Crow Men (Part 1)

"This ominous Rhythm!" Chris stopped in his tracks, his face turning exceedingly grim.

He had fought frenzied Sub-Dragons and faced the most savage of the Kente People. He had encountered enemies of every kind, but this was the first time he had sensed such an ominous Rhythm.

"What happened? Negary feels weaker than ever before, yet stronger than ever before." Chris's breathing through his nose and mouth remained steady as he aligned his own Rhythm with the surrounding environment, spreading out his senses to investigate what had happened.

"Is that shattered, chaotic Rhythm Negary? If I want to kill him, this is the best opportunity." Chris's expression grew solemn. Though he did not know what had happened, this was indeed the best chance. He could sense that Negary was recovering from his injuries with every passing moment, even growing stronger.

Chris changed direction and headed toward the place he had sensed, only to leap aside at once and dodge a flying pebble.

The pebble struck the ground and blasted out a small pit, displaying no small amount of force. If it had hit a human in a vital spot, that would have been enough to pronounce them dead.

"Mr. Chris, we meet again so soon." Nozades, dressed in a black robe, walked to a spot not far from Chris. "Judging by your destination, you intend to head to the Forbidden Land?"

"Are you here to stop me?" Chris narrowed his eyes.

"I've wanted to cross hands with you for a long time, Mr. Chris—or rather, Senior." Nozades said excitedly, "It was Senior's deeds that made me leave home and face this complicated world. Now that I can defeat Senior with my own hands, I'm so excited I can barely stand it!"

"Crow Men discipline originally prevented me from attacking Rea's guests at will. I'd been thinking of an excuse earlier, but there's no need now." Nozades suddenly raised his voice. "The man before me is the criminal who killed Komoro, Rea's leader. Uninvolved parties, leave this street."

Before long, the street was completely empty. In Reastmia, the Crow Men were the ones who maintained order. They followed strict discipline and could not attack those who had not violated Rea's order. Of course, anyone who provoked Reastmia's order would be ruthlessly killed by the Crow Men. It was precisely this strict order that attracted so many merchants.

"Isn't that framing a bit too much?" Chris raised an eyebrow.

"Does it matter? Lord Komoro is dead, after all, and someone saw you enter his manor. That's enough." Nozades shrugged, slowly removing his black robe and revealing his bare upper body.

Twisted black lines covered Nozades's entire body. As he moved, those black lines shifted continuously, producing a warped, discordant visual assault that was enough to make one feel sick.

"Is that Negary's alteration of you?" Chris stared at those black lines. That ominous, twisted Rhythm made his breathing pattern begin to change. Negary was steadily recovering; he did not have much time to waste on this Crow Man.

"This is my lord's gift to me, and you too will fall beneath this power." Nozades's expression gradually calmed. Maintaining a steady state of mind in battle was what made a qualified warrior. An eruption of emotion could indeed improve one's condition for a time, but it was never a lasting path.

Chris took a deep breath and threw a punch at Nozades. It was not particularly fast, yet it carried a strange rhythm that made it feel impossible to evade.

The black lines on Nozades's body writhed. Though he moved later, his punch arrived first and met Chris's fist. That inhuman force made Chris grunt, forcing him back half a step.

"My lord Negary's gift has granted me strength and speed beyond human limits. In a contest of strength alone, you are no match for me." Nozades did not rush to counterattack, instead speaking slowly.

"Can you keep up with the Rhythm Fist?" Chris did not answer. Mental state was crucial in battle, which was why some people often spoke during a fight to stir up their opponent's emotions and make them lose their calm.

Chris's Rhythm Fist followed his opponent's Rhythm to strike along special punching paths. Such paths made it difficult for the opponent to react, because they ran contrary to the opponent's Rhythm.

Those black lines are strange. Chris thought. Those lines definitely did more than enhance strength and speed. Otherwise, sheer strength and speed would not have been enough to trouble him.

Among Chris's past opponents had been creatures like Sub-Dragons, beings that surpassed humans by far. Even strength and speed beyond human limits were nothing before a Sub-Dragon.

Chris steadied himself and endured Nozades's power as he attacked with the Rhythm Fist.

Every punch landed where it made Nozades uncomfortable, yet every time, Nozades was able to block Chris's attack. Strangely, Nozades had never counterattacked even once. Despite the advantage granted by his strength, he had not taken the initiative to attack Chris.

"I'm a little disappointed, Senior. I thought you would be a bit stronger." Nozades caught Chris's fist once more, then suddenly said, "The Breathing Method may give you techniques that strike directly at human weaknesses, but with Lord Negary's gift, I have already surpassed humanity!!"

Nozades suddenly abandoned his previous strategy of pure defense and threw a punch at Chris. What shocked Chris was that Nozades was using his Rhythm Fist. That punching path, which struck at the weak points in a human's Rhythm—someone who did not know the Breathing Method could not possibly use such a fist technique!

Chris dodged Nozades's punch somewhat awkwardly and focused on Nozades's breathing again.

"No, his breathing doesn't conform to the laws of the Breathing Method at all." Chris frowned, took another deep breath, and in an instant, his own Rhythm became extraordinarily aligned with the surrounding environment. He launched an unbelievably fast punch at Nozades.

If the Rhythm Fist attacked the weak points in an opponent's Rhythm, then the fist technique Chris used now aligned his own Rhythm with the surrounding environment: the Silent Fist.

Because the Silent Fist followed the Rhythm of the surrounding environment, the resistance it encountered was unprecedentedly slight and it was exceedingly difficult to detect. Thus, the Silent Fist was also known as the Assassination Fist Technique.

The fist grazed past Nozades's head, its wind sending his brown hair flying. Though he looked somewhat strained, Nozades still dodged Chris's attack at the final moment.

Nozades halted his offensive rhythm once more, a smile appearing on his face. "That's more like it, Senior. Show your strength to your heart's content. Only then, after defeating you, will my sense of achievement be even greater!!"

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