The System Awakens: Rise of the Champion

Chapter 57: Chapter 57: The Final Blow

[Heavenly Shadow Step: Movement Technique Activated]

[Heavenly Tyrant's Body: Body Strengthening Technique Activated]

[Heavenly Mirage Dance: Sword Technique Activated]

The Heavenly Sword Demon and Damian activated their techniques simultaneously.

Their bodies became enveloped in thick Qi, resembling metallic armor, as their strength and defense surged.

Their swords were coated in sharp Qi, appearing as though countless layers of razor-sharp metal were stacked upon them.

The Heavenly Sword Demon's face twisted further in anger and fury as he watched Damian wield three techniques from his [Heavenly Sword Art], techniques he had spent centuries mastering and perfecting.

"All my life, anyone who dared bare their fangs at me either ended up dead or wished they were. Your fate will be no different," the Heavenly Sword Demon said in a low, menacing tone.

"You have not only humiliated me and covered my face in blood, but you've also committed an unforgivable sin by stealing my precious [Heavenly Sword Art]... Now, you will pay the price," the Heavenly Sword Demon declared as his aura erupted, his figure becoming a blur.

A dozen mirages of his form moved alongside him, each indistinguishable from the real one.

"We'll see," Damian muttered, moving in the same way, his figure leaving behind numerous mirages.

The sound of swords clashing echoed, filling the arena with the metallic cacophony of hundreds of blades striking each other.

Each collision unleashed waves of concentrated sword energy that tore through everything in their path.

It was as though not just Damian and the Heavenly Sword Demon were fighting, but their mirages, too, clashed endlessly.

Explosions of energy continuously reverberated through the arena, growing in intensity.

Thousands of sword Qi rays shot out in all directions, leaving colossal sword marks across the ground.

"I won't let you live!" the Heavenly Sword Demon roared.

He attacked Damian like a frenzied madman, his katana striking from all directions and battering his opponent relentlessly.

Sword wounds appeared all over Damian's body, and blood poured out as if from an overflowing chalice.

Yet, within moments, the wounds healed as if they had never been there.

The elemental essence within Damian restored him with a speed that the Heavenly Sword Demon had seen in only a few rare races.

And, he was certain Damian was merely a lowly, unevolved human.

To make matters worse for the Heavenly Sword Demon, he realized his attacks weren't as effective as they should have been.

It was as though he was fighting a man made of rock.

Even more infuriating, Damian, the audacious brat, was rapidly improving in his mastery of the stolen techniques as the battle progressed.

As the fight dragged on for over an hour, the Heavenly Sword Demon's fury reached unprecedented heights.

No matter how many strikes he delivered, he couldn't make Damian feel pain.

That was the worst of it.

All his life, he had made countless men cry at his feet, begging for forgiveness.

He had spilled rivers of blood and tears, and no one who challenged him had ever lived to tell the tale.

He had not earned the title "Demon" for nothing.

Yes, countless strong warriors had challenged him, some even stronger than he was, and had made him bleed.

Yet, it had never mattered.

He always emerged victorious, no matter the cost in blood or sweat.

He had never known defeat.

But now, for the first time in his life, he was fighting someone who did not feel pain.

Someone capable of mastering ultimate techniques just from observation.

Someone who healed at a monstrous speed, like a creature of the night.

Someone who wielded magic at the level of a high-ranking mage while also surpassing the skills of elite swordsmen.

How could a monster like this exist?

The undefeated Demon began to feel fear, a fear he had never known.

Not the fear of death, but the fear of losing.

At that moment, the Demon began to fear the monster he was fighting.

The fight dragged on for more than two hours, and more than half of the arena had already been destroyed.

The fighting grounds had become uneven, littered with craters and sword marks all over the place.

At first, the Heavenly Sword Demon seemed to have the upper hand as all his attacks landed on Damian.

But then, he realized he was wrong.

The attacks weren't as effective as they should have been, and even when they inflicted injuries, Damian healed within seconds.

Despite this, the Heavenly Sword Demon maintained an advantage initially.

Even though both of them were using the same techniques, his versions were far more refined, thanks to hundreds of years of training and perfecting those techniques.

However, that advantage gradually began to fade as Damian quickly refined his techniques to nearly the same level as the Heavenly Sword Demon.

The battle soon reached a stalemate, with their strength, speed, and techniques seemingly on equal footing.

Little did the Heavenly Sword Demon know, Damian wasn't using any of the effects of his Class, [True Magic Swordsman], nor any of the forms granted by the four physiques of the elemental essences he had gained, or even the inherited ability, [Warrior's Will].

Damian refrained from using them because he wanted to deepen his understanding of the techniques by fighting directly with their creator.

All of this was possible only because Damian's opponent, the Heavenly Sword Demon, had his level suppressed to match Damian's, and his abilities as a grandmaster had been sealed away.

Even then, the Heavenly Sword Demon should have been able to win.

His stats were far superior to Damian's, and his mastery of swordsmanship and techniques was unmatched.

There seemed to be no way Damian could prevail.

But there was one crucial factor that kept being overlooked: Damian was no ordinary being.

He possessed multiple energies coursing through his body, such as [Qi], [Mana], and the elemental essences: [Fire Essence], [Wood Essence], [Water Essence], and [Earth Essence], each of which significantly enhanced his power in different ways. 

[Fire Essence] increased his firepower, granted immunity to fire, enhanced physical resistance, and improved healing to a certain degree.

[Wood Essence] boosted his ability to heal from any wound, no matter how deep or severe, at an abnormal speed. It also dramatically increased his fatigue recovery and health regeneration.

[Earth Essence] enhanced his strength, endurance, durability, and stamina exponentially.

[Water Essence] amplified the minor effects of all the other essences by a significant margin while doubling his healing speed and regeneration capabilities.

The effects of these elemental essences didn't appear in Damian's attributes directly, but they were very much active and constantly improving as Damian expanded his energy pool.

Not to mention, if Damian used any of the four forms [Fire Avatar], [Verdant Avatar], [Water Avatar], or [Earth Avatar] that he gained from his four elemental essences, just think what would happen if he activated even one of them, let alone more than one simultaneously.

Not even Damian knew what kind of power he would unleash. 

Damian was no longer taking any damage from the Heavenly Sword Demon's attacks.

His understanding of the techniques had reached new heights, and he was beginning to take the lead as his strikes started to connect.

"You…" The Heavenly Sword Demon's eyes widened in shock.

In just a few hours, not only had Damian learned a set of ultimate techniques just by observing but had also refined them to perfection.

Now, he was using those same techniques to best their original creator.

It was simply unacceptable.

Damian wasn't amused either. He felt like he was wasting time.

He had so much planned for when he entered the First Tower Realm, Solarta.

He had already spent too much time training and refining his body during the trials.

Meanwhile, many of the others from Earth had likely entered Solarta and were leveling up to reach the Second Tower Realm by now.

With a powerful swing of his sword, Damian jumped back, creating distance between himself and the Heavenly Sword Demon.

"It's time to end this," Damian muttered, his neon blue eyes glowing ominously.

"W-What the fuck are you trying to do?" the Heavenly Sword Demon roared, his chest heaving as he struggled to catch his breath.

He had already begun to lose stamina, while Damian didn't appear tired at all.

Damian's presence began to shift.

[Warrior's Will: Inherited Ability Activated]

[All your physical power, effects of abilities, constitution, and traits will increase by 15%.]

Damian's aura exploded, growing larger and larger until the pressure radiating from him began to crush the Heavenly Sword Demon into submission.

It felt as though his lungs had filled with water, his head had become unbearably heavy, and everything around him turned cold and hard.

His vision blurred as Damian's figure appeared to stand amid a vibrant neon-blue flame.

[Heavenly Shadow Step: Movement Technique Activated]

[Heavenly Tyrant's Body: Body Strengthening Technique Activated]@@novelbin@@

[Heavenly Mirage Dance: Sword Technique Activated]

Damian's figure vanished, reappearing in different places, too fast for the Heavenly Sword Demon to follow.

Before he could comprehend what was happening, he felt a cold sensation on his skin.

"What's happening?" he gasped, looking down to see blood trickling from his arm.

Then, before he could process it, the same cold sensation spread across his body.

Strength rapidly drained from him, his head grew light, and then pain assaulted him from all directions, clearing his vision.

The Heavenly Sword Demon found himself collapsing to the ground, his body covered in sword wounds.

"This… this can't be happening," he muttered, staring at the blood on his hands.

"I'm the great Heavenly Sword Demon… This isn't supposed to happen… I can't lose…"

The air shifted again.

Through the haze of pain, he saw Damian standing in mid-air, surrounded by an intense flame-like aura.

Damian's hair defied gravity, levitating in the energy field, and his sword was raised high above his head.

"I won't… he can't defeat me!"

Fury ignited in the Heavenly Sword Demon's eyes as his last reserves of power erupted.

With a desperate roar, he raised his katana.

[Heaven Shattering Sword: Sword Technique Activated]

Both Damian and the Heavenly Sword Demon unleashed their strongest techniques, the same one-shot ultimate sword technique that Damian had copied from him. 

Damian didn't flinch, nor did the Heavenly Sword Demon, as both swung their swords at the exact same moment.

A sound like a piercing whistle echoed through the air as two blinding rays of sword Qi collided, painting the sky a bright crimson.

BOOM!

The explosion pushed everything in the arena outward.

Waves of energy, wind, and intense heat erupted from the center, overwhelming everything in its path.

The blast took two minutes to fully subside.

When it was over, an eerie silence blanketed the area.

At the epicenter of a massive crater shaped like a sword slash lay the Heavenly Sword Demon, his body half-severed from shoulder to waist.

His insides were spilling out, and though somehow still alive, his fate was sealed.

Damian landed gracefully, his aura receding as the effects of [Warrior's Will] faded.

His presence returned to normal as he glanced at a series of notifications appearing before his eyes:

[Your talent [Boundless Refinement] is taking effect]

[Your constitution [Unyielding Warrior's Physique] is taking effect]

[Your physical body has adapted to the effects of the sudden burst of energy provided by your inherited ability]

[Your Strength increased: +2]

[Your Stamina increased: +2]

[Your Perception increased: +2]

[Your Agility increased: +2]

[Your Vitality increased: +2]

[It has been detected that 'The Heavenly Sword Demon' is no longer in any condition to continue the battle]

[The system has concluded that the Awakener 'Damian Ignatius' has won the battle]

Damian watched the notifications calmly.

The Heavenly Sword Demon vanished into specks of light the moment the system confirmed his victory.