Junius’ feet had turned blurry. All of his muscles were sore, and the power in his movements had turned somewhat sluggish. Thousands of earthy vines chased him like raging serpents while numerous razor-sharp leaves rained down from the skies. When he was cornered, Junius was forced to swing his Obsidian Water Blade, creating a flowing water shield that protected him from some of the deadly attacks. However, Shizen wasn’t content with just cornering Junius. The nature boy didn’t give him a chance to breathe.

The Black Mask was an expert in martial arts, particularly swordplay using his famed Spirit. Against close-combat masters, Junius was king. If he had to fight against someone who could use long-range weaponry, Junius would utilise his signature ‘Pierce’ to unnerve or potentially kill his opponent. To a certain extent, Junius was able to deal with Mind-Elemental users as well. Blessed by the Tree of Illusions, Junius grasp on the Mind-Element wasn’t inferior to that of Shin and Kanari’s. In some way, he might even surpass them. However, the Blade of Death had finally met his match.

Shizen was literally the worst possible enemy for Junius to face. Wherever Shizen went, the Dundlewoods followed. The nature boy liked to alter the environment he fought in to suit his own needs, and it worked wonders against Junius. Firstly, with all those roots and vines in the way, Junius had very little space to execute his signature martial arts. Secondly, the woods that Shizen created boosted all of his own abilities, all while lowering Junius’ Water-Elemental affinity. And most importantly… The Freak of the Dundlewoods had begun to get used to using the spiritual energies from the Tree of Illusions.

In his current state, even though Shizen was a full realm lower than Junius, all of those variables combined had made the nature boy into a threat that could completely overwhelm his opponent.

Beads of sweat fell beautifully from Junius’ forehead, staining the mossy ground that Shizen had created. Veins that were prominent and red could be seen all over the man’s body as he desperately somersaulted away to safety. However, in Shizen’s domain, there was no such thing as a safe place. Once Junius had landed on the ground, a thousand more vines erupted from the dense forest, all wishing to grab a hold onto the pesky pest that flew around. Junius had once read all the reports about Shin’s friends and their abilities. He knew that Shizen’s innate spiritual ability was one that could suck in mana from whoever it comes into contact with. Thus, unless he wanted an early grave, Junius had to find ways to evade as many of those deadly vines as he possibly could.

However, it was easier said than done. All this while, Junius hadn’t got a single foothold on the battle. Shizen was dictating the pace and Junius was just a mere puppet on strings. It was something that had to change…

The Black Mask held his Obsidian Water Blade out and spun around three times in quick succession. A trail of water was left in his wake, and a sharp sword aura was transferred from Junius’ palms. As if it were holding the Ganges River within, the water ring that Junius created continued to spin rapidly, slicing apart any and all obstacles that came in its way. In less than a second, the Spirit Lord had unleashed his second spiritual ability, mowing down half of the vines and roots that were speeding his way.

“Annoying...” Junius spat. He finally got a little bit of breathing room. However, it wouldn’t last for long. Junius had brought down one wave, but that didn’t stall Shizen’s aggression. More vines were created by the Adivinar Tree, and thousands of leaves dropped down from its canopy. There wasn’t much time left before Shizen unleashed his full wrath and forcing a repeat of the dance earlier to ensue. Junius didn’t want that. No, he couldn’t afford that if he wanted to win the duel.

A phantom, bearing the exact same features as Junius, quickly sped out from the Obsidian Water Blade. In its hands, there was an exact replica of the Black Masks’ Spirit, just that it seemed a little weaker than the original. Still, there was no denying its strength. The Phantom was Junius’ Sword Partner, a manifestation of the swordmaster in the Black Mask. The Sword Partner leapt furiously at Shizen’s domain of nature, cutting down as many roots as it possibly could.

It wasn’t a living being, thus no matter how much Shizen tried to damage the Sword Partner, it would just regenerate back its shape. Even his innate ability to absorb mana was severely limited when the Sword Partner was capable of sending sharp sword intent to mow down its foes. This time, it was Shizen that had turned frustrated. He couldn’t give Junius even an ounce of breathing room, lest the Spirit Lord comes up with some mystical new move to tackle him. Funnily enough, Shizen’s fears weren’t unfounded. Junius really was becoming more prepared with each passing second.

His Obsidian Water Blade had now elongated to two-metres in length, and countless of sword light decorated the man’s back. Adding in a tinge of Mind-Element, Junius seemed to have formed two angel wings that were as pure as a virgin maiden, greatly contrasting his black and sinister sword. The combination of light and darkness, adding to the fact that Junius was a hunk of his own right, made the scene look picturesque to anyone watching. Even the most famous painters would struggle to put Junius’ evil within a canvas.

Shizen gritted his teeth and quickly turned all of his attention towards the Blade of Death. The Sword Partner would be a hassle, but dealing with its main body was far more pressing. “Fucking Junius...”

The nature boy twisted his wrists and willed for dense spiritual particles to emerge from the ground. The tides were about to shift, and Shizen had to be prepared for the worst. Mind-Elements congregated all around the Freak of the Dundlewoods, and his figure morphed slightly. Being far away, all Junius could see was a blur in the mist, but for the most part, ‘Shizen’ remained standing in front of him.

“Hmph!” Junius snorted. He bent his knees down and pointed the Obsidian Water Blade right at his opponent. ‘Pierce’ was cast instantly, breaking through the sound barrier and decimating everything in sight. Even Shizen’s figure wasn’t spared for the mauling. However, just as the last time…

“...”

The illusion of the young man faded into nothingness, as the Mind-Elements that the Adivinar Tree had been mowed down. Junius wasn’t the Tree of Illusion’s champion for nothing. He now had the innate ability to slice through any illusions, be it from a Rank 1 Spirit Practitioner or a Rank 99 Spirit Saint. All that mattered was that Junius keep a sound mind, locking in on his convictions. And right now, his only conviction was to defeat that intruder that attempted to fuck with his family.

Bit by bit, Shizen’s mirage was slowly becoming undone. The roots of the Adivinar tree twisted and turned, creating even more illusions to confuse the Blade of Death. Unfortunately, Junius was no idiot. As the saying goes, once bitten, twice shy. There was no way that the seasoned fighter would put himself back into his earlier position. Leaping up into the skies, Junius created a dozen water rings, covering the skies in a thick liquid. Shizen’s advantage came from his close proximity to the ground. When it came to aerial combat… The Freak of the Dundlewoods was no longer a dominant force that pulverises through his enemies.

“DIE!!!” Junius’ sword intent transferred over to his Obsidian Water blade, sending down a flurry of deadly attacks. The Water and Mind Elements went haywire as ‘Pierce’ was cast over a thousand times. Shizen’s ‘body’ was created multiple times within the thick illusory mist, but it was relentlessly destroyed by Junius’ rampage. Mana was drained at a staggering rate from the nature boy, and the Mind-Elements slowly shifted their allegiances from Shizen to Junius.

The pair were currently playing a game of tug and war. In the beginning, Shizen held the advantage, due to the unique nature of the Adivinar Tree. However, Junius was no pushover. His experience in the battlefield far surpassed anything that Shizen possessed. In fact, Junius might even be more battle-hardened than Shin, the Prince of Water himself. Try serving in the Black Masks, the criminal syndicate that was wanted by every major organisation in the world. Junius had seen every bad situation there was under the sun. He knew how to troubleshoot and crawl himself out from tough and sticky situations.

With the tables reversed, Shizen had reached a tipping point. The Mind-Elements that was granted to him by the Tree of Illusions was slowly being eroded away. At the same time, Junius’ attacks were turning more and more vicious. Shizen was getting desperate, and thus… He was forced to play his hand.

Sssssssssstttttttttttttttttttt!!!

Dense green smoke billowed out from the Adivinar Tree, tainting the entire Illusory Canyon in a brown hue. It was rife with earthen elements and terrestrial dust. No… There was even a tinge of life within the limited smoke. There was a tinge of… Life essence…

‘Hoh… You’re willing to burn your lifespan just to beat me down?’ Junius scoffed inwardly. For the Adivinar Tree to emit such a terrifying presence, even though Shizen was just a Spirit Spectre… It could only mean one thing. The Freak of the Dundlewoods was willing to die just to win.

Vines rushed out of the green smoke at twice the speed, taking in all of the spiritual energy from its surroundings. At the same time, the smoke turned into angry serpents that chased Junius down from the skies. Once again, Shizen had taken the initiative. The Mind-Elements that were lost rapidly returned to the nature boy and his attacks were three times as violent as before. Junius swordsmanship was nullified by the unique nature of Shizen’s Spirit and was forced to evade in the air like a scaredy-cat. However, Shizen’s attacks were just far too numerous and overwhelming. Just one miscalculated movement afterwards…

“ARGHHHH!!!” A ferocious groan echoed out in the valley. Rich crimson blood splattered down from the skies and contaminated the area.

“JUNIUS!!!” Ao cried. It was the first time in years that the World Serpent had seen Junius wounded. Judging from his cry and the gallons of blood that spilled out from his guts, the injury was quite the significant one.

Ao’s feet shuffled on the floor, digging deep into the sand. Ao’s body was rearing to save his protege, but the logical mind of the World Serpent stopped him. If he interfered, the Tree of Illusions could literally rip both the World Serpent and Junius limb from limb. The only thing that Ao could do was to sit tight and believe in the capabilities of the wonder kid that had stunned him time and time again...