Extraordinary Voyage-Chapter 791 - 680: Arrival

Everything was prepared according to the sacred noble duel rules.

A large area of the square in St. James’s Palace had been cleared out. Guests, high-ranking state officials, nobles, and envoys from various countries all retreated far away, leaving space for the two protagonists of the "honor duel."

The atmosphere was chilling!

Aiven and the Great Knight named Pedro faced each other coldly at a distance of ten meters.

Although the two had never met nor bore any grudge against each other, the meaning of this duel was not on the field, nor even on Her Majesty the Queen or His Highness the Prince, but rather a small reflection of the power play between the Phaletis Kingdom and the Hilus Empire.

Wooo...

Even though they hadn’t made any moves yet, a chaotic tempest was already swirling around them. Especially in a Wizard’s "Spiritual Vision," the vast life energy field of both men had been fully activated, like two small suns descending upon the field.

A yellow leaf carried by the autumn wind hovered in the air but was suddenly shattered into powder when it fell between them. Clearly, the invisible confrontation had already begun.

Seeing this.

Liweina, who was watching from the side, quietly clenched her fists, feeling a slight regret for letting Aiven take the risk. The other party was obviously well-prepared, and the seemingly unremarkable "bodyguard" was certainly no ordinary person.

In her heart, she couldn’t help but curse the intelligence department. Despite the heavy duty of city defense, failing to uncover even the background of the Hilus delegation’s members was truly incompetent!

On the other side.

"My dear, do you think Aiven will be alright? Can he win?"

Duke, who was also watching, was faintly worried. Although he too was a fairly talented Tier 3 Great Knight, he could no longer see the depths of the two people on the field.

He believed that if he replaced either of them with himself, he definitely couldn’t hold out for more than three or five moves.

"I don’t know Aiven’s level in swordsmanship, but I know when he uses powers other than swordsmanship, even a ’Titled Knight’ couldn’t stop him.

Losing in swordsmanship isn’t a big deal. This kid is sly, and I believe even if an Evil God descends today, he’ll be fine. Don’t worry."

Unlike her husband, who as a Knight valued honor, the Wizard Nymph was not concerned with winning or losing; her beloved son-in-law only needed to return home safely to see her daughter.

"Evil God? Pfft..."

Although he thought his wife’s words were somewhat ominous, Duke’s mood gradually calmed down.

At this moment, Aiven wasn’t as relaxed as Nymph suggested.

"A formidable opponent!"

Just a glance, and the two highly skilled Extraordinary swordsmen simultaneously made their judgments.

"The honor duel begins! Prepare—! Three, two..."

Ilvendi, the "Rose Sword Saint" who was witnessing the duel, nodded to Aiven and raised his right hand high.

Unless they’re launching a country-destroying attack, Titled Knights will never appear in another country’s territory (except invited ally countries). The established rule is, if a Titled Knight is found within the national border without informing, it would be directly considered a declaration of war at the national level.

This is the deterrence of a Titled Knight.

Hilus wanted to give Phaletis a profound lesson within the established rules, and the peak of a Tier 3 Great Knight was their limit.

Of course, Hilus would love it if Tulip and Phaletis ignored the rules and erupted, taking their Invincible Fleet to the Tulip Islands for a zero-cost looting opportunity as one of the scenarios.

Clang—

Pedro, with short white hair, slowly drew his Swift Sword. From the plain scabbard emerged a chilling frost-white rapier, its thin, pale blade so slender it was almost invisible, making anyone gaze directly at it nearly tear up.

Even Aiven, standing ten meters away, felt his skin prick slightly.

The Swift Sword as a weapon became popular since the "Renaissance" period, evolving more from the dueling ground rather than the battlefield, especially common in the Alfonso Peninsula where the Hilus Empire originated.

Swordsmen have long realized that piercing wounds causing perforations to human tissue are much more fatal than cutting wounds from slashing. The fearsome wounds caused by severing limbs with heavy swords might not be life-threatening if treated in time.

But if the torso is pierced by a thin sharp object, even appearing as a small wound on the outside, the victim will very likely die from internal bleeding due to liver or spleen rupture, or large-scale infection in the abdomen caused by a perforated intestine.

This is true even for Extraordinary individuals with tenacious life force.

This weapon, widely used in duels, paired with the [Supreme Swordsmanship] mainly spread in the Hilus region, became a formidable killing weapon almost invincible in duels!

One-on-one duels are also the most practiced traditional event by the Hilus people.

The [Thunder Fang] in Aiven’s hand was unsheathed simultaneously, a much heavier hand half-sword compared to the Swift Sword.

The material was a semi-transparent deep blue bone, with lightning cloud patterns layered on its surface. Although it gradually struggled to keep up with Aiven’s intense battles, it was a perfect match for the Thunder Attribute [Desperate Thunder Swordsmanship].

Their sharp gazes clashed in mid-air, seemingly producing the sound of swords clanging.

"One."

The countdown ended, and in the next moment.

Swoosh!

Without uttering a single word, the two had already disappeared simultaneously.

Boom—!

The thunderous roar had already echoed through half of the royal palace, the turbulent airflow turning into a gale, rendering those below Tier 3 unqualified to even witness the spectacle.

Electric arcs flickered across Aiven’s body, his slender figure appearing distorted and elongated under high speed.

Clang! Clang! Clang!...

Sparks flew, Sword Qi howled.

Indeed, a formidable foe.

[Supreme Swordsmanship] centers everything on the "Marychinsky Circle," where every move, attack, and defense follows predetermined routes.

Engaging with such swordsmanship is not just a test of courage and skill but also a mathematical battle of wits, hence why it’s also known as "Geometry Swordsmanship."

This opponent was undoubtedly a standout among them, with multiple pre-prepared tactics ready for every move Aiven made.

Moreover, this was also a master-level "Swordsman" who had activated Sword Qi, yes—a "Swordsman!" Through grueling refinement, the swordsmanship was pure to the extreme. In Aiven’s view, such a person could only be described as a "Swordsman."

Beginner, Mastery, Master, Perfection, these are the limits mortals can achieve before reaching Tier 5 Demigod.

Normally, a master of the [Steel-Slaying Realm] would already be a remarkable figure within any country, only after the qualitative change of Tier 4 is there a tiny possibility of reaching Perfection. This is a realm that Aiven has yet to pursue deliberately.

Every master is already a prodigy, not to mention mortals achieving Perfection.

Legend has it that before truly entering the domain of the gods, one could never reach the level of "Extraordinary to Saint."

Even "Rose Sword Saint" Ilvendi did not reach sainthood but had already achieved the theoretical human swordsmanship limit of "Perfection" at Tier 4.

This Master Pedro delved much deeper into swordsmanship than Aiven. If one were to quantify swordsmanship level, Aiven might be at 30% mastery, while Pedro was at least 70% or even 80%.

Having forged his own path from the seven foundational constants of [Supreme Swordsmanship], then returning back to basics, the scenery still remained, yet he had returned to simplicity and truth.

Currently, Aiven had long transcended the "shackles" of the longsword itself, reaching the state where anything in heaven and earth could be his "sword," like Black Gold, Black Gold, Black Gold.

Speaking of swordsmanship...

Even with the aid of "Data Visualization," one’s energy is ultimately limited. The advancement in Aiven’s pure swordsmanship had noticeably slowed.

Unlike the chaotic New Continent, in the Old Continent jointly ruled by the Church and Knights, restricting the large-scale exposure of witchcraft and other extraordinary powers is politically correct.

After exchanging just a dozen moves using the [Desperate Thunder Swordsmanship], Aiven found himself faintly at a disadvantage.

"Ha, as expected, one cannot underestimate the heroes of the world."

Tss—

With a misstep, surging Sword Qi shot past Aiven’s side, slicing through the stone steps and sculptures on the edge of the square behind him like butter, causing the spectators to retreat in shock.

Opposite him, Pedro wore a cold smile.

His mission this time was straightforward: crush his opponent with overwhelming might, shatter his opponent’s confidence and will. Even if he couldn’t kill the opponent under the protection of the Titled Knight, he would still destroy him!

A young genius Knight and a favorite of the Queen, exactly the "chicken" suitable for killing to warn the "monkeys."

He’s done this kind of dirty work for the Empire more than once, long accustomed to it.

The fight had lasted only a few breaths.

Sss—

Having gauged his opponent’s strength, Pedro raised the Swift Sword in his hand and drew a circle in the air around him, the sharp aura seemingly rejecting all outside existence.

The piercing frost-white Sword Qi spiraled around the master swordsman’s body, clearly defining a spherical space with a five-meter radius. Within this circle, he was the absolute ruler, possessing supreme Commanding Power!

This was the strongest Secret Swordsmanship that few core inheritors of swordsmanship schools had the qualification to learn.

[Supreme Swordsmanship: Secret Technique: Circle of Sacrifice!]

The essence of this [Supreme Swordsmanship] lies in the "Marychinsky Circle." The "Circle of Sacrifice" offers an absolute killing to any enemy daring to set foot within, symbolizing certainty!

Inside this circle, the seven foundational attack constants (like mathematical formulas) [Cross Line Constant], [Weak Under Strong Pattern], [Low Position Constant], [Narrow Pattern], [Weak on Strong Constant], [High Position Constant], [Shortcut Constant] no longer had limits.

Advanced "formulas" based on these constants were available at will.

It was like a genius effortlessly crushing a mediocre student with cheats enabled.

Facing the Sword Qi Circle gradually closing in on him, Aiven subtly recalled the fear of being ruled by advanced mathematics, and at the trembling of his heart, he suddenly realized today he might... lose!

However, just at this moment.

Moo—!

A loud cow’s moo suddenly resonated from beneath the ground, sweeping like a storm during the Black Sea’s rainy season through everyone’s soul in the royal palace.

Then, it was as if being stared at by an irresistible natural enemy.

Duke’s neck suddenly stiffened, slowly turning to look at his wife:

"Dear, did you just say... what descended?"