Chapter 613: Weak Lizardman, Dissatisfied Jier, Low-Tier Combat Will Barely Do

"I..."

Knight Hartna opened his double-layered eyelids slightly, and a slightly altered voice emerged from his throat, making him feel something was a bit off.

"Am I dead..."

He subconsciously clenched his fist, and the feeling of slight obstruction that came with the clenching made him feel something was wrong.

Especially the entire clear sky he saw with his eyes at this moment, the high-hanging sun, and the scorching, slightly annoying sunlight made him feel very strange.

Subsequently, a massive sense of crisis coming from one side of his body made him wake up with a start. He immediately turned his head to look to the side, and appearing before his eyes was none other than the young Knight-rank Warrior whose name he did not know, with whom he had been fighting constantly but whom he had failed to defeat.

And a lackey of the church at that.

The opponent was shrouded in a pitch-black, evil Divine Power, just like an evil shadow that had walked out of a nightmare, but the opponent's eyes, which emitted a cyan light, gave one a feeling of harvest and fullness.

"You..."

He looked down at his own hands: thick bones, sturdy hands, fine scales on both the palms and the backs of his hands, and sturdy, pitch-black claws extending from the tips of his fingers—more like a beast than a sentient being.

"This is? 【Lizardman Transformation Potion】? How could I? Is it you? No? How could you be the one who possesses it?"

A series of inexplicable questions made Knight Hartna feel incredulous, especially the unfamiliar voice, the unfamiliar body, and the empty body within him that lacked any significant Life Energy, which made this young knight feel as if he had lost his greatest existential anchor.

"It's over, it's over..."

Looking at this terrifying opponent before him and the obvious danger signals radiating from the opponent, he was at a loss.

"What are you panicking about? I fed you the 【Lizardman Transformation Potion】 for the purpose of fighting you again. Now, pick up your sword and fight me!" After Jier finished speaking, he reversed the long sword he was leaning on, which radiated pitch-black shadow power, held it in his hand with a forward grip, lightly tapped the upper part of the blade against his own forehead, and then held it sideways, aiming it at Knight Hartna, who had turned into a Lizardman.

"Although you have scales and sharp claws on your hands, you should still be able to hold a sword, right? Pick up the sword and fight me!" Jier urged.

Knight Hartna wore an expression of regret. He leaned over to pick up the dropped sword sheath from beside him, used a slightly laborious motion to lift his own sword, which he felt was exceptionally heavy for the first time, and then gripped the hilt tightly with both hands, struggling to draw the sword out.

Jier frowned as he watched Knight Hartna's current movements. The other's appearance reminded him of when he was at Rock Mountain last year and Lanisha asked him to retrieve her lost weapon; he had been just as laborious when picking up Knight Lanisha's weapon back then.

"What's going on? Your sword isn't that heavy, is it?" Jier asked with dissatisfaction, feeling that Knight Hartna was deliberately stalling for time.

But Knight Hartna, in his Lizardman form, opened his mouth full of sharp teeth and said: "My sword—Aipiedela—was forged from a small amount of rare Mountain Copper mixed with two types of Magic Material, Black Iron, and several fossilized scales of an ancient Flying Dragon. Its length was just right for my previous height and arm span, and it weighs twenty-three kilograms."

Jier listened intently, wondering to himself what special effect the Magic Material Mountain Copper might have? And would adding the fossilized scales of an ancient Flying Dragon bring any special changes to the opponent's weapon?

But Jier did not expect that Knight Hartna's next words would give him a great shock.

Only to hear Knight Hartna, who was laboriously carrying his sword on his shoulder with both hands, say: "But what suited this weapon was the previous me. I am now far weaker than before and can no longer use it."

Having said that, as if giving up on life, Knight Hartna twisted his body and threw his sword, which had been on his shoulder, to the side.

He spread his hands and said to Jier, who was standing motionless as if shocked: "This Lizardman body is nowhere near as strong as the body I had, which I had transformed through training and the accumulation of Life Energy. Not to mention, heh, the simply mediocre accumulation of Life Energy within my body now. We Knights, without the accumulation and existence of Life Energy, are no better than ordinary people."

Jier was completely bewildered. The surging shadow Divine Power on his body receded back into his body, revealing his entire frame, which was emitting a faint cyan glow: "You mean you've become weaker? No, why? Look at yourself now, you're two heads taller than before, your body has become stronger, your arms are thick, your palms are wide, and you have sharp claws! And feel it with your tongue yourself, your mouth is full of sharp teeth! You've even grown two crown-like sharp horns on your head that look mighty! On what grounds, on what grounds do you say you are weaker than before?"

Knight Hartna actually curiously licked his mouth full of sharp teeth with his tongue, and then, on his scale-covered face, he revealed a look of disdain with little change in expression: "It seems you really are a young man who hasn't been in Knight Training for long."

He sighed: "But your strength is already so great, although it is mostly relying on the gods and the power of the church, and you only gained this strength by defecting to them. But strength is strength; I have already been defeated by you just now..."

"As for me, kid, you don't quite understand what Life Energy actually means to a Knight. It is us, it is our everything, it is our power, and it is the most important cornerstone that supports us in reaching our current status. Having lost it, what could my current Lizardman appearance possibly count for?"

Knight Hartna seemed to understand that he was no match for the opponent at all, so he gave up and explained frankly and in detail: "Lizardmen are tall and much stronger than ordinary Human Warriors. Perhaps ordinary Soldiers find it hard to fight them, but for us Knights, isn't it just a level of easily killing them with one sword stroke? Do you understand now? You think that by turning into a Lizardman, I would become stronger? No, I exhausted all the Life Energy accumulated in my body during my fight with you earlier. This empty body without any accumulation of Life Energy is much weaker than my Human body that had undergone years of training."

Knight Hartna seemed to be touching his 'weak' but exceptionally healthy body for the last time. He hadn't been able to enjoy such a healthy body for quite a while; there was no pain anywhere in his body, and not only could he breathe through his nose, but his entire scale-covered body seemed to be capable of another kind of breathing through the gaps in the scales.

If this body could be maintained for a long time, re-accumulating Life Energy would not be very troublesome.

But clearly, that was impossible at this very moment. The guy opposite him was unlikely to let him spend ten-plus days eating large amounts of Monster meat and food to accumulate Life Energy.

"So, you are very weak now? I shouldn't have saved you like that? And I wasted a bottle of 【Lizardman Transformation Potion】 for nothing? So what were you expecting from this damn potion?"

Jier asked with dissatisfaction. He hatefully sheathed his Hunting Sword, crossed his arms, and even flipped open his steel Faceplate, frowning as he looked at the Lizardman Knight Hartna, who appeared tall but was actually vulnerable compared to him.

Knight Hartna gave a bitter smile: "If I had taken this potion before the previous battle started? With this healthy and intact body, plus the Life Energy I had accumulated before, kid, I don't think I would have lost to you just now..."

Jier thought about it, and it was true. Knight Hartna had been seriously injured earlier and had only been able to fight him by temporarily suppressing his injuries with the power of the potion. Even then, it had been a close match; if Knight Hartna had been healthy from the start, the outcome of the battle would have been hard to say.

And looking at the Lizardman's tall and sturdy appearance, if one added the amplification of Life Energy, would he have become even stronger than a simple Human body? It's hard to say.

Jier let out a breath: "Although you and I are enemies, considering I've already spent a high price to use the 【Lizardman Transformation Potion】 on you, what other help can you give me? That move you used on me before..."

Even with a Lizardman face, Knight Hartna showed an unpleasant expression at this moment: "Impossible. It is impossible for me to teach you the Knight Technique I received from my family's enfeoffment. Give up on that idea. I am very grateful that you allowed me to enjoy such a healthy body before I die, which puts me in a good mood. But I cannot teach you anything."

"And, speaking of you and I being enemies. Kid, where do you actually come from? And why do you possess the potion of the original trading partner? What exactly happened while I was unconscious from my serious injuries? Can you tell me about it?"

Jier wouldn't waste his breath on a dead man. Seeing Knight Hartna acting as if he didn't care whether he was killed or carved up, he was also a bit stumped. The decision he made in the excitement of the battle was indeed not a rational one, wasting a potion that looked valuable for nothing. With that money, he could have found someone to forge a real set of Knight Armor!

At the thought of this, Jier felt he had lost even more.

No, he had to find a way to make up for it.

Thinking of this, Jier sized up Knight Hartna, confirming that the feeling the opponent brought him was not dangerous at all. Clearly, after losing his Life Energy, even with this tall and sturdy Lizardman body, the opponent basically couldn't pose any threat to him.

But even if the strength is gone, the skills are still there! If you won't honestly teach me something, can't I take it myself?

Jier curled his lips, looked around, and immediately saw the defeated soldiers lying dead everywhere. He jumped on the spot, landed in front of a corpse of a Defeated Soldier he had killed casually earlier, picked up two Soldier Changjian, held one in his hand, and then walked over with the other, forcibly stuffing it into Knight Hartna's large Lizardman hand.

"Fight me!"

Jier commanded.

Knight Hartna snorted with disdain, threw the sword in his hand onto the ground, and spread his hands in a 'do as you please' manner.

Jier's eyes narrowed, and he raised his hand to thrust his sword toward the center of Knight Hartna's brow.

He didn't use Life Energy to augment his body, but with the Strength Enhancement Magic Bracelet on his arm activated, and having had his strength forcibly tripled by the Dwarf God of Strength, his normal strength already exceeded everyone else's.

This sword thrust hit its mark; piercing the brain with one strike was easy.

You don't think you have a chance of winning and want a quick death?

Then don't block!

But Knight Hartna had been practicing Duanbing for nearly twenty years; how could he choose to be killed like this?

The next instant, the tall Lizardman body crouched down, the thick right hand gripped the Soldier Changjian, which looked somewhat small in comparison, and he swung it toward Jier's lower body.

Even without the augmentation of Life Energy, the Lizardman's own strength was much stronger than that of an average Human, only slightly weaker than an average Dwarf Warrior. And whether Jier's armor could withstand a weapon of such force without damage was hard to say.

It was highly likely it couldn't.

"Very good!" Jier also did not use the Life Energy within his body, nor did he wantonly use the Shadow Bird's shadow Divine Power while in a state of infinite energy.

He retreated one step, pressed his Long Sword downward, and the two Long Swords clashed with a clang.

Knight Hartna cracked open his mouth full of sharp teeth: "Not using Life Energy to fight me?"

Jier shouted: "I haven't been using Life Energy!" And at the same time, he kicked off the ground to charge forward, thrusting his sword out.

The tall Lizardman's body was exceptionally supple and agile; Knight Hartna turned his body to dodge Jier's attack, then turned around, kicked off the ground as well, and thrust out a sword, pursuing Jier's back.

"Liar!" Knight Hartna shouted during the pursuit.

Jier performed a forward roll, avoiding the sword thrusting straight at his back, and then, as he rolled to his feet, he grabbed a handful of dirt and stones and threw them at Knight Hartna's face.

But Knight Hartna suddenly closed his nostrils, and a layer of translucent eyelids closed over his eyes, providing an extra layer of protection for his eyes while still allowing him to see.

Although it wasn't much, the dirt and stones Jier threw would no longer hinder his eyes.

"Huh?" Jier exclaimed in surprise; he hadn't expected Lizardmen to have these differences, which truly caught him off guard.

The two traded two blows on the spot, and Jier fell slightly into a disadvantage, because although his normal strength was higher than Knight Hartna's at this moment, when Knight Hartna transformed into a Lizardman, his arms were long!

In the midst of the battle, while each maintained combat distance, Jier's extended Long Sword couldn't even reach the opponent? It was short by a small half-meter, about thirty or forty centimeters, would you believe it?

"Tsk—" Jier spat in dissatisfaction after trading two blows with Knight Hartna.

He was currently forcing a fight with Knight Hartna, who had no will to battle, for the sake of learning something from the combat, but if the arm lengths and attack ranges of the two were different, the foundation for a Long Sword duel would not exist.

Just like in many situations, if a child holds a Long Sword and an adult holds a Long Sword, and both are trained Swordsmen, the child has no chance of winning.

Not even a little bit.

Because when the child swings the sword, the adult also swings the sword; the adult's sword can hit the child, while the child's sword, unless their Sword Technique is superior, cannot possibly hit the opponent.

Furthermore, because of the arm leverage, the total energy carried by the sword blades when swung by the two is also different.

That was exactly Jier's situation now; although he was stronger than the opponent, his attack range, combining arm and Long Sword, was shorter than the opponent's, and with the Lizardman's tall stature of at least two meters three, Jier was at an even greater disadvantage.

But the more he was in an unfavorable position, the more excited he became; this was exactly what he wanted, as a battle that was evenly matched or even slightly disadvantageous was the most interesting.

Jier immediately changed his fighting style; he no longer attempted to clash head-on with Knight Hartna, but instead lowered his stance and circled Knight Hartna with quick, short steps, attempting to get behind him.

The opponent's tall stature was an advantage, but it could also be a disadvantage, as turning would not be as agile.

"Ha? Want to attack from behind me? But you seem to have forgotten, what is the biggest difference between a Lizardman and a Human?"

Knight Hartna also seemed to have had his interest piqued by the battle and began to mock him, completely forgetting that at this moment, Jier could take his life with just a change of thought.

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