Black flames surged from one hand, twisting into a massive tornado of burning darkness.
It descended upon the fire dragons like an hammer and crushed them.
From his other hand, black lightning crackled and shot toward Arthur’s golden lightning.
The collision shook the air.
Shockwaves thrashed around wildly.
Neo and Arthur were thrown off course by the sheer power of the blast.
Neo flipped mid-air and landed gracefully on the scorched ground below.
Meanwhile, Clara quickly swapped Arthur’s position with a stone using her Space Affinity, teleporting him safely back to the ground.
“Your last attack was better—”
Neo began, but his words were abruptly cut off.
A silenced bullet tore through the wall of flames and struck Neo in the temple.
Neo barely flinched.
“Tsk, I missed,” Felix muttered, lowering her sniper rifle.
She had been made invisible using Arthur’s spell, and was waiting for the perfect moment to take her shot.
The bullet was meant to destroy the pendant Neo wore, exploiting his distraction after he dealt with Arthur’s and Mars’s combined attack.
“Sean! Do it!” Felix shouted urgently.
Sean closed his eyes and focused inward.
The energy within his Core churned violently.
Using his Time Affinity, Sean reached out to the River of Time.
A massive, invisible wave slammed into him, threatening to sweep him away.
He struggled to push forward, swimming against the overwhelming current.
Time became a blur—weeks, months, maybe even years seemed to pass.
His resolve wavered, but he pressed on.
Just a bit more.
Suddenly, the sensation disappeared.
Sean’s eyes snapped open.
“Huff! Huff!”
He had successfully traveled back in time by ‘six seconds’.
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He looked around and saw Neo falling from the sky.
Arthur’s and Mars’s attacks sandwiched Neo.
Neo, however, was preapared to retaliate.
“Felix,” Sean called out.
His chest heaved as if he had just run a marathon.
Time traveling took a huge toll on him.
He had done it only three times during this battle.
It made him feel as if he was on the brink of death itself.
His body screamed in protest, and his limbs felt heavier with every passing second.
“Did I miss?” Felix’s voice reached his ears.
She stayed hidden, her sniper rifle steady, cloaked by Arthur’s invisibility spell.
“Yes,” Sean panted, gasping for air. “Huff… huff… you aimed a bit high. The bullet hit his temple… huff.”
“Got it,” Felix responded quickly. “Okay, you should rest now.”
“I can—”
Sean began, but his words were drowned out by a deafening explosion in the sky.
A massive shockwave rippled across the battlefield, shaking the ground beneath their feet.
The air shimmered from the intense heat, and small fires erupted on the trees around them.
Neo and Arthur were thrown off balance by the force of the blast.
Neo flipped in the air and landed gracefully on the scorched earth.
Clara swapped Arthur’s position with a nearby stone, teleporting him safely back to solid ground.
“Your last attack was better—”
Neo words abruptly cutt off.
A silenced bullet tore through the flaming walls with pinpoint accuracy.
It flew straight for the pendant around his neck.
Neo reacted instantly.
His hand shot up, and he caught the bullet between his fingers just before it reached its target.
“Come on, really?”
Neo’s gaze swept the area.
“You’ve regressed one, two… three times now, and you still use the same attack?”
He held the bullet up for them to see.
“You should’ve tried to change the pattern after I dodged it the first time.”
Felix, still cloaked by invisibility, felt a bead of sweat slide down her temple.
Neo’s words confirmed her fears.
‘He knows Sean has been regressing. That means his Time Element mastery is at least Expert level.’
She swallowed hard.
The Shadow Trial Neo had gone through must have been a nightmare, if it forced him to grow to his current level of power.
“Get back, Felix! He can see you!” Arthur’s shout cut through the air, snapping Felix out of her thoughts.
She prepared to retreat when Neo raised a hand.
“Okay, that’s enough.”
Neo dusted off his clothes.
“I’ve got the gist of your current level. We can stop the training”
“Training—!?”
Felix froze.
Neo’s true aura burst out from his body.
The sheer intensity crushed the surrounding miles of forest, flattening trees and sending wildlife scattering in terror.
The ground beneath him cracked and trembled.
The once-lush greenery was reduced to ash and dust.
Everyone was forced to their knees by the oppressive weight of his presence.
Mars’ flames were extinguished in an instant.
Arthur’s Invincible skill shattered.
Neo’s shadows began to stir.
From the inky blackness, a humanoid shadow monster emerged.
It had the body of a human and the head of a dog.
“Get them to stand in line,” Neo said.
The summon bowed to him before moving towards others.
It picked everyone up one by one and placed them before Neo in a neat line, standing side by side.
Neo didn’t retract his aura.
He made sure it was just barely enough to not kill them – although his current method seemed harsh it would help them face stronger enemies and not be rattled by their auras.
“You need to get used to this,” Neo said. “Stronger enemies won’t be as forgiving as I am.”
He turned to Sean.
“Sean, good work. The use of your Time affinity was excellent. You just need to work on your stamina.”
“O-okay.”
Sean’s head bobbed weakly in a nod.
“Practice by doing short time travel dozens of times,” Neo said.
Neo’s gaze shifted to Clara.
“Clara, I’ll be honest, you surprised me the most.
“I never thought you would reach such a level in Space Affinity in just a few months.”
“I had some help,” Clara replied with a weak grin.
She tried to raise her head to meet his eyes, but Neo’s aura pressed down on her like a mountain.
Even attempting to smile felt like an impossible task.
“That’s good. You supported everyone with good timing.
“Are you planning to shift from being a damage dealer to a support role now that you can use Space Affinity in battles?” Neo asked.
“I’m thinking about it.”
“Tell me when you are sure. I’ll give you a training manual.”
Neo passed her and stood before Arthur.
His gaze bore into him like a drill.
“How many elements did you use during the fight?”
“Air… sound… and lightning,” Arthur answered through his gritted teeth.
Exhaustion was threatning to drown him after his Invinicble Skill was forcefully cancelled.
He was struggling to stay awake.
“How many elements have you awakened?”.
“Twelve,” Arthur replied.
“Why didn’t you use them?”
“No… time… to use, and low… mastery…”
“I see.”
Neo gave a short nod before moving on without further comment.
Arthur frowned, confused by the lack of advice.
Next, Neo stood before Mars.
“Mars, you need to work on your team skills.
“Your walls of flames blocked my vision. It was a good trick.
“But the walls of flames were a bigger hindrance for your teammates than they were for me.”
Mars nodded.
Unlike his usual chatterbox reply, he listened carefully.
Finally, Neo stood before Felix.
“I thought you said you could use the True Soul Weapon. I didn’t see you using it.”