The top of the ice sculpture of the Bodhisattva's head.
After Doma saw Teiichi jump down, the smile on his face vanished as quickly as the morning mist.
The arm controlling the ice sculpture of the Bodhisattva retracted, and then the figure slowly rose from above.
He turned slightly, his gaze piercing through the thin mist, staring at the pale dawn breaking on the horizon, his brows furrowing slightly.
"Is this how today is going to end..."
His gaze swept aimlessly across the battlefield below, and as he watched a figure staggering as it ran, a meaningful smile once again appeared on Doma's lips.
"Let's try again!"
Rumble! Rumble!
A deafening roar echoed across the battlefield once more, and the ice sculpture of the Bodhisattva began to move again.
Seeing the ice sculpture Bodhisattva heading towards Kanae's direction in the distance once again, Teiichi's figure also moved instantly.
"Suck--"
He quickly adjusted his breathing, Breathing Style surged again, instantly spreading power throughout his body.
He then crouched slightly, his legs like springs ready to spring, and with a sudden burst of speed, he transformed into a bolt of lightning, heading straight for the ice sculpture of the Bodhisattva.
Noticing the commotion behind him, Doma couldn't help but smile.
With a gentle unfolding of his folding fan, the ice sculpture of the Bodhisattva once again raised his right arm high.
Then, he suddenly swung it backward.
"Whoosh!"
A loud whooshing sound rang out.
Teiichi's pupils constricted slightly as he watched the enormous hand blade slide down toward him.
Good grief, they're taking advantage of being made of ice and completely disregarding human biomechanics!
Who can swing their arm 180 degrees backward?
Despite the complaints, Teiichi quickly realized what was going on.
The moment his right foot landed, he exerted a slight force and quickly moved to the left front.
"Bang!"
The hand strike landed on the ground, hitting nothing.
Before his right hand could be fully retracted, a tremendous whooshing sound rang out once again.
This time it's my left hand.
"Bang!"
The hand strike landed, but it still missed.
Just as Teiichi to continue forward, a shadow appeared in the corner of his eye.
Teiichi quickly looked to the right.
A giant hand blade came crashing down on him.
Unlike the previous times.
This time.
It's no longer a straight up-and-down motion.
With palm facing up, he slashed diagonally towards Teiichi.
How is that possible?
Didn't it just finish an attack with its right hand?
A great deal of doubt filled Teiichi's mind.
There was no time for further thought; the hand strike was already only Teiichi.
Oh no! There's no time to dodge!
Their forward momentum abruptly stopped.
Eighth Form: Primary Gale Slash!
The Eighth Form was hastily activated, and the Nichirin Blade charged forward.
Clang!
A tremendous metallic clang echoed throughout the stadium.
The icy arm froze on the battlefield for a moment before continuing its swing along the same path.
An overwhelming force traveled along the Nichirin Blade towards Teiichi's body, Teiichi flying uncontrollably.
A mouthful of blood welled up in his throat, and his body instinctively wanted to spit it out.
No, that won't do!
If I spit out this blood, I won't be able to catch my breath!
If you can't catch your breath, the Breathing Style can't work!
If I fly out at this speed, I'm doomed without the protection of my Breathing Style!
With Teiichi forced himself to swallow the blood from his throat.
Concentrate on using Breathing Style to protect your body, paying particular attention to your back.
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
The flying figure crashed into three trees before finally landing, and then traversed a considerable distance on the ground.
"Well!"
Looking at the figure slowly rising from the ground in the distance, Doma couldn't help but sigh.
"They're still alive?!"
"So, the power of swinging the arm controlled by the Water Lily Bodhisattva halfway down is indeed less than a straight swing from above the head..."
Looking towards the distant figure of Kanae Kocho, Doma muttered to himself.
"Should we take this pillar with us?"
His gaze swept back to the figure rushing towards him again, and recalling his previous overhead battle, Doma couldn't help but shudder.
"Forget it, we used this pillar as bait. This guy is definitely watching over there. It's almost dawn now. If we get entangled with him, we're doomed..."
The voice grew fainter and fainter above the Water Lily Bodhisattva's head until it was completely inaudible...
far away.
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
Teiichi was thrown dozens of meters away.
"Pfft--!"
Upon landing, Teiichi could no longer hold on and spat out a mouthful of blood.
Ignoring everything else, he used his trembling hands to push himself up from the ground.
Inhale! Exhale!
Inhale! Exhale!
I took a deep breath and quickly regulated my erratic breathing.
Once the Breathing Style was restarted, the tremors in my body quickly stabilized under Breathing Style operation.
I looked up towards the direction of the ice sculpture of the Bodhisattva.
The ice sculpture of the Bodhisattva was still slowly walking towards Kanae.
A moment later, Teiichi arrived beside the ice sculpture of the Bodhisattva.
Sensing Teiichi's arrival, the ice sculpture Bodhisattva stopped in place and swiftly raised its hand to strike Teiichi.
I've already suffered countless knife attacks tonight.
With Teiichi light step, he dodged the knife strike.
Keep your eyes focused on the two arms of the ice sculpture Bodhisattva to avoid a sudden, unexpected attack like the one you just experienced.
As dawn approached, Teiichi had no intention of continuing his life-or-death struggle with Doma.
As long as the ice sculpture of the Kanae, Teiichi planned to drag it out until dawn.
The sounds of gunfire rang out again on the battlefield.
After skillfully dodging more than a dozen hand strikes from the ice sculpture Bodhisattva, Teiichi clearly felt the speed of the hand strikes slow down.
A thought struck him, and his gaze involuntarily drifted to the top of the ice sculpture, to the area hidden by the ice crown.
"Have they left...?"
Teiichi muttered to himself.
There was no further hesitation or further probing.
Teiichi continued to dodge the occasional downward slashes of hand blades from below.
As the hand strikes slowed down, it became easier for Teiichi to dodge.
Soon, the eastern horizon gradually turned a gentle blue-purple.
The morning light, like a delicate paintbrush, gently outlined the contours of the mountains with a faint golden edge. Then, the golden light surged in like a tide, sweeping across the majestic mountain peaks and sprinkling the snow-covered battlefield.
When sunlight meets ice crystals, it bursts forth with dazzling light, as if the whole world has been illuminated.
In this dazzling light, the awe-inspiring ice sculpture of the Bodhisattva slowly ceased all movement, like a real Buddha statue, quietly bathed in the morning light, appearing exceptionally serene and solemn.
call--!
call--!
As the ice sculpture stopped moving, Teiichi also slowly stopped dodging, letting his heavy breathing echo in the morning air.
Sunlight shines on the ice sculptures, radiating bursts of ever-changing light. The light intertwines and dances in the air, like a series of magnificent rainbows, adding a touch of warmth and hope to this cold battlefield.