CHAPTER 370: TAG TEAM OF THE YEAR

Noah’s mind shifted into overdrive, every neuron firing with calculated precision. The white lines were still there—chaotic, overlapping, promising death from every conceivable angle. But now he was learning to read them, to find the microscopic gaps in Kruel’s overwhelming offense.

’Pattern recognition is key. Even chaos has rules if you look deep enough.’

[Combat Analysis: Active]

[Threat Assessment: Updating in real-time]

[Recommended Strategy: Adaptive guerrilla tactics]

Lucas blazed forward in his soul form, electricity crackling around his translucent frame. His approach was textbook—feint high, strike low, keep the pressure constant. But Noah could see the white lines shifting, converging on Lucas’s trajectory like hungry snakes.

"Lucas, abort! Roll left!"

The warning came just as Kruel’s fist carved through the air where Lucas’s head had been. The young soldier twisted mid-charge, his soul form flickering as he narrowly avoided decapitation. Kruel’s follow-up was immediate—a devastating knee strike aimed at Lucas’s exposed ribs.

That’s when Noah struck.

Void Blink activated, reality folding as he materialized beside Kruel. Excaliburn came up in a perfect intercepting arc, the void-wreathed blade positioned to catch the Harbinger’s knee. Kruel’s eyes widened as he registered the deadly edge inches from his leg.

The Harbinger twisted desperately, his knee strike missing Lucas entirely as he yanked his leg away from the blade. But the sudden change in momentum left him off-balance for a split second.

Lucas capitalized instantly. Lightning coiled around his fist as he drove an uppercut toward Kruel’s exposed chin. The electrical discharge would have fried a normal opponent’s nervous system.

Kruel caught the punch barehanded.

The electricity coursed through his body, muscles spasming as thousands of volts flooded his system. But he held on, his grip tightening around Lucas’s wrist.

"Predictable," he snarled through gritted teeth.

Noah saw the white lines converging on Lucas like a spider’s web. The next attack would crush his friend’s bones to powder.

’No time to think. Just act.’

[Reciprocal Swap - Activated]

Reality hiccupped. One moment Lucas was trapped in Kruel’s grip, the next Noah was there, Excaliburn held in a perfect guard position. The void energy around the blade made Kruel release him instantly, the Harbinger’s survival instincts overriding his combat reflexes.

Lucas materialized where Noah had been standing, electricity already building for his next attack. The transition was seamless—they hadn’t even broken stride.

"Smart," Kruel admitted, rolling his shoulders. "But tricks only work once."

"Good thing I have more than one," Noah replied, his eyes tracking the shifting white lines. They were clearer now, more defined. He was learning to read Kruel’s attack patterns in real-time.

The Harbinger launched himself forward, his speed creating sonic booms. Noah saw the lines converge—a straight-line assault designed to overwhelm through pure velocity. But straight lines were predictable.

[Void Blink activated ]

Noah disappeared just as Kruel’s fist pulverized the ground where he’d been standing. He reappeared to the Harbinger’s left, Excaliburn sweeping in a horizontal arc.

Kruel ducked, the blade passing inches over his head. His counter-punch came up in a devastating hook that would have caved in Noah’s ribs.

[Reciprocal Swap - Activated ]

Lucas materialized in Noah’s position, his soul form blazing as he caught Kruel’s punch on his forearm. The impact sent shockwaves through the young soldier’s energy-wreathed body, but he held firm.

Lucas’s other hand came up, fingers spread wide. Electricity erupted in a cone-shaped blast that caught Kruel full in the chest. The Harbinger’s roar of pain shook the battlefield as thousands of volts coursed through his system.

But even as he convulsed, Kruel’s combat instincts kicked in. His leg swept out in a wide arc, catching Lucas behind the knees. The young soldier’s soul form flickered as he fell, electricity dissipating.

Noah was already moving. The white lines showed him Kruel’s next attack—a devastating downward strike that would crush Lucas’s skull. But Noah had learned to use the lines offensively now, to predict not just incoming attacks but optimal counter-positions.

He materialized above Kruel, Excaliburn reversed in an ice-pick grip. The void-wreathed blade came down toward the Harbinger’s neck like a falling star.

Kruel threw himself sideways, the blade missing by millimeters. Where it struck the ground, reality simply ceased—a perfect sphere of nothingness that made the Harbinger’s eyes widen with genuine fear.

"That blade," he breathed, his voice carrying a note of respect. "It doesn’t just cut. It unmakes."

Noah didn’t respond. He was already flowing into his next attack, the white lines guiding him toward optimal positioning. Kruel’s dodge had left him momentarily vulnerable—weight shifted wrong, guard down for half a second.

Void Barrage erupted from Noah’s left hand. Not the scattered pattern he’d used before, but a concentrated stream of nothingness aimed at Kruel’s center mass. The Harbinger twisted desperately, the void energy passing close enough to dissolve a single hair follicle from his gut area where the scale was lesser.

"Behind you!" Lucas called out, his soul form blazing back to full intensity.

Noah spun, Excaliburn coming up in a defensive posture. Kruel’s fist, moving so fast crashed into the flat of the blade. The impact sent vibrations through Noah’s entire body, but the void energy prevented Kruel from following through.

The Harbinger snarled, yanking his hand back before the blade’s edge could make contact. "You cannot hide behind that sword forever!"

"Don’t need forever," Noah replied, his eyes tracking the shifting white lines. "Just long enough."

Through his bond with Nyx, he could sense the dragon’s progress. The thermal network was spreading, superheating the subsurface in an ever-widening circle. Soon, the trap would be ready.

But first, they had to survive long enough to spring it.

"Lucas," Noah called out, a new strategy forming. "Tag team protocol. I’ll call the swaps."

"Copy that," Lucas replied, his soul form crackling with renewed energy.

They moved like a machine built for war. Noah would engage, drawing Kruel’s attention with Excaliburn’s lethal edge. The moment the Harbinger focused on the blade, Lucas would strike from an unexpected angle. When Kruel adapted to counter Lucas’s lightning, Noah would swap their positions, maintaining constant pressure.

Kruel found himself fighting two opponents who moved like one mind split between two bodies. Every time he thought he had one of them cornered, they would vanish, replaced by their partner striking from a completely different vector.

"Impressive coordination," Kruel admitted, deflecting a lightning strike while simultaneously dodging a void barrage. "But you’re still just postponing the inevitable."

His next attack was different—not the overwhelming force he’d been using, but surgical precision. He grabbed a chunk of EDF hull plating and hurled it not at Noah or Lucas, but at the space between them. The projectile exploded in a shower of superheated metal, forcing them to scatter.

In that moment of separation, Kruel struck.

He launched himself at Lucas, his fist moving faster than the young soldier could react. The white lines in Noah’s vision exploded into chaos—death approaching from every angle simultaneously.

"Swap!" Noah shouted, but even as he activated the ability, he knew it wouldn’t be enough. Kruel’s fist would connect before the teleportation completed.

As the swap happened in real time, Noah moved to Lucas’s position while at the same time shifting his weight to avoid the full brunt of the blow.

[HP: 2401/3200]

The partial hit still connected, sending Lucas tumbling across the battlefield.

"Lucas!" Noah’s voice cracked with concern, but his friend was already rolling back to his feet, soul form flickering but intact.

"I’m good," Lucas gasped, wiping blood from his mouth. "But we need something bigger."

Noah’s eyes locked onto the white lines, watching them shift and flow around Kruel’s position. The Harbinger was getting more aggressive, his attacks more precise. They were running out of time.

’Need to end this exchange decisively. But how do I get close enough for a killing blow?’

That’s when the idea struck him. It was insane, risky beyond measure, but it might just work.

"Lucas," he called out, his voice carrying absolute conviction. "Trust me on this one. When I call for the swap, I won’t actually swap. Just look like you’re about to."

Lucas’s eyes widened as he understood the implication. "That’s suicide if he reads it."

"Then we better sell it perfectly," Noah replied, Excaliburn humming with void energy.

They moved into position, playing their roles to perfection. Noah engaged Kruel head-on, his blade work forcing the Harbinger to focus entirely on the lethal edge. Lucas circled to the side, electricity building around his form in preparation for what looked like a devastating flanking attack.

"Now!" Noah shouted.

Lucas tensed, his body language screaming that he was about to teleport. Kruel’s eyes flicked to him for just an instant, his combat instincts reading the "incoming" swap.

But instead of swapping, Noah activated Void Blink.

He materialized directly behind Kruel, his fist already glowing with the distinctive black energy of his Null Strike. The void-wreathed punch drove into the Harbinger’s back with the force of a meteor impact.

The effect was immediate and devastating. Void energy erupted from the point of contact, spreading across Kruel’s back like black fire. The Harbinger’s scream of pain was unlike anything Noah had ever heard—not just physical agony, but the existential terror of having parts of his being simply cease to exist.

Kruel collapsed forward, his body convulsing as void energy continued to eat away at his flesh. For a moment, Noah thought it was over. The Null Strike had landed perfectly, catching the Harbinger completely off-guard.

Except something was wrong. The sand that had flown up as Kruel’s massive body hit the ground remained suspended.

It was almost like time had paused.

That’s when his enhanced perception caught something else—a flicker of movement in his peripheral vision. His eyes snapped open wide with alarm.

"Lucas!" he shouted, his voice carrying desperate urgency. "Behind you!"

There was a man in black just five feet away from Lucas who had a blade drawn with a distinctive red and white energy around it.

The distinctive colour of dark chi.