NOVPUBThe Soul Forger rolled his massive shoulders, seemingly savoring his freedom.
"Tell me, Axel," the ancient being rumbled, "are you accustomed to battling creatures of my size? Most humans quiver at the mere sight of beings like me."
"I've had my fair share of battles against against giants things like you. But you know, size rarely determines the outcome."
Rel's grip on his sword remained steady, his stance relaxed yet alert.
A smile spread across the Soul Forger's face.
Something about Rel's answer seemed to please him immensely.
'If I had ever met a human just like him...' the Soul Forger thought to himself, his ancient mind traveling back through countless centuries.
He paused, considering whether he wanted to follow the prophet of the stars as foretold in the ancient texts, but the realization struck him with sudden clarity.
It was already too late.
The prophet of the fallen star had been broken since then, shattered across by forces even he couldn't comprehend.
The Soul Forger hefted his massive hammer, the weight of it causing the stone floor beneath him to crack slightly.
"Then let us begin, Axel. Show me what makes you different from the countless warriors I've encountered over the millennia."
In response, Rel raised his blade.
The air around them seemed to still, as if the universe itself was holding its breath in anticipation. 𝖓𝔬𝔳𝔭𝖚𝖇.𝔠𝔬𝖒
Then it happened.
CRACKKK! BOOOM!
A storm of lightning erupted around the chamber, black bolts lashing against the ancient walls.
The Soul Forger's eyes widened as he witnessed the source, the black aura Rel had imbued within his sword.
It wasn't merely coating the blade as most warriors' aura did; it was transforming it, changing its very nature.
The ancient being watched in fascination as the transformation progressed.
The sword's metal seemed to drink in the darkness until it completely turned black, with every part of the blade gaining a unique blackness to it—not the dull black of ordinary metal, but a deep, consuming void that seemed to bend light around its edges.
'It's finally ready to ascend,' the Soul Forger realized, genuine surprise evident in his ancient features.
To confirm his suspicion, the Soul Forger gripped his hammer tightly and imbued it with his own aura.
Black energy flowed from his stone-like flesh into the weapon, but this was no ordinary manifestation of power.
With his black hammer there was something Rel noticed in its uniqueness.
Not only did the Soul Forger have black aura, but there was so much aura flowing around his hammer that storms of lightning erupted from it like a hurricane.
The energy crackled and hissed, arcs of black lightning leaping between the walls, ceiling and floor, scorching ancient stone with each touch.
'Dominance Armament... and not only that his weapon is Special Supreme Grade...'
Rel thought, his eyes narrowing as he recognized what he was witnessing.
In a world filled with weapons of all kinds, only three swords had ever been labeled the Pinnacle of weaponry infused with aura - the Special Supreme Grade.
The Soul Forger's hammer, though not a sword, clearly belonged in this rarefied category.
What made such weapons so special was their absolute uniqueness compared to their respective holders.
A Special Supreme Grade weapon was essentially a 1 of 1 in terms of quality, possessing Unique Aura Properties, Unique Appearance, True Damage, True Aura Output, and most importantly, permanent infused aura within the weapon itself.
Masters of aura who wielded such weapons could inflict damage that remained permanent regardless of how strong their opponents were, how much they could withstand attacks, reduce damage, or any other defensive capability.
The permanent nature of these wounds transcended normal healing, marking the victim forever with injuries that could never truly mend.
Rel was well aware of this consequence, a single strike from that hammer could leave wounds that would never heal, damage that would follow him beyond this battle, perhaps even beyond this world.
"You recognize it," the Soul Forger said, his voice rumbling with pride as he noticed Rel's gaze fixed on his weapon.
"Few mortals understand what they're seeing when they behold a Special weapon."
ZOOMMM!
The ancient being swung the hammer in a casual arc, leaving trails of black lightning in its wake.
"This is Worldbreaker, forged from the heart of this earth and tempered in the blood of gods. It has shattered many and sundered nations."
He pointed the massive weapon at Rel.
"Your blade... it approaches such status, but hasn't quite reached it. You are still too far from it."
The Soul Forger's chest expanded as he drew in a deep breath, his stone-like body glowing with internal heat. His eyes blazed with ancient power as his jaw unhinged unnaturally wide.
"Let's see how you dance, mortal!"
WHOOOOSH!
A torrent of blue flames erupted from the Soul Forger's maw, not the ordinary orange-red of natural fire but something far more primal.
The ignited breath roared across the forge, transforming the chamber into a hellscape of destruction.
'I can't believe he's using that already.'
Rel darted sideways, his movements fluid and precise as the flames scorched the stone where he'd stood moments before.
The heat was intense enough to melt the floor into bubbling slag, yet Rel maintained his composure, calculating each step carefully in order to not get burnt.
However, The Soul Forger tracked him, his massive head swiveling to follow Rel's evasive maneuvers.
The stream of blue fire curved through the air, chasing its target with persistence.
"Running only prolongs the inevitable!" the ancient being bellowed between breaths, the flames intensifying as he poured more power into his assault.
Rel's eyes narrowed as he analyzed the pattern of the flames, noting the slight fluctuations in their intensity.
He ducked behind a massive pillar, which immediately began to glow white-hot under the onslaught.
In seconds, the column would melt completely.
'Surely, he'll have an opening eventually right?'
The Soul Forger's chest heaved as he maintained the torrent of flames, his lungs beginning to strain from the continuous exertion.
Even for a being of his magnitude, such power could not be sustained indefinitely.
'This is it.'
Rel sensed the opportunity approaching. Each breath had its limits.
'Now!'
When the flames finally sputtered, the briefest interruption in the Soul Forger's attack, Rel exploded from cover.
His form became a blur as he closed the distance, capitalizing on that momentary vulnerability.
The Soul Forger's eyes widened in surprise at Rel's sudden advance.
"Fast—!"
Rel's grip tightened on his sword, his fingers adjusting to hold the hilt with a single-handed technique.
The blade traced an upward diagonal path through the air as he channeled his power.
Black lightning crackled along the edge of the weapon, no longer merely coating the metal but seeming to emerge from within it.
"Divine Severance."
The words were barely audible, yet they carried immense weight.
The air around Rel's blade distorted as his Dominance aura manifested fully, not just black lightning now, but a fundamental assertion of his will upon reality itself.
SLASH!
The attack connected with the Soul Forger's midsection, a perfect strike that sent a shockwave throughout the entire chamber.
The cleaving slash didn't just damage through physical matter, it tore through the very essence of the ancient being.
Agh…
The Soul Forger staggered backward, one massive hand instinctively moving to the wound.
It wasn't bleeding in any conventional sense, but wisps of blue energy escaped from the gash, dissipating into the air.
'He got a good hit… though it's been a while since I have battled…'
Despite the wound, the ancient being's eyes gleamed finally seeing interest.
This human moved differently from any warrior he'd encountered before, not with the desperate fury of mortals facing death, but with the precision of someone who knew exactly what they were doing.
Rel pressed his advantage, already preparing a follow-up strike.
His sword traced another arc through the air, black lightning intensifying around the blade.
The Soul Forger's expression shifted from surprise to determination.
With surprising speed for his massive frame, he swung Worldbreaker in a downward arc, meeting Rel's advance head-on.
BOOM!
The hammer crashed into the ground with earth-shattering force.
The impact point became the center of a rapidly expanding network of cracks, like spiderwebs stretching across the entire floor of the forge. From these fissures, geysers of black lightning erupted upward, forming a deadly cage around Rel.
"Let's see you dodge this, Axel!"
The black lightning shot skyward, then arced inward, all converging on Rel's position from every angle.
Each bolt carried enough power to reduce a normal human to ash instantly.
Rel's eyes flashed as he assessed the attack.
There was no conventional escape route, the lightning formed a perfect dome of destruction.
