“What right do you think you have to fight Duke Rand!?”
Eager to prove themselves, the weaklings that surround Rand like swarming flies stepped up one after another, using their larger numbers to fuel their guts.
However, before they could reach Dyon, they were blocked by Virvor. A moment later, Violet, Wess and Luka also stepped forward, pushing their way into the circle.
The crowd seemed to have a tacit agreement, easily backing up and allowing a near two hundred meter radius around them.
“What’s going on?” Some late stragglers hopped into the mix, whispering to each other to figure out the details.
“It seems that Duke Rand wants a piece of equipment a disciple of the 98th quadrant bought, so he came to forcefully take it back.”
Although the voices of those who explained were filled with pity and disgust, there was nothing they could do. Here, for all intents and purposes, the 74th quadrant was an overlord. It wasn’t the first time they had done something like this…
Maybe the only time the 74th quadrant lowered their head was when those genius apprentices came to challenge one another. During those times, they didn’t dare to be blatantly arrogant, lest they offend the wrong person. But, right now, there was no such event.
“Then who is that person facing off against Duke Rand alone?”
“We don’t know. He proclaimed that Duke Rand’s Presence wouldn’t affect him, so he’s likely a newly minted Duke himself. However, we don’t know his name.”
“That massive sword on his back in practitioner level weapon, if he can show it off so blatantly, maybe he really is strong?”
The murmurings of the crowd only caused Rand to become angrier. It wasn’t that he, himself, couldn’t see how much of a bastard he was being, but a master level weapon was far too greed-inducing. He couldn’t give it up, even if people scorned him behind his back.
What was even worse was the fact that Dyon was casually glancing at the situation around him, checking to make sure that his fellow disciples weren’t being overwhelmed by the numbers.
The good news was that, in order to keep his find a secret, Rand hadn’t told any other more powerful members of the 74th quadrant, so despite being outnumbered 5 to 1, they were still barely holding on.
‘This Violet girl still seems to be holding back… I wonder what she’s hiding…’
Suddenly, the sound of a sword unsheathing caused Dyon to turn his attention back to Rand.
“I’ll only give you one chance. Take out your weapon now, or else you won’t know how you died!”
A sound that sounded like half a laugh and half a scoff escaped from Dyon’s lips. “Against you? I don’t need my weapon.”
Surprising those around, Rand didn’t get angry. Instead, he sneered, brandishing his double edged sword with two hands.
He crouched forward, pushing his sword forward. His body seemed to disappear, as though the tip of his sword was the only thing left on his person, as though it was the only thing left in this world.
Dyon nodded slightly. “Not bad.” He could tell that Rand’s attainments in sword will weren’t shallow, but he had yet to break into the intent level. Some wills were simply harder to break through in compared to others, and the sword was especially difficult. In fact, weapon type wills in general were extremely difficult to progress despite not being supreme laws. It was for this reason that despite his overwhelming talent in all weapons, Dyon’s Weapon’s Master Supreme Law was still at the first will level.
Of course, that was also because Dyon had comprehended it with his life on the line and his soul was sealed soon afterward. However, that was only one way to look at it. The other way to look at it was that despite Dyon’s overwhelming comprehension abilities, despite the fact he could learn death will to the intent level in just a few months, despite the fact his comprehension was vastly improved while his soul was burning, and despite the fact he was fighting with his life on the line, he still couldn’t push past the level of a first will.
Just imagine that, a person with the soul strength nearing a half-step transcendent couldn’t progress in a will even when given a few hours. What a joke! Any dao formation expert right now could randomly pick up a will they had never studied in their lives and learn it to the peak of the will level in moments. That was the level their comprehension reached.
That was the exact position Dyon was in. Although he had burned his soul to reach that level, it had still been there… Yet, none of that mattered in the face of the supreme law of weapons…
“Hmph.” Rand snorted, not allowing Dyon’s bland compliment affect him. “Knight’s Honor. First Slash. Scorpion’s Sting!”
A blinding flash of light erupted from Rand as his sword qi coalesced in pulses, growing into a massive sphere, then condensing into a sword tip, then repeating.
A moment later, his foot violently slammed into the ground, propelling him forward as speeds an essence gatherer couldn’t match up to. It was clear he had earned his Duke title by grasping it in his own hands.
“Die!” Rand’s Presence erupted, bearing down with ferocious vigor. Those who felt it almost couldn’t control the impulse to kneel, yet they weren’t the ones feeling the full brunt of it!
CLANG! CHIII!
Rand never got the chance to reach Dyon’s unmoving form… Before he could, a celestial beauty appeared out of nowhere, forcefully pinching the tip of his sword, and snapping.
“How dare you fight here?!”