Disguise, Clone, and Destruction

The scene before him, glowing with magical power, let Shiki know that beneath these Mystic Eyes, he could prepare for many of the enemy's methods in advance.

Besides, the Matou Zouken before him was merely an insect clone. His true body was nowhere to be found.

"Then where exactly is his true body hiding?"

That old monster had lived for centuries. He had to be extremely cautious in his dealings.

Using the power of his Mystic Eyes earlier, Shiki could only sense that the other party was somewhere around the Insect Nest. As for the precise location, it was impossible to pin down.

Looking around, Shiki could not help complaining inwardly, These passages are way too dense.

Before him were not only broad roads wide enough for tigers, leopards, cattle, and horses to pass through, but also countless narrow passageways packed together like an ant nest.

Innumerable insects scurried through them, severely interfering with his senses.

"These damned things... I really want to blow this whole place apart in one go, but I can't do that right now."

Against a Magus like Zōken, large-scale Fire Style Jutsu would be highly effective. Earth Style, Lightning Style, and even Water Style could all come in handy.

But Shiki understood that although his awakened Mystic Eyes possessed the basic abilities of the Reincarnation Eye, his own strength limited them. The power he could wield was far from enough to destroy the entire Insect Nest.

As for jutsu, this was another world. He simply could not use them.

"I need to hurry. Kariya probably can't hold on much longer up there."

The situation was urgent. He had originally had a plan for dealing with the old monster, but during its execution, he had no choice but to switch from Plan A to a branch of Plan B.

The gas mask he had prepared earlier could not possibly block every toxin. It was not that miraculous.

In truth, the gas mask had been meant to set up the next stage of his plan. It was just the right time to use it.

"Then I'll take him head-on!"

Shiki's gaze sharpened, and he shot toward the old monster like an arrow loosed from a bow.

Matou Zouken remained calm. The instant Shiki moved, he steadily retreated while directing a huge swarm of insects forward to harass him.

Flying insects were ultimately faster than a running man. Before Shiki could reach him, the dense insect swarm had blocked his path.

"Tch, looks like I have to deal with these eyesores first. Then once more—get out of my way!!"

The power of his Mystic Eyes erupted again, and the repulsive field of Almighty Push instantly covered an area more than ten meters around him.

Under that overwhelming force, every flying insect was blasted away. Those fragile bugs could not withstand power capable of shattering steel and crushing boulders. In the blink of an eye, tens of thousands of flying insects had been reduced to dust.

Yet more insects poured in from behind, seemingly without end.

Seeing this, Shiki spat in disgust and hurriedly backed up several steps, dodging the incoming insects. He had no desire to be attacked by them. Who knew what deadly toxins they carried, perhaps even viruses specifically meant for Magi?

Watching from afar, Zōken's heart stirred, and he silently directed even more flying insects to charge forward without regard for their lives.

At this point, he could no longer care about insect casualties. As long as they could seriously injure the enemy, it would be worth it even if every insect died.

"Tch, is that all you know how to do? Useless."

Shiki cursed furiously on the surface, but inwardly he remained exceptionally calm. Everything was proceeding according to plan.

"The opening has already appeared, old monster. Don't you dare give up this chance. Take the bait."

Since it was difficult to approach the enemy, he would make the enemy approach him instead. That was the core of Plan B.

It carried some risk, but as long as he seized the chance to determine the old monster's true body's location, this battle could end in an instant—thanks to the powerful abilities of his Mystic Eyes.

Boom!!!

Another Almighty Push sent masses of insect corpses flying. In the bloody center of the Insect Nest, Shiki suddenly staggered and dropped to one knee, a flash of shock appearing in his eyes.

"How!? The gas mask didn't work!?"

Seeing this, Zōken secretly rejoiced.

The magical toxin that required skin contact to take effect had finally worked. Even so, he did not rashly step forward. He continued directing the remaining insects to gather before him and rush at Shiki.

"This boy is only weakened. He hasn't been completely exhausted yet. The remaining insects can still drain a little more of his strength."

That repulsive attack was far too powerful. His body made of insects did not dare approach it. One careless mistake and he would be put at a disadvantage. If anything went wrong, he might lose his life as well.

Meanwhile, Shiki, who was pretending to kneel, also noticed something strange.

Why was this old monster so cautious? He did not even dare step forward when faced with a fallen boy.

There were only two reasons not to dare step forward and fight: either he was cowardly and lacked the courage to battle, or stepping forward would endanger his life.

But in Shiki's eyes, this old monster was clearly no coward. Then...

"Fighting would endanger his life!"

Shiki suddenly understood. This insect clone before him was likely not merely a simple clone. The enemy's true body was very likely hidden within it.

"Damn it, I outsmarted myself!"

Only then did Shiki remember that this was not the Ninja World. Clones in the two worlds were completely different. In the Ninja World, there were countless kinds of clones: Wind, Fire, Water, Earth, and Lightning Style clones, along with all sorts of other bizarre clone jutsu. That had given Shiki a habitual way of thinking, making him believe that whenever someone used clones, their true body had to be nearby.

But in reality, this was another world. The Principles and manifestations of clones were fundamentally different from those of the Ninja World. It was not like the Ninja World, where one could easily create clones with chakra.

"Sigh, there's no helping it now. I can only keep acting."

The poison really was formidable, but it was not as deadly as he had imagined. Shiki could not completely avoid those poisonous substances infused with magical power, but the toxic magical energy within them was resisted by his Mystic Eyes.

After all, he possessed the Rainbow Magic Eye, whose Mystery was incredibly high, and his Magic Resistance far surpassed that of ordinary people.

More and more insects closed in around him. A trace of panic appeared in Shiki's eyes, and he kicked himself backward like a frightened child, shouting, "Don't come any closer!!"

At the same time, he released Almighty Push again. Its power was weaker than before, but it still annihilated the last wave of insects.

He panted heavily, cold sweat constantly pouring from his forehead. No matter how one looked at him, he seemed utterly drained, too weak to move at all.

Zōken still held his position and continued testing him. The power released by the Mystic Eyes earlier lingered in his mind. That red-and-green interwoven radiance and those patterns were astonishing—and irresistibly tempting.

Only after a minute passed, when he saw a trace of black appear on the boy's face, did he finally relax completely. It seemed the poison had fully controlled him, leaving him unable to act.

He had actually defeated an enemy with the Rainbow Magic Eye. Zōken was immensely pleased.

Dragging himself along, he slowly moved to Shiki's side and sneered, "Young man, being too reckless can cost you your life, just like this. You rashly barged into the lair of a scheming Magus. Your luck really is terrible."

As he spoke, he viciously jabbed Shiki's leg with his cane. The intense pain made the boy's body twitch, and he curled up.

That sight made Zōken's heart jump, and he instinctively wanted to leave at once.

However, a cold voice sounded beside his ear, as though it had come from hell, instantly binding his body.

"My, where exactly did I reveal a flaw? I'm very curious."

Splat!

Before Zōken could make any response, a hand pierced through his body and tore out the most important heart within the insect clone.

"Wait! I... still—"

Shiki clenched his hand hard. The heart instantly shattered, and the ugly insect inside it also fell silent with a shriek.

An old monster who had lived for centuries died just like that.

To ensure he had destroyed him completely, Shiki also used the ability of Mystic Eyes: Hell Path to shatter his soul, leaving no future trouble behind.

Without a soul, even if he had other contingencies, he would be nothing more than a mindless vegetable.

"Wait for what? If I wait any longer, Kariya probably won't be able to hold on."

Shiki stood up from behind the corpse, flung it aside, and looked at his filthy hand with utter disgust.

There was no helping it. Without a suitable weapon, he could only settle it with his bare hands.

This battle had looked simple, but both sides had actually gone all out. It had not been a mere contest of force, but more a battle of wits.

Deception and counter-deception, schemes and being schemed against, battle attrition, home-field advantage, and traps—Zōken had used every possible method for one purpose: to exhaust Shiki's strength.

But he had never expected that the traps meant to be the main source of attrition would become completely ineffective because of Shiki's special abilities. Even the sea of insects he depended on for survival had failed to pose a decisive threat to Shiki.

In the end, he had fallen for Shiki's scheme and died in an exceptionally humiliating manner, without even having time to leave behind any last words.

Shiki had also gone all out. He had used every kind of ability his Mystic Eyes possessed—Heaven Path, Hell Path, mental illusions, and every other power that could be used in battle.

It was precisely because he possessed a means of dealing with souls that Shiki had been certain that as long as he could approach Zōken's true body, the mismatch between Zōken's soul and the host body he had hidden in after abandoning his original body would allow him to instantly shatter that fallen, decayed soul and kill him in a single strike.

"If you still had your original body, I might have had to put in some effort."

No matter the world, the flesh was the soul's most important barrier of protection. It was not something one could casually discard.

"I need to get to Kariya's side quickly."

After dealing with Zōken, Shiki remembered Kariya, who was still desperately holding on above the old mansion. Without bothering to clean the filth from his body, he sprinted toward the surface, hoping he could still make it in time to lend Kariya a hand...