Once he materialized on another circle closest to the location he had been given to go by the phantom, he stepped off and began his dash with the full speed he was permitted by his cultivation base.
The sun was not yet completely down and he smiled to himself that he still had time just as he put in more speed in his bid to reach this new opportunity.
And then...
*Bam!*
From where the strike came from, Cirk did not know but one thing he was certain about was how it knocked the wind out of him and smacked him into the wall of what looked like a dilapidated building.
He recognized the building even without it being within the instructions he had been passed with regards to this 'meeting' spot. The building as well as this location was a part of the Swanson estate which had been demolished partially after the entire family was wiped out.
It could have been completely reduced to rubble but the Astral palace let it stand looking neglected and damaged as an example and a symbol of what happens when they are crossed.
Why or how they had been crossed by the Swanson family was generally unknown but such were unimportant when this remembrance continued to stand.
*Bang!*
With the state of the wall already weak, Cirk broke through completely and lay in the rubble.
"Argh" he groaned and grabbed the point where he had been hit but he had no time to actually nurse his injury as the sound of a weapon cutting through the surrounding air could be heard and he rolled out of the way to avoid it.
But even then, the wielder was quick to make a transition that, aided along with fancy footwork, saw the handle of the weapon which Cirk could now see was a large ax hit him in the chest.
*Crack!*
The sound was faint but announced to the dishonored Dane that his sternum had been damaged.
However, while he might have fallen short against Melinda, Cirk was still a capable expert and he could now sense the pressure being given off by this attacker of his which showed they were of the same cultivation base.
He grabbed the handle of the ax that was still pressed against his chest and without letting go of it, he shifted it to the side with his left hand, which was not an easy feat since this attacker was much more capable than he was physically, and summoned his sword Cosmic armament to take a swipe at this mysterious attacker.
However, with ease that deserved to be commended, the attacker wrenched the handle of his ax out of Cirk's hand and leaped out of the reach of his sword to stare at him with a relaxed smile.
Seeing as the attacker did not seem to be in a haste to attack again, Cirk decided to take a few seconds to observe him...
The attacker was male with his upper muscular and ripped torso revealed for all to see while he wore plain britches to cover his lower half.
He was now leaning on the ax handle with the large and dangerous-looking head pressed against the ground.
"What the Hell?" Cirk asked while letting all his frustrations and pain show in that question.
"Who the fuck are you?" He asked.
To this inquiry, the half-naked man with an ax said nothing except that he lifted the ax and adopted a battle stance that showed he had given Cirk all the reprieve he could afford.
Cirk gritted his teeth and gripped his sword even tighter,
"You underestimate me. The only reason you have been successful in your attacks is because they began with an ambush" he said and spat but could not get rid of the metallic taste of blood in his mouth.
The attacker smirked,
"That you could not sense my incoming ambush shows your senses are rather dull" he said but did not give Cirk the opportunity to reason on what he had just said before he closed the short distance between then and swung his ax.
However, that failed to catch Cirk off guard as the Dane unleashed a blast of cosmic energy in defense of himself.
*Bang!*
The force pushed the attacker back and Cirk needed no further invitation to press in and stab at his opponent's chest without even bothering with any other measures as this was guaranteed to hit since avoiding this required a level of agility which this attacker looked to be lacking.
But was he?
Quick as can be, the attacker positioned his ax in front of chest and it acted as the perfect shield to deflect the jab and the resultant repulse force numbed Cirk's hand and created an opening for the attacker to ram right into him.
*Bam!*
Cirk slid back but while his knees buckled but he stopped himself before actually falling to said knees and that was a good thing too because his attacker was back on him and swinging the flat side of the ax towards him.
Cirk quickly blocked it's path with his sword while sending a fully charged cosmic phenomenon at his opponent who was quick to send his in retaliation such that they canceled each other out.
There was a brief moment when the two connecting blasts of phenomenon caused a cloud that blocked vision and Cirk used this moment to push the ax aside and slam into his opponent and then blast him with a point-blank cosmic attack.
In half a second, with his whole body aching with pain, Cirk was atop his opponent with his sword pointing straight at his chest and his golden eyes wild with anger and annoyance.
The attacker did not look remotely worried even as Cirk brought his sword increasingly closer to stabbing him and then, right at the moment the sword was about to make contact, the muscular form of his opponent liquefied...
"What the...?"
... And the puddle moved away to solidify into the attacker a few meters away.
Shocked beyond relief, Cirk remained in place, staring at his opponent standing away from him and smiling lightly,
"That's enough!" Called a voice from the shadows and Cirk turned towards it and found himself looking upon the familiar face of the phantom with the multicolored hair and Dark green eyes.
"Did you have your fun?" The newcomer asked the attacker who was once again leaning upon his ax which he flooded cosmic energy into to show that it was an Aurora grade artifact!
Cirk's eyes widened as this showed his opponent had been taking it easy on him as for him to actually be able to power an Aurora grade artifact, his cultivation had to be, at the very least, at the peak of the Cosmic Phenomenon Realm.
The attacker shook his head,
"Fun? Bah! Incredibly boring more like. But... He will do I guess. There are much worse recruits you could have found."
"This was a test?" Cirk sounded indignant.
It was the phantom stranger, who was still not here with his real body, by the way, that answered,
"Yes, Ergo here just wanted to be sure you would make a good recruit"
Cirk's eyes narrowed as he stood to his feet,
"A recruit? I thought you were going to introduce me to someone who could give me what I want" he said and the stranger nodded,
"That's right" he affirmed but when Cirk's eyes were moving towards where Ergo stood, he shook his head, "Ergo is not that person. He is a recruit just like you. Just of higher importance. If you want to accomplish your goals you will have to give something in return."
Understanding dawned on Cirk,
"You want me to work for you?"
The stranger shook his head
"For me? No. For my master? Absolutely.
Now before any more is said, do you agree to this arrangement or would you prefer to return to your family and 'lay low'. At this moment, the choice is still yours."
Cirk thought to for a second and then took a deep breath before making the statement that marked the shifting of his allegiance,
"What do you need me to do?"
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