...…

"Time to end this, Joker," said Demon as he thrust his spear on Shin's fully exposed back.

Demon perfectly synchronized this attack with the attacks of the other clones. Due to that, Shin was currently occupied with the other attacks on his front and made his back completely vulnerable to any attacks.

Seeing that, everyone thought that this match was already over. Some of Shin's fans couldn't help but close their eyes as they thought that it was pretty much impossible for Shin to dodge this particular attack.

Some of the expert players even shook their heads as they watched how this fight would end.

Well, they were actually right in some sense. Though, the result of the match was the exact opposite of what they were thinking.

Shin overturned their expectations once again.

Before the tip of the jade spear managed to land on Shin's back, Shin quickly turned his body to the side right after deflecting the spears of the three clones in front of him. He knew that he couldn't completely dodge this attack so he just did everything he could to minimize the damage that he was going to take.

With that slight turn, Shin managed to avoid getting hit on his vitals. But the blade of the spear still managed to graze his body and took a large chuck of his HP bar.

Regardless, Shin still gritted his teeth and forcefully swung the [Yamato] at Demon in a very strong manner.

Shing!

That sword slash severed Demon's head from his body. But Shin was suddenly becoming shocked when the body in front of him suddenly exploded into a bunch of black smoke. "What!?"

At the same time, the three clones that Shin was fighting earlier suddenly merged together which made its presence to become even more distinct.

"I told you, this is the end," said the newly formed figure behind Shin which turned out to be Demon's real body. And without further ado, he swung the jade spear that he held in a diagonal manner.

At this point, Shin's sight was already turning hazy while his concentration was starting to wear off.

The Aura Manifestation behind him seemed to become a wounded beast who was struggling for its life. Together with it, the devil-like figure behind Demon was currently raising its spear and was planning to execute the white tiger lying on its feet.

'D*mn! I already reached my limit,' thought Shin to himself. He already gambled everything on that strike earlier, so he knew for himself that he was already running out of strength.

At the same time, he suddenly felt that everything around him seemed to start moving in slow motion before it suddenly became dead silent. Then he started perceiving nothing; it was as if he was thrown in the middle of the dark abyss.

After that, he suddenly started feeling that he couldn't move his body anymore – as if he was suddenly trapped in a quicksand or a sinking mud.

This time, Shin was sure that he already reached his limits. It was because he already experienced a similar thing before. And due to this, he couldn't help but remember what Professor Plum had told him before.

– "What now, kid? Already reached your limit? Let me tell you something, a human's body is at its weakest when it reaches its limit. But at the same time, it was at its strongest once you manage to surpass it." –

– "So, make sure to overcome that wall the moment you encounter it. It is because that is also the best time where you are going to harvest the greatest number of benefits." –

Having that in mind, Shin gritted his teeth once again while forcing his body to him. But there seemed to be a bunch of strings tying his body and preventing him from moving. 'F*ck! Move! As if I am going to lose in here!'

Regardless, he still continued to persevere and used all of his remaining strength to force his body to start moving. And as if responding to his urgings, his body started moving bit by bit.

Then the invisible strings that prevent him from moving, started snapping one by one all the way until he broke free from them. And the moment he freed himself, a sudden burst of power suddenly exploded from his body and gave him enough strength to respond at Demon's attack.

Boom!

Even if the explosion of powers were unseeable from the outside, Demon was still able to perceive the sudden change of aura surrounding Shin.

From his perspective, he saw that the white tiger behind Shin suddenly turned into a humanoid figure. And even if this figure was still indistinguishable, he could still feel the powerful pressure that it was releasing.

This sight only signified a single thing and Demon was fully aware what was that. "This guy managed to gain some Martial-art Insight!"

With that, he could already foresee what was going to come.

Shin suddenly forced his body to turn around before raising the sheath of his sword to block the incoming spear.

Clang!

After that, he quickly raised the [Yamato] in front of his chest and pointed its tip at Demon. At the same time, the blade of the sword was suddenly set ablaze with an alternating black and white flame that was releasing a very intense threat.

Demon wanted to do something so that he could escape from this predicament. But he knew that it was going to be futile since he fully understood Shin's current state. All he could do was to close his eyes and accept this outcome.

Then Shin suddenly threw a powerful thrust with the [Yamato] which went straight towards Demon's chest. And a brief moment after Shin's sword pierced through his opponent's chest, the accumulated powers that the sword had was suddenly released, creating a powerful explosion that turned Demon's body into pieces.

BOOM!

A beam of light was still lingering in the air when Demon's body was starting to turn into a specks of lights.

After that, Shin's body started falling towards the ground since he had already exhausted himself. But he suddenly stabbed his sword on the ground and used it to support himself from completely collapsing on the ground.

And as he was trying to catch his breath, the system suddenly flashed the word 'Victory' above Shin – written in huge letters. Following it was Shin's ranker's title.

*DING!*

"VICTORY! – The Angel of Death"

And that was the time when the audience finally recovered themselves and suddenly exploded with a huge uproar!

BOOM!

All of the players watching the fight turned crazy after seeing that sudden burst of power by Shin. After all, a sudden turnaround in every battle was the best thing to watch – especially if it was the very moment that ended the battle.

All of the shouting and yelling of these players shook the entire battle arena, making Shin felt an unexpected feeling.

Even if he was someone who didn't want to attract any attention intentionally, he still couldn't help but become quite excited at this very moment.

Given that, he unconsciously forced his body to stand straight and raised the [Yamato] in the air as if he was recognizing the cheers the audience were giving him.

Seeing that, the players watching from the live audience-stand suddenly became wild and started shouting even louder.

...…

Meanwhile, Arthur was currently smiling from ear to ear as he watched his brother being cheered by the audience.

After a moment, his thoughts were suddenly interrupted by Zero's voice beside him. "On all of the people that I know, you are the only that I saw smiling even after losing a bet."

Arthur gave him a sidelong glance before replying. "You can why, right?"

He then turned his eyes back at the center of the battle arena before saying. "And how can you say that I really lost the bet? The fight ended in exactly two minutes after we settled our deal. But that is also the very time when that guy ends the fight with that fifth skill. What do you think?"

After that, he extended both of his arms upward to stretch his body a little before standing up. He looked at Zero and smirked before saying. "Let's count this bet as another draw on our score cards."

Zero stared at him for a moment before shaking his head while smiling bitterly. He then said with a bitter tone. "You know that this is going to happen from the very start, right? Then why bother proposing a bet?"

Hearing that, Arthur suddenly smiled mysteriously before giving his reply. "Let's just say that I am quite curious how you judge this fight."

He paused for a moment and looked at Shin once again before asking. "So, what do you think?"

Understanding what he was saying, Zero looked at Shin for a moment before saying. "Not that bad to be honest."

Second later, he suddenly remembered something. "I just remembered that I also have a deal with Simba, so I might agree with that demand of yours one day."

Then he turned his head back to Arthur while saying. "Though, I am also quite interested in that plan of yours. Maybe I'll agree with it if you somehow manage to really pull it off."

Arthur suddenly started smiling mysteriously when he heard that and said. "You said it, alright? Make sure to not take it back later."

After that, he looked at the other guys who were looking at them with confused expressions on their faces while saying. "Okay, guys! It is time to pack your bags and proceed to our next 'get together'. Make sure that all of you are going to attend, alright? Killjoys are going to get hunted down for a week to make it fair."

Then he started walking towards the exit of the room while rolling his shoulders at the same time. And when the other 'gods' saw that, they immediately forgot about their bets earlier before starting to stand up and followed after Arthur.

"At last! My back is starting to turn stiff after sitting here for so long."

"Are you sure that it is no because of your age?"

"Who wants to get beaten up by me first?"

"Tsk! This is going to be quite a drag."

"I hope this is going to be fast."

"I wonder if Zeus and Poseidon are going to draw each other's names this time."

While they were walking out of the room, Zero took another good look at Shin before turning around and following after the others.

At the same time, an excited smile suddenly formed with his lips as he mumbled to himself. "I am starting to become curious about your final form. So, you better hurry and stand on this peak alongside us."

...…