Chapter 36: Chapter 36: Fierce Battle
"That's more like it..."
Tendo looked at the now serious Coral Knight, the corner of his mouth curving upwards. "The killing intent in your eyes now is far more interesting than the childish play from before."
"Since that's the case, I'll get a little serious too."
As his words fell, Tendo first stretched, then placed his left hand on his left knee and his right hand on his straightened right leg.
He actually started a warm-up exercise right in front of the Coral Knight and the hundreds of thousands of viewers on the dimensional screen. His actions undoubtedly hinted to everyone that everything before was merely an appetizer.
The main course... was about to begin!
"Alright, old man, bring it on."
Having finished his warm-up, Tendo beckoned to the Coral Knight with a hook of his finger, his tone relaxed, indicating that he could begin his attack. After all, Tendo, who saw himself as the one being challenged, wouldn't actively attack his challenger.
Facing the relaxed Tendo, the Coral Knight's eyes were filled with complexity. The reason he hadn't activated the awakened ability of his Star Source, Sea Thorn Coral, earlier was entirely out of concern that the highly venomous spikes might cause some irreparable damage to Tendo. But now, it seemed he had worried for nothing.
Everything was as Tendo said; as a Second-Tier Star Emissary, he was the true challenger between them. If he didn't get serious, this test would truly be meaningless. Thinking this, the Coral Knight couldn't help but sigh with emotion.
Tendo Simei, you truly are a monster, just as Ms. Yun said. No, merely calling you a monster cannot express the immense shock you've brought me at this moment. You are a 'King,' the undisputed King... among countless monsters! And to face a King like you, if I were to continue holding back, that wouldn't be knightly mercy, but sacrilege towards you.
So, let me, this humble knight, witness with my own eyes. Just how terrifying is your strength, you 'King of Stars'!
Thinking this, the Coral Knight finally held nothing back. He exerted sudden force with his left hand, and a large amount of purple coral emerged from his left arm, embedding themselves completely into the specially designed grooves on the shell heavy shield.
A moment later, the massive shell heavy shield suddenly began to split and reassemble with a clang. In an incredibly short time, it transformed into a grotesque gauntlet, fully covering his left arm.
Not only that, but the cross-hook fishing spear in the Coral Knight's right hand was also submerged by a large number of coral spikes into the grooves on its shaft. Amidst a reorganization, it completely covered the Coral Knight's right arm, transforming into a spear-gauntlet.
Left hand a gauntlet, right hand a spear-gauntlet, his entire body covered in heavy armor, coupled with his terrifying 2.2-meter height. At this moment, the Coral Knight had transformed into a walking, awe-inspiring, half-metal, half-coral humanoid monster. His oppressive presence was so strong that even the viewers outside the dimensional screen couldn't help but sit up straight. After all, the Coral Knight now was simply a completely different person from before!
Good heavens, is this what a serious Second-Tier Star Emissary looks like? The pressure is too intense.
No way, can he really win, bro? He's not going to flip over in the gutter, is he?
So this guy is actually an armored warrior, and he even transforms!
Watching the Coral Knight switch from 'defensive stance' to 'offensive stance,' Tendo, the main character, didn't panic. Instead, it was the dimensional viewers, as spectators, who panicked.
Without giving Tendo much time to react, the Coral Knight, having switched to an offensive stance and become completely serious, immediately launched a fierce attack.
Deep Blue Flow - Fang Thrust!
The Coral Knight's terrifying explosiveness caused large cracks to appear in the ground beneath his feet as he stomped. The 2.2-meter giant turned into a purple afterimage, instantly appearing before Tendo and throwing a punch at his face. The power of this punch was so exaggerated that it even caused the air to howl. His fist hadn't even arrived, yet its force had already swept back the silver hair from Tendo's forehead.
"Boom—!!!"
Facing the Coral Knight's terrifying punch, Tendo chose to directly resist it head-on. The moment his palm collided with the spiked gauntlet, a visible circular shockwave erupted from their center. In an instant, the concrete ground within a ten-meter radius of them began to shatter like fragile biscuits. Large amounts of shattered stone flew out, damaging many vehicles parked in the lot.
But more shocking than the commotion caused by this punch was the result it produced. His fist was actually firmly caught by Tendo, and those venomous spikes, capable of piercing armored vehicles, were all halted merely millimeters from Tendo's skin. It was as if an invisible barrier perfectly covered Tendo's body, keeping the spikes at bay.
Looking at the astonished Coral Knight, Tendo smiled and said, "Old man, do you know what the most interesting thing about vector control is?"
As Tendo spoke, the five fingers of his palm slowly tightened. During this process, the Coral Knight's metal gauntlet began to groan under the unbearable pressure, and the spikes on the gauntlet showed visible bending.
Crack!
The gauntlet suddenly twisted and deformed, its venomous spikes snapping one by one. Before the Coral Knight could react, he suddenly felt a huge force emanating from his right arm. The next second, he felt his body take a heavy blow, and he was flung into the air. During this process, Tendo's figure appeared like a ghost above him, finishing the sentence he hadn't completed.
"The most interesting thing about vector control is that it can reflect all the enemy's power... right back at them."
Tendo raised his right hand and delivered a fierce elbow strike to the Coral Knight's chest.
Boom!
The Coral Knight's body plummeted from the sky like a meteor, and upon landing, he smashed into the ground, creating a spiderweb-like circular crater with a diameter of over seven or eight meters.
"Cough!"
In the crater, the Coral Knight coughed up a mouthful of fresh blood, clearly heavily injured. But before he could adjust much, his peripheral vision caught sight of a figure descending towards him from the sky. Tendo was diving down, his right leg like a battle-axe, cleaving towards him.
Without any hesitation, the Coral Knight immediately shielded his head with both hands. The coral sea thorns on his body instantly grew wildly, forming a hardened, thorny carapace.
Deep Blue Flow - Coral Armor!
Thud!
Tendo's battle-axe-like leg chop ultimately failed to completely break through the Coral Knight's Coral Armor in one go. It only slammed the Coral Knight about another meter into the ground. Using the force transmitted from above, Tendo leveraged himself to flip and land. His shoe soles scraped against the ground, creating sparks, and he finally came to a complete stop about ten meters away.
The battle paused temporarily at this point. However, this lightning-fast combat had left countless people in awe. So much so that the previously dense bullet comments experienced a brief vacuum...
Tendo's strength... exceeded everyone's imagination!