The Awakened Kitsun stared daggers at Michael as he realized that his shadows were repelled by the ominous golden light that filled the surrounding entirely.
Not a single inch in a radius of five meters around Michael was able to capture the Kitsun’s shadows. Everything was saturated in a bright golden sheen. 𝐞𝐨𝘃𝐞𝐥.
“Like I said. It won’t work,” Michael repeated as a light chuckle escaped his lips.
Watching a Tier-3 Awakened struggle to use his Soultrait against him felt oddly satisfying. The inferiority of Shadow Cage was revealed at this moment.
‘Is Shadow Cage a 3-Star Soultrait? No, it shouldn’t be. I doubt the Dome of Extraction is powerful enough to repel the power of a 3-Star Soultrait. Even if it could, the Dome of Extraction would drain more energy than it does usually. My consumption is close to zero, right now.’
Michael channeled more energy into the Dome of Extraction and strode closer to the Awakened Kitsun. The two Kitsun narrowed their eyes seeing how confident Michael was. They were Tier-3 Awakened, yet the youthful Tier-2 Lord in front of them showed no signs of hesitation as he approached them.
His strides were slow but steady and confident, his gaze calm and composed.
“Who the hell are you?!” The Awakened with the Shadow Spike Soultrait screamed at the top of his lungs. He stepped back and condensed the shadows around him into large shadow spikes.
The shadow spikes were released with a burst of energy, propelling through the air straight at Michael.
Michael moved his right leg back and twisted his body a little to evade the shadow spikes with as little movements as possible. The Shadow Spikes shot past him and dispersed as the Dome of Extraction devoured their energy slowly.
“But this should be a 3-Star Soultrait. The spikes are quite sturdy and fast as well. The power is definitely above an ordinary 3-Star Soultrait. However, you’re restricted. You are dependent on the shadows around you. Glacicle is still better,” Michael said loud enough for the two Awakened to hear.
Both of them were too stunned and stared blankly at Michael, unsure what to respond. What was he even talking about? How did he analyze Soultrait’s superior attack power, and its deficit so quickly?
Michael smiled brightly. Using Eagle Eyes and Spirit Gaze together was truly a heavenly combination. The Soultraits allowed him to analyze the power of his enemies with great precision. Not even their Soultraits could escape Michael’s eyes. His attention to detail was truly spectacular at this point.
Of course, his enemies didn’t have to know any of that.
‘I wonder what others think about my powers. What would these idiots think if they knew that I have several more 5-Star Soultraits than all of them combined together? Would they fall into depression? Would they rage? OR would they try to capture me to extract my Extraction Soultrait?’
Michael was unsure why these thoughts flashed through his mind at this moment, but they didn’t really make him feel good. It was a weird feeling; a tinge of discomfort mixed with fear of the unknown future.
Michael hated this feeling. It was a weakness. His fear of the unknown future, and his worry of the reaction of other people once they found out about his Soultrait always made him uncomfortable.
Michael knew that he worried too much about it. It was a needless worry because he had told the EmeraldLeaf Adventurer team about Extraction already.
But, of course, it would be a little bit different to tell other humans about Extraction because they could hunt him down and attempt to steal his Soultrait or make use of Extraction through force. The EmeraldLeaf Adventurer was under a Link of Loyalty as well. They couldn’t do anything against him even if they wanted to – especially since they were only five members with no more Forest Elven Awakened nearby.
‘Why am I even thinking about this?’ He asked himself in frustration.
In a fit of rage, Michael created six enhanced Qi Glacicle Swords. He kicked his feet off the ground and dashed forward. The six enhanced Qi Glacicle Swords rotated around him calmly, but it didn’t take long until they burst past Michael. They shot toward the shadow duo, who struggled visibly as they felt the immense power residing within the enhanced Qi Glacicle Swords.
Being unable to use their Soultraits, the two Kitsun Awakened ended up as mere Tier-3 Awakened. Usually, the physical strength of Tier-3 Awakened would play a crucial role in one’s combat prowess. It was a major contributing factor since the external enhancement of most Artifacts depended on the physical strength, the refinement of the mind, and the essence of the soul.
However, as they belonged to the Kitsun race, the two Awakened couldn’t even exploit their superior physical strength. They weren’t a lot stronger than Michael, who still had numerous Soultraits at his disposal.
The Kitsun Awakened released their combat techniques and channeled origin energy through their bodies. They wielded their weapons and blocked the first enhanced Qi Glacicle Sword. But just as the Glacicle Sword collided with the Kitsun’s blade something unexpected happened. The Glacicle Swords burst apart, releasing a tremendous amount of freezing mist in the surrounding area.
The freezing mist formed a dense cloak around the Kitsun, which made it much more difficult for him to pinpoint and block the remaining four enhanced Qi Glacicle Swords.
Two enhanced Qi Glacicle Swords cut the arms of one Kitsun before they shattered, releasing more freezing mist into the world. On the other hand, the last two Glacicle Swords missed their target as the other Kitsun retreated several steps. The Glacicle Swords exploded but they didn’t injure the Kitsun any further.
Michael’s eyes narrowed when he noticed that the Kitsun split up. One of them abandoned his friend.
‘If you insist that I kill your friend first…okay. I can do that!’ Michael said in his mind, changing his target to the Kitsun, whom he had injured already.
He twisted his body and entered the freezing mist without any hesitation. Using Glacicle, he could sense everything within the freezing mist. He could not yet control the freezing mist. However, there was something else he could do. Using the massive amount of freezing mist in his surroundings, Michael could create new Glacicles with extremely low energy consumption.
Now that he was inside the freezing mist, the Dome of Extraction reached the Kitsun as well. He couldn’t even try to tap into the power of Shadow Cage because there was no response. The Kitsun sensed that he would have to retreat several steps before Shadow Cage could be utilized once again.
But just as the Kitsun was about to do that, Michael’s outlines appeared in front of the Kitsun. Smiling at the stupidity of the peasant Lord, the Kitsun raised his weapon high into the air. He cleaved down just as Michael thrust the Wyverntooth Spear forward.
Yet, instead of completing his attack, Michael stopped in the middle of his tracks. He used Spirit Disturbance at full power to hit the Kitsun heavily. The Kitsun didn’t expect an attack on a spiritual level. Therefore, he was exposed to the full extent of Spirit Disturbance.
The Kitsun groaned loudly. He struggled to keep his ground and cursed loudly as he forced his attack to continue. His downward cleave cut through the freezing mist, splitting it apart as the origin energy channeled into the blade began to pulsate. A thin membrane of energy coated the Kitsun’s longsword. All he had to do was to cut through Michael to slice him apart in one go.
But Michael wasn’t hit that easily. He didn’t blindly charge at the Kitsun without a plan either.
By the time the Kitsun cleaved downward, Michael had already moved aside. At the same time, several Glacicle Swords appeared around the Kitsun. They were enhanced through Enhancement and the Reinforced Sword Qi Soultrait. Both were applied to the Glacicle Swords, enhancing their destructive power drastically.
Unable to spin his body around due to the momentum of his downward cleave, the Kitsun could only stare at Michael’s face which was filled with smiles and mockery.
In the next moment, the enhanced Qi Glacicle Swords pierced the Awakened Kitsun from all sides.
The Kitsun grit his teeth and tried to strike Michael once again. But before he could land another blow, Michael decided to release the Qi that shrouded the Glacicle Swords inside the Kitsun’s body. The Kitsun spit out blood and his upper body inflated. The Qi spread quickly through the Kitsun’s body inflicting severe damage. But that wasn’t even the worst.
Worse than the Qi coursing through the Kitsun with ill Intentions were the Sword Glacicles that burst into millions of particles. The Sword Glacicles turned into a compressed smoke of freezing mist that ravaged the insides of the Kitsun, flowing through his veins and bloodstream.
Michael applied several layers of Enhancement right after he evaded the Kitsun’s cleave. Michael was unlike before. He was not inferior to the Kitsun in terms of physical strength anymore!
Michael lowered his body and pushed upward with newly gained speed and strength.
He turned into a flash, and the Wyvenrtooth Spear alongside him also turned into a blur. It swept through the freezing mist, humming dangerously.
One sweep was all it took. Warm blood spurted through the freezing mist. It filled the air for a moment before it solidified in the chilly air and fell down to the ground frozen solid.
Michael created a few more Glacicle Swords around the Kitsun, but he didn’t have to release them. A torrent of energy entered his body. It was the energy influx of the Kitsun in front of him. He was dead.
‘That was…easier than expected…’ Michael thought, his gaze moving over to the other Kitsun, who had retreated even further. The Kitsun disappeared into the crowd of scared Guards, leaving his comrade and everyone else behind.
“Disperse”
The freezing mist dispersed on his command, and he looked around to find Tiara. She was the only one left with him if he excluded the Elemental Empress and the Stinger Wasp.
However, what he found astonished him quite a bit. His eyes narrowed at the commotion that originated not too far from his position.
“What is going on with Tiara over there?!”