Chapter 158 - Implosion
Shioko\'s body language expressed her thrill, trembling at the sight of that supreme power. The dragon flame was really able to counter the power of a warlock who could manipulate matter, whose dark power had been amplified by a drop of blood of the Immortal Gonshiro.
As the dark sphere continued to rise in Ogai\'s hands, he was blinded by the light of the dragon flame, like a man on the tracks illuminated by the glow of the headlights of a running train.
Despite having a full perception of Yoichi\'s level of strength, Ogai could never have predicted that it would more than triple. That standard-looking, unarmed warrior actually possessed powers as old as the world itself, dating back to the era when dragon demons were the only rulers of Lumya.
Knowing that if he paused his attack, Yoichi\'s arms would hit him right in his face, the Void Summoner released his tension with a scream and continued to push upwards, supported by the black mud geyser.
The air in the vicinity of the young tamer became so red-hot that the particles of oxygen and carbon dioxide vibrated, creating an ethereal pellicle that reflected the red color of his arms, emphasizing their brightness.
Suddenly, as had been predicted, Yoichi\'s two glowing hands, imbued with Kenji\'s feral power, violently impacted the sphere, colliding with the only power capable of countering the dragon flame.
*boom*BOOM* - as soon as the two bodies touched each other, a little, short explosion followed: the energy that soiled the air accumulated at the point of contact between the scaled hands and the sphere. The implosion lasted only for a moment and was followed by a devastating detonation.
A column of energy enveloped the two fighters, widening more and more in diameter and hitting the bottom and the ceiling of the cave. Under Shioko\'s incredulous eyes, the powers of those two attacks fused with each other creating a giant gap on the cave ceiling, digging hundreds of meters into the stone.
The ray of flames and darkness continued to travel upwards, devouring everything in its path, including the harder rocks that made up the massif that housed that old dungeon.
When the energy of the fight was consumed, the visual effect that had hidden the two challengers for a few seconds disappeared instantly, revealing their position.
"Yoichi!" Shioko screamed, unable to hold back her tension. The archer continued to hold Enatsu\'s back, preventing the young merchant from sinking into the mud layer.
Her large green eyes shone with contrasting feelings. A mixture of fright and joy assaulted her, petrifying her like a marble statue.
Across the room, the two challengers were still in mid-air. However, the wave of black mud that had supported Ogai until then, had been swept away by the young tamer\'s dragon flame.
Yoichi was still stationary in the same position, his fiery arms facing down, after hitting the target and destroying the dark sphere. In contrast, Ogai\'s head was facing down: the Kamakiri\'s warlock was in freefall, failing to counter Kenji\'s draconic skill and its tamer.
Yoichi\'s two connected fists had destroyed in a thousand pieces the energy sphere that lay in Ogai\'s hands. It had caused that explosion, gathering the tongues of fire scattered in the air and channeling them all upwards, into a whirlwind of darkness and fire with astonishing destructive power.
*stomp*splash* - After the Void Summoner fell to the ground, raising a cloud of dust and splashing on the mud layer, Yoichi landed on his feet like a felid. Fragments of rock continued to rain from the ceiling of the cave, risking hitting all those present.
Shioko stood motionless at the same spot, knowing she was safe. Thanks to Yoichi\'s thoughtfulness, the fight had been moved to the other side of the cave. The young tamer had purposely lured his enemy to the other side, to drive him away from his companions, one of whom was still unconscious.
The grayish dust of the crumbling rock burned in contact with the tongues of fire emanating from Yoichi\'s arms, emitting yellowish sparks. Scorching Breath had been successfully activated and the energy stored up to that point in the young tamer\'s chest had greatly enhanced the intensity of the skill.
Under Yoichi\'s feet, the black mud began to move again. He prepared to dodge the dark arms that would come off the floor, instead, the sticky substance slowly crawled toward the cloud of dust.
Ogai\'s body was lifted from the floor and his shape began to barely be visible again. When void summoner finally came out into the open, Shioko put his hand in front of her mouth, unable to believe her eyes.
Ogai\'s right arm was completely broken: the ulna had pierced his elbow, popping out of the flesh and overlapping the humerus. The Kamakiri\'s warlock\'s upper limb had been reduced to a shapeless cluster of bones and tendons broken like the strings of an old guitar.
As if it were an inanimate object, the arm hung from the enemy\'s shoulder. Ogai, resting both feet on the ground, stood motionless in his position, while his throat was constricting.
"What... what is that power...?" he stammered, coughing up blood between words. His entire body had evidently been damaged by that attack: unable to suffer the damage of the dark energy that he himself had summoned, the wounds on his chest, face, and arms had inevitably been caused only by the dragon flame.
Kenji stood still in the same position, witnessing the fight from afar. In the middle of its black demonic horns, the reflection of the flame that ran along his back and ended with greater intensity on the tail.
"Before I end your existence, I have some questions for you. Try to give me quick answers, otherwise, the next blow will reduce your body to ashes!" Yoichi roared, channeling all his feelings and shooting them violently in the form of words.
"Those flames... it\'s not... It\'s not possible! Only one power can counter the Blackblood," Ogai sorrowfully answered, evading his interlocutor\'s explicit request. "Who... who are you?"