Chapter 466 Human Limi (2/2)
It seemed that it was reality and not hyperbole.
At that moment, Armand lifted his gaze too—he appeared to be smiling. He could see that Joshua had guessed part of the truth behind his secret technique following the warrior's own impressive blow.
However, the general who was leading the undead army appeared unworried. Instead, he laughed lightly, appearing as if he has been freed from some shackle or some knot in his heart.
”Young one, so you could tell,” he spoke in a low and calm voice. ”That's right. I'm the core of everything—hurting me would in turn weaken my grand army and the military god. But even if you killed me, I would just have to use several ghost soldiers to revive.”
Then, the general's tone turned into one of curiosity and almost expectant.
”So how many times can you kill me?”
”A lot,” Joshua replied. Not one for nonsense, he clenched the spear in his hands.
”Until you die.”
In the next second, with a heat wave that obscured the air, Joshua charged out like a supersonic and ferocious raptor towards Armand, who was behind the ghost armies that had returned to formation as well as the military god that had completely regenerated itself.
Judging from his presence alone, one would have thought that he was besieging the troops instead of being blocked by them.
The ghost soldiers raised their blades and crossbows and incessantly attacked the charging warrior. Aware that it was meaningless to face them, Joshua did not waste much strength. If a nonchalant brandish of this spear, the razor-sharp edge of the Dragonslayer Swordspear struck out with a curved air blade, cutting their ranks in half. Terrifying gale too swept them apart, revealing a path directed straight towards Armand.
But sweeping away the ghost soldiers did not mean dodging the military god phantom too. The towering skeleton giant had quietly swung out the giant hammer in his hand, the blow that was filled with icy and dense vengeful spirit striking out early on.
However, those spirits that would have frozen even the most courageous of warriors did not even delay Joshua by the slightest, and conversely allowed him to find an opening. With a single touch of the spear tip on the wrist that held the hammer, the energy giant hammer instantly fell to the ground, and the skeleton god thus lost its ability to ambush Joshua henceforth.
At full power, was Joshua a force that could be blocked by some simple ghost soldiers and military god phantom? At first, he had only planned to destroy the troublesome giant body of energy before clearing out the skeleton army, so that he did not have to pick them off one-by-one when they scattered, leaderless after he killed Armand.
And so, in the blink of an eye, the warrior who was out in full-force arrived in front of the dragon-armor general and directly stabbed out with his spear.
In spite of breaking past the speed of sound by tenfold, even if it was a swordspear that could easily perforate mountains, it was easily parried by the longsword in Armand's hand.
”You seem to think you've got me.”
At present, the military god phantom had dimmed in no time at all while the countless ghost soldiers stopped their movements. Completely different from his weakened state before, Armand was now displaying ability that stood shoulder-to-shoulder against Joshua.
”But you still don't understand…” he said softly. ”I'm them; they're me—be it life or power.”
”Power of armies, return to me.”
Chanting a curse as if a mantra, Armand moved his arms and shoved off the warrior in front of him as the two fought again.
His longsword was not a plain sword. The sharp body of the blade that appeared plain curved slightly, more appropriate for slashing instead of thrusting. Dim but dangerous flowing light sparkled over its body in an otherworldly aesthetic—even Joshua had to admit that it was an exquisite piece of art.
But however exquisite it was, it was not beautiful when it was swung towards your own brain.
Red light could be seen from the slits of Armand's helmet as the general strode one pace forward and displayed stunning combat skills. The plain longsword danced like a shifting shade of light, tearing through the air as its shockwaves billowed towards Joshua as if a hurricane. The real attack was hidden within the gale too, awaiting the moment it would tear its enemy's body apart.
It was a plain sword skill born from the battlefield, each move pointed towards vitals while each stroke never leaves the chest and neck.
Joshua, however, did not lose out. Holding his spear with one hand, he whirled it as if it was an unbreakable barrier, parrying Armand's lightning slashes precisely. Like a blade, his left hand then shot an air strike towards Armand.
”Not bad,” the warrior said, the corner of his lips curling up. ”And I've thought you're only as good as you were at the beginning. Luckily you aren't—otherwise it'll be boring!”
Layers of fire stars sparked out as their weapons clashed head-on. Streaks of vacuum fissure were torn through the air, while the atmosphere that conducts sound was contorted by the shockwaves of their power, creating a gray-red ruthless air current that could only be seen from outside the battle.
It was the most dangerous of armed melees. Within the fraction of a second, a dozen wounds had appeared over Joshua's chest and neck, with his jugular already severed, but luckily his aura had blocked the warrior's blood from flowing out. Armand too had more than ten cavities over his body—the doing of the Dragonslayer Swordspear.
”The very gist of the [Lord of the Armies] was to share life and power through contract with an army. In life, I was able to reach the threshold of 'power link', but after I revived, I could reach the threshold of 'life link' thanks to the special aspects of heroic spirits.”
Gripping his sword with both hands to fend off a swipe from Joshua's spear tip that tore through air, the dragon-armored general was pushed back about ten meters by the incredible power, barely holding out. The warrior, however, was already there, once more, striking with his spear close to his body.
In a battle of such hurried rhythm, there was no time for Joshua to unleash his anti-gravity thrust or spiral spear that were more than fifty-times the speed of sound. On the other hand, neither the thinned military god specter or the multitudinous ghost soldiers ambushed the warrior with the giant hammer or crossbow bolts.
Even so, Armand never once rested his mouth in the midst of such a strenuous and threatening fight. He would move sideways, evade a drive from the spear, turn and swing out his sword before talking again.
”However, if we could take the holy tomb as we planned, we could return to life through the Grand Commander's ritual and completely recover the powers we had in life. When that time comes, with complete physicality and a higher tier, I would be even more powerful than when I had been alive.”
Spear tip quivered, while a strong force struck away the sharp edge in the opponent's hands.
The two had traded over a hundred blows, and through it all Joshua had listened to Armand's intermittent speech while he fought.
And the more he heard it, the more things did not seem right.
Through Armand's blabber, the warrior had actually learned new and vital information—such as the plan to take the holy tomb, the resurrection ritual, the approximate identity of the seven ghost commanders as well as the possibility of recovering all abilities they had in life.
Could it be that this was not his opponent's full strength?
And why would he want to reveal so many secrets?
Not one to think too much, the warrior had found an opportunity by focusing in the combat and analyzing it after the dragging engagement.
Reaching out with his left palm as a shield and temporarily blocking Armand's longsword, Joshua followed up with a flashing spear strike that crisply penetrated Armand's skull and helmet, dousing the scarlet soulfire that burned within the general's eye sockets.
Nevertheless, it was not that useful. In the fraction of a second, as several ghost soldiers nearby turned into ash, and the dragon-armored general revived once more and slashed at Joshua like lightning.
The warrior seemed to expect it from the start. Dodging away, he stabbed through Armand's skull once more.
An outcome finally came after hundreds of back-and-forth skirmish turns.
”I've seen through all your moves, undead spirit,” Joshua said in a low voice as he withdrew his spear. ”If that's all you have, expect external slumber.”