Unlimited Power 03: The Sinful Ruler

While the others were thinking about what to do, Jake used Mana Blade, and a massive beam of energy flew toward the enemy, who hid behind the shadow shield to protect himself. The attack pushed him away for hundreds of meters, and Jake couldn't help but frown at the power returning to his body… he imagined that he could become as strong as he was before by using Pride Incarnate, but he didn't think that his powers would return that fast.

"I should focus on sending my mana to the sword… it will be more effective," Jake thought.

Before he could do that, the shadows assumed the shape of fists, and then the enemy began to punch the air and send those powerful blasts of fire in the shape of fists toward Jake. They were much bigger than the ones before, so Jake was unable to block them. He countered them by swinging his sword at the last minute, but the collision caused explosions that made even him flinch while he was approaching.

"Maybe I should bait him… but he must know that I usually do that. Well, I should try at least," Jake thought before opening his mouth. "What is wrong? Can't you do anything better than this?"

The enemy didn't reply. Instead of that, he just flew toward Jake while turning his shadows into a massive spear. When Jake turned to the side, the enemy easily turned and followed him… escaping wasn't possible.

"The shadow comes from his body… it must not be a coincidence, in that case…" Jake thought and then kicked the air and moved toward the enemy as well.

Jake used Full Swing and then attacked the point of the spear. The impact caused a powerful shockwave that sent both of them flying in opposite directions, and the vibrations in the air made everyone below close their ears and even made the ground crack.

At that rate, Jake won't be able to stock much mana in his sword, but it seemed that the trade was going to be worth it since the enemy was trembling and was taking some time to recover… The impact had been effective due to the mana and because Full Swing decreases the endurance of the targets. The effect of the skill increased now that Jake was unsealing his old powers…

The enemy groaned in annoyance. He had expected to face some troublesome enemies, even before the hunters, but not against those guys. There was no other choice, he wanted to keep some secrets to surprise the hunters, but there was no point if he was too wounded in this battle. Besides, as long as he gets the traits of those around, he should be fine in the end…

When Jake approached and attacked next, the attack hit the shield made of shadows and made him be pushed away while he trembled, but then Jake felt his whole body vibrating, and some pain crushed his bones and muscles.

"What…" Jake muttered in pain when he was paralyzed by those effects.

It wasn't an illusion, Jake felt his bones cracking and his muscles being damaged… it was probably one of the traits that the enemy got over the years… he could reflect the damage that he suffered… If he manages to combine that with Julian's power, then he truly would become a fearsome enemy.

Jake gritted his teeth to recover first, but who recovered first was the enemy instead. He flew toward Jake after making more shadow arms appear from his back, and then he began to punch the air. Jake was unable to do anything aside from hiding behind his sword and when the enemy got in range, he began to punch him downward.

Eventually, they landed nearby the others, but the enemy didn't stop his attacks and kept punching Jake. Each of those punches made the whole continent of that world tremble… the damage on Jake's body began to pile up, and his damaged bones began to pierce his skin. While that didn't break his defensive stance, his blood was immediately absorbed by the shadow, and he could feel the power inside that thing increasing…

"He can really do this… is this a trait or another thing that his ability can do?" Jake wondered.

Jake had to do something about it and stop him… it was a bit dangerous, but he didn't have any other choice but to unleash all the mana he had stored in his weapon. However, before he could do that, black lightning fell from the sky and hit the enemy's back.

"Urgh…"

The power and the speed of the attack had been superb. Moreover, Jake didn't find any signs of the dark flames… it seemed that Louise had Mastered the combination between her magic and the dark flames already. That was a bit annoying since he tried so hard to do the same, but it was fine since he wasn't a mage.

Jake kicked the shield made of shadows in front of the enemy and pushed him upward, once that happened, the enemy left the crater and then was bombarded by countless projectiles. Jake didn't know how they pulled that off, but he saw the enemy being pushed away. His aura was no longer reflecting the attacks…

When Jake left the crater, his body began to heal insanely fast, but his body heat also started to increase. That was a bit bothersome, but since it also filled him with power, he didn't mind that much.

"I guess this must be Lana… she got Numbing Lust, so how combining that with her original trait make this happen?" Jake thought.

When it was used offensively, Numbing Lust could do exactly that, making the enemies lose their sense of touch, but Jake didn't know what it could do when it was used alongside support magic. Even the dark flames could make his body stronger and more durable when used as armor, after all…

"Maybe I gave her too much power…" Jake thought.