Continental Championship part 3

" Roarrrrrr"

Lin Khuen, now heavily influenced by the bloodlust of his spirit soul, dashed straight towards Nero like a berserk bull out of its cage. Closing in on Nero, Liu Khuen swung the lower half of the blood reaper at Nero ruthlessly, following it with a heavy scythe attack.

Using the sheath of Yamato to intercept the chain, Nero conjured a heavy Mirage Blade to stop the scythe dead in its tracks. Taking advantage of the stalemate and Liu Khuen's current lack of reasoning, Nero directed a powerful Flashkick at Liu Khuen's chest, creating distance as well as ensnaring him in a ring of Mirage Blades.

Before Liu Khuen's frenzied mind could grasp the effect of Nero's actions, the mirage blades encircling him detonated in a burst of sword intent, engulfing him in an explosion.

Gasps reverberated through the audience as Liu Khuen emerged from the tempest of explosions, his body now adorned with numerous bone-deep gashes and wounds creating a gore image coupled with his previous wounds. Nero's demeanor took a serious turn as Liu Khuen, despite his grievous wounds, showed no indication of relenting.

'I have to end this quickly,' Nero thought, 'If this goes on, the injuries I've inflicted will take their toll, and the aftermath will be more trouble than it's worth. But...' Nero's thoughts were interrupted as Liu Khuen pressed on with his relentless assault.

Dodging a downward slam from Liu Khuen, Nero swiftly teleported behind him, aiming a heavy kick at Liu Khuen's back. However, before Nero's kick could land, Liu Khuen almost inhumanly brought up his leg to withstand the impact, simultaneously using the chain of his blood reaper to aim the scythe at Nero's head.

Ducking to avoid the scythe, Nero swiftly performed a somersault kick aimed at Liu Khuen's head to interrupt his momentum. However, Liu Khuen, using the scythe and chain's momentum, managed to evade Nero's kick again by a mere inch.

Nero, as if realizing something, slammed the hilt of Yamato onto the ground, generating an instantaneous and powerful shockwave of energy that sent Liu Khuen hurtling through the air.

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Shrek Academy discussion room,

"Sister Yehui, aren't you worried about Nero? His opponent seems difficult to handle, especially with the tournament's restrictions," Tang Wulin who was observing the match asked Yuanen Yehui whose face remained calm contrary to the concern evident on the faces of everyone else in the team.

"She's not worried because that brat hasn't even used an ounce of his power yet," Elder Cai interjected, her gaze fixed on the arena. Addressing Tang Wulin and the others, she continued, "Although it appears that he's in a passive situation, have none of you realized that Nero hasn't even employed his stronger self-created soul skills, let alone his spirit ring skills? All this time, he's been deliberately holding back to refine his combat skills and analyze the situation."

Yuanen Yehui chimed in after Elder Cai, her voice calm, "Elder Cai is right. Nero chose to navigate through the tournament using only his fundamental skills. If he were to unleash his full power, his opponent wouldn't just have a cracked mask earlier, but a body on the brink of collapse."

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Back to the Arena,

Nero observed the Monster Academy stand, his keen eyes catching the slight smile on one teacher's face amid the sea of worried expressions. He deduced, 'Perhaps none of the teachers anticipated Liu Khuen's mask to crack, except for this one. While a berserk mind loses its rationality, it gains heightened instinct and near-complete pain nullification. But no academy or teacher would knowingly subject their student to such a perilous state...' His gaze shifted to Lin Khuen, who had risen again after enduring the shockwave's impact. Nero's conclusion was grim, 'Unless this teacher is affiliated with the military or some other entity conducting experiments on their students.'

"Now, instead of guessing, why don't I ask the source itself," Nero whispered with a slight chuckle as he unfolded his demonic eyes and disappeared from his place. Beneath Lin Khuen, numerous energy chains with shadowy tips appeared, restraining him in place. Nero reappeared in front of Liu Khuen and lifted him up by the throat.

Using his Demonic eyes and inhuman mental power, Nero instantly penetrated Lin Khuen's sea of consciousness.

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Inside Liu Khen's Sea of Consiousness,

As soon as Nero arrived, what came into view was an almost red miasma world with a red metallic-furred bipedal huge wolf with a shiny black crystal embedded in its chest in the center.

" So, you are the source of this berserk idiot," Nero whispered as he gazed at the bipedal beast. Pointing Yamato at the beast, Nero asked aloud, "Oye, Bipedal Husky, I am gonna ask you politely to be tame again and tell me how you made your kennel into this idiot's brain?"

"Roarrrrrrr," the bipedal beast only roared at Nero and started charging towards him. "Well, I did the formality," Nero commented. As soon as the beast arrived near Nero, with a slight shake of Nero's hands, two huge demonic energy claws emerged from both sides of the beast and strangled him mid-air. Teleporting above the bipedal beast, Nero used his demonic eyes to spot out all the nodes which connected the beast's power and will to Liu Khuen.

Unsheathing Yamato, Nero unleashed a flurry of slashes infused with the Law of Separation, each one aiming for a different node. The bipedal beast let out an agonizing roar as the power of separation in each slash terminated the beast's control over Liu Khuen.

" Status " Nero whispered as a translucent blue screen containing the beast information unfolded before him.

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Beast Species: #$*??* 

Type: Synthesized Spirit soul

Source: An artificial spirit soul created using a wolf genome infused with the breath of God Of War godhead fragment. 

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"God of War, huh," Nero mused inwardly, his thoughts a whirlwind of speculation. "Dai Mubai couldn't possibly split his godhead, so he is out of the equation. And the previous God of War never died or left the God Realm, as far as I know. So, there are only two possibilities. Either the fragment that created this beast is of the ancient God of War, or the owner of that fragment isn't from this God Realm." Nero's thoughts were interrupted as the bipedal beast tried to attach itself to him for survival.

Rather than resisting or dispatching the beast, Nero chose a different approach. With a sly smirk, he allowed the creature to make its desperate attempt to attach itself to him unhindered. As the confused beast moved closer, its instincts driving it forward, Nero remained calm, his demeanor almost playful but as soon as the beast touched Nero a dense shadowy smoke billowed forth from behind Nero with two piercing purple demonic eyes gazing at the beast.

The beast's expression shifted from one of frenzy to sheer terror as it tried to frantically retreat but before it could even take a single step back, the dense shadow behind Nero surged forward with frightening speed. In a blink of an eye, the shadow enveloped the beast completely, swallowing it whole, and then just as swiftly as it had appeared, the shadow dissipated back into Nero.

Nero's chuckle echoed softly in the empty expanse of Lin Khuen's consciousness as he remarked, "Well, at least that husky got to meet Iblis." With a final glance at his surroundings, Nero disappeared leaving everything in empty silence.

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Back to physical World,

As Nero withdrew from Liu Khuen's sea of consciousness, the pulsating blood vessels that had marred his skin gradually subsided, and clarity returned to his eyes. " What did you do? " Liu Khen asked Nero in slightly hoarse and shaky voice. Meeting his gaze with an intense stare through his demonic eyes, Nero responded icily, "Ask that culprit for the consequences of your foolishness"

Without pausing for Liu Khuen's response, Nero used Mirage Edge to create a fissure in the barrier, and threw Liu Khuen out of the arena. The impact sent Liu Khuen hurtling through the air, landing with a crash in the Monster Academy stands.

" You should announce the result. " the bellowing silence and stillness of stadium was interrupted by Nero who directed this statement to Referee. 

Recognizing her oversight, the lady hastily corrected herself and announced, "And the winner of this match is contestant number 666, Nero." The stadium erupted with cheers and shouts, acknowledging Nero's victory. Giving one last glance towards the teacher in the Monster Academy stand, Nero exited the arena and made his way back to the Shrek Academy stands.

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I honestly have nothing to say for my long absence. I had some reasons that I can't share but all I can say is that I will try to give two chapter at the very least per week and more if possible.

Thanks for supporting.