CHAPTER 185: CLASH OF THE GRAND KNIGHTS

"What's going on here...?" Wang Yu was struggling to make sense of the situation. Two identical figures wreathed in black smoke stood before him, identical in every way. Which one was real?

"...!" Edward had been slightly slower than Wang Yu. After a brief delay, he arrived at the scene, only to witness one of the figures strangling the other and lifting the other into the air. The sight left him in utter shock.

Wang Yu adjusted his Bloodbite Ring, prying open the menacing skeletal jaw. Crimson blood gushed forth, creeping up his body and coalescing into a flowing blood-red cloak at his back.

Narrowing his eyes, Wang Yu locked his gaze onto both figures, hesitant to make a move. The last time he had encountered a single one of them, he had barely survived. Now, with two in front of him—and both indistinguishable, at that—he felt overwhelming pressure.

Edward felt the same way. Although he had never personally faced either of the figures himself, he was well aware of what happened to Wang Yu last time and understood the might of a grand knight. He took a few steps forward and stood beside Wang Yu, then activated his inner potential. An invisible barrier formed around them, a precaution against the overwhelming threat in sight.

The only silver lining was that the two figures didn't appear to be allies. One of them was struggling, throat firmly clenched in the other's grip, unable to break free.

The sickening sound of something hard being twisted out of shape echoed in the air. The figure being strangled was barely holding on, spine on the verge of cracking from the tremendous force. That figure's struggles grew weaker and weaker.

A dull thud echoed through the corridor as the lifeless body of the strangled figure was thrown to the ground.

The remaining figure turned its faintly glowing, featureless gaze toward Wang Yu and Edward. Without eyes or pupils, it was impossible to discern the figure's emotions, but the silent stare alone was enough to put them both on high alert.

The figure stepped on the corpse beneath it, then kicked it forward. The lifeless body skidded across the hallway, leaving a long streak of dust and debris before it came to a stop at Wang Yu and Edward's feet.

Instinctively, they both retreated several steps to keep their distance from the corpse. They had no idea what the figure's intentions were. Was the figure trying to intimidate them? But why bother?

The two sides remained at a standoff. Wang Yu and Edward held their ground, tense and ready, while the figure stood leisurely by the other side of the corridor, as if merely watching them.

"No rush. As long as it doesn't attack, we just have to stall. Our goal is to buy time until Captain Hugin arrives. If the figure stays here, that's actually to our advantage."

Wang Yu reminded himself of their true objective. They weren't here to capture, kill, or even survive the enemy. Their only task was to stall long enough for someone capable of handling the situation to arrive.

"You've done well. I'm here now." Hugin's voice, transmitted through Sieg's mental link, reached Wang Yu and Edward's minds.

Here? Where? Wang Yu's gaze flickered as he quickly scanned the surroundings, breaking eye contact with the figure for just a moment. The manor, engulfed in raging flames, had nothing in sight except swirling ashes and smoke falling like snow.

...the smoke. The moment Wang Yu realized the situation, the scattered smoke and ash began to shift.

The thick, cloying smoke from the fire mingled with the falling debris, creating a chaotic scene. It was the perfect cover for Hugin—because smoke wasn't just concealment for him. It was him.

A shadow emerged from the roiling waves of fireborne smoke.

Hugin materialized from the thick haze behind the figure, surging forward at incredible speed. In his hands, the swirling smoke condensed into a massive sword, which he swung mercilessly at the figure's waist.

His old-fashioned trench coat billowed as the firelight flickered around him, the surrounding smoke twisting and writhing like living tendrils. That familiar, eerie presence—the unmistakable aura of a demon—was something Wang Yu and Edward had felt before.

This was Hugin's signature demon, the Smoke Demon.

There was no better terrain for Hugin than this inferno-filled, smoke-choked battlefield.

The massive sword of smoke clashed against the figure's arm as the figure instinctively turned to block. The collision sent a deep, resounding shockwave through the crumbling manor. A battle between two grand knights—this structure had no hope of withstanding that.

The ground beneath them shattered instantly, sending cracks rippling outward. The force of their clash sent both combatants flying back, crashing through the fragile walls behind them.

The shockwave continued to spread. The already burning walls of the manor reached their limit and collapsed as flames roared around them.

Chunks of debris rained down. Entire sections of the manor caved in, hastening its inevitable destruction. After being subjected to ten minutes of a blazing inferno, the manor finally collapsed from the force of their battle.

Smoke and dust billowed forth, leaving the corridor in darkness.

There was no visibility left, but the sounds of violent collisions and splintering wood continued echoing through the chaos.

"Partner, c'mon! Don't tell me you still can't finish off that smoking bastard in our home turf? You're not getting soft, are ya?"

The familiar, shrill voice of the smoke demon pierced through the suffocating haze.

"Shut up. Wang Yu, Edward—get out. This fight isn't for you."

Hugin's command cut through the ruckus. Wang Yu and Edward exchanged glances before immediately retreating.

With Hugin here, they had no business staying. If anything, being caught by the enemy would only hinder him.

As for Hugin, he was a grand knight. They didn't need to worry about the likes of him, especially not in such a favorable battlefield.

As they sprinted out, Wang Yu glanced back one last time. The smoke in the corridor was shifting, converging toward a single point.

Hugin had transformed into the Smoke Demon Knight in full, and was now encased in a suit of smoke-forged armor.

Behind the figure, the shattered remnants of the burning wall erupted with surging plumes of smoke. From those tendrils of smoke, a colossal hand formed, reaching for the figure as the figure fell through the collapsing hallway.

The smoke and dust stirred up by the raging fire turned this place into Hugin's domain. All the smoke, under the power of the smoke demon controlled by Hugin's Malevolent Possession, became a weapon at his disposal.

His hands grasped the air, manifesting that which didn't exist. As he shot toward the figure, he swung his intangible weapon with all his might at the figure, who was simultaneously being attacked from behind by a massive smoky hand.

The smoke surged and coalesced at Hugin's hands into a massive, menacing battleaxe formed from condensed smoke and dust. It crashed down on the airborne figure with unstoppable force. At the same time, the giant hand of black smoke struck from behind, sealing off all escape routes and trapping the target like a beast in a cage.

This was the last sight Wang Yu and Edward caught before they made their retreat.

The two withdrew at remarkable speed, their coordination seamless. Edward's potential was operating at full power, forming an invisible shield around them and neutralizing the surrounding flames and falling debris.

Meanwhile, Wang Yu unleashed all the stored blood within his Bloodbite Ring, pushing Blood Tempest to its very limit while simultaneously activating Material Shaping.

Before him, numerous longswords crafted from his own blood danced through the air. Driven by Blood Tempest, these swords were even sharper and sturdier than regular metal blades. They embedded themselves into walls, cutting and destroying any obstacles in their path.

The walls, already weakened by fire and shockwaves, crumbled easily. Wang Yu and Edward carved out a passage leading to the outside world.

A resounding boom and an ear-splitting crack erupted from the depths of the burning estate. Unlike the piercing explosion of a blast, this was the deafening collision of two solid forces clashing under immense pressure.

With that impact came a terrifying shockwave that utterly shattered the estate. Its thickest support beam twisted and collapsed, bringing down the entire rooftop along with it.

"Edward!" Wang Yu shouted as he glanced up at the burning wreckage crashing down upon them.

Edward instantly understood what Wang Yu was about to do—something violent yet effective. Without hesitation, he accelerated the circulation of his fighting spirit, reinforcing the invisible shield around them.

Using his mental energy, Wang Yu connected with the Spellweaver's Tome. Within the rising currents of air generated by the burning flames, wind surged upward, carrying them along with them via the third-tier Whirlwind Tunnel.

Powerful winds rose, their force amplified by the rising heat. A violent whirlwind swept up debris, flames, and smoke, sending everything skyward.

In just a few short seconds, this spell, originally designed to disrupt enemy formations on a large scale, even managed to momentarily support the collapsing rooftop above them.

And with Avia's recent upgrades to the Spellweaver's Tome, it was now capable of casting another spell immediately alongside the third-tier Whirlwind Tunnel—the second-tier Storm Stride.

By then, Wang Yu had already grabbed Edward's shoulder. As the force of the wind surged behind them, the two were propelled forward at extreme speed, shooting through the gap they had opened earlier.

The moment Wang Yu and Edward slid out of the viscount's manor, the entire structure collapsed behind them.

The burning rooftop caved in, bringing the rest of the building down with it. Fragments of shattered brick and rubble even scattered onto the street, while an enormous cloud of smoke billowed into the air.

The sheer volume of smoke and dust completely engulfed the noble guards, who had just pulled the viscount out from an adjacent building, as well as the city watch and Nightblades who had arrived just seconds earlier. Not a single person was spared from the soot and dust.

Wang Yu's bloodforged swords, having reverted to his cloak form, transformed once more. Bladed tendrils shot into the ground, abruptly arresting Wang Yu's momentum.

Edward, likewise, drove his heavy greatsword into the earth. Sparks scattered as it scraped against and carved a deep groove in the ground before he was finally brought to a stop. Side by side, the two turned to look toward the collapsed manor.

"What happened?! Has the viscount buried inside?!"

"There's no way a manor like that could collapse just from fire!"

Amidst the swirling dust on the street, the voices of the Nightblades and the city watch rang out. The magicians in their midst quickly reacted, gathering wind to disperse the lingering smoke and dust.

However, something moved even faster than they did—the smoke itself. As though it had a will of its own, the smoke stirred, rushing toward the ruins of the collapsed mansion and slipping into the gaps between the debris.

"It's the captain..." Before anyone else could react, Wang Yu pointed out the source of this anomaly. Smoke filled the air—this was their captain's domain. This had to be his finishing move.

Unsurprisingly, as the massive cloud of smoke flooded into the ruins of the manor, the colossal smoky figure that Wang Yu had seen before emerged once more.

This time, supported by an overwhelming volume, the smoke-clad knight rising from the wreckage was even larger and even more solid than before.

The knight's immense battle-axe, formed from dense smoke and dust, cleaved through the air. Under the watchful eyes of the surrounding onlookers, it descended from the heavens, striking downward with terrifying force.

The massive axe fell, shattering a highly condensed prison of smoke—along with everything trapped inside.

As the giant axe struck the ground, a resounding impact echoed outward, shaking the earth beneath their feet.

The sheer presence of the smoke titan left the surrounding crowd stunned, unable to recover from the spectacle even after it had dissipated into ordinary mist.

The settling dust covered the ruins of the viscount's manor as the sound of footsteps echoed. Emerging from the haze, Hugin stepped forward.

Distinctive smoke curled from the pipe clamped between his teeth, a telltale sign of his mastery over smoke magic. His coat, singed by stray embers, fluttered in the lingering heat. He carried something in each arm—one a corpse, its features burned beyond recognition; and the other a severed arm, its surface still wreathed in dissipating black smoke.

"That guy was too damn fast. Even among grand knights, he boasted incredible speed. I couldn't take him down completely despite being in my domain, but I did cut off an arm. That should keep him quiet for a while."

Hugin's calm voice carried through the smoke-filled air.