The Moonlight Swordsman

Meanwhile, Aizel remained trapped in the mountain's deep crater, his gaze fixed on the battle between Pafugl and Soren.

He examined the thick layers of rock that had formed around his stomach, back, and head, protecting him from harm.

"This Grade II core is really stronger than the Grade I.

"I didn't suffer any injuries; just a bit of slight body pain. But damn, that peacock is strong." He thought.

Aizel scrambled out of the mountain's deep crater as he heard the monster's triumphant roar and saw Soren flung away once more by its powerful wind blast.

Soren found himself trapped on a small boulder as the monster flew towards him with its sharp blade feathers. The monster began to slash through the air with its deadly weapons, striking him with relentless stabs.

He dodged and deflected the monster's sharp blade feathers, but the blades still managed to cut his hands and face as he struggled to stay on his feet.

A crackling bolt of lightning surged through the water, emerging with a blinding flash in front of Soren.

The monster was caught off guard, stunned by the sudden jolt of electricity, but Soren remained unscathed. Aizel had been concentrating hard on controlling the lightning and directing it solely at the monster.

Soren took advantage of the situation and unleashed a barrage of punches on the monster's stomach, not allowing it to recover from the lightning attack. He finished with a swift and powerful kick to the monster's chest, which sent it flying several feet away.

*groan*

Soren winced and groaned, clutching his right side, where a twinge of pain shot through his ribs.

Aizel's gaze followed the monster's flight path as it flew through the air. Despite the blow, the Pafugl's powerful wings continued to function, giving it some control over its flight.

"Soren hasn't used any magic since I have seen him fighting, so I guess he was using mana to run on the water.

"Let me try it too with lightning; let's see how much Grade II energy can enhance my magic power."

Aizel leaped from the cliff and landed on the river below as he watched the monster fly through the air. He enhanced his feet with a burst of mana and began running on the water's surface.

"Hahahha… This is so fun; let's have a proper fight, shall we?"

Aizel's feet touched the water's surface, and with a quick leap, he began running across the river's surface, each step sparking with crackling energy.

The Pafugl landed with a thud on the water, but before it could recover, Aizel was on it, his fists blurring as he pummeled the monster with lightning-fast punches, each one landing with a resounding thud.

The monster struggled to respond, its body jolting with each blow as it devolved into a helpless punching bag for Aizel's lightning-enhanced fists.

Suddenly, the monster let out a deafening scream and unleashed a powerful gust of wind, using its magic to create a wave that surged toward Aizel.

The force of the wind was so strong that it stopped him in his tracks, making it difficult for him to move forward.

With the wind stream in his path, Aizel furrowed his brow in concentration, trying to think of a way around it. He had an epiphany and clasped his hands together in front of him, unleashing a powerful bolt of lightning that began to tear through the gusts.

He shifted his body position to be as streamlined as possible in order to slice through the wind like an F1 car racing down a track. He eventually broke free of the wind stream and resumed his pursuit of the monster.

Aizel quickly closed in on the monster and unleashed a powerful uppercut that struck it square in the jaw.

Without missing a beat, he followed up with a barrage of lightning-fast punches to its chest, each one infused with mana and lightning to increase its potency. The monster struggled to retaliate, stunned by Aizel's sudden ferocity.

As the monster struggled to defend itself, Aizel grabbed its beak with both hands, determined to beat it. He aimed to break the creature's beak and weaken its defenses with a series of swift and powerful knee strikes.

A gust of wind suddenly emanated from the monster's claw, as it fiercely kicked Aizel away.

As Aizel stumbled away from the monster, he noticed that it had begun to fire small wind blasts from its beak at breakneck speed, each shot aimed directly at him like a hail of bullets.

He began darting across the water's surface, his gaze fixed on the monster's beak, anticipating the next round of wind blasts.

When they arrived, he reacted quickly, zigzagging in unpredictable patterns to avoid the projectiles.

Each miss caused a deafening boom and massive waves of water to splash around him, demonstrating the tremendous force behind the wind bullets.

As Aizel ran across the water's surface, he placed his palms on it and summoned lightning energy, resulting in a brilliant display of crackling electricity.

The lightning snaked through the water, striking the monster with incredible force and halting its assault. The monster staggered in disbelief, dazed by the sudden burst of lightning.

He took advantage of the situation and charged at full speed toward the monster.

Aizel approached the monster with vigor, but the beast was not going down without a fight. Its tail suddenly bloomed, and sharp, lethal blades shot out, ready to strike him.

"Sekki"

"ting* *ting* *ting* *ting* *ting* *ting* *ting* *ting*…..

Aizel brandished his sword, the blade gleaming in the sunlight, as he deftly deflected each sharp blade that shot from the monster's tail at him. Despite the danger, he kept his gaze fixed on his prey and rushed toward it with unwavering determination.

As he got closer to the monster, Aizel summoned his dagger and imbued it with mana and lightning. He aimed the dagger at the monster's head and propelled it forward with lightning-fast reflexes.

*Crackling*…

The lightning-enhanced dagger zips toward the monster's head, crackling with lightning energy. The monster managed to avoid it by tilting its head, but not without being cut in the face by the blade's sharp edge.

As the monster tried to regain control, it became aware of a powerful force behind it. Aizel had leaped into the air, the lightning surrounding him giving him the appearance of a deity.

He held the same dagger, but this time it was enhanced with even more mana and lightning. Aizel's lightning-fast strike caught the monster off guard, the dagger penetrating deep into its back.