Thrust the spear!
At this moment—
His heart was boiling.
And as he drove the spear forward, Kanzaki Rei already saw the outcome of this strike!
He could feel it—
He would be shattered.
But…
What was there to fear?
Boom!
The two forces collided!
Kanzaki Rei's spear tip shattered instantly, crushed into pure elemental fragments—
And within Akagi's strike, Kanzaki Rei felt it—
His own power.
Akagi had taken Kanzaki Rei's comprehension of all elements and turned it into pure, overwhelming force—striking it back at him!
Huu—
Kanzaki Rei's body ignited like blazing fire.
With a broken spear, he forced it upward toward the heavens with everything he had!
The stacking of Ascension Beyond Limits… still wasn't enough.
He couldn't hold it—
The crushing force came down like unstoppable destruction!
In the end, the spear shattered inch by inch, completely overwhelmed. As it collided with Kanzaki Rei's body—
His form was obliterated into a cloud of blood mist.
The strike exhausted itself.
And Kanzaki Rei—
Had already regenerated.
Before him, Akagi stood engulfed in raging flames—
Then, all at once—
There was no longer any trace of life.
The victor had been decided.
It was him.
After delivering that final strike, Akagi turned to ash—and died.
"…I won."
Kanzaki Rei looked at the arena's announcement of the victor.
He had truly defeated Akagi.
After enduring all of his attacks, Akagi had already been running on his last reserves.
Akagi was not a defensive specialist.
There was no way he could withstand that many attacks without damage.
The only reason he continued fighting was through sheer willpower—supported by a special combat technique that allowed him to prolong his life for a short time.
Battle Continuation—a technique most warriors could grasp.
Even at the brink of death, it allowed one to fight on for a while longer.
That final strike—
Had indeed shattered Kanzaki Rei.
But unfortunately for Akagi—
Kanzaki Rei's regeneration was simply too powerful.
There were very few things left in this world that could truly kill him.
Even after taking that blow head-on—
It hadn't damaged him at his core.
Shing—
As he exited the battle arena—
Akagi was already waiting off to the side.
A wide grin spread across his face.
There wasn't the slightest trace of frustration from losing.
"Man, that was one hell of a fight!"
Crackle—
Kanzaki Rei could faintly see arcs of lightning and flickers of flame dancing around Akagi's body.
That was the joy of the elements themselves.
And now, looking at him again, Kanzaki Rei could clearly sense it—
His aura had changed compared to before.
His strength had truly increased.
Which meant—
Even battles within the arena could strengthen him?
Kanzaki Rei could roughly understand now why Akagi was so powerful.
If every battle made him stronger—
Then reaching a level beyond most prodigies was only natural.
"You've really grown."
Akagi praised him openly.
"Haha, not long ago, you were still that kid we had to protect."
Kanzaki Rei smiled, a trace of helplessness in his tone.
"Well… I've spent quite a long time in reset timelines too."
"In terms of time passed, it's probably about the same as when you all awakened."
They didn't know he could simulate the future.
So in their eyes, Kanzaki Rei had simply gone through several years.
Akagi crossed his arms and nodded.
"With your growth rate, I guess this day was inevitable."
"It's a good thing you've become stronger."
"But…"
"I still hope the original you can come back safely."
Kanzaki Rei lowered his head slightly, forcing a faint, helpless smile.
"…Yeah. I hope he returns safely too."
After the battle—
Everyone regrouped.
They met again with Kumironi, Obadus, Reina Frost, and Luvia.
Kanzaki Rei explained everything that had happened, and the group finally understood the situation.
Izan was still researching the Primordial Forbidden Magic.
"So… Little Rei's coming with us?" Kumironi asked.
Akagi nodded. "Yeah… honestly, a lot of this is still pretty shocking."
"But defeating An Zheng—that's something we're certain about right now."
Reina Frost and Luvia felt a slight sense of loss.
Because Kanzaki Rei wouldn't be going to the Moon Sea with them.
But neither showed it on their faces—
Only the subtle fluctuations in their mental fields betrayed their emotions, which Kanzaki Rei quietly sensed.
…
March 24th, night.
Shing—
With a flash of light, the entire Secret Sand Archipelago was teleported to the Moon Sea.
And An Zheng appeared before them.
He looked at the child standing ahead—
Yet immediately sensed something different about him.
"You…"
Buzz—
The moment their eyes met, [Time Cage] activated.
An Zheng was instantly trapped within it.
His mastery of magic was inferior to Izan—
But he was still an eighth-tier mage.
He immediately realized—
This was no ordinary spell.
"…Primordial Forbidden Magic. You're the one who cast it?"
Even in his calm tone, shock ran deep.
Kanzaki Rei replied plainly, "Yeah. That was me."
"An Zheng."
"…Sorry."
An Zheng froze for a moment—
Then burst into laughter.
"Hahaha! To witness a second Primordial Forbidden Magic before I die… my life hasn't been in vain!"
"But why you?"
"How did you learn it? Where did you learn it? And how are you even able to use it?!"
The cost of such magic—
Was beyond imagination.
Kanzaki Rei shook his head slightly.
"An Zheng… the name of this Primordial Forbidden Magic—"
"Is Time."
Izan stood beside Kanzaki Rei, his gaze fixed on An Zheng—
But his perception spread in all directions.
This Primordial Forbidden Magic consumed lifespan.
Even though Izan could cast it—
Using it recklessly at the cost of his own life didn't align with his principles.
He might be obsessed with magic—
But not to the point of self-destruction.
So observing Kanzaki Rei's [Time Cage] was his primary method of research.
"Time… you…"
"Hah. Absurd."
"But no matter how this ends—my fate will be mine to choose!"
Shing!
With a single motion, hundreds of thousands of magic arrays erupted across the sky!
But this time—
Kanzaki Rei simply raised his gaze.
And looked up.
He could see it clearly now.
Even without the deep theoretical knowledge of an eighth-tier mage—
He could vaguely discern the purpose of those spells.
He could follow the movements.
He had a clear combat strategy.
Kanzaki Rei simply raised his hand—
And reached toward An Zheng.
[God-Tier · Beacon of All Magic]
In that instant—
With a speed amplified ten thousandfold, the casting delay of spell theft became virtually nonexistent.
Shuaa—
A torrent of magical light burst forth like a geyser!
Like a whale swallowing the sea—
Kanzaki Rei instantly stole every single spell from the mage before him.
An Zheng stared blankly at the sky.
He lifted his hand—
Empty.
And realized—
He, an eighth-tier mage—
Could no longer remember a single spell.