I only wanted to retire, but I ended up becoming an extremely popular character.

Chapter 108 I Refusal

Is this the commander of the Holy Kingdom's vanguard?

This is the captain of the Holy Kingdom who was sent to block the Empire's retreat route.

Sure enough, his strength was absolutely genuine.

Zod didn't even have time to think; his body instinctively raised his sword to block.

"Captain Axel slammed his fist into the sword, the force of which made Zod's entire arm tremble."

Steel Defense —

Zod gritted his teeth and desperately poured his 'potential' into his entire body.

He knew all too well what was going to happen next.

Axel's fists were never just fists.

Sure enough, the moment the fist touched the sword, the black rings tightly bound to Axel's knuckles suddenly shattered!

"boom--!"

Sparks flew and smoke billowed.

The shockwave from the explosion, carrying a scorching heat wave, slammed into Zod.

Zod was thrown more than ten meters away like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily to the ground and rolling several times.

He used all his strength to plunge the blade into the ground, creating a deep groove, before he could barely stop his retreating momentum.

He gripped the sword hilt tightly with both hands, gritted his teeth, and forced himself to stand up.

His legs and arms were trembling, and even his vision was blurry, but he still managed to stand up.

Captain Axel stood at a distance, watching the young officer struggle to his feet, a complex light flashing in his eyes.

Given the current disparity in strength between the two sides, Zod sees absolutely no hope of victory.

Even the speed of "Shadow Step" cannot keep up with Axel.

The opponent is at least a level two 'Hakuzan'.

Zod has only just reached that "critical state" and has not yet truly crossed it.

The popularity system can indeed grant him some rare martial arts secrets, but those are ultimately just icing on the cake.

Even the most powerful profound techniques require corresponding strength to support them.

The force that can bring about qualitative change in this world is the qualitative change brought about by the leap in the 'Kakuja' level.

With his body stuck at the first level of "Hakuja", even if Zod drew the strongest physical techniques, he would not be able to unleash his true power.

This is the harsh reality.

To defeat the formidable enemy before him, he must break through his current strength bottleneck and advance to the second level of "Hakuja".

He had no other way out.

Axel looked down at Zod, a hint of surprise in his voice: "Oh? You still want to fight? Your martial arts techniques, which push your body beyond its limits and involve rapid movement, must put a lot of strain on your body!"

From Zod's pained expression, he understood that his opponent had not yet broken through to the second level of "Hakuja" and could not fully unleash his power, making the whole battle look like dancing in shackles.

At the same time, because he could not unleash his full power, Zod had to bear the consequences of using "Shadow Step" beyond his physical limits.

Even though that Imperial lieutenant could barely stand up, the fighting spirit in his eyes did not diminish in the slightest.

Axel had seen the light in those eyes before; it was the look of a truly fearless madman.

A strange sense of admiration arose in his heart.

For an Imperial lieutenant to achieve this level of accomplishment is already quite remarkable.

An ordinary lieutenant would have been knocked down after his first few attacks.

The young man in front of him was the only one who could withstand him for so long.

He earned Axel's respect through his strength and tenacity.

Axel was still burning with anger because of Patrick's defeat.

But after witnessing Zod's strength firsthand, his anger gradually subsided, replaced by a complex emotion.

Although I feel somewhat sorry for Patrick, the battlefield is a matter of life and death, and soldiers are duty-bound to obey orders; they have no choice.

He felt a pang of reluctance to watch this promising young officer die here.

He had high hopes for Zod's potential.

For an Imperial lieutenant to achieve this level of skill, his future is limitless.

If Zod could abandon his evil ways and join the Holy Kingdom, he would undoubtedly add strength to the Holy Kingdom.

After all, it was only a matter of time before this Imperial lieutenant broke through the bottleneck of Level 1 'Kakuja' and rose to Level 2 'Kakuja'.

Captain Axel felt sorry that such a promising young man would die here.

"Surrender," Axel said in a low, sincere voice. "If you surrender, I will ensure your safety."

Zod looked up at the man standing amidst the smoke of gunpowder.

surrender?

He longed to live, more than anyone else.

But he never considered that being a prisoner, living a life of mere survival without freedom, would have little meaning.

Moreover, although the exact number of Holy Kingdom officers who died at his hands has not been counted, it seems to be quite a few.

Those blood debts, those hatreds—once they fall into enemy hands, who knows how they'll torment them to death.

Surrender? Zod would never surrender.

He only had one option left: defeat the Holy Kingdom captain in front of him and then leave.

"I refuse!"

Zod's voice trembled slightly with pain, but remained unusually firm.

Shadow Step

He poured all the remaining 'potential' in his body into his legs.

The excruciating pain pierced his very bones once more. Zod gritted his teeth, enduring the intense burning pain in his legs while simultaneously focusing on the surging, unyielding power within them—the "critical state" needed to break through to the second level of "Hakuja".

His figure disappeared from the spot once again.

In the next instant, he appeared in front of Axel, thrusting his longsword straight at the man's throat!

"It's no use, don't you understand?"

Axel didn't even flinch; he simply turned slightly to the side, and the sword's edge grazed his collarbone, missing its mark.

The next instant, he suddenly swept his right leg across, delivering a powerful side kick that landed squarely on Zod's abdomen!

Zod was kicked away again, like a kite with a broken string.

He forcefully twisted his body in mid-air, plunging the blade into the ground, creating a deep groove. His legs slid several meters before he could barely stop his retreat.

Even though he had hardened his abdomen with steel defenses beforehand, that brute force still penetrated his body.

A sharp, cramping pain shot through my lower abdomen, as if my internal organs had been displaced.

A sweet taste rose in his throat, and Zod couldn't help but spit out a mouthful of blood, the warm liquid splashing onto the ground in front of him.

Not enough —

Just a little bit more —

He raised his hand to wipe the blood from the corner of his mouth and slowly stood up.

His legs trembled uncontrollably from the excruciating pain, and every breath aggravated the wounds all over his body, but the fighting spirit in his eyes did not diminish at all; on the contrary, it burned even more fiercely.

He has no intention of compromising or giving up.

Shadow Step

Zod once again launched an attack on Axel!