Sounds of combat rang out more intensely in the distance than Adam had ever heard. The noise could be heard even with numerous sirens wailing below the base and fireworks exploding above it. The fight between the humans and the Drathan sounded even more intense than when Adam had arrived during the Scyrrics' assault on Jackson.

It concerned Adam, but that was only a background thought as he faced the Arcane Obstructor. The inner river was flowing rapidly, and heat pounded throughout his body.

Kicking off the ground, Adam lunged at a downward angle along the slope. The spiked side of his hammer struck the purple barrier around the invader. It bounced off, but Adam's strength and grip halted that rebound and the hammer struck a second time.

Purple magic formed ethereal shields in both the defender's hands. A beam of arcane energy came from the orbs above the Drathan's shoulders. The beam shot through where Adam had been when he struck, but his momentum had already taken him past the side of the barrier, dragging the spike along it.

"[Gladiator's Approach]," said Adam, as he appeared on the other side of the barrier. "[Explosive Strike]."

His feet glowed red from the pseudo-skill as they impacted the barrier. With the contact came a fiery explosion that obscured both combatants' view. Adam used the force of the explosion to leap backwards and out of the way of a cone of arcane energy that erupted from where he had kicked.

It passed over his head as he dropped to the ground. Once he dodged it, he jumped to his feet and once more the spiked hammed struck the barrier.

It became a back and forth. Adam was once more too mobile for the Arcane Obstructor to land any attacks, while anytime Adam began to wear out the barrier, the defender would summon a new one to take its place.

After several minutes of that, Adam backed off.

"You see?" asked the Drathan, never having moved from his space. All his attacks came from the orbs over his shoulders or from the energy of his barrier. Adam assumed the invader could strike out with either of the energy shields he held in his hands, but he would need to drop the bubble barrier to make contact. "You are clearly strong and fast, but in the universe an attacker should not be able to kill a similar level defender. This fight will just result in a stale mate. As much as you might just be distracting me until your forces can aid in my defeat, I doubt they will get through our army very soon."

"Oh, I'm not counting on them," admitted Adam. "I just wanted to see what the difference is."

"What difference?" asked the Drathan with confusion.

"The difference between fighting you before and with my new class."

Both of the defender's eyes focused on Adam and squinted.

"I do not understand. How will a low-level protection class give you the power to defeat me?"

"I won't bore you with the details," said Adam with an exasperated sigh, "mostly because I don't want you to know them, but having this class allows me to do something extra."

"And what is that?"

"Since you've asked, I guess I'll show you," Adam nodded to the invader. Then his body flashed red for the first time in the fight as he triggered [Soul and Body Shaping]. Adam pulled in about 60% of the strength from future Gregor's memories. The red of his skin intensified and heat radiated from Adam.

The Arcane Obstructor's eyes grew large as he felt Adam's presence increase. He swallowed hard and without realizing it took a step back with one foot.

"If you had this power, then why did you not use it when we first fought?" he demanded.

"I needed this protector class to get this much out of it. Now, let's see how much of a difference the stats make."

Adam lowered his body and then pushed off. The defender didn't waste time and immediately used [Arcane Flare] to shoot energy in front of him. With how quickly Adam dashed forward, it would require incredible nimbleness to avoid the attack that was directly in his path.

However, Adam didn't even try to dodge. Instead, his arms flashed red as he used the low-level protector skill [Solid Arm]. It was supposed to make his arms more durable, and Adam was curious if it was a flat amount or if it scaled based on his vitality stat.

Either way, Adam was more curious whether he would take damage from the attack with how much his vitality stat ballooned thanks to the inherited stats from future Gregor. A defender like the Arcane Obstructor might have a strong magical ability, but even at Tier 4 Adam doubted it would be greater than the 1130 vitality he was currently wielding thanks to the stability that getting a class had created.

Holding his breath, Adam did feel a burning sensation as he received the flare with his left forearm. He kept his grip on his hammer while the energy penetrated his metal bracer and the leather underneath. But the skin was only singed, preventing the attack from harming him.

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Adam's forward speed slowed a bit while the energy blasted him, but the flare didn't last long, and Adam took the final steps to reach the barrier. The spike of the hammer lit up with a soft glow as Adam used [Kinetic Impact] to prevent the hammer from being destroyed as he used all 1555 points in his strength stat to swing it.

To the great surprise of the Drathan, the spike passed through the defensive bubble, causing cracks to spread out. When Adam yanked the hammer back, levering the spike almost like a pickaxe against the unbroken portion of the barrier, the entire construct failed.

The defender gasped, forgetting for a moment before realizing he needed to recast the spell.

"[Repulsion Sh…" started the Obstructor, but Adam had already finished using [Gladiator's Approach].

Adam's left hand grabbed the back of the Drathan's head and threw him down into the ground. Drathan bodies were already much tougher than a human's, and Adam assumed that the Arcane Obstructor class focused as much on vitality as intelligence for stats.

As the invader's face cracked through the ground, Adam didn't expect the damage to be any more than when an invincible superhero was knocked into a wall.

Still, Adam didn't give his opponent any time to act. Immediately after slamming the Drathan down face first, Adam pulled his opponent's head back up and flipped him backwards into the ground.

A new beam of arcane energy came from the orbs on the Drathan's shoulders and burned through Adam's leather chest armor. The focused strength of the attack did burn Adam's chest more than the flare had on his arm, but not enough to stop Adam's motion.

As the Obstructor's back was driven into the ground, Adam had to dodge another blast of energy from the orbs to prevent it from hitting his face. He had been willing to take the attacks on other parts of his body, but Adam wasn't going to risk anything with his head.

Adam continued bending forward as the Drathan bounced off the ground, punching with his right hand, still tightly gripping his hammer's handle, driving all his strength into the Drathan's gut. Spittle and black blood came out of his mouth from the blow, driving the defender back into the ground.

Then Adam pulled his right arm away from the body before thrusting his weapon's blade at the bottom of the handle into the Drathan's armpit. More black blood sprayed out, but then the cracks in the Obstructor's skin brightened with a purple glow.

"[Arcane Reinforcement]," croaked the Drathan as the density of his skin increased with a shimmer of purple.

Adam tried to pull out his hammer, but it stuck tight. Then the Drathan's left arm reached over his body and grabbed the handle of the weapon, further preventing Adam from reclaiming. Cautiously, Adam jumped backwards, relinquishing his weapon.

"How?" choked the invader as he slowly pushed himself to his feet. "How did you gain so much strength? It is impossible under the [System]."

"I'm told that a lot," answered Adam. "All I can say is I'm called an aberration for a reason."

"Indeed," said the Drathan. "I admit to a bit of jealousy at it."

"Believe me when I say that it isn't possible for others."

"I do believe that," responded the Obstructor. "Otherwise, you wouldn't be the first I've heard of being able to do this. [Repulsion Shield]. [Proximity Discharge]."

The Drathan clenched his jaw as he pulled out the hammer, then looked at it as if trying to figure out a puzzle.

"Odd weapon," he muttered, as black blood drizzled down his side.

Adam looked at the invader. His expression soured. This was his first enemy that seemed like a decent person. Considerate, direct, and loyal to his men. Never did Adam feel like he was being underestimated by this Drathan. His hesitancy to push the fight during their first encounter, and his unwillingness to risk his troops to force through the snipers showed that he was a decent sort.

Ignoring the screaming in his soul to conquer, Adam once more tried to recruit this Drathan. There was a lot he could gain from the Obstructor, both knowledge and in terms of power. Turning this creature into an ally would go a long way towards Adam's hope that he could co-exist with the rest of the universe.

"This is your last chance," said Adam, having to force out the words against the raging in his soul. "You can join us and even evacuate your soldiers through the portal. It doesn't need to end in your death."

The Drathan released a pained chuckle.

"Or you can surrender. Maybe leave our base and let us retreat. We aren't the only Drathan base on this world."

Adam shook his head.

"I kind of want the base. Floating islands are just too cool."

"You think you can understand or control it?" asked the Drathan.

"All I need is one of your people who understands how it works. I would prefer it to be you," admitted Adam.

"No. You cannot make any of us betray our race or give up understanding of our magics."

"You wouldn't have to," said Adam. "I never said you had to tell me how it works for me to learn it from you."

The Obstructor's eyes narrowed as he looked at Adam. Then he sighed, letting go of whatever thoughts he had.

"You seem genuine enough in your desire to work with me. Unfortunately, that is not the way of the universe. I will not allow myself to betray those under me, as much as I would prefer them to survive. I also have faith enough in my soldiers that they will be able to reduce most of your army even without my help."

The pressure in Adam's soul had been building. He felt all the hate, all the certainty, and the compulsive need to kill all the invaders. It had required a lot of control to keep those feelings at bay while trying to give the Drathan a chance, although it had been easier after Adam had clashed with him.

"Besides," added the Drathan, "I would not be willing to become a slave against my own breathren, even to save my soldiers. You would no longer respect me if I did. You also don't seem the type to put away his weapons even if it meant saving others."

"That's true," agreed Adam, knowing that he would only fight to save people, never by surrendering. If the Drathan had been willing to, then he no longer would have been who Adam thought he was.

Now that there was no other option, and the Drathan stated as much, Adam let it go. He took a deep breath and then let it out slowly. When what he wanted was no longer available, the demands of the soul corruption spread through Adam, and he shivered. Then nodded. His eyes met the Drathan's with the fire of intensity in them.

"That's unfortunate," stated Adam, with his usual fury now dripping from his words. "Then I will end this fight and see your faith in your troops go to waste."

The Drathan looked at Adam's weapon, in his own hand, and then at Adam's barehanded stance.

"Will you be as able to overcome me without a weapon?" asked the Arcane Obstructor, raising the hammer in his own hand.

Adam looked at it and then back at the Drathan.

"That is just a piece of metal. I'm the real weapon," said Adam. Then he used another pseudo-skill. "[Power Through]!"

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