Their clash was rapid and destructive. Shockwaves spread swiftly, nearby mountains shuddered, and the ground beneath them quaked violently, dust forming a thick cloud around the two of them as the impact echoed outward.

Yet, they were completely unscathed.

Stormis' entire demeanor transformed once he was in the mood of combat, his previous playful presence disappearing entirely.

As his body was wrapped with different elemental affinities, his eyes shone with cold focus as he closed the distance and sent a punch forward, his fist wrapped tightly in an ice gauntlet.

Although his movements were rapid, Marlon was able to see it at a normal pace, and as such, he caught it easily with his right hand without any difficulty.

His arm rattled a little from the force.

The punch was indeed powerful, far more powerful than it appeared.

"Not bad…"

He complimented calmly.

Stormis did not seem the least bit concerned by the compliment. The young menace created an abrupt distance between the two of them and then closed it again in a split second without hesitation.

This time, he released a barrage of punches laced with different elements ranging from ice, flame, earth, and even water.

Each move followed the next in incredibly fast succession, leaving almost no gaps.

Fortunately, Marlon was already used to such fast paced combat. His fight with the Aurax had taught him many things, and one of them was the ability to perceive attacks no matter how fast they came at him.

Also, his reflex was at A-rank, and naturally, his defensive moves were higher than most hunters at his level.

Marlon did not bother to attack.

He remained defensive throughout, deliberately giving Stormis all the advantage.

However, even while Stormis was formidable, he was still very inexperienced and weak compared to him in overall combat sense.

If he planned to bring him down, he could do it in less than five seconds without much effort.

Nevertheless, he was not sure other C-rank hunters would be able to last this long against Stormis in a real battle.

Stormis, on the other hand, did not speak at all. His mouth remained shut throughout the combat, the quietest Marlon had ever seen him since their first encounter.

He interchanged between different elements continuously in his attacks, shifting seamlessly from one to another.

And after ten minutes of failing to land a successful attack on Marlon, he decided to upgrade his combat prowess.

He created a longer distance while keeping a watchful eye on Marlon's direction, completely ignoring the dense cloud of dust that had formed between them.

He muttered to himself coldly, his voice barely audible.

And at that moment, different colors of energy were emitted from his body.

They numbered about eight, each representing different elements, a rare and unusual sight even among elite hunters.

The energy immediately formed a layer of armor over his body and then quickly merged into a bright white armor that covered his entire body, including his head in the form of a helmet.

"Interesting…"

Marlon witnessed this transformation, and his curiosity about Stormis' powers was genuinely piqued.

While he was still watching carefully, Stormis suddenly disappeared from his sight.

"Hm."

It was totally expected. He did not move. Stormis simply vanished, as though he had teleported from his original position.

Marlon's focus heightened as he scanned the surrounding area with sharp attention.

With his danger sense flaring, he sensed an attack coming from his left flank without warning.

His eyes darted at once to the location, and he saw a massive ball of blazing energy zapping toward him at incredible speed.

It closed the distance in an instant, leaving no time to hesitate.

Fortunately, he was able to move out of the way and evade it by a split second.

Nonetheless, he could still feel the heat of the attack very strongly. It was so intense that it burned one side of his clothes badly.

Nevertheless, his skin remained completely unscathed.

Before he could fully regain his composure from the attack, five more attacks flew toward him from different sides at nearly the same time.

They were very fast, noticeably faster than the one he had just narrowly evaded moments earlier.

And they came from critical angles such that simply moving could not save him.

His eyes turned cold instantly.

He activated Blood Infusion, merging it smoothly with Titan Punch.

Then he flung himself toward the closest attack without hesitation.

His punch shattered the massive ice spike into countless crystal shards.

It took him a total of five seconds to counterattack and neutralize the other four attacks as well.

The air around him grew tense and heavy.

The dust cloud grew even denser.

With the singing and chirping of small animals having long ceased after their initial exchange, the entire area was now mostly quiet and unsettling.

Marlon stood still and carefully scanned his surroundings.

But he could not sense the presence of Stormis anywhere nearby.

He could only wonder where the attacks were being launched from.

He did not even dare to guess, because they all came from random locations and in such close succession that it made them seem as though they were activated simultaneously.

'He is strong…'

Very strong.

'But why are his parents hiding his powers?'

While his mind brought up the question, he already knew the answer to it deep down.

And just as he was about to consider the mystery further, there was no time left to think.

Stormis had resumed his attacks, this time with far more ferocity than before.

Dozens of long range attacks of different elements rained down from the sky relentlessly.

Lightning bolts, fire disks, massive rock boulders, water balls, and all sorts of long range spells descended, each massive and radiating a powerful, condensed amount of aether.

Marlon cursed inwardly as he launched himself into motion again.

BOOM!

BOOM!

Each attack landed heavily on the ground, leaving huge dents behind.

The entire region trembled violently under the barrage.

Marlon moved through the attacks, not even bothering to counterattack at all.

As he kept moving and evading one strike after another, he finally spotted Stormis.

Or rather, Stormis finally allowed himself to be spotted.

Clad in bright armor, his eyes glowed with powerful intent and sharp focus.

As the two of their eyes met, Stormis disappeared again without warning.

This time, it was very clear he was teleporting.

In the time it takes to blink an eye, he was already standing directly in front of him.

His fist glowed with different colors, indicating multiple elements in use, as he struck at him with force.

This time, Marlon had had enough.

If he continued playing the big brother role and remaining on the defensive any longer, there was a real chance he would be embarrassed.

He accepted the spar because of the prime grade crystals, not to be humiliated like this.

And since he did not want to hurt him, he decided to use something better instead.

He evaded the strike, created a small amount of distance, and then activated it.

"FEAR!"

A wave of strong pressure emitted outward from him violently.

Stormis' movement halted at that exact moment as he fell heavily to his knees.

His eyes, which were previously cold and focused, revealed a scarred glint as he stared at Marlon directly.

"You're good…"

Marlon heaved a relieved sigh and said with a faint smile afterward.

He was about to continue speaking when he observed something that caused the smile to disappear from his face.

'He is fighting it?'

Marlon was shocked by the realization.

He could hear the sound of teeth grinding clearly.

And he could see visible cracks forming on the ground beneath Stormis as he used all his willpower to fight against the immense pressure pressing down on him.

As he pushed back further, the cracks spread wider and the dents deepened even more.

And then, with a final surge of strength, he broke free from the pressure entirely.

Then he blasted outward.

He closed the distance with Marlon and struck immediately.

Marlon frowned deeply.

He sent his fist forward without using any skill and counterattacked with ease.

Then, without giving Stormis the chance to create distance or regain his balance, he struck with his other hand and caught him firmly.

He tightened his grip instantly.

Instantly, Stormis began to struggle violently against it.

Marlon almost loosened his grip.

'He is a beast.'

Marlon applied more force and kept him in place.

"The spar is over," he said in a serious and firm tone.

"Noo!"

Stormis' voice fractured, layering over itself, sounding like many voices speaking as one.

The unexpected sound made Marlon's expression grow far more serious.

He realized immediately that something was wrong.

Stormis was no longer himself.

He did not even feel or sound like the enthusiastic kid he had been speaking to only a few hours ago.

"I WANT TO FIGHT TILL I WIN!"

His voice rang out again, louder than before, echoing in different layers across the area.

He fought even harder to free himself from Marlon's grip, and Marlon only tightened it further while trying to understand the situation unfolding.

"Alright, I concede. You win…"

Marlon said in a firm tone, but he was met with a resounding no.

His words, though simple, seemed to have triggered something deep within Stormis.

The white armor on his body turned jet black in a split second.

The aura emitted from his body shifted from simply powerful to ominously powerful.

His glowing white eyes burned with a red hue.

At that moment, Marlon felt his grip loosening rapidly.

In the split second he still managed to hold him in place, he used Inspect, and the result shocked him completely.

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