As soon as Ash’s mind processed the sudden appearance of the magic circles surrounding him, he instinctively activated teleportation, vanishing from the spot.
At the very sa mont, Ash also activated Absolute Concealnt, completely erasing his presence from the world.
I am really glad I left all those items back at the cave...
Ash had intentionally stored away the Cursed Eye, the Unknown Fragnt, and the Rune of Ti before coming here, and looking back now, that decision had definitely been the right one.
Sigh... looks like I won’t be using Concealnt for a surprise attack after all.
He had originally intended to keep Absolute Concealnt as his hidden trump card, sothing he would only use at the very last second—precisely when he was just one ter away from the heart.
Based on the detailed description of the skill, Absolute Concealnt rendered him completely undetectable to all senses, unless soone directly looked at him with their own eyes.
And since the demonic heart lacked any eyes, it would have been the perfect target.
If everything had gone according to plan, Ash could have vanished in front of it, and before the heart even realized what had happened, he would have already launched his strike.
The confusion caused by his sudden disappearance would have bought him the precious few seconds needed for a surprise attack.
That was why he had saved the skill up until now—waiting for the perfect mont.
But reality had not been so kind.
Even he had not expected the heart to possess an ability that could stop ti entirely, robbing him of the chance to act as he had hoped.
Well, now that the spirits are gone, it should still be fine. But... should I really try using that technique now?
Over the past month, aside from training to use two elents simultaneously, Ash had been working on sothing even more ambitious.
He had been attempting to combine two different elents into one unified force.
While his understanding wasn’t deep enough to pull it off using runic spells, he had used the thod ntioned in the novel to do it, just like Ray.
Although the thod was successful, it wasn’t without drawbacks. The side effects were painful, and the burden on his body was significant.
Tsk. Ray was able to combine all his elents effortlessly when he fought the Demon King. anwhile, I’m still stuck struggling to rge just two...
Despite his grumbling thoughts, Ash didn’t stop. He began by filling his body with Lightning Mana, channeling it through his veins and muscles with precision. Fortunately, one of his mana cores was still completely full.
His body began to glow with a sharp electric aura. Blue lightning sparked and danced along his limbs, enveloping him entirely like a raging storm given form.
It looked similar to how a warrior uses aura, except Ash was using mana.
Once the lightning fully covered him, he slowly began mixing in Life Energy.
-SHOOK!!!
The mont the second elent was introduced, his body convulsed under the strain.
The pressure from inside surged violently, and blood started seeping from his eyes, ears, and the corners of his lips.
The fusion was unstable, but he didn’t stop. He held on as the electric blue began to shift in color, becoming brighter, more radiant, turning into a brilliant white that pulsed with unnatural intensity.
Hah... Thankfully, Omni Thought is still active. The pain is being suppressed, and the Rune of Life is healing at the sa ti. But even with that, why does my body always feel this weak...?
It was a question he had asked himself many tis. No matter how fast he grew or how much he learned, his body seed to struggle just to keep up.
First, it was his potential being too low. And now, it was his physical limit that kept dragging him down.
Still, it’s not all bad. At least I’m able to use this technique, even if it’s not in its perfect form. But the mana consumption really is insane...
That wasn’t surprising.
He was forcibly smashing two elents together, ones that weren’t naturally ant to coexist in this way, without any understanding of the deeper connection between them.
It wasn’t a harmonious blend. It was brute force, a violent collision of energies that were being held together by sheer willpower alone.
Naturally, that kind of reckless approach consud vast amounts of mana.
But for Ash, as long as it accomplished what he needed, then that was more than enough.
The mont his body beca completely covered in glowing white lightning, he moved. Thunder roared across the space like a beast awakened, shaking the entire battlefield.
At the sa ti, Ash also removed the Absolute Concealnt, since keeping it active was draining his remaining mana rapidly. He needed to conserve every drop he could.
At that mont, he beca a streak of white lightning flashing across the underground land.
Taking Eclipse back into his hand, Ash reappeared directly in front of the Demonic Heart, which was twice the size of a normal one.
The illusion of the giant eyes that had once watched from above had vanished the instant ti resud.
[H-HOW ARE YOU STILL ALIVE????]
The demonic voice screeched in disbelief, filled with horror and confusion. It was completely certain that the insignificant human in front of it had been killed without question.
But Ash didn’t waste his ti answering. He was focused on sothing else entirely. His lips moved as he muttered quietly to himself, preparing to rge two things that were never ant to be combined.
"Eternal Silence: Celestial Sword Art..."
"First Form: Infinite Requiem."
This new form was the result of him fusing the core concepts of his martial art with his sword. Unlike the original technique that relied on raw emotions and unleashed endless punches, this version was composed of endless slashes instead.
He had spent a long ti trying to adjust even the first form, changing the na and refining its structure to suit his sword-based combat style. Though its raw power was lower than the original, he believed that with enough practice, he would not only match it, but surpass it one day.
But reaching that level would take ti. A lot of ti.
Still, the core idea remained the sa—relentless attacks with no pause or hesitation.
– Slash!!!
– Slash!!!
– Slash!!!
– Slash!!!
– Slash!!!
Ash’s hand moved so fast it beca a blur, his slashes raining down one after another like a relentless storm, targeting the corrupted veins that connected the Demonic Heart to the roots of the World Tree.
The thinner veins were severed imdiately, cut through like threads, while the thicker ones resisted, only to be sliced apart after a few more relentless strikes.
[THIS FUCKER DARED TO CUT !!!!!]
Waves of dense, volatile demonic energy surged toward Ash, but he remained in place, his right arm moving at impossible speeds as he continued slashing without rest, like a man possessed.
One of the weaknesses of this form was that it required him to remain stationary while attacking.
He couldn’t move his feet during the execution. But even as the waves of darkness howled and exploded around him, Ash didn’t flinch. His blade continued to fall again and again.
Soon, more than half of the veins were already severed.
[I WILL KILL YOU!!!!!!]
[DIE. DIE. DIE. DIE. DIE. DIE. DIE. DIE. DIE. DIE. DIE. DIE.]
The demonic being scread wildly, completely losing control. It unleashed everything it had, flooding the area with concentrated rage. The heartbeat of the Demonic Heart pounded like a war drum, and more demonic energy erupted around it in a frenzy.
Twenty magic circles appeared all at once, each one glowing with a blinding violet hue. Then, one by one, spears of violet fla erged from each circle.
Although smaller than before, closer in size to a normal spear, each was still infused with the sa terrifying destructive power.
But Ash did not stop. Half his mana was already gone, and now, only one-fourth of the veins remained.
He knew that if even one of the spears pierced him now, it would ruin everything. His remaining mana wasn’t enough to call for help or activate another sealing attempt.
[DIE!!!!!!!!!!!]
All twenty violet spears flew toward Ash in perfect unison.
– Swoosh!!!
– Swoosh!!!
– Swoosh!!!
But Ash’s hands never stopped moving. White lightning crackled around his body like a wild beast gone berserk. His body was bleeding, his muscles straining, but his mind focused on one thing alone.
Swing. Just swing. Keep swinging. Don’t stop. No matter what.
It was a ntal state extrely difficult to enter—one where the body obeys only a single command.
FLOW STATE
But just as the violet spears ca close enough to strike him, they stopped.
[WHAT!!!!!]
The demonic being cried out in disbelief.
It had been so focused on Ash that it failed to notice Serena. The spears were stopped in mid-air, wrapped tightly by the roots of the World Tree.
When the demonic being shifted its gaze, it finally saw her.
Serena was standing close to the wall, where a patch of uncorrupted roots still remained. She was touching them gently, her eyes glowing with pure green light—just like her vibrant hair.
Her body was surrounded by an unnatural aura of life energy, and above her head floated a crown ford from leaves and branches.
[NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!]
[HOW CAN THAT BE!!!!!]
Her arms were extended outward, and even from the corrupted roots surrounding the Demonic Heart, small untainted roots erged and began to block the spears one by one.
– Swoosh!!!
– Swoosh!!!
– Swoosh!!!
And while that chaos unfolded behind him, Ash cut the last remaining vein. The Demonic Heart lost its last connection and began to rise, floating in mid-air.
But Ash didn’t stop there. He ended his sword form and moved imdiately.
BAAM!!
He slamd his foot against the ground and accelerated, dodging the stationary burning spears. With no hesitation, he reached the floating heart and thrust the Sealing Dagger deep into its center.
[HUH!! That’s it? I thought it would be so kind of ultimate killing move. What can a small dagg—]
The sentence was never finished.
From the dagger, radiant white chains burst out in every direction, wrapping around the heart with overwhelming force.
The chains continued to spread until the heart was completely sealed, wrapped tightly like a sphere, and finally, a glowing white lock clicked into place.
Now, the once monstrous heart resembled a sealed crystal orb, like a white football, as it dropped harmlessly to the ground.
Ash cut off his mana flow imdiately, before his core drained entirely.
"HUFF!! Huff!!"
He exhaled deeply, trying to steady his breath, his shoulders rising and falling.
But even at that mont of victory, he didn’t relax.
His eyes scanned the surroundings carefully.
Is it really over...?
***
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