Chapter 154: Chapter 152 — The Clouds That Never Rest

Several white clouds drifted freely through the sky...

And while the cold wind swept across the quiet heights...

A loud sound exploded above one of the clouds.

A girl with incredibly fast wings shot forward—

Like an unstoppable hawk.

Her massive wings bent backward,

Then launched her like a projectile...

Toward one of the smaller clouds hundreds of meters away.

A bald lord stood there smiling,

Shouting as he prepared to receive the attack.

He raised both hands,

Bracing himself against the violent charge.

BOOOOOOOOM...

The explosion thundered loudly.

The small cloud trembled violently,

Its edges scattering apart for a few moments.

A loud laugh echoed from afar.

Above another cloud,

A lord with black hair and green eyes sat watching the battle.

The bald lord was blown backward.

The winged girl landed with a smile.

"Are you trying to die?"

she whispered.

The bald lord charged again,

Stopping beside her.

"I still can’t stop your crashing assault,"

the bald lord muttered angrily.

"I need more training."

"Why don’t you try becoming stronger, Reihon?"

the Lord of Black Lightning whispered.

"You’re already one of the strongest participants in the tournament."

"One of them."

Reihon of the Killer Eyes snarled irritably.

He sighed,

Then moved and sat beside the Lord of Black Lightning.

"Didn’t you watch yesterday’s matches?"

Reihon muttered.

"How do those idiots possess abilities like that?"

The Lord of Black Lightning smiled lightly.

Then he lifted his gaze toward the sky.

"You mean the Lord of the Ivory Mask?"

he asked.

Reihon clenched his teeth.

"That bastard..."

he whispered.

"At first I thought he was just another lord with a few strange tricks."

"But every match..."

"He reveals something new."

"Wind."

"Blades."

"A terrifying control style."

"Ancient weapons."

"And then suddenly..."

His eyes shifted toward the distant clouds.

"A Unique Armor?"

The winged girl laughed softly,

Then sat beside them.

"The strangest thing..."

she said while leaning forward slightly,

"...is that he doesn’t belong to any major sect."

"So how does he possess abilities like that?"

Silence lingered for a few moments.

Then—

The Lord of Black Lightning laughed.

"That’s because you’re only looking at the surface."

he said calmly.

The winged girl narrowed her eyes.

As for Reihon—

He immediately turned toward him.

"What do you mean?"

he asked.

The Lord of Black Lightning smiled.

Then extended his hand,

Catching a small cloud drifting nearby.

He crushed it slowly between his fingers.

"Do you know the most terrifying thing about that man?"

he whispered.

"That even now..."

He slowly raised his eyes.

"...he still hasn’t used his true style yet."

Silence fell.

Even the wind itself...

Seemed to stop for a moment.

"What?"

the winged girl whispered.

Meanwhile Reihon frowned.

"Stop talking nonsense."

he scoffed.

"He fought seriously."

The Lord of Black Lightning laughed again.

Then pointed downward.

Far below the clouds—

The City of Sunset looked like a tiny speck.

"Yes, he fought seriously in every battle."

he said calmly.

"But all of them were reactions."

"He doesn’t enter battle with a killing plan."

"He enters to understand."

"Then he builds a counter-style."

"That type of fighter..."

"Always keeps something hidden for emergencies."

The winged girl’s eyes widened slightly.

Reihon remained silent.

Then finally, the Lord of Black Lightning added:

"And when a man like that..."

"Starts fighting with the genuine intent to kill..."

For the first time, his smile disappeared.

"Only then..."

"Will the real tournament begin."

.

.

The Lord of Ice stood inside the arena...

Cold air gradually spread outward.

Even the green grass beneath his feet...

Began freezing slowly.

Across from him—

The Lord of Whispering Winds stepped forward calmly.

His long robe swayed lightly.

But the strange thing...

Was that the winds around him were eerily still.

As though waiting for a command.

From the stands,

My eyes watched silently.

"A bad matchup."

I whispered inwardly.

"Ice against wind."

"Both sides possess overwhelming control over the battlefield."

Then—

The starting bell thundered.

BOOOOOOOOM...

In the very next instant—

The Lord of Ice raised his hand.

Dozens of icy circles exploded across the ground.

From within them—

Sharp ice pillars burst upward.

But—

SWOOOOOOOSH...

The wind moved.

Gently.

Almost invisibly.

Suddenly—

The ice pillars curved away.

Colliding into each other.

Shattering apart.

"Hah?"

I whispered in surprise.

The Wind Lord hadn’t moved from his spot at all.

Only—

The wind around him was redirecting everything.

Below—

The Lord of Ice narrowed his eyes.

Then stretched out both hands.

BOOOOOSH...

The entire arena froze solid.

Gigantic icy hands rose from the ground—

Then—

Rushed toward the Wind Lord.

This time...

He moved.

He merely lifted a finger.

Suddenly—

A colossal tornado exploded outward.

It swallowed the icy hands whole—

Then shredded them apart in the air.

Snow scattered in every direction.

But—

The Lord of Ice smiled.

"Now."

he whispered.

Suddenly—

Every snowflake scattered through the air...

Froze again.

Then transformed into thousands of tiny ice needles.

They shot from every direction toward the Wind Lord.

This time—

The Wind Lord’s expression changed slightly.

He raised both hands.

BOOOOOOOOSH...

Multiple cyclones erupted around him.

Most of the ice needles were deflected.

But not all.

SWOOOSH...

A shallow cut appeared across his cheek.

From the stands—

I smiled.

"The first injury."

I whispered.

Inside the arena—

The Wind Lord wiped the blood from his cheek.

He stared at it for a moment.

Then—

Smiled.

And for the first time since the battle began—

The wind truly moved.

BOOOOOOOOOOM...

The entire arena shook violently.

Even the air itself...

Began screaming.

Meanwhile, the Lord of Ice planted his feet firmly.

"Finally."

he whispered.

The next instant—

The Wind Lord vanished inside the tornado.

Then—

SWOOOOOOOSH...

He appeared directly behind the Lord of Ice.

A razor-sharp wind strike surged toward his neck.

But—

BOOOOSH...

The air itself froze.

An instant ice wall formed—

Stopping the strike.

The Lord of Ice leaped backward immediately.

Then extended both hands.

Suddenly—

The frozen ground trembled.

And from beneath the arena—

A gigantic ice giant rose upward.

Larger than anything he had used before.

Its blue eyes ignited.

And within its hand—

Was a colossal ice axe.

"The Ancient Spirit of Ice..."

one of the lords in the audience whispered in shock.

Meanwhile—

The Wind Lord raised his head toward the giant.

Then—

Laughed softly.

"So you want a real battle."

he whispered.

He raised his hand toward the sky.

Only then—

Did the clouds above the arena begin spinning.

Massive circles.

Multiple layers.

Then—

The winds descended.

Tornadoes surrounded the ice giant from every direction.

Its body began cracking apart.

But the giant—

Swung its axe downward.

BOOOOOOOOOOM...

One of the tornadoes split cleanly in half.

The arena shook violently.

Snow and wind—

Consumed the entire battlefield.

Meanwhile—

I watched silently.

And my mind focused on only one thing.

"If I faced either one of them..."

I whispered inwardly.

"A single mistake..."

"...would mean death."

"So this..."

I whispered quietly.

"...is what it means to be a lord who truly controls the wind."

I narrowed my eyes.

The battle continued—

An endless clash.

The wind screamed.

The ice expanded.

Every strike from either side—

Changed the shape of the arena completely.

Then—

The balance slowly began tilting toward the Lord of Ice.

The raging wind was violent and overwhelming...

But the ice merged with it perfectly.

And began spreading.

Every tornado released by the Wind Lord—

Gradually transformed into a blizzard.

Even the air itself...

Became terrifyingly cold.

Above the arena—

Ice crystals began forming within the cyclones.

Meanwhile—

The ice giant advanced heavily,

Swinging its axe through the tornadoes,

Destroying them one after another.

"Bad."

I whispered inwardly.

"The ice is beginning to dominate the environment."

Inside the arena—

The first bead of sweat appeared on the Wind Lord’s face.

Then—

He raised his hand.

Suddenly—

Dozens of wooden branches spread throughout the arena.

They burst from the ground.

From the walls.

Even from inside the ice itself.

The ice gradually diminished.

Then suddenly—

The branches attacked the Lord of Ice and his giant.

SWOOOSH...

The branches surged like serpents.

Wrapping around the ice giant’s leg.

Then its arm.

Then its entire body.

"Hah?"

I whispered in surprise.

The branches did not freeze easily.

Instead—

They gradually absorbed the cold.

Below—

The Lord of Ice’s eyes widened slightly.

Meanwhile the Wind Lord slowly lowered his hand.

"Wind is not my only weapon."

he said calmly.

Suddenly—

The branches exploded with growth.

The arena transformed into a half-frozen forest.

But the strange thing...

Was that the trees themselves...

Moved together with the wind.

Every branch flowed with terrifying smoothness,

As though it were part of the tornado itself.

Hundreds of branches surged toward the ice giant.

They wrapped around it completely.

Then—

BOOOOOOOOM...

Dragged it violently to the ground.

The arena trembled.

And in the next instant—

The roots surged toward the Lord of Ice himself.

He leaped backward quickly.

Freezing the ground ahead of him.

But the roots—

Kept emerging.

From beneath the ice.

From inside the pillars.

Even from the frozen air itself.

"He’s using the wind to spread seeds."

I whispered.

"Then forcing the plants to bloom inside the enemy’s territory."

Inside the arena—

The Lord of Ice gradually became trapped.

Every time he froze something—

More branches grew.

Even more than before.

Meanwhile the Wind Lord stood calmly within the storm.

His robe fluttered lightly.

His eyes watching his opponent with patient lethality.

Then—

He raised two fingers.

Suddenly—

Every branch across the arena...

Charged toward the Lord of Ice all at once.