[Griho]: Range Shiftling... Reversal...
Uttering those words, Griho lunged toward Haidoro.
*
Mothership
[Pratik]: But that move won't work again... right?
[Grimori]: He must have something hidden up his sleeve. I wonder what his next move will be.
Everyone watched with unwavering attention.
The moment Griho reached Haidoro...he deactivated his Range Shiftling.
Huh?
Before Haidoro could even process what had happened...
Griho activated his Range Shiftling again and landed a devastating punch, cracking Haidoro's natural armour.
Then came the real assault.
Griho began activating and deactivating his Range Shiftling continuously.
Thousands of times every second.
Haidoro was already being overwhelmed by the relentless barrage of punches.
Worse...
...he couldn't even fight back.
The moment he attacked, Reversal would simply reflect the damage back onto him.
He couldn't even focus on breaking the Range Shiftling.
Its activation and deactivation were happening far too quickly, while Griho's fists never stopped landing.
After five seconds...
Griho deactivated his Range Shiftling one final time and leapt backward to a safer distance.
Haidoro remained standing...
...but his body was covered in wounds.
His regeneration had slowed considerably.
For the first time in his life...
...Haidoro felt humiliation.
Haidoro: Dragon Beast Transformation.
His body erupted into his Crimson Dragon Form.
[Griho]: Dragon Transformation.
Griho answered by transforming into his own Blue Dragon Form.
[Haidoro]: Manifestation, Magma.
[Griho]: Manifestation, Water.
Haidoro's dragon body became coated in blazing magma.
Griho's body was wrapped in flowing water.
Unlike Haidoro's coating, Griho's remained fluid and flexible, perfectly suited for combat.
[Haidoro]: Dimension Wrap, Magma.
A grey veil spread across the battlefield.
Both warriors disappeared from the outside world.
A new dimension unfolded around them.
A burning realm.
Rivers of magma.
Scorched skies.
Tormented souls wandering through an endless inferno.
Griho merely observed it with calm eyes.
Because he knew anger would only cloud his judgment.
Haidoro slowly opened his mouth.
Dimensional Wrap. An ability exclusive to Deity Leaf users.
It didn't merely strengthen existing abilities.
It granted entirely new effects perfectly suited to the user's fighting style.
The drawback, however was severe.
Activating it consumed half of the user's Dark Energy Reserves.
It was a technique meant to finish battles.
Haidoro prepared his Magma Breath.
Inside the Dimensional Wrap its power had been amplified by fifteen thousand percent.
The instincts Griho had sharpened through countless battles screamed at him.
This attack would kill him.
No amount of Manifestation.
No amount of Dark Energy Reserves Coating.
Nothing would allow him to survive it normally.
At that moment...
Griho chose the most dangerous path imaginable.
A path he had unknowingly inherited from his greatest rival...
Krishna.
Griho deactivated his Manifestation.
He lowered every external defence.
Instead...
...he deliberately positioned himself so the attack would strike his brain stem.
It was madness.
Haidoro unleashed the amplified Magma Breath.
The beam swallowed Griho whole.
His armour vaporized instantly.
His body nearly followed.
Moments later...
...only a burnt, unconscious body remained.
The Dimensional Wrap shattered.
Half of Haidoro's Dark Energy Reserves had already been consumed.
The backlash immediately began.
He coughed blood repeatedly.
Even his regeneration had slowed dramatically.
Yet...
...he was still alive.
Haidoro: Seems like this is my victory.
Haidoro muttered before spitting blood onto the ground.
Had he won?
Not yet.
BOOM!
A massive explosion erupted behind him.
Its destructive force struck Haidoro directly.
Half of the armour covering his body was blown away.
The flesh beneath suffered devastating damage.
For perhaps the first time in years...
...Haidoro screamed in agony.
[Haidoro]: What... was that?
As the dust slowly settled...
...a blurred figure appeared before him.
Griho.
His vision had been damaged, making it difficult to see clearly.
The Marshal was wounded...
...but his injuries were far lighter than before.
[Haidoro]: How... did you...
Haidoro groaned.
Griho simply let out a slow breath.
Even breathing had become difficult.
*
Inside the mothership...
Pratik's eyes widened.
What had Griho done to survive that attack?
Even Grimori had no answer.
Neither Kel.
Nor Lila.
Hunter Marshal had performed something very few sorcerers even knew existed.
Something considered among the most forbidden techniques in the history of Sorcery.
FEW MOMENTS AGO...
Inside the Dimensional Wrap...
Griho had deactivated both his Manifestation and his external coating.
Instead of reinforcing his body from the outside...
...he coated his internal organs with Dark Energy Reserves.
Even among elite sorcerers...
...very few could perform such a feat.
On top of that...
...he applied Manifestation directly over his brain.
Only one part remained completely unprotected.
His brain stem.
Exactly as he intended.
When Haidoro's Magma Breath struck...
...it devastated Griho's body.
It even destroyed a critical portion of his brain stem.
That...
...was precisely what Griho had planned.
Before death could fully claim him...
...his regeneration restored the damaged brain stem.
By surviving on the very edge of death...
...he activated his Maximiser.
A forced maximiser, something that is considered forbidden.
Returning stronger than before.
But that wasn't all.
Before taking the attack...
Griho had secretly stolen massive amounts of magma from Haidoro's Dimensional Wrap using Space Manipulation.
He quietly stored it throughout the battlefield.
The instant Haidoro relaxed after dismissing the Dimensional Wrap...
...Griho released both the stored magma and a massive torrent of water.
Their collision created an enormous explosion.
Using Space Manipulation once again...
...Griho redirected the destructive force directly toward Haidoro.
BACK TO THE PRESENT
Haidoro lay before Griho...
...groaning in pain.
Meanwhile...
Griho remained standing.
Though injured...
...his wounds were comparatively minor.
*
Mothership
Pratik shot to his feet in excitement.
[Pratik]: Does that mean Griho won?!
He asked with a hopeful smile.
Grimori could only stare silently.
There was surprise in his eyes.
Along with admiration.
Had the Hunter Marshal truly won?
However...
Pratik's expression suddenly froze.
Grimori's face stiffened.
Even Mala stood stunned before the screen.
Far away...
Grahan simply smirked aboard his spacecraft.
The Marshal collapsed.
A gaping hole had appeared through his chest.
At the same time...
...the wounded Haidoro slowly rose back to his feet.
What happened?
And more importantly...
...what happens now?
To be continued...