"Fluid slash," he said calmly, his voice steady despite the irritation, as he struck at Astral from different points in a seamless chain.

His attack was like a fluid, flowing from one form to another in his assault, each strike transitioning smoothly like water adapting to a new path.

He attacked every point possible, probing relentlessly for a blind spot in the constant shield of mana that enveloped Astral.

Every single spot he attacked was blocked by mana dutifully, the barriers appearing precisely where needed, filling Grim with a mounting anger and a creeping sense of dread.

Anger because he was unable to hurt Astral even once, his blades rebounding harmlessly time after time.

Dread because Astral hadn't even made a move, just standing still in one spot like an immovable statue of arcane might.

Astral, after being dormant for several minutes, finally stared at Grim, his azure eyes locking in on the raptor with an intensity that pierced through the void.

Astral raised his hand slowly, pointing directly at Grim with deliberate poise, the gesture simple yet laden with unspoken power.

He used a spell, without even bothering to chant, the mana responding to his will as if it were an extension of his very thoughts.

Grim stared at Astral in confusion, his amber eyes narrowing as he tried to piece together the reason for Astral's action, his guard up and muscles tensed for evasion.

Vines materialized out of nowhere, thick and thorny tendrils bursting from the spatial fabric, binding the arms and feet of Grim tightly in a constricting embrace that squeezed with relentless force.

"Slippery scale," Grim made use of another of his abilities, his voice a growl of defiance.

His scales became slippery, glistening with a slick, oily sheen that provided just enough lubrication to wriggle free from the binding vines, escaping their grasp with a swift twist.

Grim created distance between him and Astral, leaping backward with agile precision, eyeing the mysterious man skeptically from afar.

He still couldn't understand the full extent of the man's abilities, but he was already facing a formidable roadblock that challenged his predatory instincts.

After a few seconds of gathering his thoughts and steeling his resolve, Grim made a move again, his crests flaring slightly with renewed determination.

This time, he was making use of his offensive abilities, channeling mana through his scaled form with focused intent.

"Burning mist!" Grim said coldly, mist escaping from his body in thick, rolling clouds, reducing visibility across the battlefield to near zero.

The mist covered the entire area, enveloping Astral within its hazy shroud, the vapors thick and oppressive like a living fog.

Then, like an inflammable gas igniting, the mist combusted violently, setting the entire area ablaze in roaring flames that licked at the spatial barriers.

The mist though, didn't disappear entirely; it remained persistent, burning with sustained intensity while still reducing visibility to a smothering veil of smoke and fire.

Grim waited for ten seconds for any action from Astral, his talons digging into the ground as he anticipated retaliation, but received no response of any sort from the cloaked figure.

Gripping his sword tightly, confident that his burning mist might have bested Astral, he charged forward for another attack, his scales shimmering in the firelight.

Holding his sword tightly, Grim ran toward the mist, his sinewy tail lashing behind him for balance.

The mist posed no problem to his visibility as he easily saw the heat signature of Astral through his enhanced raptor senses, the glowing outline standing out like a beacon in the inferno.

Grim ran toward the spot of the heat signature, his claws pounding against the solid space with rhythmic thuds.

While running, he heard the calm, ethereal voice of Astral cutting through the chaos like a serene melody amid a storm.

"Blizzard."

Grim stopped on his tracks abruptly, his eyes widening with sudden dread as the word's implication registered.

With a split-second choice fueled by instinct, Grim ran backward away from the mist, escaping the range of the mist a nanosecond before the entire shroud was frozen solid in a crystalline prison.

Grim stared at the phenomenon with horror, his nostrils flaring as he processed the impossible sight.

The very air itself was frozen, creating a vacuum in the region encased under the blizzard's icy grip, the temperature plummeting to absolute zero in an instant.

The crazy part about the frozen area was that a radius of five meters around Astral remained unaffected by the frozen blizzard, a perfect sphere of calm amid the glacial storm.

He remained standing like a celestial being untouched by the happenings of the world, his cloak unruffled and his azure eyes serene.

After a few seconds, the frozen area was engulfed in flames once more, the ice melting rapidly into superheated mist that steamed and hissed with volatile energy.

"This is how you use your ability, burning mist," Astral said calmly, his voice carrying a instructive tone as if teaching a wayward pupil.

His eyes glowed brighter, wind stirring around him to blow the mist outward away from him and toward Grim as he invoked yet another spell with effortless command.

Grim had a grave look on his face, knowing the lethality of the superheated mist all too well, as he was intimately versed in the ability after all—it was his own, now turned against him.

"Urghhh," Grim groaned in pain, the mist passing through him like a scalding wave, searing and burning his skin like it was nothing more than fragile parchment.

The mist disappeared afterward, dissipating into harmless vapors, leaving a burnt Grim with severe degree burns covering his scaled form, smoke rising from his charred flesh.

"You will pay for this," Grim swore vehemently, the wounds on his body beginning to disappear as his self-healing abilities activated, knitting the damaged scales back together with regenerative vigor.

"Aqua veil.

Flow state.

Ripple step.

Aqua edge," Grim made use of four abilities together, his mana reserves taking a noticeable hit from the combined channeling.

But that did little to worry Grim; all he wanted was to knock out the calm, mysterious being in front of him, his pride demanding retribution.

[Aqua Veil] Channel mana through your scales to draw moisture from the surrounding air and ground, forming a translucent liquid shroud that bends light and sound.

The veil conceals your presence and shields your body, bursting outward like splashing water when disrupted.

[Ripple Step] Condense mana beneath your feet to create rippling energy platforms that carry you forward as if gliding across water.

Each movement flows without pause, allowing rapid directional shifts that leave shimmering traces of fluid energy in your wake.

[Flow State] Enter a state of perfect motion, mirroring the rhythm of flowing water.

Every movement follows the path of least resistance, transitioning seamlessly from attack to defense, adapting fluidly to an opponent's rhythm while conserving energy with absolute precision.

[Aqua Edge] Coat the sword edges in high-density mana water, refining sharpness to a molecular level.

The blades can cut through reinforced materials and parry mana-based attacks with fluid redirection.

Making use of Aqua veil first, Grim shimmered into nothingness, his presence disappearing from visible eyes as the liquid shroud enveloped him in optical illusion.

Then he made use of ripple step and flow state to move toward Astral, his form gliding silently like a current in a river, each step rippling the space beneath him.

With aqua edge enhancing his blades, he struck at Astral, his attacks shifting and transitioning from one form to another in a mesmerizing dance of lethality.

Grim never attacked the same spot twice, his pattern unpredictable with his two swords that could cut through materials easily, slicing at several spots on Astral in fluid, ever-changing fashion.

Despite using Aqua edge, the same situation as earlier occurred; he couldn't get a hold of Astral, his blades rebounding harmlessly.

His attacks continued to be blocked by the coagulated form of mana, appearing precisely at every point Grim struck from, an unbreachable defense.

"Why won't you just die??!!!" Grim yelled in frustration, getting enraged by his lack of effectiveness, momentarily forgetting he was camouflaging and being stealthy, his voice echoing through the void.

Boom!

Grim was sent flying by a mana arrow that materialized suddenly, crushing his right shoulder ruthlessly with explosive force, pain lancing through his body.

"Why.

Why can't I hurt you?" Grim asked again, his mental state threatening to crumble under the weight of repeated failures, his scales trembling slightly.

"Because I am loved by mana," Astral replied to Grim for the first time, his words unsettling the mana around them as the ethereal energy drove toward Astral as if agreeing to his words, swirling in affectionate currents.

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