NOVEL WEB Chapter 721: Beast Form
Noir's grin slowly disappeared, replaced by something colder when he felt that his opponent's punches were becoming more terrifying with each second.
At the beginning, he had been suppressing himself to match Nox's strength. But now, in this moment, it could only be said Nox was already stronger, and the Demon Prince was starting to feel the strain.
"So you really do have some bite," Noir muttered, wiping the blood from his lip. His eyes glowed with madness. "Fine then… let's raise the tempo again!"
BOOOOM!
The aura around him erupted violently. Black lightning exploded outward, swallowing the sky, arcs tearing straight holes through the battlefield.
"Ahhh!" soldiers screamed as the ground split apart, dragging both humans and demons down into endless cracks.
The pressure instantly doubled. Everyone froze, their bodies trembling. Breathing became torture.
"Wh-what kind of power is this?!" one soldier cried, his knees buckling.
"I can't breathe! My lungs… they're going to burst!" another gasped, clutching his chest.
"Even Awakened can't stand it! How do we fight against monsters like this?!"
"Run! If we stay here, we'll die for nothing!"
Some stumbled back in panic, scurrying away from the battlefield, faces pale with fear. They could only think that if they stayed even one more second, death would be absolute.
Meanwhile, the few who still stood gripped their weapons tighter, sweat pouring down like rain as they struggled not to collapse under the suffocating weight.
Nox's eyes narrowed. He could feel it too—every strike from Noir now carried the weight of a mountain. If he wasn't careful, even a single graze would crush him into nothing.
"Seventy percent," Noir said casually, his smile creeping back as his crimson hair whipped in the storm wind. "That should be enough to tear you apart."
The soldiers and Awakened who overheard trembled in despair when they realized the enemy who had caused all this destruction was still holding back!
Then, right before Nox's eyes, Noir vanished. To the others, it looked like he had disappeared completely, but Nox knew—it was speed, so fast it looked unreal.
CRASH!
The ground split apart in the next second, a massive crater exploding outward where Noir reappeared with his strike.
Nox barely reacted in time. Glacier's End came up and intercepted the fist glowing with black lightning. The impact detonated right in front of his face, blasting him backward hundreds of meters.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
His body smashed across the battlefield, bouncing again and again through the ground. Wherever he landed, a crater exploded open. Even with Limit Breaker activated, Nox could barely stop himself from being completely torn apart.
'He's far stronger than before…' Nox thought grimly. Blood slid down his temple, his breathing growing heavier. Even with Limit Breaker forcing his body beyond the limit, the backlash was catching up.
His muscles screamed, veins bulged, cracks spreading across his arms like his own skin couldn't contain the power anymore.
Noir noticed instantly and smirked. "Ahhh… so this is the price of your little trick. Your body is falling apart."
But Nox ignored him.
His left eye flickered with a faint glow, shadows gathering in his palm.
"Shadow Oblivion!"
FWOOOOOM!
A massive torrent of black energy erupted from his hand. Like a tide of darkness released, it swallowed everything in its path.
Noir's pupils shrank. He crossed his arms, black lightning bursting out to meet the attack.
BOOOOOOM!
The collision tore open the sky.
A shockwave of pure darkness swept in all directions. Even powerful Awakened couldn't endure, forced down to their knees. Soldiers and demons were blasted away like broken dolls.
Right now, the battlefield was split into three parts. One side was Awakened clashing with demons. The other side was Eve and Bridget locked with Number Two. And the last, the largest battlefield, was claimed only by Nox and Noir.
To avoid being destroyed by the two, demons and humans alike abandoned that battlefield, fleeing as far as possible.
Dust and rubble rolled like waves. When it finally cleared, Noir stood in the middle of the chaos. His body was burned and bleeding, but the grin on his face didn't disappear.
"Now this… truly beautiful." Noir licked the blood from his hand, his eyes shining madly. "But you must do better. This is only seventy percent of my strength."
Nox staggered forward. He coughed out large mouthfuls of blood, his arms shaking endlessly. Each step left a trail of blood on the ruined ground.
'Damn it… my bones are breaking… Limit Breaker won't last much longer…'
But still, Nox met the Demon Prince's gaze with unyielding will. He still had tricks yet to use.
Noir's grin widened, his tone mocking. "Yes, continue struggling. The harder you fight, the sweeter it will be when I crush you in the end."
At the very center, their killing intent collided like two storms without end.
One storm already beginning to collapse.
The other… only just starting.
Meanwhile on top of distant buildings, a figure was calmly watching. The figure had a blindfold covering his eyes, however he watched the ongoing battle as if he could see exactly what was unfolding.
Naturally, this person was Zarek Ans. Just like the others, he had stepped through Nox's Sovereign Gate.
Since the beginning of the war, the vampire had yet to participate in the fight himself—simply observing.
"Young Master Nox seems to be holding his own against that Demon Prince… but his body won't last. Whatever skill he's using is eating him up from the inside."
But down below, Nox had already reached his limit. His breath was rough, chest rising and falling heavily, blood covering his whole body. Even standing straight was pain.
Zarek narrowed his eyes behind the blindfold. He wanted to lend a helping hand, however recalling his master's warning, the vampire held back.
All he could do was clench his fist and watch Nox suffer.
Nox's vision blurred. Every strike made him feel as if his bones were about to shatter apart.
'No… not enough… if I stop here then I die.'
Grinding his teeth, he forced himself to stand again. His hands trembled, veins swelling like they wanted to burst.
Seeing that he couldn't hold on anymore, Nox roared loudly and activated another skill.
"Beast Form!"