The Laughing Swordsman

Apollo continued to slam his waist against the ground while Willow was embracing him.

What exactly was he trying to accomplish?

He slammed his waist down one last time. A quiet tearing sound rang out.

Apollo slowly dragged himself backwards with just his feet, carrying Willow with him.

As for Willow, she was none the wiser. She was still lost in her daydreams.

Eventually, Apollo stopped. He turned his head to the side, eyes on a small black pouch.

It was the pouch with the food pellets inside. The majority of the fifty food pellets still hadn't been consumed.

Apollo couldn't use his arms, so he had little choice. He picked up the pouch with his mouth and directly swallowed it whole.

Willow furrowed her brows.

"What are you doing, Apollo?"

Willow saw his actions but did not understand what Apollo was going to accomplish. Perhaps if she did, Apollo would have lost the battle right here.

Instead, Apollo abruptly stood up, throwing Willow off of him.

Once the pouch reached his stomach, it disintegrated without being able to put up an ounce of resistance. The food pellets all boiled within his stomach acid, rapidly becoming the nutrients he needed.

His body rapidly regenerated, releasing intense waves of heat. His bones mended themselves while his flesh regrew. In a matter of seconds, flesh and bones twisted to Apollo an entirely new arm.

There had been little skin on Apollo's body. After all, most of it was torn off by the shockwaves he suffered.

However, what little skin that remained on his body decayed, falling off of him. New skin began to emerge from his body, appearing eerily smooth. The skin was far more pale than his old skin and even shone with a bright luster.

Apollo had evolved once again.

While Willow was still in shock, Apollo dashed for his bokken.

Willow's eyes narrowed.

Apollo's bokken was still being held by his previous arm, despite being detached. Apollo used both hands in an attempt to pry it open.

However, he only broke off the tip of his old fingers. The hand still firmly grasped his bokken.

Willow dashed over with a cold expression on her face. Her jet-black sword was raised.

Apollo giggled.

There was no time.

He picked up the base of his arm and swung it towards Willow. The blades clashed. Willow took a step back while the old arm in Apollo's hand recoiled violently.

However, the bokken was still firmly within the old arm's grasp.

Willow's eyelid twitched.

Someone could even fight this way?

Apollo's pupils shook.

"I will only die after taking you with me first!"

Sinister laughter seeped out of Apollo's lips. He raised his old arm in the air, letting it flail around lifelessly.

He dashed forward, swinging his new strange weapon at Willow.

As for Willow, a small frown appeared on her face.

How did he heal so easily?

She tossed away that thought quickly. There was no time to wonder.

Apollo swung his arm, but his strike was relatively slow because of the fact he was essentially swinging the world's strangest flail.

Willow dodged it easily before thrusting her sword towards Apollo's head.

As for Apollo, he did not appear to be concerned. He was able to wield his old arm with a strange deftness that made one wonder if he had practiced fighting like this before.

Willow's sword collided with the bokken, hitting just above the base of its hilt. A rippling shockwave spread out, tearing off what little skin the old arm had left.

However, Apollo himself was fine. The shockwave passed through him, but did not tear his skin.

Willow disappeared before materializing a few meters backward. Her brows furrowed.

Why wasn't he taking damage anymore?

Willow felt frustrated. If this wasn't some crazy coincidence, then this fight may last far too long.

Her fists clenched.

She was so close!

Just a little bit more and she could've reconciled with Apollo.

All because she was holding herself back.

A fierce light flashed in Willow's eyes.

There could no longer be any more mercy, else Apollo would slip out of her grasp once again.

The pitch black sword let out a faint humming sound and appeared blurry.

Willow's wings rose high in the air before slamming down, violently blowing wind throughout the halls.

Apollo raised his old arm, letting it droop down like a limp noodle.

Willow's blade snapped forth, while Apollo blocked it with his strange 'flail'. Willow's strike let out a terrifying shockwave that was directly visible from the distortions in the air.

Yet, it seemed to simply pass by Apollo. Almost like they were friends greeting each other as they passed by on their way to work.

Once the shockwave hit the ground, the stone shattered while a spiderweb crack formed.

Willow continued swinging while Apollo continued blocking.

Countless clashes happened within just a second.

The walls and floor around them cracked dangerously, threatening to give way at any moment.

Just as Willow thought, this was a fight that was going nowhere.

Dust began falling from the ceiling, but it was blown away by the stray shockwaves before it could even get close.

Willow's attacks had become noticeably more vicious. She constantly disappeared and reappeared, but used that in conjunction with her wings.

Countless swords of black mist had fallen on Apollo, all the while Willow's jet-black sword would come for him at a different angle.

Willow used her wings to shift her trajectory during her attack, making it even more elusive than it already was.

However, Apollo was able to block every single strike. His body had heated up tremendously, to the point it was even causing Willow discomfort. All of his muscles tightened while thin red scars snaked across his arms.

He was moving the fastest he ever had been. Unlike the clumsiness one would expect from wielding an arm as a weapon, Apollo was able to block every strike.

He had a very strong understanding of recoil. Every time the bokken was struck, the arm would snap in a certain direction. He used that fact to his advantage in blocking.

However, the speed of his attacks slowed down because of this strange weapon, thus he was unable to hit Willow.

At this rate, Apollo would lose.