Though the wound on his hands only amounted to a papercut at most, he couldn't afford to let them accumulate. Immortal Slaying Ki has its name cut into many meanings, the first reason is that only an immortal should use it as they have an infinite lifespan, next is that it can slay other immortals and ki is energy, meaning that even if a person was devoid of mana, they could still train to use this. Though it's actually known better as Green Ki because green was the color of life force but with enough training, it becomes whatever color a person's essence is. Red for those who tread the path of blood, a vibrant green for those who treasure life whether it be their own or others, blue for those who don't like conflict, yellow for the cunning, and many other varieties.
That meant that anyone with red ki were feared and called devils and those who were blue and green were valued as allies. Kai didn't fall into any of the four common varieties, though he treasured Erina and the other's lives, he didn't even hesitate to take other's so he didn't qualify for green. He didn't kill for fun nor did he rely on strategies and mind games. He obviously didn't hate conflict and battles. The Immortal Slaying Ki from the figures were all red, it seemed that if they were alive, they would have killed indiscriminately but who was to say that they weren't alive before?
Kai didn't let any of his thoughts cloud his judgment though. He immediately charged out and began attacking the closest ones. They were on the same level as him- S-class. If it was only power, he might not have had a problem with it but they were not just strong, their battle sense was insane to the point that even Kai wasn't a match. He was human, he could make errors but the figures were like machines that had no flaws, any attack that Kai came up with, they countered. If Kai overpowered them, then they teamed up and if Kai retreats, they rush in.
If it was only that, Kai would eventually defeat them but it appeared that the figures were getting stronger as time passed. Their growth rate went even faster than Kai. If Kai could use [Enchanted Gear] here, he could've at least taken them down one by one but with only impromptu weapons, he had to rely on his left arm. He couldn't use the magic shells because they were stored in his pendant but he had a few in his pockets.
"[Compressed Water Cannon]."
Kai stabbed out with his water sword and a huge explosion of water burst out. The figures that were in the way dodged and those who couldn't defended themselves albeit narrowly. Immediately after his attack, the figures then charged forward.
"[Ice Wall]."
Kai pointed his index and middle finger upwards and accompanying it was a wall of ice that surrounded him with the exception of his front.
Using the narrowed-down path in front of him, Kai engaged a single figure in battle. Right now, Kai had the power of Hyosuke at his peak and then some but these figures were on the level of Warlock's magic power which was stronger than Kai's. The only reason Kai could beat Warlock in a direct confrontation was because of mana capacity and the fact that they weren't going all-out. If they both went all-out with offensive spells, Kai would have to use several trump cards to best him.
Kai grabbed the stretched arm of the figure and broke it with his other elbow. Then, he sent a knee towards the figure's chest while simultaneously grabbing its head. Immediately after that, Kai kicked the floor and flipped himself upside-down while still holding on to the figure's head.
"[Flame Boosters]."
His feet ignited into flames and propelled him forward making the figure's head crash down into the floor with enough force to create a crater.
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At that moment, two more figures burst out from the path and the figure that he had just slammed into the floor kicked him which sent him flying, Kai felt like he was kicked by a horse, if he hadn't used his left arm to defend, then he would probably have gotten some internal damage. Although outside wounds could be healed in an instant, internal wounds were a bit more difficult, he would need at least 10 seconds of uninterrupted healing to fix hemorrhaging. It sounded impressive but, in a battle, 10 seconds are very hard to get.
As Kai was sent flying, he kicked the air and began fighting the three figures in close combat. One of them had their arm broken but its attacks didn't cease at all. It used kicks, headbutts, and whatever it had at its disposal. Of course, Kai healed them as he fought but fighting three people above your level in both skill and power then healing at the same time was a feat almost nobody can accomplish.
The only reason Kai could hold his own in close combat was his left arm and leg which helped him defend. His left eye perceived all three attacks with ease. This battle had long since passed human limits, they were fighting over the speed of sound and the ice walls that surrounded them were breaking apart.
But the figures weren't the only one improving, Kai was also steadily becoming stronger. He began to catch up to the point that he only took four out of ten blows instead of the original eight out of ten. But that was just out of ten, they've already exchanged more than hundreds- if not, thousands of blows.
The figures outside broke through the ice walls and began to attack Kai along with the original three just as he was improving. Now, Kai had absolutely no chance in close combat, he had at least more than ten figures attacking him at once. Kai channeled his mana and made it burst out all at once which created a huge shockwave of mana that knocked back all the figures. Though it wasn't for long, Kai used his speed to its limits and ran towards the direction he was told to run.
A normal opponent would've been confused and only chase Kai after a small delay but the figures went after Kai with absolutely no hesitation. Kai was by no means slow though, his acceleration was top notch and he soon left them in the dust. But Kai didn't slow down in the least because he could feel that the figures were getting closer and closer with each passing second.
"What the hell are these things? I know that Gods can create these things but the spirit's versions are insane."
All of a sudden, Kai heard something whistling through the air and felt a hot sensation on his stomach along with his body going out of balance. Kai stumbled and took the chance to look at his stomach and the javelin covered in his blood. Kai turned around to the sight of a dozen javelins piercing through the air.
Kai placed a hand on his open wound and leapt backwards to dodge the javelins but as if they were made of magic, they followed Kai. He had to use his left arm to block but the metal the javelins were made of weren't normal, after the final javelin struck Kai's left arm, he felt that his control was being blocked. He could barely move his fingers anymore, the circuits and magic circles inside his arm were broken.
Kai looked at his stomach wound and saw that it wasn't healing so he froze it while clicking his tongue. He continued to run despite his wounds but before he could get far, he had to dodge dozens of arrows that grazed him. Cuts were all over his body but he continued to run. As long as the wounds didn't limit his ability to move, he didn't need to freeze them.
His speed was cut by at least ten percent due to his stomach wound though a normal person would have long since lost the ability to move, let alone move at Mach speed. But it was evident that the figures were getting closer and Kai could sense that they were already near enough to be seen by normal vision.
Even so, Kai didn't stop. The trial was definitely difficult for any normal person and the figures were impossible to defeat even as an S-class but the spirit king wouldn't set up an impossible trial. There had to be a way to complete the trial.
To use Abyssal Wolf, he needed time, he couldn't just suddenly use it as if it was a normal spell but the figures didn't give him even a single opportunity, the moment he stops will be the moment he dies.
Kai pulled out a tree on the way and threw it towards the figures. The only reason Kai did this was because he felt that the trees became real and that his pendant was working. And at the same time that it happened, a hand grabbed Kai's foot.
"Shi-!"
A dozen spears pierced Kai's body at the same time as if he was a weapon stand.