Chapter 112: Bull Tyrant
The Golden Elephant Academy captain didn’t wait.
His body began to change. Muscles swelled beneath his skin explosively, like inflating balloons. His neck thickened until his head sat on a pillar of flesh. His shoulders broadened until they were nearly twice their original width. Dark brown fur sprouted across his arms, his chest, his back. His hands twisted — fingers merging, nails thickening into curved black claws.
Within three seconds, the man was gone. In his place stood a massive minotaur — seven feet tall, standing upright on thick legs bent like a bull’s hindquarters. A ring of curved horns crowned his head. His chest was a wall of muscle covered in coarse fur. His eyes — still human, still intelligent — glowed faintly gold.
He reached into a storage ring at his wrist and pulled out a hammer.
The weapon was enormous. A-Rank, clearly — the metal hummed with dense mana, and the head alone was the size of a car tire. He held it in one massive hand like it weighed nothing.
Bruno’s eyes lit up. "Now that’s what I’m talking about."
His ability activated. Bruno’s skin gleamed with metallic luster, his muscles bulging as his body strengthening ability layered on top of it. He pulled A-Rank gauntlets from his storage ring — thick, black, reinforced with mana-conducting metal — and slid them on. His fists cracked against each other.
Clang.
"Let’s go."
Lucian drew the Moon Shattering Blade. The crescent edge caught the cliff-side light.
They charged together.
The bull captain swung his hammer in a wide horizontal arc. The wind alone from the swing sent rocks skittering across the path. Bruno stepped into it — gauntlets raised — and caught the hammer head against his forearms.
BOOM.
The impact cratered the ground beneath Bruno’s feet. His boots sank six inches into stone. But he held. His Body absorbed the kinetic force, metal skin shrieking against metal hammer.
Lucian was already moving. He flickered with Light Steps, appearing on the captain’s right side, and drove the Moon Shattering Blade toward the bull’s neck.
The captain ducked — impossibly fast for his size — and kicked Bruno backward with a hind leg.
Boom.
Bruno flew back ten meters, skidding across the rocky path, carving furrows in the stone. He stabilized quickly, shaking his arms. The gauntlets had absorbed most of the impact, but his bones ached.
Lucian pressed the attack alone. He raised his free hand and fired Blood Needle Rain.
Hundreds of crimson needles materialized and screamed toward the bull captain.
The captain’s body glowed — a faint golden light emanating from beneath his fur, like sunlight shining through skin. The needles hit the glow and deflected. Ping. Ping. Ping. They bounced off like rain hitting a shield, scattering uselessly into the rocks.
His eyes narrowed.
The captain charged. Hammer raised above his head, horns pointed forward, hooves cracking the ground with each step. He was fast — way faster than something that size had any right to be.
Lucian activated Moon Crescent Slash. The blade sang through the air, releasing a diagonal arc of mana-enhanced cutting force.
Whoosh.
The slash hit the captain’s chest. It cut through the fur — a thin line of blood appeared — but didn’t penetrate deep. His body defense absorbed most of the impact.
The captain grunted but didn’t slow. His hammer came down.
Lucian dodged with Phantom Walk. The hammer cratered the ground where he’d been standing, sending rock fragments flying.
Bruno rejoined the fight from the left. He’d closed the distance while the captain was focused on Lucian, his gauntlets crackling with stored kinetic energy.
Lucian fired three Light Bolts from his free hand — pew, pew, pew — forcing the captain to twist his massive body to dodge.
Bruno used the opening. He flanked from the left and drove his gauntlet-covered fist into the captain’s ribcage.
BOOM.
The impact was thunderous. The captain’s body lifted off the ground and crashed into a nearby cliff face.
Crash. Rumble.
Stone shattered around him. Dust billowed.
"Nice one," Lucian said.
They rushed to finish him.
Then the pressure hit as the captain roared.
The pressure descended like a physical weight. The captain’s golden glow intensified until it was blinding. His roar shook the mountain terrain itself. Loose stones vibrated. Dust fell from the cliffs above.
Lucian’s knees bent slightly. The pressure was heavy. His vampire physiology resisted the suppression through raw physical superiority.
Bruno grunted beside him, his Body metallic luster flickering as it absorbed the pressure. His body strengthening ability reinforced his muscles, keeping him upright. But sweat beaded on his forehead.
The captain pulled himself out of the crater. Blood ran from a cut on his ribs and a thin line across his chest, but his eyes were wild. Feral. Amused.
He charged again.
BOOM. Bam. Crack. Whoosh.
The fight became a blur of violence. The captain’s hammer swung in wide, devastating arcs that cratered the ground and shattered rock formations. Bruno met him head-on — gauntlets against hammer, each collision sending shockwaves rippling through the mountain path.
Clang. Boom. Clang. Boom.
Lucian attacked from every angle — Light Steps, Phantom Walk, Moon Crescent Slashes, Light Bolts, Blood Chains. The captain’s passive defense deflected or absorbed most of it, but each attack chipped away. Cuts accumulated. Blood flowed.
The captain fought back. His hammer caught Bruno across the shoulder — crack — sending him tumbling. His horns gored toward Lucian — Lucian dodged, but the horn tip caught his arm, leaving a deep gash. Eternal Regeneration closed the wound in seconds.
Back and forth. Back and forth.
A minute passed. Two.
Lucian was breathing harder than he should have been. Bruno’s Body was flickering more frequently, his mana draining from constant absorption.
And the captain — despite the accumulated cuts and bruises — was still standing.
Why haven’t we finished this guy off? Lucian thought, ducking under a hammer swing. A normal Mid Core Realm cultivator would be done by now—
He activated Eyes of the Eternals.
Name: Kham Phanphinit
Cultivation: Mid Core Realm
Ability: A-Rank Bull Transformation
Bloodline: Bull Tyrant Bloodline
Lucian’s eyes widened slightly.
No wonder. He has a bloodline too.
The Bull Tyrant Bloodline was a complete physiological upgrade — denser muscles, thicker bones, enhanced regeneration, increased pain tolerance. On top of the A-Rank transformation, it made Kham equivalent to a Late Core Realm fighter in raw durability.
Bruno and I have been fighting something that’s effectively two realms above us.
On the left side of the arena, Julian was losing.
The two Early Core Realm fighters had figured him out within the first minute. One was a rock-armored brawler who absorbed Julian’s lightning with stone gauntlets and closed distance. The other was a precision striker who attacked from range with condensed stone bullets — small, fast, impossible to ignore. Their synergy was insane.
Julian dodged the brawler’s grab and fired a lightning bolt at the striker. Zzt. It hit — the striker grunted — but the brawler was already on him, fists hammering into his guard.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
Julian’s arms went numb. He tried to create distance with Lightning Step, but the striker anticipated the movement and fired a stone bullet into his landing spot. The bullet cracked against his ribs.
Crack.
"Fuck—"
The brawler grabbed his arm. Julian electrocuted him — zzt — but the stone gauntlets absorbed most of the voltage. The striker’s next bullet hit Julian in the knee.
Crack.
Julian buckled. The brawler’s fist hit his temple.
Boom.
Julian’s vision went white. He stumbled sideways. The striker fired two more bullets — crack, crack — into his chest and shoulder.
Julian fell to one knee. Lightning crackled weakly around his fingers. His bracelet was glowing.
"No—" Julian snarled, trying to stand.
The brawler’s fist hit him in the jaw.
Crack.
Julian hit the ground. His bracelet flashed blue.
"EASA — Julian Renard eliminated."
The two GEA fighters exchanged a glance, then turned toward the center of the arena — toward the sounds of hammer strikes and explosions where Lucian, Bruno, and their captain were fighting.
They ran to help.
Lucian felt them coming before he saw them.
Blood Sense — two signatures moving fast from the left, closing the distance. Julian’s signatures were gone. Eliminated.
"Bruno," Lucian said, ducking under a hammer swing. "Two more coming from the left. The rock guy and the bullet guy. Julian’s down."
Bruno blocked a hammer strike with both gauntlets. Clang. His arms shook.
"What? You want me to—"
"I’ll handle the captain. Hold them off."
Bruno stared at him for a half second. Then he ripped a boulder out of the ground with his gauntleted hand and hurled it at the two approaching fighters.
"Fine."
He turned and charged toward them.
Lucian faced Kham Phaninit alone.
The bull captain grinned. His golden glow pulsed. His hammer rose.
"Just you and me now, silver hair."