On the battlefield on the other side of the iron fence wall, the battle was equally intense.
Another face-to-face Full Burst, the continuous blast of Gunlance shells exploded the Khezu's chest into a bloody mess, and the Wyrmstake Cannon fired at zero range, embedding a thick steel spike with blood grooves deep into the wound.
"Gah roar roar...!"
The Khezu screamed in pain, impatiently twisting its body, swinging its wings and tail, trying to force back this troublesome enemy clinging tightly to its side.
Isis promptly raised the large shield in her hand, but she did not lower her center of gravity as in the standard defensive posture.
The Khezu's bare tail whipped against that large shield, with a muffled thud, she was shaken and slid backward two or three meters.
Given her strength, an attack of this degree should have been perfectly defended without stepping back at all.
Was she not lowering her center of gravity and stabilizing her defense because of carelessness?
Of course not.
After more than a month of instruction from Altman, her improvement wasn't just in defensive techniques; her understanding of the Gunlance as a weapon had also reached a new level.
Whether it's the Gunlance or the Lance, during continuous offensive actions, the user's stance constantly shifts forward due to the weapon's center of gravity, this is unavoidable.
The weapon's length also dictates that these two weapons are difficult to exert full power when too close to the monster's body, so adjusting stance and distance to the target during attacks becomes a crucial technique.
The most direct and commonly used method is naturally the backward step; the so-called "three thrusts, one retreat" is also the most habitual attack cycle for Lance users.
The Gunlance has more methods, such as using the recoil of shelling to adjust distance, but Isis wasn't particularly fond of this method; precious shells should definitely be used for Full Burst attacks!
Therefore, Altman taught her another relatively unconventional technique, using the monster's attack to adjust stance.
This technique demands extremely high requirements for the user's resistance to impact and instant judgment ability.
What kind of attack should be countered in what way, and what result will be produced, must be clear in mind; once judgment fails, it's not just minor injuries.
Fortunately, Isis performed quite well in this regard. Her brain usually doesn't spin fast, intricate calculations aren't her forte, but her intuition is surprisingly sharp.
Whenever she feels "this should work," the final result most likely really works.
After discovering this, Altman stopped teaching her detailed principles and instead spent all day mimicking monster attacks in various ways, training her relentlessly.
This was also the main reason she returned home bruised and limping every day recently, and the result of this training was that her intuitive judgment became increasingly accurate.
After successfully "forcing back" the hunter, the Khezu pressed its tail against the ground, arcs of electricity leaped across its body, bright electrical light gathering in its mouth.
Isis, realizing what the Khezu intended to do, swung the Gunlance for a Quick Reload, then continuously pulled the trigger, instantly emptying the shells.
Scattered shell fragments splattered countless blood spots on the Khezu's body, but its attack preparation wasn't interrupted.
Seeing this, Isis didn't panic; she lowered her center of gravity, tensed her torso, and firmly protected herself with the large shield.
The next moment, several electric balls skimmed the ground, one hitting squarely on the dark yellow shield in her hand.
The bone-series Gunlance provided by the tournament organizers displayed fairly decent defensive performance against electrical attacks; the electric ball exploded on the shield surface, electricity scattering everywhere.
"Zzzz...!"
Most of the current was blocked by the large shield, only a small portion penetrated the shield and landed on the hunter.
The ore-refined armor further reduced the power of the current; Isis felt only a tingling numbness throughout her body, muscles twitching slightly a couple of times, fortunately no major harm.
Isis grunted, lifting away the large shield, stepping forward.
The Khezu, having just released a breath attack, was somewhat fatigued, but to avoid falling again into the predicament of being suppressed by the hunter, it immediately initiated an assault.
The short, thick neck suddenly extended, its bloody mouth attacked from above, attempting to bypass Isis's shield defense and bite off her head directly.
Isis calmly raised the shield, limbs slightly bent, muscles tensed like drawn bowstrings, and as the Khezu's sharp teeth landed on the shield, she forcefully pushed upward.
"Thump!"
The shield strike from a Perfect Guard dissipated the impact of the Khezu's downward bite, subsequently flipping its head backward.
Isis seized the opportunity, held the Gunlance upright, slammed the butt against the ground forcefully, reloading all the shells and Wyrmstake Cannon stake depleted during the previous fight in one go.
Then she re-positioned the Gunlance and large shield, like an unstoppable, invincible war machine, continuing to stride forward, advancing.
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On the other side of the arena.
Altaïr swung the Long Sword at full speed, performing spirit blade combos; the bone blade condensed by the Spirit Gauge sliced through the Khezu's skin, opening one after another blood-splattering wound.
Under continuous blood loss, the Khezu's movements became increasingly sluggish, but it hadn't lost its resistance capability, still appearing highly aggressive.
"Gah roar roar!"
In the midst of strange cries, the Khezu contracted its body, enduring the sharp blade hacking on its head, tensing muscles to accumulate power.
Altaïr, by observing the monster's limb movements, anticipated the Khezu's actions ahead, immediately halted the blade and stopped, interrupting the high-speed combo of spirit blade attacks.
He withdrew a large step backward, stabilized his center of gravity, placed the sheath at his waist, and sheathed his weapon.
His gaze locked firmly on the opponent before him.
The next moment, the Khezu's head extended like a venomous snake, stretching and winding in the air, tracing a confusingly deceptive reverse arc, biting toward the hunter from the side.
Altaïr remained motionless, utterly unfazed by the Khezu's bizarre attack motions, until that blood-drenched large mouth was about to engulf him, then he abruptly drew the sword, swinging the blade to meet it.
The sword blade resisted against the monster's sharp teeth and gums, diverting that terrifying bloody mouth.
"Huh!"
In a low shout, Altaïr turned his body, swung his arm, continuing to exert force; the bone blade slid across the Khezu's mouth corner, cutting open a nearly one-meter-long gash.
Iai Slash!
Under precise counterattack, the hazy fighting spirit on the blade solidified, the hunter's momentum also rose accordingly.
The Khezu staggered backward, seemingly tugging the huge wound deep into the spine on its neck side, causing its body to convulse.
Altaïr naturally wouldn't miss such an attack opportunity; he stepped forward rapidly, continuing the forceful assault.
The Khezu, having barely stabilized its body, waved its wings somewhat frantically, the wind pressure stirred hindered the hunter's pursuing steps.
Taking advantage, it leaped backward, pulling away some distance.
"Huff... huff..."
Thick saliva mixed with blood dripped onto the ground; the Khezu landing awkwardly breathed heavily, high-intensity combat plus massive blood loss had left it exhausted.
Seeing the hunter approaching again, the Khezu waved its wings, attempting to ascend and flee.
But the wing membranes damaged earlier couldn't provide sufficient lift; even as it waved with full strength, it only barely left the ground a few meters, then lost balance and fell heavily back to the ground.
Severely injured, exhausted, powerful enemy approaching, nowhere to escape...
In dire straits, even timid Kelbi would counterattack with horns, let alone a Flying Wyvern at the top of the biological chain?
"Grr roar roar roar...!!!"
The Khezu extended its neck, a long, drawn-out roar resounded throughout the arena.
Its powerful hind limbs forcefully exerted, its massive body weighing tens of tons leaped up.
Altaïr, charging close, halted his steps, about to evade based on circumstances, but was astonished to discover the Khezu didn't come toward him; instead, it jumped onto the tall, sturdy iron fence wall dividing the arena.
The suction cup-like wing claws and toe claws firmly gripped the iron bars, the Khezu climbed upward using all four limbs.
Altaïr was somewhat dumbfounded.
He couldn't attack the Khezu at high positions; more importantly, what was this creature planning?
Escape to the other side of the iron fence wall? Not likely; the top of the iron fence wall was covered with sharp iron spikes, impossible to climb over.
Wait!?
Realizing the Khezu's purpose, Altaïr's face changed, flipped the blade, held the Long Sword reversed, entering a charging stance.
And the Khezu, having climbed high, also turned its head at this moment.
Releasing the wing claws and hind limbs stabilizing its body, only using the suction cup on its tail to secure itself, its flexible spine swayed and swung, its seemingly bulky body instantly soared into the air, swooping down toward the hunter here.
(Translated by yourtl.app)