The torrent of energy, a fierce mixture of Adam's cursed energy and Drake's Imperial Ki, finally faded into a luminous vapor, leaving behind only a faint, shimmering trail of residual power. However, when the luminous haze fully dissipated, the figure of alter Adam remained standing there.

He was visibly smoking, yes, but he was otherwise completely unharmed, with not even a burn or any type of wound that could be seen upon his sutured flesh, a stark display that caused Adam to clench his jaw in utter frustration.

Alter Adam then began to laugh, the sound grating and cold.

"That is the first time I have witnessed two opposed energies combine in such a manner."

He admitted, his voice ringing with cold analysis.

"Even among high-level users, no one is foolish enough to try and make two completely opposing skills complement each other, yet it seems it is entirely possible… That is quite interesting."

Alter Adam continued his chilling laughter. Meanwhile, Abbess and the Cursed Emperor leaped toward him with ferocious speed, intending to renew their assault with everything they possessed. However, the patched boy neither dodged nor blocked the attacks that landed upon him. The scythes of the Cursed Emperor dug into his skin, and the sharp wings and claws of Abbess also struck, but instead of bleeding or screaming in pain, alter Adam simply smiled even wider. He violently tensed his muscles, trapping the sharp limbs of the two powerful summons and preventing them from moving again.

Immediately following this defiance, the Demon-Type advanced, launching another powerful descending punch with its skill [Gigantiphage Annihilation Strike Lv10]. But before the enormous fist could impact, the other users also acted instantly.

Drake again fired a massive barrage of Ki projectiles using his Jade Cannon, Kazue used Dora to give the elemental dragon the same trumpet-like form she had utilized during the fight against Dravhark, channeling an enormous tornado of black, swirling cursed fire. Adam personally took control of the 'Ancient Ethernomicon', the floating humanoid orb submitting instantly to his touch, using the skill [Let's make a death wish Lv10] potentiated by the combined energy of the Empress and Malzaphir.

Alter Adam felt the enormous, acute pain in his chest once more, an attack strong enough to have shattered the heart of any other user or entity. However, this time he did not even show a flicker of change in his expression, and before any of the catastrophic attacks could reach his position, a System window flashed into existence directly in front of him.

[The ■■■ has selected the mutated Personal Skill [The False Emperor of Dragonkin Lv10] for use.]

Alter Adam's eyes instantly changed to a bright amber color, and he opened his mouth, revealing massive, newly formed fangs as he roared the command.

"Emperor Dragon Fear!"

The roar was so incredibly loud and potent that the sound waves were literally visible for a moment, a wave of sonic distortion that halted every attack that had been launched. The passive skill [Emperor Dragon Fear (Aberration)] activated with such force that even Adam had to look away, preventing him from reading the full information of the devastating skill. However, what he could read was the wave of System windows that appeared before him.

[The Aberration-type skill originating from a race's absolute leader has dictated the royal decree: Only non-user entities of Dragon type are permitted on the battlefield!]

[Notice: The summon 'Cursed Emperor of Envy - Rank A+ (S-)' has suffered the effects of the royal decree, and its desummation has been forced.] [Notice: The summon 'Daemonium Gigantiphage - Rank A+ (S-)' has suffered the effects of the royal decree, and its desummation has been forced.] [Notice: The summon 'Ancient Ethernomicon - Rank A+ (S-)' has suffered the effects of the royal decree, and its desummation has been forced.] [Notice: The summon 'Plague Queen: Abbess Xinhui - Rank S- (S)' has suffered the effects of the royal decree, and its desummation has been forced.]

The four primary invocations of Adam let out a simultaneous, choked cry of pain. Their bodies began to disintegrate rapidly, forced to return to their owner's internal world and restricted from emerging again due to the severe limitation imposed by the decree. Adam lifted his gaze again and saw his counterpart still floating before him, smiling and entirely safe.

"I admit you surprised me with the quality of the summons you were managing for someone so weak."

Alter Adam said with clear mockery.

"But you still lack tremendous experience. Not having protection for your summon creatures is a mistake only novices make. I cannot count how many users who rely on summoning I have assassinated in this exact manner."

However, even as he spoke the cruel words, something startling occurred. A shadow appeared behind alter Adam, moving with such speed that even the invader could not react in time, only realizing his peril when it was already too late.

"Huh?"

Alter Adam spoke the single sound of confusion before the two sharp blades of Drake's jade swords pierced him from the back and emerged through his chest. The blades were larger than a person, so the damage appeared enormous and fatal.

The patched boy coughed a little, but instead of crying out in pain, he simply laughed softly, rotating his head to look at the blond who stood behind him, still clutching the swords firmly.

"That was certainly a surprise..."

Alter Adam spoke as if he were discussing something trivial, though he seemed unable to move completely.

"How did you manage that momentary energy boost? Even I did not realize you had moved until you attacked me from behind."

Drake did not answer the technical query. He simply tried to put all his strength into the swords, attempting to sever his target into three pieces… But then he realized with horror that the blades of his swords had become utterly immobile, trapped. Alter Adam had reacted instantly following the surprise attack, tensing his muscles just enough to lock the blades in place.

Alter Adam chuckled again, his focus completely on Drake.

"Moderator Role? Well, this is certainly a new concept for me."

He noted the System information he was somehow seeing with intrigue.

"So the System offers you special permissions and a power boost when your opponent uses Aberration-type skills? Ha! How convenient, is it not?"

Alter Adam's expression changed to a dark, profoundly sadistic sneer, signaling that he was ready to counterattack. Drake's combat instinct screamed the warning, causing him to sweat profusely, feeling like a field mouse confronted by a hungry serpent.

However, the blond's action was swift and unconventional; he released both swords and instantly invoked his Railgun Revolver in his hand, aiming directly at alter Adam's face and firing one of his powerful Ki projectiles… The shot, however, was useless. Even though he could only move his head, alter Adam twisted his neck like an owl and snatched the bullet with his newly formed, sharp dragon teeth while laughing maniacally.

Fortunately, someone else intervened the moment the surprise attack failed. Kazue had used the momentary stalemate, running across the air until she was positioned directly above her target. Between her hands, she held Blacky, the pseudo-miniature black hole, and in the other, Dora, the dragon made of cursed fire. Neither of her creations had been affected by the dragon decree because they were not externally summoned entities; they were part of Kazue herself, sharing fragments of her soul.

The girl rapidly brought the two entities together. Dora's fiery body compressed, beginning to cover the spherical form of Blacky, swirling violently until the black fire began to shine, essentially creating a miniature sun, although only in appearance. Without losing any more time, Kazue launched the combined attack downward like a catastrophic ball toward alter Adam, shouting the improvised name of her attack while smiling fiercely.

"False Sun!"

The miniature sun look-alike descended with extreme speed and impacted directly against alter Adam, who was finally forced toward the ground under the incredible gravity and density of the black fire orb. The impact against the surface of the earth caused a powerful explosion that covered a large portion of the battlefield, a massive disaster that made Adam thankful his initial ghosts had previously evacuated everyone else.

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Nonetheless, the crucial question remained: what could they do now? The odds were overwhelmingly stacked against them, and so far, it seemed alter Adam was only playing with them.

Suddenly, Malzaphir spoke in Adam's mind, his voice a low, encouraging rumble.

"I have a small surprise, vile human… I have seen the amount of energy you seem capable of managing with the aid of the 'little girl', so I have an idea, but it is up to you to determine how to use it."

The Empress immediately protested the designation.

"Who are you calling a little girl!"

Adam quickly tried to calm her.

"We do not have time for this now. Please, we must cooperate."

The Empress instantly quieted, though she remained visibly ill-tempered, so Adam responded to the Archdevil.

"I am listening..."

Meanwhile, below them, after the massive explosion faded, alter Adam's body slowly rose again. He moved his arm with such force that he dispelled the black fire that covered the area. This time, Drake's swords had vanished from his body, and the wounds they had caused had closed completely as if they had never existed.

Blacky and Dora flew back to Kazue, appearing slightly damaged despite not having physical bodies that could sustain harm.

Incredibly, on the surface, alter Adam seemed more amused than anything else. He wiped the blood from his mouth and crossed his arms, contemplative... Despite having completely different circumstances and a profoundly altered mentality from his counterpart, he, too, was an Adam Scholar, so he could not help but feel that spark of curiosity whenever he encountered something he did not fully understand.

He analyzed what had just happened, observing to himself that the aptitudes of the "Alt Hero Boy" and the other Kazue were certainly comparable to high-level users within the System. In fact, he estimated they could even face the majority of his Demon Generals, and that was while they were only being boosted by external factors, meaning they could very likely reach far greater power than they currently displayed.

This realization was not good news. In fact, both were clearly a danger to his future plans. Drake's Moderator Role put him at a direct advantage against the most powerful skills, the Aberration types, and Kazue's ability to create attacks similar to skills without being one, thanks to her Personal Skill and limited manipulation of reality, which meant they were not bound by System rules, making them unpredictable variables.

Alter Adam sighed and allowed his horrible, terrifying smile to spread across his face once more.

"Perhaps it would be worth breaking the narrative even more after all and eliminating both of those pests before they became a real nuisance..."

Alter Adam mused about the risk.

"But no, I have not yet completed the connection to the other world, so there is no need to take additional risks when I am so close to achieving my objective... For now, I will continue to see what else they have to offer."

While alter Adam was lost in his cold deliberation, Adam quickly communicated with Drake and Kazue using the [Friend List] chat, despite their relative distance, relaying the plan he had just thought of after receiving something from Malzaphir. Both of his companions nodded from afar and readied themselves. Drake took a deep breath to concentrate, and Kazue laughed as she floated, visibly excited to act.

Adam immediately empurpled his 'Az'Karul's Versebreaker Spear', which was now overflowing with both cursed energy and devilish energy, while erupting in cursed energy. At the same time, Drake did the same with Imperial Ki, and both launched themselves directly toward alter Adam, this time intending to engage him in close, brutal combat.

Alter Adam was genuinely surprised by the change in strategy but simply smiled wildly and adopted a ready combat stance.

"Come!"

Upon the inevitable clash, the fight instantly devolved into a high-speed, three-way engagement. Adam utilized his cursed lance to attack, leveraging his ability to rapidly move by transforming into swirling mist and utilizing his passive [Superhuman Strength]. Drake employed a powerful mixture of Murim martial arts and his two gigantic jade greatswords, which he could also control at a distance with lethal precision.

Both boys did not wait for turns but attacked in perfect synchronicity, their synergy ensuring they never obstructed each other. Alter Adam defended himself using only pure, close-quarters martial arts, fighting bare-handed and laughing throughout the defense. He intended to demonstrate the overwhelming difference in power between them because even without skills or weapons, the battle remained entirely equalized. Blows were exchanged rapidly, but none of the combatants received any genuine injury; the exchange was purely one of offense, blocking, and rapid evasion.

After a full minute or two of relentless close combat, the earth beneath alter Adam's feet suddenly shifted and moved again. It was Gaia, the ground animated by Kazue, deliberately destabilizing their target. This disruption finally allowed Adam to land a solid, full-force blow directly to his counterpart's face.

"You little—"

Alter Adam began to curse, but before he could finish his phrase, he received a fierce side-kick from Drake, also directed to the face, which sent him flying away from the fight.

Capitalizing on the distance created, Drake signaled Adam, who instantly vanished. The blond then spun his swords in the air at breakneck speed, causing them to move like two enormous, razor-sharp cutting discs. He launched the blades toward alter Adam, who was just beginning to reorient himself. However, the patched boy managed to evade the immediate assault by leaping aside, but the spinning swords immediately changed direction, expertly guided by Drake's control.

Alter Adam, who continued to smile savagely, even in that situation, finally utilized a skill, the [Evil Maw's Roar] again, screaming and firing a ferocious blast of devilish energy toward the spinning blades, impacting them directly and shattering them into numerous fragments. Drake, however, did not appear worried. He moved his hands again, and all the tiny fragments of the jade swords moved like a torrent of projectiles toward alter Adam.

The invader managed to dodge some of the shrapnel, but others managed to graze him, showing they were capable of inflicting superficial cuts.

Faced with the onslaught, alter Adam continued moving rapidly to avoid the fragments raining down upon him. However, evading them all proved impossible without sustaining damage, so he finally chose to activate [The False Emperor of Dragonkin Lv10] again and used its powerful roar to generate a sonic barrier, distorting the air around him and completely stopping the Jade fragments.

"Not bad."

Alter Adam admitted unsamused, only to have a large stone fist erupt from beneath his feet and strike him directly on the jaw, the impact so brutal it launched him several meters into the air.

Kazue had utilized Gaia to throw a punch into the ground, reflecting the force directly beneath the invader's position. Alter Adam had not been truly wounded by the blow, but he had been caught by surprise. However, before he could react while still airborne, he saw Drake's silhouette appear directly above him.

Drake opened his hands, and all the fragments of both swords instantly returned to him, reforming completely to reveal the two full, pristine blades as if nothing had happened to them. Immediately, he spun them again and launched them toward his opponent.

Alter Adam raised an eyebrow but did not remain still, utilizing his [Emperor Dragon Fear (Aberration)] for the second time to halt the approaching swords. However, this time, he watched in shock as one of the swords suddenly became ethereal and passed effortlessly through the sonic barrier.

Instantly, the spinning sword "tore" apart, revealing that it was not the sword itself but Adam, who had adopted the blade's form thanks to the shape-shifting qualities of his new living suit [Elder Umbrathene]. Thanks to this stealth maneuver, Adam had passed through his counterpart's defenses and was now only a few feet away from impaling him with his lance… But even in that catastrophic instant, alter Adam smiled again, as if the move had been completely predictable. He raised an arm, pointing at Adam.

"It has been entertaining, but I have seen the maximum of your abilities."

Alter Adam stated with a cold assessment.

"However, I must begin to finish this."

[The ■■■ has selected the mutated Personal Skill [The Absolute Penitence Lv10] for use.]

Adam's body instantly erupted in sharp, painful spines that emerged across his entire form, piercing his skin from the inside, while simultaneously, black chains bound him completely. The boy coughed up blood and continued his inevitable descent toward the waiting alter Adam… But then Adam smiled, a sudden, swift expression that his counterpart noted with confusion.

In that critical instant, the spines on Adam's body and the chains that bound him instantly vanished. In their place, they manifested violently on the body of alter Adam, who also screamed—this time, a sound of genuine, shocking pain. The effect of Adam's new skill, courtesy of the Archdevil, [Malzaphir's Mockery], had successfully activated, instantly exchanging the crippling physical damage and status problems with his target.

That brief instant of vulnerability was sufficient for Adam to deliver a ferocious cut with his cursed lance. It was not a fatal wound, but every small cut added up. However, something immediately caught Adam's attention: a System window appeared before him after the attack.

[The user Adam Scholar has been affected by the status [Skill Lock].] [Success probability: 0%] [The user has resisted.]

While Adam was distracted by the System message, Drake wasted no time. He launched himself from his position above them with immense force and delivered a ferocious punch imbued with Imperial Ki and divine energy directly to alter Adam's face, sending him downward like a missile. The blond was faster, however, grabbing the end of the black chain that bound the invader, and using all his strength, he stopped the downward momentum and used the chain like a catapult to launch him back into the air.

Alter Adam spat blood again, floating in the air for a moment until the black sphere with eyes and a sharp smile appeared directly in front of him. Upon the orders of its master, Blacky instantly unleashed all its gravitational power, becoming a true, miniature pseudo-black hole.

On the ground, Kazue raised her hands and yelled the command.

"Gaia, Dora, your turn!"

The girl commanded her elements, causing the earth with eyes and a smile, along with the black fire dragon, to combine, being violently pulled toward Blacky. Gaia and Dora merged, forming a molten, magmatic earth that was attracted by Blacky's gravitational force, converging from different angles and creating a huge sphere of volcanic rock that simulated a small planet, with alter Adam trapped in the absolute center.

"Terraformation!"

Kazue exclaimed with a triumphant laugh, the improvised name of her attack, as the magmatic rocks joined around alter Adam to form the gigantic, solid, floating sphere.

Panting heavily, Adam and Drake landed next to the girl, observing the immediate result of the combined attack and silently praying that this time, it was finally enough.

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