Bang!
Yuuki's body, transformed into flowing water, burst out of the ground and landed back on the surface. He immediately pulled away from Mereoleona, lifting his gaze toward the woman shrouded within the dense mist.
"Ice–Mist Combination Magic—Infinite Ice Gravel Array!"
Yuuki raised both hands and clenched them toward the void, shouting sharply.
Within the fog.
Mereoleona lifted a brow, her gaze sweeping across the thick mist enveloping her. In the next instant, countless ice pellets rapidly condensed in midair.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
A torrential downpour of razor-sharp ice gravel crashed down like a violent storm!
Faced with the ice pillars thrusting up from beneath her feet and the overwhelming hail of ice raining from above, Mereoleona showed not the slightest hint of panic. Instead, the excitement on her face only grew stronger.
"Now this is getting interesting!"
The corner of Mereoleona's mouth curled upward.
Boom!
Terrifying flames erupted outward from her body, forming a towering pillar of fire that violently dispersed the fog in the air. The ice pillars thrusting up from the ground were instantly vaporized by the searing heat!
Mereoleona strode forward unhurriedly, stepping out from the scorched earth.
"So strong… She's pushed pure Fire Magic to its absolute limit."
Yuuki's eyelid twitched slightly as he watched Mereoleona reappear, having effortlessly shattered his combination magic.
"Hey! Just how many types of magic do you actually have?"
Mereoleona raised her head and shouted toward Yuuki in the distance.
"You can take a guess."
Yuuki's body tensed, his tone remaining calm.
Whoom!
"Then I won't hold back."
The flames around Mereoleona suddenly condensed, forming a massive flaming fist that came hurtling toward him!
"Wind!"
Yuuki uttered a single word. Violent gusts surged around his body, lifting him skyward as he narrowly avoided the attack.
"Wind Magic—Gale's White Bow!"
Dense currents of air coiled around Yuuki's left hand, forming a pure-white longbow composed entirely of wind.
At the same time—
Flames rose from his right hand as he drew it back against the bowstring. The moment the fire touched the string, it transformed into a thick arrow of fire!
Wind bow in his left hand, fire arrow in his right, Yuuki pulled the bow taut and aimed at Mereoleona below—
Only to find that her figure had vanished.
"Not good!"
Yuuki's heart jolted. Wind magic exploded from his back, forcibly propelling him away from his original position.
BOOM!
A sonic boom echoed through the air. The spot where Yuuki had been just moments ago was blasted apart by flames, and as the fire dispersed, Mereoleona's figure appeared.
She had leapt straight from the ground into the sky!
"Nice reactions, kid. But—"
Mereoleona's booming laughter rang out as the flames around her twisted into a giant flaming hand that lunged forward at terrifying speed.
"Get down here!"
Yuuki reacted quickly—but Mereoleona was even faster!
Though he dodged her main attack, the flaming hand still seized his leg, yanking him rapidly toward her.
Yuuki knew all too well that he could not let Mereoleona get close. With her monstrous reflexes and brutal combat style, once she closed the distance, he would be completely overwhelmed.
"Wind–Fire Combination Magic—Explosive Gale Arrow!"
Twisting his body midair, Yuuki redirected the arrow that had been aimed at Mereoleona, firing it instead at the flaming hand gripping his leg.
Combining the speed of wind with the ferocity of fire, the spell not only struck swiftly but detonated violently upon contact!
This was Yuuki's method of combining the various attributes he commanded—not a particularly refined composite spell, but even so, the interaction between different elements still produced a result far greater than simple addition.
RUMBLE—!
At such close range, the collision between the arrow and the flaming hand triggered an immediate explosion. The violent surge of mana blew the flames apart, freeing Yuuki from her grasp!
At the same time—
The shockwave from the blast forced both Yuuki and Mereoleona apart once more.
Mereoleona descended rapidly through the air, a trace of surprise flashing through her eyes. She clearly hadn't expected him to break free from her magic.
"Composite-attribute magic, huh? Hahaha! Not bad at all!"
She adjusted her posture midair, landing atop a high ridge. In the same motion, her legs flexed again, preparing to launch skyward once more.
Crimson mana surged forth, completely enveloping Mereoleona's body. Her aura shifted dramatically in an instant!
Suspended in midair, Yuuki immediately felt a crushing pressure rising from below.
I can't let her close the distance again!
"Mineral Magic—Sword of Victory!"
Yuuki raised his arm and roared.
This time, not one—but ten enormous mineral greatswords, each nearly six meters long, materialized in midair, hovering ominously above.
"Ice Magic—Crystal Ice Spikes!"
At the same moment, frigid mana condensed into massive ice lances, each comparable in size to the greatswords themselves.
"Go!"
A faint red glint flashed in Yuuki's eyes as he swung his arm downward with all his strength!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Roaring sonic booms tore through the sky as the mineral greatswords and countless ice spikes plummeted downward, blanketing the heavens in overwhelming destruction!
"That won't be enough!"
Mereoleona's bold laughter rang out from below.
She bent slightly at the waist, then kicked off the cliff face like a compressed spring, launching herself straight into the air!
"Purgatory Abyss Flame!"
Deep crimson flames coiled around her fists as she laughed wildly, smashing head-on into the descending Swords of Victory and Ice Spikes!
BOOM! BOOM!
Terrifying explosions shook the entire sky!
Rather than being forced back to the ground, Mereoleona shattered each incoming sword and spike with a single punch, one after another.
Despite lacking any flight-type magic, she kicked off the air itself, climbing higher and higher as she charged straight toward Yuuki.
Yuuki's heartbeat spiked at the sight.
"Terrifying…"
His gaze was grave as he immediately raised his altitude with wind magic.
He could clearly see it now—the red glow enveloping Mereoleona's body wasn't fire at all.
It was her mana.
"So this is Mana Skin… It's on a completely different level from Mana Coating."
Yuuki's expression turned solemn. Through his perception of natural mana, he could feel how Mereoleona's mana merged with the ambient mana in a unique way.
He had once believed his own Mana Coating to be merely a crude version of Mana Skin.
But after witnessing Mereoleona's Mana Skin firsthand, he finally understood the true difference.
Mana Coating was simply the act of reinforcing one's body with mana—a form of enhancement magic.
Mana Skin, however, went far beyond that.
It not only possessed all the effects of Mana Coating, but more importantly, at the points where it contacted the air, it could control natural mana itself!
They weren't even the same concept.
Mereoleona didn't need flight magic—she was using natural mana as stepping stones, forcing her way through the sky!
"Fire Magic—Scorching Flames!"
Yuuki swept his hand again. Countless fireballs the size of ping-pong balls formed around him before streaking downward like meteors!
The moment a fireball touched Mereoleona, it rapidly expanded and detonated in a violent explosion.
In an instant, the sky was engulfed in flames. The already-chaotic natural mana of the strong magic region grew even more violent under the influence of their clash.
Yet at this moment—
Neither Yuuki nor Mereoleona paid it any heed. With their level of strength, the dangers of a strong magic region no longer posed any threat to them!
Staring down at the fire-shrouded sky below, Yuuki's expression remained grim from beginning to end. He knew all too well that this relentless barrage still wasn't enough to seriously injure Mereoleona.
"Water Magic—Water Lance!"
"Wind Magic—Crescent Kamaitachi!"
"Mineral Magic—Scimitar!"
"Mineral Magic—Sword of Victory!"
"Wind Magic—Tempest Tower!"
"Ice Magic—Crystal Ice Spikes!"
"Ash Curse Magic—Hee-Hee Bad Ash!"
"Plant Magic—Mandragora's Cradle!"
"..."
All manner of magic was unleashed in an unbroken torrent, raining down toward the ground below.
RUMBLE! RUMBLE!
Deafening detonations echoed across the sky like rolling thunder.
Yet amid the endless explosions, one voice—brimming with overwhelming presence—rang out again and again.
"Next!"
"Next!"
"...!"
Mereoleona's exhilarated voice grew clearer with each passing moment, while Yuuki's expression darkened further and further.
It meant only one thing.
No matter how many spells he unleashed, he wasn't stopping her—
She was getting closer.
(End of Chapter)
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