Chapter 510: Shoulders of Giants

"What brings you here today? I thought you were too busy on Black Horse Island to even attend Lytton's promotion banquet," the Earl remarked with some surprise as Liszt visited him in the study.

While teasing, he also expressed a hint of dissatisfaction that Liszt had not attended the banquet celebrating Lytton's promotion to Earth Knight. However, it was merely a mild discontent.

Liszt smiled, "Indeed, I’ve been quite busy lately. The development of Black Horse Island has been overwhelming, and everything required my attention. But now things are on track, and I have more free time. So, I thought I’d come to Tulip Castle for lunch and also seek your guidance on cultivation."

"Seek my guidance?" The Earl’s heart skipped a beat, and an uneasy image flashed in his mind. "You’ve always been quite independent on your cultivation path. Do you really need my advice?"

"Yes, you are a Sword Saint-level Sky Knight, while I’m just an ordinary Sky Knight. With your guidance, I can avoid detours and find the right path to cultivation."

"It’s good that you have such a cautious mindset."

"I’ve always believed in the principle that standing on the shoulders of giants allows me to see further."

"Hmm, that’s an interesting saying."

"On the path of mana cultivation, the wisdom of our predecessors is undoubtedly as vast as giants. We cultivate using the mana techniques they left behind, following the levels they once traversed. If we cannot conquer these giants and stand on their shoulders to climb higher, then we have failed."

The Earl frowned, feeling uneasy again. This guy came to seek my advice, so why is he spouting these grand philosophies?

Liszt quickly realized that today wasn’t for casual conversation, so he got straight to the point, "Father, to me, you are as towering as a giant, and also the one I hope to surpass! Today, having made some progress in cultivating 'Crimson Sunflare Surge,' I wish to seek your guidance in actual combat!"

"Guidance in combat?"

The Earl was taken aback, then nodded with a complex expression, "I thought you genuinely came for advice, but it turns out you just want to challenge me... You challenged me once when you were an elite Earth Knight. It seems after advancing to Sky Knight, your confidence has grown."

Liszt remained calm, "I’m not overconfident; I just want to understand my true strength."

"Good. I also want to see just how much strength my most outstanding son possesses that I’m unaware of." The Earl stood up abruptly and left his desk. "Wait for me in the manor. I’ll change into my gear."

"Yes, Father."

Liszt turned and left, heading to the manor to wait patiently.

Meanwhile, in the castle, William Lee called his personal footman, "Fetch my combat gear. I need to change."

As the servant returned with a pile of equipment, Mary approached, "Darling, are you going out today? You’ve even taken out your armor."

"No, I’m just going to have a sword duel with Liszt."

"A sword duel?" Mary was surprised. "Is that why he came today? To challenge you to a duel?"

"Yes."

Mary, a typical manor lady skilled in socializing and housekeeping but clueless about cultivation, suggested, "Let Lytton watch. He’s already an Earth Knight. Observing powerful knights in combat will surely help his cultivation."

"The battles of Sky Knights offer little inspiration to Earth Knights. Lytton needs to solidify his foundation, not gain combat experience. Even if Liszt were here, I wouldn’t let him watch. Earth Knights and Sky Knights are on entirely different levels."

"Alright, I’m just overthinking. I just hope Lytton can grow quickly. You know, his talent is no less than anyone else’s."

"I understand. Don’t worry."

The Earl comforted Mary, then continued changing his gear. Mary helped him adjust his armor before accompanying him out of the castle.

By then, Liszt was already mounted on his land bird, Loki. Seeing William Lee emerge, he quickly said, "Father, the northern rocky beach is quiet and uninhabited, perfect for our duel. I’ll go ahead." With that, he spurred Loki and vanished into the horizon in mere moments.

Mary watched Liszt disappear into the distance and sighed softly, "Is there really such a thing as a child of fortune? One bloodline fruit created Hiddleston, and another created Loki. His luck is unbelievable... All these years, you’ve been searching for an intermediate magical beast, yet you’ve never found one."

The Earl didn’t want to respond. He had his attendant bring his mount, a noble steed named Dibao, which was a mix of the magical beast Drywood Leopard. He mounted the horse and galloped off along the direction Liszt had gone.

...

The rocky beach.

Liszt stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at the surging waves by the sea, calmly preparing himself. What followed would be his first sword fight since advancing to the rank of Sky Knight, and it would also be the most intense battle he had ever experienced.

The sound of hooves echoed.

The Earl arrived quickly.

There were no attendants, no servants, and no spectators. On the rocky beach, only the two Sky Knights of Coral Island stood facing each other.

"Father, Liszt challenges you!" He slowly drew his Skycleaver Greatsword, the surging mana within him circulating.

The Earl said nothing, drawing his own longsword, which gleamed with a yellow and a green gemstone: "Begin!" This sword was called the Jiu Ren Sword, named after the two gems—one yellow, which granted resilience, and the other green, which enhanced stamina.

Before he could finish speaking.

Boom!

A whistling sound tore through the air as Liszt channeled his mana, turning into a blur of light as he charged at the Earl. The basic techniques of the Crimson Sunflare Surge were just as astonishing in their offensive power.

In an instant, the Skycleaver Greatsword came down on the Earl.

The Earl’s eyes narrowed slightly as the Jiu Ren Sword was raised, accurately striking the Skycleaver. Two bursts of mana clashed from their blades, one red and one blue, shining in contrast. Before either could gain the upper hand, the blades separated, and both swordsmen took a step back.

Then Liszt struck again, and the Earl met the strike with his own.

Clang!

Clang!

The fiery red fire-attribute mana and the icy blue water-attribute mana clashed as they continued to test each other, gradually consuming each other.

Liszt was still testing his attacks, his fighting style ferocious, relentless when he gained the upper hand. Upon realizing that the Earl’s resistance wasn’t as strong as he had imagined, he couldn’t hold back, increasing his mana output, ready to shift from probing to an all-out assault.

Meanwhile, the Earl frowned deeply during the exchanges.

He had fought countless battles in his campaigns, engaging in numerous sword fights with opponents of varying strengths. Some were adept at entanglement, others excelled in bursts of power, yet none of their mana could match the endurance and ferocity of Liszt’s fire-attribute mana when faced with his water-attribute mana.

What was more terrifying was that every strand of Liszt’s mana required the Earl to expend even more of his own to neutralize it.

In just a few probing exchanges, his mana was nearly as depleted as when he unleashed his ultimate moves: "How is this possible? My mana is being crushed!"