shadow Wall activated]
[–10 Energy]
Six shadow walls sprang forth from the ground, boxing him in, each wall 7 feet by 4 feet.
"BANG!"
"BANG!"
"BANG!"
Countless 12-foot ice spears slammed into the shadow walls.
Lohan Vertigce gritted his teeth and increased the intensity of the attack with a sinister smile.
"BANG!"
"BANG!"
"CRACK!"
"KABOOOOOOOM!"
The six shadow walls exploded into bits under the continuous assault, spilling shadow mist that blanketed more than a kilometer.
[Phantom Step activated]
[–10 Energy]
Lohan Vertigce's evil smile twisted, but his face froze as he stared in shock. "That kid vanished!" Lohan Vertigce muttered in disbelief.
[Hammer activated]
[–75 Energy]
[330/500 Energy]
"BANG!"
[Beetle Monarch King-Tier Armor] [–1000 HP]
[Critical Hit]
[–525 HP]
A body shot out from the snow tornado and crashed into one of the walls. Vulcan Tanheln initially thought it was young master Eli, as he had judged that Eli should be the one at a disadvantage. But when he looked at the person's face, he realized it wasn't Eli. It was Lohan Vertigce, who he recognized by his striking white hair. The snow tornado had also dispersed, allowing him to clearly see Lohan Vertigce, who had a pale face and was bleeding from his mouth, his nose broken.
"ARRRGGGGHHH!"
Lohan Vertigce screamed in pain. "How...?" He couldn't understand why he had to suffer such a loss. First, Eli vanished, and then he received a very strong punch to his face, just like the one earlier to his chest that had penetrated his armor and nearly turned his organs to mush. He couldn't understand why Eli's punch could ignore his armor defense. It was a king-tier armor, and from his battle experience, he could tell Eli was a Level 5, which made it logically impossible for a Level 5 ability user to make a dent in king-tier armor, even with the most powerful attack. Yet, apparently, that wasn't the case. His ears were buzzing, his brain muddled.
Eli wasn't unscathed, though. His right hand had completely exploded, leaving a gory stump; now he was left with only his left hand. His skin had taken on a deep bluish hue, yet his eyes still burned with an unrelenting fighting intent as he stared playfully at Lohan Vertigce.
[–200 HP]
[HP: 450/1000 HP]
Lohan Vertigce deactivated the king-tier armor camouflage, revealing a red beast armor resembling a beetle, with a very imposing helmet. Judging from the gleam of the armor, it was high-grade, but currently, there was a fist indentation on the right chest and the center of the helmet. Lohan Vertigce stared at Eli in disbelief. He had been wearing king-tier armor, not a piece of scrap, and yet a Level 5 ability user had managed to dent it with brute strength. He was certain that even if a standard civilian-compatible laser had been shot at his head, he would not have flinched. He would have likely survived a low-rank bomb blast, with the worst outcome being severe damage to the king-tier armor and losing consciousness. But now, he couldn't understand why the king-tier armor hadn't protected him from a punch delivered by a Level 5 ability user, and why it had made him bleed. He could tell his skull was broken and six bones in his right rib were shattered.
The Beetle Monarch King-Tier Armor's glow flickered erratically, and webs of cracks appeared around the dented areas, spreading like a tsunami. Soon, the armor was filled with cracks, the glow vanished, and the armor began to fall off in huge pieces, exposing a very angry Lohan Vertigce.
Lohan Vertigce's eyes turned bloodshot as he stared at Eli, as if he had committed the most unforgivable sin. King-Tier Armor cost 10-15 million credits, while defensive King-Tier Armor was even more expensive, ranging from 20-25 million credits. It was clear that Lohan Vertigce had suffered a huge loss, and he now regarded Eli as someone he could never share the same sky.