ch79- The Final Clash

In the face of Alex's overwhelming strength, William no longer felt any sense of superiority. Instead, a sinking feeling crept over him—he might actually lose to this guy! 

From what Alex had already shown, it was clear that William was being outmatched on multiple fronts. Alex's damage output was several times higher, his skills included powerful counters that reflected William's strongest blows, and his defense was strong enough to withstand enormous amounts of damage.

With this realization, William decided to go all out. While his "Falling Ice Crystal" skill was still in effect, he activated the "Dragon God's Wing" to boost his speed and launched a direct assault on Alex, who was still defending against the icy barrage.

The sharp sound of the wind as William charged masked his approach, but thanks to the amplified perception granted by his "Dragon God's Heart," Alex sensed the incoming attack. 

However, the arena was too small to give Alex much room to evade, and William, descending at high speed, was upon him in an instant, smashing down with a heavy strike.

"Boom!"

-15,120!

With his attack power boosted by more than 20%, William's strike sent Alex flying over ten meters. This time, without a major damage reduction skill to soften the blow, Alex's armor and shield could only reduce about two-thirds of the damage. The remaining 5,800 points of damage were enough to drop Alex's health from over 9,000 to just above 3,000, putting him in his most precarious situation yet.

On the other hand, seeing Alex's health finally take a substantial hit, William couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement. His suspicions were correct—Alex's immense defense likely came from special equipment effects, which often had usage limits or cooldowns.

Seizing the chance to defeat Alex, William didn't let up. With his dragon wings beating furiously, he charged once more, not giving Alex any time to recover.

Alex, meanwhile, was definitely shaken. It had been a long time since he had felt such danger, but his mind was strong, and he had confidence in his abilities. He quickly suppressed the panic, steadied himself, and chose not to dodge. He was ready to meet William's attack head-on.

William, too, was nervous as he saw the blue glow of Alex's sword. Alex's attack power was frightening, and he knew that a single hit could be the end for him. Even though he still had his "Dragon God's Shield" active, he doubted it could withstand the tens of thousands of damage Alex was capable of dealing.

"Boom!"

-15,120! 

-77,500!

As expected, both fighters struck simultaneously. The force of their blows sent them both flying backward. Alex's overwhelming attack power instantly shattered William's "Dragon God's Shield" and completely drained his health. 

At the same moment, William's attack had connected, but Alex activated the defensive effect of his "Champion's Armor." The massive damage reduction meant that William's hit only cost Alex 1 point of health this time.

William wasn't surprised that Alex survived. He had already suspected that the "Champion" set had two damage reduction effects, and enough time had passed since the first use for it to be off cooldown. What mattered now was that Alex's other reduction effect, used earlier against his "Falling Ice Crystal" attack, was still on cooldown. If William could land just one more hit, victory would be his!

Although it looked like William's health had been drained to zero, he still had 1 point of health left thanks to the "Dragon God's Soul" effect, which kept him alive for 10 more seconds.

Wasting no time, William twisted mid-air and used the speed boost from his "Dragon God's Wing" to rush Alex once more.

Alex, having anticipated William's survival due to the "Dragon God's Soul" effect, remained calm. Just as William closed in, Alex activated the "Frenzied Wind" effect from his own "Dragon God's Wing," sending William flying backward by more than ten meters.

For a moment, William was stunned. He had forgotten that Alex was also equipped with the "Dragon God's Wing," a luxurious item only top players could afford.

But William wasn't giving up yet. He knew that "Frenzied Wind" consumed 10% stamina with each use, and using it consecutively would cause the stamina cost to double. Alex couldn't keep it up forever.

Even if William survived the 10-second invincibility of "Dragon God's Soul," the fact that "Frenzied Wind" didn't deal damage meant Alex would still need to land one more attack to defeat him, giving William a slim chance to counter.

In reality, William's prediction wasn't far off. Although Alex's upgraded "Dragon God's Wing" consumed only 5% stamina for the first use, after three consecutive uses, the total cost had reached 35%. 

However, after deflecting William three times, Alex knew the "Dragon God's Soul" effect had expired. When William charged for a final attack, Alex didn't hold back. He took William's blow head-on, sacrificing some health to finally land the killing strike with his sword.

As William's vision blurred and he saw that Alex still had health remaining, he felt a brief flash of disbelief before being pulled back into reality.

Winning the duel, Alex felt a rush of exhilaration. The adrenaline was still pumping through his veins, and he relished every moment of the intense battle.

He had already guessed that William had been trying to exploit the cooldown window of his armor's defensive effects. What William didn't know was that Alex had far more tricks up his sleeve than just the "Champion" set. He also possessed skills like "Champion's Descent" and "Guardian's Soul."

"Champion's Descent" boosted all of Alex's attributes by 50%, and he had an even clearer memory of using a "Petrified Skin" skill on the first day that boosted his constitution by 50%, temporarily increasing his health.

So, moments before the last exchange, Alex had activated "Champion's Descent." With the 250% attribute boost from the "Champion's Will" set, his health had jumped from 3,000 to over 6,000. William's final strike had nearly drained all 6,000 points, leaving Alex with just over 500 health.