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Staring up at the dragon hovering high above, Koman locked eyes with those contemptuous golden pupils. An uncontrollable fury rose within him.

"You dare ignore me!"

"I am Koman, son of Kasa Eternal Frost, the last heir of the Eternal Frost Tribe, an avenger from the Abyss, and the giant destined to bury you!"

The fallen giant’s eyes widened, roaring towards the heavens.

Cracks spread across his massive, twisted body, dark yellow Abyssal light seeping through.

"Wrath of the Abyss!"

With a thunderous roar, Koman hurled the black spear skyward. Abyssal torrents surged upward, hurtling towards the red dragon in the sky.

Within the torrent were surging chaotic energies and the wails of countless anguished souls, fragments of struggling limbs flickering amidst the black mist.

Cassius sneered.

"So, a remnant of the Frost Giants."

"It seems my previous actions were not thorough enough—should’ve eradicated every last root."

While speaking, Cassius abruptly veered, his wings cutting sharply through the air as he ascended.

Yet, the black spear followed, tracing an elegant arc through the sky, turning as it struggled to keep up with the red dragon.

"Oh, so it has homing capabilities?"

Cassius raised an eyebrow slightly, pulling his wings closer to his body and quickly widening the gap by hundreds of meters.

On the ground, Koman strained with all his might, his expression twisted, pouring an unending supply of Abyssal energy into the spear.

The fallen giant glared up at the red dragon tearing through the sky. Seeing the black spear chasing its target, he burst into maniacal laughter.

"Cassius! You cowardly lizard!"

"The Spear of Vengeance will pursue you until it pierces your heart!"

A deep demonic voice echoed in Koman’s mind, filling him with even greater fervor.

"Yes, just like that. Drink from the Mother’s abyssal teat. Pin your enemy to the ground."

Cassius didn’t respond. He simply began slowing down, letting the black spear close in.

As the spear, imbued with Abyssal power, neared striking distance, Cassius abruptly exhaled flames in all directions, invoking his will to cast a spell.

[Into the Flames]

In the next moment, his massive form suddenly transformed into a surging sea of fire, forming a blazing curtain in the sky.

The black spear, charged with Abyssal energy, shot straight through, only to miss its target entirely. Its terrifying velocity propelled it forward, though it was gradually slowing.

Just as the spear was about to reverse direction, now creeping slowly, the flames coalesced, and the red dragon reappeared.

Cassius experimentally probed the Abyssal torrent with a force-field spell, noting how every space touched by the torrent caused the Weave to twist into chaos, plunging it into an elusive disarray.

"Interesting little toy."

"But... this experiment is over."

Cassius grinned viciously, extending his claw slightly. A thin ray of anti-magic shot forth.

At the very moment that unassuming ray touched the black spear, the ancient runes carved along the spear’s shaft dimmed, and the surrounding Abyssal torrent dissipated into nothingness.

"Crack!"

A sharp sound echoed. The spear’s shaft splintered with countless fractures before shattering completely into scattered fragments.

"No—!"

Koman let out a wail from the ground.

The "Spear of Vengeance" had been forged over three years, imbued with his hatred and nurtured by an endless flow of Abyssal energy, made to pierce his enemy’s heart.

Yet, with a mere eighth-circle disjunction spell, Cassius had shattered the spear that had taken countless efforts to create.

"If that was all you had, then this fight is far too dull."

Cassius extended both claws, effortlessly tearing through space as though it were paper. A flaming fissure appeared in the air.

"Rip—"

Alongside the crisp sound, sharp talons materialized behind the fallen giant.

The red dragon tore through the fragile space, emerging from the rift—first came his fierce, four-horned head, followed by his long, thick neck, and then his powerful torso and broad wings.

Cassius stood on his powerful hind legs, wings unfurled, casting a colossal shadow that nearly engulfed the giant.

Koman spun around quickly, involuntarily tilting his head back.

Before the nearly thirty-meter-long dragon, Koman—though standing ten meters tall and surpassing the limits of the Frost Giant race—seemed dwarfed like a child.

Cassius bared his teeth in a sinister grin.

"Got you."

In the next instant, the red dragon’s massive body bore down on the giant, crushing him beneath its weight like a scarlet mountain. The muscled arms, covered in thick scales, flexed with bulging veins, the sharp claws pinning Koman to the ground.

"Boom!"

A resounding crash echoed, the earth cracked like a spiderweb. Half of Koman’s body was sunken into the ground, black and red blood splattering everywhere, along with unidentified internal organs spilling from his mouth.

This was the strength of the awakened red dragon—power beyond any mortal being.

"You are nothing compared to your father. So far beneath him."

"At least he could give me a bit of a challenge. You, however—are merely an abomination forcibly enhanced by the Abyss. If your patron were Kostetchi, the Raging Lord of the Frost Giants, I might have given you some consideration."

Cassius pressed down with force, relishing the repeated sensation of flesh and bone cracking under his claws. He slightly opened his jaw, extreme heat welling up from deep in his throat.

"So, farewell—so-called avenger."

"No!"

"Revenge... I need more power!"

Meanwhile, Koman let out a howl, using all his remaining strength to raise his trembling arm skyward.

"Lord Jezal Slak, please..."

His mouth overflowed with viscous blood and torn flesh, yet his pleas did not cease.

"This is the last time. I will demand payment."

Finally, a cold response echoed from the void.

At the very moment Cassius unleashed his blinding white flame, Koman turned semi-transparent. Spatial vortices rapidly formed around him, and in a flash of lightning, he vanished, leaving his twisted silhouette imprinted on nearby walls.

Immediately, Abyssal energy gathered, and the giant’s form reappeared in the distance.

Cassius’s breath hit nothing, merely scorching the earth and leaving a deep, charred crater.

"Oh?"

"This just got interesting."

The red dragon slowly closed his maw, golden eyes glinting with a trace of surprise.