Though staying with people had lessened the bestial instincts in Uga,
unlike when he lived in the wild, there was no way they could
disappear completely.
Perhaps in the future it might be possible.
But that future was not now.
After being punched in the face twice despite not doing anything, rage imdiately clouded his mind.
Uga's large fra shifted slightly as he planted his feet more firmly into the cracked ground. The earth beneath him groaned faintly from the pressure.
The attendant noticed the change imdiately.
But before he could react, Uga moved.
His fist shot forward.
There was no fancy technique. No visible mana surge. Just a simple punch.
Yet the mont it left his body, the air in front of it seed to compress violently.
The blow landed squarely on the attendant's chest.
The impact sounded like a hamr striking a thick iron plate.
For the first ti since the fight began, soone moved.
The attendant's body slid backward across the ground.
One step.
Two steps.
Three.
Dust scraped beneath his boots as he forced himself to stop.
His eyes widened slightly.
This was the first ti soone of the sa age group had ever pushed him back in the Land of Origin. Even those considered geniuses of their generation had never managed it.
That was the advantage of Awakeners over normal cultivators. Their classes granted them direct enhancents.
As a Knight class, the attendant possessed extrely powerful physical strength. His body had been strengthened through awakening far beyond ordinary cultivation.
Yet he had just been forced back.
Who was this monster?
Behind him, Prince Rui had also noticed.
His calm expression finally shifted slightly.
Unlike many others, Rui was well aware of the attendant's true strength.
Normally, Rui would never keep soone of the sa generation who was stronger than him close by.
But this situation was different.
His royal father had personally assigned the youth to him.
The official reason was protection.
The real reason was observation.
According to the Emperor, the attendant possessed a great secret, sothing that might one day benefit even the Black Serpent Empire.
So Rui had been told to watch him carefully.
And yet this was the first ti Rui had seen the attendant pushed back by soone of the sa generation.
Awakeners were special beings. Their classes granted them abilities and advantages that ordinary cultivators could not easily replicate.
But special did not an invincible.
The gap between individuals still existed.
Against certain existences, the field could beco surprisingly even.
Not all Awakeners were abnormal monsters like Michael.
Most still had limits.
Uga was simply one of those exceptions that refused to fit neatly within the expected boundaries of power.
Months ago, when both he and Michael had stood at the peak of Rank One, Uga had been able to match Michael in terms of raw physical strength alone.
At that ti, Michael was already a High Human.
If Uga could stand on equal footing with such a being at that stage, and had since advanced further with more of his natural prowess surfacing, then the implications were obvious.
Even if the current Uga could no longer compete with Michael, that did not an he had suddenly beco ordinary.
Far from it.
Among the Awakeners who currently stood in Aurora, very few of Michael's generation could handle soone like Uga easily.
The attendant steadied himself.
Uga stood a few ters away, shoulders rising and falling, his eyes
fixed on the man who had just hit him twice for no reason. The anger
in his expression sharpened into sothing more focused.
The attendant shifted his stance, this ti raising both hands.
He stepped forward.
Uga stepped forward as well.
Their movents collided.
The attendant's fist snapped out, fast and clean, carrying a sharp burst of mana that cracked the air. Uga swayed his head a fraction, the blow grazing past his cheek instead of landing squarely.
Uga answered with another punch.
It was still simple.
Still direct.
But the mont it moved, the space in front of it seed to compress
again.
The attendant blocked with his forearm.
The impact rattled through his bones and forced him back half a step.
Uga followed.
A second punch ca imdiately, then a third, each one heavier than the last. The attendant retreated in short bursts, blocking, shifting, and parrying with skill, trying to break the rhythm.
The attendant slipped to the side and drove a kick toward Uga's knee,
aiming to disrupt his base.
The kick struck, but it felt like hitting a stone pillar.
Uga's leg did not buckle.
Instead, Uga's arm swung across like a club.
The attendant leaned back just in ti, the wind from the strike
ripping dust off the ground as it passed.
Behind them, the summoning circle pulsed brighter.
The eight continued feeding it, but their faces tightened. Their
breathing beca uneven.
Prince Rui's eyes narrowed.
He watched the fight for a single breath longer, then his voice cut
through the tension.
"Take it elsewhere."
The attendant's expression tightened.
He understood imdiately.
If this continued beside the formation, the turbulence would grow. If
the circle destabilized at the final stage, everything would collapse. The bridge would tear. The price they had already paid would beco
aningless.
He stepped back again, calculating.
Uga moved to follow, feet cracking the earth with every step.
The attendant's hand dropped to his waist.
tal rang softly.
A sword slid free from its sheath.
The blade caught the crimson glow of the runes and reflected it in a
cold line along its edge.
The mont the weapon appeared, the air around the attendant
changed.
His posture lowered.
His breathing steadied.
His mana gathered differently, no longer reinforcing just his fists and
body, but flowing into the weapon like a second nervous system.
Uga paused for a brief mont.
His eyes locked onto the sword.
Then he stepped forward anyway.
The attendant shifted sideways, drawing Uga's advance away from the formation. His feet moved in controlled patterns, each step light despite the cracked ground, guiding the battle outward.
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