Although the Dark Apostle had demonstrated the capacity to channel Worclaw energy in the previous match, his latest attack still caught the Fiery Axe by surprise.
The injury inflicted by the Dark Tooth did not impart too much darkness energy this ti. The female Ascended Giant imdiately ignored the lingering corruption spread by this small amount of darkness.
What concerned her much more was the massive trauma inflicted by the explosion of Worclaw energy.
Its quantity was not too much, but its potency was fairly high. The Dark Tooth managed to punch deeply enough to unleash a destructive blast inside her internal cavity, causing serious tears and bruising to her phasewater organs!
Their vulnerability to damage was much greater than her flesh and bones. Moderate damage was already enough to impair their functionality and disrupt their usage.
One of the consequences of this singularly powerful blow was that the phasewater organ responsible for reducing her mass operated considerably less effective than before!
The Fiery Axe was only able to lighten her mass by around 8 to 9 percent, which was much weaker than before!
Her other capabilities got affected as well. The wound debilitated her physical movents, making it harder for her to sustain her montum if she wanted to regain her offensive rhythm.
Her eyes burned with unwillingness. She could still fight, but she was in a worse physical condition compared to her opponent.
There was an even greater issue at hand.
The Worclaw energy blast occupied her so much that the Dark Apostle had been able to retreat from her until he reached optimal throwing distance.
His next move beca clear as everyone as he assud a classical throwing stance.
The Dark Tooth — though chipped and damaged on the surface — was still intact enough to serve as an adequate throwing weapon.
Right now, the Dark Apostle held the spear near its butt where a familiar atlatl throwing chanism had unfolded.
Darkness energy slowly got infused into the weapon, causing it to slowly pri itself for a lethal explosion.
Unlike the Unshakeable King, the Fiery Axe knew that she did not possess the defenses to withstand a direct or maybe even a glancing hit!
Trying to dodge the spear once thrown still gave her a chance to evade the deadly strike, but the problem was that she was unable to move as quickly as before.
Given how skilled the Dark Apostle managed to throw his weapon the last ti, the Fiery Axe instinctively knew that it would have been a long shot to successfully evade the spear throw even if she was still in peak condition.
She could only draw one conclusion from this standoff.
For all intents and purposes, the Dark Apostle put the Fiery Axe into checkmate.
There was no other way to interpret this situation.
The Fiery Axe had run out of solutions. Her only way to avoid a massive explosion in her face was to stick close to her opponent and never let him get away.
She failed.
He got away long enough to achieve his win condition.
The only reason why she had not yet beco overwheld by an exploding spear was because the Dark Apostle had yet to commit to the attack.
While he was technically priming his Dark Tooth, it had not yet reached the point of no return.
He could still retract the darkness energy and return the weapon to its dormant state.
The Fiery Axe couldn't help but calm down and relax. She stared across the void that separated her from the Dark Apostle and gazed at him with respect.
The first duel already convinced her that the challenger was a worthy fighter, but it was only now that she had locked weapons against him in person that she truly lost her will to resist.
She symbolically let go of her Fiery Axe, causing the weapon to gently float out of her reach.
Her stance grew less defiant and combatant. The fire energy that previously fueled her aggression went out as her companion spirit took the initiative to stop as well.
Her threat level dropped significantly. Even if she intended to deceive her current opponent, it would take precious seconds to relight her fire and pick up her weapon again.
This was more than enough ti for the Dark Apostle to fully pri his exploding spear and throw it in her direction with great power!
By doing all of this, the Fiery Axe conveyed a silent ssage to her adversary.
The Dark Apostle remained frozen as he contemplated his next move.
Blinky hovered next to the human phase lord with concern.
"Are you sure you want to spare her this ti?" Ves asked his other personality. "Do not forget that she was ready to condemn us to death before the duel."
The Dark Apostle minutely shook his head. "She voiced these intentions in private and before she knew a single thing about my real self. It makes sense for her to despise a weak challenger. I would have harbored the sa intentions if I was in her shoes. What matters is that I have proved her wrong in the most convincing fashion possible. There is no way she will betray my trust and turn against now that I have given her a taste of my unfathomable might."
"Our might, not yours. You wouldn't have stood a chance against this maniac if you did not have access to my gear and other perks." Ves reminded his other personality. "Whatever the case, I can see the advantages of sparing her and winning her over. If you can gain her allegiance, she will beco your strongest cheerleader within the Ascended Giants. You will be able to retain her full support so long as you can still beat her in a fight. The mont this changes, I do not think she will hesitate to contest your leadership. Are you truly willing to subject yourself to this hidden danger?"
The Ascended Giant did not respond verbally to Ves, but he minutely nodded to convey his answers.
He instead directed his attention to the Fiery Axe. After staring in her dimming eyes for over a minute, he felt he had ford a silent accord with the female strategos.
The Dark Apostle slowly retracted his power from the Dark Tooth and aborted the effort to execute the Sacrificial Spear Throwing thod.
The Minor Demon that resided in the D-arm felt incredibly glad that he and his current abode was not about to blow up. The deviant artifact spirit did everything in his power to wind down and release the darkness energy that was previously attempting to pri the weapon to explode.
Demons also wanted to live!
As the Dark Tooth returned to a more dormant state, both Ascended Giants relaxed.
They no longer saw each other as enemies anymore. Instead, the two gained a growing sense of kinship.
The earlier fight caused both of them to develop a good understanding of each other's true selves.
The Dark Apostle understood what drove the Fiery Axe, while the female strategos comprehended a part of his ambition.
They had no problem with each other's motivations. After confirming that neither of the two had any fundantal reason to reject coexistence and cooperation, they dropped their guard and accepted each other's presence.
This was how so fighters resolved their hostility and misunderstandings. As long as the conditions were right, it was not that difficult for enemies to beco lifelong comrades!
While it was too early to tell whether the Dark Apostle and the Fiery Axe would develop such a bond, they were already off to a good start.
"You have convinced with your strength." The Fiery Axe took the initiative to speak. "You have done well to withstand my attacks and find a way to turn the tables against . I am glad that I have proven myself formidable enough to make you work for it. That last attack is certainly a doozy. I will not insult you by asking how you have co to master such a power. You have already won my approval even without taking this exotic ans into account. If you are able to take over from the Oscillating fist, then it would be my pleasure to serve at your side."
It was a bit improper for the Fiery Axe to speak about this before the leadership challenge had co to an end.
After all, there were still two more duels to go, though their importance had diminished now that it had co to this point.
Still, if the Dark Apostle lost the next two duels, it was important for him to earn the vote of as many Ascended Giants as possible. He needed to appeal to the rank-and-file giants and ensure that he would not change too much about their lives if he assud leadership over the Phase Lord Departnt.
The Dark Apostle lowered his spear and inclined his head.
"If I have won the leadership challenge, then I am not opposed to having you continue to lead the Flesh Chopper Phalanx. That said, I will not stop others from mounting reasonable challenges to you. If there are other Ascended Giants who think they have a better shot of leading your unit, then I will not stop them from following our new traditions."
The Fiery Axe grinned. "That is fair. I like it a lot. I have grown tired of obeying the stupid commands from rear echelon bastards who have never stared down the barrel of a gun in their entire careers. A true leader among our race must have the courage to lead from the front and face challenges from behind. Only this kind of leader is worthy to command our race. I truly hope that you will be able to take over the mantle from the Oscillating Fist. As strong as he may be, he is too indecisive outside of the battlefield."
That was a useful piece of information.
It also inford Ves and the Dark Apostle how they could win the leadership challenge even if they lost the next two duels.
So long as they were strong enough, they could make up for the remaining shortcomings by sounding more decisive than the departnt head of the Phase Lord Departnt.
While the Dark Apostle was ready to conclude this satisfying duel, Ves still had questions.
"If we ask you to remain aligned to red humanity and deploy in the frontlines to fight directly against the alien phase lords, will you and your n be willing to obey orders?"
The Fiery Axe shifted her gaze between the Dark Apostle and Blinky several tis. Their separate personality business was so weird that she did not know how to handle such a situation. Were they even the sa person?
She shrugged. "Our duty is clear. No matter what we think, so long as you outrank us, your word is law. If you beco the polemarchos, no voice of authority can countermand your orders. We do not care about other red humans. We reject the authority of god pilots and Star Designers. Only the strongest among us can command our loyalty. I have instilled this rule in the heads of all of the Flesh Choppers. Those who disagree with this principle are not welco within our ranks. You can rest assured that none of my subordinates will ever go rogue so long as I am in charge."
Ves was not sure how much stock he could put into her judgnt, but she sounded confident enough, so he was willing to give her a chance.
"Very well. Our takeover is not yet complete, but we would like you to start on your first assignnt. Please write a report on the internal situation of the Ascended Giants in your own words. We need to understand what we are dealing with, and your perspective may prove illuminating. I would like you to take special note of Ascended Giants who have shown leadership qualities and can be entrusted to lead independent units into battle."
"I shall do so. I look forward to turning in my report once you have won the challenge."
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