Lincoln and Uterede faced each other from a distance, sizing one another up. In the end, Uterede could no longer hold back. His spear moved first, trailing streaks of black light.
Uterede swept the spear tip upward. Vast amounts of Destruction Sovereign Power burst out like splashed ink, scattering the clouds and turning the howling wind to nothing wherever they passed.
The Destruction Sovereign Power transformed into swarms of Black-backed Centipedes that spread in every direction. Centered on Uterede, they gnawed and ravaged everything around them, staining the surrounding void a blue-black.
As the Black-backed Centipedes drew closer, Lincoln remained unruffled. He brought together the Colorless Transparent Flame in his hands, forming a tiny, feeble spark that looked ready to go out at any moment.
Lincoln raised the spark high. As his gaze swept around, the onrushing black centipedes suddenly caught fire for no apparent reason. They burned with the same colorless flame, but it blazed fiercely, instantly sweeping back toward Uterede and threatening to engulf him.
Lincoln smiled faintly. "Uterede, we're both Paragons. I'm confident my mastery of the Laws is second to none—and I'm sure you feel the same!"
"Let your body feed my flame!"
Uterede remained silent. He believed that only a fight could prove one's worth; quick words were meaningless.
He swung his Long Spear again, and the Destruction Sovereign Power liquefied, while the Black-backed Centipedes reverted to their original form as Sovereign Power. It blotted out the sky, covering every trace of transparent flame. The two forces collided, leaving only a sizzling sound.
But in the brief delay, Lincoln's next attack had already followed.
A blaze of ordinary-looking orange-yellow fire charged straight into Uterede's range.
The moment the Dark Sovereign Power touched it, it turned to "charcoal," crumbling away layer by layer.
Uterede, too, stared