Divine Beast Ascension

Chapter 442: Bradok vs Rojak, Son of Warak

The judge stood at the very edge of the arena. That mid-king couldn’t help but stare at the disparity between Rojak’s huge body and the four-krin gorilla. Despite Bradok being bulkier and broader than most of his clan, it wasn’t enough to compare with the likes of a giant dragon.

Making use of his powerful voice to address them from a distance, the judge shouted, “If you two are ready... Let the battle COMMENCE!”

Immediately, surge after surge of divine essence erupted from Rojak. His black gold scales were coated in compressed, jagged earthen armor. Within the first second, Rojak was already high in the sky while preparing for his all-out onslaught.

Bradok appeared to be nothing special in comparison. His essence was simple and thin. It seemed more like a glowing aura than a compressed essence armor. Neither Treeda nor Warak understood why Bradok’s energy output was so strange and pitiful looking. They stole glances at Zelsh but were surprised to see Zelsh’s serious stare resting on Bradok’s strange essence.

“Aren’t you equipping weapons? As most apes do when facing above their realm?” questioned Rojak, peering down at the gorilla below.

But Bradok shook his head and laughed, “Ha! Then you’ve never fought an all-powerful gorilla! Come, I’ll show you why even the dragons have long feared us!!”

Rojak wasn’t off-put by the comment. To the surprise of the spectators, Rojak showed a beaming smile and laughed as well, “Perfect! I’ve long wanted to clash with a mighty ape. Don’t disappoint us!”

.....

The fight had officially begun with their first clash of powerful strikes.

Rojak barreled through the air, spiraling with absolute control in order to drill into his opponent. Compared to his daughter Belma, Rojak’s drilling attack was much tighter and more condensed. Despite being larger than Belma, Rojak’s Flying Drill Art was thinner in width and more pointed than hers. Without touching the ground, the dirt within two krin of Rojak parted from the sheer force of his spiraling dive.

Still, Bradok didn’t seem to do anything outstanding or eye-catching. His steady, flimsy-looking essence didn’t waver or ripple whatsoever. He merely took a powerful, offensive stance and cocked back his first for the incoming dragon.

KREEECHHH!!

An ear-splitting sound reverberated through the colosseum. Every young candidate was trembling from either the deafening sound, raw excitement to witness such a high-level fight, or both. The divine experts weren’t trembling but they felt their perspectives of power rattling inside their minds.

Apart from Zelsh, every divine class spectator felt their next breath cling to the sides of their throat, refusing to come out.

Bradok was thrown back, pushed aside a few krin as he flipped through the air and landed back on his feet. The madness in his smile was finally evident to the crowd.

Rojak’s drilling attack with a full dive was too powerful for Bradok to stop. But it was deflected. The dragon was forced to the side and fought to regain control of his flight pattern.

Next, while the combatants took a second to analyze their brief test of power, Treeda and Warak examined them both for injuries.

“This... Seriously?!” Warak’s eye twitched. He couldn’t believe that such a thing could happen, and so quickly!

One beast showed minimal signs of injury and could fight unimpaired. One beast was already bleeding and had their attack broken on the first exchange.

Chuckling lightly, Bradok loosed a satisfied sigh, “Finally... I haven’t had a good fight in ages! These old bones are out of shape!”

“Out of shape...” Rojack also sighed, but he wasn’t satisfied. There was a mix of surprise, respect, and disappointment flushed across his face. He looked down at his torso, specifically the upper underbelly. From the shoulder down, a half-krin gash was left on Rojack’s body, letting blood freely trickle out. “... What sort of armor is that?”

“Oh, this? Just something I made up while messing around,” joked Bradok, stretching the shoulder of his punching arm. “You’re the sturdiest fellow I’ve fought yet, that’s for sure! ... Well, I’m ready for more. But I can’t fly, so hurry back down here!”

“Very well... This is a great fight indeed!” Rojak roared, letting his fighting spirit burst into a raging bonfire.

Rojak dove in for the next clash, unleashing a stream of fire from his mouth. It looked like Rojak had become a flaming torpedo, spiraling and speeding through the air with incredible accuracy.

KRREEEECHH!

Again, that head-pounding sound filled the area. It sounded like two sharpened sheets of metal were scraping against each other. Vloz shook off the discomfort, facing that sound with his heightened senses.

KREEEECHH!

KREECH!

KRRREEEEECHHH!!

This repeated over and over again. However, Rojak was no longer holding anything back, whatsoever. Not only was he not repressing his energy slightly, like during the test exchange, but he was actively trying to push past the limits of his essence and natural strength.

Bradok was forced back yet flipped to safety every time. This gave Rojak a slight advantage as a flying beast, letting him attack before Bradok could properly land and dissipate the impact he had taken. However, Bradok’s calm essence and steady movements allowed him to react every time, exchanging blows midair to redirect himself and deflect Rojak away until Bradok could eventually land on the ground.

“W-what is this??” asked Treeda. The question was clearly directed at Zelsh, even though she never took her eyes off the battle.

“That’s a new kind of defense that Bradok invented a few decades back,” answered Zelsh. “He wasn’t kidding. In his boredom, after handing the clan over to Dioro, he would seek me out for sparring matches while always trying new things. Eventually, he created what you see now, a new defensive battle art unique to his Sundering Fist Technique.”

The worry somewhat faded from Warak’s gaze, but not entirely. He asked, “And what’s this art called? What does it do?”

“He calls it Sundering Armor. Have you ever heard the phrase ‘the greatest defense is an invincible offense’? Well, that’s exactly what Bradok did when creating the Sundering Armor.”