Shun POV:

Sparks flew from the clash of swords. We spiralled down the wide hallway, intertwining together in a constant stream of strikes. The walls exploded. The floor was ripped apart.

Yet the intensity only increased.

“Sentri Style: Bow Fall.”

Arrows rained down from the ceiling once my feet hit the ground. I parried them away, but the force behind them was determined by the height they fell from. Dibla knew I would take this approach to defence because she did what I told her to do: she watched carefully, and that meant Dibla had a method to counter Rin.

Sentri Weapons.

They were weapons formed from the Sentri Style and linked to the Sentri’s disposition. According to Zinyul, a Sentri could change this weapon by choice three times. On the third time, it would become their permanent method of combat.

Sentri went through this process on purpose in order to commit to one path of growth. No Sentri struggled to pick a weapon that suited them because even without one, they could still use the standard techniques the Style offered.

“Sentri Style: Arrow Stash.”

Dibla dropped near the end of the hallway. Her black armoured bow contained red streaks; a pattern that followed whatever weapon she made from her Ki. Hips were open to the target. Her torso straight, and flared arrowheads parallel to her collarbone. Their shafts converged toward fingertips, pulling back a blood-red string.

Dibla ran her tongue over her lips once our eyes met before red arrows tore through the fall.

‘Retsu.’

The cascading rain merged with the piercing flames.

‘Pyō.’

The explosion shook the entire Floor, but it also revealed Dibla’s approach to dealing with Rin. Bow Fall took advantage of the limited range I displayed against Vojiq’s ‘Blur',’ and Arrow Stash overloaded the amount Rin could withstand.

‘…’

Dibla cut through the clouds of smoke and crashed against my raised guard.

“Even you know... you can’t sheathe that sword against me! Can’t you see the results of my choice?!!”

A single hallway was no longer enough to contain us. I kicked off the wall; my blade collided with Dibla’s and introduced the network of paths to the battlefield. Rapid strikes impacted the surrounding area, but the aerial exchange ended with Dibla crashing through another wall.

‘Longsword. Longbow. Spear. Pugio. Scimitar.’

I spun around and dashed away. Her variations of weapons differed from the norm.

“DON’T YOU DARE RUN FROM ME!!!”

‘Run? Me?’

I clenched my teeth and swung the Ninjatō toward Dibla.

“Rin. Pyō. Tō.”

The empowered white tiger head was two times larger. It launched out of the blade tip; its roar fragmented the walls before fangs ripped into Dibla’s abdomen.

‘Map.’

It was as I expected.

The new scope of the battle made the party members concerned. Now, they were beginning to converge toward my current location.

I ignored the explosion and prioritised widening the distance between us. Dibla continued her chase. She closed the gap, forcing me to exchange rapid blows with her.

‘Tch.’

I slid backwards across the tiled floor when her red heel caved the entire area in. Her strength rose the longer the battle went on. That wasn’t a surprise, but this...

Was.

The light in Dibla’s eyes continued to be consumed by the thirst for blood. The hue of her Ki gained faint shades of red until her techniques began to change.

‘...’

She had gone this far.

“Ha... Hehehe... Hahahaha!! Look at how much I’ve impressed you!!!”

Her red spear boxed me in. She capitalised on limiting my range with superior timing and counters compared to Vojiq. Dibla’s sharp thrusts opened a deep gash on my cheek, but wounds mounted on both sides until I found what I was looking for.

“HUMAA—“

My instep slapped Dibla’s cheek inside. The doors slammed shut, cutting off any future interventions.

[You have found a ‘Hidden Room.’]

Dibla wiped the blood leaking out of her nose. Her tongue stuck out to lick it off her fingers when my fist plastered her jaw into the other end of the room.

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The space shook.

But it would soon tremble.

I ignored the light protecting the grey katana in the centre; Ki Artifacts meant nothing to me. Dibla ripped herself out of the dark cream wall but hung her head down.

“...I understand it now, Human.”

A hand concealed the twisted curve of her eyes. It hid the cheeks pushed toward the ceiling, tearing the smooth skin with warped desires. The innocence had been consumed. The servitude had lost its meaning.

All that remained was a deep craving.

[Armoured Sentri Knight Dibla has revealed her true nature.]

Dibla’s armour crashed to the ground. Blood stains marred the thin Uwagi covering her upper body. They painted a clearer picture of how severe the Sentri’s mutilation was.

Raw skin showed the bones underneath her ripped-off scales. The flesh failed to regrow, but the surrounding skin shared its pain: deep scars darkened the pigmentation. The scales left behind were dyed black—denied not only the light of day but also their natural duty.

[Dibla has started the process of transforming into a Sentri Gladiator. Transformation Rate: 1%.]

I raised the straight blade toward the monster that had been created. I angled it toward the monster I would end. It looked back at me with narrow eyes.

“Your name, Human?”

“Death.”

My sword sliced into its neck when a finger stopped the blade from reaching the target.

“!”

It swivelled its red eyes down toward me before round lips elongated.

“Death, do you know what it’s like to die?”

‘!’

“Keuk!!”

A single fist shattered my Ki Armour. It ruptured the left side of my abdomen with enough force to fold me over in the monster’s direction.

[Dibla has started the process of transforming into a Sentri Gladiator. Transformation Rate: 60%.]

‘Damn it...’

I made a mistake.

A red filter sat next to the darkness. It distorted the ceiling above but still provided some form of vision. Bedrock latched onto its new companion. Blood cushioned the resting place: a deep crater.

One punch.

One punch had caused a chain of internal explosions targeting my brain. If I hadn’t used Sha right away, I would have died. It made sense for the transformation rate to be this fast due to the extensive process Dibla had already gone through.

[Dibla has called for reinforcements.]

Shades of red incorporated itself into the designs of the empowered Sentri Guardians. They peered down at me from the edge of the depression; each one was two times stronger than Vojiq, but that didn’t matter. It didn’t matter at all.

“Sha.”

The severe injuries I sustained healed to the point my vision was restored. The greater the damage, the higher the Ki Cost Sha required. It couldn’t regrow lost limbs, but it was good enough for someone who wasn’t a natural Water Elementalist.

“Keep Death busy. He should see the completion of his work before he dies.”

“Yes, Lady Dibla.”

I stared into Dibla’s eyes. The edge of her round lips rose until her back faced me. She walked off, and the Sentri Guardians hopped down into the crater’s epicentre.

‘Inventory.’

The Sentri Guardians couldn’t kill me, and that was one reason why they weren’t eager to engage. However, once I threw on the Genuine Sentri Set, their eyes shifted to one another. It was only an imitation, but they were still impressed.

“I’m only going to say this once: get out of my way or die.”

A unity of Ki impacted the bedrock. That was their answer, so I sheathed the blade.

“Rin. Pyō. Tō. Sha. Kai. Jin. Retsu. Zai. Zen.”

Sentri Gladiators were able to empower other Sentri in a similar manner to how gladiators entertained the crowd. Dibla’s new feats replicated that entertainment factor, but this empowerment increased the pride all Sentri Guardians possessed. Despite the weaving of hand seals, they were content to watch me try and mount an assault.

Their new experience of growth was layered with arrogance. Arrogance that would lead to their downfall.

“Kō!”

My palm hit the earth. A Ki Array spread out from its centre before encircling three empty spaces in front of me. For every black horizontal line that cut across the space, a vertical one slashed through it. The final horizontal line formed the seals.

Kuji-kiri.

It had a history that went beyond ninjutsu and an origin in what some scholars claimed was Taoism. Of its many adaptations, there were common meanings among them: sealing, purification, and defence.

Every Ki Stage I reached allowed me to use a different variation of the ‘9 Cuts’ technique. The one that Monzen unlocked could be translated into the following:

Come warriors, fight as one, ready in formation, line up and take position in front. Victory!

Dark Ki formed a silent shadow, a tornado of water, and a mountain of corpses over the 9 Cuts. Kō had no meaning; it was a shout that bound those below me with a temporary chain of conduction. Their Ki would travel through it to create their symbols over the canvas.

Reaver stepped out of the shadows. Fishy burst the water apart, and the corpses peeled away to reveal Talky. I got to my feet and drew the Ninjatō that rose their base by the same amount as my own.

“Deal with them.”

“Yes, my liege!!!”

The Sentri Guardians smirked, but they would understand what death looked like soon enough. I jumped into the air, protected by those I had summoned.

‘...’

A falling spear penetrated their tight formation, followed by a Sword Blitz. I let it knock me back down to the ground and looked up.

“Ultimate Fishnin Style:...”

“Reaver Style:...”

“Goblin Warlock Style:...”

They dropped into a triangular formation with me in its centre.

“United Front!”

A dark barrier shot toward the ceiling. However, that wasn’t why I wanted them to use this technique. The corners of my mouth rose when I saw each of their hands blur, weaving hand seals together with both speed and precision.

This variation of the ‘9 Cuts’ granted those called to fight access to the Kuji-kiri.

‘Good.’

Thick black lines formed across each of their abdomens until the canvas was ready. Fishy pointed her finger to Talky. Talky pointed her finger to Reaver, and Reaver pointed his to Fishy.

Their movements united. The brush danced; its strokes blurring together to create intricate ones, chosen from the Codex Knowledge imparted to them.

Didn’t I say a battle consisted of information?

So why wouldn’t I give my warriors knowledge?

CK’s recovery time was based on how long it took for me to read the original book. Memorisation only started after the initial read, so it was a resource that recovered faster than most.

An intertwining flash of orange, green, and purple exploded the dark barrier. Dust clouds swept over the battlefield before a gust of wind rolled them to the side.

“Young master, leave this to me.”

Orange hair reached down to a thin waist and reflected a similar growth in height. Red highlights ran through it, matching the colour of the swirling pattern across her left arm; it replicated the currents of water. It embedded what was sacred to her kind. All that remained of the shadows was a white band that replaced the sash.

認.

That was the word Loqua had received. She drew the blade from a transparent scabbard filled with water. Her presence suffocated the atmosphere, but life coiled around the sword like an undisturbed stream.

“Supreme Fishnin Style: Troubling Laceration.”

Loqua flickered behind a Sentri Guardian. Her sword fell; a motion that started the first cut. The slash multiplied in the target. Two times. Four times.

A dozen times.

Each laceration strengthened the previous one by 10%, yet the eroding power of water added an additional 5%. By the time the blade reached her waist, the Sentri Guardian dropped to one knee, covered in its own blood.

“Behold the power of a Supreme Fishnin.”