Chapter 124: Combat Techniques

Chapter 124: Combat Techniques

Upon hearing Thorton’s words, Yun Yang’s mouth twitched, and an overwhelming urge to retort welled up within him.

"If you eat yourself, you’ll never go hungry. If you want to eat, come find me later, and I’ll slice some off for you."

Thorton looked at Yun Yang with an expression of sheer awe, then slapped his own thigh.

"Wow, you can actually play it like that? Alright, I’ll come find you for slices later."

The surrounding demons couldn't bear to watch, their perception of Thorton’s intelligence hitting a new low as they began to jeer.

"Fight! Keep fighting!"

"Oh, oh, oh! Fight, keep fighting!" Thorton mimicked the demons, waving his crescent blades at Yun Yang.

Yun Yang nodded, lunging forward with a slash aimed at Thorton’s chest, intending to cleave him in two. Realizing his own weapons were no match for Yun Yang’s King Sword, Thorton didn't bother to parry, opting instead to dodge to the side. Yun Yang’s sword struck the ground, slicing through it like a hot knife through butter without the slightest resistance. His momentum was so great that he struggled to pull back.

Thorton seized the opening, landing a strike on Yun Yang’s shoulder. The weapon, capable of cutting through Morgana’s fourth-generation body, merely struck sparks against Yun Yang’s shoulder armor, sending him flying.

Thorton didn't pursue, instead shouting angrily, "What kind of armor is this? It’s so hard! This is bullying a fish!"

Yun Yang stood up, looking at the scratch on his shoulder with a pang of heartache—it was brand new, and he had only just put it on. Ignoring Thorton’s question, he charged again, determined to cut the croc down. He rarely wore this suit; had his black armor not been destroyed, this Void Silver armor would still be sitting in his dark plane. He felt like someone who had just bought a new phone—petrified of dropping it or bumping it—only to have someone else knock it to the ground.

To prevent Thorton from dodging again, Yun Yang feinted a vertical slash, masking a horizontal strike behind it. Thorton fell for it; he dodged the vertical strike easily, only to be met by the follow-up horizontal sweep. Unable to evade, he instinctively blocked with his weapon, though his reflexes kicked in at the last second, limiting the contact to just the tip of his crescent blade.

Seeing the tip of his blade shaved off, Thorton’s crocodile face showed a hint of distress. Taking advantage of Yun Yang’s inability to pull back in time, he swung viciously at Yun Yang’s neck. Yun Yang reacted just in time, flapping his wings to shift his body backward and narrowly avoiding the blow.

Thorton, relentless, held his crescent blade high and defied Newton’s laws by leaping into mid-air, spinning like a top as he attacked Yun Yang. This caught Yun Yang off guard—he hadn't expected such a move. Thorton was fast and closing in; seeing no way to dodge, Yun Yang gripped his King Sword with both hands, bracing for the impact.

The moment the King Sword met the crescent blade, there were no sparks—only a shower of metal shards. By the time Thorton finished his attack and landed, he sank straight into the ground, only to reappear twenty meters away amidst a flurry of motion. Back on the surface, Thorton stared blankly at the hilt remaining in his hand, lost in thought.

Yun Yang wasn't about to let this lapse in concentration go to waste; he flapped his wings to close the distance and strike. Just as he was about to land the hit, Thorton snapped out of his daze and dodged the attack. As Yun Yang cursed his luck and shifted into a defensive stance, Thorton tossed the hilt to the ground and waved his hands.

"I give up! I surrender! My weapon’s gone; I’m not fighting anymore."

Hearing this, Yun Yang lowered his sword and turned to look at Morgana, who was watching from the sidelines. Subsequently, his tally of "Angel Reserves" increased by one.

Once Thorton returned to Morgana’s side, she gave him a sound thrashing. "Surrender? You surrendered again? Couldn't you have lasted a little longer?"

Thorton clutched his head, aggrieved. "Sister, his sword is too powerful. I really can't fight without a weapon."

None of this concerned Yun Yang, who was now facing Aatrox—a warrior with combat techniques so superior they crushed those who had previously bested him. Even more frustratingly, Aatrox had noticed the sharpness of Yun Yang’s sword. Under Yun Yang’s bewildered gaze, Aatrox ran to the surrounding demons and gathered dozens of weapons.

Returning to Yun Yang, Aatrox swapped through a few weapons and said, "Your combat techniques are poor. You only beat Thorton by relying on your weapon’s superiority. I have plenty of weapons here—more than enough to defeat you."

Yun Yang gave him a "go ahead and try" look, though he scoffed inwardly: *So what if my weapon is good? Come and get me. Not only is my gear top-tier, but it's also durable. I can afford to make mistakes, but if I land one solid hit on you, you’re done.*

With a gunshot, Yun Yang took to the air, Aatrox following immediately. Without hesitation, Aatrox launched his assault. Yun Yang had no choice but to parry; Aatrox’s blade struck the King Sword and shattered upon impact. Unfazed, Aatrox flicked his wrist, discarded the broken blade, and produced a new one in an instant.

He continued his onslaught, relying on his superior technique. Yun Yang, a novice in close-quarters combat, could only defend. The only thing he could boast about was that after this flurry of attacks, Aatrox had already broken a dozen swords.

As the two pulled apart, Aatrox looked annoyed, discarding another broken blade. During that exchange, he had struck Yun Yang’s unarmored areas—including the neck—multiple times. *How is he this hard?* Aatrox thought. *This guy’s body is tougher than the Power of the Galaxy; it’s inhuman.*

Yun Yang, meanwhile, felt a lingering fear. Aatrox’s barrage had drained 23% of his dark energy; every blow had been incredibly heavy. Fortunately, his energy recovery was rapid—in the brief moment they had been apart, he had already regained 1%. As long as he could stall, he was effectively invincible.

Aatrox, unwilling to wait, put away his standard weapons and manifested a Flame Sword. Another violent assault ensued. Yun Yang took two hits to the neck. After they separated, Aatrox manifested another Flame Sword. He had already broken two of them in that exchange. This was his last one, and his most precious—a trophy taken from Angel Yan, a symbol of his glory.

Yun Yang felt a headache coming on. He hadn't realized that a Flame Sword could drain 5% of his energy per hit. He had sacrificed taking two blows just to break two swords, and he hadn't expected Aatrox to have more. To buy time for recovery, Yun Yang decided to make small talk, clutching his neck with a pained expression.

"Aatrox, do you have some sort of obsession with my neck? Why do you keep aiming there? It hurts, you know."

"It’s not protected by armor. Your armor is too hard," Aatrox replied succinctly.

"Is it that simple?" Yun Yang tried to drag it out further; after all, time was energy, and time was life.

Aatrox didn't answer. He stowed the Flame Sword and switched to a black scimitar; he didn't want his trophy destroyed. After all, Angel Yan was now the Queen of Angels, possessing the Sacred Body and Keisha’s armory. He couldn't beat her, meaning that Flame Sword was effectively a collector’s item.

With the new weapon in hand, he renewed his storm of attacks. Under this pressure, Yun Yang’s combat skills were growing rapidly; he was now able to parry Aatrox’s strikes with far less effort. After all, it was embarrassing to be suppressed in front of everyone.

They separated again. Just as Yun Yang was about to stall for more time, Aatrox spoke.

"You are growing quickly, but you still rely on the edge of your weapon."

Yun Yang offered a provocative look, stroking his King Sword. "Can't help it. Since I have it, I might as well use it."

Aatrox shrugged and resumed his assault without another word. Yun Yang thought to himself, *Shouldn't you say a bit more? This isn't how the script was supposed to go.*

After shattering another of Aatrox’s spears, Yun Yang disengaged first. This time, he hadn't taken a single hit and had managed to break several of Aatrox’s weapons. He raised an eyebrow at Aatrox. "It seems the best way to gain experience is in the heat of battle."

Aatrox let out a long breath, loosening his sore wrist after the high-intensity combat, and looked at Yun Yang with a touch of admiration. "You’re right. Let’s continue."

With that, Aatrox lunged forward, launching a barrage just as fierce as the last. However, Yun Yang didn't get bogged down this time; he simply shattered a few more weapons and broke away from the fight. Aatrox looked puzzled, wondering why Yun Yang was disengaging so quickly.

Yun Yang didn't give him a chance to speak. "Alright, I think my combat skills are sufficient now. If you don't want to end up like that big guy, you should just surrender."

Aatrox’s expression hardened. Doubting the sincerity of Yun Yang’s words, he made a split-second decision and lunged forward again. This time, Yun Yang didn't engage, keeping his distance as he said in a helpless tone, "It really hurts, you know. You definitely wouldn't want to experience it."