Each time those arms thicker than house beams swung, it was like a siege weapon smashing into Castro, leaving no small injuries behind. Large and small bruises in dark red welts mottled his body.
Eventually, realizing he couldn’t take off, Castro gave up on flight altogether and went all in on direct confrontation with Kosso.
He cycled through every spell Li De knew, casting them one after another, but due to Kosso’s absurdly high magic resistance, none of them caused any real harm.
In contrast, Castro’s bat wings lined with vicious barbs, his two massive claws, and razor-sharp teeth became his deadliest weapons, inflicting heavy damage on Kosso.
The clash of these two behemoths was beyond brutal. The surrounding dense forest suffered the worst.
Even trees requiring ten men to encircle couldn't withstand a casual strike from either of them.
This forest, having grown for hundreds or even a thousand years, was reduced in less than half a sun-hour to scattered, ruined wreckage, as if it had been harvested like wheat.
The length of the battle far exceeded Li De’s expectations. He had initially thought Castro, with his aerial advantage and magic, would dominate Kosso. But lacking battle experience, Castro was quickly overwhelmed.
He then assumed that once grounded, Kosso would easily gain the upper hand and suppress Castro. Yet instead, the two fought to a standstill.
Despite the Cyclops dominating the ground, Castro’s barbed wings and sharp fangs posed a massive problem for the weaponless Kosso.
The fight raged on for three entire sun-hours.
The forest surrounding the iron mine, once a towering, deep woodland, was completely razed like farmland.
By now, both fighters were covered in countless scars, but neither showed signs of stopping. Their auras hadn’t diminished in the slightest.
Both possessing the Bronze Cyclops bloodline, their endurance and destructive power were utterly tyrannical.
Watching the two top-tier combatants continue what could easily become an endless slugfest, Li De flapped his wings and flew over.
By this point, he had a clear understanding of their combat strength.
Durable, insanely durable. Whether it was Kosso or Castro, their regeneration, defense, and constitution were shockingly powerful.
Originally, Castro had been designed as an aerial unit, yet his melee ability was on par with Kosso’s.
This left Li De thoroughly satisfied.
A true newborn king whose bloodline potential had been activated by the system, unreasonably powerful.
Of course, Kosso was no less impressive. Logically, Kosso had only evolved into a Bronze Cyclops a few months ago. Much of the bloodline power within him remained untapped.
And yet, he could still fight this system-recognized king bat to a standstill.
It was clear that Kosso was no slouch. Once he fully activated the bloodline within, Li De had no doubt this Bronze Cyclops would become even more formidable.
Li De’s voice brought both combatants to a halt. They froze in place, stunned, but upon recognizing it as Li De’s command, both withdrew like receding tides, though their eyes remained wary.
Flapping his wings, Li De landed between them.
Kosso’s expression shifted. His giant eye locked warily on Castro, prepared to charge at a moment’s notice to protect Li De.
He even positioned himself half-shielding Li De, just in case Castro tried anything.
Seeing this, Li De smiled in satisfaction. “Kosso, this is my new bodyguard, Castro.”
Upon hearing this, the hostility in Kosso instantly faded. He didn’t ask why Li De’s bodyguard had attacked him; he simply stood in place, quietly awaiting Li De’s command.
On the other side was Castro, his entire body covered in scabbed, dark blood as he lowered himself to the ground and bowed to Li De.
“Master, Sir Kosso is extremely powerful. I was unable to defeat him.”
Hearing this, Kosso was momentarily surprised. Then he cast a deep glance at Castro, clearly satisfied, and likewise dropped to one knee and saluted Li De.
“Master, Castro is a formidable opponent, worthy of respect.”
In the world of Glory, whether friend or foe, only the strong earn respect.
After such a fierce clash, both fighters recognized each other’s strength and naturally held mutual regard.
“Very good. You’ve both just recently evolved, so I needed you to undergo a high-intensity battle to awaken your potential.
Kosso, Castro, you didn’t disappoint me.”
Li De glanced around at the devastated forest spanning thousands of blades in every direction, expression full of satisfaction.
This level of destructive power was terrifyingly impressive. Most importantly, these two top-tier forces were under his command. He could order them to do anything.
Kosso stood up, face brimming with excitement. Being praised by Master Kachar was his greatest honor.
Castro also straightened. Though this king of the skies had been locked in melee combat with Kosso for several sun-hours, his powerful bloodline ensured that even now, covered in wounds, his fighting spirit remained high.
“Kosso, I created a new race, the Dawn Bats. Castro is the king of this race.
When creating them, I used your Bronze Cyclops bloodline. So, to produce new Dawn Bats, I’ll need your blood.”
Once the two had caught their breath and stabilized their condition, Li De explained the reason for his visit to Kosso.
After listening, Kosso thumped his chest and rumbled, “Master, I’m willing to give everything for you, even my life.”
Li De shook his head. “No. I only need you to blood a few times each month, just like the other residents of Dawn City.
Keep your life. You’ll still have more to contribute to the city.”
He paused, then added with a note of temptation, “Each time you blood, I’ll have the livestock farm give you two pigs.”
At that, Kosso’s eyes went wide. Since the livestock farm was still in its development phase, very few pigs were ready for slaughter. Meat was hard to come by.
As a giant eater who could devour an entire pig in one sitting, Kosso was never satisfied with the small rations he could afford.
Cyclopes were carnivores by nature in the underground world. Though they could eat their fill in Dawn City, a meat-loving race like his couldn’t help craving flesh.
“I’m willing, Master! I’m willing!!”
His voice was urgent, as if afraid Li De might take the offer back.
Seeing this, Li De couldn’t help laughing and crying at the same time. He suddenly remembered the first time he met Kosso. Back then, the Cyclops had a debuff hanging over his head: Severe Hunger.
These gluttons really were easy to deal with.