Chapter 1421: Green Eye and Snow-White Needle

The white threads and especially rare black ones posed a threat to Erada, at least until her power-up. Now, all she needed to suppress completely Adam was a few steps, and her hand was ready to pierce his heart.

Adam would hardly have died. Someone would have saved him, because at the Rule of Blood, only victory was important, not the death of one of the fighters.

However… instead of rushing to save Adam, everyone, including Helasa and Xander, stared at his aura, at the dark flame emanating from him.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

Drop after drop of blood fell from Erada’s palm onto Adam’s half-pierced chest, but despite all her attempts, she couldn’t even twitch it.

Slowly, Adam raised his head as their eyes met.

Erada’s face paled as she looked at the gruesome sight — Adam’s right eye had turned green, and for some reason, it frightened Erada to the core.

‘What’s going on…?’ Chaos erupted in her mind. ‘What’s happening to his voice and aura? What the hell is this?!’

She clenched her teeth as electric shocks ran through her arm. She was going to end it right here and now.

“You don’t want to give up?!” Erada roared. “Fine! I’ll make your heart explode! Let’s see how you fight after that!”

In response, a cold, arrogant voice rang out:

“Shut up.”

With a tremor, a long snow-white needle appeared in Adam’s hand, with dark flames coming out of its edges, enveloping his hand and the hilt.

Erada’s eyes shifted to the target, but it was already too late.

SLASH!

A single slash left a deep cut on Erada’s chest as a stream of dark blood gushed out.

A sharp pain overwhelmed Erada, but before she could recover, Adam stepped forward. Her pupils narrowed as Adam’s wrist turned — he was going to cut off her head with his next move.

‘I… I have to run!’

As quickly as possible, Erada stepped back as the bright blade shrouded in darkness whizzed right past her eyes.

As soon as she touched the surface, she found herself dozens of meters behind, with only electrical discharges remaining in her place.

“Agh… Agh… Agh…” Erada breathed heavily as she looked at Adam in the distance. She had been caught off guard, but even the sharp pain couldn’t stop a slight smile from appearing on her face.

‘Hah, I dodged it in the end,’ she thought.

BURST!

At the same moment, blood gushed out as a wide cut opened on her upper arm.

Shocked, Erada looked to her right, then at Adam, who stood in the same posture as during his last attack.

‘Wait… What happened?’ She stared at Adam’s needle. ‘Didn’t I dodge his slash? Or… was it not about distance in the first place?’

Thanks to the fact that she found herself in a critical situation, Erada was able to understand how Adam’s needle worked, at least part of it.

“Damn, she survived.” Adam threw his head back, running his bloody hand through his hair. “Your plan didn’t work, fool.”

“Hmm?” A low, trembling voice came from his needle. “What do you think I should have done? It’s your own fault for not killing her earlier.”

Erada gulped. “Hey… What the fuck is going on here?”

“Agh?” Adam glanced at her. “Isn’t it obvious? I set a trap for you. Sure, I didn’t know you would suddenly become so strong, but I was prepared for you to do something dangerous at the last moment. You showed me all your abilities, but you didn’t see everything I’m capable of, did you?”

She didn’t know what to say. As an experienced monster, she had fought many Phantoms in her lifetime. Sure, there weren’t as many of them at Izardo as there were closer to the Citadel, but each one was quite strong. When she defeated such a Phantom, she gained new knowledge and became stronger.

However… she had never seen anything like this before.

“Your eye and that sword, or rather… needle. It talks? Why did your eye change color!?”

“Hmm?” Adam tilted his head in confusion as he glanced at his reflection in the blade. “Oh, I see… It’s obviously a side effect. Damn, it really does look weird.”

He scratched the back of his head.

“As for my weapon, it recently went through an evolution, or something like that. So, even though I’ve become much stronger, I have to constantly listen to its complaints.”

“Pfffft!” The Silver Weaver snorted, which manifested as an irritated tremor from the needle. “If it weren’t for me, she would have already killed you. You have no idea how many mistakes you’ve made during this fight! I want to rip my eyes out and erase my memory so I don’t have to remember this anymore!”

Adam narrowed his eyes.

“These aren’t mistakes, this is my fighting style. What’s more, what you consider a mistake may actually be a brilliant move.”

The Silver Weaver muttered something in response, indistinctly.

Erada was lost. She didn’t understand what was happening, but she knew one thing:

‘This ability is dangerous. I’m sure he’s expending vast amounts of energy with every swing. I haven’t become weaker. We’re just as equal as we were before. I can still win! I can still become stronger!’

With these thoughts, Erada lunged forward as she thrust her palms forward. Her speed and lightning created a barrier around her in the shape of an arrowhead, she was going to pierce Adam and end the fight.

Strangely enough, Adam did not try to dodge. He just grinned and raised his needle high, holding the handle firmly with both hands.

“Last time I was too weak to make even one serious swing, but now I am full of strength!”

BURST!

In a heartbeat, a stream of darkness burst from the snow-white needle like a pillar of burning flame heading for the heavens.

At that moment, Erada realized one simple thing:

‘This darkness… It’s going to crash right down on me!’

Her mind was in panic, so her instincts took complete control. At the last moment, she jumped aside.

Shen, the needle’s tip touched the ground.

The rush of darkness raged forward, shaking the earth and leaving a great cleave on the silent expanse, shaking not only the surface but also the minds of the spectators.