Titan King: Ascension of the Giant

Chapter 354 A genuine giant-king duel II

Giant King Balor sucked in a ragged breath, clutching his chest. The piercing pain helped clear his head a bit. If he kept brawling like this, he felt he might be the first to fall, forfeiting all glory and power.

"As you wish. I acknowledge your strength as well, Balor of the Starveil giants!"

In a contest for the Giant King's title, once fists alone fail to force a competitor to submit, the fight escalates to a battle of weapons, growing even bloodier.

After Orion spoke, Giant King Balor turned back to his armor and carefully donned each individual piece. Then, he moved to his spiked club, pulled it from the ground, and slung it over his shoulder.

"I've changed my mind—now I'm going to smash you to pieces!"

With the club in hand, Balor seemed to recover his confidence, brimming with renewed self-assurance.

Orion said nothing. The blood-red Ghostbone Armor appeared once again, covering his entire body. He stretched out one hand, and the trident Flame of Will flew up from the ground into his grip. At the same time, an icy coating formed around Orion's armor.

"You're strong, headstrong, and irrational. I know you'll never bow to me."

"That's why I've decided to kill you."

Still in his berserk state, Orion's intent to kill hadn't faded in the least; in fact, it only grew stronger with a weapon in hand.

"Ha ha ha… Come, entertain me!" Balor let out a wild laugh as he hoisted the spiked club and charged forward.

"Die!"

Not to be outdone, Orion gripped his trident and activated Swift Charge.

Beyond the no-man's-land, beasts of all kinds thundered across the battlefield. Bloodline warriors, armed to the teeth, stormed forward.

Arrows fell like endless shuttles of death; boulders crashed like falling stars. In the fires of war, countless lives ended in sweeping, tragic songs.

Behind the carnage stood Delilah, Onyx, Rockwell, Earthshaker, and Slagor, along with a host of cannon-fodder troops. They kept watch on Starveil City, now bathed in flames, and on their lord Orion's duel with the other giant king.

Before departing, Orion had explicitly ordered that none of the Horde's Alpha-level elders join the battle. Now that he was caught up in the giant-king duel, he couldn't guarantee their safety.

Besides, until Orion and Balor decided the outcome, it was mainly expendable troops clashing below—hardly the true finale.

"This is an intense fight, and they've moved on to the second stage," Onyx observed. As the former ruler of the Black Forest, he understood some of the giants' customs. Indeed, once Orion had advanced to Legendary and gained the title of Giant King, Onyx had made an effort to learn about giant-king traditions.

"Prophet, why isn't our lord going all in—finishing off that Starveil giant in one go?" Rockwell asked. He knew just how mighty Orion truly was. Whether you looked at battle skill or his transcendent power, their lord was terrifyingly strong.

"Rockwell, this is a contest of two giant kings, not a simple skirmish.

To defeat the other fairly and let every giant witness the true power of the Giant King—that's the whole point of this duel.

It may look brutal, but from the very start, it's been a performance for all giants."

While speaking, Onyx gestured behind them at the crowd of giant bloodline warriors. Under Ursa's leadership—along with sentries Dace, Otho, Beyn, and Torba—they knelt in utter devotion, chanting prayers under their breath.

Onyx pointed then to Starveil City. At some point, the giants on the city walls had started kneeling in prayer as well. That left only the Blood Elves and Gnomes actively fighting on the ramparts.

"It's no exaggeration to say that for the giant race, this giant-king duel is a sacred war."

No sooner had Onyx finished speaking than a harsh, metallic clang rang out from the duel's restricted zone.

Inside that zone, the collisions came one after another, relentlessly.

Giant King Orion's trident struck Giant King Balor's spiked club again and again.

After countless clashes, Balor's club snapped in half, the sharper portion crashing to the ground. Clearly, its quality was no match for Orion's Flame of Will.

Even so, Balor ignored it, continuing to drag the half-broken club in his fight with Orion. He was nothing if not a true berserker at heart.

The Starveil giants had received more of the Titan God's darker gifts—they were fiercer, more savage, and refused to bow to any obstacle.

"WAAAGH… I'll kill you. I'll bash in your skull!"

"I'm the real Giant King. The strongest giant wins the crown!" Stay tuned with My Virtual Library Empire

"I'm gonna crush you!"

Balor was in a frenzy, attacking faster and hitting harder with each swing.

Fortunately, he still held on to a sliver of sense—he had not yet drawn on his transcendent power. The second phase was supposed to be a weapons-only match, after all. Anybody who broke that rule would lose the right to be Giant King.

Boom!

Orion sidestepped Balor's wild overhead smash at close range. By now, the ground was a crater-riddled mess from their battle. Seizing his chance, Orion employed Shadowstep, boosting his speed and slipping behind Balor. Before Balor's club could swing back, Orion drove his trident clean through Balor's right arm.

"Let's move to the next phase. You're still not going to beat me in the second stage. You're a hothead, but rage alone isn't real strength."

Orion's tone was cold. Those who knew him well understood his voice went icily calm at the height of his killing intent.

Balor was undeniably formidable—apart from Orion, he might be the mightiest giant alive, maybe even the strongest Legendary warrior on the field.

Orion would have loved to absorb such a powerful giant into his horde, if only he felt confident controlling him. But if Orion wasn't there in person to keep him in check, no one else in the horde could keep Balor under control.

So Balor had to die.

That was why Orion was eager to enter the third phase: the point where they could use transcendent power freely, a life-or-death confrontation.

At that stage, the real war between Orion and Balor would begin.

Listening to Orion, Balor stopped in his tracks. He looked Orion in the eye and said one word, quietly, "Fine."