Tower of Heaven

Not waiting for Gloria to start the battle, Atlas charged. This was a good chance for him. He could test his growth while also getting rid of someone who knew his identity and held hostility towards him.

Two chain-sickles flew through the air.

[Twin Serpents' Dance]

They dashed like true serpents on the path to becoming dragons. Their paths intertwined and fell apart in such a way that made them difficult to track, but Gloria wasn't worried.

Bang! Bang!

The first hit her arm and bounced off. The second hooked her leg and tried to offset her balance, but her metal prosthetic dug into the ground and refused to move.

'So there is a benefit.' Atlas thought to himself as he pulled the sickles back.

'But it is not an absolute defense.'

[Focused Hellstorm]

Voom!

A blaze erupted around Atlas. The original [Hellstorm] technique was created to do wide area damage with intense flames, but when those same flames were compressed…

It was almost like the concept of superheat. No, it was the concept of superheat. The concept of everburn was essentially the dream of an Undying Flame. Its nature made its fire compatible with the techniques of any other concept of fire.

It boosted their damage, but it also provided drawbacks. After all, fire immunity wasn't included in its abilities. The user would be equally damaged if they didn't find a way to counter the burns.

In the current moment, Atlas chose to condense the flames and target them so that they wouldn't get anywhere near him. They gathered in the sickles that flew according to his commands and became weapons made to slash through anything.

[Roaring Dragon, Fading Serpent]

Though they had never been pulled back, the chain sickles maintained their momentum and attacked once more. Atlas used his right hand to create a direct movement. The chain sickle attached to it was very obvious in its desire to kill.

However, his left hand created a delicate motion in the other chain. It moved slowly, hidden within the flames and the presence of the other sickle.

When they approached, Gloria, confident in her artifacts, once again raised her arm to block.

However, she wouldn't be able to do that anymore.

Shing!

A burning hot sickle cut into her arm. She didn't feel any pain, but her eyes suddenly widened. A golden qi was emitted as she raised a defense, but even that was too late.

The second strike was already upon her, approaching from a blindspot like a trained assassin.

Bang!

It clashed into her side. The blade did not pierce her, but the heat melted into some of the metal and the impact forced her into the air, stopping her from counterattacking.

Atlas jumped up to join her.

[Rippling Palm Strike]

His palm struck her stomach. The technique was originally meant to target the vital organs, but in this case, it was instead disrupting the qi keeping the artifact functioning.

The force pushed Gloria back into the ground. She landed with a loud and dull sound that would have broken anyone else's bones, and as she stood up…

[Three Layered Shockwave]

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Three consecutive strikes turned her body into a ragdoll in the air once more.

Gloria gritted her teeth with rage in her eyes. She felt only some of the pain from the continuous impacts, but the fact that she was being toyed with did not please her.

She was supposed to be a Sky Sage! No, she was supposed to be even better than an ordinary Sky Sage due to all of her improvements.

How was an Earth Sage treating her like she was nothing?

"Tch!"

She knew she couldn't reorient herself in time to avoid the incoming chain sickles.

'But I can still take his attacks.'

The artifacts that had become her body parts were reinforced by many expensive metals and materials. They wouldn't break down just because they'd been attacked or melted.

Bang!

Once again, flaming chain sickles crashed into her body and sent her slamming into a nearby tree.

However, as it struck, she sent qi into her legs. Her prosthetics changed and sharpened, becoming blades of their own.

These artifacts wouldn't have been nearly as valuable if given to someone else, but they were made specifically for Gloria. They were made while keeping the fact that she practiced the Dao of Metal in mind.

Every piece of her body was a weapon she could manipulate to her will.

Rather than crashing into the tree and breaking her remaining bones, her legs pierced into its surface and cracked it apart. Her momentum was slowed to a halt and she finally regained control over her body.

Naturally, Atlas was still attacking, but that wasn't going to stop her. Experience more content on m v|l e'm,p| y- r

Gloria leapt off of the tree and charged. She raised her arms, bringing her qi into the real world as she struck.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Metal spikes rose from the earth and charged at Atlas. At the same time, they created a varied environment through which the chain sickles couldn't easily traverse.

Atlas stepped back and jumped into the air to gain a better vantage point, but that also left him open.

[Great Spear]

Gloria pulled her arm back. The metals around her gathered and turned into a ten-foot pole with a massive blade at the end. She ran several more steps and launched it into the air with her momentum, catching Atlas before he could strike.

Bang!

The spear made contact. He was forced to block with the chain sickles and offset the impact as much as possible.

Atlas flew through the air and landed on a tree. He wanted to take a second and observe his opponent, but she wasn't willing to give him the chance.

[Shrapnel Charge]

Bang!

The spikes near Gloria shattered into tens and hundreds of pieces. The small pieces of metal hurled at Atlas like shooting stars, each one sharp and jagged enough to tear through his skin.

'She is doing too much.'

It looked like an attack that could threaten him, but countering it was quite easy. There wasn't any hidden qi inside the technique, and though it was definitely great…

'She is not skilled enough to use it properly.'

Any other Sky Sage might have been able to accomplish what she was trying to do, but she was not an ordinary Sky Sage.

She was someone who forced herself to the Sky Sage Realm.

'In other words, her qi is at that level and much stronger than mine, but she falls short in every other department.'

Perhaps if she spent some time training, things would have been different, but at that point what was the purpose of forcefully raising her cultivation?

Atlas was happy with what he'd seen out of himself thus far. The training he did definitely made his chain sickles into worthy weapons. They couldn't just be smacked away like playthings anymore. Whether the flames of everburn were present or not, they were deadly threats.

'Perhaps I should take a moment to see where my flame comprehension lies.'

Atlas glanced to the side as he dodged the shrapnel.

'Or…I could end things quickly.'

He was having some trouble with his battle, but the situation wasn't the same everywhere. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Artemia finishing off the last two Earth Sages.

The most important thing; Atlas had already understood it.

Now that he was familiar with his weapons and his body…

'...the memories of my past life can finally be used to their fullest.'

The Atlas that had come out into the world this time was completely different from the one that first entered.

This conflict had become nothing more than a way for him to prove it.