Musou Knight: Crow of Cinders

Chapter 84: Crow VS Thousand Phantoms (1)

Chapter 84 - Crow VS Thousand Phantoms (1)

Aki let out a warcry. Her aura flared, as streams of blue water circled her. Beneath my feet, a water mass surged upward, trapping me inside.

Oh, dear. You still hadn’t learned, Miss Otherworlder. It didn’t work last time, and it won’t work now.

But... didn’t I just burn through my musou gauge? Whoops.

My stomach was still warm from leftover gasoline in my kidneys, liver, stomach, intestines, and lungs. Some of Lia’s wind‑element energy lingered in my... ahem, you know.

Borrowing backup musou energy, I funneled wind into my lungs to keep breathing underwater. I drew the black mist sword.

Rock Norg struck at that moment. His dual blades sliced through the water mass, colliding with my mist sword and cracking it.

Bastard!

Countering the water prison, I circulated my water-fire cultivation method. Her water mass bubble condensed and transformed into crude oil, shrinking and vanishing into my water core. I was freed.

Rock Norg raised his swords, unleashing an X‑shaped cross cut. His body glowed orange, a shrinking circle counting down.

I thrust into the gap between his blades, my cracked sword piercing his forehead. The tip scraped bone, grazing upward.

Rock Norg’s phantom staggered back, retreating behind his troops.

Behind me, Aki spun, unleashing her ultimate move. Her body glowed red.

Danger!

I dropped prone.

Her broadsword extended into an icy whip, sweeping overhead. It carved through her own comrades, erasing them. A shockwave followed, blasting me off the ground.

Midair, I grabbed my halberd and half‑broken mist sword. After landing hard, I saw Rock Norg point at me. Spearmen formed a wall, bodies glowing red, charging.

Unable to counter, I leapt over them. Their spears grazed my legs, but I landed behind the mob.

I turned around. My halberd cut down ten spearmen. As they fell, faint wisps of energy touched me, vanishing.

Inspiration struck. Instead of chasing the leaders, I hunted the rank‑and‑file. Their formation was broken.

KO Count: 500.

More militia and bandits surged forward, except three hundred soldiers and Troturre, who watched from afar.

Aki pursued, her whip glowing orange.

Catching the cue, I swatted it aside with my half‑broken sword. It shattered. I snatched a shard midair and hurled it at her.

It struck her chest. She faltered.

I closed the distance. My halberd came down diagonally, splitting her phantom in two.

Aki faded. A beacon of light shone. A blue broadsword floated within.

I seized it, replacing my broken mist sword. Cold aura surged. My hand felt like gripping ice.

Rock Norg roared, summoning a tidal wave. He rode atop it, spearmen charging with him, bodies glowing orange.

Every orange was opportunity. I swept my halberd horizontally, ten phantoms vanishing.

Rock Norg descended, spinning like a top. His dual swords whirled. His moves still glowed orange.

I struck his unguarded legs. Both limbs flew. The spinning top collapsed.

As he hit the ground, my new ice sword plunged into his ear, exiting the other.

His phantom disintegrated, leaving another beacon. A new black mist sword dropped.

Oh boy. Two magic swords and one magic halberd. Which to use?

Troturre snorted, raising his hand. The army reformed ranks.

Behind me, two thousand phantoms rose. They were knights clad in Constantia’s armor.

The walls shrank, squeezing the battlefield. Two thousand phantoms marched forward while Troturre leveled his halberd at me. His five hundred soldiers roared, tower shields locking into a phalanx. They smacked their shields in rhythm, taunting me.

Troturre at the front, two thousand knights behind.

I was surrounded. Escape to the side? Impossible. The gleaming stage walls blocked every route.

I glanced at Aki’s ice sword. An idea sparked.

I bit down on the blade, channeling musou energy from my water core.

The sword darkened, painted black by my energy, then cracked. In seconds, it shattered, transforming into a mass of water. My energy twisted it further, turning it black. The raw stench of crude oil hit my nose.

The oil mass dissolved into me. Instantly, my musou gauge overflowed.

New technique acquired. Note to self: collect inferior water‑type weapons after this ordeal.

Since Troturre could summon troops endlessly, I sprinted toward the phalanx.

The militia raised shields, hiding like turtles. My blue halberd smashed one shield, but it held. I struck again, and it cracked.

The entire wall of shields glowed red. I frowned, leaping back. A second later, the shield wall surged forward, spikes jutting from their centers but hitting nothing. The spikes retracted, and the formation reset.

"Ah, nice trick."

I ignited my halberd with musou flames, swiping across the wall. Every phantom in its path caught fire, the blaze spreading through the formation.

The phalanx crumbled. Some phantoms collapsed into dust, others endured, writhing in pain.

I rammed into the disarrayed mob, slipping into their center. With a wide swing, my halberd carved through twenty phantoms.

Troturre loomed ahead. He raised his blue halberd and hacked at me.

No counter indicator because of our level gap. I blocked.

He stomped, unleashing wind musou. Wind blades scattered point‑blank. Seven slashed into my chest and arms.

My left arm flew. Both shoulders split open. My black and red blood gushed.

Dammit. He was smarter than the real Troturre.

I roared, unleashing a musou flame shockwave that drenched him and his minions in gasoline and flame.

Troturre staggered back five steps. I retreated one, bathing in fire.

Glancing at my missing arm, I saw the flames heal the wound. My shoulders were sealed, and my flesh regenerated. How far it would recover, I didn’t know. But for now, I had one usable arm left.

I could have stayed in the sea of fire to recuperate, but Troturre chased relentlessly. Flames clung to his phantom form, yet he didn’t flinch.

Defeating him with one arm might be impossible, given our level gap.

I turned and sprinted toward the phantom troops I had leapt over earlier.

They wheeled around. Constantia’s soldiers caught up and merged with them, swelling into a 2,500‑man mob. Weapons raised as they charged.

My halberd sang, sweeping horizontally and swatting away their spears. I spun, swinging again, bisecting twenty phantoms in a single stroke.

Power surged inside me with each kill. It felt like downing a mouthful of musou wine.

Was my musou meter full again?

The water core pulsed, brimming with energy. My fire core was compressed and condensed, ready to burst.

Behind me, Troturre closed in. His body and halberd brightened, preparing another musou strike.

I turned. My muscles and blood vessels pushed my musou energy to its limit as I unleashed an ULT.