Lyon POV:

The gap between us disappeared in an instant as my Ki flared around me. My hand shot forward and gripped Storm's neck tightly. I twisted my upper body with all my might as I intended to slam him into the ground.

“!”

He vanished just before I could complete the motion. I immediately sensed him behind me and carried the same downward momentum into a spin as I raised my leg. My shin smashed into his cheek, launching him into a nearby wall.

The sound of the collision could barely be heard when Storm reappeared in front of me. I kicked off the ground as I hurled my fist forward, but he vanished once again. His body flickered in and out of various positions while he showcased his speed.

‘Ghost.’

The dark violet paths entered my vision while my eyes darted across the street. He could move as fast as he wanted to—I could still see it.

“One. Two. Three. Four.”

My eyes flashed, and his head snapped back in four different places simultaneously. The dark violet lines stopped flickering as he stood before me with a slight smirk that mocked me. I clenched my teeth and aimed my intent at his head once more.

“!”

He twisted his neck to the side as the air split apart. He wiped away the blood from a small cut on his cheek and glared at me. His face was devoid of emotion as the light in his eyes began to fade.

“Is that all? Is this the extent of the emotions you had for that trash over there?”

“Shut your MOUTH!”

I shot forward like a bullet, but by the time I had reached him, he had already vanished. I sensed his presence behind me again and spun around, but what greeted me was his knee.

'What...?’

It crushed into my stomach as I felt the air leave my lungs. He twisted his leg and smashed his foot into the back of my rising head. My face met the ground and shattered the earth below, leaving a crater as wide as the street behind.

"..."

I got to my feet and ignored the blood pouring down from a cut on my forehead. My body shook with pure rage as I glared up at him.

The corners of his mouth rose slightly while he peered down at me from the edge of the crater.

“!”

He suddenly appeared in front of me again—I couldn’t react to his speed. I watched his body spin as he balanced himself on the tips of his toes. My eyes slowly swivelled towards his other foot that smashed into my face.

The impact caused the skin to ripple like disturbed water. A burst of air shot out around us, and I was ejected into a nearby estate at such a speed I lost my sense of direction.

“Keuk!”

I smashed through various buildings as my anger only grew. His strength was incomparable to Solina's, but I didn't care.

His body flickered. He arrived by my side when the blade of his foot crashed into my face. It diverted my current ascension into the sky, right back down to the ground with a thundering boom.

“Heuk!”

I coughed up blood as my knees buckled beneath me. This wasn’t happening—I was not going down like this. How dare he do that to the Senior Vices! How dare he lay his hands on my people like that!!

I will make him pay!!!

“Pantheon Style: Omniscience!”

I shouted as a golden brown light flashed outward. It covered most of the area, and my eyes took on the same hue. I watched Storm's smile grow wider as the light in his eyes flashed a different colour.

He vanished, but it was different this time; he was in Omniscience. I dodged his fist and grabbed his jacket so he couldn’t run. My fist collided with his face as he recoiled backwards. That wasn’t even close to enough to dispel the rage burning up inside me.

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My fist cut through the air again, but he kicked my arm away while widening the distance between us. We charged forward and exchanged blows. I gnashed my teeth together as I tried desperately to land a fatal attack on him.

“You can keep up at this level... But you are still nothing.”

I ignored his words and spun; my foot cracking into his ribs and launching him backwards, but he didn’t seem fazed by it at all. His eyes bulged as his smile only widened further.

“Arc Drive: Flash.”

"!"

A flash of light momentarily appeared, and the next thing I knew, my body was falling. I stomped my foot into the ground to balance myself as I tried to make sense of what had just happened.

Blood poured out of my mouth as I looked down. I saw the outline of a fist imprinted clearly on my abdomen. Omniscience had failed to detect his movement? I didn’t understand; how could he move that fast?

I sensed him standing a few meters behind me, but he remained still. I turned around slowly and glared at his back. Storm's head tilted to the side as he looked at me out of the corner of his eye.

“How tragic.”

I dashed forward, but I could no longer reach him anymore. My punches didn’t connect, and my kicks had no target, yet still, I charged in blindly again and again. I couldn’t calm the rage swirling inside of me; I wanted to crush him.

I grinded my teeth together in frustration as he easily weaved through my desperate attempts to hit him and knocked me away.

I skidded across the uneven ground as a wide gap formed between the two of us. Omniscience was no longer enough.

“Arc Drive: Flash.”

He flashed forward, and blood dyed the ground around me a new colour. Storm flashed from one place to another without giving me the slightest chance to fight back.

'Calm down... This can’t go on... I need to be calm... Calm...’

The fierce beating I was receiving only served to help me remember who I am. I couldn’t perform to the best of my ability while fighting blinded by rage. It was tranquillity and the calmness of my mind that helped me bring out my true potential.

“Foo...”

I let out a deep breath, and I felt a wave of coolness instantly wash over me.

I was back.

Omniscience wasn’t just about physically seeing; it was about feeling. I closed my eyes and focused on Storm's emotions, the thoughts going through his mind, his breathing; all of it became a catalyst for me to know his position.

I felt him coming.

“!”

I sidestepped and dodged his fist that flashed past my cheek. I could feel his surprise as he turned to face me.

“So the story can still go on... Wonderful!”

He flashed forward, and I met him head-on. I countered his strikes with my own as the surrounding buildings shattered around us. The force of our blows tore through the air, ripping apart anything that got in between us.

I started landing more while he began to land less. I caught his fist and threw him down to the ground. He rolled to the side as my knee grazed past his face.

I chased after him closely, but Storm started to make slight adjustments. Instead of speeding up his whole body, he started isolating it to certain parts of his body. I sensed his leg coming, only for it to flash in another direction in the blink of an eye.

“Keuk...”

I was unable to react in time. His kick broke through my Ki Armour grazing past a few of my ribs which shattered instantly. I ignored the fiery pain assaulting my mind and focused once more; one mistake would cost me greatly. I couldn’t afford to be careless.

Due to his successful strike, he had gained the opportunity to open up a considerable amount of distance. I could sense the fluctuations in his Ki, so I knew something was coming.

“Arc Drive: Storm.”

His body flashed forward at a speed incomparable to before. His fist smashed into my jaw, rocking my body, but that was just the beginning.

Storm's attacks came from every angle, and each strike was faster than the last. They chained together, forming a tornado of white light that reached up into the sky, breaking through the red mist and shattering Omniscience like glass.

I stood in the center of the whirlwind; my body battered from every conceivable angle. A flash of light appeared above the epicenter and abruptly dropped down. It split the tornado of light in half, crushing me into the ground as the impact shook the whole area, levelling it in the process.

“Heuk...”

Blood trickled out of my ears followed by a pained moan. I pulled my embedded body out of the earth and stumbled back to my feet. I was bleeding from more places than I could count. My clothes were torn and tattered, but I needed to win.

Storm looked down at me with disappointed eyes as his body flickered. I threw a laboured punch, but he caught my fist and chucked me into a nearby wall. He picked me up by the neck and smashed my back against the remains of a destroyed building.

“Look at your precious subordinates. They are standing on the precipice of death’s door, and one of them has already crossed over.”

I looked past Storm, vaguely making out Holder and Gunnar in the distance. I clenched my fists and kicked him away, but he vanished before it connected. He reappeared in front of me and grabbed my head with his hand.

“!”

He smashed it into the ground.

“This is your limit.”

His foot crashed against the back of my head, and my limbs shook. Strength left my body rapidly while darkness clouded my vision. I didn’t expect there to be such a huge difference between Storm and Solina.

‘You can't lose anymore.’

My eyes flickered open as I remembered Lissandra's words. No matter what, I couldn’t lose this battle. I needed to win here. I could worry about the next step later. What was important now was using everything that I had.

I got to my feet, and Storm's eyes flashed different colours as his lips spread into a freakishly wide smile. I kicked off the ground and threw a series of short powerful punches.

Storm weaved through them and stood before my chest. His fist ripped through the air, landing squarely in my stomach. I doubled over as the back of his hand smashed into my face. I flew through the air while blood sprayed along the ground below me.

“You will never reach the King the way you are now.”