On The Other Side: I Quit Being Human

[Kryophaem] was a simple Draconic Spell. It dramatically lowered the temperature in the surroundings in the blink of an eye. Dragons naturally had higher body temperatures than most. Some of them were even immune to coldness, so it generally did nothing to them. Layland, though, found a way to make it lethal for a Dragon of Quetzalcoatl's calibre.

Although the "outer shell" of Dragons was extremely tough to damage, one couldn't say the same for the inside. All Dragons enhanced their insides with Mana to the max, but that still didn't mean they were as tough as their outer shells. Layland bet on Quetzalcoatl's toughness and won. The said Dragon couldn't withstand his attack from the inside.

"Hah…" Quetzalcoatl breathed out. His breath got a hint of frost. "You fight dirtily, don't you? Ah, you don't need to look at me like I am stupid. I am well aware. You are just using your brain. It is my fault for falling for such a trick."

Layland said nothing and pulled Rexorem out of the ground. He pointed it at Quetzalcoatl and a spherical mass of blue light immediately manifested at its tip.

"You don't even hesitate to hurt your grandfather-in-law. Don't you realize that you won't be able to be together with Aurelia without this old man's agreement?" Quetzalcoatl waited for a moment and continued when Layland remained quiet. "Very well. I guess I have to commend you for your mastery over your Draconic power."

"Thank you," Layland replied simply.

"Self-absorbed prick."

Boom!

Quetzalcoatl smirked as the spherical mass of blue light that was already as big as an adult's head headed toward him. It moved through the air without resistance. It even looked like it just teleported before him. Quetzalcoatl merely raised his hand and exerted the power he had been holding to create a Magic Barrier.

Before the mass of blue light touched the Magic Barrier, though, it disappeared as if it had never existed. Quetzalcoatl didn't even bother to look around as he immediately looked down. He found Rexorem's tip touching his solar plexus. Layland was not at the other of the greatsword. It moved by itself as if it possessed consciousness, which it did.

"Let's not play any longer, shall we?"

Layland's voice came from the back. Quetzalcoatl quipped his head as far as he could to the back to look at Layland's visage. He failed to see what kind of expression Layland had on his face but knew what Layland was about to do. There was a massive and ethereal blue sphere before Layland. He was sure it would be his place once Rexorem blasted him away.

He was right.

Boom!

The blast shattered his sternum and opened up his chest. The ice spikes piercing his lungs also grew which made them visible through the gap in his chest that was newly opened. Gritting his teeth, he forced his Mana to his lungs and heat the ice spikes. They immediately exploded, further damaging his lungs. Another mouthful of blood was forced out of his mouth.

He needed to concentrate on healing his injuries, so he didn't have the time to mind the fact that he was already inside the blue sphere that Layland had prepared for him. By the time he had the leisure to mind his surroundings, the temperature had already dropped so low that he couldn't help but shiver.

Layland watched in disinterest as each [Senbonzakura] petal that made up the sphere revolved around Quetzalcoatl. Different from [Radiant Core], the sphere wouldn't turn into an atomic bomb. It would bring the temperature inside to sub-zero before exploding and turning everything in its surrounding into ice. It was all thanks to Azhdaha's influence. Therefore, Layland named it [Petrifying Core].

Jumping into the air, Layland watched as the sphere glowed brighter. Every water particle in the air froze, creating snow that didn't fall from the sky. The ice that only covered the ground and the base of the trees climbed up to the trees. They quickly covered the trunks and froze the glowing golden sap.

Quetzalcoatl's presence could still be felt but was very concentrated. It wasn't hard to tell what he was doing: focusing on surviving the sphere. Layland lightly sighed, letting a cold breath out of his mouth. He was hoping the fight wouldn't end this way. Quetzalcoatl wouldn't die and he would win the fight, but he wouldn't gain anything.

Quetzalcoatl hadn't attacked Layland using his full power. Layland wouldn't get anything from beating Quetzalcoatl as long as he didn't kill the said Dragon, which he wouldn't do. Nonetheless, he had to accept it as it was. Prolonging the battle would cause more damage to Amizanima and make it look like he was playing with Quetzalcoatl.

Therefore, he executed the Skill.

Puff!

The sphere exploded, producing a snowstorm that immediately covered anything within its reach. The golden tree that Luxia controlled even generated its Magic Barrier once again to protect the area behind it from its influence. It moved slower than a breeze, but the rate at which it froze things was ludicrous. Anything it touched would instantly turn into ice.

When the snowstorm disappeared, Quetzalcoatl's figure could be seen. He had turned into a majestic ice sculpture. His expression was as solemn as ever. His eyes were planted on Layland, indicating that he knew exactly Layland's position. Layland wasn't the least bit surprised by this fact. It wasn't mind-boggling considering the power that Quetzalcoatl possessed.

Descending the sky, Layland landed a few feet away from Quetzalcoatl. He didn't want to be near it even though it was already clear that Quetzalcoatl had already lost. He held Rexorem horizontally before him, ready to swing it. The scene made the audience smile wryly. They didn't know whether to commend Layland's cautiousness or pity him for it.

"Nice trick, old man."

As soon as he said that, an ice spike emerged out of the ground and pierced through the Quetzalcoatl ice sculpture. The audience widened their eyes in shock as they couldn't believe Layland could easily do that. Of course, the Dragons and Eliseus weren't included in the "audience." They remained casual as they knew what happened.

Layland quickly swivelled around. He swung Rexorem vigorously, creating a vacuum in the space as he cut through the air.

CLANK!

Rexorem was firmly stopped by a scaly arm. The impact blasted away the ground that aligned with the blade and cut slightly more than a hundred trees that were only considered small by Amizanima's standard.

"Nice Instinct, punk," the owner of the scaly hand remarked with a grin.

"I have to say you are a very bad ice sculptor," Layland retorted.

"Ku-Ku-Ku. I only know how to destroy, you know? I lack the creativity to create an eye-pleasing ice sculpture." Flashing a cocky grin, Quetzalcoatl continued, "I got what you are capable of. I will fight you for real this time. I will show you why you should never disrespect your elder."

"That is a good thing to hear."

Upon seeing the face-splitting grin on Layland's face, Quetzalcoatl sighed. "Here I thought he was just a fighting enthusiast. He is a lunatic who happens to like fighting!"

Flinging Rexorem to the side with his scaly arm, he entered Layland's guard and thrust his fist into Layland's solar plexus. The said Demon couldn't anticipate the fist because of its sheer speed, so he was launched flying. Quetzalcoatl immediately after the flying Layland. As he did that, he covered another one of his arms with his Dragon scales.

"Don't hate me for this, punk. This is not my Dragon Form!"

Exploiting the loophole of a rule was Layland's favourite thing to do. Quetzalcoatl was very excited to do that too just to see the look of spite on Layland's face. Unfortunately for him, the young Demon still had the maniacal grin on his face. It made his eyebrow twitch, so he cast a fireball that he believed would remove the smirk from Layland's face.

Boom!

Even before the fireball exploded, the sound it made as it tore the air was ear-rupturing. When it hit Layland, the explosion could almost rival the explosion [Radiant Core] had. Layland could survive it easily, but he didn't do it unharmed. He also didn't get any Power-ups, so he was forced to use the Demon King's Mark to heal his injuries.

It took a lot of his Mana, but he didn't have any choice. He needed to maintain Quetzalcoatl's impression of him—a Demon whose regeneration rate was off the charts. He couldn't let Quetzalcoatl figure out that he could only instantly heal his injuries whenever his power raised. Quetzalcoatl was smart enough to connect the dots and conclude what his Origin did.

Thanks to that, he allowed Quetzalcoatl to land countless hits on him. Although he also landed some on Quetzalcoatl, the Dragon did more damage to him than he did to the Dragon. The pain didn't bother him, but he quickly lost his ability to fight back. It didn't make him angry, though. He could feel it. The Power-ups were coming.

Boom!

"Keuh…! Damn, punk; your swing is something else," Quetzalcoatl remarked after blocking Layland's swing that was enhanced by [Death Blow]. "Though, you are losing…which I am sure you are aware of," he added while looking at the bruises and the blood covering Layland's existence.

"I won't deny that. However, I won't say I will lose," Layland retorted casually.

"Which is why I will make you."

As Layland quirked an eyebrow, Quetzalcoatl stomped the ground. The air exploded as heat spread through it, blasting away the [Senbonzakura] petals that were ready to shred Quetzalcoatl. Layland remained in his place but couldn't help widening his eyes. He wanted to distance himself but couldn't.

"Here is my gift for you."

Looking at Quetzalcoatl's smile, Layland's face turned solemn.

"I will nudge it awake for you—the true Dragon power lying dormant inside you."

"Grandpa, stop it!"

Uncaring to Aurelia's plea, Quetzalcoatl snapped his fingers. A gigantic red Magic Circle appeared below Layland and an earth-shaking explosion occurred soon.