Chapter 183: Chapter 182:<Zero Distance Strike(MYTHIC)>..

"Alright Dante, breathe, don’t let the creepy vanishing spear get to you." I had to psyche myself up, because I’d just gotten "killed" while time was frozen..

That didn’t even sound like a statement that should be made, but it had happened, and now I was seriously wondering just what the hell I’d gotten myself into..

"Dante.." Malachi’s solemn voice sounded from behind me..

"Can you sense anything?"

"Nothing. It’s like the thing doesn’t even exist anywhere near us.." hearing the monkey’s words, I decided to try a larger sweep this time..

I closed my eyes, but before I could even begin.

"WATCH OUT!!!"... Malachi’s shout reached my ears, but it was already too late...

"Damn it!!!" The sharp drop in my energy reserves told me clearly what I’d already known, that thing had killed me again..

"Fuck!!" I retreated..

Me! Retreating!!!!...

"FUCK!!!" I cussed as I created multiple clones around me..

Over fifty true clones appearing beside me, they had everything, my aura, my strength, my everything, hence why they were true clones..

"Alright, you sneaky little bitch, let’s see what you do when there’re too many."

ZING!!!!

Poof... poof.. poof...

A white line appeared on my neck as the world stood still once more, my eyes shifting to catch Malachi’s frozen face as well, the same white line had appeared on his neck...

Both our heads came sliding off our necks as my clones instantly got vaporized...

A halo of gold flashed behind Malachi as chaotic denial worked its wonders once again...

"I can’t... I can’t handle another one of those strikes... I’m running low on energy.." Malachi panted, sweat dampening his fur, whether from fear or exhaustion, I didn’t know..

A cold draft blew up my spine...

I raised my hand, placing a palm on my forehead, wet!

I... was sweating..

For the first time in ages, an opponent had pushed me to the point of breaking out in a cold sweat.

Not an opponent that was stronger, I didn’t even know if I could call what was happening a speed feat.

It was an opponent wielding one of the greatest fears known to man.

The fear of the unknown..

[Chaotic Adaptation activating..]

"Yes... there’s that.." I was hopeful, chaotic adaptation worked on adapting to whatever I survived, I’d already taken quite a few hits, it should be anytime now...

Zing!!!

My body moved on instinct as it dodged the strike I never saw coming, Chaotic Adaptation having worked its magic.

Yet before a victorious smile could appear on my face, the world tilted once more..

It was already the third time this was happening, getting my head severed.

I’d died more times to this thing than to any other opponent I’d ever faced...

I was getting understandably frustrated...

"Damn.. it.. think Dante. Think!!" I was stuck.

My insane stats weren’t helping.

I couldn’t run.

My resilient body seemed like butter whenever the attacks landed..

My atmospheric perception was useless since the attack wasn’t even coming from anywhere, it just was, as if the world had already approved of it. Inevitable, that’s how the attacks felt..

And worse yet, Stopping time wasn’t any good either..

I was stuck..

Frustration curling up my gut as I tried to think of a way out before Malachi gets to lose his head, only this time, permanently!

"Breathe Dante... don’t embarrass yourself, a little incomprehensible situation and you’re unraveling? Breathe... think!" I calmed my agitation as I began going through my abilities rapidly, my mind stopping on something I’d used not long ago..

"Of course... how stupid could I be. This is why it’s good to always stay calm.." I finally found a way out, all that remained was for the bastard to act.

And like always, it didn’t disappoint, the spear appeared once more, this time going for Malachi..

Puchi!

The monkey froze as the spear pierced through his heart, his eyes trembling as their light began to fade.

I wasted not one second more...

<Timeless Series...>

For a brief instant... the world.. stopped...

.....

One second ago...

The moment the spear appeared, I was already before it, Elira swinging down in a cleaving arc, as her blade struck the bone spear with all the strength to collapse a mountain...

CRAAACKKKK!!!!!!

The thing splintered and shattered into countless pieces...

SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!

An unholy screech ringing out from the void the spear had traveled through, my head instantly snapped eastward as a bloody, toothy grin split my face..

"Found you."

The plan had been a simple one.

Since stopping time doesn’t work, then what about moving back to the past before the attack happened?

I’d foolishly disregarded my timeless series when Chronostasis had failed earlier, forgetting that though both applied the use of time, their utility were vastly different, with Timeless Series being more unique..

So once I realized my folly, the battle had been decided..

...

Back to the present..

The moment I gave the command, the world blinked as reality rewrote itself, Malachi having never been pierced while.

SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!

An unholy screeching noise reached us from the eastern side...

"Monkey..."

"Already on it.."

I spread my perception out as my mind merged into the atmosphere..

I’d bought myself some precious time since the creature seemed to be too much in pain to strike once more..

My perception reaching out to cover over ten kilometers of land, before finally, I saw it..

"What the...." I couldn’t speak..

I immediately used Instant Transmission, as I my body blinked out from where I’d been standing, reappearing before the... thing.. that was currently screeching in agony....

I looked at the creature, whatever it was, and my face twisted in disgust..

It was a creature so skinny it’s bones and skin seemed to have been merged into becoming one, it had only on arm that was currently bleeding a murky dark blood that sizzled like boiling oil whenever it hit the ground, a sulfuric smell filling up the already corrupted air...

It’s legs looked wrong, in the sense that they had literally been fused with the red earth beneath my feet. The thing couldn’t move even if it wanted too...

As for its face, If you could even call it that, it was nothing but a featureless canvas of writhing black flesh, it squirmed constantly like there were an innumerable number of worms squirming beneath the flesh..

Overall, it was an exceedingly uncomfortable thing to look at.

But this uncomfortable, faceless thing, was exactly what had killed me more than five times, and it did it from a distance of over ten kilometers...

Not with overwhelming force, because from what I could feel from the creature before me, it was even weaker in terms of presence, than the abominations I’d faced earlier.

I was now curious.

[Faceless Spawn]. That’s all the system called it, not an abomination, but.. something else..

I breathed out calmly, collecting myself.

I’d finally found the source of the unknown, the fear was finally gone, but the lesson remained.

"Even something weaker can still kill you with the right tools." It was a lesson on never being arrogant and underestimating your opponents.

SCREEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!

The thing screeched just as Malachi arrived.

I wasn’t making the mistake of not learning my lesson...

<Timeless Series.>

Zing!

The creature’s body was cleaved cleanly into two separate parts as its body began disappearing into the earth..

"Oh no you don’t!" No way was I letting something that had succeeded where many have failed, by killing me, get away from me, not with whatever It had used to accomplish such a feat..

"DEVOUR!"

I immediately used old faithful as the black miasma surrounded the disappearing [Faceless Spawn]..

....

....

<<DEVOURING SUCCESSFUL>>

...

...

<<You have acquired the skill: <Zero Distance Strike(MYTHIC)>

...

...

I just... stared...

I blinked furiously, hoping my eyes were truly deceiving me, because there was no way I’d just picked up a mythical skill from such a place.

Yet after several tests, which involved pinching myself hard, the truth remained, I had gained a mythical skill..

....

Back to the present..

I shook my head softly as I recalled the bizarre encounter..

Being injured and killed multiple times by something that wasn’t stronger than you, wasn’t faster than you, couldn’t have possibly survived a single hit, yet could still have murked me if not for Chaotic Denial being the unfair ability that it was, was a truly humbling experience..

But it was all worth as I looked over the description of my newest mythical skill..

.....

<Zero Distance Strike(MYTHIC)>:.....

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A/N: sigh, so bro still won in the end, fuck!

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Thanks for reading...