"Huh?" In the midst of his relentless assault on Naxxi, Robert sensed a change. Earlier, despite being unable to fight back, Naxxi's eyes and the surge of power from his body indicated he hadn't given up and was still trying to escape Robert's flurry of attacks. Now, however, Robert couldn't feel that energy anymore, nor see the struggling look on Naxxi's face. This made Robert wary; he had no idea that Naxxi was on the verge of giving up and thought he might be preparing a new tactic instead.
"He's about to give up…" At that moment, Robert heard the voice of the Ancient One in his ear. As an experienced observer and someone who had fought countless dimensional beings, she could clearly guess Naxxi's state of mind. "Just play along for a bit. See if you can trick this dimensional being into drawing more power from his true form, and really deplete his main strength."
"Give up?" Robert was momentarily stunned by the Ancient One's words. He observed carefully and indeed sensed no fighting spirit from Naxxi, making him scoff inwardly.
To be honest, Robert hadn't fully enjoyed the battle yet. Before Naxxi received power from his true form, Robert had been practically toying with him. Once Naxxi had finally accessed his true form's power, he fought from a distance using spatial abilities, avoiding close combat with Robert. It was only after Robert's power reached a critical point and he managed to locate Naxxi's true body that he pinned Naxxi down with a series of unstoppable combos.
But the time they had spent in close combat was quite short, far too brief for Robert's liking. Hearing that Naxxi was considering giving up, Robert had no intention of letting him off so easily.
"Hmm?!" As Robert eased off slightly, Naxxi suddenly felt he could move again. It seemed like he could break free from Robert's barrage and maybe even counterattack.
However, this new development left Naxxi confused. Should he continue taking the hits, pretending not to notice Robert's weakening strength, or seize the opportunity to strike back and show Robert his might?
If he didn't fight back and just kept taking hits, that didn't seem right either. Naxxi wasn't a masochist who found pleasure in being pummeled.
But if he did counterattack, it felt odd since he had just decided to give up and go with the flow. Wouldn't that be contradictory?
These conflicting thoughts ran through Naxxi's mind, making Robert unsure how to proceed with his act. Robert didn't understand why, even after he had deliberately pulled back, Naxxi still wasn't reacting. Should he stop attacking altogether or deliberately expose a flaw for Naxxi to exploit?
"What's with this stupid spider freak?" Robert muttered, feeling somewhat at a loss. He decided to further reduce his power, feigning exhaustion.
Robert even went so far as to compress his energy, making it look weaker, and controlled his body to appear pale and drained, enhancing the illusion.
"He's reached his limit?" Seeing Robert's state, Naxxi's eyes lit up with excitement. He had been on the verge of giving up because he couldn't see any way to defeat Robert. But now, it seemed like an opportunity had presented itself.
If there's a chance to win, why give up?
"Bang!" Naxxi suddenly snapped to attention, breaking through Robert's attack and sending him flying with a powerful swipe of his claw. Filled with exhilaration, Naxxi charged at Robert, striking him again and preparing to replicate Robert's earlier move. He wanted to keep Robert airborne, unable to escape—a taste of his own medicine.
"Huh?!" As Robert dodged Naxxi's next attack by a hair's breadth, he felt a malicious intent and saw the excitement in Naxxi's eyes. Guessing Naxxi's thoughts, Robert's expression darkened. Playing along was one thing, but letting Naxxi trap him in a mid-air combo was out of the question.
"Whoosh!" At the last moment, as Naxxi lunged at Robert again, Robert narrowly avoided the strike, making it look like a desperate dodge.
"Whew! Whew! Whew!"
To sell the act even more, Robert hovered in mid-air, panting heavily, as if dodging Naxxi's attack had drained him significantly.
Robert planned to wait for Naxxi to start using spatial powers again. He could then act as if he were struggling but gradually recovering, drawing Naxxi into borrowing more power from his true form.
Unfortunately, Robert's plan didn't work out. Or rather, he underestimated the depth of Naxxi's hatred and the psychological impact of being turned into a punching bag by Robert's mid-air combo.
Naxxi had lived for so long, traversing many dimensions and universes. He had suffered defeats and taken severe beatings before, but the humiliation and frustration he felt from Robert's relentless assault were unprecedented.
So, when Naxxi realized he could strike back, he had no interest in using spatial powers to distance himself. All he wanted was to make Robert feel the same helplessness he had experienced.
"Is he crazy?" Seeing Naxxi recklessly charge at him again, Robert was taken aback and cursed under his breath. If the Ancient One hadn't asked him to bait Naxxi, he would have already retaliated.
But remembering the need to deplete Naxxi's true form's power, Robert decided to endure and kept dodging Naxxi's attacks.
"Is he still holding back? Maybe his combat instincts are still sharp, allowing him to dodge at the last moment?" Naxxi wondered as his attack missed again. He had to admit, Robert's ability to sense and evade danger was even more acute than his own spider-sense, which was practically useless against Robert.
"Just a bit faster! If I can hit him just once, get him into a stunned state, I can repeat what he did and make him suffer the same way!" Naxxi took a deep breath and once again reached out to his true form, drawing down more power.
This time, the amount of power wasn't as substantial as before, but based on his analysis, Naxxi believed a slight boost in speed would give him the edge he needed to exact his revenge.
"What? He's drawing on more power already?" Robert hadn't expected that his feigned weakness would so quickly provoke Naxxi into tapping into more of his true form's strength. This partial success in Robert's plan meant they were on the right track. If they could bait out even more power, it would be even better.
"Whoosh!" With a sudden surge of energy, Naxxi's speed increased several-fold. He vanished from his previous position and reappeared in front of Robert, lashing out with a whip-like claw aimed at Robert's chest, trying to send him flying.
But Robert, calm and collected, steadied his breath. He leaned back, narrowly avoiding Naxxi's attack.
Naxxi didn't falter. His other claws attacked from all directions, determined to keep Robert airborne, driven by an almost obsessive need to turn the tables.
"Nice try!" As Naxxi unleashed a barrage of strikes, Robert shouted, appearing both excited and fatigued. His aura steadied, and his arms moved in a blur, deflecting Naxxi's claws.
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
In mid-air, Robert's fists clashed with Naxxi's claws repeatedly, nullifying Naxxi's attack.
This wasn't what surprised Naxxi. What shocked him was that Robert's strength had seemingly returned. Though not as formidable as when he had beaten Naxxi senseless, Robert now seemed capable of holding his own again.
"Bang!" Distracted by his thoughts, Naxxi didn't see Robert's next move. Robert suddenly appeared in front of him, a massive fist rapidly enlarging in Naxxi's vision. Naxxi's pupils contracted as a sense of doom filled him.
"No! I can't let this happen again! I won't be beaten like this, not even if it kills me!" Naxxi thought frantically, trying to evade. But it was too late.
"Bang!" Robert's fist connected with Naxxi's face, sending him flying once more. Again, Naxxi found himself caught in an endless barrage, unable to move.
"Is he really attacking after just that little bit of power?" The Ancient One was surprised by Robert's quick response. Though Naxxi had indeed received a slight power boost from his true form, it wasn't enough to significantly impact his true form's energy reserves.
"No! I won't let this happen again!" Unlike the first time, this time Naxxi was far more agitated. Filled with a deep sense of humiliation, he reached out to his true form once more, drawing down a substantial amount of power.
"Here it comes!" Robert's eyes lit up. This was the result he had been aiming for, though he hadn't expected Naxxi to fall into the trap so easily.
Robert couldn't understand Naxxi's mindset. To Robert, being hit with an air combo once and then again wasn't a big deal. But Naxxi was so agitated and unaccepting, it was almost as if he had developed a post-traumatic reaction to the experience.
"Bang!" As Naxxi's power surged again, Robert's attack was abruptly halted. This time, it wasn't because Robert held back; Naxxi's strength had simply grown enough to forcefully interrupt Robert's combo.
After breaking Robert's combo, Naxxi's face, now grotesquely non-human
, twisted further. The eerie eyes scattered across his face turned a menacing red, each one reflecting a glint of madness.
"Whoosh!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
In the next instant, Naxxi charged at Robert like a madman, launching a relentless series of attacks. He no longer cared about his plans for the Spider-Men army or Peter Parker. All he could think about was one thing:
To pummel Robert, to beat him into submission, to make him fly helplessly between his claws like a mere punching bag!
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