The atmosphere inside the abandoned warehouse, once raucous with mocking laughter, had now fallen dead silent, leaving behind only the cloying scent of blood and the corpses of low-level minions scattered breathlessly across the floor. The dust kicked up by the explosion of the [Asura Palm] monts earlier still hung in the air like a mist of death.
In the center of that killing field, two figures stood facing each other, separated by a distance of rely ten ters.
Owen stood calm and still, his sharp gaze fixed unrelentingly forward. Opposite him... Jagger, the giant leader, stood grinding his teeth in fury until the veins on his temples bulged.
"Hmph..."
A low growl escaped through Jagger's clenched teeth. It wasn't the sound of a human, but akin to the growl of a cornered beast ready to crush its enemy to pieces. Suddenly, massive pressure exploded from his body!
BOOM!!
Pitch-black mana erupted from Jagger's body like smoke from a volcanic vent. It was so dense and violent that debris and dust around him were blasted away in a wide circle. The killing intent embedded within that mana was so heavy it distorted the very air.
However... Owen didn't retreat a single step.
"Thinking of intimidating
with mana pressure?"
Owen murmured softly before his eyes flashed. Instantly, a crimson, blood-like aura was unleashed to resist it!
Vwooooom!!
A high-pitched ringing pierced the ears of everyone in the vicinity as two waves of opposing power clashed in mid-air. The air pressure generated by the impact created a violent gust of wind that swept past the faces of the surviving minions, forcing them to raise their hands to shield their eyes.
And in the second their auras touched... a certain truth was revealed.
Jagger's furious eyes widened slightly. His pupils constricted as the instinct of a B-Rank Awakened scread a warning in his head.
'Wait... what is this?'
Information clashed in Jagger's head chaotically. The report he had received clearly stated that 'Owen Marlowe' was just a rookie Awakened with trash-tier F-Rank mana, or at best early E-Rank relying on support items... but what he was facing now was a completely different story!
The density of the mana... the continuous flow... and the pressure that could resist his own mana on equal footing...
'This isn't just F-Rank... No way is this F-Rank!' Jagger grit his teeth so hard his jaw clicked. 'This level of power... it's clearly in the realm of B-Rank!'
The logical impossibility dizzied Jagger's brain. For a person to make a quantum leap from bottom-tier trash to matching an elite within a few months went against the common sense of this world. This wasn't just 'talent'; it was a terrifying anomaly.
From shock, it turned to confusion, and finally... it exploded into extre rage!
"Those pieces of trash!!"
Jagger shouted to vent his fury. He wasn't angry at Owen... but at the inefficiency of his own intelligence unit.
'Which bastard went to gather this info!? This garbage data made my entire assessnt wrong! If I knew he was at this level, I wouldn't have played around like this from the start!'
Jagger inhaled deeply, trying to suppress his surging emotions. He realized imdiately that carelessness ant disaster. Since the information was wrong, he had to correct it on the fly... He could no longer view Owen as 'prey', but had to view him as an 'equal enemy'.
Fwoooo...
Jagger exhaled a long breath, calming the rampaging black mana around him, and began the process of compressing the energy.
Owen narrowed his eyes, watching the action with caution. He saw the mana, which had been billowing like smoke, gradually contract and coat Jagger's skin and clothes. It condensed into a faint, translucent black film that had a sheen like an invisible suit of armor, yet exuded a sense of strength and solidity like steel.
That image triggered a mory in Owen's head...
The image of the training room in Nova's gym... and the stern voice of the muscular female teacher instructing him.
"Rember, Owen... muscle-heads who only have brute strength are easy to deal with. Just dodge and counter... But whenever you et an enemy who can perfectly use the 'Mana Armor' technique... don't even think about ssing with them."
"Mana Armor isn't just releasing power for defense, but compressing and maintaining the mana flow to be constant, covering the entire body at all tis. That ans their mana control must be at an expert level... You, who can't even stabilize a shield for more than 10 seconds right now, I don't need to tell you what the end will be if you force a direct clash, right?"
Nova's warning echoed in Owen's head. He frowned tighter. He knew instantly that Jagger's danger level had just shot up another notch. This wasn't just a street thug, but a real professional.
Owen shifted his right foot back slightly, lowering his stance and raising both hands in a guard, switching from a relaxed standing posture to a full combat stance.
On Jagger's side, once the Mana Armor was complete, he smirked ruthlessly. Although his anger still simred, his experience made him choose not to rush in rashly. He wanted to see Owen's attack patterns more clearly first.
"What the hell are you guys standing there for!!"
Jagger bellowed at the three surviving C-Rank minions who stood frozen in hesitation.
"Go deal with him! Drain his mana and cut his strength! Anyone who retreats, I'll kill them right here!!"
That death order was like a lightning bolt. The three minions flinched; their fear of their boss was greater than their fear of the enemy in front of them. They gritted their teeth to summon their courage, then unleashed all the power they had!
"Yaaaahhh!!"
The first man, a speed type with the ability "Agility (Rank C)
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