ShadowBound: The Need For Power-Chapter 518: Past Opponents (2)
The air quaked—then cracked—when the two Blood Demons lunged at once. Their movements were nothing short of monstrous; to the untrained eye, they were streaks of crimson blurs tearing through the air. Their claws shimmered like blades, and from every sweep of their arms, droplets of corrupted blood flew like molten razors.
Liam moved the instant they came. His boots scraped against the soil as flames coiled around his body like a serpent awakening. In a breath, he slammed his palms to the ground as he activated Shadow Solidification. From beneath his feet, black, glasslike shields burst from the terrain, rising into layered arcs before him. The first volley of blood-forged blades slammed against it, clanging like metal striking metal, sparks of dark and crimson scattering in chaotic beauty.
Without pause, Liam spun his daggers in hand, their obsidian edges igniting with streaks of orange flame. He dashed to the side, letting one demon’s strike graze past his shoulder before pivoting sharply and dragging a flaming arc across its chest. The demon barely flinched—its flesh knitting almost immediately, its malicious grin widening as its eyes glowed gold against the crimson gloom.
The other demon crashed in from the flank, summoning a whip made of blood that snapped with the sound of thunder. Liam ducked, shadows gathering around his leg as he kicked off the ground. The terrain beneath him exploded in a fiery bloom as he vaulted over the demon’s attack, twisting in the air and flinging a dagger forward. It spun in a spiral of fire, grazing the creature’s neck—but again, no reaction beyond amusement.
He landed and rolled, shadow tendrils flaring from his feet to halt his momentum. The ground hissed beneath him as embers scattered. The demons laughed—a sound like gargled iron—then charged again, faster. Their combined assault was maddening: one slashed with claws, the other hurled a storm of blood spikes from midair.
Liam responded with terrifying precision. He met very strike and projectile with a parries of solidified shadow blades and shields. His daggers clashed, carved, and deflected—his every motion was an exact calculation. Sparks flew in arcs of crimson and black, the field illuminated by flame bursts and flashes of mystic recoil.
But the Blood Demons weren’t mindless beasts. They adapted. Their attacks grew synchronized and deliberate—one drawing Liam’s attention while the other circled behind him, manifesting massive spears of blood from the air. Liam sensed the spike through the ground vibration alone. He turned his body sharply and summoned a dark barrier, but the spear broke through, punching into his side.
He grunted, flames bursting from his wound as he ripped the spear free and flung it aside. Steam rose where blood tried to seep, the wound closing under the heat of his fire. Yet, the poison crept beneath his skin—his veins glowing faint red as the blood toxin tried to take hold.
He pressed a palm to his chest and let fire engulf his torso. The scent of burning taint filled the air as he burned the corruption out. He exhaled heavily, eyes narrowing.
’They still aren’t fighting seriously... just toying with me like always.’ His thoughts sharpened like blades as he sidestepped another attack. ’Not that I expected something different from two Purebloods. Right now, they just want to test my current limits first—see how much I can dance before they go in for the kill. Not that it bothers me, it gives me an upperhand in fact. However, their regeneration speed... it seems more absurd than other times. It’s like they are adapting to my attacks and healing according to it.
’I haven’t got any critical hits on their regeneration yet. I’ll need something that overwhelms it—heat that outpaces their blood’s recovery factor.’
He deflected another claw strike with his right dagger, slashed across a demon’s leg with the left, and then ignited his heel mid-spin. The explosion that followed sent both demons staggering back a few steps.
’They can regenerate from slashes and even burns, just like my attack from before. But that doesn’t mean they’re invincible. The blood in their veins fuels both their strength and their recovery. If I can destabilize its rhythm... maybe by overloading their mystic circulation with external flame pressure—force a rupture... that could stall their regeneration long enough to finish them.’
He twirled his daggers once, coating them in shadow, then layered flame atop it—both elements merging in a volatile blaze. The next instant, he blurred forward again, meeting the demons head-on.
Their claws came from both sides; Liam ducked under the first, spun under the second, and drove a dagger into one demon’s abdomen. The other slammed its elbow into Liam’s back, forcing him forward, but he planted a hand into the dirt, twisted, and kicked upward with an infernal burst. The demon’s head snapped back as a miniature sun ignited at Liam’s palm—a dense orb of flame, no bigger than his hand but impossibly bright and hot.
He thrust it into the wounded demon’s chest. The explosion was deafening. A shockwave of molten light tore through the field, scattering ash and glassing the earth for several meters. When the smoke cleared, one of the Blood Demons was gone—blown backward, its form half-dissolved, crimson smoke rising as it tried to reconstitute itself from the molten puddles of its own blood.
The other demon stood in front of it, growling lowly as its eyes dimmed and then reignited in fury.
Liam stood several paces away, breathing steady, eyes glowing faintly under the veil of smoke. His shirt was torn, his side burned, yet his expression didn’t shift. His gaze—cold, detached—remained locked on them.
The demons exchanged a glance, and then... they laughed. It was deep, guttural, and almost delighted. Their arms extended, and from their bloodied palms, crimson tendrils rose and shaped into countless weapons—swords, scythes, axes, spears—all floating around them like a crimson storm.
The air shimmered red.
Liam, unfazed, rolled his shoulders, letting his daggers hum with shadowfire. The wind whipped his hair across his face as he set his stance.
"Still not taking me seriously, huh?" His voice came low, calm—chilled with indifference. He tilted his head slightly, eyes glinting. "No problem. I guess I just have to give you a reason to stop grinning like idiots and taken this seriously."
