So, Goudan, What's the Price? (4.5K)
Buzz!
A powerful force surged into her feet, cracking the ground, and Iori's body shot into the sky like a cannonball.
The barrier dissipated into magical energy as the flames burned, instantly engulfing the boy—
"Iori!"
Beatrix was immediately horrified: That was Dragon's Breath!
Without special means, even with a large amount of magic power to strengthen it, a mortal body is no match for the Dragon's Breath that can melt steel!
Clang!
The sea of fire was like water being sliced open by a sharp blade. A narrow ripple flashed by, revealing the clear sky behind it. The boy holding the divine sword was wrapped in leaping Lightning Bolt, like a giant beast opening its eyes to reveal silver-white vertical pupils!
The Elf maiden's breath hitched, and she stared blankly at the scene...
"Yamata no Arashi!"
That's too fast!
The four-winged Flame Dragon never expected that someone could break through its breath head-on, nor could it catch the near-teleportation speed. Just as it was about to react, it was slashed hard in the brow bone!
Time seemed to stand still at that moment. Flame Dragon could clearly feel his scales being cut and his skin being torn apart, with the Heat liquid flowing out...
Sizzle!
The electric current transmitted from the sword blade coursed through his entire body, causing all of Flame Dragon's muscles to tremble. "Roar!!!"
As the sound waves swept across her body, Iori felt her blood "boil" instantly, her body temperature rose by dozens of degrees in Flash Step, and her bloodshot eyes turned the world into a dim crimson.
Seizing the opportunity, the Flame Dragon nimbly twisted its massive body, its long tail transforming into a battering ram that slammed down with tremendous force.
Bang!
The compressed air made a loud popping sound, but the bloody mess that Flame Dragon had imagined did not appear. His swing missed its mark.
How could you dodge my attack in that state?
Flame Dragon felt a sense of disbelief, and soon an alarm sirens sounded in his mind. He suddenly looked up.
A Kuro appeared in the sun high in the sky, and it quickly expanded and soon occupied the center of the Flame Dragon's vision.
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
The heavy wind pressed down on the atmosphere, and the cold, hard edges reflected a blinding light in the sunlight. They were thick iron pillars that appeared out of thin air!
[Is it not releasing magic, but forging it into a physical form? An interesting technique, but who is this slow-moving move even intended to hit?!]
Flame Dragon, and golden patterns lit up on his four wings. A crescent-shaped golden light shot out, breaking the speed of sound from the very beginning. With a flash of divine light, it easily split the falling iron pillar in two.
However, after the iron pillar split, another black dot emerged from the gap with lightning speed.
Bang!
It crashed into the two halves of the obstacle in front of it.
Bang!
The heavy hexagonal prism crashed down on the Flame Dragon. It only had time to raise its hand to block before its body was forcefully pressed down.
With flapping wings and struggling arms, the Flame Dragon roared and sent the iron pillar flying, but an even more ferocious impact was already coming!
Iori fell from the sky, yet with the agility of a gymnast in the air where there was nowhere to grab hold, kicking one end of an iron pillar and then unleashing a thunderous punch that slammed into another, the immense force instantly propelling him to break the sound barrier—
He actually used the Bakudō called "Five Pillars Iron Piercing" as a pure mass weapon!
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
The Flame Dragon, its body stiff, was hit repeatedly, each powerful impact slamming it to the ground and creating a massive wave of sand.
It's not over yet!
Behind the iron pillar was a human boy plummeting downwards—
"Roar!"
Humans are too arrogant!
The golden-red flames, like man-eating beasts, surged upwards towards the sky under the pull of the dragon's claws, while the dazzling white light, accompanied by the cries of thousands of birds, fell like Azure Lightning!
--boom!!!
The moment the two magical forces converged, the shockwave created huge ripples that lifted the surrounding ground. Even Beatrix, who was watching from afar, had to draw her sword to cut off the oncoming wave of magical energy.
When the Elf maiden looked back at the battlefield with a shocked expression, the enormous size of the Flame Dragon was actually suppressed!
You can clearly see the bulging and slightly trembling muscles on its body, and the joints of its limbs are slightly bent, like a strongman who can't bear the weight, but what it is supporting in its hands is only a human boy of normal size.
Unbelievable!
But Beatrix, as an excellent magic swordswoman, could "see" the immense magical power gathering on Iori's shoulders and back, as well as the translucent ripples that kept erupting like tail flames, and knew that what was pressing down on the Flame Dragon was definitely not just his weight.
On the other hand, as the one who directly fought against Iori, Flame Dragon's experience was absolutely terrible!
It was born as an extremely powerful Dragon kind, and after reaching adulthood, it continued to evolve, eventually transforming into its current Bleach and possessing its own "attributes." It can be said to be an ultimate life form without any natural enemies.
The only threats it can pose are powerful beings like the "Demon Man" and the "Three Heroes" who have appeared in history, or Dragon kind that have reached the same Bleach.
It never imagined that one day it would be suppressed by a human kid who appeared out of nowhere!
[Such brute force... Are you really human?!]
"The power of this flame is truly impressive, but unfortunately... it's still far inferior to my teacher's!"
[Nonsense!]
Flame Dragon didn't believe it at all, thinking that Iori was just provoking it. It let out a low roar, and its four wings spread out to their limit, with golden patterns spreading and flashing on them.
At the same time, a crimson-gold light shone in its vertical pupils—
That feeling again!
In Flash Step, it felt as if Iori had fallen into lava... no, as if molten steel had been poured into his body, and every blood vessel and every internal organ was being mercilessly roasted!
Roar!!!
You can't escape this time!
With a flash of golden light, the four wings transformed into pure Blade of Light, slicing through a sharp trajectory as they hurtled towards Iori!
At the critical moment, despite being physically and mentally exhausted, Iori's mind was unusually clear. She coldly met Flame Dragon's gaze and slightly parted her lips:
"Lan!"
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The Blade of Light pierced through her body without spilling a drop of blood. Iori before them was like a reflection in water, only slightly disturbed before returning to normal—both Flame Dragon and Beatrix were stunned.
[Mist Form? Could it be—]
"It's not Mist Form, it's Spirit Manifestation... Never mind."
Lightning Rush! Second-stage Shunkō at Full Power!
Eight! Forked! Wrath! Waves!
The power of the Noble Phantasm, contained within a single sword strike, was released in an instant. The almost materialized lightning slashed fiercely at the dragon's scales, slamming its nearly twenty-meter-tall body to the ground. The exploding white light instantly engulfed everything!
... The light faded, and a large crater appeared on the ground. The Flame Dragon lay at the bottom of the almost crystallized crater, with a huge wound on its body that almost cut diagonally through its breastbone. The flames on its body had almost disappeared, and its scales had also become much dimmer.
Its disheveled state was immediately apparent, clearly indicating that it had suffered a great loss in the collision just now. However, before long, fierce flames enveloped its entire body from the inside out, and its broken scales were restored at a speed visible to the naked eye!
Flame Dragon flipped himself up, but did not launch another attack rashly. His vertical pupils stared intently at Iori with a complex expression.
Interestingly, given the size of the Flame Dragon and the depth of the pit, it basically only had its head sticking out, making it eye-to-eye with Iori —just as the Death Boy had initially requested.
Is there really such a thing as immortality?
Iori stood at the edge of the pit, watching this scene with considerable surprise. She was about to say something when she felt an unbearable heat rising in her chest, and a tightness in her chest made her gasp—
"Hiccup~"
I let out a slightly unladylike burp, spewing out a lot of sparks that quickly dissipated into the atmosphere, but a wisp of smoke lingered for a long time...
After exhaling that breath, Iori immediately felt much better.
"..."
"..."
Both the elf and the Flame Dragon fell silent.
Okay, no need to ask anymore—this guy is definitely not human!
"Wow, that was some kind of True Magic! It attacked directly from inside the body?" Iori's tone was light and cheerful, not at all like someone who had just experienced a major battle.
Flame Dragon hesitated for a moment, but then, as if he had thought of something, he honestly said, "That is my 'attribute'."
"Property?"
"This is both a gift of life and the ultimate manifestation of magic, a great power that only Dragon kind recognized by this world can obtain!"
They are completely different from you humans... or elves..."
Flame Dragon was initially quite proud of this, but when he thought about Iori's performance just now, his tone became less firm.
The so-called "attributes" can be regarded as a kind of innate ability acquired after birth.
Dragon kind with good aptitude, after reaching adulthood, may be able to further improve their efficiency in utilizing Natural Energy and continuously refine their magic power if they can find a suitable environment. This could allow their already completed physical bodies to evolve again... and at a certain point, they will gain this kind of blessing-like power.
Depending on the race and the nature of the magic, the "attributes" also differ.
Some can freeze thousands of miles and solidify space; some can conceal themselves and disappear into all things; some can connect with the earth and possess limitless power...
Dragons that reach this Bleach can basically be regarded as "natural disasters". They generally have a near-immortal life force and can destroy a country when they get serious!
The Flame Dragon's attribute can "ignite magic," which literally means turning magic into flames—it's simple and straightforward.
However, it can ignite not only its own magic, but also the atmosphere, the land, magical beasts, and the human body—any substance rich in magic.
Don't be fooled by the fact that it's a "Flame Dragon" and thinks ice True Magic can counter it. If it wants to, it can even use solid ice containing magic as firewood to "ignite" it!
The more powerful the magic swordsman, the higher the density of magic power within his body. In its eyes, they are walking bombs, and it can easily deal with any number of them.
The only thing that can withstand "ignition" is extremely precise control of magic power... If someone can perfectly control every bit of magic power, then the Flame Dragon can only disrupt the opponent, but cannot kill them instantly.
However, maintaining absolute focus to control magic power during battle—you can imagine how difficult that is.
Therefore, theoretically speaking, Flame Dragon's ability is "invincible"!
—Until Iori became an exception.
I don't understand... He has clearly "ignited" the magic power within him, so why can he still act normally?
And what about that demonic sword that can suppress the brute force of Dragon kind and easily break through their scales?!
There are such powerful beings in the human world... It's terrifying!
"... Didn't you hear me?"
While Flame Dragon was in a daze, Iori spoke calmly, "Your last trump card is your immortality? Do you have any other tricks up your sleeve? Show them to me."
[...]
The Flame Dragon fell silent. It did indeed possess many abilities; its long lifespan had allowed it to accumulate a considerable amount of True Magic and combat skills... but its intuition told it that it posed no threat to Iori.
Is that all?
The blatant disappointment in Iori's eyes made Flame Dragon experience shame for the first time in his life.
"A vitality that is disproportionate to one's strength... is also a waste."
Chapter 206: So, Gou Dan, what will be the price? (4.5K)
Flame Dragon glanced at the sword in Iori's hand, closed his eyes and carefully reviewed the details of the battle. When he opened them again, his beastly nature had been suppressed by his intellect, and he revealed a rather human-like look.
"Roar~"
Is it possible to reach a settlement?
Drop!
[CG included]