The two short exchanges said everything there was to be said.
Khan was an experienced warrior with incredible senses, so he knew. The mutated Thilku was no easy opponent. It wasn't only a fourth-level warrior. It also retained abilities dated prior to its mutation.
Khan stared at the lake before focusing on the mutated Thilku. He could devise a plan to kill the blue aliens before the main opponent, but his mana wanted more. He was the best. Khan knew that. Still, defeating such a strong enemy was the only way to prove it.
The mutated Thilku were relatively simple. Their overwhelming physical prowess matched Wayne's, but they also had incredible spells at hand.
It was safe to assume the current Thilku would have the same skillset. Yet, Khan had seen it move, and doubt arose. He could predict the alien's movements, but not in a way that would lead to victory.
The equation was simple. The mutated Thilku was faster, stronger, and probably had superior spells that relied on the chaos element. Khan was beaten in every field, but the lake was his enemy, so he had to destroy it.
'I can't beat it in a normal battle,' Khan immediately realized.
The two goals clashed in Khan's mind even if he had already made a decision. Beating the fourth-level Thilku was a pressing matter, but destroying the lake was also important. The event wouldn't clear the whole planet, but the quadrant would definitely benefit from it.
Even with the internal conflict, Khan remained focused on the mutated Thilku. He needed a proper strategy to defeat that opponent. He had also wanted to fight a fourth-level warrior for a while, so his mind worked at full speed to find openings.
The cloud obviously popped into Khan's mind. That wild, incredible spell could provide the edge he needed to defeat the mutated Thilku. However, the lake was too appealing to him, which would apply to that mass of violent urges, too. Something told him he couldn't cooperate with it in the area. Khan had to fight without it to win.
The more Khan thought about the topic, the more problems appeared. The Thilku wasn't only one level above Khan. Its species was stronger, faster, and deadlier. The mutations also put their elements in the same field, leading to a single conclusion.
'It's superior in every field,' Khan thought. 'I can only surpass it in one.'
Khan was slower than the Thilku. Weaker than the Thilku. The alien couldn't be challenged in terms of the intensity of mana either. However, Khan's standards were far from human, and the only possible path to victory eventually became clear.
'I should destroy everything,' Khan thought, uncaring of what that idea would cause.
Khan's mindset was very simple. The blue alien had given him orders, so he had rebelled. The Thilku had tried to do the same to no avail, so his urge to tear everything apart had skyrocketed.
As for the reasonable part of Khan's brain, it felt everything. The world danced inside his mind, telling him everything he should and could do. Simulations formed and shattered among his thoughts, predicting countless outcomes until only feasible ones remained.
Those feasible strategies also shattered, leaving behind mere ideas that fused with instinctive parts of Khan's brain. He didn't forget them, but there was more at stake there. Tricks that targeted the blue aliens were the weapons of the weak, and his mana wanted to prove to the world that they were beneath him.
Stats continued to enter Khan's mind, but his thoughts gradually grew simpler and louder. His urges turned his entire being into a weapon with a single purpose, and his presence reflected that. His aura reeked of his desire to win, tainting the area's symphony with that violent and unreasonable influence.
Physical differences stopped having any relevance. Gaps in mana intensity left the equation and disappeared into dark parts of Khan's mind. The mutated Thilku's level became a meaningless number. The alien was nothing more than a strong warrior, and Khan simply had to take it down.
'Destroy everything,' Khan thought as if giving orders to his entire being to reinforce his stance.
That simple, perfect strategy embodied Khan's true nature. His mana was speaking, and the scenery offered no alternative path either. He couldn't defeat the mutated Thilku otherwise, so his energy cheered at the opportunity to show its real colors.
The lake's soundwave had released its effects twice already, but Khan's presence was still shining. He was one with the symphony, which gave him an advantage over his opponents.
The mutated Thilku stood on the water as if it knew it wouldn't dive in. A mind that didn't belong to it worked at full speed but couldn't predict Khan's next move.
The mutated Thilku waited for an attack but was surprised by the tens of purple-red needles that materialized around it. Those unstable and incomplete spells exploded, releasing enough mana to threaten its tough skin.
Khan didn't bother watching the explosion. He sprinted downward, gathering mana between his palms. He intended to cast another chaos spear, but the symphony stopped him.
The needles' explosions created a purple-red cloud, but a figure pierced it, dispersing its violent mana into the environment. The mutated Thilku walked on the solid water to intercept Khan, but he predicted that.
Khan pretended to dive into the lake before abruptly changing direction. The symphony had warned him about the incoming threat, so he reacted accordingly.
The mutated Thilku jumped on Khan's path, with its feet still clung to the water. The gesture closed the route toward the lake, but Khan didn't care. He would think about the target later.
The burly mutated Thilku unfolded in Khan's vision while he halted his descent. He turned his diving momentum into a sprint, circling the alien while his presence did the rest.
The chaos spear dispersed at the Thilku's sudden reaction, making Khan hold back his mana and go for a counterattack. The Thilku was there, helplessly sprinting toward him, so he reacted.
The Thilku could keep track of Khan's movements, so it swung both arms to its right, ready to intercept the incoming attack. Yet, only a gust of mana blew through its limbs.
Khan had used his control over the environment to fake his presence, creating a feint that gave him enough time to sprint behind the mutated Thilku. The knife was in his hands, and a purple-red glow enveloped it when he swung it forward.
The attack wasn't simple. Khan didn't only rely on the Divine Reaper's properties. He ordered the symphony to convey his intent, making his slash stretch past his weapon's tip.
The offensive had been flawless. Khan had forced the Thilku to sprint recklessly through the explosions before deploying a feint. In theory, no one could react to his actual attack, but his knife and the mana that conveyed its intent only hit mere air when the slash was over.
Khan saw everything in slow-motion. He slashed his knife at the Thilku, only for the latter to teleport. That huge alien moved faster than him, appearing above his horizontal body to deliver two descending fists.
A sprint happened. Khan saw things before they happened, and his body moved accordingly. He had predicted that his slash would have failed as soon as it unfolded, and the incoming threat of those descending fists made his legs kick the air.
Khan disappeared, ricocheting through the air until his head threatened to touch the underground chamber's ceiling. He had escaped as fast as possible, but the pressure remained on his right side. He knew the Thilku would have destroyed him if that attack landed.
The mutated Thilku completed the descending blow before lifting its gaze. It was utterly calm and stern. It resembled a machine ready to kill, but Khan felt no fear.
Khan steeled his resolve and descended once again, relying on his top speed to dive toward the mutated Thilku. A frontal clash appeared unavoidable, but both Khan and the alien knew there was room for more moves.
The Thilku opened its mouth, and Khan changed direction, diving to its right side. The alien's face kept track of his movements, and a clicking growl arrived, releasing an imponent version of the Wave spell.
The spell released by the Thilku covered a quarter of the lake and slammed on the chamber's rocky wall, digging through its fabric. That massive attack would have scared anyone, but it still failed to hit anything.
The symphony saw what would have happened had Khan continued to dive into a straight line, so his mana split. He ordered the symphony to replicate his presence while he went in the opposite direction. That was no different from the previous tactic, but he had a plan now.
Once the Wave spell unleashed its power, Khan materialized behind the Thilku. His knife rose again, sending light into the air. That purple-red glow was familiar to the alien, but its danger was no joke.
The knife didn't even come close to the Thilku, but a long, gory cut opened through its red cape. That clothing gained darker shades and a fissure, but the Thilku didn't falter. Actually, it moved as soon as it felt pain.
Khan's eyes widened as soon as he understood what the symphony meant. He had just slashed forward, but a huge figure grew bigger in his vision. The mutated Thilku had turned, and its hand grabbed his right wrist.
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