landbeastnovel Chapter 90: The Battle Of The Ages (3)
Chapter 90: The Battle Of The Ages (3)
[Gerrard Freya Flashback...]
...
...
[Freya's Residence, Training Grounds]
"Alright, Jan. Give me your best shot."
Gerrard smiled standing almost motionless in the centre of the grounds, a pillar of unwavering confidence, knowing that he wasn't going to lose.
His wooden sword was held high in a guard stance, pointed downwards, his left hand held loosely at his side, ready to react.
On the other hand, Jan stood a few paces away, his wooden sword gripped tightly.
Unlike Gerrard's relaxed posture, Jan's body was tight with concentration. His gaze flicked across Gerrard's body, analyzing every shift in Gerrard's guard, every trace of expression, searching for a weakness, an opening.
However,. No matter how hard he looked.
He couldn't find an opening.
Jan understood all too well the limitations of his reincarnated body. Despite his mind being way ahead of its own age, time and time again his body failed to keep pace.
Against Gerrard, Jan was brainstorming how he could hit him.
Maybe the Qi techniques of his past life, those honed over decades in his old world, could give him the edge he desperately needed.
Though he'd spent fourteen years in this world focused on mana, he knew Qi and Aura worked on similar principles.
Focusing on the sword, Jan channelled that familiar aura flow. The result was immediate. Light-blue energy flowed along the wooden blade, the glow of his own willpower.
"Wow..." He breathed, a mix of disbelief and excitement. "They really do work the same..."
"I'm ready when you are, Mr. Freya," Jan said, raising his aura-charged blade.
Even Gerrard, a man well-known in the traditions of swordsmanship, couldn't hide his astonishment.
For a boy raised by the holy church and being able to wield aura so naturally... to achieve what usually took heroes, swordsmen and even mages countless years to learn... it was a feat worthy of the legendary Garrick himself.
Gerrard nodded a single, sharp gesture.
"Go all in."
DASH!
Jan without hesitation bursted through the grounds, launching a series of attacks, five in rapid succession, each imbued with that aura.
SLASH!, SLASH!, SLASH!,
Yet, Gerrard remained immovable. The attacks, while powerful, were easily evaded. Were they simply too slow? Or was Gerrard so quick that Jan couldn't even perceive his movements?
Jan retreated to his original position. His initial confidence had evaporated, replaced by a sense of helplessness.
He looked at Gerrard who simply smiled while looking at him in the same stance he had taken since the beginning of the battle.
"How did he block all of that?" Jan muttered under his breath.
whaaaaAM
Determined to break through Gerrard's defences, Jan channelled his aura once more, charging as he unleashed a powerful slash from his blade.
"Cleaving Arc."
SWING!
A wide-reaching swing infused with his signature aura arced towards Gerrard with undeniable force.
"...!"
This move garnered a surprised reaction from the Old Head.
He finally moved, raising his wooden sword to block the attack. A flicker of hope sparked in Jan's eyes.
He saw it – a minuscule opening, a momentary lapse in Gerrard's defence.
Their weapons locked in a stalemate, and a sly smile crept onto Louise's face.
WHAM
Suddenly, he broke the deadlock with a brutal kick to Jan's abdomen. The impact momentarily winded Jan, forcing him a step back.
Seizing the opening, Louise shifted his strategy. As he channelled of mana into his blade, the fiery dome above them responded, crackling with intensity.
SHAAAAAAW!
A blinding beam of fire Shot from the barrier, a concentrated strike aimed directly at Jan.
"...!"
Prepared for the beam, Jan braced himself. As he perfectly waited for the beam to align, he countered the attack with his own audacious move.
"Horizontal Slash."
SLASH!
As his sword was infused with aura. The azure blade arced out, amplified by Divine Conqueror, Jan's attack effortlessly sliced through Louise's beam of fire.
"WHAT?"
Before Louise could react, the energy of the slash struck him, sending him stumbling back several steps.
A wave of surprise washed over Louise as he got back up after that slash.
"Shit... He got me on that one,"
He quickly withdrew his hand from the wound, channelling mana into it.
huuuuu...
The injury wasn't severe, but he couldn't fully heal it. his mana was drained of maintaining the fiery barrier and using anymore was already a waste.
Louise knew he couldn't afford to lower the dome - it offered him a lot of amplifications to his attacks, But Jan was slicing through his flames – flames that even high-grade heroes struggled against. This anomaly who just kept getting better, was besting him in his own domain. It was frustrating.
So he came up with another idea, Instead, he intensified the flames, hoping the increased heat would stop Jan's advances.
Louise caved the barrier in more closer to allow for little space for Jan to make an error he either had to hit Louise or get struck by his flames.
The fiery barrier pulsed and roared, the heat radiating inwards with vengeance.
SLASH!
Jan, however, was unbothered by this move, pressing forward, his sword was on a relentless pursuit, striking at Louise with precision.
CLANG!, CLANG!, CLANG!,
Each clash of steel seemed to weaken Louise's defence further. Jan's power was overpowering him his strikes hitting twice more harder than before
Louise gritted his teeth, struggling to keep his footing under Jan's countless attacks. He couldn't risk a direct attack while weakened.
He needed a new strategy, a way to flip the tables...
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Authors notes:
- Aura can be used in many forms but in the simplest of forms is difficult to use even for the strongest of heroes as some heroes refrain from using aura as the belief of them learning it could be a hindrance since mana + aura don't go well with each other.
- Garrick The Great Hero was the one who discovered how to use aura.
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What Are The Types Of Elemental Zoning
Type A Zone: Amplification Zone, Barrier, Transformation Zone
Type B Zone: Barrier, Transformation Zone or Barrier, Amplification Zone
Type C Zone: Amplification Zone
Type D Zone: Barrier Zone
Type E Zone: Transformation Zone