A dull longsword and a heartbroken villager

The giant serpent Baiji was enormous; the heart of the holy mountain that it entwined was the size of two buildings, so you can imagine how large it was.

Moreover, although the white machine has no concept of magic, it can use magic.

"As an angel, standing behind humans, can I conclude that you have betrayed Heaven?" Bai Ji said coldly, his tone devoid of joy or sorrow.

Despite possessing a mechanical intelligence, He looked down on the Iron race, and even considered many Bronze races to be trash.

His arrogance was, in some ways, even greater than that of the Bronze Age.

When He attacked, He was so focused on talking to Joshua that He completely ignored Bray.

The serpent's attention was entirely focused on the angel, not on Bray.

This comes at a price.

If the fight could be resolved easily, Bray would definitely end it simply.

Because the simpler it is, the smaller the scope of its impact.

"..." Bray showed no emotional fluctuation despite the giant snake white machine's disregard.

His right eye returned to calm the moment the battle began.

There is no passion, but there are more complex emotions.

With his left hand, he slashed down with the longsword, and then immediately with his right hand, he drew the broadsword from behind him and slashed down again.

"Sever." The two slashes overlapped, and the giant snake's tail was severed in response.

Before the white machine could react, its tail was severed.

His entire body was made of a hard metal shell, and even his muscles were as hard as iron.

But why did this guy cut off his own tail with just one sword strike? Why?

His rigid thinking prevented him from understanding all of this.

"Shatter." With this question in mind, the air around Bai Ji began to distort.

The distortion continued to spread, the glass-like ground deformed and bent, and even the most resilient grass was bent into sharp edges.

"Crack—" The entire space was undergoing an incredible transformation, as if everything was about to be ravaged by the White Machine's magic.

The White Machine can use its immense magical power to distort the appearance of everything without changing its essence.

Of course, inanimate objects are fine, but once living things are distorted by the White Machine's abilities, they are doomed.

Under normal circumstances, one can only use magic or internal energy to resist it.

But Bray didn't have that, so he needed to use another method.

"Clang!!!" The black broadsword plunged into the ground and disappeared into the snow-white grass.

Ripples, invisible to the naked eye, spread out.

One node after another was easily torn apart by the spreading ripples.

The distortion caused by the giant serpent Baiji was corrected by a single sword strike.

The Ancient Sword School was originally created to counter mages and heavily armored warriors, so that melee weapons could once again dominate the battlefield.

However, unknowingly, in Bray's hands, this school of thought gradually surpassed its original application.

After all, it's not just warriors who have thick armor, and it's not just mages who know magic.

"The node has been destroyed?" The female voice of the giant snake Baiji gradually became hoarse, losing its previous ethereal quality.

He was in great pain, but remained emotionally detached, filled only with doubt.

No blood flowed from His wounds, but particle-like magic continued to flow out.

Bray silently picked up the broadsword from the ground again and glanced at the giant snake.

The giant serpent opened its blood-red maw, its mouth filled with condensed magical power, causing the air to vibrate.

He guards the heart of the sacred mountain, and from which he can also draw endless magical power.

He did not believe that a human being could outlast him.

Bray also thought it wouldn't work.

From that sphere, Bray could sense a vast magical power, enough to power an entire sacred mountain.

If the white machine uses this magic to fight, it will indeed have an unlimited arsenal.

In a direct confrontation, no one could outgun the White Machine's ammunition reserves in this area.

Unfortunately, Bray doesn't know how to fight either; he doesn't know any magic at all.

He didn't intend to prolong the fight; he knew his stamina was limited, a far cry from that of the monster.

The giant serpent had countless attack methods, and in its view, its opponent had no chance of withstanding them.

Even if you manage to parry one round, it's impossible to parry ten.

He wanted to make the Ironborn understand that they were weak! Weak in every way.

"Boom!" A beam of light, after being charged up, slammed into the ground.

Bray moved his position well in advance.

Then he dodged it.

"BOOM!!!" The fangs lunged at Bray, trying to tear him apart.

Bray swung his sword in the direction of the opponent's attack.

Then it slapped open the giant snake's head.

The strong wind generated by the collision made it impossible for people behind to open their eyes.

Bray indeed didn't have much energy to defend against the White Machine's ten-round offensive.

But there's no need for him to parry ten rounds; that would be unnecessary.

In the howling wind, Bray somehow managed to distance himself from the giant snake.

It was a very delicate distance; it seemed like the giant snake could strike at any moment, yet there was also enough space to dodge.

The distance may seem far, but it can be sprinted over in a short period of time.

Sometimes, this is the distance needed to lay a mine.

The broadsword flew from his hand, and a dragon drawn in ink wash style coiled around the pitch-black blade.

The moment the dragon's roar rang out, Bray's figure vanished from the spot.

He, along with the other dragon drawn by the sword in his hand and his inner energy, chased after the dark dragon.

The roars of the two dragons intertwined and never ceased.

Although they were clearly formed from internal energy, they gave the impression that they were truly dragons, or even more terrifying than real dragons.

If I had to explain it, it would be because of a single word – “势” (shì).

"My Flow" "Azure Dragon"

With a sudden roar, the black sword pinned the giant serpent's body to the sphere.

Before the giant serpent could struggle, a second, thunderous dragon roar resounded.

A long sword, like a calligraphy brush, added a heavy stroke to the drawing paper.

The stroke landed on the giant snake's head.

If only one move is needed, then all that's needed is to deliver that sword strike decisively and cleanly.

"Thump—" The white snake's head fell heavily onto the white grass.

The body wrapped around the sphere gradually detached from its stiffness and limpness.

Bray glanced casually at the giant snake's body and sheathed the two swords.

His position was perfectly positioned in front of Naruko, Levy, and Nia, preventing the sandstorm from blowing past him and behind them.

“Alright,” Bray said, his back to Joshua.

The battle unfolded without any suspense, as if the outcome had been predetermined long ago.

A sacred beast, powerful even to angels, was easily slain by a single person. The battle was so simple it seemed the outcome was never in doubt.

But Bray himself did not have this idea.

He was able to defeat the Silver type purely because he had a way to counter concepts. Against someone who is strong even without relying on concepts, he might not be able to defeat them.

He held onto this belief and continued fighting.

A win is a win; there's no other positive assessment.

Bray turned his head and saw his little darling clapping enthusiastically.

"Eee-ya!!!" Nia jumped up, then lay back down and shouted.

Honestly, did Nia really understand what just happened? Or was she simply excited because she saw something crack?

"..." Joshua did not immediately speak to Bray, but instead looked at the corpse of the giant snake Baiji with a very complicated expression.

The giant serpent Baiji was not wrong at all, but Joshua did not think his choice was wrong either.

He stared blankly at the enormous heart of the holy mountain before him, wondering how the other third-order angels would view him if they knew he had done such a thing.

They might say they don't respect tradition or keep their vows.

Moreover, Joshua was unable to refute these assessments because He had indeed done such things.

The giant serpent Baiji faithfully guarded the heart of the holy mountain for the angels, but was killed by someone sent by the angels.

If He hadn't died completely, He would have been heartbroken.

But all of this is meaningful to Him.

“I really envy you, Blakeras,” Joshua said abruptly.

He didn't discuss the current situation with Bray, but instead expressed his feelings about something else.

"You envy me?" Bray looked at Joshua with a puzzled expression.

“Yes, your family is really complete,” Joshua said wistfully, his tone tinged with envy.

But there was no jealousy.

"You have a good wife, and you have two good daughters."

“I only have one daughter.” Bray shook his head, having no idea where Joshua’s second daughter came from.

Joshua paused for a few seconds, then exchanged a glance with the adorable Levy.

"Hmm?" Levy swayed her tail gently and tilted her head, wondering why Joshua was looking at her.

“Really? You only have one daughter.” Joshua sighed. He had assumed that Levy was also Bray’s daughter.

Because Levy and Bray are just like family.

Perhaps the two really are family, just family without any blood ties.

Sometimes, those with blood ties cannot be called family, while at other times, those without blood ties are the true "family."

“Cherish your family,” Joshua told Bray.

“I have always cherished it.” Bray neither nodded nor shook his head, but simply looked calmly at Joshua, who was a head taller than him.

Family is a very subtle thing.

Different experiences can lead to completely different images of family members in a person's eyes.

Perhaps it's hatred, perhaps it's love.

For Bray, who was adopted, family is very precious.

"That's good." Joshua glanced at Naruko, who was hugging Nia, then looked down at his teddy bear and gave a strange smile.

"By the way, how old are your children?" When Joshua asked this question, it gave Bray the feeling of women on the street talking about other people's children.

Bray's expression became subtle.

Real angels aren't genderless like in the legends, but this angel looks male no matter how you look at it.

"A few months, almost a year old," Bray said without hiding anything, except for Nia's age.