Chapter 140: The Battle of Listen-Wind City (Conclusion)

The rose petals before his eyes suddenly closed, wrapping Count Rose inside and forming a giant bud. The bud then split into countless tiny petals, and with a gust of wind, Count Rose awoke and stood quietly in place.

She looked much the same as when Zhao Nan had first seen her, yet that intense feeling from back then washed over him once more. Zhao Nan clenched his fists tightly and narrowed his eyes slightly.

"You really didn't die," Count Rose said calmly. "And it was you who summoned Her Royal Highness back through the Grand Summoning Technique, wasn't it?"

Zhao Nan sneered, "Since you've come all this way, isn't that confirmation enough?"

"This time, I will definitely not spare you!" Count Rose sneered in return. "No one can save you. You'd better hand Her Royal Highness over to me!"

Zhao Nan let out a cold hum and asked, "Let me ask you, what exactly is the relationship between this so-called princess of yours and Finina?"

"A lowly Chosen One like you has no right to know Her Royal Highness's identity! You are unworthy!"

Count Rose drew the longsword from her hand. Although she was severely injured, her combat power had not regressed; only her health pool was a bit thin. She had been able to completely crush him that day, and she could do the same today.

"I remember there is a time limit for a kingdom lord to use the Wrath of Heaven..." Count Rose said with disdain. "Without it, what do you have to fight me with?"

The word "fight" had barely left her lips when Count Rose flicked into motion with unrivaled speed.

Clang—!

Count Rose struck something solid, causing the sword in her hand to vibrate violently. She stared in astonishment at a gigantic golden shield hovering just above Zhao Nan's head. It was this very shield that effortlessly blocked her confident strike, leaving not the slightest scratch upon its surface.

Although there was not a scratch on the shield, Zhao Nan's HP still dropped by nearly a hundred points. This meant that even with a boost of 10,000 defense, Count Rose was still capable of breaking through his defenses.

Surprise aside, Zhao Nan still remembered the time limit on this divine artifact. He knew instinctively that she would panic after this single blow was blocked.

And once she panicked, that would be his opening!

Schwing!

A flash of golden light surged from the top of the shield, cutting through the surrounding darkness as if slicing open the night. Brilliant radiance erupted across the entire rooftop, the golden light illuminating half the sky before transforming into streams of light that filled the surroundings.

Sword of the Knight King!

Hah!

With a fierce roar, Zhao Nan gripped the sword, and a wave of familiar sensation welled up from every cell in his body. These were the memories of the time when he, too, had been a swordsman! Even though his current class was infinitely more powerful than before, his instincts as a swordsman remained!

With a swing of the golden Sword of the Knight King, he carved a terrifying fissure across Count Rose's chest armor. The armor shattered, tearing her clothes open along with it and exposing her smooth, fair breasts.

Her breasts bounced in the open air, heaving with turbulent motion.

Zhao Nan narrowed his eyes and muttered inwardly, "Impressive!"

By impressive, he meant the damage dealt to Count Rose by this single strike had actually reached 4,523 points! This was thousands of times better than the mandatory 1-point damage he could normally manage on his own!

Count Rose instinctively covered her chest, clear fury written across her face as she bit her lip. In a deep, astonished voice, she said, "The power of the Knight King!"

She took a deep breath. "No wonder you dared to challenge me. You've gone and acquired the power of the Knight King, one of the Six Heroes. But for a mage like you to wield the power of the Knight King is completely incongruous!"

With a sharp cry, Count Rose darted forward once again. Zhao Nan took a sharp breath, gripping the divine artifact in his hand, and thrust outward at an extremely tricky angle.

A burst of sparks flashed before their eyes as the tips of their two swords collided.

Count Rose moved at blinding speed, like a phantom.

Zhao Nan's figure was equally erratic, darting back and forth like a ghost. Within the small space of the rooftop, the frequency of their exchange was lightning-fast!

The only slight pity was that after invoking the Sword of the Knight King, Zhao Nan could no longer use any of his own class skills. Otherwise, if he were to suddenly unleash a Frozen Domain amidst this melee, Count Rose's life would truly be in jeopardy!

Well, if he couldn't use them, he couldn't use them. The shield's defense was enough to block all of Count Rose's skill attacks; although his HP would drop, it was still within an acceptable range. Conversely, the moment the divine artifact grazed her, her HP would plummet drastically.

-3567! With this strike, the upper-body armor of Count Rose completely shattered!

-2341! With this blow, the gauntlet on her left hand cracked apart as well!

...

-3456! The skirt armor at her waist instantly fell away!

-4673! That was a critical hit!

...

Yet the battle continued... One minute.

Two minutes!

In the span of these short two minutes, Zhao Nan's stamina was depleted to an extreme degree. Although the two divine artifacts granted him transcendent power, the burden they placed on his physical body was evidently immense as well. Furthermore, this power had been forcibly imposed upon him, making his movements with it somewhat unpolished.

Moreover, to counter Count Rose's attacks, Zhao Nan had mobilized every ounce of his mental focus. Her lightning-fast sword techniques clearly surpassed the sword skills he had once mastered as a swordsman.

Consequently, every single strike demanded a terrifying toll on his mental endurance.

"You're reaching your limit!" Count Rose panted.

Zhao Nan let out a weak grunt, flicking the divine artifact in his hand to strike once more... Yet her swordsmanship was simply too superior. At this rate of consumption, unless the divine artifact's time limit could be extended by another minute, he wouldn't be able to kill her—short of relying on a weak-point strike.

Clang, clang, clang!

Clatter—!

Suddenly, Zhao Nan shouted, "Count Rose, let's settle this with a single blow!"

Count Rose felt a jolt in her heart, let out a sharp cry as her short hair whipped through the air, and flashed a streak of cold light!

The two swords collided fiercely in mid-air!

Boom—!

Unable to bear the force of the impact, the rooftop collapsed inward on the spot.

At that moment, the Sword of the Knight King in Zhao Nan's hand suddenly jerked, deflected away by Count Rose's blade, and was sent flying straight out of his grasp!

Remaining usage time... 5 seconds!

4 seconds!

Count Rose's sword cleaved through the shield blocking her path!

3 seconds!

The sword lunged directly toward Zhao Nan's body!

Frozen Domain!

A dazzling blue radiance flashed outward, and Count Rose's movements slowed down instantly. At that exact moment, a golden blade pierced through her from behind, directly shredding her heart.

Zhao Nan chuckled softly, his expression composed.

Count Rose instinctively looked back, only to see someone standing behind her, wielding the Sword of the Knight King, clad head-to-toe in brilliant golden armor with long golden hair scattering in the wind.

"Your Highness... Ah—!!"

With a piercing, miserable scream, a massive pillar of golden light shot straight into the sky, tearing through the demonic miasma enveloping Listening Wind City.

Count Rose's body gradually vanished within the pillar of light... (To be continued...)