The Sword and The Shadow

Leguna ducked to avoid the heavy punch before using Spatial Cut in a slash towards Legg's abdomen. He had difficulty aiming for his head due to the height difference.

And Legg, now understanding how truly fearsome the cut would be, hurriedly let out a blast of impetus and sent Leguna flying before the cut was made.

Even so, Spatial Cut's effect still caused Legg's abdominal muscles to hurt. The wave of the attack itself was able to hurt a high-order warrior.

Legg looked at his opponent enviously.

"Your weapon is truly amazing. You used it back during the tournament too, right?"

"That's right. But it didn't have this kind of enchantment back then."

"What kind of enchantment is that?" Legg asked curiously.

"I guess you can call it Spatial Cut!--" Leguna swung his sword around and the space around the blade seemed to distort from its effect. "--However, it isn't an easy enchantment to get. I believe only my sword has this effect."

"Is that so? Let us have a good talk about this after the duel," Legg nodded, "Alright. That's enough idle chat. My tribesmen are watching and I won't hold back any longer."

"I don't need you to hold back," Leguna clicked his tongue before angling his body down in preparation for a charge.

"Even better."

Legg's eyeballs were pointed in an odd direction as usual. The ground shook. He looked down and found a rock spike pushing out of the ground towards him.

Greatly startled, he hurriedly leaped forward to avoid the attack. Even so, the rock did scrape the inner of his thigh. Fortunately, he wasn't castrated on the spot.

"Legg! How could you be so dastardly?!" Leguna cursed.

"An assassin of all people is criticizing my methods? Don't forget I'm an earth binder! While the snowless ground allows you to go into stealth, you're still in my element!"

The moment his words fell, Leguna saw a crack appear on the frozen ground beneath Legg's feet, stretching towards him at increasing speed. Leguna shoved himself out of the way, barely avoiding falling in and he immediately got to work figuring out a counter strategy.

[Cracking the ground apart should be one of the many abilities of his Stonebreaker gift. But how's he able to make rock spikes?]

[Maybe it's his third gift. Also, you should've noticed it by now, right?] Gahrona asked.

[Yes, he's barefoot. That means he needs skin contact with the ground to be able to use his third gift.]

[That's right. You're fighting an earth bender on solid ground. Better be careful.]

[No problem! If the ground is his element, the night is mine!]

Leguna evaded one strike after another with blinding speed before leaping over a tripstone Legg made and waved Lighteater in preparation for the clash.

Legg merely humphed and a wall of rock popped up from the ground between them. However, Spatial Cut was easily able to destroy it without slowing Leguna down in the slightest.

"Come on!" Legg roared, before his skin turned yellow in an instant.

After using Skin of Terra, Legg gained a confidence boost. He ignored the cut completely and prepared his counterattack.

[Evade now!] Gahrona hissed. Legg's physique was as terrifying as a magic beast's. How could Leguna compare? If Leguna was grabbed, victory for Legg was almost certain.

Leguna understood how terrifying the barbarian was and used Lightness's enchantment to tripe his speed to avoid the grab and cut Legg's chest.

When Lighteater struck his body, Leguna felt as if he had swung a metal rod at stone. There was no cutting sensation at all, no sound or feedback of flesh being torn apart. There was only a metallic clang like one a blacksmith's hammer would make.

After one strike, he dared not stay for another bout and made some ten meters of distance. Turning to look, he found that there wasn't the slightest mark left on Legg's skin. Skin of Terra's defensive capabilities had actually become that impressive!

[Looks like Spatial Cut won't do,] Leguna said with a shake of his head. He required impetus to use that ability, but as his impetus stratum was lower than Legg's, his Spatial Cut was far weaker in comparison.

[You're finally able to tell,] Gahrona said calmly, [Spatial Cut is a terrifying ability that only works on the weak. Against opponents of Legg's rank, this enchantment is completely useless. I think the corrosion properties of your shadow impetus might be more effective against Skin of Terra.]

[Understood.] Leguna nodded and charged towards Legg once more.

After activating Lightness's enchantment, it could last another fifteen minutes. Leguna had wanted to leave it for the night to be used in tandem with Host of Darkness and Shadow Blink for a series of explosive attacks, but he was forced to use it prematurely. It wouldn't be able to last till the night.

Leguna used the enhanced speed his boots granted him to go faster than the eye can see. He focused all his shadow impetus on Lighteater and wanted to damage Legg while his speed enchantment was still in effect.

For a normal person, not being able to keep up Leguna's speed meant only death. Legg, however, didn't mind that in the slightest. He used his impressive defense to weather all of Leguna's strikes and focused all his attention on launching his own attacks.

Leguna's frenzied fighting style didn't change much. Coupled with the constant rearrangement of the terrain underneath by Legg's gifts, Leguna fared even more haggardly.

After fifteen minutes, the enchantment the boots provided lost effect. He continued his bout with Legg for five more minutes before he was abruptly stopped by a stomp to the chest. As it was too sudden, Leguna wasn't able to put up his defenses in time. When he got up, he spat out a mouthful of blood and his breathing turned ragged.

Quite a number of rather substantial wounds appeared on Legg's body thanks to the shadow impetus on Lighteater. However, those were as harmful to the giant as mosquito bites were.

Arikos watched the two from afar with a complicated look.

"It finally got dark..."

Leguna stretched. The kick had hurt his lungs, and he was wheezing.

"So, what kind of surprise can you show me?" Legg asked calmly.

"This!" Leguna unleashed Host of Darkness immediately. His skin began to turn murky black from the infusion of shadow impetus.

Third stage, fourth, fifth...

[Stop raising it!] Gahrona reminded.

He had wanted to use it up to the sixth stage, but after finding that the fifth was enough to give him a boost to the 17th stratum, he stopped.

[The fifth stage's side effects aren't that bad, but it's too dangerous to go higher!]

[Got it.]

The newfound strength filled him with confidence. He looked up to the distant Legg and said, "Are you ready? It's my turn now!"

Legg got serious when he understood that Leguna had a gift that allowed him to increase his strength temporarily. However, it was merely one or two strata. How much different could it be?

The next second, Leguna's shadow throwing knives rained down on Legg. The barbarian wasn't able to raise a stone wall in time and used only his gloves to block them. Those knives were all made from pure shadow impetus. While they weren't that damaging themselves, the corrosion definitely worked on Skin of Terra. Legg could feel that one fifth of his defenses were eroded away after half an hour of combat.

Clang clang clang!

Legg's hands pressed together managed to block off the knives like an airtight seal. But at that moment, he felt a sense of danger from behind.

Without hesitation, he raised a stone wall behind him and broke the ground beneath.

Leguna's sword pierced through, but Legg's interruption managed to rob him of his balance. He wanted to pierce through the wall towards Legg's neck, but he only got his shoulder instead.

Yet, that strike alone was enough to burrow into Legg's bone.

The barbarian groaned in pain and focused his impetus on his right arm before swinging it back. Lighteater was now embedded in the shoulder blade. Leguna could either give up on it or take a sound beating!

But something out of his expectations occurred. His fist broke the wall but Leguna was nowhere to be seen. Even the blade in his shoulder was gone.

Legg turned around and saw Leguna looking at him from afar.

"A teleportation ability?" Legg mused.

"You're free to guess." Leguna drew Ebony from his left leg strap and carefully soaked it with the blood on Lighteater.

[I wonder what face you'd make if I absorbed the blood on Lighteater now?] Gahrona teased.

[Don't mess around, Teacher! Do you want to get me killed?] After Ebony absorbed the blood, Leguna turned to Legg and said, "Here's a gift for you. Ebony's Curse, weaken! Slow!"