The Extra's Rise - Chapter 599

Chapter 599: Savage Communion (3)
The moment stretched between us like a drawn bowstring, tension building as both Gideon and I prepared for what was about to unfold. Then, without warning, I felt it—the familiar pulse deep within my chest as my Sword Heart began to beat with the rhythm of impending combat.

And as if synchronized by some cosmic force, Gideon’s Axe Heart responded in kind.

The sensation was extraordinary—feeling the resonance between our respective Hearts as they began their work. My Sword Heart compressed mana with practiced efficiency, transforming it into the pure astral energy that had become my signature enhancement. The silvery radiance flowed along Evolvis’s blade like liquid starlight, coating the Ancient-grade steel with power that made the air itself shimmer.

Across from me, Gideon’s Axe Heart performed its own transformation, though with a distinctly different character. Dark energy flowed along his weapon’s edge—not the pure astral energy I wielded, but something tainted with the corruption that marked all Savage Communion magic. The combination of mana and miasma created an aura around his axe that spoke of violence and barely contained destruction.

“Impressive,” Gideon said, his golden eyes studying the energy coating my blade with newfound respect. “I wasn’t expecting you to have developed a Heart so young. This might actually be interesting.”

‘He’s still underestimating you,’ Luna observed. ‘Good. Let him keep thinking this is just about Hearts and weapons.’

Without further preamble, we moved.

The clash when our weapons met was like thunder given physical form. The impact sent shockwaves rippling through the air, causing the watching Savage Communion members to step back and creating small craters in the reinforced ground beneath our feet.

His axe was heavier than my sword—significantly so. The Ancient-grade weapon carried momentum that threatened to overwhelm my guard with pure kinetic force. Gideon himself was physically stronger, his body enhanced not just by his superior mana rank but by the bloodline advantages that made the Axe King’s family legendary. Every exchange of blows drove home the reality that I was fighting someone who outclassed me in raw physical capability.

It was impossible to expect victory through conventional means against an opponent like this.

The realization crystallized as Gideon’s next strike forced me back several steps, my enhanced Ascendant-rank physiology barely managing to absorb the impact without serious damage. He pressed his advantage immediately, his fighting style a perfect blend of inherited technique and brutal effectiveness.

“Is this the extent of the great Arthur Nightingale’s power?” he taunted, raising his axe high as the corrupted astral energy around it intensified. “My father spoke of potential, but I see only mediocrity dressed in Academy pretensions.”

I pulled my sword back and inhaled deeply, centering myself for what needed to come next.

Second movement of my Grade 6 art: Hollow Eclipse.

The movement was poetry written in violence. Two layers of astral energy formed around Evolvis, but between them, dark spots of Deepdark energy created zones of absolute void that seemed to devour light itself. The technique represented the synthesis of opposing forces—creation and destruction, light and darkness, existence and nothingness.

That movement clashed against Gideon’s descending axe with a sound like reality tearing.

BOOM!

The explosion of conflicting energies sent both of us sliding backward, our feet carving furrows in the reinforced ground. When the dust cleared, I could see that Gideon’s confident expression had shifted to something more serious.

“A Grade 6 art,” he said with genuine appreciation. “And one that incorporates Deepdark principles. You’re more developed than the reports suggested.”

“The reports were incomplete,” I replied, settling into a new stance as I prepared to escalate further.

Gideon’s response was to activate what I immediately recognized as his Gift. Golden energy erupted around him, not the enhanced astral power of his Heart but something far more fundamental. His bloodline Gift manifested as what appeared to be supernatural enhancement—strength, speed, and reflexes amplified beyond normal magical limits.

‘Interesting,’ Luna observed. ‘His Gift appears to be some form of supernatural empowerment. That explains the golden energy signature.’

“Behold the blessing of violence incarnate,” Gideon announced, his voice carrying harmonics that spoke of power beyond mortal limits. “The Ironmaw bloodline doesn’t just inherit strength—we inherit the right to wield it without restraint.”

He moved with speed that made my enhanced perception struggle to track, closing the distance between us in what felt like an instant. His axe descended in an arc that would have bisected a normal opponent, but I was no longer fighting conventionally.

First movement of my Grade 5 art CQC: Arc Hook Spiral.

The technique transformed my sword work into something that transcended traditional weapon combat. Instead of meeting his axe directly, I redirected its momentum using principles that incorporated both martial and magical enhancement. My blade traced a precise arc that hooked around his weapon’s shaft, while my body moved in a spiral pattern that turned his greater strength against him.

The result was spectacular—Gideon’s overwhelming attack became the source of his own imbalance as I used his momentum to send him stumbling past me. But his recovery was equally impressive, his enhanced reflexes allowing him to turn the stumble into a spinning strike that forced me to activate my next technique immediately.

Second movement of my Grade 5 art CQC: Ground Reversal Stomp.

I drove my foot into the reinforced ground with enough force to crater the surface, but the real technique was in how I channeled astral energy through the impact. The resulting shockwave traveled through the earth and erupted directly beneath Gideon’s feet, disrupting his footing at the crucial moment when he was committed to his spinning attack.

He adapted faster than I’d expected, using his Gift-enhanced reflexes to leap over the disrupted ground and convert his stumble into an aerial assault. His axe came down like divine judgment, wreathed in corrupted astral energy that promised devastating consequences.

Third movement of my Grade 5 art CQC: Phantom Step Knee.

The technique was my answer to aerial attacks—a movement that combined spatial displacement with devastating close-range combat. I seemed to vanish from where I’d been standing, reappearing directly beside Gideon’s descending form with my knee driving upward toward his ribs. The phantom aspect of the movement made it nearly impossible to defend against, as I was essentially attacking from a position that didn’t exist until the moment of impact.

Gideon’s response demonstrated why the Axe King’s bloodline was legendary. Instead of trying to block an attack he couldn’t see coming, he embraced the impact, using his Gift-enhanced durability to absorb the blow while bringing his axe around in a strike that would take my head off if it connected.

We separated again, both of us breathing harder now as the intensity of the combat escalated beyond what normal fighters could sustain.

“Exceptional technique,” Gideon acknowledged, golden energy still wreathing his form. “But technique alone won’t overcome the fundamental differences in our capabilities.”

He raised his hand, and I felt the air around us shift as he began channeling both mana and miasma simultaneously. The combination created an oppressive atmosphere that spoke of corruption and power working in unnatural harmony.

“Let me show you what true power looks like,” he said, and the dark energy around his axe intensified until it seemed to bend light around itself.

‘He’s escalating,’ Luna warned. ‘That level of miasma corruption is dangerous even for someone at your level.’

‘Then it’s time to escalate in return,’ I replied, feeling the familiar stirring of power that marked my preparation for a truly serious response.

Soul Resonance.

The transformation was immediate and profound. Luna’s ancient power flowed through our mental connection, enhancing my physical and magical capabilities far beyond their normal limits. My body became mythic in nature—stronger, faster, more durable than any normal enhancement could provide. More importantly, my perception expanded to include Soul Vision, allowing me to see the true nature of Gideon’s power and the weaknesses hidden within his seeming invincibility which were hidden from even Seraphim’s Embrace.

Through Soul Vision, I could see that his Gift came with costs—the supernatural enhancement was burning through his stamina at an unsustainable rate, while the combination of mana and miasma was creating internal corruption that would eventually turn against him.

But more immediately, I could see the patterns of his movement, the telegraphs of his attacks, the moments of vulnerability that his overwhelming power normally concealed.

“Interesting,” Gideon said, studying my transformed state with obvious intrigue. “You continue to exceed expectations. But let’s see how your innovations handle this.”

He moved with speed that defied physics, his Gift-enhanced capabilities pushing him beyond what should have been possible for someone of his rank. His axe came at me from three different angles simultaneously—not through any mystical technique, but through movement so fast that it created the illusion of multiple attacks.

But Soul Vision let me see the truth beneath the illusion. There was only one real attack, hidden among the feints and misdirections.

Fifth movement of my Grade 5 art CQC: One-Inch Punch.

The technique was deceptively simple—a punch delivered from point-blank range with minimal windup. But the astral energy channeled through the movement transformed it into something that could shatter castle walls. I stepped into Gideon’s attack pattern, my fist connecting with his solar plexus at the exact moment when his momentum committed him to his strike.

The impact sent him flying backward, his Gift-enhanced durability the only thing that prevented the blow from ending the fight immediately. He hit the ground hard but rolled to his feet with predatory grace, golden blood now visible at the corner of his mouth.

“First blood to you,” he acknowledged with genuine respect. “I underestimated your capabilities. That won’t happen again.”

The golden energy around him intensified further, his Gift pushing into realms that made the air itself tremble with barely contained power. When he raised his axe again, the weapon seemed to exist in multiple dimensions simultaneously.

“Now let me show you why bloodline trumps innovation,” he said, and launched himself forward with speed that made his previous attacks look sluggish.

First movement of my Grade 6 art: God Flash.

The world exploded into radiance as divine light erupted from my form, moving at speeds that approached the conceptual rather than merely physical. The technique was my answer to opponents who thought speed was the ultimate advantage—movement so fast that it existed in the realm of pure possibility rather than normal physics.

I appeared behind Gideon before the light of my departure had faded, Evolvis already in motion toward what my senses revealed as a critical vulnerability in his defense.

But his response proved why the Axe King’s bloodline was legendary even among the Savage Communion. Instead of trying to turn and block, he simply… vanished.

Not teleportation or any mystical technique—pure speed enhanced by his Gift to levels that challenged my enhanced perception. He reappeared above me, his axe descending with force that promised to split the earth itself.

So I changed my movement.

God Flash: Absolute.

The enhanced version of my technique transformed speed into something approaching divine intervention. I moved through space and time as if they were merely suggestions, my blade meeting his axe in a clash that sent shockwaves rippling across multiple dimensions.

When the energy cleared, we stood locked in mutual guard, our weapons crossed and trembling with the force each of us was channeling. But I could see through Soul Vision that this level of output was unsustainable for both of us.

“Impressive,” Gideon panted, golden energy flickering around his form as his Gift began to waver. “But even your techniques can’t overcome the fundamental gap in our capabilities.”

He was right, and we both knew it. Despite everything I’d thrown at him—Grade 5 and Grade 6 arts, Soul Resonance, divine techniques that pushed the boundaries of what magic could achieve—he was still standing, still fighting, still dangerous.

The truth was, I had been holding back my greatest advantage, waiting to see if conventional techniques could carry the day. But Gideon’s power and skill had proven that this fight would require everything I could bring to bear.

It was time to show him what true innovation looked like.

“Erebus,” I called out, feeling my Lich’s presence responding immediately to my summons.