The battle taking place on that quiet ski slope quickly transformed into a deadly dance between life and death.
With the Divine Dividing wings occasionally flapping to correct position or evade suddenly, Azlan continued to survive. Every breath felt like a cold blade in his lungs. Blood from the cutting wounds on his body froze on his skin, adding to the stiffness.
His strategy was simple: touch the Winter Shogun.
Just once.
That touch was enough to activate Divine Dividing's core ability: Divide—halving the opponent's power, transferring a portion to the user. That was his main trump card. With the Winter Shogun's monumental power, even half of it would give Azlan an extraordinary boost.
However, the Winter Shogun seemed to know that being touched even once would have dire consequences, relying on his extraordinary speed to avoid physical contact.
Every time Azlan tried to approach, the Winter Shogun immediately leaped back dozens of meters, or launched quick attacks that forced Azlan to focus on defense.
The battle became a frustrating tug-of-war where Azlan kept paying with new wounds for every failed attempt.
[You've met a troublesome opponent. Your enemy apparently has terrifying battle intuition. He's very careful not to be touched by you.]
Albion observed calmly. This wasn't the first time he'd seen his host in this kind of situation.
(Then what should I do? Relying on Senjutsu alone isn't enough! Without the Sacred Gear, I have no chance of winning!)
Azlan replied as his body slid sideways avoiding a horizontal slash that could have split him in two.
It should be noted, his Senjutsu training time was only about three months. His progress in developing and manipulating Touki was already considered a miracle (prodigy) by Albion. After all, the natural energy in Tokyo was very thin, hindering Senjutsu training.
[There's only one method left for you to surpass your opponent and achieve victory. But, you must defeat him quickly. If not, death is guaranteed.]
(You mean...?)
Azlan nearly lost concentration due to an ice sword slash that almost hit his neck. He spun roughly, his wings slapping the snow to help him reverse direction.
[That's right. Use Balance Breaker!]
Balance Breaker. The ultimate form of Sacred Gear. With Divine Dividing, Balance Breaker would give Azlan drastically increased speed, strength, and abilities, perhaps enough to defeat the Winter Shogun.
[Remember, with your current physical fitness, your duration to maintain it is 20 seconds.]
20 seconds. That was Azlan's upper limit for using Balance Breaker currently. Before starting systematic training like Senjutsu, 10 seconds was his limit. Clearly, he had slightly increased his usage duration, but that time still felt very short for a life-and-death battle against a monster on the level of a Demon King General.
(There's no other choice. Let's do it.)
Azlan wasn't the type of person to hesitate. Once a decision was made, he would act decisively. So, with a strong kick to the ground that splashed snow, he pushed himself backward, opening a distance of several dozen meters from the Winter Shogun.
"Balance Breaker!"
*ZING!*
From the Divine Dividing wings on his back, a dazzling pure white light suddenly bloomed, enveloping his body completely.
Within that light, Azlan's figure was slowly wrapped in a clean white aura, piece by piece covered by white armor. Dark blue gems embedded in several parts of his body; a metallic dragon tail extended from his back; his figure resembled a spotless clean white dragon; his wings spread wide, flowing with extraordinary dragon power.
[Vanishing Dragon Balance Breaker]
Once the transformation was complete, Azlan didn't waste a single second. He knew, his 20-second countdown had begun.
*WHOOSH!*
A long trail of light shot through the air, flying at incredible speed toward the stunned Winter Shogun, who hadn't fully reacted yet.
*SRET!!*
Flesh (or whatever formed the Winter Shogun's body) being torn was heard loudly.
Azlan appeared behind the Winter Shogun, standing calmly. In his armored gloved left hand, he gripped tightly the Winter Shogun's right arm that had been severed from the elbow.
The Winter Shogun staggered back several steps, his left hand clutching the stump of his broken right arm.
No blood flowed, only ice shards and pale light scattered like diamond dust. His glowing blue eyes blazed with intensity of rage and... surprise. Holding the katana with his remaining hand, the Winter Shogun prepared to launch a deadly attack.
"Since you were touched by me, you've already lost." From behind his armor helmet, Azlan announced victory.
[Divide]
Along with the heavy sound emanating from the blue gem on his chest, Azlan extended his right hand toward the Winter Shogun. A ripple of dragon power, invisible yet feeling very real, radiated from him.
*BUZZ!*
The effect was immediately visible.
At that moment, the Winter Shogun's charging speed decreased sharply, and even his magical power and aura were reduced by half.
But Azlan didn't stop.
[Divide][Divide][Divide]...
That echoing sound was heard again, and again, and again. Each time, new ripples of power spread. With each "Divide" the Winter Shogun's remaining power was cut in half again.
As that sound echoed again and again within a very short span of time, the Winter Shogun's magical power, aura, and speed were repeatedly halved, until drastically weakening below the level of an average monster—only then did Azlan stop Divide.
On the other hand, Azlan felt extraordinary waves of power flooding his body. The energy stolen from the Winter Shogun flowed heavily, strengthening every cell. However, his physical fitness had storage limits. Receiving so much power at once felt like pumping a balloon until it nearly burst.
Normally, this excess power that couldn't be absorbed would be wasted, released into the air through his wings as energy waste. But this is where the advantage of his mutated Balance Breaker came into play.
About 80% of the power he stole didn't go directly into his body, but was channeled and stored in the wings. That giant energy reserve was now accumulated there, ready to be called upon whenever Azlan needed an extra burst of power in the future.
"As expected from Divine Dividing. One of the Longinus-Class Sacred Gears, which has a reputation as the Highest Sacred Gear, Manifestation of God's Destruction, God-Destroying Tool... All those titles aren't mere boasts."
Azlan felt the power surging within him and his wings.
He looked at the previously invincible Winter Shogun, whose power was now reduced to the level of a sickly person after he activated Balance Breaker, complex feelings assailing him.
Admiration for the opponent who nearly defeated him, and horror at the power of his own Sacred Gear that could topple such an opponent in an instant. But Azlan didn't let those feelings influence his actions.
He walked toward the Winter Shogun, his steps heavy on the snow.
"It seems you can't speak. That's unfortunate. I wanted to extract information from you."
Without further mercy, Azlan grabbed the front of the Winter Shogun's armor. With the extraordinary power given by Balance Breaker and Divide, he swung the entity's body and threw it vertically into the sky with all his might.
*SWISH!*
The Winter Shogun shot into the air like a projectile, leaving a trail of swirling air.
As the enemy's body reached a peak height of hundreds of meters above the ground, Azlan raised one hand. In his white metallic glove palm, energy concentrated with a roar.
His own Ki and part of the power stored in his wings merged, rotated, and compressed into a violently vibrating energy sphere, shining with dazzling white-blue light.
"Dragon Shot!"
*SWOOSH!*
The energy sphere launched at eye-tracking speed, leaving a plasma tail. It struck the Winter Shogun who had almost reached the parabola's peak.
*BOOM!!!!!!!*
A massive explosion occurred in the air. That Dragon Shot had power that seemed capable of destroying mountains, blasting the Winter Shogun without a trace, leaving only clouds of vapor and scattered ice crystals.
The resulting shockwave shook the sky, spreading like giant ripples and splitting the surrounding clouds, creating a perfect blue sky circle in the middle of the overcast weather.
The air rumbled with a thunderous sound as if the sky itself was roaring. Below, the ground shook violently, triggering rumbles from the surrounding mountains.
"Oh no! Avalanche!"
Azlan immediately realized the collateral damage. The hillsides around the resort, already laden with fresh snow, began to move. A low rumble sounded as the vast white snow layer began to slide, transforming into a deadly white wave descending toward the valley.
Without thinking twice, Azlan deactivated his Balance Breaker. His white armor dissolved back into light, and his metallic wings shrank back to their normal energy wing form. Extreme exhaustion immediately hit him, the consequence of using Balance Breaker, but he had no time for that.
He shot toward Akane, who stood transfixed witnessing the destruction in the sky and the shaking ground.
"Akane!"
He grabbed the girl tightly, embracing her in his arms.
"Close your eyes and hold your breath!" He commanded briefly, before his Divine Dividing wings flapped maximally.
With the last remaining strength, Azlan carried them both soaring high into the air, away from the rolling avalanche waves below, seeking a safe place atop the highest peak that was still stable.