CHAPTER 60: BATTLE BETWEEN THE STRONGEST GENIUSES (1)

In the vast barren land, Ignis and Lilith stood facing each other. The air shifted before either of them moved.

Ignis stepped forward, rolling her shoulders leisurely. The atmosphere around her tightened as heat rose around her. She turned her head slightly toward James and said with a smirk.

"I’ll show you another kind of sword fighting style."

James raised an eyebrow, clearly feeling curious because Ignis was a genuine dragon, and yet, she preferred fighting using a sword. Behind him, Nyxrael watched silently, but if you looked into his mask closely, his eyes lit up as he was also intrigued.

Ignis exhaled softly.

Then, she unsheathed her sword and shifted her grip, thumb resting against the lower flat of the blade, the metal angled backward along her forearm like a predatory limb.

Her body leaned forward, one hand digging into the ground for balance while the other arm pulled back, gripping her weapon like a drawn arrow.

Red-orange flame gathered around her frame—dense, like magma sealed under the earth just moments before eruption.

Across from her, Lilith responded with only an exhale.

A magenta spark ignited behind her. One tail unfurled behind her as she directly awakened one tail because she knew that even if Ignis was in her human form, her physical strength was extremely strong.

The moment it appeared, her overall strength was doubled.

’Oh? Only one tail?’ James raised his eyebrows in surprise because he thought that Lilith would awaken two tails right away.

He then asked the system about Lilith’s strength in detail since he had only seen the surface from her information.

The system explained that Lilith’s case was a special one. Her flame was actually a mutated one, and it was an extremely strong one, to the point that it was slightly stronger than Ignis’ flame.

Mind you, Ignis’ red-orange flame was also different from a normal fire dragon and a much stronger one at that.

So, to close the gap between them, especially the physical strength, Lilith awakened a tail.

Every time someone from the Heavenly Demon Fox race awakened their tails, their overall strength increased massively, whether it was their physical strength, Demonic Qi, sense, reaction speed, etc.

For example, in Lilith’s case, she just doubled her strength by awakening a tail. If she were to use all of her strength and awaken four tails, her strength would be quintupled from her original strength.

Just as James was lost in his thoughts, Ignis made the first move.

Her right foot snapped forward with every muscle aligned to convert stored tension into acceleration. Dust shot backward in a burst as her feet drove into the ground.

Her body blurred as she used her (Dragonsmoke Step) skill.

The propulsion wasn’t just physical, as mana combusted under her foot, leaving a thin arc of ember-smoke trailing behind her movement. To the naked eye, the travel looked instantaneous.

Lilith’s chin tilted half a degree as she looked at Ignis’ approach. She lifted her hands and condensed magenta flame around her fingers, lengthening into razor-thin claws.

Ignis swung her sword horizontally.

The attack wasn’t refined as it bent the traditional sword form. The motion came from her shoulder and back rather than wrist and elbow efficiency.

Her strike resembled the swipe of a beast rather than a trained knight, yet the power output was undeniable.

Lilith intercepted the slash with a swing of her hand.

CLANG!!

Not a metallic ring, but a compressed shockwave that rippled outward and displaced the air violently. The ground trembled beneath both of them, fissures radiating from their feet.

Ignis didn’t disengage as she rotated her wrist, letting the feedback force travel through her arm instead of resisting it. Her grip loosened for less than a tenth of a second, then tightened again with brutal precision.

Her second strike followed instantly. It was an upward diagonal cut meant to sever through ribs.

Lilith pivoted in response, her rear foot slid backward by a hairbreadth. Her body arched, avoiding only the minimum distance necessary.

The sword passed within a centimeter of her body, heat licking her skin.

She then countered, slashing her left hand forward, targeting Ignis’ abdomen where momentum committed her forward.

Ignis responded not by blocking, but by stepping deeper into the attack.

It was a high-risk move. Her body twisted as her shoulders rotated independently of her hips. The claw grazed her waist, but her blade came down again, the point angled downward.

This time, she used her (Infernic Edge Resonance) skill. The sword vibrated, barely visible but powerful enough that the air resonated around the edge.

Lilith’s expression sharpened, and she immediately brought both claws up, forearms crossing to catch the blade.

A harsh vibration shot up her arms. The flames coating her claws distorted as if being split on a molecular level. Magenta fire sputtered but managed to hold it even though it was just barely.

Her heels dug into the ground, leaving twin trenches behind her from the force.

Ignis’ stance was brutally forward as her breathing deepened, each inhalation expanding her ribs as draconic musculature took over.

Her third strike came fast, as she utilized the recoil from the previous exchange.

Lilith countered with a deflecting sweep of her right claw.

This time, Ignis didn’t commit to the blow. She let the weapon be redirected, then stepped again as she used the (Dragonsmoke Step) skill.

Her body flickered, reappearing behind Lilith mid-rotation.

Lilith reacted immediately. Her ankle twisted sharply as she redirected her pivot, her spine bending with unnatural flexibility. Her left claw whipped sideways, intercepting the sword just before it reached her neck.

The parry didn’t fully negate momentum.

Steel scraped magenta flame, and sparks erupted from the contact point.

Lilith’s tail flicked. A fine adjustment with a micro distance, yet massive in effect. Her balance corrected as her footing stabilized, and she launched forward.

Her claws extended, their length increasing by several centimeters.

Ignis’ eyes narrowed. Her blade drew back as she prepared her next skill (Blazing Rift).