Endless Evolution: Last Star

Chapter 1439: Staff of Defeat

Until the very last moment, Menax’s expression remained unchanged. He used his trump card, the mantle covering his shoulders gave him great power and allowed him to use previously inaccessible golden bones.

The limits of his energy had increased, and there were no limits to his power, although he had come quite close to the threshold.

Now, all he could do was watch as the golden arm cut through the wind and the giant palm crashed down on Adam.

“Farewell, Adam,” Menax said inwardly as his eyes narrowed. “You managed to make me use one of my trump cards. I’m sure our battle would have continued a little longer if you had been careful, but in the end, the outcome would have been the same.”

“Hmm?” Menax frowned as a tremor ran through the golden arm. “What the…?”

Crack. Crack. Crack.

Cracks ran through the golden arm as dark flames covered the bottom of the great canyon.

Menax’s eyes widened in shock. He couldn’t believe Adam had found a way to protect himself. He had believed with all his heart that this was the end!

That’s why Menax wasn’t prepared for what happened next:

Whoooooooooosh.

A dark flash shot upward, along the arm, breaking into golden fragments. For a split second, Menax noticed Adam’s figure in the flash, but it was too late.

Adam stood before him as his blue eyes lost their color, becoming completely black like two abysses, deep and dangerous.

Before Menax could react, something rained down on him.

A golden bone appeared in front of Menax as he covered himself with his arm, preparing to block the attack.

TREMBLE!

A shiver ran through his entire body as his face contorted from the enormous, pure power unleashed by a single strike.

The impact threw Menax sideways as he moved at tremendous speed straight toward the bottom of the canyon.

“Bastard! What have you done?!” Menax exclaimed as he crossed his arms. “You’re already dead! Nothing will change that, no matter what trump card you play!”

The golden arms remaining on the ground followed Menax’s gesture. Adam had dodged their previous attack, but now the situation was different, and Menax was personally controlling every movement.

His eyes widened as a dozen golden rays shot toward Adam, who was in the air.

Perhaps a few minutes ago, it would have been difficult for Adam to defend himself or dodge this attack, but now the situation was completely different.

Tap.

He struck the air with his new weapon, and a ripple spread through the air like ripples on the surface of water in several running rings.

“Agh?” Menax blinked as Adam disappeared.

At the same moment, a rumble sounded from the side, causing Menax to turn around. His eyes widened in disbelief as he watched Adam destroy one golden arm after another. With each swing of his weapon, golden pieces flew off to the side.

In the middle of his move, his black eyes moved to the side, meeting Menax’s golden ones.

Tap.

A ripple went out from the dark tip as, in the next moment, something slammed right into Menax’s stomach.

“ARGH!”

A stream of blood gushed from Menax’s mouth, falling on Adam’s cold face.

BAM!

The next strike sent Menax to the bottom of the canyon. A cloud of dust and earth rose with a deafening roar, but Menax could not allow himself to show weakness even for a moment.

Despite the intense pain, he bounced off the ground and created protective barriers of golden bones around himself, looking around intently.

He was waiting for an attack. He was sure that Adam would continue his successful series of strikes.

“You don’t have to worry about that.”

A calm voice came from the side as a gust of wind blew away the dust cloud, revealing Adam.

“You thought you had already won, didn’t you?” Adam asked, slinging his weapon over his shoulder. His gaze was confident and arrogant, just like Menax’s in their last clash. “I’m afraid that was your first big mistake in our fight.”

Menax gulped, looking at Adam.

“You… What is that…?” He muttered while his eyes darted around Adam.

He understood that Adam had played his trump card, so he expected something significant, something devastating from someone like him.

However, Adam’s new ability, or rather his weapon, did not look threatening at all.

Now, in his hands, he held not a sword or even a needle, but a simple, long, black staff. It looked as if it had been carved from a block of black iron and had not even passed through the hands of a blacksmith to finish the job.

The staff had rough edges and blunt tips, they were only slightly pointed, but they could not compare to a real blade.

But that was not all. On Adam’s hands and feet were black boots and gloves made of the same material. They were just as rough, yet they emitted a deep darkness, as if coming from an ancient source.

“Is this your trump card?” Menax muttered. “No, you just created this ability, didn’t you?! Answer me!”

Adam nodded.

“You’re right, your sudden power-up put me in a difficult situation. I had no choice but to evolve. Though it should have happened back in the city.”

“I see…” Menax narrowed his eyes. He was trying to understand what else Adam was capable of. “Tsk. I should have expected this. After all, you are known for becoming stronger through battle.”

Adam tilted his head as he pointed his staff at Menax.

“Aren’t you the same? I can sense it, I can see in your eyes that you’ve been through the same bloody battles as me.”

“Hah, of course you are.” Menax chuckled. “Still, I must admit that I wasn’t prepared to take that risk. You evolved just before you became a bloody stain at the bottom of the canyon. Hah! So that was my mistake!”

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

Menax’s aura burst forth, more powerful than ever.

The first few attacks and Adam’s new power caught him off guard. He wasn’t ready for this, but he could easily admit his failure during the fight because his goal was to become stronger and win. Nothing else mattered.

“Come on! Show me your new power! Show me what you’re capable of, Adam Vinter!”

Adam sighed as his aura left his body, but something was different.

It was no longer a union between darkness and light. Now Menax saw only a dark flame, ready to consume him completely if he was careless.

It was time for a monster like him to feel what it meant to fight against the monster.