The more than Randidly used Skills that were fueled solely on his own pure Aether, the more he marveled at the difference in fidelity that he felt during the activation of the Skill. Monstrosity’s Appalling Physicality transformed the power in his muscles to a ridiculous degree. It also seemed like his Control that had reached over one thousand became an even more useful tool when his image blended so seamlessly with the energy he utilized to create it.

It was all Randidly could do to resist the urge to give in to the instincts of the Grim Chimera to raise its head and roar.

But despite the intoxicating feeling of power, Randidly’s expression was serious as he followed closely behind Vualla in the charge toward Ileot. Despite the fact that Ileot had needed to cannibalize several of his own Skills in order to salvage Aether, Randidly didn’t dare underestimate this ancient man. Even from the simple act of hovering there in the Great RIft, Ileot’s powerful image corroded the surrounding Nether simply by existing.

The energy that Ileot possessed was diminished, but he was not weak.

Of all his significant advantages, those potent images that Ileot possessed were what made Randidly the most cautious. Even though Ileot had only barely managed to reach an amount of Aether to maintain his body, his terrible image allowed him to utilize scraps of Aether to strike with enough strength to rival Randidly at his best. Randidly frowned toward Vualla’s back as they both shot forward, but ultimately remained silent.

Sometimes, what you need to do is trust. Worrying further has no purpose...

For several seconds, Randidly and Vualla flew rather noiselessly forward through the Great Rift. Ileot simply watched them approach with narrowed eyes. No white flames flickered to life around him. His Aether remained almost inert, swirling calmly in Ileot’s chest in Randidly’s Aether Detection vision.

Randidly’s eyes slid to Vualla’s back and he couldn’t resist allowing a single wish to manifest from his unease. ...be safe. All we need is a path. If you buy me time… I’ll take care of the rest.

Then Vualla surged forward across an invisible line and Ileot finally reacted. His hairless fingers twitched and there was a strange chime that echoed out into the surrounding area. The amount of Aether in his chest immediately diminished. But two glowing white duplicates of Ileot appeared, crackling with lightning as they surged forward toward Vualla.

Suddenly, Vualla’s movements sharpened and Randidly felt the warmth flowing between the two of them become almost scalding. Aether began to rush into Vualla’s body. She took a step and it was such a condensed and efficient use of energy that she surged forward ahead of Randidly to arrive at the left avatar that Ileot had created.

Her body seemed to pause in front of that foe as it cut at her with the heel of its glowing right hand. And then Vualla punched, her body calmly flowing through the well-practiced motions of punching. She stepped forward, her momentum flowed through her hips, and her shoulders slowly rotated as she thrust her fist forward without any aggressive movements. It was a perfectly average punch.

Her fist met the avatar’s karate chop.

Both figures trembled as both of their momentums were abruptly halted, but neither gave up any ground. The attacks were almost completely equal in strength. Vualla twisted and brought her other arm around in a hook that the avatar quickly ducked under. It raised its hands and unleashed a blast of electricity, but Vualla stoically endured the energy discharge without comment. Her azure hair flashed as she pivoted once more and unleashed another average punch at a speed that Randidly couldn’t believe.

That tightly condensed image continued to slowly rise in strength.

However, before Vualla could complete her motion, the other avatar finally arrived and smashed its palm toward Vualla. With an unhurried grace, Vualla raised her arm and knocked away the other avatar’s attack with her non-punching arm. Abandoning her previous punch, her gaze turned to the new foe.

A split second later, while Vualla was still pushing away the palm strike of the right avatar, Randidly arrived with Acri raised. The huge lance began to hum as its three entwined heads that formed the tip of the lance vibrated with increasingly frequency. Vualla’s hand twisted and seized the wrist of the avatar who attacked her.

Molten Fang of the Pariah! Randidly’s eyes burned as Acri’s huge five-meter form began to glow red.

The avatar attempted to pull back, but Vualla’s grip held fast to its arm. Even when white electricity discharged into her hand, Vualla didn’t even blink. Her azure eyes were clear and focused. Randidly’s attack surged forward and the desperate avatar could only use its free arm to try and block the blow.

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Congratulations! Your Skill Molten Fang of the Pariah (L) has grown to Level 201!

BOOOOOM!

With Randidly’s Skils empowered by his pure Aether, the shockwave rippled outward through even the substance of the Great Rift. But Randidly felt a bone in his right-hand fracture painfully as his attack as jarred by the guard of the avatar. Even with the extra power that Acri provided, Randidly was on the losing end of the exchange. Seems like I’m still a little bit short, huh…?

Shoving away the avatar that was still off-balance from Randidly’s strike, Vualla twisted back to face its companion, who had conjured two of those same flame beams Randidly had dealt with earlier that stole energy. She easily dodged them and arrived before that avatar to unleash another routine punch.

Yes, that’s the word. Routine. She’s slowly coding in this excellence in fighting into her body as routine… That sort of mental discipline is admirable.

Meanwhile, Randidly spun around mid-air, turning his back on the rapidly recovering avatar, to hammer Sulfur’s huge fist toward it in a backhand blow. Although it easily blocked the attack, it was still flung to the side, directly toward Vualla’s position.

Vualla’s punch forced the avatar in front of her to retreat backward and she had plenty of time to smoothly transition into sending a calm punch toward the avatar that Randidly had sent her way. It recovered enough to block again, but even Randidly shivered at how sharp and incisive the image of Vualla’s punch was becoming.

Her fist had held all the same naked threat that a spear thrust would possess. The piercing purity of her attack was horrifying.

Yet Grim Intuition surged to life with a hurried warning as the avatar that Vualla was punching at exploded in a wave of almost one hundred of those thing blasts of white fire. The avatar vanished and left in its place an artillery strike that aimed for all of Vualla’s vital points with a buzzing intensity. Instantly, her gaze sharpened. Twisting sideways to present a smaller target, Vualla’s left arm flicked out left and right. Her jabs were so strangely sharp and delicate that she managed to harmlessly guide dozens of these lightning blasts away from her body.

Activating Man is Proud But the Chimera Takes, Randidly accelerated forward and smashed into the side of the other avatar, who was attempting to move and strike at Vualla’s back. The avatar reacted in time to blow the strike, but after it absorbed the momentum of the lance, Acri’s tip split open into its three heads and entangled the avatar’s limbs.

Yet even with her masterful reactions and without having to worry about the other avatar, Vualla wasn’t able to dodge all of the blasts. Nine ripped through the remnants of her ragged armor and cut into her flesh. Randidly’s eyes narrowed as he watched those blasts veer around him and head back toward Ileot himself.

Not sending them to attack again, huh…? Just taking it for yourself. And you didn’t blow this one up on me because you’ve already seen how I can take my own Aether back from your blasts...

Congratulations! Your Skill Aether Detection has grown to Level 180!

Randidly felt a small shiver of fear as those blasts were reabsorbed into Ileot’s body. His available Aether surged upward, immediately becoming almost double the amount with which he had started this portion of the battle. Then he snapped his fingers again and conjured two more avatars next to him, dropping down to almost exactly as much Aether as he possessed when this started.

Now with the aid of three of those dangerous avatars.

Vualla, for her part, didn’t respond at all to the dozen or so small holes the blasts opened up in her body. She simply punched at the avatar that Randidly had entangled with Acri, triggering it to explode in another explosion of white fire beams. But this time, Vualla was ready. Although the power of her attacks wasn’t improving much at all anymore, Randidly could clearly see that the sharpness and the speed of her punches was growing.

This time, all of the beams were knocked away; not a single one scratched Vualla.

Immediately afterward, Randidly and Vualla exchanged a glance. Both accelerated toward Ileot at the same time as those two new avatars came downward to meet them. Gradually, the distance between them and Ileot was narrowing. The drop of condensed Aether that Randidly held in his chest continued to slowly pulse with power. He flexed his right hand, feeling the fractured bone itch as it settled back into place.

Again, Vualla led the way. Her speed shot upward as she applied that strange image of sharpness she used in her attacks to her movements. Perhaps it was because she was in an area governed by Nether, but she pierced through distance in a physically impossible way. Grinning, Randidly allowed her to shoot forward and once more wove together the Nether Ritual to create a World Tree that would function the same as those blue veins.

Congratulations! Your Skill Nether Ritual (A) has grown to Level 122!

Congratulations! Your Skill Nether Ritual (A) has grown to Level 123!

From the way that Ileot’s eyes tightened, he recognized what Randidly was doing almost immediately. For the first time in a while, almost twenty white flames flickered to life around him and then shot downward to Randidly to try and distract him from his Nether Ritual. But with the experience that Randidly had from his previous use of the ritual, he completed the working much more quickly. After only a few seconds, Yggdrasil reappeared and spread its branches and roots throughout the surrounding area.

In an instant, Randidly flickered and appeared far to the left, nearer to Ileot but not so close that Ileot could pounce toward him before he could react. Perhaps responding to his emotions, the drop of liquid Aether shivered in anticipation.

All I need is one shot. Randidly narrowed his eyes. Vualla continued to accelerate forward, somehow slipping past the first avatar and unleashing a sharp punch at the second. It leaned backward, but very smoothly Vualla shot upward and stomped on its shoulder. The avatar tumbled downward back toward some of the debris from the old battlefield.

Like an azure comet, Vualla surged upward, her eyes intent on Ileot Swacc.