Struggle for Superiority Peak

(Denzel's POV):

After having an intense start of the fight, I currently am in a stalemate of what to do since Chrominus got buffed up by an explosion of his clone. While he and his glitching clone are busy basking in the chronoblast, I took out a brown orb that works like a watch.

"Time Slower! Set to milli second!"

The time slowed down to a measly 0.01 second speed. With this, it's enough to try and kill the enemy. But I only have thirty seconds of usage and I can only use this once.

I dashed forward while firing the flesh blaster to my northwest.

"Lightspeed!" - Chrominus

Chrominus was able to case his speed bursting ability. With that active, killing him is difficult.

"Gauntlet left!"

While grabbing one phantasmal blade, I reverted the flesh blaster back into a gauntlet to grab a second blade. I then sent the rest of the blades to surround all of us in eight directions. Two phantasmal blades are still recalling back while one of which I sent stayed there for a purpose.

Controlling two unsynchronized phantasmal blades while fighting another person with two more phantasmal blades can be really exhausting in your mind. But I had two blades stop the clone while I push back Chrominus. The clone was moved away from me as I push him back to one phantasmal blade. I then pull one blade to pierce him from behind.

"Glitchy Process!" - Chrominus

Shit! I was late!

Chrominus blinked to my back and tried to attack. By twisting my body, I blocked his baton with the glowing hilt of the phantasmal blade on my left hand. Now to lock him down!

"Frozen Coffin!"

Ice starts to cover his feet and raised itself to cover the rest of his body.

"Glitchy Process!" - Chrominus

He shouted his mobility trick once again but he didn't get off from the ice that's enveloping his body from the feet.

He can't glitch while immobile.

With that, I can struck him down. Aiming for his right shoulder, I cut off one of his arms.

"Ng!!" - Chrominus

I swung down the glowing blade from my left to cut off one of his legs. I called in all phantasmal blades towards me to finish him off. While those were coming in, I cut off his right leg, causing him to lose balance. At the same time, the phantasmal blade nearby aimed to cut off his left arm. But it was stopped by a clone.

By horrible timing the time slower orb also wore off, and broke into particles.

"Kuh!"

I was struck with a powerful punch to the gut while receiving recoil from the time slower orb. The blood price was removed but it still doesn't change the fact that it eats most of a person's mana and energy capacity upon breaking. As such, due to the lethargy, the punch in the gut was pretty effective. I got knocked back and my concentration was removed along with my phantasmal blades. The clone stood still from its spot without chasing as I struck my back on the ground and laid myself flat.

I raised my head to check Chrominus' status. His health is still draining from Bleeding III effect and doesn't seem to intend to treat it?

"Hey cunt! You planning to die?"

"Of course not. It's just, I can't reach my potions after all." - Chrominus

He's still pretty lively even after getting slashed around by me. But then his body got completely blasted.

"Na, fuhahahaha~!" - Chrominus

The bleeding effect raised to Bleeding X, he's losing more than a hundred health per second but it seems he still has the gut to laugh.

How he got shot was because I aimed flesh blaster towards a rock to precisely angle it towards him. All according to plan...

But then I'm writhing around. I took out another potion to recover my energy and gulped it in one go. Wasting a big chance is a problem, now I have to find another trump card against him. His health starts going below triple digits as he starts blabbering around.

"You really think it's gonna be this easy?! It's rewind time!" - Chrominus

Chrominus moved his left hand near his face and bit some kind of switch and twisted it a little.

"Chronobreak!" - Chrominus

From my vision he suddenly moved around at high speeds and stopped at a few meters behind were he started. Rather, he's fully healed! He seriously turned back time here! That ain't fair!

While complaining to myself I stood back up and took out a card in my breast pocket.

"Tarot Card XI! Strength! Activation!"

After returning the card, I took out a blue orb that I started using as a catalyst.

"Darkened Ice!"

Inside my mind, exists one reason in this state. Kill him!

Dark blue miasma emerges from my body to a short range, setting the temperature below zero. The downfall of this ability is that it corrupts the mind. Basically, it's a skill that's similar to a pyromaniac's mega buff skill: Darkened Fire but from cryomaniacs instead.

My mind is slowly being corrupted by the darkened power. Moving at a speed that is comparably behind Julius's top speed, I smashed my fist into Chrominus' face who was laughing, but...

It landed on the hand of a glitching clone which tried to counter me with a punch. That attempted punch though, was frozen in place. In the same second I followed up by forming a crystal blade on my left hand and slashing at the neck. Chrominus simply dashed back and summoned two new batons in both hands.

Though Darkened State increases my speed, my quick wits are basically non-existent due to the corrupted mind. After I swung at air, I pulled back the sword and launched a back hand strike to the clone, which similarly dodged my attack. Without thinking, I blinked to the glitching clone and stabbed the heart with the crystal blade.

The core was magnificently pierced and ice starts enveloping the clone, preventing it from exploding. I then dashed towards Chrominus who continued to fight evasively while keeping distance.

I deflected the batons he threw at me and summoned a weapon. It looks like an assault rifle but made in a clockwork fashion. A clockwork assault rifle that's supposed to be post Wall of Flesh. Due to the corrupted mind, I didn't care about the weapon that fires three shots in burst mode and continued to rush at him who is taking distance. With every step forward he moves back and kites me.

I dodge and deflect the bullets due to instinct without stopping. A wild goose chase continued between us for some time. From time to time, he used his blink skill to increase the closing gap between us. Since my speed is beyond his top speed, he often used his mobility skills to revert the state of the battle. After a solid four minutes...

"You're being openly irritating!" - Chrominus

He took out a chronogrenade and threw it towards me without hesitation. I slashed the grenade on instinct while freezing it, preventing it from exploding.

"Chronorift!" - Chrominus

I was slowed down in a zoning ability. A large time rift was opened below me and has widely increased the gap between me and Chrominus. Still out of wrath, I raised my fighting spirit and tried to push through. Bullets start to graze parts of my body and bleed through my arms and my torso. I still continued pushing myself through, applying more force to my entire body and expending more energy.

Chrominus stopped shooting bullets and took out a brown potion. At that time, I finally broke free from the rift zone and dashed towards the defenseless enemy. He dashed back multiple times in succession but it wasn't enough to escape my wrath. He received a large cut in his torso without being able to cast his glitchy process. I launched additional slashes without stopping and grabbed his collar. He then threw the potion and tried to escape.

"Glitchy Process!" - Chrominus

But his chant ended in vain as he noticed that his feet and frozen once again. I smashed his head to the ground at full strength and swung down the crystal blade. Another large cut was formed in his body, forming an "X" mark right at his chest. I tried to continue but he suddenly blinked behind me.

I twisted my body to slash him for the third time. But since he had faster reflexes, he kicked me from the back and made me lose balance. I used my arms to try and spring my body back up but he stepped and kept me down.

"You're a severe interference you know! With this, Rika will be mine now." - Chrominus

He stabbed his dagger just below my neck as he started complaining. The second I heard that he aims for Rika once again. My body was filled with infuriation. I let out a strong amount of killing intent while raising my body back up even if it means carrying additional weight. But I was forced back down once again.

"Like my Graviton Shroud? Whoever I stab this dagger allows me to freely control the gravity." - Chromius

He starts talking about some information that I might remember, but since I snapped, I didn't bother listening and tried to force myself up again. As I was finally able to push my body up, the gravity was increased even more.

"Nn!"

I became even heavier that before, I didn't go flat easily this time and tried to recover, but Chrominus swung down his baton to my back and I laid down flat once again.

"Are you mental?! I'm trying to spare you here you know?! Or is it that you want to die?" - Chrominus

I finally ran out of mana and dispelled both Darkened Ice and the Strength Card. My entire body was weakened further that I wouldn't even twitch if I tried to lift my body. Instead, I started mumbling a long chant of area mana dispersion to remove all forms of mana within a thirty meter radius. In the meantime, Chrominus starts talking nonsense.

"You finally become lenient are you? You finally know that it's futile to resist and await for your slow death!" - Chrominus

He's trying to provoke me but I'm concentrating here.

"What are you mumbling there?! Oh! You're cursing about your own powerlessness? Ahahaha! I understand! You can no longer move from this place. What will your friends say when they see your current state! I can imagine their priceless faces!" - Chrominus

Almost there.

"Then after watching you die from bleeding, I'll be sure to fuck Rika in front of your grave! Now! Engrave it to your mind! That no matter what you do! You will be weaker than me!" - Chrominus

The last phrase, it is.

"For the Imperial Asylum!"