Duan Mu's All-Out Effort

Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh...

The sound of air being torn apart became a continuous stream. Seeing Duan Mu surrounded and with no escape, Habutae's expression changed drastically.

Duan Mu couldn't die. If he died, then it would be her and the Nishijinori Boss's turn next.

With this thought, Habutae threw the Boss off her shoulder onto the ground and staggered, about to rush forward. However, as soon as she took a step, a sudden change occurred in the arena!

Looking around, Duan Mu, who was within the encirclement, suddenly turned into a series of afterimages, weaving through the dense blades.

It looked as if he were a leaf in a fierce wind. No matter how strong the wind blew, it couldn't tear him apart. Instead, he danced among the blades, using the wind's force!

How is this possible!?

Seeing the afterimages that brushed past the sharp blades, both Habutae and Jiu Su, who was observing from the outside, had their pupils contract.

This was no longer something that could be achieved by mere speed, but rather...

Familiarity?

Jiu Su didn't know how to describe it. The situation in the arena gave the impression that everyone was cooperating with Duan Mu, putting on a show.

That is, if one ignored the terror on the faces of the 'actors'. Compared to the two observers, Jiu Su and Habutae, the participants themselves felt as if the opponent could predict the future. Before the blades even arrived, the opponent had already taken a preemptive stance to dodge.

If the incoming attacks could be dodged, he dodged them. If they couldn't be dodged, he took them head-on.

His fists were encased in a repulsive force barrier, easily withstanding attacks that couldn't be avoided. If a Soul Reaper were here, they would recognize that repulsive force barrier as 'Kidō: Bakudō #8 - Kyaku'.

Predicting the future was, naturally, something Duan Mu couldn't do.

The reason he could achieve such evasive maneuvers that seemed to predict the future was entirely because, in that instant, he had seen through the trajectory of all the attacks.

Zanjutsu: Intermediate (0/10000)

In fact, during the last battle, Duan Mu had already realized that Zanjutsu was worth cultivating even without a Zanpakuto.

The reason was simple: understand first, then break!

Intermediate Zanjutsu granted Duan Mu the eyesight to perceive the flaws in the attacks of those surrounding him. It was precisely because of this that it gave the impression he could predict the future.

Of course, the main reason was also that these people's attacks were too redundant and monotonous, making it not difficult to choose the optimal space for evasion.

Merely dodging wouldn't end the fight, and he didn't intend to expend too much Spiritual Pressure on these people. After dodging another series of large cleavers, he didn't evade as he had before. Instead, he extended his left hand and grabbed the blade of the cleaver.

Seeing this, the man holding the cleaver's expression changed. He subconsciously tried to pull the blade out, but to his surprise... he pulled it back with ease, encountering no resistance at all.

This discovery first stunned the man holding the blade, and then his expression changed drastically!!

Because...

As the large cleaver was pulled back, Duan Mu's eerie, half-smiling face appeared in his pupils. A long, pale index finger had, at some unknown time, pointed at his chest.

"Hadō #4: Byakurai."

Bang!

Lightning flashed at his fingertip. The man holding the cleaver felt a sharp pain in his chest, and everything before his eyes immediately blurred.

After killing one person, Duan Mu didn't pause at all. He slid his foot back, turning into a black arc, and like a phantom, appeared before the next person.

It was a bald man. He hadn't even recovered from the shock of his companion's death when his vision went black. Duan Mu's phantom-like figure suddenly appeared in front of him, his right hand glowing with a crimson light.

"Hadō #31: Shakkahō!"

The surrounding temperature rapidly soared, causing the bald man, who had been charged at by Duan Mu, to show fear in his eyes.

Fortunately, the people around him immediately reacted and closed in again. Duan Mu changed from dodging to attacking, which gave them, who were initially at a loss, another opportunity to attack.

Sharp blades lunged forward, and the scene from before repeated itself.

However, they also understood that the outcome of the previous encirclement would likely repeat itself.

But as long as they continuously attacked, not giving the opponent a chance to counter, in such a multi-on-one battle, the opponent would sooner or later run out of Spiritual Pressure. With just a momentary opening, they would be cut down by a flurry of blades!

But what happened next exceeded everyone's expectations.

Just as everyone charged at Duan Mu, Duan Mu's right hand suddenly flipped, and he slammed the Shakkahō, which was originally aimed at the bald man, onto the ground beneath his feet.

Boom!

A massive explosion, deafening.

The ground was as fragile as tofu. Endless soil surged into the sky, instantly forming a huge crater tens of meters in diameter in the center of the battlefield.

Those who had been charging at Duan Mu felt the ground suddenly give way beneath them, causing them to stagger.

"Careful, above you!!"

Before the others could steady themselves, Jiu Su's urgent shout suddenly came.

"Bones of the beast that form a starry pattern, spire and wheel of crimson crystal and iron. Move like the wind, stop like the void, the sound of spears clashing fills the ethereal city!" And accompanying Jiu Su's anxious shout was an unknown chant.

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound, and what greeted their eyes was a full moon adorned in the night sky, looking extremely beautiful.

But at this beautiful sight, the group of villains felt a chill run down their spines.

Because that was not a full moon at all, but raging lightning forcibly compressed together.

And at this moment, Duan Mu, in the air, slammed his right hand downwards.

"Kidō #63: Raikōhō!"

ROAR—!!!

Where the lightning passed, the air itself seemed to groan under the strain, like a roar. Dense beams of lightning directly enveloped everyone.

RUMBLE…

The ground vibrated violently at that moment, and the smoke from the explosion shrouded the entire area.

From the hurricane-like roar to the lingering sound as faint as a mosquito's whine, everything finally fell silent.

Beneath the dust…

Not a single person remained, only a massive crater and scorched marks that looked like brands.

A monster!!

Habutae stared, dumbfounded, at Duan Mu in mid-air, her heart completely filled with shock.

He used a fireball-like Kido to destroy the enemies' footing. While they were busy stabilizing themselves, he used the impact from the fireball's explosion to propel himself into the night sky.

It all looked so fluid and seamless. Jiu Su's subordinates didn't even have time to react before they all turned into black charcoal.

Although she had seen Duan Mu fight before, the Duan Mu from last time hadn't used such powerful Kido. Back then, Duan Mu was less fighting and more using her subordinates to familiarize himself with combat!

But now…

This was him truly going all out.

Ghostly speed, incredibly powerful Kido, bizarre evasion methods, coupled with a wide array of close-combat techniques… all of this combined made Habutae feel an involuntary sense of relief, as if she had narrowly escaped death.

Because if Duan Mu had fought her in this state back then, she would never have been able to escape District 79.

Wait… where was Jiu Su!?

Habutae's expression changed.

"Be careful!!"