There is a certain creature known as the Phoenix.
Legend has it that this magnificent creature is not only incredibly powerful, but also immortal. By burning up itself, it reemerges from its own ashes; a brand new creature.
Well… the legends aren't particularly wrong.
However, the Phoenix also has the power to grant this power to another—the one it considers worthy.
Rey was chosen by one of such—seed of the Azure Phoenix.
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Dagon growled ever so louder as it set its nonexistent sight on the enemy.
Rey was covered in blue flames, while also coated with a fiery red cloak. His body burned bright, like flames that would never be extinguished, and his eyes reflected the overall state of his body as he stared back at the Divine Beast.
Once again, they would confront each other; each side desiring nothing more than the destruction of the other.
~WHOOSH!~
Without delaying in the slightest, Dagon rushed towards Rey—easily closing the distance between them—and thrust a powerful blow his way.
~FSHUI~
Like a flicker of fire from a candle-light, Rey danced away from harm's way, appearing right beside the fist that sent the blow forward.
Dagon bent its neck in confusion, surprised by the swift and unpredictable evasion.
~WHOOOOM!~
After sending another blow to its side, knowing fully well that it would hit Rey merely based on how fast it was going, as well as the intensity of its attack, Rey still evaded the assault by flickering and appearing at the other side.
"GRRRRRRRR!!!"
Dagon gritted its teeth, the frustration slowly becoming more evident in its countenance. Veins popped out of its scaly face as its muscles bulged even more than usual.
In no time at all, it entered into a frenzy.
"RUARHHH!"
~BOOOOOOOOOM!~
It struck the ground, but Rey evaded the assault, taking a couple of steps back for good measure. However, Dagon easily closed the distance and struck again.
~BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!~
More of the ground was shattered, and the surrounding structures took another solid blow from the impact. Yet… Rey seemed fine.
Dagon could not understand.
It was faster than Rey; stronger too. Every hit was supposed to land as usual, yet for some reason, he would dodge it at the last minute.
As a being of no intelligence, Dagon couldn't process complicated stuff. Instead, it simply decided to work faster than normal.
"HUUUU…" More veins appeared through its body, and it let out steamy breaths.
Then—
~BOOOOM!~
Everything around it shattered into pieces as it charged forward, hoping to destroy Rey by a single strike.
A powerful punch was thrust forward, capable of blowing a hole through several buildings with ease. Destruction was coalesced into that fist, and it sought a solid target to hit.
But…
~FWUSH!~
Rey swiftly dodged the attack, held Dagon by the very hand that it sent out, and then used the creature's own force against it.
In one set of deft movements, he was not only able to dodge the attack, but he carried Dagon and slammed him on the ground—using all the generated force as momentum.
~BOOOOOOOM!~
Once Dagon fell, creating another gaping crater on the ground, Rey raised his legs and tried to stomp on the creature's head, but Dagon evaded it very quickly and used its tail to swoop Rey down as well.
This worked, and just as Rey stumbled and fell, Dagon rose and attempted to land a strike.
"No, you don't!"
Twisting his body in the air, he was able to avoid—albeit only barely—Dagon's assault, while also spinning to create a powerful kick on the creature's stumpy neck as a counter.
~WHAM!~
The kick landed perfectly, causing the monster to stagger a few steps back. However, it almost instantly recovered and went after Rey once again.
Sending blow after blow, Rey would avoid them with precision, the ferocious strikes only barely missing their mark.
This dance continued for a few more seconds, with Rey avoiding attacks, dealing counters, and then returning to avoiding attacks.
Dagon's blows were devastating and raw, but they never once connected with Rey. As for the attacks that the latter offered; they were precise, and while they landed, nothing of note changed after the strike.
Dagon would heal very rapidly, rendering the struggle nigh futile. It almost seemed like Rey was yet to land any real hit on the creature.
'Damnit… my Stats are just too low!' His mind sharply commented as it grabbed Dagon by the tail and managed to slam him on the ground.
He then whisked the Divine Beast once again, flinging him to a nearby wall, destroying the whole thing in the process.
"Haa… this is impossible!" Rey muttered as he narrowed his gaze on Dagon.
As he expected, the thing was still perfectly fine.
'The azure flames help me with defense by healing me and also automatically shifting my body away from preconceived harm. The crimson cloak helps me with amping my stats, which allow me to dish out a decent counter.' His thoughts trailed as he slowly exhaled steamy breaths.
'But this isn't enough!'
If only his Stats were higher, or the Phoenixes had a much larger Level, things would have been a lot different.
'I still have no idea how they were able to leave my Inventory, and why they automatically bonded to me despite being out of the cage. The System didn't even tell me anything…'
However, he was lucky they were helping him.
'The only problem is… I don't know how long this stuff will last. I can't use any of my Skills as long as this Merging thing is happening, so there's no way to win right now…'
[Merger] usually took a while to fully fuse Skills, especially depending on compatibility and Tiers. Sometimes it took hours; time that Rey didn't have at the moment.
'Since [The Unknown Box] Skill has been applied to it, the process most likely wouldn't take that long, but still…' Rey gritted his teeth and strengthened his fist, ready for another round with the Beast.
'I have no idea how much longer I can last.'
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Thanks for reading!
Shorter chapter today, I know. I'm sick again, but I will do my best to write three as per usual.
Once I recover fully (first week of next month), there'll be a mass release.
