Chapter 470: True Menace
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***
The seven victorious HG leaders-Aqu, Iron Reich, Kremlin, Red Dragon, Shinobi,
Southern Cross, and Khari-stood at the edge of a tform''s wreckage, their eyes fixed on the duel that was unfolding before them, on the train tracks.
They had arrived here one by one; thest of them was Khari, smelling of fresh blood.
"Helloo friends- how''s our phoneix doing?"
She was quite unlike her previous sadistic self, too happy-go-lucky for a time such as this.
Everyone there, except Aqu, ignored her, preferring to focus on the battle instead of ying along with one of her many whims.
"See for yourself."
Even he didn''t bother exining, too immersed to bother.
"Sure."
She shrugged her shoulders and joined them, her face now visible in the cold, dim light that flickered sporadically from the damaged overhead bulbs.
Her brown eyes were fixed at the center of the chaos, where Phoenix stood.
Opposite her was an Air Weaver like herself.
The difference between them was simple.
Her air had fire while his didn''t.
"Wind de."
Phoenix spun her body, her arms extended, sending two razor-sharp des of firey wind at her opponent.
Temr''s Air Weaver responded with a silent Air Wall, the barrier of wind absorbing the attack and dissipating the force.
The sh of their abilities sent a gust of strong wind, filled with heat, reaching the spectators. And as they shed once more, Aqu, still watching with interest, nced left and asked: "Kremlin, Iron, do you mind?"
Not needing an exnation, they immediately gestured for the group to get closer.
Both then summoned their cold, one through Iron Fist that froze the ground while the other wrote {000} and {000} on a nearby surface, creating a miniature air conditioning unit.
Satisfied with their work, they looked back at the action.
"Jet!"
Putting her hands behind her, Phoenix shot forward with a burst of speed, her two Jambiyas swung wide.
Her opponent easily anticipated the move, evading with a sidestep.
He then retaliated by summoning Wind des of his own, directing them towards the still- moving Phoenix.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om
She slowed down her forward momentum with one hand, shooting a burst of air, propelling herself to a controlled halt.
With her other hand, she conjured an Air Wall, dense and solid.
The Wind des crashed into it, but the barrier stood firm, absorbing the attacks without the slightest reaction.
"Oooohhh~ She''s got better purity at least."
"She got some skills too, much better than ourst mission."
"Bah! That girl''s still no Phoenix, just a chick."
"Nice one! Hahahahahaha!"
Southern Cross''s, Red Dragon''s, Iron Reich''s, and Kremlin''s words followed each other, acting asmentators.
They weren''t taking this duel seriously, enjoying it more than anything.
Why would they?
Only one remained, their work was done, and most, if not all, threats were dealt with. "Jet!"
Phoenixunched another attack, moving in a blur of speed to close the distance.
The priest dodged her swing, and judging by the wince appearing on his face, it was a bit too close for his liking.
Either way, the same oue asst time was repeated.
But it seemed that she wasn''t done.
Just as Phoenix shot past him, her body slowed abruptly, and she sted herself to the right, using momentum to her advantage.
In the next moment, she twisted her body mid-air to face him and used both hands to unleash another burst of mes behind her.
Tearing through the air, she closed in from a different angle than earlier, confusing the priest. Her attack was nearly perfect, though she had sacrificed the use of her two Jambiyas to get the jump on him.
That forced her to use the only weapon she had left.
Before they made contact, she shifted into a swift, powerful kick with her right leg, aimed to crush his head in.
Reacting in thest moment, he summoned an Air Wall that paused her feet just atop his head, not even an inch away.
The force behind the strike rippled through the barrier, but no more damage was done.
Yet, even then, Phoenix didn''t back off.
As he shot a Wind de at her midsection with his free hand, she sted herself up, her body flying above the Air Wall and away from the de.
Still horizontal to the ground, she flipped her body, rotating a full one-eighty until her face pointed downward.
In that short moment, it was as if she was hovering above the priest, like a raindrop frozen in
time.
It didn''tst long, however.
With two sts emanating from her feet, she dove in, her curved des pointed like spears.
She had learned this move from a certain Shadow Binder, and though she could already imagine her annoying teasing, she couldn''t deny its power.
Barely managing to react, the priest crouched low and summoned multiple Air Walls directly
above him.
Phoenix tore through the first of the walls, then did the same for the other, though much slower, and almost came to aplete halt as she passed the third, reaching him.
The man panicked as they locked eyes, not expecting her to cut through.
He quickly pushed up his club-like staff, hisst Hail Mary defense.
And that simple move was enough.
Her attack wouldn''t be going throughpletely.
Realizing that, she continued the fall for a moment, feigning the attack, then at thest
fraction, when their weapons were about to touch, she cast Jet.
A st of fire shot her away from the staff and into the ground, just beside him.
On the way down, she flipped her body once more, and her feet, which now faced the floor,
shot another st of fire.
The priest was still facing where she was a moment ago.
Phoenix could attack freely; nothing blocked her way.
And that was what she did.
With all the strength she could muster, she followed the momentum behind her movement
and swung both jambiyas at his shoulders.
The desnded, tearing through, from the tip of his shoulder to the end of his stomach and
back.
Blood spilled all around the two, and those watching began to celebrate:
"Daaaaaaamn~! The girl can dance!"
"Look. At. Her. Go. Whoop whoop!"
Well, at least Iron Reich and Kremlin did.
Only theymented this time; the rest had begun to show respect to the duel, keeping their
presence to a minimum.
They silently watched as the fight escted, with Phoenix retreating after her first sessful attack, using Jet to leap high into the air.
The priest, not caring for his now dead right arm, responded by summoning powerful Wind
des at her.
Phoenix spun in the air, narrowly avoiding the des, and came down with a countering Wind
de aimed at the priest''s midsection.
He deflected the attack with an Air Wall, but it wasn''t as clean as before.
His defense showed signs of strain.
Phoenix appeared to notice that and wasn''t about to let that pass.
She used Jet to close the gap, suddenly appearing above him.
Countering with a few Wind des, he retreated before she could attack him, sting
himself away.
She easily dodged them and pressed her advantage with a series of Wind des that had him
run around like a headless chicken.
He was barely able to escape them, his cloak being cut up in the process.
Phoenix had him on the run for a while, and it didn''t take long for him to be visibly
fatigued.
This made it seem that there was no way for him to escape the chase, at least without getting
severely injured.
But there actually was.
He had one ability that he hadn''t used until now, which would''ve easily gotten him out of this
predicament.
{Pocket st.}
It was a reallyrge AOE ability, making it quite obvious why he did what he did.
The st would reach those watching, even if it was barely felt, and that might prompt them
to interfere, hastening his death.
Now though... he needed to use it.
There was no choice.
He would get killed by her otherwise. "POCKET BLAST!"