Dustin let out a low grunt as his mystical pure energy burst forth, shattering the frost encasing his arm. Using the momentum, he glided forward several yards to create a distance between himself and Lysander. His sword-wielding arm trembled slightly, and his complexion grew even paler.
Lysander’s evasion techniques and clone arts were simply too swift and unpredictable. There was no way to guard against them all.
“You’ve got quick reflexes,” Lysander commented with a sneer, toying with the crystalline sword in his hand.
“But how many times can you dodge? As long as the water element is inexhaustible within this immortal palace, my body is indestructible. No matter how sharp your sword is, what can you do to me?”
Resolve flashed in his eyes, and he took the initiative to attack again. His sword light flared violently, as if he were throwing himself into a life-or-death duel.
His strikes were relentless, tearing apart the three water dragons once more and forcing Lysander to constantly use water-based escape techniques to retreat.
After another brutal exchange, Dustin’s sword momentum seemed to pause slightly due to exhaustion. His protective sword aura also fluctuated, exposing a small gap at his left ribs.
This opening vanished in an instant. But for an expert of Lysander’s caliber, that brief instant was more than enough.
“Got you now,” he said, a predatory gleam flashing in his eyes. He wouldn’t let this perfect opening slip away.
As if to prove his point, the wounds Dustin had suffered from the water dragon and ice spear began to react. The lingering cold water energy stirred like a living thing, burrowing into his body, trying to freeze his vital energy and corrode his circulatory pathways.
Dustin frowned, his heart sinking. He’d tried attacking multiple times and even recklessly trading blows to strike Lysander’s true form with his sword aura.
But every time, the part of Lysander’s body that was struck would instantly dissolve into water and reform elsewhere moments later, completely unharmed.
Lysander’s near-immortal form, combined with his fluid water-element techniques, made him an opponent that was almost impossible to pin down.
If this fight dragged on, Dustin knew defeat was inevitable. He had to change tactics, since brute force wouldn’t work, and he couldn’t lock onto Lysander’s true body. But there was only one choice left.
His form rippled like disturbed water, and he instantly reappeared at Dustin’s left side. The crystalline longsword in his hand shot forward, like a viper lunging from its den straight for the unprotected opening at Dustin’s exposed left rib.
Lysander had poured 80% of his strength into this single, decisive thrust, aiming to end the fight in one blow. He could already envision the wonderful scene of his longsword piercing through Dustin’s body, the cold energy freezing him into an ice sculpture.
But just as the crystalline longsword was about to touch Dustin’s robes, his exhausted, frozen gaze suddenly deepened, as cold and infinite as a star-filled sky.
He completely ignored the lethal strike aimed at his ribs. Instead, his left hand, which had been lying, moved at lightning speed. He made a sword finger and struck Lysander’s forehead with pinpoint accuracy.
It wasn’t a sharp sword aura that gathered at his fingertips, but countless incredibly intricate mystical runes shimmering with pale golden light, instantly emerging and spinning.
“Mystical Pure Seal-Soul Shackle!”
Dustin’s low shout rumbled like thunder in Lysander’s consciousness.
“What? He deliberately exposed that opening?” Lysander’s eyes widened in shock. Every instinct screamed of danger. He tried to retreat, but it was already too late.
Dustin’s finger seemed to disregard the very concept of space, landing with unerring precision squarely on the center of his forehead.
A vast, ancient power, carrying a supreme sealing intent, flooded like a breached dam from Dustin’s fingertip into Lysander’s consciousness. Countless pale golden runes came alive like chains, instantly coiling around the origin of his soul and binding it tightly.
Lysander’s vision went dark. The water elemental power that had been circulating freely throughout his body instantly lost control, as if its source had been severed.
His sword, thrusting toward Dustin, abruptly halted when it was only an inch from its target. The light on his crystalline longsword rapidly dimmed and dissipated.
He tried to transform into water and escape, but discovered his soul was locked. Even his connection to the external water element was forcibly cut off.
“No… That’s impossible!”
For the first time, Lysander’s face showed extreme horror. He felt as though he were turning into a lifeless statue. All his power and perception were being ruthlessly stripped away and sealed by those pale golden runes.
After using that technique, Dustin’s body swayed violently as well. His complexion turned ghastly pale, and every ounce of energy was nearly spent. He nearly crumpled to the ground.
The Mystical Pure Seal technique specifically targeted the root of one’s soul. It drained Dustin of his most fundamental mental energy and core essence, far more than any move he had used before.
Still, he forced himself to stay on his feet and coldly stared at Lysander before him. The latter’s body had frozen mid-motion, his face twisted in terror and stubborn defiance.
An intricate web of pale golden runes began emerging on the surface of Lysander’s body. These runes branded themselves like seals, embedding deeply into his flesh and even his soul.
The ethereal water mist surrounding his body rapidly dissipated. Even the crystalline longsword completely disintegrated, and his attempt to transform back into flowing water was forcibly suppressed by the runes
Finally, he lost all movement and stood rigid, like an exquisite puppet. Only those eyes gradually losing their luster still retained traces of utter disbelief.
The palace fell into deathly silence again. The wine pool stopped churning, and the biting cold suddenly receded. The men and women who had been indulging in pleasures had long since collapsed to the ground in fear, trembling violently.
Valindra gasped, covering her mouth with her hand. A flicker of tension crossed Malthor’s face that hadn’t changed in ten thousand years. For the first time, his eyes showed extreme seriousness.
He couldn’t believe Dustin had consecutively defeated Talmor and Lysander. Yet, Dustin still possessed such a strange and formidable sealing technique.
He wondered how many more trump cards Dustin had up his sleeve. Dustin leaned on his long sword, breathing heavily. Sweat mixed with blood slid down from his temples.
He raised his head, his gaze sweeping over the sealed Lysander and locked directly onto Malthor and Valindra on the high platform, where killing intent had practically solidified into physical form.
“Who’s next?” he rasped, yet every word radiated an unshakable resolve.
