Then, in perfect unison, both raised their legs and kicked. A wave of wind exploded from their strikes, slamming into the dungeon walls. A massive pile of rock collapsed far away, the sound echoing through the cavernous floor.

The Dragon pulled back his fist. Raito mirrored him. Both launched a punch simultaneously, face to face. The impact would have sent Raito flying.

But he activated Gravity Manipulation, increasing the local gravity around himself. His body anchored as the punch connected, every strike absorbed and healed automatically. Nothing could stop him.

Raito kept exchanging punches. The dragon noticed Raito was using gravity to keep himself in position, slowing down every solid hit that could have sent him flying.

The dragon raised its leg backward and swung its left hand toward Raito. He blocked it and countered with a raised leg, kicking the dragon. Raito started flying mid-air. Gravity wasn't fully working, but it slowed his descent. He twisted, rolled, and landed on the ground, dusting off his jacket.

"Is that all you've got?" Raito said.

The dragon did not answer. Suddenly, it appeared beneath him, punching him in the stomach. Raito was launched at intense speed, slamming his back against the wall as blood poured from his mouth.

Every broken bone and injury instantly healed as the system activated automatic healing. This dragon is a problem. A really big problem.

I need Sparrow Punch. That's my only chance.

Raito thought back to the Hell of Reflection. There, he had only used a fraction of Sparrow Punch's power to shatter a massive building with a single strike. At full strength, he knew Sparrow Punch could fatally injure an S-rank master. It might not kill this dragon, but it would leave him gravely injured.

He started running toward the dragon, hand drawn back. The dragon swung, striking Raito in the face, but he countered immediately. Blue energy glowed around his hand, taking its shape.

He slammed his punch into the dragon's rib. The dragon was sent flying backward, smashing against the wall. A bone cracked audibly, and blood sprayed from its mouth. Shock and disbelief filled its eyes.

What the hell, that punch, its sheer strength.

Raito exhaled sharply. About 5,000 LP drained, 50% of his mana consumed, and 1,000 HP and SP lost from the attack. But he was still conscious, still standing.

The dragon's eyes barely opened as it staggered forward, walking straight toward him.

"Wow, I didn't expect that," it said. "What the hell? He's moving as if nothing happened. That should have been fatal to him."

What do I have to do to actually defeat this thing, Raito thought, tightening his grip, determination blazing in his eyes.

The dragon then looked at Raito as it moved really fast, appearing right in front of him. Instantly, less than a second, even though the distance it moved from was about 150 feet, it closed it in under a second and appeared directly before Raito.

Before Raito could react, it grabbed him by the neck and raised him up.

"Wow, human, I didn't know you were this strong. But I can tell, that was the best you can offer right now. And even if that was not your best and you still have more tricks, I'm sure you still wouldn't be able to use them."

"You broke a ripple of mine, which has already repaired itself automatically. I'm truly amazed. No human has ever reached that level against me. There were humans who were very strong, but I haven't met anyone like that in maybe a thousand or two thousand years."

"I'm really, really happy to have met you. The hunger in me has finally been quenched. You broke a single ripple of mine, which I didn't expect, even in my dragon form. To be honest, that should have broken at least twenty to fifty scales."

"So, you just have to die. I'm going all out in this punch I'm about to give you. Farewell," the dragon said.

Raito then closed his eyes.

Then he opened them back, burning with refusal.

"Not now. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never," Raito said.

The Dragon raised its hand as it pulled it backward.

"It's time you die."

Raito's left eye opened. Something is going to happen. Something must happen. There's no way I'm going to die. There's no way, Raito thought.

Then:

[System Notification]

User has broken one rib of a World Eater Dragon.

User has now gained the ability to react stronger to attacks.

User will not be ripped apart no matter the attack.

User's strength has increased ×20.

User's speed has increased ×7.

User is now capable of reacting to ANY attack, no matter the speed.

Raito smiled.

The Dragon was annoyed. "Why, why did he smile at a moment like this?"

It tightened its grip on Raito's neck with its left hand and raised its right fist to punch Raito's face.

But Raito grabbed the hand holding his neck, right at the wrist, twisted his body mid-air, and used his right leg to kick the World Eater Dragon's neck.

BOOM!

The World Eater Dragon staggered back twice, sliding across the dungeon floor.

Raito landed on the ground, dust rising around him.

"I gotta hand it to you. It was a pleasure fighting with you. I didn't know breaking just one rib of yours could give me this much skill," Raito said.

"What do you mean, human?" the World Eater Dragon demanded.

"Well, all I know," Raito's eyes glowed with violent purple energy, "is that today is the day you perish."

The World Eater Dragon roared and charged toward Raito.

"You human!"

It threw a punch.

Raito dodged easily, his movements sharper, cleaner, almost relaxed.

"I'm now capable of reacting to any attack," Raito said. "Even if someone is faster than me, I can still react. No matter what."

Punch after punch came flying toward him, but Raito slipped around each one with absolute ease.

Raito then jumped back, dusting off a shoulder of his jacket as he exhaled.

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