Both were top-tier elemental-type Imperial Arms users, and their abilities were nearly evenly matched.
No matter what kind of attack Esdeath launched with her powers, Uesugi Ryu was able to defend against it and retaliate.
However, the real battle had only just begun.
As Esdeath continued using her abilities, the blizzard gradually grew stronger.
Visibility on the battlefield became extremely poor, but it had little effect on either of them.
Uesugi Ryu possessed golden eyes, so the snowstorm posed no obstacle to him whatsoever.
As for Esdeath, as the ruler of this domain, she naturally had no need to care about such things.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The piercing sound of air being torn apart by high-speed movement rang through the battlefield.
Uesugi Ryu teleported directly to Esdeath's side and threw a punch at her face.
There was barely any time to react.
Esdeath's pupils contracted as she immediately raised both arms and crossed them in front of herself to block.
The punch landed solidly.
The monstrous force, enough to shatter a small mountain, instantly surged through Esdeath's entire body.
The heels of her boots dug deep into the ice as she was sent flying backward uncontrollably.
Before Esdeath could disperse the force and stabilize herself, Uesugi Ryu's figure blurred and vanished.
The next attack was already on its way.
The heel of Esdeath's boot, embedded in the ice, instantly fused with the frozen ground.
Powerful resistance rose from beneath her feet, causing her center of gravity to shift and forcing her upper body backward.
The next moment, Uesugi Ryu appeared beside her.
His sweeping kick barely missed the tip of her nose.
Esdeath's long hair brushed the ground.
Her sharp combat instincts immediately drove her to counterattack.
Taking advantage of the instant Uesugi Ryu's attack missed.
Her hand formed a claw.
Sharp ice spikes extended from her fingertips as she viciously slashed toward the base of Uesugi Ryu's supporting leg.
In an instant, a chill ran through his lower body.
His male instincts immediately sounded a powerful warning.
Without hesitation, he reached out and grabbed Esdeath's wrist, neutralizing the danger.
However, this also left Uesugi Ryu in an extremely awkward position, his balance temporarily disrupted.
The corners of Esdeath's lips curved upward slightly.
Planting one hand on the ground, she used the momentum to twist her body and swung her right leg outward, kicking Uesugi Ryu directly in the lower back.
A sharp pain shot through him.
Uesugi Ryu let out a muffled groan and immediately released her wrist, sliding away to the side.
Esdeath regained her freedom and instantly got back up to continue the assault.
However, at some point, a thin strand of blood had appeared around her wrist, connected directly to Uesugi Ryu.
The moment she stood up, the blood strand suddenly thickened, transforming into a rope that tightly bound her wrist.
Uesugi Ryu, who had slid away, planted his feet firmly on the ground and stabilized himself.
Twisting his waist, he turned around.
The muscles in his arm bulged as he violently yanked on the blood rope.
The tremendous force instantly shattered Esdeath's balance.
Her expression changed.
She was swung around and hurled into the air.
A powerful sensation of weightlessness washed over her, immediately accompanied by an intense sense of danger.
Thick layers of ice rapidly covered her body, wrapping her completely in an attempt to defend against the incoming attack.
Below, Uesugi Ryu clasped his hands together and aimed at Esdeath in midair.
A massive amount of blood gathered within his palms.
Under terrifying pressure, it condensed into a solid form.
Scalding steam rose from his hands.
From the deliberately left gap between his middle fingers, a jet-black crimson blood arrow compressed to its absolute limit shot forth.
The blood arrow drew a perfectly straight line through the air, tearing apart the atmosphere with a shrill scream.
Puff! Puff! Puff! Puff!
The thick layers of ice were as fragile as glass before the blood arrow.
They shattered one layer after another.
Inside the ice, Esdeath's pupils contracted.
Before she could reinforce her defenses further.
The blood arrow broke through every obstacle and pierced directly into her smooth, fair abdomen.
Fortunately, the layers of ice had weakened part of the impact.
The blood arrow failed to penetrate completely through her body.
Ignoring the wound in her abdomen, Esdeath immediately pushed her powers to their limits.
A gigantic iceberg rose abruptly from the ground, forming an impregnable fortress around her.
Blood flowed continuously from the penetrating wound in her abdomen.
Esdeath quickly pressed a hand against the injury and froze it shut to stop the bleeding.
"Huff... huff... huff..."
Her breathing became slightly heavier.
The pain did not discourage her.
Instead, Esdeath laughed excitedly.
The massive iceberg fortress did not last long.
A gigantic blood-red crescent stretching between heaven and earth swept silently across the battlefield.
The next moment.
The thick iceberg slowly slid apart along a perfectly smooth cut.
Boom!!
Half of the iceberg crashed down.
Towering waves of snow erupted outward in every direction.
Uesugi Ryu took several steps forward and slowly walked toward Esdeath.
Esdeath possessed far more combat experience than he did.
When their basic physical abilities were not vastly different, it was difficult to gain a decisive advantage.
As he advanced, large patches of jet-black scales gradually spread across Uesugi Ryu's upper body.
The rapidly expanding scales interlocked with one another, forming a breastplate wreathed in black flames.
The armor looked savage and menacing, covered with jagged spikes like mountain ridges.
Scales spread over his entire body.
A dragon-shaped helmet gradually covered his face.
In less than a few seconds, his body expanded to nearly two meters in height, transforming him into a humanoid black dragon.
Dark flames erupted from the grooves of the armor like fires from hell.
The scorching heat melted the surrounding snow and ice.
Mist-like steam filled the area around him.
Uesugi Ryu raised his golden vertical pupils.
A muffled voice echoed from within the helmet.
"I haven't used this ability at full power since obtaining it. I can finish you in one minute."
The scales rubbed against one another, producing metallic sounds.
He lowered his body slightly.
His sharp dragon claws sank deep into the icy ground.
Boom!
A circular shockwave exploded outward.
The ground beneath him collapsed into a crater dozens of meters wide, as though struck by a meteor.
Uesugi Ryu's figure completely disappeared from Esdeath's sight.
Every hair on her body stood on end.
A threat of death washed over her.
Esdeath shuddered slightly.
Then the corners of her mouth curled upward, revealing gleaming white teeth.
"Turned into a monster? Hahaha, now that's interesting!"
She raised both hands and brought them together in front of her chest.
With a soft shout, she activated her ultimate technique.
"Mahāpadma!"
Crack. Crack-crack...
Absolute cold swept across the battlefield.
The air itself emitted crisp cracking sounds as if it were freezing solid.
Uesugi Ryu's figure suddenly appeared several meters away.
He was still charging forward.
However, his speed had noticeably decreased.
Uesugi Ryu had anticipated Esdeath's move but its actual effect was somewhat disappointing.
It could not truly be called freezing time and space.
Seeing that his speed had slowed, Esdeath smiled and explained.
"I'm faster now. Specifically to counter your special technique!"
As she spoke, she charged toward Uesugi Ryu.
A gigantic ice hammer appeared in her hands.
The head of the hammer was massive, topped with a thick and razor-sharp spike.
Esdeath knew that the scales covering Uesugi Ryu's body possessed extremely high defensive power.
To deal with armor, blunt weapons were naturally the best choice.
At the same time, an ice wall rose behind Uesugi Ryu, cutting off his retreat.
Esdeath widened her stance and gripped the hammer tightly with both hands.
A fierce light shone in her eyes as she spoke excitedly.
"You're the one who's going down in a minute!"