Chapter 239
The port had become a battleground of titans. The once orderly rows of containers now lay shattered and flung like toys, twisted metal and fractured concrete forming a chaotic landscape. The howling winds rushing in from the sea had grown even fiercer, caught in the storm stirred by the ferocity of the duel between Martina and the masked man.
The guards stationed at a distance tried to keep their footing, some bracing behind what little cover remained. The salty sea air stung their eyes, and the very ground beneath them quivered like a beast in fear.
One of the knights, wide-eyed and trembling, whispered, "W-what kind of monsters are they...?"
"They’re not humans," another said, shielding his face from a wind blade that sliced past and embedded itself into the steel bulkhead behind him.
"She’s in the top ranks of the Continental List... but him... who is that masked freak?" a third muttered, struggling to keep his composure as another explosive shockwave blasted across the field, forcing everyone to crouch low.
At the heart of it all, Martina and the masked man moved like lightning, their bodies a blur to most eyes.
Each step left behind cracked ground. Each swing of the sword birthed a visible arc of compressed air. When they clashed, the impact sent out a burst of vacuum pressure, ripping through the surrounding structures.
Martina spun in midair, her blade twisting into a downward spiral. The masked man blocked with his own curved blade, absorbing the hit and pivoting on one foot to unleash a horizontal slash. Martina caught the edge, twisted her sword to trap his, and slammed her foot into his chest, sending him skidding back with a trail of torn earth.
She didn’t let him breathe.
Her style was precise—fluid like water but sharp like shattered glass. She came in again, her blade glowing with bluish energy. Her steps shifted as she changed her stance—Cloud Piercing Form—a famed technique said to ignore armor and rip through air itself.
The masked man barely managed to parry, forced to leap high and somersault backward. As he did, he raised one hand and released a wave of dark energy from his blade, shaping it into spikes of black wind that surged toward her like javelins.