Dark Magus Returns

Chapter 1658: The First Move

Raze had arrived in time using his Dark Edge sword arts, combining both Qi and Magic in perfect harmony. He could always move at incredible speed, and he truly believed the others would be alright thanks to the Qi pills he had given them earlier. He had made sure they were properly equipped before heading into this confrontation.

When Harvey came into his sight, Raze knew immediately that there would be no reasoning with him, no convincing him to stop this path of destruction. After dealing with him previously and understanding the depths of Harvey’s conviction, Raze knew he had to attack from the very beginning with everything he had. He had learned his lesson well from going against Gizin, where Raze had been unable to use one of his key components of the Dark Edge sword arts—the Eternal Night Formation. That mistake had nearly cost him everything.

This time would be different.

Using it ahead as he moved towards Harvey, the technique allowed him to cover the entire area in complete darkness, voiding the surrounding space of all light. The shadows spread like living ink across the battlefield, consuming everything in their path. It was a terrifying sight to behold, one that had made Raze’s reputation as fearsome as it was.

Having already struck the large puppet controlled by Harvey, Raze was now standing directly in front of the massive construct, his sword at the ready. The puppet towered above him, a monument to Harvey’s incredible skill and power.

"Harvey, you were someone who did everything for the sake of the Dark Magus. You claim the Dark Magus is a symbol, but that means you never knew anything really about the Dark Magus in the first place," Raze called out, his voice cutting through the darkness.

"I never cared for change. I never did things to make the world a better place. The only reason why the Dark Magus exists is my own personal grudge against the Grand Magus. You’re replacing the Dark Magus when you have no idea what it truly means to carry that title."

Harvey’s response was immediate and violent. His large puppet began firing out a massive number of Dark pulses—large giant balls of condensed energy that tore through the air towards Raze with devastating intent. Each pulse contained enough power to level buildings, and they came in rapid succession like a deadly storm.

Quickly, Raze swung his sword, performing the Eclipse Strike, his Dark Magic clashing directly against Harvey’s. When the two forces met in midair, they seemed to destroy each other in spectacular bursts of dark energy that lit up the shadowy battlefield in brief, violent flashes.

Right after the collision, Raze had dived straight into the center of the onslaught, speeding through the gaps between attacks with precision born of countless battles. Then he used the Void Pulse Strike, a technique that allowed him to pierce through the puppet’s body in a single, devastating blow. Getting through to the other side, he started to swing his sword, performing several slashes and strikes that were hitting the large puppet’s body with practiced ease. Each cut carved deep into the construct’s form, leaving trails of dissipating dark energy.

The puppet eventually turned around and began to swing its massive limbs, breaking through Raze’s attacks with sheer power and size. When the limbs were swung out, from the end of them would emerge more concentrated lines of Dark Magic that would come shooting out, ripping through the Underside city and destroying more of what was left of it. Buildings crumbled, the ground split apart, and the few remaining structures groaned under the assault.

Yet Raze was able to move through the air at great speed to avoid each devastating attack, his movements fluid and controlled despite the chaos surrounding him. Then, when he swung his sword again, several dark magic beasts started to emerge from the blade itself. They flowed like liquid shadow, some of them able to move incredibly fast and strike the body of the puppet in several different areas simultaneously. It was like watching a pack of wolves take down prey much larger than themselves.

And Raze came through once more, using the explosive runes as well that were detonating all over the large puppet’s body in coordinated bursts of power. Each explosion chipped away at Harvey’s defenses, weakening the construct bit by bit.

The others watching from a distance found that their minute of enhanced power had already disappeared, so they could no longer fight or join in the battle. But as they were watching Raze unleash technique after technique, they couldn’t help but wonder—was what he was doing right now, using all of the Dark Edge sword arts in rapid succession, was it even working? Was he making any real progress?

They had landed large attacks together as well earlier, but if they didn’t go for the head directly? If they didn’t strike where Harvey’s actual body was hidden and eliminate the real threat, wouldn’t the puppet just last forever, regenerating and continuing the fight endlessly?

Didn’t Raze at least have a plan that was better than theirs? Sure, maybe with all of Raze’s varied attacks, he was delivering far more damage and coming at the puppet from all different angles with relentless aggression, but wasn’t it ultimately useless if he couldn’t reach Harvey’s true body?

"Can he... win?" Kelly asked aloud as she wrestled with these troubling thoughts, voicing what the others were thinking. But there was one among them that was smiling knowingly.

"He’s already winning. I guess with the bare eye you guys can’t really see it," Liam said with quiet confidence, his system providing him information the others couldn’t access.

The attacks were consistent and unrelenting, and Raze wasn’t stopping for even a moment. This was the true beauty of his Eternal Dark Formation—it created the perfect environment for his particular style of combat. And that’s when it suddenly clicked in Dame’s head as well, understanding washing over him.

"When using his Dark Edge sword arts, Raze mentioned that it activated his trait of Demonic Qi, which allows him to absorb energy through his attacks. If that is happening right now, then that means Harvey’s energy reserves are getting smaller and smaller with each exchange," Dame explained to the others, his eyes widening with realization.

From the very beginning, Raze had struggled against Gizin because he was using Light magic, which was a natural enemy of Dark Magic. The opposing elements had made it extremely difficult for Raze to fight effectively against his opponent, constantly working against his natural advantages.

It also meant that his Dark Magic skills weren’t working the way they were meant to, including his Demonic Qi absorption ability. This was also because of Gizin’s unique body structure, which resisted the draining effects naturally.

Yet this wasn’t the case for Harvey. With every single attack, every clash of power and technique, Raze was absorbing part of Harvey’s considerable power into his own reserves, growing stronger as his opponent grew weaker. The Eternal Night Formation was doing the same thing on a larger scale, slowly but surely draining the ambient dark energy that fueled Harvey’s massive puppet. Liam could tell through his system interface that Harvey’s entire energy signature was getting smaller and smaller with each passing moment, while Raze’s magical reserves were growing stronger and more potent.

It was a battle of attrition, and Raze had positioned himself to win from the very first move.

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