Chapter 16
The creature howled. Sparks burst from its horns but flickered weakly. Ash followed up, boots pounding over loose rubble, blade flashing under faint light. Each swing was tighter, faster, cutting more deeply as he carved away at the beast's limbs and side.
Its tail swung, but Ash ducked, sliding underneath with a single gliding step before rising with a slash that nearly severed the tendon behind its foreleg. The floor around them cracked again from the weight of the battle. Sparks and blood decorated the air as Ash pressed forward. This time, he was the storm.
The creature reared back, pawing the ground as electricity crackled around its shoulders. Thunderbugs swarmed in from the broken ceiling, flickering like fireflies as they clung to its horns and spine. The tunnel's walls trembled under their hum, small rocks falling from the broken supports above.
The light dimmed as the air grew thick with static, a deep buzzing pressing into Ash's skull. He didn't back away. He stood tall, the katana in both hands, held low and wide, its shell of mana pulsing as he dragged in slow, controlled breaths.
The monster unleashed a bolt of lightning, striking the wall where Ash stood moments before. He moved—no, flowed—stepping around the edges of the beast's movements. He carved the air with the edge of his blade, slashing a line across its chest that split scales and drew blood again.
The beast roared, thunder erupting from its mouth as it spun, tail lashing. Ash blocked with the flat of the katana, mana reinforcing it as sparks scattered around them, bouncing off stone and steel.
The impact pushed Ash back, skidding along the cracked ground, leaving gouges in the floor. He caught himself, breath tight, arms aching. Mana swirled from his skin, gripping the blade tighter than his hands did. The katana hummed with life not its own.
The creature charged, and Ash charged too, both leaving trails of chaos behind. Their clash split the air—claw against steel, power against precision. Ash ducked under a swiping forelimb, pivoted, and drove his blade deep into its flank, twisting.
The monster howled and jumped, smashing its horns into the ceiling. Dust rained down. A support beam cracked and fell, smashing between them. Ash broke through it with his shoulder, pieces exploding around him as he came out the other side, blade dragging sparks off the stone floor.
He rose in a single motion, slashing upward from hip to shoulder. The cut bled bright. The beast staggered again, its growl turning to something almost panicked. Ash exhaled, low and calm, stepping forward once more.
The katana no longer shook. His mana no longer flared wildly. It wove smoothly through the air, extending from his body like a second limb. Each swing now carried more than strength—it carried rhythm. Flow. Intent. He stepped past another thunderous swipe, leaving only a smear of blood in his wake as he drove the edge of the blade into the base of the creature's shoulder.
The tunnel glowed in flashes of blue and gold. The monster, once overwhelming, now bled heavily, its footing unstable. Ash's eyes gleamed in the haze, breathing steady as stone cracked beneath their feet.
The tunnel floor cracked further under their feet as the creature lunged forward, claws slicing through the air with a sharp whistle. Ash ducked under the first strike, twisted past the second, then rolled to the side as the tail crashed where he had been, leaving a deep trench across the ground.
Sparks danced in the air, flickering against the dust as the creature's horns lit up with faint bolts of electricity. Ash stepped forward into its blind spot and slashed upward, carving open another line along its thigh. The creature staggered, howling, and slammed its claws into the wall, shattering stone.
A rain of broken rocks fell from above as Ash darted through the falling debris. The katana's glowing shell gleamed bright with each step, matching the rhythm of his movement. The creature turned, swiping blindly, but Ash ducked and dragged the blade across its ribs.
Sparks flared. Blood spilled. The floor beneath them cracked even wider as the creature roared in pain, staggering back with a limp. Ash pressed forward, dodging a bolt of lightning that scorched the far wall, leaving a molten mark. The thunderbug swarm flickered above them like stars, disoriented by the creature's stumbling steps.
Ash feinted to the left, baiting the monster's charge. It lunged, jaws wide, but Ash sidestepped and leapt upward, driving the katana deep through the base of its skull. The creature froze mid-roar. The electricity flickered. Its limbs twitched once, twice—then gave out.
It crashed to the floor, shaking the tunnel and blowing dust across the area. The ground was cracked in every direction, broken glass from overhead fixtures littered the sides, and burned claw marks marred the walls. Ash landed with a grunt, the katana still in hand.
the beast's body burst into swarms of mana particles . Ash fell to one knee, gasping. He stopped extending mana into the blade—and the moment he did, the katana hissed and shattered in his hand, fragments bouncing off the ground. "Fuck me," he muttered, eyes narrowing as he tossed the remains aside.
His body ached all over, his hands stung, and his arms trembled. But there was too much mana in the air to waste. So Ash sat down, spine straight, legs crossed, and began to meditate, drawing in the dense, wild energy that filled every inch of the broken tunnel.
-1 week later-
After absorbing all the mana from the monster, Ash then absorbed the mana contained within the bones themselves, which were also filled with mana and some other energy, which was similar to the one that Madam Gao used. But Ash just drained the mana in it, which made it crumble into dust as the golden energy was dispersed into the air, some even approached ash only for his mana to ruthlessly swat them away.
But Ash didn't do that to all the bones, no, he left three rib cage bones that he brought with him to his trailer. He did not even say goodbye to the Defenders, mostly because there were police littered outside of the building, as the building was lined with explosives which were stolen from the NYPD. Ash didn't want to get involved in that, so he sneaked out.
This was a week ago. He has since then left New York. He was currently in Germany, on his way to the Himalayas. Why that icy apocalypse? Simple, to train himself. Since he had barely entered the third stage, Extension, he needed to gain better control over his mana channelling. He was also certain that there was way more phenomenons there. He didn't know why, but he did. He also had to lay low from New York itself, since the city was now on high alert. Hence why he decided to get to such a remote and cold place.
Since he had the dragon bone, Ash had actually turned the blade into a blade—well, he was in the process of doing so. The thing was durable, and it made sense since it was dragon bone, but this made it harder to turn into a weapon.
however he was still doing it, as the only way to destroy the damn thing was to file it down with a power tool for hours or simply absorb the mana or the other energy from it, which meant that it could withstand his mana. So it was the most suitable weapon for Ash.
Currently, he was travelling under a bridge, on the way to a parking lot, after he had a hearty meal at a restaurant. "There is nothing better than an all-you-can-eat buffet." Whether it was simply because his condition was going toward the superhuman level due to the dormant mana passively and permanently enhancing his attributes,
Ash seemed to have developed an insatiable appetite. But luckily for him, he found out that he enjoyed food, maybe too much, to the point where he would do a happy little dance every time he ate food, EVERY TIME. But while he was burping with a full stomach, his enhanced perception picked up something first.
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A/N well folks, that is the end of the first volume of this story, so, what do you guys things so far, 15 chapters of introducing ash, his power system, its progression, the world he was in, and the threat brought on my his presence? if you guys have any suggestions, i am will appreciate it.
PS: also, i bet you a hundred bucks what is speed towards him, hint: its related to a season.