The old man smiled as if he had expected this.
Farid noticed the smile, but it was already too late to act.
A large, glowing blue portal appeared directly in front of Farid. He had no choice but to widen his eyes as he was pulled into it, emerging from another portal directly behind Rin.
Back.
Farid and Rin collided violently, and shock spread equally to Reem and Eugene.
"Ouch—what just happened?" Rin held the back of his head, eyes shut tight as pain throbbed through his skull, and Farid was no better.
"Hahahaha… you are clever kids, but what you lack is experience and patience."
A smile formed on the old man's face. Now he fully understood each of their abilities.
"The black-haired boy with crescent-shaped pupils opens spatial portals from shadows within a limited range."
"The boy with sun-yellow pupils controls grayish-white mist."
"The blond-haired boy controls fire—or something similar."
"And that girl with the headscarf possesses the ability to increase the weight of objects."
Eugene looked at Reem, worry filling his eyes.
"What do we do now? He controls chains, metal, and spatial portals as well."
Reem spoke, tension filling her voice, sweat beading on her forehead and her hands trembling.
"The problem isn't what we do… it's what if he has another ability…"
Farid stood up, still affected by the collision.
"No, impossible. Every cultivator can only use eleven elixirs. He's third rank—there's no way he can use more than three abilities. How did I miss something this basic?"
Rin stood as well, trying to think of a plan.
"The only option is to distract him while one of us escapes to get help."
Eugene looked at Rin, then at the old man standing there, waiting for them to attack. That ignited Eugene's anger—he was mocking them, toying with them like clowns.
He spoke with determination, veins bulging in his arms and his eyes sharp.
"Five chains, spatial portals, metal control, and all of us are injured. That means he doesn't have allies surrounding the area."
Sweat poured down Rin's face, his heart pounding rapidly.
"That means… we're going to die!"
Farid placed his hand on Rin's head, wearing his usual smile.
"Think positively. If we die, we won't feel any pain, so don't be afraid of that part."
Rin's tension eased slightly. In the end, he wasn't alone—and Farid wasn't entirely wrong.
Silence spread through the area. The sun was about to rise. Cold air warmed slightly. Destruction and dust filled the surroundings.
Everyone searched for a solution, while the old man stood calmly, wearing a smug, arrogant smile.
"Ahhh… it seems your tricks are over, and my time is being wasted. If this continues—"
He activated his power again, the chains rising.
"Then stay where you are and receive a quick death."
In an instant, everyone took a defensive stance.
Swoosh. Swoosh. Swoosh.
The chains launched again, and they resumed their desperate attempts to evade—but this time, the chains were faster and longer.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
Two chains attacked Reem. She rolled forward, then bent backward, dodging each strike.
One chain nearly hit her head, but she ducked just in time.
However, it tore her headscarf and shattered the golden hair clip Melissa had given her.
Her short orange hair spilled free, part of it severed.
One chain chased Rin relentlessly. His leg was injured from his earlier fall, but he kept using portals, entering and exiting them to avoid the chain.
Farid fired fireballs while leaping through the air. The first fireball struck a chain but did nothing. The second caused slight redness. The third left a burn that lasted a few seconds.
The old man noticed this, and the first thing that came to his mind was a first-type duplication imprint.
"I forgot… he's a second-rank cultivator after all."
But he quickly turned his head when he heard a strange sound.
BOOOF!
A mist-covered sphere slammed into his face like a golden opportunity.
At that moment, Reem grabbed a torn piece of her fallen scarf from the ground and stopped running, planting her foot firmly.
A yellow glow flowed into the fabric through her hand.
At the same time, Rin noticed the distance between her and the old man while he dodged chains mid-jump.
He planted his feet against a metal pillar and activated his shadow ability.
Two portals opened—one near Reem, the other near Eugene.
Farid launched a fireball twice as large, moving at tremendous speed toward the old man, forcing one chain to intercept it.
That was exactly what Farid wanted.
The fireball exploded, splitting into five smaller ones.
This forced the remaining chains to shift toward them, leaving the old man confused and his defense exposed.
Reem's fabric, its weight massively increased, shot through the portal and emerged directly in front of the old man's face, smashing into him and breaking his nose.
The old man opened his right eye partially, blood and mist swirling around his vision.
Then he saw it—a figure with golden glowing eyes, only seconds away.
He opened his eye fully to see Eugene standing right before him, ready to unleash—not a punch—but a storm of rapid blows.
They rained down like pounding drums.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Blood sprayed from the old man.
At the final moment, he grabbed Eugene's right hand.
A chain shot forward to strike Eugene, who couldn't move due to the grip—it would reach him in seconds.
Eugene waved his free hand with his eyes shut, instinctively summoning mist around himself.
He didn't understand why he did it—mist was gaseous, without solidity. It couldn't block chains. But panic had triggered a reflex.
A violent metallic screech rang out as the chain's straight path was abruptly cut.
Eugene opened his eyes, astonishment filling his heart.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the chain sharply change direction, rushing toward Farid, who had already formed another fireball.
Eugene almost smiled—the chain hadn't killed him.
But the old man intended to kill Eugene this time and wouldn't miss the chance.
He raised his left hand, lifting a group of metal pillars and hurling them toward Eugene at full speed.
Once again, Rin opened a portal—but it was unstable.
Part of Eugene's body passed through while the rest lagged behind.
His lower body fully transferred, but his upper body was still crossing as a metal pillar slammed into his chest.
A violent shiver ran through him, electricity surging through his body.
Eugene's eyes widened. A splitting headache hit him. His breathing grew heavy as he clutched the impact point. That area went numb, blood spilling from his mouth.
He collapsed beside Rin—but he never screamed.
"If I scream now… how will I continue living in this world?"
Pride, resilience, and stubborn strength—that was Eugene's true nature.
"Eugene, are you okay?" Rin felt fear grip his heart. Reem and Farid felt the same.
But they held themselves together. One mistake meant death.
Reem's heart pounded wildly. Her hands shook uncontrollably. She wasn't a warrior or a battle-hardened fighter—she was just a child, not even sixteen yet.
Farid, on the other hand, remained calm both outwardly and inwardly. He had dealt with criminals before during training and field missions.
He rushed forward, dodging the chains.
Leaping and moving lightly, avoiding every attack.
Shhhk!
Farid was cut while dodging the chains.
He managed to reach Rin, Eugene, and Reem as the chains remained distracted by him.
They stood close together, dust from the shattered pillars filling the air.
"Well… looks like we're really going to die," Eugene said sarcastically, blood dripping from his mouth.
"Even injured, you're still joking," Reem said, fear, sadness, and anger mixed in her eyes.
Farid looked at Rin.
"Can you open another portal?"
Rin nodded, looking around the battlefield.
"Yes, but after that, my energy will be completely depleted."
"And then we'll die. Haha," Eugene added weakly.
"Ow!"
Reem kicked his stomach—not very hard.
"Hey! Why?"
Veins appeared on her forehead.
"Learn to shut your mouth, okay?"
Farid looked at them both.
"Can you two use your abilities one more time?"
Reem nodded.
"I haven't used mine much. I can go on for a while."
Eugene exhaled.
"Yeah, I think I can. What's the plan?"
"Listen carefully…"
Farid whispered to them under the old man's gaze. Despite everything, the man remained arrogant, convinced their energy was spent and their deaths were minutes away.
Eugene stood up again.
The old man was momentarily stunned but straightened, waiting to see what they would do next.
Rin and Eugene took deep breaths.
Rin rushed forward, Farid right behind him.
Opening another portal required Rin to get closer.
The old man raised the chains, ready to strike.
Farid stopped suddenly, forming a massive fireball with extreme heat.
The old man's eyes widened as he opened a blue portal, assuming the attack was aimed at him—or merely a distraction.
Rin stopped as well and opened more than seven small portals, two meters away from the old man's portal.
The spatial fields overlapped, connecting into a wormhole.
"So that's it… spatial portals exist in a separate dimensional space. When two portals of the same level approach, they connect. That blond boy must've told them."
He gritted his teeth and launched the chains.
Farid fired the fireball, drawing all the chains toward it.
The fireball split into more than seven smaller ones, slipping past the chains and entering the portals.
The old man raised an eyebrow, amused and mocking.
"Fire is derived from light—and darkness is light's opposite."
BOOOOM!
Eugene burst forward beside Rin despite his injuries, positioning himself behind Farid, ready to strike.
The old man's shock deepened.
"…Are they really doing what I think they are?"
Eugene released all his remaining mist power, surrounding Farid's fireballs—specifically four of the seven.
The mist wrapped around them, forming a dense veil.
Due to the instability of Rin's portals and the mist's cover, the fireballs passed through without vanishing.
Because the portals were connected, the fireballs emerged directly in front of the old man.
BOOOOOOM!
The explosions detonated before his face. The mist blinded him for seconds. The blast sent him flying backward, burning part of his clothing.
"Damn you, you bastards!"
Before he could regain balance and attack again—
He glanced at them.
Then heard rapid movement behind him.
Wait… there were four of them. Where was the girl?
He turned his head sharply.
Reem stood behind him, gripping a rope—the same one used for shop signs.
He remembered her ability to increase weight, and that such users could scale weight based on remaining energy—and she hadn't used much during the fight.
She didn't waste the chance.
She poured all her remaining energy into the rope, increasing its weight to seventy kilograms.
The moment it struck his steel-hardened body—
A thunderous crack echoed.
Sickening fractures followed.
The sound of his spine breaking rang through his ears.
"AAAAAAAH!"
The old man collapsed. Eugene fell as well due to his injuries.
Smiles appeared on their faces.
"YEEES!" Rin jumped happily—then twisted his ankle again as soon as he landed.
"AAAH!"
"You idiot. Forgot you're injured?" Farid said, eyes still on the old man.
Suddenly, an overwhelming pressure descended from above.
They forgot all their pain.
Farid looked up—the aura was familiar.
A flying man hovered above them, a scarf whipping violently to the right. His hands rested on his hips, his body broad.
Sunlight reflected off him as it rose higher.
His features became clear.
Farid spoke, shocked and joyful.
"It's… Iron."
End of Chapter