Soul of Searing Steel

Joshua was once an ordinary Silver knight.

He had neither special bloodline nor powerful innate talent, and was just an ordinary vanguard commander, leading his troops to kill on the battlefield.

That did not change after the melding of souls and coming to own the System. Even if Joshua did possess martial art techniques from the pre-existence and could rely on the System to raise his own ability, he remained a mortal without powerful bloodline or innate talent.

In other words, a human that could not be more normal.

But everything changed once he acquired the Azurite, the legacy of the Chaos Guardian.

[Power of the Guardian's Legacy: All attributes gain permanent +20, all attributes gain permanent +0.01 for every Chaos monster slain (Bloodline Legacy can be selected after death, the margins of the Legacy would be decided according to individual's essence)]

[—The legacy of eras continues, never to end.]

[Splendor of Seared Evil: An additional 30% experience points are rewarded for each enemy allied to the Chaos slain. If there were initial rewards for the 

[—The blood of Chaos is the source of the Flame.]

Those special attributes were of the utmost insignificance and mediocrity. Even the Chaos Guardian who hunted Chaos Monsters for a living had a hard time killing more than a thousand Chaos monsters—the attribute increase would not even reach 20 points even when given a multiplier. In fact, according to the historical records of the Radcliffe Family, the family head who had killed the most monsters in his short life had merely slain three thousand and five hundred Aragamis—the extra attributes would not be able to change anything.

And that was the decisive difference between Joshua and the others: the numbers.

In the Moldova territories, he had slain magical monsters by the ten-thousands, virtually sweeping away the Dark Tide on every occasion it arrived. On the world of Karlis, he had killed Aragamis by the ten-thousands, even crossing the tiers to slay a Supreme-tier offspring of the Famine.

Since then, the warrior continued killing mystical dragons and hunted ferocious beasts, not to mention that he had also virtually wiped the world of Illgner clean of golems under the blessing of Father Nature, at perhaps what was His full power support.

Still, he did not absorb most of the Chaos power to convert it into attributes, keeping it instead as fuel to activate his King of Searing Soul status. But even if it was just a little portion of it, Joshua was still able to raise his attributes to a threshold that far exceeds typical demons and giant dragons.

Thus, change in quantity became change in essence. A mortal body, with millions of units in added attributes could also attain a level that escaped mortal imagination, performing feats that would render the innately gifted speechless.

Like now.

A tremendous power that that far surpasses typical Supreme and could even compare to some low-level Legendary was spreading explosively from Joshua's heart and condensing at the tip of his swordspear. It was lifeforce from the Azurite, 'aura' empowered by millionfold.

The warrior's aura Kokyu-ho was essentially of the uttermost plainness. Before he founded the Infernal Breath by himself it had no noteworthy ability or effect, and was amongst the most basic of attacks and extreme heat. But even such plain and ordinary energy that was no different from going back to basics for a typical combat specialist, it became a spiral that could destroy everything in Joshua's hands!

Two things combined at Joshua's spear tip, forming a perfect spiral cycle. The first was the scorching heat that far eclipsed the sun's surface, and which sheer existence ionizes the air and melts the earth. The second was an unparalleled impact force, capable of shattering of everything—even the most fundamental constructs of physical objects.

As energy broke matter, releasing even more energy that could perform the breaking at the next level kept multiplying, and charged out at full power!

In the entrance of a concealed cavern the southwestern plains, several survivors were staring towards the distance prudently, with Adair, Crete, and Laurel amongst them.

The youths, having received Joshua's instruction, followed their instructions from the 'master' and gathered every survivor here to hide in a safe corner and wait until the battle ended.

They were naturally incomparably confident towards the warrior's ability. However, the specter of the military god that had an imposing presence which stirs the world still made them cower in fear, and the youths were certainly ill at ease with the incredible explosions and sonic boom that resounded from the distance.

"Do you guys think that Lord Joshua would…" Crete began to mutter to himself.

But before he could finish, a girl's voice that was rather gruff cut him short. "Shut up, Crete!"

Laurel then narrowed her eyes at Crete, stopping the boy's retort with a gaze.

Despite that, her words were not from a sense of blind worship.

"I still remember the guardian's presence when he was still alive," she said with a quiet voice, as if reminiscing. "Even at the peak of his powers, he did not compare to the energy Lord Joshua showed unconsciously. This means that Joshua is a Heavenly-pinnacle force, perhaps surpassing Heavenly itself…"

In that very moment, a crimson sun was rapidly expanding in the distance and breaking just as quickly. At the panicked shouts of the youths, a gale above level-fourteen that was apocalyptic calm billowing towards them, forcing them to move the large boulder that seals the mouth of the cavern.

Nonetheless, the boy named Adair took a long look at the world outside before the cavern was completely sealed.

"Please win… My lord."

Meanwhile, Joshua stared solemnly at the military god specter whose body was mostly shattered as the warrior floated in the air.

The armor-piercing greatsword had collided with the spiral swordspear, the result being the military god's total defeat. Not only was the energy greatsword in its hands demolished into crystalline fragments of light that spread everywhere, a gap with a fifty-meter radius was punched through the sturdy dragon-scale over its body—the pulverized ribs and vertebra visible from within.

However, the warrior who was the clear victor's expression was immeasurably serious, for the result was inconsistent with what he had in mind.

On the ground, numberless soldier ghosts that were floored by the shockwave stood up, shaking off pebbles from the gaps between bone and armor. The force from the spiral swordspear was formidable and focused, but the power behind it was not explosive originally—it was its collision with the armor-breaking giant sword that instantaneously ripped up a savage wind that engulfed the wasteland.

Even most Gold champions would have to face such impact force seriously or they would be maimed. Despite that, it appeared as if these Gold-tier spirit soldiers were unscathed, and as they rose, the almost broken military god specter also recovered.

As gray-black vengeful will and killing intent assembled once more, the skeleton military god's body and armor regenerated in seconds. Its left hand remained empty, however—it appears that the greatsword could not be reconstructed so easily.

Within seconds, the blow could be described as a full-power once was healed, and not a single undead soldier spirit was destroyed.

If that continued, there was no way to win this fight.

However.

"Their core… is you."

Joshua focused his gaze at the dragon-armored general who stood behind the countless soldier ghosts and the military god specter while appearing unsurprised by Joshua's ability.

"Now I understand…" he said with a low voice. "The soldier ghosts and the military god specter is a part of you, which is why only you would show energy reaction. Killing them is meaningless—it's only by killing you, [Lord of the Armies], that these undead spirits would be destroyed!"

It was nothing extraordinary since the phylactery of liches were built upon a similar principle. The life source of these soldier ghosts must have been residing within Armand's body, which in turn gave form to the energy source that was akin to an ice ocean, with the external body of that monumental energy being that skeleton military god.

Killing those things would therefore a waste of strength, only dealing damage to Armand mattered!

The general had said, 'I am the army; the army is I!'

It seemed that it was reality and not hyperbole.

At that moment, Armand lifted his gaze too—he appeared to be smiling. He could see that Joshua had guessed part of the truth behind his secret technique following the warrior's own impressive blow.

However, the general who was leading the undead army appeared unworried. Instead, he laughed lightly, appearing as if he has been freed from some shackle or some knot in his heart.

"Young one, so you could tell," he spoke in a low and calm voice. "That's right. I'm the core of everything—hurting me would in turn weaken my grand army and the military god. But even if you killed me, I would just have to use several ghost soldiers to revive."

Then, the general's tone turned into one of curiosity and almost expectant.

"So how many times can you kill me?"

"A lot," Joshua replied. Not one for nonsense, he clenched the spear in his hands.

"Until you die."

In the next second, with a heat wave that obscured the air, Joshua charged out like a supersonic and ferocious raptor towards Armand, who was behind the ghost armies that had returned to formation as well as the military god that had completely regenerated itself.

Judging from his presence alone, one would have thought that he was besieging the troops instead of being blocked by them.

The ghost soldiers raised their blades and crossbows and incessantly attacked the charging warrior. Aware that it was meaningless to face them, Joshua did not waste much strength. If a nonchalant brandish of this spear, the razor-sharp edge of the Dragonslayer Swordspear struck out with a curved air blade, cutting their ranks in half. Terrifying gale too swept them apart, revealing a path directed straight towards Armand.

But sweeping away the ghost soldiers did not mean dodging the military god phantom too. The towering skeleton giant had quietly swung out the giant hammer in his hand, the blow that was filled with icy and dense vengeful spirit striking out early on.

However, those spirits that would have frozen even the most courageous of warriors did not even delay Joshua by the slightest, and conversely allowed him to find an opening. With a single touch of the spear tip on the wrist that held the hammer, the energy giant hammer instantly fell to the ground, and the skeleton god thus lost its ability to ambush Joshua henceforth. 

At full power, was Joshua a force that could be blocked by some simple ghost soldiers and military god phantom? At first, he had only planned to destroy the troublesome giant body of energy before clearing out the skeleton army, so that he did not have to pick them off one-by-one when they scattered, leaderless after he killed Armand.

And so, in the blink of an eye, the warrior who was out in full-force arrived in front of the dragon-armor general and directly stabbed out with his spear.

In spite of breaking past the speed of sound by tenfold, even if it was a swordspear that could easily perforate mountains, it was easily parried by the longsword in Armand's hand.

"You seem to think you've got me."

At present, the military god phantom had dimmed in no time at all while the countless ghost soldiers stopped their movements. Completely different from his weakened state before, Armand was now displaying ability that stood shoulder-to-shoulder against Joshua.

"But you still don't understand…" he said softly. "I'm them; they're me—be it life or power."

"Power of armies, return to me."

Chanting a curse as if a mantra, Armand moved his arms and shoved off the warrior in front of him as the two fought again.

His longsword was not a plain sword. The sharp body of the blade that appeared plain curved slightly, more appropriate for slashing instead of thrusting. Dim but dangerous flowing light sparkled over its body in an otherworldly aesthetic—even Joshua had to admit that it was an exquisite piece of art.

But however exquisite it was, it was not beautiful when it was swung towards your own brain.

Red light could be seen from the slits of Armand's helmet as the general strode one pace forward and displayed stunning combat skills. The plain longsword danced like a shifting shade of light, tearing through the air as its shockwaves billowed towards Joshua as if a hurricane. The real attack was hidden within the gale too, awaiting the moment it would tear its enemy's body apart.

It was a plain sword skill born from the battlefield, each move pointed towards vitals while each stroke never leaves the chest and neck.

Joshua, however, did not lose out. Holding his spear with one hand, he whirled it as if it was an unbreakable barrier, parrying Armand's lightning slashes precisely. Like a blade, his left hand then shot an air strike towards Armand.

"Not bad," the warrior said, the corner of his lips curling up. "And I've thought you're only as good as you were at the beginning. Luckily you aren't—otherwise it'll be boring!"

Layers of fire stars sparked out as their weapons clashed head-on. Streaks of vacuum fissure were torn through the air, while the atmosphere that conducts sound was contorted by the shockwaves of their power, creating a gray-red ruthless air current that could only be seen from outside the battle.

It was the most dangerous of armed melees. Within the fraction of a second, a dozen wounds had appeared over Joshua's chest and neck, with his jugular already severed, but luckily his aura had blocked the warrior's blood from flowing out. Armand too had more than ten cavities over his body—the doing of the Dragonslayer Swordspear.

"The very gist of the [Lord of the Armies] was to share life and power through contract with an army. In life, I was able to reach the threshold of 'power link', but after I revived, I could reach the threshold of 'life link' thanks to the special aspects of heroic spirits."

Gripping his sword with both hands to fend off a swipe from Joshua's spear tip that tore through air, the dragon-armored general was pushed back about ten meters by the incredible power, barely holding out. The warrior, however, was already there, once more, striking with his spear close to his body.

In a battle of such hurried rhythm, there was no time for Joshua to unleash his anti-gravity thrust or spiral spear that were more than fifty-times the speed of sound. On the other hand, neither the thinned military god specter or the multitudinous ghost soldiers ambushed the warrior with the giant hammer or crossbow bolts.

Even so, Armand never once rested his mouth in the midst of such a strenuous and threatening fight. He would move sideways, evade a drive from the spear, turn and swing out his sword before talking again.

"However, if we could take the holy tomb as we planned, we could return to life through the Grand Commander's ritual and completely recover the powers we had in life. When that time comes, with complete physicality and a higher tier, I would be even more powerful than when I had been alive."

Spear tip quivered, while a strong force struck away the sharp edge in the opponent's hands.

The two had traded over a hundred blows, and through it all Joshua had listened to Armand's intermittent speech while he fought.

And the more he heard it, the more things did not seem right.

Through Armand's blabber, the warrior had actually learned new and vital information—such as the plan to take the holy tomb, the resurrection ritual, the approximate identity of the seven ghost commanders as well as the possibility of recovering all abilities they had in life.

Could it be that this was not his opponent's full strength?

And why would he want to reveal so many secrets?

Not one to think too much, the warrior had found an opportunity by focusing in the combat and analyzing it after the dragging engagement.

Reaching out with his left palm as a shield and temporarily blocking Armand's longsword, Joshua followed up with a flashing spear strike that crisply penetrated Armand's skull and helmet, dousing the scarlet soulfire that burned within the general's eye sockets.

Nevertheless, it was not that useful. In the fraction of a second, as several ghost soldiers nearby turned into ash, and the dragon-armored general revived once more and slashed at Joshua like lightning.

The warrior seemed to expect it from the start. Dodging away, he stabbed through Armand's skull once more.

An outcome finally came after hundreds of back-and-forth skirmish turns.

"I've seen through all your moves, undead spirit," Joshua said in a low voice as he withdrew his spear. "If that's all you have, expect external slumber."