Chapter 88: Shaping the Soul, Under One's Own Voice
Su Hao, clad in a silver armor marked with numerous scars, revealed only his bright and lively eyes.
The King of Men, adorned in golden armor, was engraved with inscriptions under Su Hao's "Radiance of Runes." By now, the inscriptions were worn and smeared with blood, but the old face emanated a formidable presence.
Su Hao's short knife dimmed for a moment, then brightened with a dull gleam as the runes on his armor activated.
The King of Men raised his broken sword, pointing it directly at Su Hao.
The King of Men still possessed a tremendous amount of vitality, roughly ten times that of Su Hao. Su Hao's own vitality was dwindling, and he was unable to directly confront the King of Men head-on. However, he could compensate for the disparity by utilizing the runes. The outcome remained uncertain.
Su Hao made the first move, rushing toward the King of Men with a stomp of his foot.
"Earth Thorn!"
"Plop, plop, plop!"
A multitude of earth thorns suddenly emerged in the area where the King of Men stood, and he leaped into the air to evade them.
That was precisely what Su Hao wanted. His speed on the ground couldn't match that of the King of Men, but once in mid-air, they were evenly matched.
Explosive force surged beneath Su Hao's feet as he shot towards the King of Men.
The short knife emitted a faint gray light and aimed a simple straight thrust at the King of Men's face.
A smirk formed on the corner of the King of Men's mouth. It had been a while since he had encountered someone bold enough to challenge him like this.
With a slight knock of his broken sword, the King of Men parried Su Hao's attack and followed through with a waist-level slash.
Su Hao retracted his short knife for a block.
"Clang!"
A great force struck, sending Su Hao flying and leaving a deep trench as he crashed into the ground.
"?!?!" Su Hao flipped and leaped to his feet, landing steadily. He prepared for defense and couldn't help but wonder with a question mark floating in his mind: Was the difference in power that significant? Nevertheless, with the protection of the three runes, "Barrier," "Hardening," and "Deflection," it shouldn't be a problem.
As the King of Men landed, he instantly erupted with power and charged directly at Su Hao, unleashing a powerful and forceful slash.
Su Hao rolled to the side to evade and planned to counterattack, but to his surprise, he was met with the King of Men's big foot.
"Thud!"
Su Hao was kicked away, crashing heavily into the ground and leaving a deep groove. Eventually, he fell into a cloud of dust, and the King of Men immediately pursued.
"Swoosh!"
In a split second, along with stone debris and dust, Su Hao suddenly appeared behind the King of Men.
It seemed that the King of Men had long noticed Su Hao's presence, but he didn't turn around. He simply swung his broken sword backward.
"Shadow Glide!"
Su Hao instantly flashed to the other side of the King of Men.
"Deceptive Thrust!"
The short knife aimed directly at the gaps in the armor, piercing through.
"Clang!"
The King of Men deflected the attack with his gauntlet, causing the punch to veer off course. However, the force behind it remained as it struck Su Hao once again, sending him flying.
As Su Hao landed, he immediately jumped up and launched another attack on the King of Men.
Soon enough, Su Hao found himself being sent flying by the King of Men, experiencing the same feeling others had when they were knocked away by him.
After several back-and-forth exchanges lasting more than a dozen rounds...
The King of Men looked at Su Hao, who was once again climbing out of the rubble, and calmly said, "If this is your strength, then it ends here."
Su Hao licked the blood on his lip and said, "Not quite! Just let it come."
The King of Men's eyes glared with anger as he charged at Su Hao. "Blade of the Void!"
Su Hao also rushed towards the King of Men.
"Eroding Liquid!"
A large mass of semi-mist, semi-liquid green substance sprayed towards the King of Men.
The King of Men changed the direction of his sword swing and swept away all the green substances with a single stroke, then followed up with a slash towards Su Hao.
Su Hao blocked the attack with his knife while activating the prepared rune.
"High-Voltage Current!"
"Crackling~"
A large number of electric arcs traveled from the short knife to the King of Men's broken sword and spread throughout his body via the armor.
The King of Men's eyes widened, his entire body stiffened and paralyzed, losing control.
Su Hao closed in, his short knife radiating various states of light, aiming for the King of Men's eyes.
"Deceptive Thrust!"
"My body is out of control!" The King of Men, looking at the imminent blade, grimaced.
Veins popped on his neck, a surge of blood erupted, and he slightly tilted his head, avoiding a critical blow to his eyes.
Su Hao's short knife pierced above the King of Men's eye socket!
"Clang!"
However, after piercing the skin, the long knife penetrated the skull but got stuck and couldn't go any further.
At this moment, the King of Men's face was covered in densely packed golden patterns.
He swung his long sword, launching an attack at Su Hao.
Su Hao immediately let go of the knife, rolled back, and retreated.
"Hardening! The King of Men's core beast pattern is hardened! No wonder he managed to survive on the edge of the '800 Bursts' explosion!" Su Hao's mind shook. This almost guaranteed strike was unexpectedly blocked.
The combined effect of "Penetration" and "Sharpness," together with the "Vibration" effect, managed to penetrate the skin but was blocked by the bones. Although the bones were pierced and shattered slightly, they couldn't be fully pierced to deliver a fatal blow, rendering it meaningless.
The King of Men gradually recovered, regaining control over his body. Blood flowed down his forehead, but his eyes didn't blink once.
The King of Men burst into laughter and praised, "These runes are indeed interesting. I almost died there, hahaha!"
Then he stared at Su Hao and said, "Since you missed your chance, you won't have another!"
Su Hao smiled and replied, "Not necessarily. If I can create one opportunity, I can create a second!"
Su Hao's short knife remained lodged in the King of Men's head, but the King of Men paid no attention to it. He raised his broken sword, assuming a ready stance, and said slowly, "Traveler, I'm starting to admire you more and more! However, without a weapon, how will you fight against me? It ends here!"
"Peng!"
Under the feet of the King of Humans, the shattered stones exploded, and he disappeared from the spot.
Although the King of Humans disappeared from Su Hao's sight, his massive aura still lingered within his radar.
The King of Humans had appeared behind him!
"Too fast, can't block it in time!" Su Hao was shocked and immediately activated "Barrier," "Hardened," "Deflection," "Oscillation," and "Strong Light."
"Clang—Crack—"
"Bang!"
Su Hao was once again sent flying with great force, and the armor on the back of his neck was nearly sliced open by a blade.
Su Hao flipped and got up, swallowing back the blood in his mouth, staring at the King of Humans with lingering fear. "You're quite formidable too. I almost died!"
The King of Humans: "!!!"
The King of Humans let out a hearty laugh with an old voice. "Hahaha—"
To him, this was an interesting experience. It had been countless years since anyone dared to challenge him like this.
At his age, he had already seen through many things and didn't feel angry about it. Looking at Su Hao, it was as if he saw his own youthful vigor from a bygone era.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Su Hao used healing runes to temporarily suppress his injuries and pondered how to defeat his formidable opponent.
This was the strongest adversary he had encountered so far.
Once the King of Humans became serious, it seemed like he had no resistance left. One small mistake, and he would be killed on the spot.
"What should I do? I'm running low on aura!" Su Hao's mind raced as he caught sight of the short knife on the King of Humans' forehead, quickly formulating a strategy.
"I still need high-voltage current. Increase the output this time! The King of Humans won't be able to break through my defense for a while. I'll engage in close combat to create an opportunity!"
"Here I come!" Su Hao shouted explosively, waving his fist, activating his runes, and charging at the King of Humans.
"Bright Light!"
Taking advantage of the blinding light, Su Hao launched a fierce attack against the King of Humans.
"Ding ding ding!"
"Bang~"
"Boom—"
However, Su Hao and the King of Humans exchanged blows for a dozen or so rounds, and it was mostly Su Hao being ruthlessly overwhelmed by the King of Humans' attacks—being sent flying with a single slash or kicked, causing the surrounding stones to scatter. Su Hao had little chance to counterattack.
The reason Su Hao could stand up again each time was because his defensive runes were indeed formidable. Even with the King of Humans' full-force strikes, he couldn't break through the effects of "Barrier," "Hardened," "Deflection," and "Oscillation" that were imbued in Su Hao's armor.
"Hoo~ Hoo~"
Su Hao assumed a defensive posture, and a heavy breathing sound could be heard from under his face mask.
The King of Humans, however, showed no signs of surprise on his face. With a hint of pride, he said to Su Hao, "Traveler, give up struggling! You are no match for me."
Su Hao gasped for breath and said, "I admire your strength, but the final result is still unknown!"
The King of Humans snorted coldly, "Still hoping for a chance? That's wishful thinking."
Su Hao gradually calmed his breath and used another healing rune on himself, then said slowly, "King of Humans, the power of runes has unlimited potential."
The King of Humans' face turned grim as he said coldly, "Hmph! Let me see where your unlimited potential lies."
As soon as he finished speaking, the King of Humans suddenly appeared in front of Su Hao, his broken blade in hand. Su Hao only had time to swing his sword to block, but he was slashed by the King of Humans and sent flying.
"Boom—"
He left a long trench in the ground before finally coming to a stop.
Su Hao got up, blood gushing out from under his face mask, flowing into his armor and staining his chest plate.
Without giving Su Hao much opportunity to adjust, the King of Humans appeared before him again, swinging his blade.
"Now's the time!!"
"Earth Trap - Earth Spikes!"
"Clang!"
The King of Humans' broken blade struck Su Hao's chest plate, slicing it open and drawing blood, once again sending Su Hao flying.
In the next moment, the ground beneath the King of Humans' feet suddenly vanished, leaving him with nowhere to exert force, causing him to plummet downward. At the same time, numerous spikes rose around, sealing off the hole.
However, the King of Humans remained composed. He possessed a technique to traverse the air, allowing him to momentarily change his descent.
However, Su Hao had been waiting for this moment for a long time. How could he let go of such an opportunity?
As the King of Humans broke through the spikes and reached the ground, Su Hao was already holding a huge rock and smashing it down.
"Bang!"
The King of Humans was struck directly on the top of his head, letting out a painful cry as he plummeted downwards like a cannonball.
Su Hao immediately activated his second rune.
"Super Large - Earth Spikes!"
A spike suddenly shot out from the bottom of the pit, accurately impaling the King of Humans, but it was blocked by his armor and the effect of "Hardened."
However, Su Hao had no intention of using the spikes to kill the King of Humans. Instead, he utilized the tremendous impact of the spikes to launch the King of Humans into the air.
"Bang!"
The King of Humans suffered another heavy blow, propelled upward by the spikes! As he ascended towards the surface, what awaited him was the "High Voltage Current" that Su Hao had prepared for a long time!
This time, the electric current was even more powerful, nearly depleting all of Su Hao's aura.
"Oh no, not this move again!" The King of Humans' pupils contracted, but it was already too late to dodge.
"Crackle~"
A large amount of lightning struck the King of Humans, causing his body to stiffen, rendering him unable to control his movements!
While struggling with all his might, he saw Su Hao cross his fists and leap high into the air, fiercely smashing down!
"Bang!"
Su Hao's fists struck the King of Humans' forehead, and he let out a pained cry as if a bullet, before falling to the ground.
Su Hao immediately activated his second rune.
"Ultra Large - Earth Spikes!"
A spike suddenly shot out from the bottom of the pit, accurately impaling the King of Humans. However, it was blocked by the armor on the King of Humans and the effect of "Hardened."
But Su Hao didn't plan to kill the King of Humans with the spikes. Instead, he used the tremendous force of the spikes to launch the King of Humans away.
"Bang!"
The King of Humans suffered another heavy blow and was propelled upward by the spikes! As he ascended to the surface, he was met with Su Hao's long-prepared "High Voltage Current"!
This time, the current was even more powerful, almost draining all of Su Hao's aura.
"Oh no, not this move again!" The King of Humans' pupils contracted, but it was already too late to dodge.
"Crackle~"
A large amount of lightning struck the King of Humans, rendering his body rigid and unable to move!
As he struggled desperately, he could see Su Hao crossing his hands into fists, leaping high into the air, and slamming down fiercely!
"Bang!"
Su Hao's fists struck down heavily, directly hitting the hilt of the short knife on the King of Humans' forehead!
"Crack, crack—Plop!"
The tip of the knife pierced through the back of the King of Humans' head!
The King of Humans didn't have time to feel anything as his consciousness instantly fell into darkness, and his body fell heavily into the pit.
Meanwhile, Su Hao landed on the edge of the pit, unable to maintain his balance, and fell to the ground.
His body felt weak, unable to exert any strength, but he still laughed heartily. "Hahaha! I won!"
"Plop! Cough, cough."
He laughed too intensely suddenly spewing out a mouthful of blood.
Su Hao sat down, no longer intending to leave this place immediately.
Because, by now, his surroundings were already filled with warriors who had chased him from He'an City. It seemed he couldn't escape!
His ears buzzed, unable to make out what they were saying, but he knew that they were all raising their long knives high with fervor, the blades aimed at him.
"Hehe~ Hahaha!" Su Hao chuckled lightly, then, regardless of the blood spraying from his mouth, he laughed heartily at the sky.
He had held it in for too long, too long! He needed to release his emotions, to vent without any restraint.
He had to prove the meaning of his existence. He had to prove that the knowledge he had painstakingly learned and explored had a purpose.
Otherwise, he didn't know when in the future he would be lost in reincarnation, ultimately becoming a soulless, will-less, and faithless walking corpse.
A body, possessing immense knowledge, without his own will!
"If only I had a few.. more.. years... ha.... that.. would've been great..."
(translated by begs)