Rurak lowered his center of gravity. This time, he would not rush blindly into another exchange. Aqualen suddenly charged. He thrust his water blade toward Rurak’s chest.
Rurak turned his body and moved to the side, allowing the attack to pass. He stepped inside Aqualen’s reach and drove his fist toward his jaw.
Aqualen leaned away. Rurak’s punch missed by a narrow margin, but Rurak had anticipated the movement. He followed with a second punch aimed at Aqualen’s ribs. It landed directly on his ribs. The impact forced Aqualen to take a step backward.
Rurak immediately tried to seize his wrist. His fingers closed around it. Then his grip slipped. Aqualen’s skin was astonishingly smooth, as though Rurak were trying to hold a wet fish. Before he could tighten his grip, Aqualen’s wrist slid free. The water blade swung toward Rurak’s stomach.
Rurak twisted away, but the edge still opened a wound across his side. He retreated, using his Will to suppress the pain from his injury. Aqualen smiled.
"Trying to grab me? Don’t waste your strength."
Rurak looked at his hand. His palm was wet. Aqualen’s skin was covered by a thin film of water. It was so thin that Rurak hadn’t noticed it during their first exchange. Now he understood why his grip had failed.
Aqualen raised his weapon again.
"Are you finished? Now step aside. Even if you defeated me, you would get nothing. Seeing your Awakened army, I assume your ancestor has already become a Sea Master. But so what? We also have Sea Masters supporting us."
Rurak took a slow breath.
"No, I am responsible for this battlefield. As for the Sea Masters..."
Rurak chuckled and then charged.
Aqualen’s smile widened. The water blade flashed toward Rurak’s shoulder. Rurak ducked and drove a punch toward Aqualen’s abdomen.
Aqualen twisted his body, allowing the blow to slide across his side rather than land squarely. Rurak immediately attacked again. A punch toward the face. A strike toward the ribs. A kick aimed at the knee.
Aqualen dodged the first, redirected the second, and slipped away from the third. His slippery skin made it difficult for Rurak to land clean hits, even when his attacks reached their target. Whenever Rurak tried to seize him, Aqualen’s body seemed to escape his grip, and every failed attempt created an opening for the water blade. A cut appeared on Rurak’s shoulder, and then another opened across his thigh.
Aqualen was not overwhelmingly stronger, but his abilities made every exchange dangerous. Rurak was beginning to understand why. Aqualen didn’t need to overpower him in a direct contest of strength. He only needed to make Rurak miss, then punish the opening.
After several exchanges, Aqualen suddenly stepped back. He looked at Rurak with a mixture of surprise and irritation.
"You learn quickly."
Rurak said nothing.
"But it won’t help you. You can understand how I fight, yet you still can’t hold me."
He spread his fingers. The water blade dissolved, scattering into droplets. For a moment, Rurak wondered whether Aqualen had run out of Spiritual Energy.
Then the droplets gathered again, forming a longer blade.
Aqualen smiled.
"Let’s finish this."
He lunged toward Rurak. Rurak raised his arms, prepared to defend himself. The water blade swept toward his chest, but Rurak successfully dodged it. The blade changed direction and cut toward his neck.
He leaned backward. Aqualen continued attacking, never giving him enough time to launch a proper counterattack. His movements were smooth, his weapon fast, and his defense difficult to penetrate.
Rurak felt the pressure building. His injuries were slowing him down. Every movement pulled at the wound across his side, while his damaged forearm throbbed whenever he blocked.
He could not continue fighting like this. If he kept exchanging attacks, Aqualen would eventually wear him down. He needed a different approach.
Rurak glanced at the ground. There was nothing but mud and broken weapons mixed with blood. Then he looked at Aqualen’s feet. An idea formed in his mind. It was dangerous, but he had little choice.
Rurak abruptly rushed forward, abandoning his defensive posture.
Aqualen’s eyes lit up. He had been waiting for this. The water blade thrust toward Rurak’s chest. Rurak shifted sideways, allowing the blade to pierce his upper arm instead. Pain exploded through his shoulder, but his Will erased it as soon as it appeared.
His body nearly recoiled from the impact, but he forced himself forward. Everything slowed down.
Aqualen’s expression changed. He had expected Rurak to retreat after being injured. Instead, Rurak had used the moment of contact to close the remaining distance between them. Rurak struck Aqualen’s wrist with the heel of his palm.
The water blade wavered. Rurak struck again with his palm.
The Aqualen’s weapon dissolved into droplets. Before he could recreate it, Rurak drove his shoulder into his chest.
The impact sent them both stumbling backward.
Aqualen tried to slip away, but Rurak did not attempt to grab his body. He stepped on the man’s foot and struck his elbow, disrupting his balance and forcing his arm away from the position needed to attack.
Aqualen’s eyes widened. Rurak’s fist crashed into his jaw. Aqualen staggered. Rurak followed with a knee to the abdomen. Aqualen bent forward, coughing, and attempted to retreat. Rurak swept his leg beneath him.
Aqualen fell onto the muddy ground, but his slippery skin allowed him to twist away before Rurak could pin him down. He rolled to his feet and immediately formed another water blade. His expression had changed completely. His confidence was gone. In its place was anger. An inhabitant of a newly evolved planet had humiliated him.
"You bastard!"
He charged with everything he had. The water blade swept horizontally toward Rurak’s neck. Rurak ducked, but Aqualen changed the angle of his attack, thrusting toward his chest. Rurak stepped aside, but the blade grazed his shoulder. He ignored the wound and moved closer.
Aqualen tried to retreat. His foot slid across the muddy ground. It was only a momentary loss of balance, but Rurak had been waiting for precisely that opportunity. He struck the man’s wrist. The water blade broke apart.