Chapter 394 - 390: The Fighting Duke
The roaring in his ears was incessant, but Duke Eldrin’s thoughts felt as if they were sinking into a quagmire.
He had thought he could put up a fight with the advantage of his position, but he never expected the enemy to unleash weapons the likes of which he had never seen.
After three or four waves of high-intensity attacks, the port was reduced to rubble. Fortifications, cover—everything was utterly destroyed.
WHOOSH!
A Fel Energy Bomb streaked through the air, heading straight for the high-rise command post where the Duke was stationed.
Duke Eldrin’s expression changed abruptly. Surging Fighting Qi erupted from his body, forming a suit of heavy Armor as he drew the Longsword from his waist.
The giant Longsword formed of Fighting Qi shattered the window and struck the incoming Fel Energy Bomb with precision.
BOOM!
With a deafening crack of thunder, the Fel Energy Bomb exploded in midair. The terrifying shockwave nullified the power of the Duke’s Combat Technique before flooding into the command post.
The Guards standing nearby who couldn’t react in time were killed instantly by shrapnel. The others either raised their Shields or swung their Longswords to block the flying fragments.
They survived, but the walls of the command post were torn apart by the immense energy.
"Its power is nothing special!"
Duke Eldrin roared in fury, "Bin, Manuel, Kanan, with me! We’re charging out!"
"Sir!"
Just as they were about to leap from the command post, a terrifying pressure descended upon them all.
They snapped their heads up to see a dense flurry of sword images blanketing the sky like a torrential downpour, descending with an aura of pure destruction.
’An attack from the sky?’
The question flashed through everyone’s mind, but they had no time to search for an answer. They could only muster their Fighting Qi to the absolute limit, each unleashing their strongest Combat Techniques.
The combined attack of the four Shooting Star Warriors surged upward, colliding with the Sword Rain Storm in the sky. The immense power of the impact created a terrifying shockwave that was so strong it seemed to make the very surface of the sea tremble.
The Sword Rain Storm’s power was diminished by more than half, but its remaining force still crashed down on the ruined command post, knocking Duke Eldrin and his men to the ground.
The Duke looked up at the sky, his pupils contracting sharply.
High in the heavens, a figure slowly descended. Unfurled from his back were a pair of vast, ethereal wings condensed from the Wind Element—a sight that was as breathtaking as it was chilling.
It was Duane. After directing the initial assault, he had flown into the sky.
He was also the one who had thrown that oversized Fel Energy Bomb. It had only damaged the building, however, and had not harmed the Warriors before him.
In the end, the Fel Energy Bomb was merely a tool for breaking the stalemate, not a weapon that could defeat everyone.
"Even after being battered by our attacks, you still haven’t lost your courage to fight."
Duane landed gently on the ground, the wings on his back dissipating.
"Duke Eldrin, this is our first formal meeting, yet you’ve left a deep impression on me. Truly worthy of the patriarch of a century-old clan!"
His voice was gentle, devoid of any killing intent.
Yet to Duke Eldrin and his men, it sounded so cold it sent a shiver down their spines.
Count Manuel, along with Bin and Kanan, stood by the Duke’s side in a defensive stance.
Eldrin gave a bitter smile. "You must be Duane Brian. A pleasure to finally meet you. You’ve certainly left an indelible impression on me as well."
’We had planned to use long-range attacks to keep him from even making landfall, to prevent even an Ascension Level Warrior from bringing their full power to bear.’
’How laughable that idea seems now.’
’Who could have possibly guessed the man can fly?’
Below the command post, the bombardment had ceased. Kaelon, Marles, and their troops took the lead, making landfall first. They established a temporary beachhead on the port grounds, providing cover for the rest of their forces to come ashore.
Although the bombing had inflicted heavy casualties on the defenders of the Crown of Tides, about half of them survived and were still able to fight. Led by several Celestial Tier Warriors, they fiercely resisted the landing forces.
The sounds of battle cries tore through the air.
They had no idea that their Lord was already in a perilous predicament.
"If I had known about your weapons and your true strength, I would have taken the initiative and met you on the open sea for a battle to the death," Duke Eldrin said.
A faint smile touched Duane’s lips. "You wouldn’t have had an advantage at sea, either."
"But at least I could have inflicted greater losses on you!"
The Duke resolutely raised his Sword, transforming into a blur as he charged at Duane.
His trusted men immediately moved to support him, forming a four-pronged pincer attack. Even now, they wanted to see if they stood any chance of fighting back.
’I can’t help but feel a little respect,’ Duane thought.
’But as I am now, four Shooting Star Warriors are no longer a match for me.’
With his Long Spear in hand, he executed a Spear Skill derived from the Thousand Shadows Staff Combat Techniques, weaving an inescapable net around himself. Behind every afterimage was a true spear shadow, each one containing immense Strength.
BANG! BANG! BANG!...
Amidst a rapid series of impacts, Duke Eldrin and his men were sent flying backward. One of them lost his footing and plummeted toward the ground below.
"Bin!" the Duke cried out in alarm.
The one who fell was his younger brother.
𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮
Bin slammed hard onto the ground, coughing up a mouthful of blood.
A fall from forty or fifty meters wasn’t enough to kill a Shooting Star Warrior. The bloody hole Duane’s spear had just punched through his shoulder was a far more serious wound.
Duane rested the tip of his spear on the ground. "I admire your courage, and I’m willing to abide by the rules of the Nobility. You now have two choices."
"First, you can continue to draw your swords against me until I kill you. If so, I will ensure you receive a burial with full honors."
"Second, you can surrender to me and become my prisoners."
He was in no hurry.
With the top experts of the Crown of Tides tied up here with him, the pressure on Kaelon and the others was greatly reduced.
Besides, he had no desire to end this war quickly with his own power. After all, Kaelon and his men needed to be baptized by blood and fire to become truly exceptional commanders.
Duane’s personal strength was great—he could probably conquer a city all by himself—but conquering a city was not the same as defending or ruling one.
That was where the value of his followers became apparent.
Duke Eldrin’s fist clenched, then relaxed, then clenched again, before finally slackening for good.
He threw his head back, took a deep breath, and then exhaled heavily. A bitter smile crossed his face. "When I was thirty, I was defeated by Howard and became a Duke of the Akutas Kingdom. I thought I would never be made a prisoner for a second time in my life, but I never imagined..."
He looked at Duane and said, "Very well. I accept your second offer. I surrender. But I have one condition!"
Duane’s brow furrowed slightly. "You’re in no position to be making demands, but I’m willing to listen."
"I ask that when you conquer Star Sea City, you do not slaughter its people." A note of pleading entered Duke Eldrin’s voice.
It was the birthplace of his clan, the place he loved most.
Duane’s furrowed brow smoothed out. He had expected the Duke to ask for something of material value, or to demand the release of certain people. He hadn’t expected this.
"Rest assured, I have no interest in slaughtering the city’s inhabitants. Provided, of course, that they do not resist," Duane said. "Therefore, I accept your condition."
CLANG.
Duke Eldrin threw his weapon to the ground. He then glanced at his trusted men. "Surrender. We can’t defeat him."
’We’ve done all we could. The gap in raw power is simply too great to overcome.’ As for choosing death before dishonor, he clearly wasn’t prepared to go that far.
"You’ve made a wise choice."
Duane smiled and retrieved several pairs of manacles from his Void Space.
"My apologies, gentlemen. Although you are all of the Nobility, I must take precautions to prevent you from escaping or causing trouble for my men. This will be a temporary inconvenience."
As Duane fastened the manacles on their wrists, he explained, "These are forged from Meteorite Iron. Even a Star Realm Warrior would find them difficult to break quickly."
Duke Eldrin and his men did not resist. Noble dignity is worthless in defeat; their treatment now depended entirely on their captor’s whims.
"Duane, we have surrendered. You can order the fighting below to stop now."
The Duke added, "There’s no need for unnecessary sacrifices on either side."
Duane grunted in assent and walked to the edge of the shattered platform to look down on the port. By now, his forces had landed successfully and were pushing the enemy back on four fronts, forcing them into a steady retreat. The port ground was littered with countless bodies.
While most of the dead were the Duke’s men, his own side had also suffered injuries and fatalities.
’Absorbing an enemy army is never easy.’
’If you want to absorb them, you first have to crush their will to fight.’
Duane waited quietly, only making his move once the soldiers of the Star Sea Clan were completely surrounded with no path of retreat.
"Your Grace, come down with me," Duane said, leaping from the high platform.
With a long sigh, Duke Eldrin followed him down.