"Don't rush, it's just a warm-up, the real surprise is yet to come!" His attack was easily parried by Vegito, and such mocking words rang out, but Rhode's expression remained unchanged. He spoke calmly and composedly.
"Is that so?" Facing Rhode's composure, the mysterious Vegito's words instantly unleashed power, and he flashed before Rhode, delivering a powerful punch squarely at his body.
Bang! Immense power erupted from the mysterious Vegito's fist, a power that the current Rhode was utterly incapable of resisting. However, the result was that after the mysterious Vegito's punch landed, Rhode merely slid backward several hundred meters in the sky, completely unharmed.
"Oh?" Seeing that his full-powered punch had no effect, the mysterious Vegito's eyes showed a hint of surprise. However, he immediately noticed something amiss. He clearly saw a protective shield flash and disappear at the spot where Rhode took the attack. It turned out that before Vegito's punch even connected, Rhode had already prepared a defense at the point of impact on his body. The protective shield was a modification of the barrier, offering more concentrated and powerful defense. Moreover, Rhode's protective shield was different from the one Aira had used previously. It incorporated elements of his Super Limit Destruction's instantaneous burst technique, allowing him to mobilize most of his power for defense in the shortest possible time, instantly condensing and instantly dissipating, with a defensive limit far exceeding his current power.
"Hmm!" Although he instantly used the protective shield to block the mysterious Vegito's attack, Rhode's face showed no excitement; instead, he looked a bit dejected. This was because using the protective shield was a subconscious reaction in the face of an attack. In reality, his original intention was not to defend, but to draw out another kind of power existing within his body. It seems my current power is still too strong! Thinking this, Rhode instantly dispelled the fifty-fold Kaio-ken amplification on his body, maintaining only the Super Saiyan 4 stacked with ten-fold Self-Evolution Technique boost. Under these conditions, the power gap between him and the mysterious Vegito became quite significant. If they were to engage, it should provide him with enough of a threat. This way, the Ultra Instinct Technique, which had been fully absorbed into his body and cultivated by his clones, would very likely be triggered.
Swish! After lowering his power, Rhode teleported in front of the mysterious Vegito, once again standing opposite him.
"Actively lowering your power, what does this mean?" As Rhode removed the fifty-fold Kaio-ken amplification, the mysterious Vegito immediately sensed the weakening of his power and couldn't help but frown.
"Don't worry, even with reduced power, you still won't be able to deal with me!" Facing the mysterious Vegito's words, Rhode didn't explain. His figure flickered, appearing before him, and he threw a punch.
"Such a weak and powerless punch, are you looking down on me?!" Feeling the faint power in Rhode's attacking fist, the mysterious Vegito was greatly displeased, anger rising in his heart. He immediately erupted with full power, engaging Rhode in a merciless exchange of blows.
Super Limit Destruction! However, just as their fists were about to collide, Rhode instantly concentrated most of his power into a single point, and the power of his fist immediately surged dozens of times over.
Bang! Their two fists collided, and a powerful shockwave spread in all directions. The two only held their ground for a brief instant; the next moment, the mysterious Vegito immediately flew backward. It was clear that in this clash, Rhode had gained the upper hand, successfully repelling Vegito.
However, although he had gained an advantage in the single punch collision, Rhode himself was not in much better shape. Looking at him, Rhode was now bleeding profusely, a truly miserable sight. This was because the Super Limit Destruction technique aimed for an instantaneous burst of maximum power to instantly kill the enemy. But now, Rhode was using this technique in a direct confrontation, completely going against the original intention of creating the move. Therefore, although he unleashed an incredibly powerful attack, because most of his power was concentrated on offense, his body naturally couldn't withstand the shock generated by their collision. After all, there was a significant gap between Rhode's current base power and that of the mysterious Vegito. It was only because Rhode had an extremely high degree of control over himself that, even with most of his power used for attack, the remaining power was used for maximum defense. Otherwise, his body would have exploded from the impact of the power collision alone.
However, because he was prepared, and coupled with his body modified by the Intermediate Modification Technique, which possessed extremely strong regenerative capabilities, although Rhode looked miserable, it actually caused him no serious harm. Within a few breaths, Rhode's injuries had vanished, and he appeared calm and collected, his gaze serene, his expression tranquil.
Swish! As Rhode's body recovered, the repelled mysterious Vegito also flashed back. Compared to Rhode's miserable state, the mysterious Vegito was merely pushed back and sustained no injuries.
"You are indeed formidable!" Seeing Rhode, who, despite having bloodstains, was completely unharmed, full of vitality, and whose aura was as before, the mysterious Vegito had to admit that the person before him was truly powerful. However, the mysterious Vegito's tone immediately shifted: "But, I wonder if your defense can still be as effective as before after your power has been lowered?"
As he spoke, the mysterious Vegito's body instantly vanished. When he reappeared, he was already behind Rhode, delivering an elbow strike to his back.
Bang! Without any surprise, Rhode was instantly struck, rapidly plummeting towards the ground. However, before he hit the ground, he stopped his descent, casually wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and looked at the mysterious Vegito in the sky with burning eyes, his heart filled with excitement.
When the mysterious Vegito moved just now, Rhode had already read his attack, but he restrained his impulse to defend, which was why he was sent flying and even injured. However, although Rhode restrained the impulse to actively defend, his body was stimulated by extreme danger, which in turn triggered the Ultra Instinct Technique that his clones had already perfected, turning it into an instinct and integrating it deep within his body, thereby initiating autonomous defense. This was also why Rhode didn't actively defend, yet under the mysterious Vegito's attack, he only sustained minor injuries.
Indeed, when in a dangerous situation, the Ultra Instinct Technique hidden within the body can be activated. Thinking this, Rhode looked forward to the upcoming fight even more. After this exchange, Ultra Instinct had already been triggered. He believed that with a few more times, the perfected Ultra Instinct Technique, which had become an instinct, could be perfectly replicated on his main body.
Swish! With Ultra Instinct successfully activated, Rhode's spirits were immediately greatly boosted. With a burst of power, he immediately shot up into the sky, charging towards the mysterious Vegito, initiating a new round of offense and defense.