Crimson 5

Having wrested the spear from Crimson, Doyun kicked his mana-infused Conquering Divine Palm towards the flustered enemy’s abdomen.

Thwack—!

[Guhk—!]

Though Crimson blocked with its arms, the Conquering Divine Palm pierced its guard, violently disrupting its insides – another technique Doyun had learned in this life, absent from Crimson’s data.

Staggering back in shock, Doyun seized the moment.

Swish. He spun the captured spear, adjusting his grip.

But an immediate repulsive force jolted his hand – as a Vanguard Commander’s weapon, it was a magic-imbued demonic spear.

However, Doyun had handled even mightier demonic spears before. Gripping tightly, he unleashed his mana through his palm.

Boom—!

After a single impact from the mana-saturated shockwave, the spear shaft trembled violently before falling still. No weapon on the continent could dare defy Enoch Războlnic.

The elder demonic spear in Doyun’s opposite hand, the Curse-Soul Demon Spear, vibrated mockingly at its junior’s predicament.

Doyun crossed the two demonic spears in an X-shape. Enveloped in a golden spear aura, the shafts radiated brilliance.

Clang, clang, clang!

Doyun relentlessly pressured Crimson with dazzling shifts between offense and defense using the four spears.

Limited to just three spears, Crimson was gradually forced onto the defensive. Doyun not only wielded the Crossed-Spears Four-Armed Style but flexibly incorporated unexpected variables into his combat.

Once more, Doyun discarded the spear in his left hand. As Crimson’s spearhead thrust towards him, he caught the shaft instead.

[You foolish bastard!]

Crimson tightened its grip, anticipating Doyun’s dimensional rift trap. Though repeatedly tormented by variables, a Vanguard Commander was not so easily tricked by the same ploy twice.

If only guarding against that variable, its superior physical might would overwhelm Doyun in a contest of raw strength.

But Doyun did not summon another spear.

Instead of releasing his left-hand grip, he channeled force through that arm. Then, dragging the captured spearshaft towards Crimson, he raked the blade of his right-hand spear upwards along its length.

Crackcrackcrack!

[Ugh!]

Following the sword-drawing principle, the blade accelerated through the frictional force, viciously slashing towards Crimson’s hand – it could only release its grip in alarm.

Thus stripped of its second spear as well, Doyun caught the spinning shaft, flashing Crimson a wry smile.

[You, you…!]

Overwhelmed by the relentless unpredictability, Crimson trembled its empty hands in rage and confusion. But it was soon forced to jerk its head aside, narrowly avoiding a spearhead thrust at its skull – Doyun refused to let up.

Doyun’s Crossed-Spears Four-Armed Style did not merely mimic the art.

He was an [Acquired Savant]. The spear techniques of the countless geniuses he had witnessed over two hundred years were already ingrained within him.

Doyun integrated his comrades’ martial arts into the Crossed-Spears Four-Armed Style.

His breathing shifted ever so slightly, his body moving as if possessed.

The flickering thrusts at a specific vibrational frequency – the signature technique of Zeke, the first-ranked spearman of the original Guild a century ago.

Crimson crossed its two spears in an X to block, but the amplified vibrations caused its spears to be deflected.

[Zeke’s Style Spearmanship – Shield Breaker]

Clang!

Crimson’s arms flung wide, its guard shattered with no spare spears for offense or defense.

Doyun’s breathing shifted again. Wielding a spinning shaft like the eldest warrior Doggomu-yeong, he executed a dazzling flurry of staff strikes.

With its defenses breached, Crimson could only receive the barrage – the spear shaft ruthlessly battered its knee, hip, waist, and neck joints that formed its body’s structural pillars.

[Dog-Beating Staff Technique – Falling Paralytic]

Crunch, thud, crack—!

Crimson briefly staggered, its balance lost as its body twisted and buckled.

Doyun’s breathing changed once more. Like the ‘Sword Emperor’ Vyuskr piercing with pinpoint accuracy, he thrust at the ‘point’ – the one-dimensional concept itself.

A technique present in Crimson’s data, but reborn through fusion with the Crossed-Spears Four-Armed Style. Utterly defenseless, it could not possibly respond.

[Buske’s Style Swordsmanship – Halberd Thrust]

Thunk—

An abnormally clean hole pierced Crimson’s solar plexus, accompanied by a resoundingly crisp impaling sound. It widened its eyes, unable to comprehend the degree of pinpoint precision through mere calculation.

[Kuh, hur…]

The unavoidable onslaught continued relentlessly. Repeatedly struck senseless, all Crimson could do was scream in agony.

Doyun combined martial arts from his memories, unleashing techniques beyond Crimson’s data processing capacity, spontaneously creating new fighting arts.

Having nearly depleted his mana, he could not overwhelm a Vanguard Commander through sheer output alone. But a Regression Warrior’s combat senses more than made up for that gap, utterly dominating his opponent.

“…Impressive.”

The observing Vyuskr muttered in soft admiration.

As one who pursued the profound depths of martial arts, he understood better than most – his friend was truly monstrous.

What did a mana deficit matter? His friend, Enoch Războlnic, had reached the pinnacle of martial arts itself.

He was not the only spectator.

“Master, did you see that?”

“Huerr… when did this old lady’s techniques get stolen away.”

Heineken and Doggomu-yeong also paused their fight, gaping in awe at the breathtaking sight.

[Kwaaaaaah—!!]

Bleeding profusely all over, Crimson wildly thrashed its two remaining spears in futile resistance. Its previous cold, calculated demeanor was nowhere to be seen.

In stark contrast, the previously exhausted Doyun brimmed with vigor, wielding the spears as he continued exploring the spear arts.

‘Dual-Wielding Spears, Aura-Grasped Spears. No, the Crossed-Spears Four-Armed Style allows for even greater expansion, even greater efficiency…!’

Doyun drew forth his remaining mana. His eyes blazed golden.

Multiple black voids opened in the air. Each disgorged a unique spear, joining the two wrested from Crimson to form a dozen spears hovering behind the enemy before plunging into the ground.

Thud thud thud!

Sensing the threat, Crimson turned to look behind – its premonition proved accurate, eyes widening.

[This is…?]

The dozen spears lining the ground created a path, six on each side like makeshift barriers, restricting lateral movement while emphasizing forward and backward motion.

Doyun pressed his two-spear assault, forcing Crimson to backpedal while desperately parrying, one step at a time.

With each forward stride, Doyun would discard one hand spear to pull another from the ground. The discarded spears hovered to supplement his offensive and defensive maneuvers.

Every footstep unleashed the unique effects imbued within those diverse spears, steadily constricting Crimson’s breathing room.

Spear strikes laced with curses became lightning to electrify its body, then transitioned to wind, then other effects in turn. Doyun fully exploited the ever-shifting powers of those myriad spirit weapons.

But that was not all. The number of spears he drew with each step increased, all hovering independently to move of their own accord. Some even launched throwing strikes from behind.

[Just what is this…!]

Grasping, releasing, thrusting, slashing… Doyun became a one-man conductor commanding the spears – a level of calculation unfathomable even to the artificial Crimson.

Yet Doyun achieved it through sheer insane combat instincts, beyond mere calculations.

Finally, at the path’s end, Doyun drew the last spear.

[…!]

The twelve spears arrayed behind him, each moving autonomously as a spear art incarnate.

Clangclangclangclangclang—!

[Kwaaaaaah—!!]

Doyun’s golden eyes flashed as he wildly spun the spears in an unrestrained flurry, a far cry from his previous composed bladework.

Watching intently, Heineken’s eyes widened as he realized something.

“That’s…!”

After swinging the fourteen spears a total of one thousand times, the air itself stilled. Crimson too held its breath, sensing the threat of impending death.

Not mere stillness, but the eerie calm before a storm’s arrival.

In that final moment, their eyes met – Crimson’s and Doyun’s golden gaze.

Doyun muttered softly,

“The Saint was far stronger after all.”

[…!]

Vanguard Commander Crimson – its database contained data on every Vanguard Commander who had fought and fallen before Războlnic.

It had boasted of being Războlnic’s bane. But in the end, like them all, it could only kneel before Enoch.

[Războlnic…]

Doyun roughly crossed the two spears in his hands.

Shhhhrrrip—!

[Roxburgh’s Style Spearmanship Quintessence – Thousand-Li Ground Spear]

Invisible spear strikes formed in all directions, converging on Crimson – the continent’s strongest spearman Heineken’s ultimate art, simultaneously unleashing one thousand spear strikes. The Thousand-Li Ground Spear.

Before its death, like the other Vanguard Commanders, Crimson let out one final cry:

[Razvolniiiiiic—!!]

A thousand holes pierced its body.

The demise of the Twin Vanguard Commander, Crimson.

+++

[Razvolniiiiiic—!!]

The anguished, scream-like roar reverberated across the battlefield. Laced with rage and resentment, that final cry reached everyone’s ears distinctly.

Even the enigmatic presence hovering above could hear it.

[…]

A pair of emerald eyes analyzed the battle scene clinically.

[Terminate.]

Having finished recording, its azure flames dimmed. Its azure armor glinted under the sunlight.

[Objective, annihilation.]

Just as the mysterious entity began descending to complete its objective, a shrill scream echoed from the opposite end of the battlefield.

“Kyaaaaah—!! This damn brat, not even the Sword Emperor, just a mere successor—aaaaaah—!!”

The emerald gaze turned in that direction.

[…]

After a moment’s calculation, it revised its assessment.

[Objective, updated. Annihilation.]

An azure streak flashed across the battlefield sky.

Dark storm clouds gathered in the far horizon.