NOVEL NEXT Chapter 613
The energy surging through me settles into my muscles and bones, similar to earlier when I was learning how to properly use my true core in the battle against the dragon.
Every step upward through the air assimilates this new power into my being and makes my movements feel more natural.
After a short pause, notifications begin ringing in my inner ear again, showing an increase in the average number of MCP being farmed, telling me my double has raised floors once again.
Hundreds of trillions of MCP rush into me as I fly up through the scattered remains of the bronze earth dragon and out of the crater in the ground.
My mind replays the last exchange over and over as I scan for my enemy, visualizing the pure hexagon of divine energy I manifested, and thinking of the possibilities that are now in the future for me. The fact that a True Core is unique to everyone that awakens it means the more of them I fight, the more unique True Core abilities I'll gain.
No matter how many waves of perception I put out, I still can't sense the silver sword user.
Still, I fly higher into the sky, hoping they'll be the first to attack and show themselves.
I yell out as I reach the altitude I was fighting at before, into the endless open air where a desert once stood.
"Now what? I manage to block one of your attacks and you run away?"
My yell, powered by my mythic grade screech skill to travel hundreds of kilometers, echoes as my greater form glows yellow.
Then, my gaze turns in the direction of the Crimson City, considering the possibility that maybe that is exactly what this invisible being did.
They could have seen my ability to kill their dragon and grow from seemingly powerless in a matter of minutes to a killer capable of blocking their own attack with their dead ally's ability. From an outsider looking in, there could be a lot of things I'm still hiding or holding back.
My heart sinks, piecing together a logical path that I would take in the same position.
If they were ordered by someone to take me out after somehow being notified of the Apex Region Director's death, they would find my weakness and attack it.
Based on the three attacks I've felt from this invisible assassin, they don't hold back and aim straight for the kill every time...
My next echoing yell through the open air is even louder, reaching far out into the dead zone of the desert, in case this invisible sword user has already flown away and devised a plan.
"If you dare lay a finger on my City, I will level the entire Volcanic Region you came from! Every military base in these mountains will be burned to ash! I won't stop there, I'll split this world in tw—"
Mid-yell, I sense the silver blades pierce my purple limiter, and a grin forms on my face as I turn my body and strengthen my Soul Energy shielding, enhanced by divine threads in the area being attacked.
Even with these, the blades still sink through, but the eruption of energy slows the silver weapons enough for me to summon another reflective hexagon of yellow light in its place.
If not for this ability, I would have been stabbed deep.
With my new increase of power in my core, I could have dodged a fatal blow, but it still would have hurt.
Now, as another blast of divine light fills the sky, the silver blades disappear and their holder is flung back with it.
Relief washes over me, but total concentration does too.
While it's good news this enemy didn't head straight for the center of the Dark Continent, I still can only perceive them while they attack, so anything can happen.
My gaze stays in the same direction as the enemy was flung while the divine threads in the air disperse.
The longer I'm left in the silent sky, the more possibilities of where the invisible swordsman could be.
My breathing slows, and I keep all of my buffs constantly activated while sending out pulses of perception.
My plunderer skill is draining mana from the atmosphere, but needs to be supplemented by copious amounts of mana crystals that I let fall from my item storage from time to time.
More mana has been used in the last hour than I've ever run through in what feels like a lifetime. My physical and mental state is not used to using such absurd power; the fatigue is building up, but I push on far past my limits.
More MCP transfer notifications ring in my mind, as it's the only thing other than the faint whistle of wind up in this silent sky.
The moment the notifications pause, indicating my double has reached another floor, I'm left in complete and total silence again.
This is when the blades come straight for the center of my chest.
I'm fully prepared this time and perform a perfect replication of the enhanced soul energy shielding to cover my vitals and break the initial impact of the blow, then another yellow hexagon of pure divine gravity to deflect the remaining attack before it even touches my skin.
Over the next 15 minutes, I'm attacked 11 more times.
Hundreds of trillions of MCP flood into my system, doubling my mana control again as I endlessly block these incoming blades and hopelessly track the sky for an attacker I can't see.
Eventually, the MCP transfer notifications completely stop...
Another 15 minutes pass, and I'm attacked 21 more times.
In this barrage of kill-shot targeted blows, not a single point of mana control is transferred to me.
At first, I thought maybe my double was just waiting extra long to get to a higher floor, or possibly it was killed on a floor with unique monsters that a mere mana manifestation couldn't handle; however, no memories come flooding back in, so this can't be the case.
Once I get a new string of notifications in my mind, I begin to make new theories of what's happening back in the Apex Region.
[MCP Transfer To Main Body: Complete]
[42,823 MCP]
[Skill Upgrade Transfer To Main Body: Complete]
[Blood Weaver] [Mythic Grade]
It's a very low amount of mana control, meaning my double isn't even fighting double ranked-up monsters.
I doubt it's inside the labyrinth still; my best guess is it's left the Apex Region base and began making dungeon walker points in the countless dungeons all around the Region.
If I had more mental power to spare, I would scan the Apex Region to try and pinpoint my double. If it is hopping out from dungeon to dungeon, even while in stealth mode, I could still pinpoint it.
It isn't important enough right now to use such mental strain.
While mana control would benefit me most right now, the main thing I'm thinking about is why would it leave the labyrinth...?
The only reason I'd leave is if I made it to the top, or if the floors were too hard and needed my main body's assistance.
My train of thought is completely interrupted as the silver blades come flying back toward me, pointed straight toward my spine.
This enemy comes at me with the same bloodthirsty urge to kill each time; they haven't wavered a bit since the start.
All I can do is reflect them back each time.
Whenever I attempt to guess where their main body is, sending a counter back, it just leads to me wasting energy, sending a powerful golden slash out into the open air.
No matter how good I think my guess is, painting right above where the silver blades hit me, they always disappear away from my senses and my attack misses.
My fatigue grows more and more, and the strategy to wear me out mentally and physically is very clear.
Another 15 minutes pass, and 32 more attacks are exchanged. I counter on 4 of them, but they're still hopeless attempts.
In my inner ear, more and more tiny MCP transfer notifications riddle my consciousness between 500 and 100,000 MCP, confirming to myself that my double is definitely in random dungeons.
Another upside of this is that more skill transfer notifications add to my status.
[Skill Transfer To Main Body: Complete]
[Stun] [Mythic Grade]
[Skill Transfer To Main Body: Complete]
[Meteor] [Mythic Grade]
[Skill Transfer To Main Body: Complete]
[Mana Storm] [Mythic Grade]
I would take the time to read them up close, but the barrage of attacks is being sent at a faster and faster pace. Now, the invisible sword wielder is coming back from my reflective barriers in less than half a minute and going straight for the kill each time.
I can't take my eye off my surroundings for too long, the only snippets I read are that my stun skill is similar to confusion and intimidation; a mental attack that stops the attacker from moving. Meteor creates a large pink stone as large and dense as the mana imbued into it, similar to my crystal creation skill, but with the sole purpose of creating a large weapon of mass destruction. Mana storm takes control of all the mana particles in a given area of aura and scrambles them, putting them only in control of the caster and making the mana useless to anyone else within the aura of a lower mana control.
In addition to all of my other skills, I attempt to use these new ones too, possibly gaining some kind of hidden advantage on the invisible attacker, but they all do absolutely nothing, just provoking the silent assassin to speed up their attacks even more.
Another 15 minutes pass, forcing me to block 77 more attacks, making this explosive exchange in the sky last over an hour now.
I'm getting more and more fatigued, the natural mana in this desert is nearly gone, and my own personal supply of crystals in my storage is running dry too.
This needs to stop soon, but the silver sword wielder is only getting faster and their accuracy and intent to kill hasn't wavered one bit. They are still just as sharp as their first shot.
Explosion after explosion fills the air as I'm blocking attacks every few seconds that hold enough power to obliterate full nations.
There's nothing I can do.
No matter what or where I throw my attacks, they never hit.
If I run away and save myself, this being will follow me back to the Crimson City. If I'm not there to stop them, anything could happen, and even if I do show up to stop them and we clash too close to the city, a single exchange would kill every mortal in sight from the aura expelled alone.
The only way I come out of this exchange with a victory is if I end it now.
As I contemplate how many more hours, or even minutes of this absurd beating I can continue to endure, a notification rings in my inner ear that may finally level the playing field.
[Skill Upgrade Transfer To Main Body: Complete]
[All-Seeing Eye] [Mythic Grade]