Child of Destiny

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Right after Hanzo possessed the [Yamato], Shin quickly charged forward, taking the initiative for this battle.

Swoosh!

He turned into a streak of light that flew straight at the minotaur.

Bang!

He then stopped in front of the monster while stomping his foot on the ground. Cracks appeared and rock fragments flew in the air as he took his signature stance.

Shing!

He then unsheathed the sword and swung it horizontally. The space seemed to collapse by that swing as the blade of the sword seemed to have destroyed the space itself, leaving spatial fractures on its path.

'Jade Kirin Scripture: Quick Draw (Void) – Spatial Collapse'

Bang!

The minotaur raised its huge ax and hacked it downwards, slamming the already collapsing space. A shadow flame even shrouded the sharp edge of the ax as it fell.

The Void Powers that were produced by Shin's earlier strike was instantly obliterated as the war ax fell at him. The ax was much stronger after his sword destroyed the spatial powers left behind.

Seeing that, Shin immediately understood that this monster possessed a different level of power than the previous monsters he had fought last night. The density of the mana that this minotaur could control was a notch higher than theirs.

"It is not a Demonic Creature nor a Corrupted Monster, but it controls a dark and sinister mana unique to those two," mumbled Shin as he turned his wrist along with his sword before throwing a forward strike that was directed at the descending ax.

This seemingly normal swing carried a couple of sword principles such as the Heavy Sword, the Swift Sword, and the Sturdy Sword, which converged into one and formed a unique principle. Combining this with a sword technique under his arsenal, the might of this strike reached a whole other level.

'Jade Kirin Scripture: Fourth Movement (Void) – Spatial Stroke'

Swoosh!

Being reinforced by the Void Powers that he controlled with the 'Dimensional Cutter Possession', the space on the path of his sword collapses. The might of this strike also became even stronger while its speed had reached an unimaginable speed.

Bang!

The sword and the ax collided and sent violent ripples in every direction. There seemed to be a storm that appeared due to the strong collision, making the air dance chaotically.

Bang!

The difference in strength also appeared as Shin felt nauseous due to his muscles shaking and tremors within his body. The impact of that clash was so strong that he could not move his body the way he wanted.

(-20,959)

There was also a huge number that appeared above his head, signifying that he had received serious damage from the collision.

Taking a series of steps backward, Shin left deep footprints on his path, which indicated how strong the force behind the attack of his opponent was.

The minotaur, on the other hand, had its arm recoiled in the air along with the huge ax that it was holding. But aside from that, it did not receive any damage from the previous collision.

This was the difference between the weight classes of the two. No matter how strong Shin's attack, it would still lag a little behind compared to such a huge and powerful monster.

Seeing that Shin was still in the middle of recovering himself, the minotaur took advantage of the situation and stepped forward, before slamming the war ax down for another time.

Moo!

Swoosh!

Sensing the quick approach of the minotaur, Shin instantly understood that it was on a different level than the regular minotaurs that he had seen before. Its AI seemed to be pretty high in comparison, particularly its battle IQ.

Taking advantage of the current situation, where Shin was still recovering his footing, to attack was a good example.

After experiencing the difference in strength, Shin would not recklessly face this minotaur head-on. But at the same time, he also had a few ideas inside his head on how to deal with this kind of opponent.

With his recent battle against Ashura, where the latter completely overwhelmed him with the difference of power, Shin naturally learned a thing or two. He also had thought a couple of ideas on how to deal with similar situations when he encountered one.

His True Sight worked to the fullest as he watched the minotaur's movements closely. He even applied a few tricks that he had learned from his Mentalism Techniques while reading the monster's movements.

His eyes were glowing as he focused his mana on them. Due to that, the movements of the minotaur seemed to have slowed down in his eyes.

He then moved his body, accordingly, slowly raising his sword and slightly turning his wrists sideways.

His slow movements were done calmly and flawlessly as they accurately timed to deflect the descending ax.

Clang!

The sword seemed to be drawing a circle in the air while following the movements of the sword tip. The gentle flow of mana also followed it as he used the qi circulation according to the Jade Kirin Scripture.

Adding the Sword Principles of the Steady Sword, Gentle Sword, and Sturdy Sword, his movements became much smoother and firm.

'Jade Kirin Scripture: Second Movement – Returning Wave'

Bang!

Changing the trajectory of the ax with the [Yamato], Shin sent it landing on the ground beside him.

As the sharp and irregularly shaped fragments of earth before were in the air, Shin suddenly swung the [Yamato] forward while boring the force that the brief collision had made.

Shing!

The minotaur raised its right arm to block the incoming strike, producing an ear-piercing metallic sound right after the collision.

Clang!

Seeing that the minotaur did not receive even a scratch from that collision, Shin instantly understood that the defense of this monster reached beyond the level of a 'regular' monster.

"Well, it is an 'Elite' monster after all, so it should be normal," he mumbled as he felt a little stupid after thinking it through. "It seems like normal attacks with not do much against it. Ability-reinforced attacks should be required to deal enough damage."

Among the energies that he had fully controlled, the Void Powers still had the strongest penetrative attacks while the Primordial Light possessed a slightly similar effect on top of its amazing destructive powers.

While Shin was still thinking about how to deal with the minotaur, the monster raised its fist and swung it down, planning to crush him with it.

Without any hesitation, Shin quickly used the 'Void Steps' to get away. Standing at a safe distance, Shin was preparing to launch a powerful attack when he saw the minotaur raise its right foot before stomping on the ground with a lot of force.

Trample!

Boom!

The ground seemed to collapse as with that power stomp. Cracks spread and moved toward his location along with a strong force that seemed to be flipping the ground itself. There was also a strong gust of wind that was heading in his direction, carrying a force that could rip him into shreds.

But instead of retreating, Shin chose to charge forward instead.

Bang!

Kicking the ground, he launched himself forward while gorgeous flames surrounded his body. The sheath on his left hand also turned into a longsword that Solus immediately possessed, making his control over the flame improve by a large margin.

As he controlled the Eternal Flame, a spherical barrier was suddenly formed, protecting him from any harm.

'Perfected Four Symbol Scripture: Celestial Vermillion Bird – Pheonix Embrace'

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The violent wind and the trampling earth repeatedly smashed on the blazing barrier protecting Shin. The huge and small fragments were melted right after they touched the barrier while the violent wind made the flame stronger instead of putting it down.

After absorbing all the forces from the repeated impact of the attack, Shin concentrated them at one point while approaching the minotaur. When he arrived in front of the monster, he immediately detonated the blazing barrier and caused a powerful explosion.

Boom!

The minotaur was instantly swept by the explosion. Its body was swept by the blazing flame, burning its tough skill and flesh.

Moo!

As the minotaur protected itself from the explosion, it suddenly stomped onto the ground and raised its head before bellowing with all its mouth.

A powerful energy force was released from its body, which repelled the powers of the Eternal Flame and warded off the scorching heat that came along with it.

Swoosh!

Shin broke through all of these as he held the [Yamato], reinforced by the 'Dimension Cutter Possession', over his head and slashed it down.

Reinforced with the principles of the Swift Sword, Sharp Sword, and Destructive Sword, the strike came a little too fast and powerful.

At the same time, the space seemed to have collapsed as the blade of the [Yamato] passed through it.

'Jade Kirin Scripture: First Movement (Void) – Collapsing Void'

Shing!

Seeing the incoming attack, the minotaur lowered loudly while covering its war ax with the dark mana that it possessed. It then swung it upwards, meeting the incoming attack of its opponent.

Moo!

Boom!

The collision produced a much stronger explosion that destroyed the surroundings.

Swoosh!

Shin's figure was sent flying by the impact, making him collide with the huge trees before stopping.

Cough! Cough!

He spat a mouthful of blood, signifying that he suffered severe injuries. He was also immediately put in a seriously wounded state, making most of his stats drop. His health bar was already at 25% and always reaching the critically wounded state.

Without any hesitation, he used the 'Sacred Light' Elemental Skill to recover from his injuries and restore his health to full.

Wiping off the blood at the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand, Shin walked out of the thick cloud of dust produced by the collapse of the trees earlier.

He looked at the minotaur that was standing in the same spot while holding its war ax with both hands. It was glaring at Shin as visible bleeding could be seen from different parts of its body. It was an indication that it did not escape unscratched from the earlier clash.

Moo!

With another bellowing, the minotaur exhaled loudly, releasing visible air from its nose. It also scratched its right hoof on the ground, kicking out the dust and dirt.

Shin looked at it provokingly before twirling the [Yamato] multiple times and putting it back in its sheath. He then assumed a sword-drawing pose before kicking the ground and propelling himself forward.

Swoosh!

Moo!

At the same time, the minotaur charged at him with an unstoppable momentum while dragging the huge war ax behind it.

Bang!

It then leaped in the air before slamming the war ax down, targeting Shin, who was about to reach it.

Shin glanced at the minotaur briefly before unsheathing the sword and swinging it forward. At the same time, his figure suddenly disappeared, only leaving a flickering afterimage behind.

Boom!

Shing!

The ax missed its target landed on the ground and sent shockwaves in every direction, further destroying the surroundings.

Meanwhile, Shin managed to cut the waist of the minotaur as brushed past it in the air. But the wound was a little shallow as did not even bleed.

Shin paused in the air as his back was facing the back of the minotaur, he then disappeared as he kicked the air, propelling himself toward the monster once again.

Swoosh!

His figure flashed repeatedly. He appeared and disappeared around the minotaur while slashing with his sword along with a series of sword techniques applied by the multiple sword principles that he had learned up until now.

This monster might be tough to head with and much more powerful compared to the ones that he had faced previously, but it would also serve him a good practice partner, that would make him familiarize himself with the new sword principles and further polish his swordsmanship.

In the meantime, the minotaur repeatedly turned and threw random attacks that were trying to catch Shin, who looked like a fly that kept on annoying it.

An intense battle between the two of them followed, further destroying the environment around them.

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