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The falling boulders created a dangerous, unpredictable environment that blocked everyone's view. Khan couldn't see the blue aliens and mutated Thilku anymore, and the same went for them.
That unpredictability worked in Khan's favor. He had attacked the ceiling to create that precise environment. He wanted chaos only he could read, and the rain gave him that.
'Flow,' Khan ordered to himself while inspecting the rain with the entirety of his senses.
The boulders fell with no specific pattern. Khan had to look at the ceiling to predict what would likely follow, but that ability had limits. His senses couldn't reach the layers of rocks that had yet to show their face, making their behavior impossible to study.
Nevertheless, the rain was different. Potential paths opened in Khan's view as he studied the falling boulders. He could use the large rocks to hide his figure and, hopefully, take the mutated Thilku by surprise again.
That idea turned out to be too optimistic. Khan wanted to let that chaos unfold until the right opportunity arrived, but the mutated Thilku knew better than to wait.
Khan's eyes widened when he sensed the Thilku summoning its mana. That dense energy split and gathered into twelve points before shooting forward in the form of beams.
Many boulders were thick and resilient, but the beams carried the chaos element's destruction. The spells dug through the rocks, splitting and shattering them before stretching toward their next target.
Khan did the math for a second before hurrying downward. Sensing how much mana each beam carried gave him a good idea of their power. Those attacks wouldn't stop at the rain. They would reach the ceiling, making his position unsafe.
The symphony heeded Khan's commands as he dived into the rain. He released tinges of his mana to affect a few currents around him and force them to replicate his presence. Those fake auras flew everywhere, going around multiple rocks to create a distraction.
However, the mutated Thilku didn't care. It sensed that Khan's presence had multiplied but didn't follow any source of his aura. Its spells covered an immense area, and it used them to enforce a perfect defensive array.
Khan calmly and silently realized feints wouldn't work anymore. His descent through the boulders and the distractions didn't affect the beams' patterns. The mutated Thilku continued to wave them left, right, up, and down, drawing a terrifying net that dug through anything in its path.
That situation wasn't anything new for Khan, but that was his first time dealing with so many beams released by the same opponent. Those spells were also deadlier than their third-level counterparts, and the relatively limited space prevented him from asserting complete freedom.
However, the boulders weren't completely useless. They still delayed the beams for a few fractions of a second. Also, the mutated Thilku wasn't aiming for Khan. That was a defensive technique with a specific pattern, and he could flow into it.
Khan's mind almost emptied, leaving only a deep connection to the symphony and his intense anger while he flew through the rocks. His steps were instinctive, depending solely on what the environment told him to do, and he also adjusted his speed to follow those soft commands.
Rocks and dust flew everywhere as the beams shattered the boulders. Khan rarely could keep his eyes open due to the clouds and debris that landed on his face, but his vision was superfluous there. He had regressed to a heavy tool existing to cross that difficult path, and many irrelevant details failed to reach the conscious part of his mind.
Everything moved slowly in Khan's perception, but the reality was different. The beams, Khan, and the boulders had reached levels of speed most soldiers couldn't match. The entire area was descending quickly, and only a few seconds separated it from the unavoidable clash.
Those pointless thoughts never entered Khan's mind. He dashed from rock to rock, air to air, and in multiple directions depending on what his perception told him. He danced among those falling boulders and purple-red beams, often requiring many sprints to reach a lower position.
The rain was never-ending. Each falling boulder left room for more to follow. The ceiling wouldn't stabilize anytime soon, giving Khan enough time to approach the lake safely.
Tense, long seconds passed. A misstep from Khan would put him in the beam's trajectory or under an unavoidable boulder. Instead, the mutated Thilku had to continue performing its defensive technique to perfection to avoid dying from the rain.
Neither opponent saw each other, but they both knew the clash was unavoidable and imminent. Khan could still fall prey to the beams before that, but the mutated Thilku attacked as if that wasn't an option.
An indefinite amount of time later, Khan peeked past a rock and found himself before the lake. Those blue waters expanded in his view, and the mutated Thilku stood on them mere meters from him.
Khan didn't know how he had gotten there nor how long had passed. Yet, none of those thoughts crossed his mind. He was still on a precise path created by the symphony, and his legs moved to pursue it.
Mana flowed toward Khan's legs as he performed his sprint. He didn't go into a straight line toward the mutated Thilku. Instead, he half-circled around it, approaching its left side.
The mutated Thilku continued to release its defensive array but moved it toward Khan as soon as it noticed his presence. Twelve beams quickly converged toward him, but his math was on point. He knew he was one step ahead of those attacks.
Khan flew at full speed with a single target in mind. The Thilku had gained a significant flaw during the previous exchanges. The sharp knife was still stabbed in its neck, and Khan planned to use it.
However, the mutated Thilku didn't only have beams. As soon as Khan got dangerously close, its eyes shone, and its mouth broadened into a smile while a clicking growl came out of it.
Khan understood what was coming as soon as the Thilku's mana moved. The alien was about to release a spherical version of the Wave spell, which would have terrifying speed and power if it matched the previous attack.
In theory, the path had just closed. The spell had yet to expand, but Khan knew he wouldn't reach the mutated Thilku in time. The alien's reactions had simply been too fast for him.
The sheer difference in power had turned out to be an insurmountable mountain. Khan's execution, timing, and planning had been perfect, but the mutated Thilku was simply better than him.
The consequences of that finding became clear even if Khan didn't think about them. He could dodge the Wave spell, retreating and using its pushing force to return to safety, but that would put him against the beams again.
Khan had already proved himself able to deal with the beams, but falling into the previous predicament wasn't ideal. He could bet on a prolonged battle, hoping the Thilku would eventually feel its injuries, but something told him that wasn't a possibility.
The rain wasn't endless either. The boulders would eventually stop falling, forcing Khan to unleash more destruction on the ceiling. That was a dangerous approach since the underground area had limits, but Khan couldn't do anything else against that monster.
Of course, that only was the safe path, which showed little hope. Khan could attempt it a few more times, but it was hard to predict whether things would go as well again.
Moreover, the mutated Thilku had to have more abilities in store. Its battle tactics would also evolve as the battle progressed, and Khan was already using his full power. The difference between the two would probably broaden as time passed.
That outcome couldn't lead to victory, but another option existed. Khan was really close to the Thilku. He needed one sprint to enter melee range. The incoming fourth-level Wave spell was the only problem.
Once that option grew clearer, Khan stopped considering alternative paths. He had to seize victory now, even if his body risked shattering. That was the only way to remove unknown variables from the battle.
A purple-red light enveloped the mutated Thilku's body before expanding and taking the shape of a sphere. That deadly attack filled Khan's view, forcing him to close his eyes due to its blinding light, but his hand moved accordingly.
The [Blood Shield] covered Khan's right arm, face, chest, and legs. He focused on his exposed parts to preserve as much strength as possible while sending mana to his reinforced hand.
Khan's bones hurt when the [Blood Shield] fixed his right arm in place. Yet, his gesture didn't waver, and a purple-red membrane covered his hand, which affected the symphony with its slashing motion.
Pain spread everywhere. Khan set his right hand on fire when he completed the slash, and injuries opened all around his body when the Wave spell enveloped him.
However, a silver lining existed. The slash had opened a path that connected the spell's edge to the Thilku, creating a path Khan could tread. That road was far from safe or harmless, but his body could take it with the help of the [Blood Shield].
The Thilku noticed Khan piercing the Wave spell and turned, using its insane reactions to face him. Its arms also descended, threatening to point their deadly beams at him.
The violent mana slowed down Khan's advance. It quickly became clear that his arms couldn't reach the Thilku before the beams cut him apart. Yet, he had already predicted that and had disregarded that strategy to go for a kick.
The momentum accumulated during the incredible sprint allowed Khan to point his right leg forward instantly. The Wave spell made a mess of its flesh, but the limb remained straight, and his foot eventually tapped the knife stabbed into the Thilku's neck.
Khan didn't do anything special. He merely pushed his weapon's handle, trusting its sharp properties would handle the rest.
The knife didn't disappoint. It moved as soon as the foot tapped its handle, digging through the Thilku's flesh and reaching its spine. The bone posed some resistance but eventually gave in, cutting the connection between the alien and its spells.
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