Chapter 292

"Firmament Style — First Form: Origin."

Over the past seven days, Kanzaki Rei had formally unified the names of all his combat styles.

What was once known as Body-Source Tempering had been renamed simply—

Origin.

It symbolized the foundation of everything.

The body itself was the root of all power.

"Firmament Style — Second Form: Fracture."

The second form had originally consisted of three distinct kicking techniques:

"Arcane Fusion Skybreaker Kick / End-of-Law Vertical Cleave / Convergent Arcane Impact"

But at their core, all of these techniques shared the same principle—

They delivered shock-type damage.

Through continuous combat, Kanzaki Rei had restructured the second form.

Though it still primarily involved kicks, it was no longer the same as before.

The third form retained its original name.

Phantom Strike.

There was no need to obsess over single-word naming conventions.

However, beyond its base form, Phantom Strike had evolved into multiple variations:

Phantom Strike · Shattered Dragon of Chaotic Shadows

Phantom Strike · Convergent Dragon Annihilation

Phantom Strike · Dragonfall Rain

Phantom Strike · Swift String

"Shattered Dragon of Chaotic Shadows" was an advanced extension of the base form—greater power, more overlapping afterimages.

"Convergent Dragon Annihilation" condensed multiple strikes into a single devastating blow.

"Dragonfall Rain" transformed the instantaneous barrage into a prolonged, relentless stream of attacks.

"Swift String" pushed speed to its absolute limit—unleashing everything in a single instant.

The fourth form—

Void.

It too had evolved into variations such as:

Instant Void

Afterimage Void Flash

The fifth form, originally Bind, saw less practical use.

In real combat, enemies that could be restrained didn’t require such techniques—

And those who couldn’t be restrained weren’t worth trying to bind in the first place.

Better to just hit them harder.

After seven days of refinement, Kanzaki Rei fundamentally reworked this form.

"Fifth Form: Lock."

Every enemy had a source of power.

Mages relied on mana.

Warriors relied on vitality and blood.

According to the principles of life, everything had an origin.

If that origin could be sealed—

The enemy would be unable to exert strength.

Thus, this form became a technique designed to lock down the opponent’s source of power.

The longer the battle dragged on, the more the enemy would be drained.

Meanwhile—

Kanzaki Rei would only grow stronger.

In prolonged combat, he held the absolute advantage.

The sixth form—

Apex.

It evolved into variations such as:

Apex · Dragon Piercer

Apex · Final Execution

"Dragon Piercer" was a purely physical technique.

All magic was condensed into raw bodily force.

Through recent battles, it had incorporated elements of soul sacrifice and instantaneous potion amplification—

A strike that represented the absolute pinnacle of physical power.

"Final Execution," on the other hand, was a pure finishing move.

It stored multiple powerful spells in advance, unleashing them all in a single moment.

Its destructive power far surpassed the original version, which only stored a single spell.

The seventh form—

Phantasm.

This form governed the core of his entire system.

His manifested bodies had begun to take on unique properties—

Molten Sanctified Flame.

Piercing Fluid Water.

And more.

Beyond that, however, it had yet to undergo further evolution.

The eighth form—

Flow.

It had developed into:

Flow · Instant Dragon Slaughter

Flow · Endless Chain Kicks

Flow · Frozen Instant

"Instant Dragon Slaughter" allowed continuous attacks even at extreme speed.

"Endless Chain Kicks" converted movement entirely into offense, unleashing rapid consecutive strikes in an instant.

"Frozen Instant" accumulated power during stillness, then released it explosively upon movement—achieving speeds far beyond normal Flow usage.

These were the transformations of Kanzaki Rei’s Eight Forms.

Not only had numerous variations been derived—

The core mechanics of each form had also evolved significantly.

Compared to before, they now allowed him to wield his full power with far greater precision and efficiency.

Seven days had passed.

And deep within, Kanzaki Rei felt it—

He would soon be leaving this world.

Though chaos was inherently unpredictable, making divination unreliable—

When an event was imminent, intuition still provided fragments of clarity.

Buzz—

Just as Kanzaki Rei was questioning Eukrin about a crucial detail in a new potion—

The entire world froze once more.

A voice echoed.

"Heroes from different timelines, who have saved worlds from ruin..."

"Some of you succeeded. Some of you failed."

"Regret is an inseparable part of this world."

"Even when one foresees regret and returns to that moment—"

"It is often impossible to change the outcome."

"Such is the unpredictability of fate."

The entity, Aegmissa, spoke in a tone completely different from before.

Melancholic.

Like a poet mourning autumn.

Except what it lamented... was fate itself.

Buzz!

There was no chance for farewell.

The entire space contracted violently—

Compressed—

Bang!

The world shattered.

Passing through fragmented void, Kanzaki Rei returned to the familiar plaza.

Looking around—

He realized that, including himself, only eight people remained.

Kumironi, Yelia, and Rhein were all still there.

Among the others—

There was Luoyan from the Dark Church.

A short-statured summoner.

A half-goat blacksmith.

And—

Surprisingly—

Adralle.

A man who had already lost twice.

You’re still here?

Impressive... considering how weak you are.

As for Kumironi remaining—

That didn’t surprise Kanzaki Rei.

In truth, Kumironi’s combat strength was still a mystery to him.

Even in his future simulations, he had never fought her.

There had simply been too many opponents.

And besides—

Even in simulations, he found himself reluctant to attack her.

To be honest, there was no real need to know.

Even if she were just a pure healer unsuited for battle—

That was fine.

"Mmm~"

"It seems each of you has fulfilled your role."

"Even the smallest actions can stir ripples in the river of history."

"But rest assured—this was merely a simulation."

"Even I cannot casually alter the past or future... especially over trivial matters."

Heh.

Just moments ago, it was "the regret of an entire world."

Now it was "trivial matters"?

Then again—

This world was filled with countless accidents.

And just as many regrets.

"But recently... there is another matter."

"Not quite so trivial."

"Some of you may have already heard whispers of it."

"This is a regret that has yet to occur."

"Would you be interested... in taking part?"

A pause.

A grin.

"Hehe. Just kidding."

"Whether you’re interested or not—"

"You must proceed to the third stage."