Chapter 976

Bodies could be seen flying all around the vicinity like ragdolls, men being flung aside as if they weighed nothing at all.

Heavy, rhythmic stomping sounds resonated across the battlefield, signaling the approach of a titan.

Pluck!

The Dawn forces charged at him with desperation, yet like a force of nature, they shattered against his advance.

He was a brute in the truest sense, and he was demonstrating his prowess at that moment by tossing the soldiers around as if they were mere toddlers.

His eyes, however, were fixed on a singular target.

Thalos!

The gargoyle appeared momentarily unaware, calmly neutralizing those in his immediate path with efficient strikes to the ribs and face.

Tilting his head to the side, Thalos avoided a sword that was streaking toward him before countering with a punch that sent his attacker spiraling away in agony.

Pausing for a second, the gargoyle finally sensed the shift; the pressure of the surrounding enemies had reduced significantly.

’Huh?’

Lifting his head to scan the premises, his eyes widened.

Pluck had already reached his position, breaking through his perimeter as a punch shot toward the gargoyle’s face like a battering ram.

Quickly lifting his hand, the gargoyle’s greatsword shifted forward to intercept the strike. It landed with a loud, metallic ring that echoed violently across the battlefield.

The gargoyle maintained his footing, refusing to be sent sliding backward as he glared into Pluck’s eyes.

"I was coming to you already," Thalos noted, his voice a low rumble.

Pluck tilted his head with a predatory smile, taking half a step back to shift into a combat stance.

Seeing the two titans facing off, no one dared to intervene; the surrounding soldiers steered clear, giving the powerhouses the space they required.

"... Well, I decided to seek you out myself. Not such a bad deal, if you ask me. Right?"

Thalos calmly stabbed his greatsword into the earth before shifting into his own stance.

His embedded crimson gauntlets gleamed dangerously, looking ready to spill blood.

BANG—!

A thunderous sound rolled across the plains.

The soil bent and groaned beneath the feet of the two combatants as they blurred forward.

Within a split second, they reached one another and delved into combat without further words.

Fists flew with staggering velocity.

Pluck swirled Ki into his hands and quickly crossed them in front of his face to catch a blow.

BAM—!

Thalos’ knuckles crashed into the vice leader’s forearms, sending a dull, vibrating pain through the man’s veins.

Yet, Pluck didn’t budge.

He dug his toes into the ground, anchoring himself to the earth which was already splintering beneath his weight.

Not wasting time, he shoved Thalos’ hands away before lunging with a wild swing aimed at the gargoyle’s neck.

Calmly, the gargoyle sidestepped the trajectory before vaulting forward, launching a deadly double kick at the vice leader.

Pluck deflected the strikes with seasoned precision, more bangs rolling across the field as Thalos’ feet slammed against his reinforced hands.

Twirling around fiercely after the final kick, Thalos swung his fist with rapid momentum.

Ki flowed across Pluck’s body, enabling him to leap to the side just in time as Thalos’ fist crashed into the earth.

The impact turned that exact spot into a five-meter-wide chasm that stretched through the dirt.

Ki wrapped around the vice leader’s hands, forming a pair of glowing gauntlets that radiated a lethal sheen.

Unhesitatingly, he punched the air a dozen times, sending visible Ki projectiles flying toward the gargoyle.

Whirling around and kicking up a localized storm of dust with his spin, Thalos charged directly toward the incoming blasts.

His gauntleted hands blurred through the air, swatting the Ki fists aside as if they were mere insects.

Each deflection sent a projectile digging a deep gouge into the terrain.

Pluck didn’t relent, bolting forward the moment Thalos had batted the last fist away.

Within a heartbeat, the vice leader was before the gargoyle, his dominant hand flooded with every ounce of his available Ki.

The hand cocked back, aimed for a mountain-shattering punch.

****

In another area, Oscroch approached Fenrir, who had just dispatched two dozen combatants as if they were nothing.

It was at that precise moment that Oscroch materialized before him with staggering velocity. In his hand, a Ki blade sliced through the air, aimed directly for the man’s neck.

Fenrir’s instincts kicked in instantly.

Lightning coursed through his very veins, enabling him to rocket to the side in a jiffy.

The sword slashed through the empty air, the atmosphere itself seeming to bend beneath the weight of the stroke.

Behind the missed strike, a deep trench yawned over the terrain.

Lifting one hand toward the heavens, Fenrir’s eyes glinted for a second before he hurled his arm back down.

BANG—!

Oscroch’s eyes drifted to the sky to see a massive lightning arrow screaming his way.

Gritting his teeth for a second, the vice leader hurled his hand forward; from behind him, a Ki arrow the size of a tree trunk flew forth with crazy velocity.

Within mere seconds, the two projectiles collided with a clamorous explosion that shook the very bones of the fighters on the field.

Fenrir didn’t relent, zipping forward and appearing before the vice leader faster than his eyes were supposed to track.

But it was as if Oscroch had been anticipating this maneuver.

Ki had already been compressed at the soles of his feet in wait.

A sphere of crackling lightning twirled around the mage’s hands as he proceeded to jab it forward with all his might.

Releasing the compressed energy, Oscroch flash-stepped away just in time—escaping by the skin of his teeth as the sphere flew forth with immense speed.

BANG—!

The orb crashed into the earth with so much force that a wide crater appeared on the terrain.

That wasn’t all; the sparks from the attack scattered in all directions, accidentally paralyzing several warriors out on the field.

Spinning around, Fenrir locked eyes with Oscroch, who had just neutralized a member of the Dawn force who had charged at him.

"You are strong," the mage grinned as he edged forward, blue arcs running across his frame.

Ki flooded Oscroch’s body in response, the duo ready to take the intensity up a notch.