Shadow Slave novel Chapter 2019

Chapter 2019: Reaching the Peak

Sunny had been developing his Transcendent Battle Art for a long time now.

A Transcendent Battle Art was the culmination of one's combat technique. Humans underwent a profound transformation when becoming Saints — therefore, their technique had to reach its own version of Transcendence, as well.

On a surface level, a Transcendent Battle Art was an elevation of a battle style to a technique that comprehensively fit the newfound powers of a Saint. Of course, since all Aspects were unique, each such Battle Art was fundamentally different from the rest.

On a deeper level, however, the difference between a mundane battle style and a Transcendent Battle Art was enormously vast. A Transcendent being was, by definition, one that had crossed the threshold separating mortals from deities — therefore, Saints wielded powers that were truly beyond the scope of humanly possible.

A combat technique that flawlessly incorporated these powers had a special nature. It transcended the definition of a battle style just as much as Saints transcended mere mortals.

Hence, the name.

It was not at all surprising, then, that developing a Transcendent Battle Art was a daunting task. It was already difficult enough to disassemble the very nature of a martial style into elementary principles — but then, these axiomatic principles had to be examined, reshaped, or even dismissed entirely, to be replaced with new concepts.

Finally, a comprehensive system of practical applications had to be built on this new foundation. An impossible and revolutionary battle style meant to be used by only a single person.

No wonder it took the talent and resources of an entire Legacy Clan to design a single Transcendent Battle Art… Sunny, however, had done it alone.

He had meticulously created a completely new set of concepts and laws of how a living being was supposed to fight, based on his own unique attributes and abilities instead of human nature.

His Transcendent Battle Art had been on the verge of completion for a while. The theoretical foundation had already been developed, and all he lacked was practical experience to test his design in order to either validate or iterate it.

He had tested and perfected most of it already. But one key element was still unfinished — because that element concerned controlling multiple incarnations in battle, and Sunny had been hiding that Ability of his for a long time.

He had fought some Nightmare Creatures that way in the past, but only now that he was facing a foe as dire, cunning, and skilled as the four Saints of the Song Domain did he receive a bountiful opportunity to really test his mettle.

Everything was clicking together. Everything was falling into place.

Sunny could feel it…

His art was taking shape.

From that first swing of the Azure Blade Nephis had instructed him to perform on the Forgotten Shore to this calamitous battle under the radiant sky of Godgrave, Sunny had never stopped reaching for new heights.

And now, finally, he was standing on the peak.

His art was complete.

…The four Saints descended upon Sunny like a hurricane of fangs, claws, and sharp steel. However, all that met them was darkness and overwhelming strength.

Now that Sunny did not have to create titanic blades to wield with the giant hands of his Shell, four weapons manifested themselves in his four pairs of hands. They were an austere tachi, a great odachi, a somber spear, and an elegant jian.

Each was as potent as a Transcendent weapon would have been, and sharp enough to cut the world.

His four bodies moved in perfect harmony with each other, weaving a dark tapestry of deadly intent. The flawless grace of their unity made the uncanny combat affinity that the seasoned warriors serving the King of Swords displayed seem clumsy and crude, full of dissonance and discord.

Even the four Saints of Song, whose ability to cooperate in combat had been forged in thousands of battles, were no match.

And so… Sunny crushed them.

Each of his four bodies was weaker than one augmented body had been, but the sum of their individual strength was greater than the whole. He could be in several places at the same time, seamlessly interweave offense and defense, build elaborate traps, force the enemy to move where he wanted them to move… all with almost effortless ease.

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