Asura in Arknights

Compared to weapons forged from ordinary iron, this short sword... this staff has a revolutionary advantage.

The short sword clashed with the rapier in Flash's hand, but instead of the clang of metal on metal, it produced a sickening sizzling sound.

Li Ang did not manage to sever Shining's longsword as he had hoped. The blade, about the thickness of a finger, shone with the same Originium Arts brilliance, and remained motionless as it received Li Ang's sudden attack.

How is this possible? This is actually... the same type of weapon?

The short sword in Li Ang's hand was made for him by Boer Pharmaceuticals at great expense after a contract was signed.

Essentially, both the short sword and the armor Li Ang was wearing were lent to him by Pol Pharmaceuticals, and Pol Pharmaceuticals had the right to take them back once their contract ended.

This short sword cost nearly a million Kazimierz gold coins to make, and it's usually priceless; even having money doesn't guarantee you can buy it. Now that Shining has actually produced a weapon of the same type, how could Leon be surprised?

Who exactly is this woman?

Chapter Seventy-Five: The Holy Domain

Li Ang still lacks combat experience.

To be precise, he lacks experience fighting against strong opponents or those at his own level. Playing too many easy matches won't help Li Ang much; in fact, it might even weaken him.

A comprehensive perspective of perception, super-strong reflexes, and an agile body can only shorten the gap between Li Ang and those truly strong individuals, but they cannot make him ignore this perception.

Startled by Shining's weapon, Li Ang paused for a moment, revealing a negligible flaw.

The opponents he has faced recently have been unable to seize that fleeting opportunity. Even Nearl, who has the title of Radiant Knight, could spot the momentary opening, but she was not fast enough to act.

But Shining did it; she noticed Leon's pause of less than half a second.

With a twist of her wrist, Flash dissipated the remaining force from the slender sword. The tip of the sword, like a venomous snake spitting its tongue, stabbed towards Li Ang's armpit from a very sinister angle.

By the time Li Ang reacted, Shining's longsword had already transformed into a slender streak of light, shattering the protective barrier formed by the armor in an instant, and the sword continued to thrust forward with undiminished momentum.

In that split second, Li Ang promptly activated the two vector nozzles on the chest of his armor.

The scorching, high-pressure gas ejected from the nozzle, halting Shining's next attack and simultaneously increasing the distance between Leon and Shining.

What a terrifying sword strike... A bead of cold sweat trickled down Li Ang's forehead.

Damn, aren't you a doctor? How come you're so ridiculously strong? You're even stronger than the guards? What the hell?

Compared to Shining, Margaret, who was supposed to be their 'guardian,' was practically useless—her charge was still accelerating, and she was still a short distance away from Leon.

Li Ang's reaction was fast enough, but even so, he still couldn't completely dodge Shining's sword.

After piercing the protective field, Shining still left a small hole about the thickness of a finger on Li Ang's breastplate. Li Ang could feel the cold wind blowing in through that hole.

Li Ang knew that he had underestimated Shining.

He had personally tested the defensive capabilities of this armor. Due to the nature of knightly competitions, the armor's physical defense was excellent, while its magical defense was relatively weak.

Even so, with the support of the defensive field, it would take an attack of at least the level of Evil Light Slash to easily break through these two layers of defense.

This means that every sword strike Shining unleashes has an attack power similar to his Evil Light Slash.

Li Ang immediately concluded that engaging in close combat with such a person would be an extremely foolish thing to do.

The next second, the armor's emergency system kicked in, releasing a quick-repair agent that temporarily plugged the damaged area, though the defensive capabilities of that section were definitely not as good as before.

At the same time, the energy shield released by Liz reappeared on Shining once again.

“…Troublesome.” Li Ang clicked his tongue.

In a real battle, Liz would be the first person to be dealt with, but they are not fighting to the death right now.

Otherwise, given Li Ang's speed, he was more than 80% confident that he could forcefully defeat Liz before Shining could react, as her body was too weak to withstand any significant impact.

Let her be... This shield won't affect the outcome.

Once the quick-fix agent had completely solidified, Margaret charged over with an overwhelming aura. With the light and shadow effects around her, she could probably be seen for several kilometers around. Although the security situation in the Grand Knight Territory wasn't great during the Major, the commotion she caused was still a bit too much.

We must end this quickly.

Not only Li Ang, but everyone present had this thought in their minds.

"I'm sorry! I have to do this!"

Margaret loudly expressed her apology as she raised her arm shield high, aiming it at Leon, pressing down with the full weight of her metal frame.

"Drink!"

If Margaret's speed were increased to its limit, Leon would naturally dodge her shield bash as far away as possible in that state. However, there is not enough distance for Margaret to accelerate now, so her speed is not particularly fast, and the power of her shield bash is reduced as a result, but the force is still deadly.

However, Li Ang showed no intention of dodging. By then, Margaret was too late to retract her force, and the shield slammed down solidly.

"boom!!"

With a muffled thud, to Margaret's astonishment, Leon braced himself against her shield with one hand, his body sinking slightly as he effortlessly parried her shield strike.

"This power..."

This kind of power... they had never heard of it before.

Throughout his knightly matches, Li Ang has consistently demonstrated a combination of magical abilities and speed, never revealing his true power. This caused a serious oversight in Margaret's calculations.

This has led to the current awkward situation where the charge not only failed to force the opponent back, but also resulted in the attackers capturing the enemy.

"Now, it's my turn."

Leon gripped Margaret's shield with one hand, while a powerful Originium energy reaction gathered in his other hand, causing the brightness of his short sword to suddenly increase several levels.

If Margaret is unable to wrest the shield back from Leon and the stalemate continues, she will likely be hit by a spell at point-blank range.

Seeing this, Margaret decisively abandoned her shield, activated the mechanism to detach it from her arm, and then gripped the warhammer with both hands, swinging it back at Leon.

Leon grabbed the shield he had taken from Margaret and used it to block Margaret's warhammer.

At this moment, the Originium Arts in his other hand were also ready. The circular airflow, accompanied by continuous explosions, covered everything within twenty meters of Li Ang almost without any blind spots.

Nearby pine trees were uprooted and swept up by the airflow, blocking Li Ang's path. Margaret was also forced to retreat to avoid the most intense part of the storm.

Li Ang didn't expect the spell he just cast to have any effect; he only hoped to temporarily force Flash and the others back, buying time for his next spell.

A spell powerful enough to seal the deal.

But... just as Leon began preparing for the next spellcasting unit, Shining and Margaret suddenly shouted in unison, "Now!"

This immediately gave Li Ang a very bad feeling.

Are they calling Maria? No… that doesn’t seem to be the case…

Amidst the shouts of the two, Liz, who had been ignored by Li Ang, suddenly made a move.

Several ethereal blue birds flew out of the cage at the top of her staff, and a large swath of eerie blue light shone down from the birds, dyeing the entire pine forest blue.

Chapter Seventy-Six Shattered

The azure domain slowly unfolded, and under its radiance, the storm surrounding Li Ang instantly crumbled, and the Originium energy floating in the air entered a strange state of stagnation. Even the spell Li Ang was about to cast was forcibly interrupted as a result.

The impact wasn't limited to these aspects; most critically, the miniature Originium power plant built into the armor also ceased operation.

Without a power source, the armor became nothing more than a simple iron shell, severely hindering Li Ang's movements.

From the moment those illusory birds took flight to the moment when Leon's spell was forced to stop and his armor ceased functioning, less than a second had passed. Before the storm had even completely subsided, Shining and Margaret had already rushed over without hesitation.

Like Leon, they were also affected by this blue glow, but they had been fighting alongside Liz for a long time and were already familiar with the effects of Liz's spells, so they would not panic because they suddenly could not use Originium Arts.

However, for someone encountering this kind of spell for the first time, it is almost impossible to react immediately.

In order to seize the opportunity created by Liz, Shining and Margaret have coordinated countless times. When Leon subconsciously tried to break through the blocked Originium Arts, they had already surrounded him from the front and back, their weapons aimed at his vitals.

"You've already lost," Shining said, letting out a deep breath.

The continuous bursts of energy in a short period of time also put a heavy burden on her body. Although the Sarkaz people have good physiques, they cannot withstand such torment.

"I'm sorry, we wouldn't like to do this if we could, but that information is really important to us."

As if he didn't see the two weapons resting on his neck, Li Ang tried again to construct a spellcasting unit with the short sword. The result was not much different from before. A faint light flashed on the short sword and then quickly dimmed.

Within the azure domain, all Originium energy fell into a strange inert state, including the Originium particles controlled by Li Ang. Although they could still be activated with difficulty, their power had dropped from cannonballs to the level of water guns. Even if they managed to release spells, they would have no effect whatsoever.

"What is this?" Li Ang frowned and asked.

"...This is Liz's unique Originium Arts, which we usually call 'Sanctuary'."

After a moment's thought, Shining answered Leon's question, "Within the Sanctuary, all Originium Arts that do not belong to Liz will be suppressed. Not many people can use Originium Arts within the Sanctuary."

"Wow, that's quite the ability to foul..." Li Ang exclaimed.

Compared to Liz's Sanctuary, his ability to directly control Originium Particles doesn't seem as powerful.

Not only can she restrict others from using magic, but she can even interfere with the operation of the Originium Reactor. With just this one Originium technique, 'Sanctuary', Liz is enough to make her the public enemy of all sorcerers.

The only pity is that despite possessing such overpowered Originium Arts, Liz herself is completely powerless; even a slightly strong gust of wind can blow her away. Perhaps this is a kind of balance.

"But... you don't actually think that this guarantees victory, do you?"

"What?" Shining asked instinctively.

Originium Arts have been sealed by Liz. Even though Leon is very strong, there are two of them, and with them attacking from both sides, Leon cannot gain any advantage.

In this situation, how should Li Ang retaliate? Is he certain that they won't dare to go all out, so he's preparing to fight back with all his might?

However, before Shining could think for a few more seconds, an unbearable stinging pain surged up from the depths of her brain, and before she could react, she almost lost her grip on the sword.

Although Li Ang cannot use any Originium Arts, his Killing Intent Wave is not driven by Originium Energy, so it will not be affected in any way.

For Li Ang, it would be enough if he could make the two of them momentarily lose their focus.

Li Ang turned around quickly and, amidst Maria's exclamation from afar, punched the dazed Margaret in the chest.

It was clear that Margaret's breastplate was dented, and her body flew backward, crashing through a row of pine trees before coming to a stop amidst the billowing dust.

It seems that Margaret won't be able to cause trouble anytime soon.

The trap originally set for Li Ang has now become a constraint on Shining. Under the suppression of the Holy Domain, her longsword has lost its previous power. As long as she is careful, the material of Li Ang's armor alone can block most non-lethal attacks.

Shining hasn't recovered from the negative effects of the killing intent surge yet, and for the time being, she is unable to launch an effective counterattack. She can only retreat repeatedly, barely managing to parry Li Ang's heavy punches.

Not long after, she took several solid punches from Li Ang.

Seeing this, Liz seemed somewhat at a loss, unsure whether to continue maintaining the Sanctuary.

However, while Liz hesitated, Leon had already made the choice for her.

No matter how powerful the Originium Arts are, there are limits, and Li Ang has always firmly believed this.

The greatest weakness of the Sanctuary is its size.

Liz can only stop the Originium energy within a range of about 100 meters. Once she leaves this range, she will not be affected. However, Leon can control the range of Originium particles far beyond 100 meters.

The scene that happened yesterday at noon was repeated: all the Originium energy in this area was converging towards the center under Li Ang's control.

The last time Li Ang did this was to deal with a troublesome enemy, but this time his purpose is simpler. He wants to see if the Sanctuary has a limit to its capacity. When the energy of an entire moving landmass is gathered in this area, can Liz still stop this level of Originium energy?

Sure enough, as Originium continued to flow into the Sanctuary's range, Liz immediately felt the pressure on her body increase exponentially. The Sanctuary, which could originally be maintained for a long time, was instantly compressed by more than half.

Liz gritted her teeth, her body weight almost entirely pressing down on the staff, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't extend the time in the Sanctuary by even one more second.

"Shining! I...I'm about to lose control of him!" Liz shouted, her voice filled with pain.

Before her voice had even faded completely, a series of cracking sounds echoed through the sacred domain.

The black cracks spread rapidly in all directions, and the entire sanctuary was like a shattered piece of glass, turning into countless translucent blue fragments that filled the entire night sky.

Chapter Seventy-Seven: Retreat

The moment the Sanctuary shattered, Li Ang felt all the restraints on his body vanish. In fact, due to the massive gathering of Originium energy, the energy reaction here was several times more active than before. Any Originium technique he used would be significantly amplified in power.

Liz, whose sanctuary was forcibly destroyed, was naturally not unscathed. The consequences of the spell's backlash were particularly evident on her. Before she could even utter a word, her body went limp and she collapsed.

"Liz!"

Shining called out Liz's name anxiously, but received no response. Without hesitation, she took a hit head-on, sacrificing blood from the corner of her mouth to forcefully break free from Leon's clutches.

She rushed back as fast as she could, and Shining took Liz from the somewhat bewildered Maria's arms. The light representing healing magic immediately enveloped Liz's entire body.

A moment later, Shining gently put Liz down and stood up from the ground without saying a word.

"What, do you want to continue?" Li Ang raised an eyebrow and asked.

Shining raised his sword, devouring the nearby Originium energy like a whale sucking in water; the energy on the sword surged rapidly in a short time.

Does this mean... we should continue?

Regardless of Shining's true intentions, Leon couldn't just stand there doing nothing. So he took out his short sword and gathered the surrounding Originium energy even faster than Shining.

A hazy, seven-colored halo mingled with a blinding white light. Li Ang was waiting for Shining to make the first move, while Shining was still hesitating.