Chapter 381: The Gap in Power!
Boom—!
The violent sword of hurricane roared toward Luke with an unmatched force.
Even before the attack landed, the raging winds had already caused serious destruction across the entire arena.
If several professional Mage-Knights had not worked together to block the aftermath, the spectators in the stands would probably have suffered heavy casualties.
From the very beginning, a full-power secret technique!
Ouma had no intention of probing at all.
The moment he struck, it shook heaven and earth.
This strike had already far surpassed the proper level of the Seven Star Sword Art Festival.
Among this year's competitors, there were only a handful of people capable of taking this strike without losing.
Before a natural disaster, humans seemed so small.
Many spectators had already determined in their hearts that with this single Kusanagi, Ouma was fully capable of defeating Luke.
Then, in the next instant, a shocking scene appeared.
Whoosh—!
Sword light flashed like a blue shooting star cutting across the sky.
That hurricane sword reaching from earth to heaven was split in two in an instant, turning into scattered wind blades that vanished into the air.
Clack—!
The sword returned to its sheath.
The sound of Starfall Sword sliding back into its sheath was not loud, but to the surrounding audience, it was incredibly clear.
The current Luke, under the dual enhancement of mana and Prana, could unleash enough power with just an ordinary iai slash to crush someone else's secret technique.
Under the effect of his severing ability, large-range attacks that had once been rather troublesome for him were no longer a threat.
A shocking Noble Art.
An astonishing iai slash.
Luke and Ouma's opening clash was even grander than the final confrontations of other competitors.
However, while the audience was stunned, Luke was not.
Starfall Sword, which had just returned to its sheath, was drawn once again, using the impact from the blade's release to scatter the wild winds around him.
Then, with his left foot as the axis, Luke spun his entire body halfway around and suddenly slashed behind him!
And appearing in front of the trajectory of his sword strike was Ouma, who should have still been standing opposite him at some distance!
Perhaps in the eyes of the audience, the Kusanagi released by Ouma had been terrifyingly powerful.
But before he even attacked, Ouma himself had understood that this strike could not possibly harm Luke.
He knew how powerful Luke was.
So the moment he swung out Kusanagi, he had already prepared his next strike.
Ouma's ability was to control "wind."
His development of his own ability was also extremely deep.
Eliminating air resistance was easy for him.
Even while holding an odachi, a weapon far heavier than ordinary swords, Ouma could still display astonishing speed.
And then came…
A full-power strike!
Boom—!
The instant Luke and Ouma's blades clashed, a massive explosion rang directly into the sky!
It was a thunderous impact that could no longer be described as a mere "sound."
Produced by the collision of their blades, it was a true "shockwave"!
A tremendous roar accompanied by a violent physical impact swept across the entire dome in an instant.
This time, even those professional Mage-Knights failed to block the aftermath.
They, along with the spectators pressed against the railings at the front of the stands, were directly sent flying by the "loud sound."
The scene was extremely tragic.
For a moment, countless people flew through the air.
If Kurono had not acted in time and stopped time, quite a few people would likely have been injured.
However, Luke and Ouma's exchange had not ended yet!
Boom—!
With the first strike, the two blew away the professional Mage-Knights and spectators around the arena.
Boom—!
With the second strike, they shattered the entire stage, forcing the audience as a whole to retreat backward.
Boom—!
With the third strike, crushed stone flew through the air, the earth churned, the entire venue seemed to tremble, and all the glass shattered in response.
Boom—!
The fourth strike was also the grandest strike of them all!
And it was also the final strike of this round of exchanges between the two!
Bang—!
Rumble—!
Along with a muffled sound like thunder, Ouma was directly sent flying backward, smashing hard into the wall in front of the audience stands.
Luke, meanwhile, stood at the center of the explosion from just now and did not move a single step.
"T-Too intense!"
Only then did the commentator finally return to his senses.
He barely managed to fulfill his duty in a trembling voice.
"Is this really a sound that can be produced by clashing blades?!"
"That tremendous roar, that impact—it was practically like a missile exploding!"
As long as the commentator recalled that apocalyptic scene just now, he could not help trembling.
He no longer knew how to continue the commentary.
Because he discovered that he simply could not use language to describe his current feelings.
At this moment, Ouma also climbed out from the collapsed wall ruins.
He shook his somewhat numb right hand, picked up his Device again, and walked back.
Like Luke, he was completely unharmed.
However, Ouma understood in his heart that this was only because Luke had held back.
He had understood the size of the gap between their realms the instant they exchanged blows.
Luke had given him a chance to show himself.
Or perhaps, he intended to enjoy the battle between swordsmen, so he had suppressed a considerable portion of his strength.
Even so, Ouma was still at an absolute disadvantage.
Feeling the Noble Art Tenryuu Armor, which had been almost completely shattered around him, Ouma finally understood what a true monster was.
He had already anticipated Luke's strength, so Ouma had worn Tenryuu Armor normally, instead of using it as he usually did to reverse-pressure himself.
Combined with his "abnormal" physical ability, Ouma's defense could no longer be described with the word terrifying.
One had to know that even Stella after Dragonification could only shatter his defense by relying on her over-standard mana quantity and the conceptual reinforcement of a dragon.
But what had Luke done just now?
Luke had actually only used a C-rank amount of mana, then relied on brute strength to smash through Ouma's defense and even sent him flying.
"This is simply… a monster even beyond Crimson Princess…"
"Without massive mana, without the so-called weight of fate, can a person still become this powerful?"
Ouma smiled.
He suppressed the thoughts that had appeared in his mind, reapplied Tenryuu Armor, and once again charged fearlessly toward Luke!
Luke, meanwhile, still stood in place, wearing a smile similar to Ouma's.
He had indeed held back.
During their exchange just now, Luke actually had no need to drag things out until the fourth sword before sending Ouma flying.
Whether it was Prana, the Sword Sheath of Tranquility, or even if he had used his severing ability, he could have ended the battle with the very first strike.
However, Luke had no intention of doing that.
After all, this was not a life-and-death slaughter, nor was it a battle that required him to use all his strength.
In Luke's eyes, this was a swordsman issuing a challenge to him.
So he decided to answer that challenge.
Just like how Edelweiss had once done for him, he would allow the challenger to fully display everything he had.
…
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