Two hours before reaching the First Zone,
Jambavan and I made a plan B.
While moving, I exclaimed from the back of Ruru, "I'm finally gonna use the Blessing of Jambavan. I couldn't use it against Vyaghra. But this time, as soon as the battle starts, I'm gonna activate it."
"Don't do it," Jambavan ordered.
"Huh? But why?"
"My blessin', no doubt, can increase yer battle capability severalfold, but it's only fer a limited time," Jambavan explained. "If ya fail to defeat her in that time, ya'll only become a burden on the rest of us. Because this blessin' will squeeze every last drop of yer Soulforce."
"So I can't use it this time either," I grumbled.
"Which bastard said ya can't?"
I slowly pointed my finger at him.
"Brat, Ay didn't say ya can never use it," Jambavan snapped. "Nobody knows what the Queen is truly capable of. We're definitely gonna face unforeseen variables in this battle. When a person is driven into a corner, they'll do what ya never expect of 'em. So yer gonna be our ace in this battle."
.
.
.
"Analyzing Host's opponent...
Opponent is stronger than the Host!
Activating Blessing of Jambavan..."
A blood-colored bear spirit emerged from the mark on my forehead and covered my whole body.
It slowly absorbed into my skin, and my exhaustion began to vanish. I felt my body heating up, my heart beating louder than ever, adrenaline rushing through my brain.
My hair started turning crimson, along with my eyes—red vapors emitted from my body.
"Blessing of Jambavan activated!!
All stats are increased by 50%.
All skills are increased by one level."
"Your Soulforce consumption is returning to normal."
Ding...
"Skill: Pain Tolerance breaks through the limit
Pain tolerance(Limit Break): Your strength increases proportionally to the pain you suffer."
"Hmm... so this is power?" I said, my voice as deep as the ocean.
Gumiho rose to her feet, roared while glaring at me, and threw a punch, breaking the air barrier around her fist.
As the punch landed, the trees behind me, along with the ground, split apart, shattering into uncountable pieces.
"Huh? Is that it?" I mumbled, blocking her massive fist with one hand.
"Let me show you what true strength is."
I raised my other hand and clenched it into a fist. Golden lightning flickered on my knuckles, compressing into a sphere.
Lightning Bolt
Version
G
A
L
A
C
T
I
C
P
U
N
C
H
The moment my punch struck her fist, a thunderous sound boomed through the forest. The lightning raged through her arm, shredding veins and burning flesh, while the overwhelming force of Galactic Punch broke her bones into several parts.
The blood from her arm poured like rain, turning the ground crimson.
"Congratulations!! You have learned a new skill:
Lightning Bolt Version: Galactic Punch
Description: A variant of Lightning Bolt used with a punch, combining the power of both thunder and wind."
"Haha, the rest is on yer shoulders," Jambavan whispered before falling to the ground.
Meanwhile, Gumiho stumbled back from the sudden force, her expression confused by the unexpected rise in my power.
She glided her other hand down her broken arm. As her hand slid, purple petals emerged on her skin.
Her shattered bones returned to their places, and in a moment, her whole arm was covered in a plaster of flowers.
"That's a fascinating way to keep using your injured limbs," I said calmly. "But it's not enough to beat me."
She, clearly irritated, joined her hands and hammered them against the ground.
From the point of impact, a blizzard of petals emerged and spread in all directions.
In an instant, more than half of her tails vanished.
"So the stronger the attack, the faster she will die," I murmured.
I slowly raised my right foot forward, and the moment it touched the ground, I vanished.
"Blink."
Within half a second, a flash of zig-zag lightning moved across the forest, carrying the unconscious bodies of Jambavan and Vyaghra far from the battle before appearing in front of Nymeria.
"Come here," I whispered, pulling her close by the waist.
In the other half second, I carried her out and moved inside the storm of flowers.
With the blinding speed of Blink, I dodged every last petal and began throwing the barrage of lightning punches at her.
"Small amount of Soulforce absorbed." ×72
In the struggle to block my rapid attacks, she wrapped her entire body with the petals.
"You're still using your brain with all that curse," I said, backing down a few feet.
"Not like it's gonna change any—"
Ba-dum...
Ba-dum...
A sharp throb rattled my chest, blurring my vision and shaking my legs.
"Warning!! The Host's Soulforce is nearly drained.
Blessing of Jambavan will be undone within a minute."
"A-a minute, huh?" I huffed heavily and drew Vajra out of the ground.
"Vivi, I would like to learn Lightning Decree."
"Initialising Host's request..."
Seeing that I was getting weaker, Gumiho started preparing her attack.
She waved her gigantic hands, and along with the flow, all the petals left her body and gathered above her head.
The speed with which her tails were vanishing increased exponentially.
The petals began to take the shape of something I had only heard of in the myths.
Two massive claws, a sharp beak, an enormous tail like a comet, and wings that covered the heavens.
It was the legendary phoenix.
"So this was the unforeseen variable Jambavan talked about," I sighed and raised my sword. "Now everything depends on this move."
"Warning!! Blessing of Jambavan will be undone within thirty seconds."
For a moment, everything went silent.
And then, the land beneath began to shake violently. My feet slowly left the ground as my body floated upward.
Destructive black clouds, thundering with golden lightning, engulfed the entire sky, and in the middle of them, above the phoenix, I stood.
"Warning!! Five seconds left!!
Beginning the Countdown..."
Gumiho waved her hands, directing the phoenix towards me.
It screeched with an ear-piercing sound as it soared, conjuring storms with every flap of its wings.
"Three."
"If this doesn't work, everything ends here," I muttered.
"Two."
I slowly lowered my hand, the tip of Vajra pointing at the upcoming calamity.
"One."
"Lightning Decree"
All the lightning within the black clouds gathered at the center and then descended, striking the phoenix like punishment from the gods.
Loud peals of thunder echoed through the entire forest as it burned the phoenix to ashes.
The unstoppable lightning, following its path, struck Gumiho, shattering every bone in her body and scorching the earth beneath.
Her massive body shrank down, reducing to the size of Ruru.
"Huff… huff…" I panted. My hair returned to its normal color as I began to collapse to the ground.
***
Agnivrat03's here with the 5th question.
Question 5: Who is the mvp of this long battle?