Chapter 759: Chapter 20 Duel

Clang!

The sound of metal clashing signaled the official start of their duel. Mo Yuankai was clad in gold armor with a high-tech aesthetic, while Orianna donned ancient traditional shiny silver plate armor, which did not hinder her movement. The female knight, with her superhuman reflexes, raised her sword just in time to block Mo Yuankai’s sudden assault with its heavy blade.

“Not bad on the reflexes,” Mo Yuankai lowered his staff, “How about the strength?”

The crook of the short handle rotated in his palm, and the long end of the staff, carrying inertia, swung out, aiming for Orianna’s head from the side. At the same time, Mo Yuankai’s left fist struck out towards the knight’s abdomen!

Orianna made a split-second decision, transitioning from holding the sword with both hands to just one, and used her gauntleted left fist to block the staff strike. With a forceful push from her right hand, she thrust the massive sword horizontally. The sword swatted away the fist attack, while the collision of the staff buzzed away any defensive posture. Both sides used the recoil to retreat, and it appeared as though a single exchange was about to conclude, but Mo Yuankai pointed the staff forward like a lance. The smooth metal of the staff’s base, which should have been seamless, now opened up like a cannon muzzle, glowing ominously.

The hidden laser cannon within the weapon fired without warning, as a beam as thick as an arm shot across the dueling field!

“Defense!”

A light golden halo embossed on her breastplate flickered faintly, and Orianna urgently activated the power of her Bright Flower armor, forming an oval Energy Shield in the center of the field. Mo Yuankai’s laser only caused a slight tremor to the shield, yet the Superpower User’s attack didn’t pause for even an instant. The structure on the gold armor’s shoulder flipped, erecting twelve small cannon ports on each side. Shoulder cannons!

Twelve internally explosive bombs shrieked as they launched, following right after the laser cannon had hit the shield. The Bright Flower shield completely shattered, but Mo Yuankai hadn’t moved an inch; instead, he stretched out both hands.

“Self-tracking cluster missiles, fire.”

Click, click, click! The reinforced metal casings of the armor popped open simultaneously, revealing countless long and short cannons. The armor was essentially a walking humanoid arsenal! Over a hundred cannon muzzles flared, firing projectiles trailed by bright light. “Defense…!” Knight Orianna called out the energy shield again, but this time the missiles split in flight, maneuvering around the barrier and turning into a downpour of bullets that slanted towards her. Orianna changed her trajectory, zipping around the edge of the field at high-speed to avoid getting hit, suddenly accelerating before the missiles could lock on. The self-tracking missiles fell one by one to the ground, with the explosive wind ringing out behind the knight, launching dust fountains toward the sky.

“Suppressive fire,” commented Yuliy from the stands, following the trajectory of the missiles, “Practical tactics. But where does the sheer volume of projectiles come from? Is he using spatial technology?”

“No, Yuliy. His method is simpler…but ingenious,” the old commander gestured with his fingers, “Watch the changes in the air and dust. Mr. Mo reconstitutes a tiny amount of matter into shell casings, then fills them with his highly compressed energy to serve as the propulsion. With just that bit of energy as a ‘catalyst’, he can flexibly control each bullet. The efficiency of this method far exceeds simply using force against force; he has an in-depth understanding of power manipulation.”

The old commander’s words were filled with admiration as he continued, “I believe he has constructed a special Skill to control the bullet trajectory, managing them to explode or switch attack modes at just the right moment… much like the Spells we commonly use in the Creation Realm War, building complex but permanent solutions. But I haven’t quite worked out the conceptual basis of this Skill…”

Yuliy pondered for a moment and said, “It could be an automated fire control system.”

“Technology?” the old commander scratched his head, “How interesting. Doesn’t he need to carry a big monitor around? Or that…uh… computer tower?”

“I don’t think that’s necessary.”

Clang! As they conversed, the battle had taken a new turn. Orianna had successfully navigated the barrage to close within five meters of Mo Yuankai. It appeared Mo Yuankai’s ammunition had been depleted, and he once again raised his weapon, engaging in close combat with Orianna. Sparks from steel colliding sprayed across the field, their clashing so rapid it seemed like phantoms dancing, only truly visible to the foremost knights.

“Is that a riot police’s baton?” asked Knight Sara, “Does he practice the Heavenly Return Skill?”

“A similar weapon appeared earlier in the Yong Guang Empire. They called it a ‘Yi-shaped staff,’ commonly known as the ‘rotating stick’…” Rakael intently watched the fierce fight in the center, “His Heavenly Return Skill…no, he hasn’t practiced the Heavenly Return Skill, nor has he undergone systematic combat training. The transition between moves is stiff, more like self-taught skills. But…”

“It’s fast!” Yuliy pointed out the key aspect.

Indeed, as Knight Yuliy said, Mo Yuankai’s speed was astonishing. In close combat, the length of his weapon provided a considerable advantage; normally, at an equal level, facing a longer weapon with a shorter one would be disadvantageous. Yet, Mo Yuankai defied this common knowledge. The sound of weapon clashing was like rain, making the longsword barely able to reach him, whereas the rotating staff consistently hit the sword. With just a staff, he completely suppressed Orianna, who wielded a sword.

Knowing simply taking hits was not an option, Orianna used the momentum from being struck to retreat several steps and then raised her longsword at a downward angle as though to swing and force back her opponent. Mo Yuankai’s rotating staff countered, the long end aiming for Orianna’s shoulder. The Seventh Knight took a deep breath, suddenly crouching low, rushing forward.

“Be careful now!”

The massive sword slashed upward diagonally at the opportune moment; the female knight opted for a strategy of mutual destruction, risking injury first to inflict effective damage.