The instant it turned, every wound on Mahoraga's torso began healing at a speed visible to the naked eye.
The gravity-induced dents, crushed structures, and fractures and depressions in his bones.
All of them were repaired. The strip-like structures pulled taut again, and even the last trace of cracking vanished.
His strength was returning, and growing greater.
His knees were lifting off the ground.
Wangchuan felt the strengthening force pushing up beneath his foot.
He was not surprised. Instead, he gave a slight smile.
"Just about there."
He lifted his foot off Mahoraga's head and leaped lightly to the side.
The amplified gravity field vanished at the same moment.
The instant he was released, Mahoraga sprang up like a compressed spring, moving far faster than before.
The Sword of Extermination traced a straight silver line, heading directly for Wangchuan's waist.
The sound of the blade slicing through the air was shrill and unbroken.
Wangchuan was still in midair, his posture as relaxed as if he were taking a stroll.
He merely shifted his shoulder slightly.
The sword swept past roughly three centimeters from his waist, its wake lifting the hem of his coat.
"Oh?"
"Trying to cut me in half?"
"You'll need a few more years of practice."
When he landed, his soles touched the rubble with a faint, steady sound, without the slightest unnecessary wobble.
Mahoraga did not wait for him to steady himself.
The second strike had already arrived.
The Sword of Extermination changed direction in midair, slashing diagonally from the upper left to the lower right at an even trickier angle than the first strike.
Wangchuan shifted one step back and to the right.
The sword tip struck where he had been standing, cleaving through a patch of rubble.
"Nice aim."
"Too bad you're cutting where I