Child of Destiny

……

Shin observed his opponent closely with his ‘True Sight’ technique. And after a couple of moments, he discovered that even though Flame managed to reach a high level of control over his superpowers and also imitate the Qi Armament Skill of Void Manifestation Stage experts, the form of his armor was not that stable.

At the very least, Shin could occasionally find some flaws in the flame armor which he could take advantage of when the fight started.

At the same time, he could also use his own technique to further enhanced his strength. His Martial Arts were currently sealed, so he could not use his Qi Reinforcement Skills to strengthen his body. He was also unable to activate it even though his body had fully adapted to it.

Fortunately, the Qi Reinforcement Skill that Professor Plum had created to complement his Yin-Yang Arts was out of the ordinary. It could not only enhance his abilities during the battle, but it could also toughen up his body when training it. And because of this, Shin was able to retain some of its powers even though it was not at its full might.

Aside from this, his Mentalism Techniques would also not lag behind. If Martial Arts had Qi Reinforcement Skills, then Mentalism had its Mentalism Enhancement.

Qi Reinforcement Skills could make a person’s body tougher and more powerful while Mentalism Enhancements could further improve the already powerful body of an individual. In a sense, their purpose was the same, though their methods were slightly different.

Shin still hadn’t reached the desired mastery over his Qi Reinforcement Skill and Mentalism Enhancement to combine them, creating his personal Unified Strengthening. But he at least had a deep understanding of these two.

At his Mentalism Enhancement was also different from the norm since it was derived from the technique that Grandmaster Benn had created, another usage of Mentalism Runes.

The glowing runes that seemed to be engraved on Shin’s skin released a more brilliant light. The runes on his arms spread up and reached his shoulders, forming a Mentalism Sequence. It even reached his chest and back before joining together and forming a magical circle at the center of his chest strange patterns on his back.

The runes on his legs also climbed up and formed a similar-looking sequence but did not reach higher than his waist. They stopped on his hips before joining together just like what happened on his upper body.

This was the Mentalism Enhancement of Shin and it boosted all of his combat capabilities by a large margin. But despite gaining a powerful upgrade, the expression on his face remained dark as he fully understood his current situation.

Keeping this Mentalism Enhancement active would be added to the burden that he was already enduring. If he committed a single mistake, then the price that he had to pay would be pretty disastrous for his body.

‘It is coming!’ thought Shin as he saw the fireballs surrounding his opponent disappear in a flash. He could sense their movements through his Spiritual Sense and knew that they were moving at a much faster speed than the previous exchange.

Since he did not have the time to put up a mental energy wall to shield him, Shin had no other choice but to face them head-on.

He read the trajectory of the fireballs before moving his hand accordingly to either block or deflect them.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

His movements were short and simple. But every time he gently waved his hand, a smooth trail would be left in the air as he changed the course of the fireballs and sent them away with either his palm or the back of his hand.

His Mental Energy was protecting his arms, so he did not suffer and burn or scorch marks from the fireballs.

There was a brief moment when Shin got a space to catch his breath but he chose not to grab that opportunity and instead spread his arms wide before moving them in a circular manner. One hand was stopped above him while the other was right in front of his crotch. And the moment when they stopped a hexagonal shield appeared in front of him as he pressed his palms forward to support it.

Swoosh!

It was at that moment when Flame suddenly appeared and threw a thrusting punch forward as his entire arm was covered with a raging flame. The front of his fist formed a sharp tip, making his arm look like a blazing pike spear.

Boom!

The attack came a little too sudden and could surprise any other opponent. Unfortunately, it was ineffective against Shin as he was able to see it from miles away with the help of his True Sight and Spiritual Sense.

Shin planted his feet on the ground to stand firmly as he prepared for a counterattack. But at the same time, his opponent had the same thoughts in mind.

Flame was a veteran mercenary who already went through a lot on the battlefields of war-torn areas, so he was able to quickly see through the plans that Shin was trying to accomplish. He had to take the initiative before the situation got out of control.

Bang!

An explosion erupted from behind his shoulder, pushing his arm forward and producing more pressure on Shin. And due to the strong force produced by that explosion, Shin was pushed back despite his feet firmly rooted in the ground.

A long trail was drawn on the ground as Shin was continuously pushed by his opponent, dragging him away with a forceful advance.

Shin knew that he could no longer continue this way since it would only worsen his internal injuries further. He quickly disengaged with the help of the Four Symbol Scriptures: Holy Azure Dragon Techniques.

Naturally, Flame would not let Shin get away just like and quickly gave chase without any hint of hesitation. He knew that he had the advantage in frontal confrontation since he was in a higher realm in terms of martial arts and physique. Moreover, he had the aid of his fire superpower, so he could continuously pressure Shin with his attacks until he found the right opportunity to land a fatal blow.

Shin continuously moved around with the help of his foot techniques to avoid a frontal confrontation with Flame. Even though he was confident that he could exchange blows with his opponent, he was not in the right state to do it.

Aside from throwing a couple of counterattacks from time to time, he was mostly moving around the space that he had while thinking of a way to get out of his current predicament.

Fortunately, his combat and movement techniques were strong enough for this current situation. He might not be able to find a chance to use a more advanced move due to the continuous assaults of his opponents, but it was the same for the other side since he would quickly advance forward and intervene whenever he saw the opponent preparing for a more powerful move.

Flame understood these two and chose to continue what he was doing right now. Given his advantages with physique and martial might, he would sooner or later suppress Shin as long as he did not commit any mistake.

But this decision was also favorable to Shin since he could buy enough time for Nathan to arrive and save. He heard earlier from the radio his opponent that there were some people that were trying to delay Nathan, but given his understanding of his uncle, Shin knew that the five minutes that the opposing side had mentioned would not be that accurate.

Reinforcement could arrive earlier than that!

But at the same time, it did not mean that Shin would passively wait for Nathan to arrive. He would still give his all in this battle and take down this enemy if an opportunity presented itself.

In terms of pure strength and raw power, Shin was obviously on the weaker side. But he was not taking much damage as he was meeting the opposing punch with a gentle palm. And every time he came in contact with the opposing side, he would always take a step back and turn his feet as a pivot. ｂ𝚎𝚍𝚗𝚘𝚟𝚎ｌ.ｎｅｔ

He was using a gentle fist to face an iron fist!

He continued to move this way with a particular rhythm to control the movements of his opponent. And this went on until he finally created a chance where he could use an advanced mentalism technique. But instead of using a powerful offensive strike, Shin chose to go with a more defensive move.

He had left a small amount of Mental Energy in every place that they went through in preparation for this move.

Shin quickly took a large hop to disengage from his opponent and quickly put his palms together which produced a huge energy ripple in the air.

Flame wanted to chase after Shin but a thick mist suddenly appeared out of nowhere and hid the tracks of his target. And when he stood at the spot where Shin was supposed to stand, he found nothing but an empty space.

When he swept his gaze around, he found that he was already standing in the middle of a spreading mist that blocked his line of sight.

‘Four Symbol Scripture: Azure Dragon and Black Tortoise – Illusionary Ghost Tracks’

With the combination of the movement techniques of the Holy Azure Dragon and the illusion techniques of the Heavenly Black Tortoise, Shin was able to create an environment that could confuse the sense of his opponent.

By constantly moving in different directions and continuously releasing his mental energy coupled with other special methods, this technique was created. And with its help, Shin would be able to buy enough time for himself to regulate his breathing and calm his muscles.

After the earlier exchange, Shin felt that his arms were getting sore due to the heat and power behind each of his opponent’s attacks. Even though he was he managed to nullify most of it because of his positioning, his body still received a certain amount of shock and accumulated heat from the successive blazing strikes of the opposing party.

But at the very least, everything was worth it since he could now take the initiative in this battle. Even though he was still on the back foot, he could at least lessen the burden that he was carrying with this particular technique.

……