The Immortal Genius Spearman

Chapter 159

Galveron suppressed his mounting unease as he stared at Damian.

The form before him was unlike anything he had ever seen.

‘An aura in the shape of a human…? Has there ever been such a thing?’

Forming an aura into any detailed shape was an incredibly difficult feat.

Most auras typically took on simple shapes. Even the serpent-like form of his own aura was considered a rare anomaly.

Swoosh.

Galveron glanced up at the enormous general-like figure above Damian.

Its piercing eyes radiated a sense of menace, and the spear in its hand seemed ready to strike at any moment.

‘How did he manage this…?’

But the most baffling question wasn’t the aura’s form—it was how Damian had come to wield aura at all.

Galveron asked, “...Were you hiding your strength all along?”

“Who knows? What do you think?” Damian responded with a mocking smirk, causing Galveron’s brow to twitch.

Had Damian been strategically concealing his ability to use aura during their previous encounter?

‘No, there were too many dire situations for that to be possible.’

Back then, if Hainel hadn’t intervened, Damian and his subordinates would have perished.

If that was the case…

‘Could he have grown this much in such a short time…?’

Damn it. Was that even possible?

It had been only a few months since their last encounter. At that time, Damian had shown no signs of possessing aura.

‘How could someone who wasn’t even close to mastering aura now wield it so powerfully?’

Yet if, by some chance, Damian had truly grown to this level in the intervening time…

Grit.

Galveron clenched his jaw and glared at Damian.

If it was true, there was no way he could allow Damian to live.

‘This man has already broken through one threshold. Who knows how far he’ll climb if given more time?’

Galveron’s gaze burned with murderous intent.

“What’s the matter? Are we just going to stare each other down all day?” Damian taunted, grinning as if to provoke him further.

The imperial soldiers around them didn’t dare to approach Damian.

They had witnessed it with their own eyes—the inhuman, transcendent power an Aura Master wielded.

If Damian unleashed his aura here…

‘We’d all die.’

‘I don’t want to die…!’

‘Am I really going to die here…?’

Fear gripped the imperial soldiers, their faces pale. Though they knew death was always a possibility on the battlefield, standing at its threshold filled them with terror.

Step by hesitant step, the soldiers retreated, but there was nowhere to flee along the narrow forest path.

Then—

Crunch!

“Gahhhh!”

“W-Wilson!”

The sound of chaos and screams erupted from the rear, intensifying Galveron’s urgency.

Even without looking, he knew what was happening.

Grit.

Galveron tightened his grip on his sword, furious at himself for faltering just from seeing an aura.

Boom!

The massive black serpent coiled around him again as his aura surged.

“Come on, then! Let’s see what you’ve got!”

With a roar, Galveron charged at Damian, swinging his sword.

Clang!

The clash of their weapons sent shockwaves rippling through the area, knocking nearby soldiers to the ground with screams.

And then—

“Hup!”

Galveron inhaled sharply, aiming his blade at Damian’s heart in a precise thrust.

Swoosh!

It was a flawless attack, perfectly executed.

But Damian evaded it, quickly stepping back.

If Galveron chose to fight with a sword instead of relying on his aura…

‘I won’t retreat.’

Damian countered immediately, thrusting his spear toward Galveron.

Whoosh!

“...!”

Galveron twisted his body just in time to avoid the spear, its trajectory unnervingly precise.

The sharpness of the attack made him scowl.

“Damn you…!”

Thwack!

Galveron retaliated with a barrage of wild strikes, but Damian deflected each one with calm precision, steadily widening the gap between them.

Where once it had been difficult for Damian to keep up with Galveron’s swordsmanship…

‘Now I can see it.’

Clearly.

The rigorous sparring sessions with Hainel had elevated Damian’s combat skills to a new level.

With every clash, Damian grew more accustomed to Galveron’s movements.

‘Left shoulder.’

Swish!

‘Right leg.’

Thud!

Damian sidestepped effortlessly, causing Galveron’s sword to slice through empty air.

Whoosh!

“...”

Galveron’s expression began to shift, a hint of unease creeping onto his face.

The opponent who had struggled to block his attacks earlier was now dodging them all.

‘What’s going on…?’

A chill ran down Galveron’s spine.

It felt as if he were fighting a ghost.

‘He’s anticipating all my moves.’

It was as though Damian already knew where and how he would strike.

‘Can he really see everything?’

Could he predict even his masterful swordsmanship?

Galveron’s eyes burned with disbelief.

“Impossible!”

Even without his aura, Galveron was one of the strongest in the empire.

How could this young upstart see through his swordsmanship?

‘This is absurd…!’

It couldn’t be true.

“Hyaaaah!”

Galveron roared as he swung his sword in a wide arc, aiming for Damian’s neck.

Whoosh!

It was a heavy, overcommitted slash.

Damian’s eyes gleamed.

‘He’s wavering, isn’t he…?’

Could someone who had reached the level of an Aura Master truly lose their composure over something like this?

To confirm his suspicions, Damian continued evading Galveron’s attacks, carefully observing his movements.

If Galveron truly had lost control of his emotions, it was only a matter of time before he unleashed a reckless, powerful strike.

Whoosh!

“You bastard! Stop dodging and face me!”

Swish!

“Slippery little wretch!”

Galveron’s eyes blazed with murderous intent.

Vrrrrrm!

A faint vibration spread as Galveron’s sword became engulfed with overwhelming mana.

The force of the aura wavered unstably—it was recklessly focused into a single, all-or-nothing blow.

And in that moment—

‘Now…!’

Damian gritted his teeth and launched the strike he had been preparing.

Swish!

The blue aura enveloping Damian’s spear flared brilliantly, radiating with a power that had been carefully built up over time.

Unlike Galveron’s hastily summoned power, Damian’s aura was fully controlled, honed to its peak.

“Haaaaah!”

With a shout, Damian swung his spear, deflecting Galveron’s sword.

Clang!

A deafening crash reverberated through the air, the force of the impact sending searing pain through Damian’s hands.

In fact, the force was so great that the skin of his palms tore open, blood seeping from the wounds.

“...!”

Galveron’s expression faltered as he stumbled back, his sword knocked aside.

‘What the hell…?’

The blow he had just delivered had concentrated an enormous amount of mana. It wasn’t an attack meant to be countered—at best, it could be dodged.

And yet, Damian had not only met it head-on but completely deflected it.

It was a momentary lapse in focus, but it was all Damian needed.

“You little—!”

As Galveron struggled to recover his balance and retrieve his sword, Damian seized the opening.

Whoosh!

With a piercing sound, Damian’s spear shot toward Galveron’s chest, aiming directly for his heart.

The speed and precision of the strike left no room for error, a blow meant to end the fight in a single move.

Galveron desperately raised his sword sideways to block the spear.

But—

Thunk!

Damian suddenly redirected the spear mid-thrust, driving it into Galveron’s right thigh.

Squelch!

The spearhead buried itself deep into Galveron’s leg.

“Arghhhh!”

Galveron’s scream tore through the battlefield as blood dripped from his wounded thigh to the ground.

Shluck!

When Damian pulled the spear free, blood gushed from the wound, and Galveron stumbled back, his leg trembling beneath him.

“Gah…!”

The depth of the injury caught him off guard. His leg felt weak, causing him to limp as he retreated.

“You damn brat…!” Galveron spat through gritted teeth, glaring venomously at Damian.

But Damian didn’t give him time to recover.

Whoosh!

He surged forward, exploiting the opportunity with relentless aggression.

“Hyaah!”

Swish!

This time, his spear shot toward Galveron’s shoulder.

Clang!

Galveron barely managed to block the strike, but his thoughts were in disarray.

Damian’s attacks were strange, unpredictable.

Even while aiming for the shoulder, Galveron couldn’t be certain if it was the real target or a feint.

The mixture of genuine and deceptive strikes in Damian’s spear techniques left Galveron reeling.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Crash!

With every clash, Galveron’s expression grew darker and more contorted.

On top of everything, the injury to his leg severely hindered his mobility.

‘Damn it…!’

By now, he had no choice but to acknowledge the truth.

Even without aura, this man…

‘He’s stronger than me.’

Grit.

Galveron bit down hard on his lip, drawing blood.

‘Damn it…!’

The sheer humiliation made his rage boil over, and he felt something snap inside him.

At that moment—

ROARRRR!

The massive black serpent of Galveron’s aura surged upward, letting out a deafening bellow.

The sheer force of the unleashed aura swept across the battlefield like a hurricane.

“It’s his aura!”

“Everyone, run!”

“Get out of here!”

The officers and soldiers scrambled in all directions, desperate to escape the destructive energy.

Some clawed their way up the steep incline, while others threw themselves down the dangerously steep slope—anything to get away from the impending carnage.

Watching the chaos unfold, Damian muttered under his breath, “You’re insane, aren’t you?”

Swoosh.

Damian steadied his stance, focusing his own aura.

He could only use it once, but…

‘There’s no better chance than now to test it.’

Would his aura be enough to overcome Galveron’s?

“Haaaaah!”

BOOM!

The ground trembled violently as Damian’s aura erupted outward.

ROARRR!

The mounted general formed by Damian’s aura let out a furious roar, raising its spear high as it charged toward Galveron’s black serpent.

“Cut it down!”

As the two auras collided—

KABOOM!

A massive shockwave rippled outward, shaking the entire mountain as the two forces clashed with devastating power.