Cleaver Of Sin

Chapter 484: Intelligence

Asher exhaled softly as he was now done with his last form of training, for Space manipulation at least, as he still had to train Light manipulation after this, his body relaxed but his mind still sharp and alert from the prolonged focus.

’System, how much more time remains from my initial three-hour time limit?’ he asked the system, hoping it would reply and not have gotten annoyed and started to ignore him out of spite.

[Nine minutes, Host]

The system replied with its usual emotionless mechanical tone without missing a beat, precise and punctual as always.

Asher nodded faintly, his mind already shifting to what he should do with his remaining time. ’Should I continue to train my Directional Gravity Shift proficiency?’ he thought to himself, his purple eyes drifting toward the clone which was still standing at the side like a silent butler waiting to be dismissed by its superior, unmoving and obedient.

An idea flashed through Asher’s mind the moment his eyes fell on the clone. As for what the idea was, it was a spar.

As for why a spar, well, the applications he had developed a few days ago could finally be tested in actual combat now, and besides, this training chamber was strong enough to survive attacks of the level they were about to spar at, meaning he wouldn’t have to hold back too much or worry about collateral damage.

Although in Asher’s terms his clone was weak, it was still strong enough to fight and win against someone at the Radiant Kindlestar Life Rank with ease, which already placed it far above most ordinary combatants.

”We will be sparring until the door behind me opens, signaling the end of the training session, fight at your full strength and use whatever you can,” Asher spoke out loud, his tone calm and matter-of-fact, as though announcing something trivial rather than a battle.

The clone stood silent for a moment, its eyes shifting toward the door behind Asher, then it nodded, its entire demeanor changing subtly, mirroring Asher as it stood with a carefree stance and relaxed ease, as though waiting for the original Asher to make the first move.

’I guess this would be the first time I’m battling myself,’ Asher mused to himself, and during this spar, he would be battling strictly on the level of the Light clone, restricting himself to maintain fairness.

He immediately entered a martial stance, he didn’t draw his blade as the clone had none, although it could create a light rapier, Virelass would tear through that with ridiculous ease, so for now, hand-to-hand combat was the method of this spar, pure skill against skill.

They stared at each other with the calm gaze of one who believed they could never lose, then as though sharing one mind and one intention, they vanished from their positions as they tore forward simultaneously.

Their fists tore toward one another with explosive speed, but the moment their fists were about to meet, Asher’s fist phased through the clone’s fist and continued its path toward the clone’s chest, his attack bypassing physical contact entirely.

But the clone was also Asher, it possessed his combat efficiency and experience, and although it didn’t have things like Omni Perception, it didn’t matter.

The clone, seeing the incoming attack, swiftly sidestepped with calm ease as though it had predicted Asher’s first move long before it happened. But Asher followed up immediately without missing a beat, his feet leaving the floor as he rocketed toward the clone’s chest, the air tearing violently in the wake of his movement.

The clone didn’t react immediately, it allowed the attack to close in deliberately, and the moment it did, it simply phased through Asher’s strike while simultaneously punching outward toward Asher’s chest. The next moment, Asher’s body turned into pure purple lightning as he phased through the punch, the air behind him screaming in protest as the clone’s fist met nothing but displaced atmosphere.

Asher stared at the clone for a moment, analyzing calmly. It didn’t possess any true phase ability through Light manipulation, but somehow it had still phased through Asher’s attack.

’I see,’ Asher thought to himself as he read the light photons in the air with quiet understanding. Since the clone was made out of light photons, it had created a method on the spot, dispersing into its photon phase and reforming instantly, easily phasing through the attack.

’I guess even my clone is just as intelligent as I am despite it being just a puppet without a will,’ Asher mused to himself. He moved once more as he only wanted to fight through martial arts at the moment while testing his new abilities, things like Omni Perception wouldn’t be used for now, as that would defeat the purpose.

The clone channeled light energy to its feet and vanished in a blur, reappearing at a distance before firing off over a hundred beams in rapid succession. Asher didn’t panic, he simply tapped into his Space element as he phased through the attacks with effortless precision, the beams passing through where he had been as though striking a ghost. The training chamber shook under the force of the training, but it held firm without cracking.

Asher simply smirked, his speed increasing once more, he blurred forward, his forefoot already rocketing toward the clone’s forehead with crushing momentum. The clone didn’t phase through the attack, it simply dodged with ridiculous ease as though it had read Asher like an open book, then smirked back at him before blurring backward.

Asher was about to take a step and follow when he suddenly stopped, his head snapping upwards, and from above, thick columns of light tore downward toward him. Asher didn’t hesitate, he immediately tapped into his Gravity element, his feet leaving the earth as he levitated into the air, he danced through the attacks with fluid ease, his body slipping through each of them as he floated as though the air was no different from solid ground.

’A trap, huh?’ Asher mused. The clone seemed to understand it could never win through brute force, so it was using its own intelligence and tactics to keep up with its original counterpart.

Asher’s eyes danced through the training chamber gracefully, but his clone was nowhere to be seen. Asher didn’t need to be told, he understood that the clone had simply bent light around itself and become invisible, merging seamlessly with the environment.

Asher didn’t panic, if he wanted, he could locate his clone instantly through the connection they shared, but he didn’t, he simply remained where he was as though waiting, relying solely on instinct and perception.

The next moment, his hand blurred upward as he caught a fist mid-attack, the air tearing outward from the point of collision with a sharp shockwave. The next moment, the clone became visible once more. Although it had gone invisible, the whispers of the wind never lied, Asher only had to listen to the air currents to follow its attack and movement.

As Asher was about to follow up with his own counterattack, the door to the basic Space training chamber hissed open, the metallic sound sharp and final, bringing the spar to an abrupt end.

_______

AUTHOR’S NOTE: Hey everyone, I missed yesterday’s Chapters, so as usual, I replaced them, so four Chapters today. And yeah, I still need your Golden tickets for the ranking. And also, just in case you’ve forgotten, I accept Super gifts and all types of gifts. Thanks for reading.