Even a plain, unremarkable razor blade seemed to pose no threat to him at all.
A thought flickered through Kanzaki Reiâs mindâEven if she stabbed him, nothing would happen... right?
With the strength of his physical body...
Howeverâ
Final Perception sent back a faint warning.
This strike... would pose a threat to him.
So, it really was still false.
Bang!
Kanzaki Rei threw a punch straight through Aoyama Kiyomi.
She looked down at the bloody hole that had appeared in her chest, then back up at him in disbelief.
At the same time, a subtle disturbance rippled through Kanzaki Reiâs perception.
When he glanced toward a distant street cornerâ
He saw a girl dressed in emerald-green, glaring at him with fury.
It was Kumironi.
This domain... really did love targeting the softest parts of a personâs heart.
Butâ
Did this actually work?
Would a high-level class-advancer really stumble over something this crude?
As long as oneâs will was firm, this kind of "attack" wasnât even as effective as just stabbing him directly.
Kanzaki Rei couldnât quite understand.
It wasnât just himâif it were Ansu, Iz, or Kumironi... they wouldnât waver either.
Even someone like Xu Zhou, whose will wasnât particularly strongâ
It would still be difficult for such illusions to truly affect them.
One sphere of radiant color after another appeared in Kanzaki Reiâs hand.
[Core of the Absolute Whole]
Whoosh!
In an instant, the spheres shot upward into the sky!
Humâ
But in the next moment, he felt a tremor coming from the Core of the Absolute Whole.
It was becoming unstableâbeginning to peel apart!
Tapâ
A faint, familiar footstep sounded behind him.
A gentle current of wind gathered.
Kanzaki Rei casually tossed Aoyama Kiyomiâs corpse aside and turned around.
"I really didnât expect... that in a place like Loren, there would be a mage like you."
"But using large-scale destructive magic so casually inside a city... donât you think thatâs a bit excessive?"
That familiar voice.
A wide, ornate robe.
Eyes filled with unwavering confidence.
"Iz Parult."
Master... itâs been a long time.
So this domainâ
Could manifest what existed within oneâs mind?
No... if it truly had something to do with the Deep Realm, then perhaps it wasnât imagination at all, but ratherâ
It was projecting scenes from the Deep Realm into this domain.
Things from the Deep Realm couldnât be brought into the real world.
That was Ansuâs understanding.
But if it were brought into a domainâsomething that was both real and not real at the same timeâ
Then perhaps... it really could be done.
Then the ones I killed... werenât illusions?
A flicker of hesitation passed through Kanzaki Reiâs mind.
Why did his thoughts feel sluggish?
Why was it harder than usual to arrive at conclusions?
But there was no time to dwell on it.
In an instant, currents of wind surged from all directions!
They twisted like blades, ready to carve across his body!
[Deca-Directional Wind Disassembly (5th Tier) (LV: 100)]
Izâs magic.
At this moment, Iz didnât recognize him yetâand hadnât learned Transcendent Magic.
Kanzaki Rei focused his gaze.
The Beacon of All Laws lit up!
The Iz Parult before him was no faint glimmerâ
He burned like a blazing sun!
How many spells did he know?
Kanzaki Rei couldnât even process them all in a single glance!
[Myriad-Rift Wind Disassembly (6th Tier) (LV: 501)]
Whooshâ
In that very instant, the raging winds surrounding Kanzaki Rei were shredded apart!
Instead, countless violent gales sliced toward Izâs body!
A slight change appeared in Izâs expression.
But it wasnât fearâ
It was a smile.
A smile of excitement.
Boom!
Kanzaki Rei watched as his wind explosion reached Izâ
Yet at the very moment it was about to make contact, the magic disintegrated into its most fundamental elements!
"Interesting magic."
[Storm of Hundred Disassemblies (5th Tier) (LV: 301)]
Bang!
The walls lining the street exploded outward in an instant!
Kanzaki Rei stood alone at the center of the street, blood splashing across his bodyâ
Yet while blood was visible, there were no wounds.
Any injury was fully healed the moment it was created.
"Kumironi, this guy isnât ordinary."
"Help evacuate the civilians first."
A staff appeared in Izâs right hand.
Kumironi glanced at him, then nodded.
With just a single look, he had not only blocked Kanzaki Reiâs magic, but directly replicated it into Transcendent Magic...
This didnât feel like an illusion at all.
This Iz... was Level 5, wasnât he?
Then perhaps... this could truly be considered a battle of equals.
Butâ
Was this even his main objective?
He was supposed to be dealing with that pupil-like entityâthe enemy with the open gateway within its eye.
Yet now, there was no apparent way to break the domain.
All he could do...
Was fight.
"Oh... so thatâs not it."
"Then how about this?"
Iz raised his hand again.
This time, from above and below, from front and backâ
Currents of wind spiraled into needle-like spikes, piercing straight through Kanzaki Reiâs body!
[Piercing Agony Gale (5th Tier) (LV: 501)]
Just the second time casting itâ
And he had already fully mastered it, elevating the Transcendent Magic to Level 501.
At the same time, Kanzaki Rei saw an even brighter radiance erupt from Iz.
Every spell he had learnedâ
Was undergoing fission, evolving one after another.
From ordinary magicâ
Into Transcendent Magic.
Just his comprehension alone rivals one of my God-Tier talents...
"Iz."
"In a place full of people... you canât fight freely, can you?"
Kanzaki Rei spoke in a low voice.
In the next instant, he suddenly threw a punch into the air beside him!
[Skyflow â Third Form: Phantom Strike]
Boom!
A violent shockwave of fist-force erupted instantly!
Countless phantom fists formed, woven from elements and magic!
This strike should have crushed everything in its pathâ
Yet it only slammed into the wall with a deafening echo.
It didnât even break it.
And behind Kanzaki Reiâ
Heavy footsteps sounded.
Turning around, he saw a stone golem.
His perception flickered againâ
And on the rooftop stood a man carrying a greatsword, looking down at him with arrogant disdain.
Of course...
If Iz was here, it meant they all were.
So now... he had become the target of everyoneâs combined assault.
Kanzaki Rei could feel it clearlyâ
If he were killed here, he would truly die.
This future simulation would come to an end.
Bang!
He vanishedâ
And reappeared directly in front of Iz!
But at the same momentâ
A crimson figure appeared as well!
The figure raised a massive greatsword and brought it crashing down toward him!
[Invincible Flow â Sixth Form: Heaven-Cleaving Descent]
Kanzaki Rei formed a battle spear in his left hand!
[Invincible Flow â Sixth Form: Void-Shattering Slash]
One struck downwardâ
The other pierced upward!
Boom!
The collision erupted like thunder!
And in that instant of impact, Kanzaki Rei saw countless hazy, radiant elements flickering and rising around him!
[5th-Tier Void Magic â Chaos Severance (LV: 501)]