Chapter 34: War Mode.

Atlas turned back, glancing across the area to see where Aquila was, but he failed to locate him. Then he suddenly lifted his head up in the air as he noticed that Aquila was standing on top of the colossal metal gate, his arrow positioned at Atlas’s head.

Emil was left stiffened; he couldn’t even see anything with his eyes. He was only able to spot both of them right now when Aquila was aiming at Atlas from the top, and Atlas was staring straight into his eyes. To him it felt as if it wasn’t meant for him to see at all.

’What the hell!! I know that they’re strong, but this much!? That’s so absurd!!’ He exclaimed inwardly.

Both Atlas and Aquila had gone extremely motionless, but their gazes remained fixed on each other. The air around them seemed to grow heavier as an invisible pressure filled the surroundings.

His vision intensified as he narrowed his eyes at Aquila and Atlas. He noticed that the strips on their bodies had slowly started to ignite with golden mana just like they did during their first confrontation.

The diamonds they carried had begun to shine even brighter than usual; faint traces of mana waves covered their weapons, which coated them completely with golden mana.

A question lingered in his mind after seeing this. ’I never understood what that thing even is. It surely looks extremely powerful... but what even is that?’

But out of nowhere, a translucent screen appeared in front of his vision, which reflected bright entries stretched across its surface.

═══════════════════

[VALTHORIAN WAR MODE]

═══════════════════

[Mode Name]

└ GOLDEN WAR ASCENSION

[Classification]

└ Valthorian Racial Combat Mode

───────────────────

[Description]

A combat state in which a Valthorian awakens

the dormant battle power within their body.

Upon activation, the black battle strips

covering the warrior’s body ignited with

Golden Mana Fire.

The Valthorian Diamond enters an awakened

state, dramatically increasing the user’s

mana output and physical capabilities.

This mode represents the true battle nature.

of the Valthorian race.

───────────────────

[EFFECTS]

[Overall Tier]

└ +1 Tier

[Mana Output]

└ Greatly Increased

[Mana Reinforcement]

└ Greatly Increased

[Battle Instinct]

└ Enhanced

[Recovery]

└ Enhanced

───────────────────

[VALTHORIAN DIAMOND]

└ State: AWAKENED

The Diamond acts as the central regulator.

of Golden War Ascension. The Diamond produces greater amounts of Golden Mana.

───────────────────

[GOLDEN STRIPS]

└ State: IGNITED

The user’s battle strips become conductors for

Golden Mana, allowing mana to flow throughout

the entire body at extreme speeds.

───────────────────

[CURRENT USER]

└ Atlas: First Division Captain

└ Aquila: Second Division Captain

═══════════════════

Emil read through the entries thoroughly, which left him completely stunned because he didn’t expect such buffs from this form. ’What do you mean by that?! In this state they’ll level up a whole tier? Is this some kind of joke, huh?’ Multiple questions appeared in his mind which made him forget that he was in the middle of a duel.

A huge gust of wind brushed past him; an enormous amount of sand travelled alongside it, which covered his body from top to bottom. His clothes were now completely dirty, his hair was filled with dirt, and unfortunately some of it had gone inside his mouth.

He instantly gagged and spat onto the ground, desperately trying to get the sand out of his mouth. He wiped his tongue with his collar until he finally got rid of the gritty taste, then brushed the remaining sand from his hair and clothes.

His gaze directed towards both of them as he noticed that Aquila was overpowering Atlas way too easily. Atlas was trying his best to reach near Aquila, but he was failing again and again. Also, he was bleeding from multiple spots, but all those injuries didn’t stop him from trying his best. Although he managed to cut most of the arrows into several pieces, there were simply too many for him to stop them all. Some slipped past his blade and struck him, leaving several wounds across his body.

’If this keeps on going at this pace, Atlas will lose miserably.’ Emil said to himself as he scanned the entire battle.

But then, unexpectedly, Atlas dropped onto his knees. His axe remained firmly in his grip, supporting his massive body and keeping him from collapsing completely. His head hung toward the ground as heavy pants escaped through his mouth, reflecting just how exhausted he was.

Sweat covered his body, but the scorching heat of the desert sun caused it to evaporate into thin wisps of steam.

Then, without warning, his mana began to rise. Golden mana surged through his body, covering him entirely. The skin across his massive frame suddenly tightened, becoming denser and sturdier. It almost looked as if his body was rebuilding itself from within.

The wounds covering his body slowly began to close. Blood dried and evaporated because of the intense heat, leaving scars where the wounds were before. Yet Atlas’s skin looked different now. His skin looked tougher and denser than before.

Emil’s eyes widened; his jaw dropped because he knew that Atlas had grown stronger. "This duel was to make them grow strong... but he? He looks completely different right now." Emil muttered under his breath.

Atlas lifted himself up and instantly shot forward. While running, he crossed his knees deeply and then jumped so high that he reached the eye level of Aquila.

Aquila didn’t stagger, nor did he act confused. He had already directed his arrow at Atlas and was about to shoot it. The arrows left his bow, one after another.

A whole barrage came at him moments later. Several arrows struck Atlas directly, yet they failed to leave even a dent on his newly hardened skin.

Atlas didn’t waste a second. He lunged forward, seized Aquila by the neck, and slammed him onto the ground. Before Aquila could recover, Atlas leapt onto his stomach and raised his massive axe. With a brutal swing, the blade came crashing down, tearing deeply across Aquila’s abdomen.

Blood shot out through his abdomen; it splashed all over the sand, some of it covered his own body, and the remaining painted Atlas’s face with crimson colour.