The kick by Alex was just a test to measure the strength of Kain. He knew that Kain was strengthened by mutant cells, so the quickest way for him to test that was by attacking first.
With just a kick, Alex accurately grasped the level of physical strength of Kain.
And it was within his expectation.
Kain was as strong as a tier 4 warrior physically. But, Alex didn't feel threatened by it. After all, he had the same level of physical strength.
However, it didn't mean that Kain was easy to defeat.
Kain was a master-level mage before he became physically stronger. So, the threat of magic still exists.
'When comparing skills, I am not good enough to be a master mage. And I don't have that much experience in physical battles. Usually, I win against my enemies by overwhelming them by using teleport and by using unpredictable mana attacks.'
'I don't think the same will work this time. This is my first battle against a real master mage. I have to be careful and avoid his spells.'
'A mage can release a devastating attack if given enough time. I also need to be quick in my response.'
Alex concluded after careful deliberation.
Within a second, Alex formed an ice spell on his palm. It was the best spell he could use in the closed space.
The ice spell consumed one core of energy and took the shape of a sphere.
Instantly, it was launched at Kain.
"Swish." The crystal-like sphere sped towards Kain in a straight line.
Contrary to his usual passive self, Alex led the attack.
Although the spell looked like a solid sphere, it was made out of compressed and cooled air, just like liquid nitrogen. And Alex was using it to attack Kain.
If Kain was not careful, it could do more damage than a fire spell that consumed the same amount of mana.
"Take it and chill down," Alex said, hoping that Kain would take the wrong decision.
But, unlike the mutant monsters and warriors that Alex fought against, Kain was a mage. He had one special skill that most warriors have a hard time using called mana vision.
Just as Alex condensed the mana in his palm, Kain knew that it was an ice-related skill. He could see the ice element coming together in his palm to form the spell.
In response to the fast-moving ice spell, Kain had already devised to nullify it.
Instead of receiving the spell with his body, he conjured a wall of earth in front of him. The ice spell collided straight with the wall. The earthen wall cooled instantly and absorbed the effect of the ice spell. Only a small portion of it froze revealing that a spell like that would be easy for Kain to block.
'A single Earth spell to block my ice spell. Usually, warriors have a difficult time blocking long-range attack spells like the ice spells. They usually resort to dodging rather than blocking. But it seems like the battles between mages are completely different.'
"What are you waiting for? Why are you not attacking me?" Alex asked Kain.
Kain was giving him ample time without bothering to attack.
Alex doubted that he was not taking their battle seriously. Was he that confident? He thought as he asked the question.
"You tested my physical skills. So, I wanted to test your skills as a mage. It is amusing to an oddity like you, with both the abilities of a warrior and mage.
"Besides that, you are weak. Your spells are also weak. It does not warrant my attention."
Kain spoke showing his confidence.
Alex too realised this. His arsenal of spells would be nothing in front of a master mage. The rune he learned were only of the low-level spells. In a battle of who can cast the superior spell, Alex would lose.
"I agree."
—
While Kain and Alex exchanged blows, the battle between Chitra and the horned mutant was progressing in a bad direction.
The horn on the mutant's head stopped getting brighter. It has achieved its peak state. And it began its real assault.
The diminished ability of Chitra to foresee the attack began to interfere with her ability to dodge the attack of the mutant. She had to take most attacks head-on or deflect them with energy.
It slowly began to drain Chitra.
Now that the core of the rune formation disappeared, the energy density in the hall decreased. She could feel the energy of the Divine butterfly decrease.
In reality, foresight was a great combat ability. But due to some reason, the ability was hard to use currently at its full potential.
'Should I use my ultimate skill?' A thought popped up in Chitra's mind. This was the last straw that could change her fate. In a situation where even her fate was undecided with the chance of becoming worse, this was the only solution she could reach.
She suddenly turned to look at the Divine butterfly. The fluttering Divine butterfly sensed her wish.
It decided to follow through with the ultimate attack alongside Chitra.
The tiny specs of light similar to stars that were present in the pitch-black wings of the divine butterfly began to glow.
It began to shimmer in a multitude of colours.
"SWISH" The Divine butterfly shook its wings. All the light particles detached from the wings due to the sudden motion of the wings. And these light particles began to flow towards Chitra.
The light particles looked like a rainbow that was turned into dust, shimmering and glowing at different intensities.
They fell towards Chitra and began to merge with her body.
At that moment, the illusory figure of the Divine butterfly turned transparent and flickered. The body of the Divine butterfly was drained out of all the energy by using that skill. It was barely maintaining its form.
After merging with Chitra, some of the light particles formed a rainbow cloured wing behind her. A beautiful butterfly wing that was semi-transparent and shining in a thousand different colours at the same time.
The horned mutant was aroused by this scene. Chitra looked like a delicious meal for it. It wanted to quickly consume her.
"Infinite Transformation," Chitra muttered under her breath.
At that instant, all the energy in the surrounding stagnated.
All eyes focused towards Chitra.
For a moment, Chitra turned into a Divine being. A demi-god, a deity. It felt like she transcended time and space.
Till now, she was floating in the air, combating the horned mutant.
After unleashing the skill "Infinite Transformation" she took a step forward in the air.
But instead of her body moving forward. Another figure of Chitra materialised near her. One of the figures was stepping forward while the other stayed still.
Now, there were two Chitras.
But it didn't end there.
The figure that stepped forward split into two, each moving in a different direction. Then to four, eight, sixteen, thirty-two….
Within just a few seconds, the entire hall was filled with the figure of Chitra. There were hundred or even a thousand figures, all surrounding the horned mutant.
The infinite transformation was a skill similar to what the Divine butterfly had shown before. Instead of splitting its body into two, Chitra used the skill to create almost a thousand different bodies of her.
Each was real. The embodiment of a possibility.
The working of the Infinite Transformation skill was simple. It showed the different possibilities of the user.
Currently, Chitra wanted to attack the horned mutant. After she had selected this goal and activated the skill, all the possible ways she could attack the horned mutant materialised instantly.
Instead of trying it one by one. All the possibilities converged in that instant and became real.
It was an attack that broke the rules of reality. Something unattainable without the help of the spirit guardian. The ultimate attack of the Divine Butterfly tribe.
Alex, Kain and even the horned mutant froze seeing the skill Chitra unleashed.
Almost a thousand different Chitra fluttering in the air with rainbow wings was a beautiful sight. Simultaneously it was also horrifying.
Finally, Alex realised the extent to which a tier 5 warrior's power reached.
They were far more powerful than he imagined.
-
The circling bodies of Chitra finally initiated the attack towards the horned mutant. Together, they dived towards the mutant with the best attack they could.
Some were energy attacks. Some were physical attacks.
And the combined might they unleashed was unfathomable.
'Was the horned mutant about to lose?' This thought popped up in Alex's mind.
"BOOOM!" With a thunderous sound, the underground hall shook. The simultaneous attack impacted directly onto the horned mutant.
Dust rose and the shockwave travelled through the earth.
Even the people in the city above felt it like an earthquake.
The earth was overturned and a crater with a diameter of fifty meters revealed itself after a while.
Even Alex had to teleport away from the shockwave to dodge the stone and gravel that travelled at the speed of bullets, propelled by the heavy impact.
As soon as he emerged, he looked outside, trying to view the condition outside.
Updated from fr𝒆ewebnov𝒆l.(c)om