Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 1481 - 1480 - Cracked Fang

Cyntilla had made it to the final round of her segment, in other words the semi-finals. Once each segment was complete, the final 4 would be chosen.

It had not been easy. Aside from people like Shoti and others who knew her well, the other Sovereign Tiers had millions of years of experience to pull on. They may not have been able to fight at full power as they could in the current tournament, but that had only given them a greater foundation of control.

Restraining power was far more difficult than letting it loose.

Her virulent yellow eyes were full of contentment. She had also felt the need to hold back but Lind had allowed her to test her full strength.

Not all of it was good news. Her Art that had been transformed and been with her all her life was now reaching a hard limit. Just as when she became an Immortal, it had to be changed and modified in new ways.

Ways she could not spare for the tournament. It took centuries last time but she suspected it would take far longer if she wished to keep going. It would be wiser to find new Arts that she found compatible but she was reluctant to let it go.

Lind had infected her with an idea. The idea that what was common practice was not always right. He had adapted so many Arts to Immortals that many abandoned long ago even in the Sky Realm.

They were not the same, far from it, but they made a foundation for more profound versions. Such a concept was not new but due to the incorrect understanding of the elements, very few had succeeded.

After Lind had corrected the basic elemental theory, success of such projects improved dramatically!

Still, Immortals had far more abilities than mortals. A true Immortal Art would have more versatility than the upgraded versions of mortal Arts. She knew that and had taken some on but her main Art had remained unchanged.

Lind and the others did not tell her to let it go but Shoti and the rest were concerned. Her mother partially understood Cyntilla's desire to keep it but even then, she trusted her daughter to be practical.

The 2 short swords were new, freshly made by Lind after she broke the last set in the very segment she was in.

The only other person in the waiting area was also a demon with a glaive. He was well muscled and wore an open vest and pants but was currently cultivating. He had barely won his last battle.

The 2 different weapons were far apart in reach but Cyntilla favored her short swords. Speed was where she felt happiest. The feeling of the wind as it roared in her ears or her blades slicing their way forward made her heart race better than any other weapon could.

The glaive was also a weapon of speed in the staff category. Yet, it relied on powerful sweeps to be lethal. Since its blades were on a single side, the wielder had to be fast to adjust the angles.

He was a good match up for her but the most dangerous.

[Red Segment Finalists to the arena.]

Unlike the previous rounds, each segment was going alone. The green segment had been anticlimactic as the human won it by default.

Her foe had been an Elemental but they had suffered damage to their core. They could not continue after their last battle.

Thus, the true first battle of the semi-finals would be hers.

The 2 demons moved fluidly into the arena. The roar of the crowd and shimmering of Qi lights greeted them. Lind called them party favors. A set of artifacts with no other purpose than to make a loud noise and flashy light shows.

They had quickly become favorites in the tournament to the point merchant guilds demanded their schematics!

The pair moved without words to opposite sides. A Harmonic Dragon with pure black scales stepped out. She was much taller than a human, easily 4 or 5 meters in height. She towered over them but her aura was clearly on par with them.

She could stop them which made Cyntilla frown. As if reading her thoughts, the black eyes glinted in amusement.

[Due to previous issues with Dao, I am here as the judge to maintain the barriers. Ancestor will not interfere going forward.] The declaration made all of them understand.

Lind was generally viewed as impartial but at such a critical fight, he could not help at all.

Cyntilla exhaled and nodded as she recentered herself. The usual rules were announced and the judge stepped back before raising her hand.

[BEING!] Her arm dropped and both demons vanished. Cyntilla was expected but her foe had never done that before. He was faster than he had shown!

Everyone quickly changed the settings on their displays. They had to increase it to nearly 50 times normal speed to see them! Cyntilla was dodging powerful swings of the glaive while trying to find an opening.

The demon, known only as Cutter, seemed well aware of her goal as his swings always bought him distance. Neither could slow down as if they did, the other would easily strike a weak spot.

It was pure physical skill on display. Both warriors showed extreme ability to judge the other while not suffering a single scratch!

The crowd went wild as the clash was exciting. The clear displays showed both faces were set in grim determination. The pair were on the edge of a cliff and the first to fall would likely be the loser.

Cyntilla knew the demon in front of her had far more stamina than her. The man clearly had trained to endure his enemies while wielding such an exhausting weapon.

The fact he held back on Qi also showed he was likely using a support Art to increase his stamina even further. She had not yet done so but that was because her Arts demanded more from her dantian.

She needed to change tactics or she would lose!

Acid Qi suddenly coated her blades so potently that the air screamed in pain. Cutter sneered but then his eyes went wide as the acid flew in the air! Cyntilla smiled as she knew he had expected her to weaken his weapon.

Any idiot that did not get some kind of resistance or protective effect on their weapon deserved to have it destroyed easily.

Yet, many warriors would assume their enemies would try it anyway. Cyntilla had banked on that and Cutter had not disappointed her.

He had to break his stance and slow down for the first time. He reappeared to the naked eye and his body flared with blue fire. It scorched the stone beneath his feet with how cold it got.

The acid lost all the heat inside it and broke down but he swung his glaive like lightning. Violet sparks actually flashed along the haft to increase its speed!

A fanged head had appeared exactly where he sent it and the clash of weapons was clear to all.

Both warriors were breathing slightly heavier than before but Cutter was more wary now. Cyntilla had not once used a conjuring attack before. It was a basic idea but many moved past it to pure Arts.

"You did well." She gave honest praise and Cutter actually smiled.

"I made the mistake of a child. I should know better. The Great Wolf Demoness would not be so foolish as to attack a low Law Grade weapon with simple acid." She arched an eyebrow at the name he gave her.

He chuckled but gave no further explanation.

His stance changed. He now squatted and held his glaive in both hands in front of him. She did not recognize it but some in the crowd began to murmur. She only felt the wind laced with poison right before the glaive seemed to vanish!

A serpent appeared in its stead with poisonous fangs opened wide! Cyntilla wasted no time and vanished again but the serpent followed her! Its metallic eyes glinted with predatory glee.

It was not like her Art, it was a true summoning or maybe something was used to make the glaive that gave it a battle spirit!

She had always debated on getting spirit weapons but her style nearly always destroyed or damaged her blades to the point of uselessness. She would have felt very guilty about it so refused that option.

She began to spin as her wolf's head appeared. Snake vs wolf now fought each other but her wolf's head was just an illusion due to her movements.

The snake was far more powerful!

It struck like lightning and she was sent reeling to the stone platform. She appeared to roll almost to the edge but the crowd was focused on her weapons.

Both short swords were cracked enough to be seen easily! A single strike had broken Law Grade blades!

The serpent loomed over her but Cyntilla slowly stood up. Blood flowed freely down her face and her hands were damaged but still working.

[You are broken now. Give up and I won't have to kill you. My Lighting Serpent Spirit will damage your soul if you make me attack you.] There was no arrogance in Cutter's words, simply truth.

She could feel it when they fought. If not for striking her swords, she knew her soul would be damaged right then.

Still, she was cracked, not broken.

She picked up her cracked swords and took her stance. A smile on her face was her only answer and the fight was not over yet!