Meteor Fall Master in the 'Starry Abyss'
Chapter 419 - 58. Star Realm Echo

Chapter 419: 58. Star Realm Echo

"Swords are a kind of romance."

Li Aozi deflected Liue’s parry with a single stroke, slashing alternately at her left and right shoulders. He then twisted his waist, took a step back, tore open a spatial ripple, moved behind her, and struck her spine with a mighty blow.

Liue’s body tilted slightly, but having learned to fight, she immediately lowered herself, propelling herself towards Polaris. In an instant, she relocated several kilometers, evading most of the slashes.

As she retreated, Li Aozi understood one fact:

Her Health Points were finally running out.

The Blood Demon Style prohibited her from healing and continuously inflicted damage through life linkage. Meanwhile, Li Aozi would occasionally use "Severing Life" to suck in a heavy dose of vitality.

Although his normal attacks had low damage, they had multiple special effects and strong techniques. Each hit on Liue dealt:

Percentage-based magic damage from "Severing Life"

Burning damage from "Spontaneous Combustion"

Damage increase from the aura of the "Inscription Saint Swordmaster"

Accelerated impact from "Gravity"

Immense Strength provided by "Pegasus Power" and "Physical Strengthening"

The Echo effect of the "Echoer" spread these damages further.

In addition, the Sword of Destiny Awakening, as a Divine Artifact, had a high damage increase of 200 points. Even though some of it was mitigated by the hierarchy’s damage reduction special effect, Li Aozi’s attacks still caused considerable damage.

The accumulation of minor hits took a toll, and now, even Liue could not ignore Li Aozi’s Strength.

"Before this, you had never retreated."

Li Aozi lowered his longsword, feeling a sense of relief and satisfaction.

"I’m old. Perhaps, I truly am old."

The gravitational waves carried back the information; Liue’s tone was fatigued.

"You’re like a piece of rubber, never breaking, no matter how deformed you are. You always bounce back to your original form... Damn it, are you truly Gamma Rank? Or is this the advantage of the young?"

Her vitality was not what it used to be in her youth.

"Leaving the Narrative-Level Civilization, you do age quickly."

"Natural aging and death is precisely what I pursue."

"Natural death?"

Li Aozi was astonished:

"You, who study the topic of immortality, aspire toward natural death?"

"What’s strange about that?"

Liue leaned against an abandoned spaceship. Unlike Li Aozi, her fighting Will was not as resilient, but she still maintained the demeanor of a Scholar:

"Scientists respect the laws of nature. Only by doing so can they use it as a foundation to explore and manipulate those laws."

"If that’s the case, locking up those who possess Sequence-Level Arcane Energy instead of placing them where they belong—don’t you think that’s a waste?"

Li Aozi steadied his heart rate, gradually adjusting his Status.

"Maybe many can’t control the power of Sequence-Level Arcane Energy, leading to uncontrolled Destruction—but I don’t believe I am one of them. I don’t believe most people lack the ability to control it."

"Aren’t you proving this to me right now?"

Liue stood upright:

"If you intend to prove this point... then show me your understanding of ’Echo,’ your control of Arcane Energy..."

"...your Sovereignty over Fate."

As the battle continued, Liue’s impression of Li Aozi changed:

"Come on, kid... No, young man. Defeat me."

"I still have a question—what exactly is the Calamity God? Was the dissolution of the commune related to it?"

Li Aozi asked curiously.

"That was... a terrible tragedy. We didn’t expect so many lives to be lost. We overestimated ourselves and underestimated Leoz—Supreme Arcane Energy isn’t easily possessed. Even the kindest person cannot remain composed before it."

Liue said complexly:

"We thought Leoz might be a brave and kind Fighter. Maybe the result wasn’t as we expected... But, hey, what’s the point of talking about it now? Maybe I indeed was wrong. You also obtained the ’Calamity God’ record... You can look it up. Then, judge if I was wrong or merely outdated by this era; that decision will be up to you."

"But you shouldn’t doubt Leoz’s existence. Mimicking Leoz’s actions aligns with the universal values of the Starry Abyss."

"That, I think, is debatable." Li Aozi shrugged.

"What? You have no interest in Leoz? Don’t believe that such a Hero once appeared in the Starry Abyss?"

"No."

Li Aozi held his sword, speaking calmly:

"Because I am called Leoz."

Liue was taken aback, then found relief.

"That’s right... His Achievements have long penetrated the hearts of people."

"Then, let’s begin."

She straightened her body, and the void spatial ripples around her head drew in fragments of meteorite and metal, forming a helmet resembling a knight’s armor.

"Tradition or change, right or wrong, show me your answer—Leoz."

"Honestly, I don’t know what is right or wrong."

Li Aozi raised his longsword. His head’s flesh rapidly regenerated, and meteorite and metal, along with a blue halo, converged into a sharp-edged helmet.

"—but history and this starry sky will witness for me."

[Dictator Form Activated]

Two generations of Echoers, tradition and transformation, gravity and gravity, were all infused into the Echoes of the Dictator.

[Never Disobedience]

Snap!

Li Aozi and Liue each reached up and placed a floating, dark halo on their heads.

"Do your best."

Liue’s stance erupted with a powerful energy wave, and a blue-violet energy engulfed her entire body. It then reshaped and condensed into a set of royal armor.

"As you wish."

Li Aozi’s form initially morphed into that of the Sovereign—the skin tore apart, revealing dark red crystal spurs. Blood vessels on his neck hardened obtrusively, his face was reversed, covered in black-red membranous flaps, and his ribs broke through the skin, forming a calcium-plated armor.

Bzzzz——

But the next moment, the surging energy washed over him.

Gravity continually reverberated, high-frequency transmissions soaking countless mystic information into the dark red Haines Crystals. The once dark red crystals seemed purified, shedding their ferocity and revealing a clear blue hue.

The primitive, monstrous body solidified, coalesced, clustered, and ascended under the power of Echo.

A series of Arcane Energies streaked across, unifying and integrating, condensing into stable silver-white armor plates on his body.

The ruined flesh was cleansed, leaving only the sleek porcelain-like armor.

The radiant light faded, leaving before the cosmos a cobalt blue Dictator.

[Master of Metal and Gold]

He raised his hand, tearing through the mist before him, and the longsword surged with an electromagnetic red-hot light. The dark halo, like a dictator’s crown, greedily devoured the brilliance.

"It’s time to end this, Mr. Liue."