Child of Destiny

...…

As the battle between Shin and Ashura escalated to a higher degree, the people watching this battle could not help but fall in silence as they were too stunned and too immersed in it to react.

But unlike them, David, who was quite experienced and expecting this kind of battle, was able to remain calm. When he saw that Shin and Ashura slightly slowed down and controlled their pace, locking themselves in another deadlock, David quickly took that opportunity and began commentating once again.

"This is interesting. Both fighters are now showcasing their real capabilities and giving out their everything."

Miss Bunny also joined and asked. "I seem to remember that you said that Ashura would get the upper hand in the early stages of the battle while Sickarius would take control over it if it became a prolonged battle."

David chuckled and admitted his mistake. "I must apologize for it since it is clear that these two were on an equal term."

"As you can see, but of them were taking initiative and also taking turns controlling the pace of the battle. Both sides were trying to use their respective advantages and covering their weakness by being more aggressive in their attacks."

"But I must also say that I am impressed with how each side deals with the advances of their counterpart and find a way to escape the possible predicament time and time again."

He then paused and pointed at Ashura before continuing. "But Ashura still has an advantage at this current stage of the battle given that he can constantly disrupt the flow of his opponent's battles."

"His 'weakness', mobility, is immediately compensated by his wings, which also give him free movements in the air."

"And his transformed arms also added to the series of attacks that he can throw to his opponents. This increases the variation of attacks that he could use for his offensive."

Hearing that, Miss Bunny immediately countered. "But Sickarius also has complex variations of attacks. That switching of swords in his left hand is not only cool but also confusing and deadly."

"I am pretty sure that most of our viewers want to possess such a fighting style as well," she added in a teasing manner.

"That goes without saying," nodded David, playing along with her to make the atmosphere more relaxed and easygoing.

After that, he continued. "Going back to what we discussed earlier, it is true that Sickarius will most likely take over once his Battle Genius Talent is triggered. He will be able to adjust to the fighting style of his opponent and even find a way to counter it."

"But Ashura is not that easy to deal with either. If I am not wrong, and from what I can see, he seems to possess a combat talent called Master Potential. It is a Mighty One Talent that can help an individual make complex things into something simple."

"In a sense, he can make complex skills and techniques into a basic one, lowering the difficulty of executing it. With this kind of talent, I will not be surprised if he still has a lot of techniques under his arsenal that he is not showing us."

"I am sure that he is waiting for the right opportunity to use them," he paused for a moment before continuing. "Not only that. Master Potential is a talent that is always accompanied by a special mind that can always find solutions to problems that are not obvious to the eyes of others."

"Because of this talent, a prolonged battle will not necessarily put Ashura in that much of a disadvantage."

He then paused for a moment before adding with a mystifying tone. "Moreover, the discipline that he is using is quite interesting as well."

'I ventured all around the world and have seen quite a lot, but this is my first time seeing someone use the principles of cultivation and fuse them with modern martial arts this well. It seems to be quite complete as well.'

'He is most likely a part of that Imperial Family since they are the only ones that have a complete heritage when it comes to that forgotten discipline,' he commented inside his head as he could not help but become impressed with what he was seeing.

In the meantime, Miss Bunny was barely able to process his point before suddenly asking. "Based on the movements and techniques of the two fighters that we have, it seems like they are also using the new mechanics of the game as well – that thing most people call the combat states."

David nodded his head as he answered. "To be more precise, these two are masters of Reality Manifestation. It is a special combat state that brings forth the real strength of an individual into the game."

"In simpler terms – it is manifesting reality into the virtual world," he added.

The two continued to discuss more topics and pointed out a few exchanges between Shin and Ashura, simplifying everything and making most of their viewers understand the details of the battle.

David was quite mindful and did not disclose the secrets that he had seen from both sides. Aside from a few surficial details and pieces of information that were already obvious in the eyes of the other experts watching this battle, he kept the rest to himself.

Miss Bunny, with her sharp senses, was able to notice that there were a few details that David was skillfully trying to avoid, so she played along and changed the topic naturally.

…

Going back into the battle, Shin and Ashura noticed that they were over-exhausting themselves by the continuous and high-intensity battle, which was why they tried to slow down a little to catch their breath and control their pace to prepare themselves for the next exchanges.

Clank! Clank!

Clang! Clang! Clang!

A series of clattering reverberated in every direction along with burning sparks that looked like rain scattering in the air.

Ashura's arms felt numb due to the paralyzing effects of the Primordial Lightning. It was weighing him down and making it harder to wield the heavy and huge sword ruler.

Shin, on the other hand, felt suffocated due to the strong pressure of the Cosmic Energy of his opponent. It felt like a hidden poison was chipping him away.

Shin's attacks breathed endlessness. He continued to pour down with his complex and ever-changing sword style as if he would not stop until his opponent was unable to move anymore.

But Ashura continued to be strong and held his ground stubbornly. Each swing of his sword ruler was packed with power and overwhelming strength, forcing his opponent to dodge before throwing a few powerful punches and sharp scratches with his draconic arm.

Even if the current state of the battle was in a deadlock, Ashura knew that he could not let this go on. If he did, Shin would continuously grow and adjust with his style, throwing him into a passive position.

Realizing this, Ashura suddenly took the initiative to change the flow of the battle.

He flapped his wings to retreat, leading Shin to chase after him. He was trying to bait him to come after him before launching a counter.

Shin would naturally not want to give Ashura enough space for his huge swings, so he had no choice but to chase after the latter while preparing for a sudden counter from his opponent.

Swoosh!

This time, Ashura did not use any advanced technique to borrow some strength from the environment and instead threw a sudden thrust forward, catching Shin a little off guard.

The transition between Ashura's movements was flawless. From the retreat to the sudden pause, and up to the forward thrust – everything came a little too smoothly that it barely gave Shin and window to respond.

But given Shin's Ultra Instincts within the game along with the help of his True Sight, he was able to notice the brief instance when his opponent changed his actions.

Flipping the greatsword on his left hand, he placed it in front of his shoulder before using its surface to redirect the trajectory of his opponent's attack.

Screek!

The sharp and high-pitched sound of metal scratching metal could be heard as the edges of the sword ruler slide through the surface of the greatsword.

Blazing sparks could also be seen flying everywhere from the point of friction where the two swords were scratching each other.

Following his forward momentum, Shin suddenly twisted his body to the side, jerking the greatsword to follow his actions and making the sword of his opponent bounce upwards.

These actions made the guard of his opponent to be broken and left him completely open.

Taking advantage of this situation, Shin borrowed more momentum from his actions to spin while throwing a horizontal slash with the [Yamato] that was placed under the great sword and positioned beside his waist.

Shing!

Ashura responded quite swiftly as he let himself be dragged higher by the rebounded sword ruler and flipped in the air. He also used his right foot to kick upwards, accurately hitting his opponent's hand and changing the trajectory of the horizontal slash.

Swoosh!

Shin might have missed his attack, but he continued.

He spun around as the sword on his left suddenly disappeared and turned into a sheath. Then, while he was spinning, he sheathed the sword in one smooth motion while assuming his signature stance.

When he was facing his opponent once again, the [Yamato] was ready to be pulled out once again, waiting to be unleashed.

Swoosh!

As he unsheathed the sword, Shin suddenly flapped his wings strongly, transforming himself into a streak of light that flew straight to his opponent.

Swoosh!

'Jade Kirin Scripture: Quick Draw – (Lighting) Flash Final'

Shing!

With the enhancement of the Primordial Lightning, the speed of this sword technique surpassed most of his sword-drawing techniques, slightly behind compared to when he was using the Void Element of Hanzo.

But given the short distance between him and his opponent, Shin reached his destination within an instant while pointing the [Yamato] forward.

Unfortunately, Ashura was still able to respond in time. Just as Shin pounced forward, Ashura flew back at the perfect time. As a result, he gained a small space where he could place his sword ruler diagonally in front of him while being supported by his draconic arm from behind.

Channeling his energy into his sword, the Cosmic Energy enfolding his weapon grew brighter and more violent.

'Imperial Family Secret Arts: Repulsion Mirror'

Bang!

The tip of the [Yamato] met the surface of the [Heavenly Meteor], Ashura's weapon.

The collision sent successive shockwaves that spread in every direction. It showed the forces that were repelling each other until Shin's momentum was finally exhausted.

Then as a second explosion, the sword ruler suddenly sent a strong repulsive force focused in front of it, where Shin was still maintaining his ending posture.

Bang!

Shin was quick enough to place the sheath in front of him and used the defensive guard that he had not used in a long time.

Swoosh!

But the explosion still sent him flying backward, widening the distance between him and his opponent.

Finally gaining enough space for his advanced skills, Ashura summoned and called out his third elemental spirit. "Third Servant!"

Responding to his call, the third speck of light that was revolving around his body was suddenly awakened before flying toward his back.

It briefly materialized into a humanoid figure first before turning into a light that transformed into a huge magic circle behind Ashura.

This magic circle looked like a cross star filled with incomprehensible runes. With its formation, the air around Ashura instantly changed, making him look more majestic and authoritative. It was as if he was a deity that came down from heaven to judge the mortals.

With this third elemental materialization, the connection between Ashura and his surroundings grew stronger. His mana sensitivity, magic power, and elemental control rose sharply, giving him an unparalleled magic power.

Seeing those changes, the corner of Shin's mouth could not help but twitch as he could already see what was going to happen next.

His Elemental Spirit Possession might give him different buffs along with the boosts that each form of 'Mondi's Style' provided, but it limits his choices as he could at least use two of them at a time.

The dual elemental possession of Whitie and Blackie already had to pull, even if it was a fusion possession. Adding the third possession when he was using the 'Mondi's Style' was already his limit.

If Ashura was adding one more elemental possession, Shin did not know if he could bridge the gap between their strengths and difference in stats.

He was not confident that he could add more possession to his current strength. Moreover, he did not have any extra sword that could be used as an extra medium for another possession.

Unless he could fuse more elemental spirits and activate another dual possession, he would not be able to match his opponent.

With that in mind, Shin could only bridge the gap with other means.

'Equipment Skill (Weapon: Yamato): Nephilim's Ascent'

'Equipment Skill (Headgear: Ruler's Dignity): Ruler's Authority'

'Grim Reaper Skill (Tier 2): Monochrome Field'

Activating a Berserk Skill and two Domain Skills to boost his stats and weaken his opponent at the same time. It might not be enough, but it would at least help him limit the strength of his opponent.

The world around Shin turned black and white, dulling the colors of everything. But in exchange, Shin gained a power that increased the efficiency of his skills and put everything in this domain under his absolute control.

But before Shin could even do anything more, he saw his opponent also used a series of buffs that nullified all the effects of the debuffs that he just cast.

As if insulting him even more, Ashura also used one of his strongest skills.

'Racial Battle Physique (Seraphim): God's Servant'

'Racial Berserk Skill (Seraphim): Divine Awakening – Immortal Divinity'

Boom!

An extremely powerful pressure exploded, making it hard for Shin to breathe. He felt that he was drowning due to the highly concentrated mana that was filling the surroundings and gathering toward Ashura.

He then saw a giant cluster of mana turned into a miniature star in the sky with Ashura acting as its core.

To make it even worse, Shin also saw that the Battle Spirit behind Ashura became even more distinct, seemingly reaching its perfection.

It sat in the air with its towering size, making Shin feel like he was an ant that could be crushed at any time. He felt that he was in the presence of a real deity that could not be challenged.

Shin watched Ashura and the miniature sun float at the chest of the huge three-faced deity while clicking his tongue and mumbling. "Aren't you a little overpowered?"

Before Shin could complain even more, he suddenly heard the familiar sound of the system notifications.

*Ding*

System: All conditions have been met! Your Racial Battle Physique (Nephilim) is fully awakened!

(Reference, Chapter 123)

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System: Unlocking the 'Mutated Powers' of the 'Heavenly Fighting Physique (Mutated)'!

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