Shun POV:

I pushed the memory to the side, and my eyes flickered open. A loud bang summoned thick dust clouds that were swiped away by Fishy. The Sentri Warrior’s fist pressed against his palm before it bowed toward her.

The monster’s massive growth went beyond the title effects. Despite Fishy’s lack of patience, she was an expert at teaching.

“WHAT THE HELL?! I HAVE TO TRAIN THIS MORON, BUT TALKY GETS TO GIVE YOU A MASSAGE?!! ARRRGHHH!!! I AM A SHADOW ULTIMATE FISHNIN!!!”

“...”

The Shadow Monsters backed away from Fishy’s scream toward the sky. Her Monzen Ki erupted out of her, causing several explosions to go off in the distance.

Talky continued massaging my cheeks without a care in the world until I was ready to stand. Under Fishy’s tutelage, disobedience wouldn’t be tolerated. So I expected a proper answer to my question this time, or I’d kill this Floor Boss and capture another one.

“Name.”

The Sentri Warrior was around 2 metres tall and carried a new air of confidence that was neither threatening nor conceited. Its original nature remained even with the new power it had obtained. The Floor Boss turned to face me before parting its lips.

“Zinyul.”

I shifted into a stance, and Zinyul did the same. One of his palms faced the earth while the other faced his opponent: me.

“Sentri Style: Sentri Charge.”

The road imploded from the rapid exchange of blows. Small shockwaves knocked over the weakened infrastructure and added to the layers of rubble. I collided with Zinyul again until his arms began to glow.

“Stop.”

Zinyul froze in place. He retracted his extended fist before taking two steps back.

“Rather than releasing the charge, redistribute it back into your Ki Channels using Sentric Focus.”

Zinyul’s pupils dilated, and an explosion of wind poured out of him. My eyebrows fell at the endless stream that forced me to raise my guard. Dust gathered together. They formed clouds that used the wind as a stepping stone to climb higher. They spiralled up into the sky, creating a lacerating tornado from the debris swept along with it.

In its epicentre stood Zinyul; his eyes closed, and his Ki flowing out in a controlled manner.

He had broken through to Enryo.

“!”

Beads of sweat trickled down my forehead. Out of the hundreds of monsters I had trained, this had never happened before. I didn’t understand why that one change had led to such an explosive increase in growth.

The wind grew in strength, feeding the tornado that now took up the width of the street.

Byeol’s report emphasised the Sentri’s systematic approach to combat and training. Formations, strategy, and a diverse Style: these characteristics would reflect themself in a Sentri’s growth.

In other words, they were like machinery. A slight change to one part would benefit the whole, but what if it was a major change? How much growth would occur in that case?

I didn’t have those answers yet, but these new findings supported my current hypothesis further. The Sentri didn’t conqueror to rule; they conquered to self-improve.

The tornado dispersed with the opening of Zinyul’s eyes. He dropped to one knee and lowered his head.

“I swear my loyalty to you.”

I peered down at the Sentri Warrior in the centre of the cratered road.

“Zinyul, what do you think my reply is to that dumb statement you just made?”

Why these monsters thought I wanted their loyalty was the least of my concerns. They would die either way, but only after I got what I needed.

“...Probably something along the lines of wanting to kill me, my liege.”

An image of Pulzi’s crying face flashed through my mind. I gripped my head from the wave of pain that rippled over my chest.

I don’t care. I don’t care. I don’t care!

“That’s enough.”

A shadow slid down and covered two bulging eyes. It failed to hide a smile that arched them into a more appropriate shape.

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“Zinyul, stand up and fight me.”

My Ki detonated, and so did the ground beneath my feet. Zinyul’s fist met mine, causing a burst of wind to impact the crater. Boulders rose from the continuous clash before embedding themselves into the destroyed remains.

“Keuk...”

Blood flew out of my mouth from Zinyul’s palm that shattered my Ki Armour. I crushed through dozens of buildings and only managed to dodge a flying kick due to manipulating the air to the limit.

A gash opened up on my cheek, followed by tremors of several now non-existent streets. I widened the distance, but Zinyul flickered right into the pocket.

“?!”

My equilibrium shifted. The world tilted to the side from a calve kick and was distorted by a barrage of strikes toward the same spot along my ribs. A backfist completed the combination. It shot me through more walls than I could count with my brain shaking around.

“Ugh...”

Blood splattered the Ultimate Fishnin Set. Zinyul peered down at me from an open building; his eyes begging me to stop here.

He didn’t want to fight.

I wiped the blood from my nose. I felt my Ki rise. It verified the ascent through Monzen that had begun.

“COME ON!!”

Zinyul closed his eyes before backing away. I caught up and pushed myself in every area that I could. He disregarded my efforts by showing me my current limit again and again.

I got up.

I got up again and again.

My progress increased. My improvement affirmed by the growth that bore fruit to a fist grazing past Zinyul’s cheek.

“You’re good enough, Zinyul!”

I cocked my head to the side and parted my lips.

“Original: Shinobi.”

Dark Ki peeled away to reveal black and red attire.

“Retsu.”

A Domain spread out over the area. Its boundary marked off by red and white banners.

“Talky, heal me, but don’t you dare ignore my Ki Reserves.”

“Yes, my liege!”

I grabbed a kunai and faced Zinyul again. His look of concern faded into one of deep interest.

“What is... this form, my liege?”

“...”

I took note of a few annoyances that I would address later. I didn’t care about anything other than improving.

“Didn’t I order you to attack me?”

Zinyul’s eyes shifted to the side. The tension around his mouth was accompanied with a small parting of the lips, where clenched teeth could be seen.

“I will, but not enough to kill you.”

“How considerate.”

A kunai sliced through the air toward his head. Zinyul flicked it away with two fingers when smoke engulfed the area.

‘Rin. Pyō. Tō.’

My hands blurred under the cover it provided me. Rin formed a white tiger head of Ki, and Pyō channelled it toward the specified target.

The tiger tore through the smoke; its presence only revealed once it reached Zinyul. Tō empowered the burst of flames that erupted from fangs gripping its prey as long as there were wounds. The white tiger faded, but those flames would decrease Zinyul’s defence proportionate to the damage received for a short duration of time.

“...”

Zinyul looked down at the faint cuts. This was the result of him fighting without Ki Armour. His lips curved into a thin smile, and a flicker of light illuminated his bright yellow eyes.

“...I want to fight.”

We both shot forward through the smoke.

“Pyō.”

The density of my Ki Armour rose as I tried to weave through Zinyul’s sharp strikes. His assault lit my body up like a Christmas tree, giving me no room to manoeuvre or adjust.

He began to control the space.

“Tō.”

Tō represented Harmony. The technique harmonised Ki with Elemental Ki, reducing the loss that occurred during Elemental Conversion while boosting its power. This drastic increase was comparable to Rin’s improvement of my physical strength.

The Varun Mudra was the half seal for Tō due to the belief that it re-hydrated and balanced the body’s water content. Water is free-flowing and calm, hence why the Mudra was also called the Gesture of Mental Clarity.

I sped up.

Several more currents of wind joined the tighter stream that wrapped around my body. This new control allowed me to shatter the confinement of space Zinyul had imposed on my movements. With those gone, I inched closer to breaking through his consistent barrage when my fist froze in front of his chest.

The explosion of growth was cut short.

Zinyul bowed his head, and I was forced to take a step back.

‘My Ki Reserves.’

I glanced at the almost empty KP bar. Zinyul had let me advance close enough to him in an effort to draw attention to it. He knew I wouldn’t listen to his words, but he also knew that once I entered the pocket, the number of threats would rise by an amount that couldn’t be ignored. In other words, I would be forced to focus more on Ki consumption.

“Talky, organise them.”

“Yes, my liege.”

I hopped out of the wide crater and made my way over to the shadow monsters mingling amongst themselves. They watched the battle with keen eyes, and some even made notes.

Fishy leaned against a beam with her head down. The only shadow near her was Reaver, who observed her for a few seconds before moving away.

“Fishy, don’t use my Ki so carelessly.”

“...”

She could sulk all she wanted, but when it was time for me to grow, I despised that process being interfered with.

“...Alright, my liege. It’s obvious you don’t like me much.”

“Of course I do. Why do you think I have a whole outfit made from your kind?”

Fishy stared at me with a blank expression.

“...Pfftttt! I’m a Shadow Ultimate Fishnin, Master!”

She doubled over and held her stomach. Fishy’s gentle laughter caught the attention of a few dozen male shadow monsters. They turned their heads, only to look away once they saw who the source of it was.

Zinyul stood with folded arms, observing the interaction. A faint softness brightened his yellow eyes that reflected a core that wouldn’t be changed by power.

‘Was he like Talky?’

Though possible, it made sense to assume that someone of his nature would aim to become a Sentri Warrior to protect those underneath him. However, those desires weren’t reciprocated.

Fishy’s arrival led to the Sentri abandoning him. They would have fought to the death if the leader was different, but since Zinyul introduced the concept of preservation, the concept of sacrifice wasn’t far off. His death would give them the chance to self-improve and conquer the enemy.

This was my current hypothesis. The likelihood of meeting another rare breed, similar in status to Talky, was far too low to consider.

“Zinyul, we continue once my Ki Reserves reach half.”

“Yes, my liege. But aren’t you worried about your party members?”

An image of Katherine pulling out a bundle of sandwiches rose to the forefront of my mind.

“...No.”

I took the neat packaging from Talky’s open palm and stared at the red bow. Katherine had stayed up late at night to prepare these for everyone.

‘Tch.’

All I could do was examine my name for a few more seconds before untying the silk knot. Once the packaging was removed, a sweet aroma encapsulated the area around me.

“...”

Gentle flavours had a soothing texture that made the sandwiches somewhat moreish. I walked off while chewing, but my eyebrows dropped further with every bite.

‘Damn it.’