Andrei Semov gathered mana in his chest and shot it out like a pillar. It was a [Mana Release] attack that didnt even contain an attribute. However, the enormous amount of mana turned into an imnse force on its own, threatening to engulf Veronica.
Veronica swung the sword in her hand from top to bottom towards the incoming energy.
The frosty aura at the tip of her sword sliced the bubble in half as white frost ford on the ground along the trajectory of Veronicas sword.
Andreis eyes lit up with interest.
You have an unusual aura. Ive read that so knights can imbue their aura with attributes of their own, depending on their constitution.
.
Veronica didnt even bother to reply. The difference between her deanor and that of her foe was dramatic.
Instead, Veronica intensified the cold aura that emanated from her sword.
It wasnt worth engaging in conversation. Andrei was just asking, not really expecting an answer. Still, he was an annoyance.
The blow earlier hadnt been at Veronicas level of power, but for a mont, the temperature in the room seed to drop.
No, it wasnt an illusion. Andrei deliberately exhaled through his mouth as pure white water vapor ford in the air and dissipated like smoke.
The corners of his wrinkled eyes curved into crescents of amusent.
Interesting, you dont just create cold.
This was no re cold. The aura particles that flowed from Veronicas sword carried an intense coldness.
Even now, the scattering aura particles continued to encroach on the space, taking over the surroundings.
For the opponent, the more ti passed, the more the cold numbed his body, gnawing away at both physical and ntal strength. Its a technique that draws out extre efficiency in hand-to-hand combat.
But even so, I dont think she could survive this cold.
Andreis doubts were dispelled by the look in Veronicas eyes.
Yeah. I wasnt staying in the coldest part of the world for nothing.
Veronica joined the Cold Steel Knights to operate in a cold environnt. It was all to endure the double-edged sword of her aura.
It must have been easy for her to fight against a test subject like the Second.
Andrei laughed self-deprecatingly and pulled a test tube from his bosom but Veronica didnt stand still.
At her signal, the wizard who had been waiting behind her moved.
The robed wizard stretched out his arms and a gust of wind, carrying Veronicas aura particles with it, rushed toward Andrei.
Hmph.
Andrei snorted and unfurled a barrier to block the attack. However, the scattering aura particles froze the area around him, pressuring him further.
Frost began to form on the hem of Andreis robes.
Definitely a troubleso technique.
But even the chill didnt stop Andrei from pulling the test tube completely out and mixing the reagents.
Inside the test tube were tiny balls of flesh, like beans, three of them.
Andrei unscrewed the lid and poured it out onto the ground, where it squird and inflated like a balloon.
In no ti at all, the lump of flesh grew into a human form about the size of an adult male. It had a shaved head, no eyes, and ivory skin.
The sight of it gave Veronica an eerie feeling and her knight senses told her that the creature was anything but ordinary.
Now, when they arent fully prepared.
Veronica leaped high in the air, falling toward Andrei.
Her sword was filled with a different kind of densely packed aura than before. It was ready to slice Andrei in half even if he used defensive magic.
However, Veronicas sword was blocked by an experintal object that suddenly began to move.
The creatures outstretched forearm collided with Veronicas sword, making a strange sound.
Veronicas eyes widened.
An attack containing this much aura was blocked with a bare arm?
Veronica gasped as she realized that her blow hadnt even cut the test subjects forearm.
The test subjects forearm was now a razor-sharp carapace protruding like a blade. Of course, there was nothing it could do about the coldness of the sword itself, and its entire forearm was covered in white frost.
Veronica imdiately stumbled backwards. A few monts before, another attack had co where she had been.
The one that blocked Veronicas sword pushed its frozen forearm. The ice on its surface fell to the ground. At the sa ti, the purple, necrotic forearm, like a bruise, quickly returned to its ivory color.
His frostbitten and necrotic body had been restored in an instant. It was an incredible regenerative ability.
Andrei spoke with a hint of pride in his voice.
How about this? My proudest experintal masterpiece, sothing I would have never dread of creating before, but thanks to the life force of the World Tree, I was able to. Theyre not mass-produced, but theyll do the job.
Before he could even finish his sentence the wizard that was with Veronica shot a fireball at the excrental subject. If the cold didnt work, he would use the opposite elent to burn them to death.
Waves of fla rolled in like a tidal wave. It was then that one of the three test subjects stepped forward and held out its arm that bulged, and then it transford into a large shield that covered its entire body.
Imdiately, flas hit the shield. The heat was intense, with bright red embers scattering in all directions. Slowly, the flas subsided, revealing the test subject standing upright.
It slowly lowered its charred shield. The charred skin peeled away like a molt, and the ivory flesh inside quickly sprouted.
Andrei clicked his tongue and shook his head.
Such a simplistic idea. These creatures are designed to withstand any attack. Thats the right tric for life to evolve.
Andrei gazed at his test subjects with satisfaction.
The greatness of life its the direction of evolution, the direction we humans should be headed. They dont burn or freeze and can regenerate any wound.
Andrei muttered in a low voice.
And can overco even incurable diseases.
Andrei shook his head and stared at Veronica with a determined look on his face.
What do you think, do you want to keep fighting?
.
Andrei shook his head as he watched Veronica sheath her sword once more.
How is it that in the face of such a perfect result, she cannot admire it, but only harbor hostility?
Andrei raised his hand to command his subjects. It was then that his expression sank, and he looked up with half-open eyes.
A golden-haired knight was falling vertically, towering over him but by the ti he realized it, it was too late.
It was the perfect ambush, impossible to block or dodge and the sword pierced right through Andreis brow.
Imdiately afterward, Passius kicked Andrei in the shoulder and back-tumbled away as the blade of the test subjects sword narrowly missed him.
Passius checked Andreis body. He was still standing, his brow pierced, still looking up at the sky.
At the sight of him, Passius imdiately stepped back further and his judgnt was correct.
Amazing.
The dead Andreis mouth moved and his bloodshot eyes rolled as he turned to face Passius.
I would have caught you off guard, but youre quick. For a master, your senses are sharp.
Of course, he hadnt expected this master to be an assassin.
The corners of Passiuss mouth twitched in disbelief.
I didnt think youd survive a stab through the head. Maybe I should have stabbed you through the heart.
It would have been useless. My body is far beyond human.
Andrei raised his head, then lowered it again as the scar across his head healed quickly.
Thats a bit cowardly.
Passius muttered to himself.
So is a Swordmasters ambush. A pragmatic battle with no sense of honor. The old would have been killed in a heartbeat.
Thats an undeserved complint.
Honestly, Im surprised. I wasnt planning on revealing this trick right away.
Andrei stared at Passius and stretched his arm in the other direction. His hand lengthened to an uncanny length, and then he slapped hard at the air.
Imdiately afterward, there was an ugh sound, and the man who had been cloaking himself in thin air was sent flying backwards, landing on the ground.
Iron Mask Rotheron stared at Andrei in disbelief.
It was a clever way to distort your appearance by manipulating the density of the air in the atmosphere, but that doesnt change the flow of air.
Andreis words ant that the touch of his skin was sensitive enough to pick up even the subtlest of atmospheric currents.
The newcors, Passius and Rotheron, stood at Veronicas side and steadied themselves.
The sight of them made Andrei sigh inwardly, despite his outwardly relaxed deanor.
A sixth-rank wizard, a masterful Royal Guard, the vice-captain of the Cold Steel Knights, and another sixth rank wizard of the imperial family, it was quite the lineup.
If this was before he discovered the World Tree, he would have died many tis over.
I guess I cant let my guard down.
He quickly drew a new tool from his holster. It was a syringe filled with a black liquid.
Under the protection of the test subject, Andrei plunged the syringe into his chest.
The black liquid flowed through his veins, reaching his heart.
The heart, already beyond human endurance, began to beat with terrifying force as black veins rose and fell over Andreis skin.
Ooooh.
Andreis mouth fell open as he gasped at the pain that shot through his body, followed by the imnse exhilaration that followed.
His eyes went completely black, and then a fiery yellow pupil erged from the center.
The entire group tensed up at the sight as the energy emanating from Andrei had changed. If he had been tricky to deal with before, he now had the air of an invincible being.
I see. With that kind of power, I can do anything.
The refined demonic power was obtained by diluting the power extracted from the World Tree until it stabilized.
Andrei had injected it into his own body, using the power hed created by mass-producing the Second Test Subjects.
Even if it was successful, a normal person would be torn apart and killed by a single drop in their veins but this was possible because Andrei was no ordinary man.
He had already modified his body with biotechnology, and he could accept any amount of demonic power.
Black mana began to surge around Andreis body.
Here we go. Lets fight to the best of our abilities.
Imdiately afterward, black mana shot out in a fan-shaped pattern.
* * *
[Boom!!!]
A massive vibration shook the entire underground facility, and for a mont, Rudger group froze in place, thinking that the broken machinery had been restarted.
But then they realized that the vibration was much larger, and that the impact echoed from so distance away.
This.
A gust of wind blew in from the end of the dimly lit passageway and swept past the group. It was the shockwave from a massive explosion of so sort.
Trina frowned at the ominous aura the shockwave seed to carry.
Her Swordmasters senses reacted violently to the alien and unpleasant aura.
Looks like the people who arrived before us started fighting.
Everyone nodded at Rudgers words.
They hadnt stopped moving, but the experints intensive sabotage had slowed them down considerably.
Besides it was clear that the warlocks had done sothing with the demonic powers to create such a large shockwave.
This is getting annoying.
Rudger squinted his eyes as a faint sign of magic prickled his skin. He looked away and saw a paper frog on the ground.
He realized it was the information from Sedina and Hans, and imdiately picked up the paper frog without anyone noticing.
His sneaky behavior went unnoticed as everyone else was distracted by the distant force.
Rudger quickly scanned the contents of the unfolded paper.
[Unable to pass on further information due to the discovery of the chira under our control. One particularly dangerous looking experint is currently being prepared in the central hollow. Andrei of the Biotech School is stalling for ti.]
After checking the contents, Rudger crumpled it up and stuffed it into his pocket.
Wed better get moving, too.
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