The Paladin in the Abyss

The most relaxed person in the whole arena was, of course, Lancelot. The Sword Shadows of the Human Knight were like dried leaves swept up by a strong wind; many werewolves had stopped breathing even before hitting the floor, not to mention striking him.

However, these red-eyed werewolves, as if bewitched, kept swarming towards Lancelot. Perhaps the manipulator behind them wanted to wear out the Human Knight's stamina with sheer numbers, but with Lancelot's current strength, this intensity of battle could last an entire day without depleting his True Qi.

Bodies quickly piled up around Lancelot, gradually forming a low wall built of flesh and blood. Suddenly, the Human Knight sharply looked up, his gaze piercing through the phantasmal ceiling to a new figure that had appeared beside the eaves.

The werewolves' attack on Lancelot ceased, driven by an unspoken command, they turned to assault the Human Knight's comrades instead.

Lancelot confronted the figure on the rooftop from a distance, his Spirit Perception told him that this new Black Armor Knight was the real threat tonight, even more intimidating than the Serpent Demon Sonam when calm.

But having just massacred his enemies, the Human Knight was at the peak of his momentum; he lifted his sword towards the figure, issuing a precise invitation.

The opponent did not ignore Lancelot's gesture. He too pointed his Great Sword at Lancelot, but unlike the Human Knight, this was not merely a symbolic action.

In that moment, Lancelot felt as if he were before a court, facing a group of judges and prosecutors made of pure evil, loudly proclaiming Lancelot's guilt — the crime being the justice and goodness hidden within the Human Knight's heart.

The Ice Heart Technique's mental method automatically engaged, and the illusion swiftly vanished from his sight, but Lancelot distinctly felt a mysterious connection being established between himself and the Black Armor Knight. In their ensuing battle, some pure evil would empower his opponent.

Accompanied by a leaping motion, the Black Armor Knight initiated the battle with a fierce downward strike. Lancelot didn't dodge or evade, but met the attack with his sword from above.

A loud clash of metal resounded; aside from his unutilized Innate True Qi, Lancelot held nothing back in this strike. However, to his surprise, his opponent's strength was slightly superior, and instead of repelling the attack, he was forced to stagger backward.

This was the first exchange in their tip-to-tip confrontation, and the side that was suppressed inevitably faced great disadvantages. But Lancelot was no longer the knight who once followed Albert; his agility and flexibility had far surpassed what they once were.

The Knight's upper body bent completely backward, dodging the blade that nearly skimmed his chest. At the same time, he kicked upwards fiercely; his left foot striking the Black Armor Knight's forearm that held the sword, while his right foot brutally kicked his opponent's abdomen.

The force of Lancelot's kick was comparable to Bruto's full-powered blow, sending the opponent stumbling backwards, while he himself used this opportunity to roll back onto his feet.

The Black Armor Knight merely retreated three steps before stabilizing his stance. Lancelot's kick, powerful enough to shatter rocks, hadn't inflicted much damage, but it had fortunately allowed him to escape the disadvantage, reestablishing equal grounds for the duel.

Lancelot was well aware that this was the most formidable enemy he had ever faced, but this realization only ignited his fighting spirit because his opponent was neither a Demon weighing several times more than him nor a monster with multiple arms and tentacles.

The opponent, like him, was also a human, also a knight.

Lancelot urgently wanted to know who was stronger between him and his adversary, and he had an intuition that the Black Armor Knight was just as interested in the answer to this question.

The two knights had confronted each other for only a moment before they immediately started clashing their weapons together again. The clanging of metal rang out ceaselessly, and amidst the fierce battle, the two seemed like some kind of marvelous music box, playing a symphony filled with destructive power in astonishing synchrony.

But if there was even a slight mistake on either side, this symphony would not consist solely of the sounds of metal striking.

Lancelot had already employed every trick in his arsenal, but he still couldn't gain the slightest advantage. His opponent's swordsmanship was not inferior to his in any way, and he possessed supernatural powers as well. The Great Sword of the Black Armor Knight emitted a filthy black light, matching the Frostslash enhanced by the Qingyuan Sword Technique in a fiercely equal battle.

With a clang, their weapons collided again, and this time the blades didn't immediately separate but instead tangled tightly, testing the strength of each warrior's owner.

The adversary wore a black giant helmet with a narrow eye slit, through which Lancelot saw a pair of eyes glowing red. He himself wasn't wearing a helmet because it would obstruct his vision, and for him at this moment, dodging was the most efficient form of defense.

However, in a situation where neither side gave ground, trying to overpower the opponent, a helmet could also be used as a weapon.

Lancelot and his opponent realized this at the same time. The Black Armor Knight's head slightly reclined, and Lancelot knew that in the next second, the adversary's helmet would smash into his nose. In response, he gathered a small portion of True Qi in the sole of his right foot and stomped down heavily as his opponent's helmet harshly approached his face.

With Lancelot as the center, the ground within ten feet around violently shook as if struck like a drumhead. He leaned back, dodging the headbutt that nearly hit his face, while the opponent staggered due to the sudden tremor, both retreating several steps and returning to a standoff.

Lancelot was breathing heavily, the situation just then had been extremely perilous—it definitely wouldn't have worked to simply take the headbutt, but if he leaned back to dodge, it would surely loosen his grip on the sword. In a contest of power like this, the one who was overpowered would end up in an extremely disadvantageous position, and being forced to the ground could mean real danger.

Fortunately, using the Earthquake Technique, he successfully resolved the crisis. Before leaving for Oasis Fort, he had mastered this Earth System divine skill but had never experimented with how to integrate it into his usual combat style; this impromptu application proved to be extraordinarily effective.

The temporarily separated duo fixed their gaze on each other, but the imminent battle was interrupted. Suddenly, the room's door was violently pushed open, and the innkeeper, who should have ensured the guests' safety, appeared followed by a large number of Meizeros Demons, the ruthless enforcers of Abyssal City. Explore new worlds at My Virtual Library Empire

"Nobody move!"

The Meizeros Demons shouted in the coarse language of the abyss, and Lancelot knew this battle had now ended.