Chapter 73: What is this?!
Two giant reddish-brown arms appeared beside him, with one imposing limb hovering on each side of his body.
The surrounding air distorted violently from the intense thermal energy radiating off the massive summoned constructs, casting an eerie, reddish light across the ruined marble floor of the grand reception hall.
Each of them were nearly two meters long, with jagged red cracks running from the elbows all the way down to the solid, stone-like fingers.
The sheer size of the floating arms dwarfed the surrounding architecture, hovering in the air like ancient, dormant siege engines ready to crush anything in their path.
The arms looked like volcanic mountains, and the red cracks made the forearms look like boiling magma was about to erupt from them at any given second.
The intense heat radiating from the fissures singed the dust particles lingering in the air, creating a faint, suffocating smoke that filled the space between the father and son.
There were thin, red needle-like spikes lining the area around the forearms, jutting outward like deadly crimson quills.
Each individual spike pulsed with a dangerous, concentrated energy, vibrating rapidly as if charged with unstable explosive magic that was begging to be unleashed.
Teon glanced at Leon with a menacing, bloodthirsty glare, his S-rank authority flaring outward as he shouted, "You think you can defeat me, don’t get too cocky you brat!"
He spread his arms wide, controlling the gigantic volcanic limbs with his absolute will as he prepared to crush the arrogant outcast into the floor.
Leon scoffed at the intimidating sight, his posture remaining completely relaxed and unbothered by the display of power.
He gripped the hilt of Excalibur tightly in his hand, his eyes shining with a cold, mocking light as he looked at the floating arms and said, "Those two arms wouldn’t be enough."
He swung his glowing blade casually through the air, the sheer residual pressure of the brief swing leaving a deep, burning gash on the marble floor beneath his feet. The holy energy slicing through the tile served as a clear declaration that he was entirely unawed by his father’s legendary magic.
He pointed the brilliant golden sword directly at the patriarch and shouted across the ruined hall, "Come on father! Unleash the full Asura!"
His voice carried a sharp, provocative edge, daring the guildmaster to stop holding back and fight him with every single ounce of strength he possessed.
Teon gnashed his teeth in absolute fury, his jaw locking tight as his blood boiled at his son’s disrespectful taunts. His face contorted into a dark scowl, and he roared back in blind rage, "Don’t get too cocky brat!"
The spikes on the forearms glowed with a blinding, terrifying crimson light, detaching from the volcanic skin and shooting straight towards Leon at a terrifying speed.
They tore through the air like a lethal volley of red lightning, creating sharp, deafening sonic booms that shattered whatever glass remained in the lobby frame.
They reached him in an instant, cutting through the distance so fast that normal human eyes wouldn’t have even registered the attack launched from the giant limbs.
The lethal crimson needles converged on his location from multiple angles, threatening to turn his body into a bloody sieve before he could even take another step.
However, the radiant green shield of Aegis appeared directly in front of Leon before they could hit him, materializing instantly to form an absolute, unyielding barrier.
The ancient green light flared brilliantly, absorbing the violent kinetic force of the spikes and locking them in place before a single needle could pierce his skin.
The spikes slammed violently against the shield instead, their sharp crimson tips grinding against the brilliant green surface of Aegis with a deafening screech.
The defensive barrier absorbed the full impact of the lethal barrage in a second, flashing with power before immediately launching every single needle straight back toward Teon with even more terrifying speed.
Teon’s eyes widened in shock, his jaw dropping as he failed to comprehend how his own high-speed attack had been instantly reflected right back into his face.
He hadn’t expected his spikes to suddenly reappear right in front of him with doubled kinetic force, leaving him with virtually zero time to react to the returning deadly volley.
The two giant arms by his side went into action without a moment’s delay, their massive stone-like joints grinding together as they stretched their wide palms straight toward the incoming projectile attack.
Driven by his instinctual S-rank reflexes, the volcanic constructs moved as a unified defensive shield to protect their master from his own reflected power.
A thick, dense reddish-brown wall rose rapidly from the marble ground directly in front of him, erecting a massive elemental barrier to block the returning needles.
The earth and stone surged upward with immense force, sealing off the central plaza floor and locking Teon safely behind a thick slab of volcanic fortification.
The spikes struck the wall with a series of loud, explosive bangs, drilling deep, smoking holes across its rough surface upon impact. The raw impact shook the entire lobby floor, kicking up thick clouds of dust and stone fragments as the needle-like projectiles buried themselves deep into the barrier, though they were ultimately unable to tear completely through.
Teon was deeply shocked as he glanced at the wall directly in front of him, his pale face turning even darker as he noticed a few of the crimson needles had actually managed to poke out slightly from behind the stone.
The tips of his own reflected attack hovered just inches from his nose, radiating intense heat through the newly formed cracks in his defense.
His mind raced in absolute disbelief as he stared at the damaged stone barrier, and he thought to himself in pure bewilderment, ’What is this?!’
He couldn’t make sense of the overwhelming kinetic power that had just driven his own signature attack so far through his heavy elemental fortification.
He was completely sure that the spikes he had sent out initially weren’t strong enough to almost break through his shield like this.
The strange, miraculous property of the green barrier had clearly amplified the strength and speed of the reflected projectiles, turning his own offense into a near-fatal threat against his defense.
He couldn’t think for long, however, as a long, brilliant crescent-shaped slash suddenly came flying straight at him from beyond the dust cloud, crackling violently with arcs of golden lightning.