Seeing Qi Ling Qi Ling's transformation and sensing the change in her power afterward, Escanor couldn't help but show a surprised expression. He said to Qi Ling, "Oh, I knew I wasn't wrong about you. There's quite a bit of power hidden within you too."
Qi Ling summoned the Demon God Halberd and said with a helpless smile, "No need for further words. Anyway, I know you won't let me go without a fight, right? I can sense that you are exceptionally persistent in battle."
Escanor chuckled, "Good eye. After all, wouldn't it be a waste not to use such a perfect body for fighting? You probably think so too, right? I can tell your body must have undergone countless trials and tribulations to reach this level, right?"
"Enough with the nonsense, take this!" Escanor raised his axe, the muscles in his arm bulging with effort, and the axe shone with golden light. "Divine Axe: Destroyer!"
The immense power erupted, causing Qi Ling to show a serious expression. She swung the Demon God Halberd towards Escanor, but despite using all her strength, she still felt as if she was lacking, and even felt suppressed by Escanor in terms of power.
The two weapons clashed, and just as Qi Ling had predicted, after a brief exchange, his Demon God Halberd was successfully deflected by the opponent's Divine Axe. Escanor gained the upper hand and couldn't help but smugly say, "Looks like I've won this round!"
"That's impressive, but fighting isn't just about who's stronger," Qi Ling laughed. "You see, techniques can sometimes be used like that."
As she spoke, Qi Ling swung the Demon God Halberd and attacked Escanor. Escanor confidently tried to block Qi Ling's attack, but his seemingly sure-fire strike missed its mark. Qi Ling's Demon God Halberd then struck him, leaving a wound on his body.
Escanor looked at his wounds, as if he had discovered something terrible, and said, "What... what did you do?"
"Hmm, who knows? I can't just tell you all the moves I've come up with, can I?" Qi Ling laughed. "Get ready, Escanor, my next move is coming!"
In his next move, Qi Ling's attack again dodged Escanor's axe and easily struck him, causing Escanor to be surprised once more.
Qi Ling had actually learned this move from someone else, but she used some illusions to make the actual position of her Demon God Halberd deviate from its apparent position.
This wasn't exactly a high-level technique, and Qi Ling hadn't expected to defeat Escanor using such a method. However, to his surprise, after a moment's thought, Escanor said, "Hmm, although I don't know how you did it, it seems I can't block your attack!"
"So this is what you mean by using combat techniques? It's certainly interesting. Indeed, using such methods, you can injure your enemy without much effort."
Escanor then shook his head helplessly and said, "Unfortunately, I can't master such techniques. All I have is my strength! Since I can't block it, then I'll just not block it!"
Then, Escanor launched another attack on himself, his divine axe gleaming with dazzling light, as he unleashed another full-force strike.
Moreover, this time, Escanor seemed completely unconcerned about Qi Ling's attack, simply swinging his divine axe to attack Qi Ling.
Qi Ling frowned helplessly. Escanor's tactics were simple: to out-damage. He was gambling that his body was stronger than Qi Ling's and could withstand Qi Ling's attacks. As long as he defeated Qi Ling before he fell, he would be victorious!
"Damn it, you want to fight me with defense? I'm not afraid of you!" Qi Ling was not afraid at all and went to meet the challenge head-on. She had the Dragon God Armor evolved from the Divine Dragon Bone, which was indestructible. There was no reason for her to be afraid of this guy who was only shirtless.
Thus began a fierce battle in which neither side had any defense whatsoever. The divine axe and the Demon God Halberd unleashed their full offensive power, relentlessly lashing out at each other.
But as it turned out, these two not only possessed powerful offensive capabilities, but also exceptional defensive abilities. After a fierce battle, although both were covered in wounds, neither of them fell down; instead, they fought with increasing ferocity!
Blood had almost completely stained Escanor's body, hundreds of wounds covering him, yet Escanor still laughed loudly, "Hahaha, that was exhilarating! What a fierce battle! This is the kind of fight a man should have!"
Qi Ling's Dragon God Armor had also developed cracks due to the excessive attacks it had endured. Although his body had no external injuries, he was in bad shape, as the Dragon God Armor could not fully absorb Escanor's powerful attacks.
The opponent's strength is incredibly formidable, and he can even force me to confront him head-on. This is undoubtedly his greatest strength, and the reason why he has been able to win so many battles using such a simple fighting style.
Finally, after exchanging heavy blows, both of them staggered backward, panting and recovering from their drastic loss of strength.
"If we keep fighting like this, who knows when we'll reach a conclusion?" Qi Ling said. "I think we should settle this with a single strike!"
Escanor slung the axe over his shoulder and agreed, "Alright, let's do it your way! We'll settle this in one move!"
Suddenly, the axe in Escanor's hand emitted an incredibly dazzling light, as bright as the sun. His muscles swelled to their maximum, and he used all his strength.
"Divine Axe: Break the Demon!" Escanor said solemnly, and his focused expression revealed the power of this move.
Faced with such an attack, Qi Ling still wielded the Demon God Halberd to meet it. But just as their attacks clashed, Escanor was taken aback. Qi Ling's attack had no power whatsoever. On the contrary, it seemed that he was using his own strength, or rather, borrowing his own strength.
"Sorry, let's leave our battle for later," Qi Ling said to Escanor as she flew away. "Now is really not the time. See you again someday!"