"I may not know what exactly happened to you over the past two years, but based on what I see now, your current strength still isn't enough to defeat me.
How about we end it here? Your power is already among the top in this world. What's rare is that you're also an enemy of the Human God. It would be a shame if you died here.
An enemy of the Human God is a friend of mine. I can let bygones be bygones, and I can even recruit you as my right-hand man."
The clash between the Frost Knight and the Demon Blade continued, the immense shockwaves from their collision causing the surrounding space to become increasingly unstable.
However, compared to Wood, who seemed to be giving it his all, the Dragon God, Orsted, appeared to be completely at ease.
"You want to recruit me as your subordinate? Shouldn't you at least defeat me first before saying something like that?"
As Wood spoke, an even more intense aura erupted from his body. His arm and the Frost Knight he held were now covered in a black, metallic-like substance, giving them a hardened, metallic sheen.
When Wood's arm and the Frost Knight's originally blue blade turned black, Orsted noticed with a strange expression that the force coming from Wood's arm had increased yet again!
This was Wood utilizing the power of "Armament Haki."
And when Wood realized that even with "Armament Haki," Orsted remained unfazed, he immediately followed up with the power of "Conqueror's Haki Infusion"!
Compared to the basic use of "Armament Haki," "Conqueror's Haki Infusion" was the highest level of Haki mastery, and not just anyone could possess Conqueror's Haki.
With "Conqueror's Haki Infusion" applied to the Frost Knight, its weight and destructive power increased once more, and this time, the effect was strikingly evident.
Orsted, who had been confident just moments ago, was now not just surprised but genuinely shocked. He suddenly realized that Wood, who had been on the verge of being overpowered, had now increased his strength exponentially with some unknown power!
This time, the boost in Wood's strength had surpassed even that of the Dragon God himself. Orsted, who should have been the one dominating the fight, now found himself being pushed back as the Demon Blade was slowly forced down.
As the Dragon God, ranked second among the Seven Great Powers, he was now being overpowered in raw strength by a 14-year-old human kid. Who would believe such a thing?
Yet, this was the reality. If Orsted hadn't personally experienced Wood's strength, he would never have believed that such a human could exist.
"Your strength continues to exceed my expectations, but I'm still far from my limit. If you think this is enough to win, you're being far too naive."
Orsted was shocked by Wood's power, but as the Demon Blade was pressed close to his chest, he let out a roar and unleashed a surge of magical energy several times stronger than before.
In the next moment, Wood was surprised to see that Orsted's arm, which had been holding the Demon Blade, began to transform. White dragon scales emerged, and sharp dragon claws grew from his fingertips.
Orsted, known as the Dragon God, was clearly not purely human. Though he often appeared in human form, it would be laughable if the Dragon God only had one form.
As his arm partially transformed into a dragon's limb, Orsted's aura skyrocketed. The Demon Blade, which had been pushed close to his chest, now began to push back against Wood's Frost Knight with even greater force!
With his arm now in its dragonized state, Orsted's counterattack was far more overwhelming than Wood's earlier suppression using "Armament Haki" and "Conqueror's Haki Infusion."
The sudden burst of power from Orsted was so immense that Wood didn't even have time to react. Before he could muster any new strength to counter, his body was sent flying at supersonic speed from the sheer impact!
"Boom—Boom—Boom—Boom!"
This collision sent Wood flying with such force and speed that it far surpassed the earlier kick that had sent Orsted flying.
Wood's body crashed through several mountains in an instant, eventually destroying the entire western port of the Milis Continent.
When his body finally hit the ocean, the surrounding seawater was instantly displaced, creating a massive concave crater on the otherwise mirror-like surface of the sea. The impact even tore through the ocean floor, leaving an enormous, crater-like depression.
The displaced seawater took several minutes to flow back, and as the sea gradually calmed, the surface was littered with the bodies of dead marine life, a grim testament to the sheer force of the collision.
Orsted, who had been far away, teleported several times before appearing above the ocean.
Wood's strength had exceeded his expectations, and Orsted hadn't been this serious in a fight for a long time.
Having not used his full power in combat for so long, Orsted realized he might have overdone it this time and hadn't held back enough.
The attack he had just unleashed would have been fatal even to the other members of the Seven Great Powers. So, as Wood's body was sent flying, Orsted couldn't help but worry that he might have accidentally killed Wood, just like he had two years ago.
However, his concern proved to be unnecessary. Almost as soon as Orsted appeared above the sea, a massive blue magic circle formed beneath him.
In the next moment, turbulent currents of seawater came to life, transforming into serpentine shapes that bound Orsted's limbs and body.
"Water King-Class Magic: Freeflow Serpents!"
Unlike Rudy, Wood rarely used water magic, so his proficiency in it wasn't particularly high. Compared to his fire, ice, and healing magic, which had reached Emperor-Class or even near God-Class levels, Wood's water magic was only at the King-Class level.
However, thanks to the surrounding ocean environment and Wood's immense magical power, the water magic he was using now, though only King-Class, rivaled even Emperor-Class water magic in terms of power and effect.
Of course, even if the power and effect of this magic were comparable to Emperor-Class, it would still be a different story when used against a top-tier opponent like the Dragon God Orsted.
The currents that could easily shred steel now wrapped around Orsted's body, producing a grating, metallic sound.
With a violent tug, Orsted tore apart the serpentine currents binding him.
However, the nature of water magic was that while its offensive power might not be the strongest, its persistence was second to none.
In the vast ocean, there was no shortage of seawater.
Though Orsted could use his brute strength to break free from the water serpents, more seawater quickly gathered and latched onto his body.
Just as Orsted was growing impatient and about to unleash a burst of magical energy to shatter the water binding him, a sharp sword aura shot up from the depths of the ocean, splitting the sea in two like a cake and hurtling toward Orsted with incredible speed.
"Hyakki Yakou Style: One Sword Style—Sea Priest!"
The sword aura churned the waves, compressing the seawater into an incredibly sharp blade of water!
The concentrated water blade could cut through metal like butter, its sharpness surpassing even that of a real metal sword.
As the massive water blade shot toward Orsted, it encountered several marine creatures and large reefs along the way. However, without exception, these obstacles were sliced cleanly in two, their cuts smooth and seamless, as if they had offered no resistance at all.
Seeing such a powerful water-based attack coming his way, Orsted naturally didn't dare to take it lightly. He immediately tried to teleport away.
But to his surprise, just as he was about to use his teleportation ability, more currents of seawater shot up from below, wrapping around his body once more.
Though Orsted managed to break free with a burst of magical energy, the delay was enough for the water blade to close the distance, now just inches away from him.
With no time to dodge, Orsted crossed his arms in front of his chest, relying on his thick dragon scales to block Wood's water blade.
When the water blade collided with Orsted's arms, the turbulent currents clashed against his dragon scales, sending sparks flying.
Under the immense force of the impact, Orsted couldn't hold his ground for long. His body was sent flying, and the water serpents binding him were torn apart.
The hundreds-of-meters-wide water blade not only split the sea but also carried Orsted onto the land, cutting through the coastline as if it were tofu.
The water blade, with Orsted in tow, flew dozens of kilometers before gradually losing power as it moved away from the ocean. When it finally dissipated, Orsted looked down at his bloodied arms, a look of astonishment on his face.
Orsted couldn't remember the last time he had been genuinely injured.
And now, the one who had inflicted such damage on him was a 14-year-old boy. This was something Orsted, even after countless cycles of reincarnation, could never have imagined.
As Orsted stared at his bloodied arms in disbelief, a massive water column erupted from the ocean, and Wood's drenched figure emerged from the sea.
Orsted had been injured by Wood's attack, but Wood wasn't in much better shape.
The earlier clash between the Frost Knight and the Demon Blade, combined with the power of "Armament Haki" and "Conqueror's Haki Infusion," had rebounded onto Wood when Orsted's dragonized arm countered.
The sheer force of that rebound was unimaginable.
To be honest, if it had been Wood from two years ago, he might have been killed by that attack.
Fortunately, after two years of growth and multiple world simulations, Wood's strength had increased significantly. Though his physical body in this world hadn't fully synced with his improvements, his magical power and Haki had carried over.
The moment he was sent flying, Wood had used "Armament Haki" to minimize the impact and damage.
Then, as soon as his body was injured, he activated the healing magic arrays inscribed on his body.
Thanks to his vastly increased magical power, the healing arrays' effectiveness had also improved dramatically.
By the time Wood's body hit the ocean floor, the healing arrays were already at work, mending his injuries.
So, when Wood reappeared on the surface, the green magic arrays on his body were still glowing, and he looked toward Orsted in the distance, shouting, "If this is all you've got, Dragon God, you're not qualified to make me your subordinate.
How about I take you under my wing instead? Sure, you're old, but at least your strength is decent. You wouldn't embarrass me in front of others."
Hearing Wood's bold words, Orsted smirked coldly. Then, with a flash of multicolored light, his injured arms began to heal at an astonishing rate.
The dragons possessed many secret techniques, some of which were incredibly powerful and seemingly defied logic. As the Dragon God, Orsted had mastered most of them.
________
P/S: If you are interested, you can read up to 100+ chapters for $5 and receive daily updates at [email protected]/Betek (@->a).