Chapter 102: The Duel Under the City

The aftermath of the Demigod-level collision on the distant beach had not yet reached the main battlefield, but under the towering city walls of Agrik, the battle situation presented a completely different picture.

The demon army contracted like a receding tide, leaving a short and eerie vacuum zone among the ruins and scorched earth. At the core, the Demon Lord Goraton stood alone in front of the formation, the sulfur smoke churning around him slightly dim. The giant serrated magic blade in his hand slammed heavily into the ground, and dark red runes spread from the blade tip, like provocative bloodstains.

A hoarse and loud voice, wrapped in Abyssal magic power, pierced through the battlefield clamor and hit the mottled city wall clearly:

"Commander of the defenders——! Dare to have a knight's duel with me?!"

The call echoed on the battlefield covered with corpses, carrying the cunning and desperate madness unique to Abyssal creatures. He knew his defeat was set, and a duel was the last way to reverse the shame or even reverse the battle situation.

Above the city wall, there was a murderous silence. Immediately, a figure stepped out from the top of the highest arrow tower, swooping down like an iron-gray mountain eagle.

Sha Lu Te was still in a plate armor covered with scratches. He didn't even stir up much dust when he landed, just holding the giant axe with no decoration but a cold white light on the blade with one hand, walking steadily through the automatically separating defender formation, and walking toward that duel ground.

His gaze swept across Goraton calmly, swept across the remaining high-level demons and defender soldiers holding their breath, and finally fell back on his opponent.

"As you wish."

The voice was not high, but clear and firm, rippling on the suddenly dead-silent battlefield. Sha Lu Te was a Master Rank warrior, facing a Legendary Rank Demon Lord, originally having no chance of winning, but to improve, there must be a suitable opportunity; this duel was an opportunity for Sha Lu Te.

Enemies are especially jealous when they meet, Goraton made a heavy diagonal slash, Sha Lu Te blocked with his axe, but was smashed to his knees by the huge force, and the ground cracked instantly. The "Pain Extraction" rule attached to the magic blade invaded his body, as if countless red-hot iron hooks were tearing his soul.

Blood overflowed from the corner of Sha Lu Te's mouth, but his eyes became clearer and clearer. Pain did not make him numb, but instead acted like a forging hammer, fiercely smashing out all the impurities, hesitation, and fear in his consciousness. He felt that his years of accumulated, near-instinctive combat skill experience began to melt and reconstruct under this extreme pressure.

After a thrilling side roll to dodge a range-based Abyssal nova explosion, Sha Lu Te knelt on the ground panting. His hearing seemed to have changed. He no longer just heard Goraton's roar, the sound of weapons breaking the wind, his own heartbeat; he began to "hear" more.

The subtle vibration and groaning of the internal metal structure of the giant axe when bearing the impact; the extremely faint pulse from the earth beneath his feet, as if it were a heartbeat; and even the wail of magic elements being repelled by the Abyss in the air. This was a warrior's intuition for the vibration frequency of "existence" itself, and a precursor to touching the principles of "rules."

Goraton also noticed the abnormality. This human who should have been crushed, although his aura was still weak, was like a piece of refined iron constantly being quenched under heavy pressure, becoming brighter and brighter, becoming "sharper" and "sharper."

The Demon Lord decided to end the game. He condensed massive Abyssal magic power, the magic blade held high, and a pitch-black blade aura several meters long containing the concept of "annihilation" slowly took shape, locking all of Sha Lu Te's evasion space; this was a rule strike of Legendary Rank, theoretically impossible for a Master Rank to take head-on.

Bang!

A sharp, abrupt, near-vulgar explosion tore through the heavy air on the duel ground. This sound was so out of place, like a street rascal's whistle mixed into a solemn symphony.

Goraton's massive body shook violently. In the very center of his chest, covered in heavy bone armor and capable of hard-carrying battering rams, a large hole mixed with metal fragments, dark red magic blood, and scorch marks bloomed without warning.

A special armor-piercing cone-shaped bullet head, at a speed exceeding vision, precisely drilled through the gap between his armor plates that were rising and falling due to rage, deeply chiseled into the demon's body, and completed a secondary explosion inside.

The ferocious expression on the Abyssal Lord's face solidified, transforming into a kind of pure, near-blank astonishment. He looked down at the wound on his chest that was frantically eroding his magic core, and then looked up at Sha Lu Te, who was also slightly paused due to this accident, seemingly wanting to say something.

The massive vitality of the Legendary Rank and the Abyssal essence tried to frantically repair this fatal wound, but Sha Lu Te did not intend to give him this opportunity, raising his hand for a heavy axe strike. Goraton's muscle memory, tempered in hundreds of battles, made him dodge backward reflexively, but the rapidly passing vitality made his movements become slightly sluggish.

The next moment, the power supporting his majestic body dissipated like a receding tide. Goraton's knees softened, and he fell to his knees with a bang like a small mountain collapsing, then fell forward, raising a cloud of dust mixed with sulfur and blood. The magic blade in his hand fell to the ground with a "clatter," the filthy flames burning on the blade flickered a few times, and quickly dimmed and extinguished.

"Ha! This shot tastes good, Big Tooth?"

A hoarse but pleasant voice came from the shadows of the city wall. A figure draped in a mottled camouflage cloak nimbly flipped down from the battlement, the muzzle of the long-barreled musket in his hand still lingering with thin white smoke.

He kicked away the hot shell casing at his feet, walked a few steps to Sha Lu Te, and revealed a Gnoll face full of scars and gunpowder dust under the hood.

"Thanks to me pulling the trigger in time." He pointed casually at Goraton's body that hadn't cooled down yet on the ground with the gun barrel, his tone playful, but a sharp light flashed in the bottom of his eyes, "Otherwise, you, a Legendary who just took the position, would have to account for it together before the heat even dissipated."

Compared to this old acquaintance, Sha Lu Te was more curious about his weapon; this weapon was less of a gun and more of a killing work of art full of wild pragmatism. It perfectly interpreted the combat philosophy of that Legendary Gnoll Ranger, who fused cunning long-range hunting with cruel close-quarters melee.

About 1.5 meters long, cast from a matte, hardened steel mixed with mithril, the lines were rough and full of power, without any extra decoration, only wear and scratches left by long-term use. The grip was wrapped in tanned leather that had been soaked black by sweat and blood stains over the years.

The barrel was unusually heavy and long, with spiral runes engraved on the inner wall to ensure the precision of the projectile after leaving the chamber. An alchemical core crystal the size of a fist was embedded in the middle of the gun body, which was the energy source of the entire weapon, providing stable and powerful power for the firing mechanism and giving the projectile penetrating power.

The most eye-catching and chilling feature was a giant machete almost as long as the gun body, installed directly above the barrel through a sturdy hinge mechanism.

"Red Hair, what kind of thing have you tinkered with again?"

Sha Lu Te shook off the foul blood on the axe blade, his gaze falling on that strange-looking gun-blade, his brows wrinkled habitually, but the corners of his mouth pulled up imperceptibly.

"Spending all day pondering these fancy little things..." He shook his head, his tone carrying the unique, unceremonious disgust between old friends, "Both a tube and a knife, aren't you tired of it? This kind of idea, only your brain can think of it."

"You bumpkin."

The Gnoll Ranger sneered, his rough claws lovingly rubbing over the cold metal and runes of the gun body, as if stroking a lover's face.

"Open your eyes that just learned to look at rules and look carefully, this is not a fire-burning stick dug out of the ground." He flicked the gun barrel, making a crisp ringing sound.

"Those guys who don't look at people straight from the Dark Elves personally drew the drawings, found the Gnome master craftsman in the Astral world, and took half a year to hammer out this treasure. It can name-call at long range, and can chop meat at close range, much more practical than bows and crossbows!"

He bared his teeth, revealing bone-white fangs, and lowered his voice, carrying the smugness of someone sharing a brilliant conspiracy:

"Find a shady corner and squat down, hold your breath... wait for those self-righteous mage masters to chant spells, 'Bang'!" He made a gesture of pulling the trigger, "Specially hitting the gaps where the shield isn't covered tightly and the spell isn't chanted smoothly, not many mage heads can withstand this 'greeting'."

He patted the giant machete on the back of the gun and concluded: "This thing was born to make those bastards hiding behind robes and rubbing fireballs... shut up."

"Humph."

Sha Lu Te slammed the giant axe into the ground, making a muffled sound. He turned his head to the side, glanced at the old friend who was showing off his musket triumphantly, and pulled out an unceremonious sneer on his blood-stained face.

"Demons surrounded the city wall and gnawed for three months, and they didn't even see a hair of yours." His voice carried the hoarseness after a fierce battle, but every word was clear, "Just broke the bone, and you came out with a new toy."

He looked the other party up and down, his gaze as sharp as a knife.

"What, were you smoked by that sulfur smell before and didn't dare to show your head, hiding in which rat hole and shivering, until you heard the news of winning... only then did you remember that you still have four legs to run?"

"If it weren't for your Lord Gisk, I spent three months grinding my lips, talking those high-and-mighty Dark Elves into pushing aside the leaves to look at the world, and pouring down a whole valley of stupid Trolls, you would have been skinned by demons by now, hung on the flagpole and air-dried!"

"Ha?" Sha Lu Te snorted a short gasping sound from his nose, swept Gisk up and down, as if looking at some rare object.

"Just rely on you?" His mouth pulled out an undisguised mockery, "Were those Trolls persuaded by you, or were they smoked dizzy by the smell of wine dregs on you? I've had no less than twenty drinks with you, which time didn't you hug the rye wine barrel and blow until the eighth cup before you started sliding under the table?"

He folded his arms, the giant axe leaning on his shoulder, looking at the other party leisurely.

"And 'drinking down a whole valley of Trolls'? I think it was you who were poured so drunk that you couldn't tell which way was north, and finally were carried back to the shack by the Trolls?" ===== CHAPTER 103 =====