Emmet decided to go outside. While he still wished to read more of Jeniah’s research journals and his own books, he felt a pressing need to test out his new strength and, specifically, his corrupted fire totem. He checked out the underground map that Jasper had posted near the entrance. "Okay, I’ll just follow this path, and then head up... outside," he murmured.

  Taking a deep breath of the fresh air, he let out a sigh of contentment. "Ahh, it's been a while since I’ve been outside."

  He then noticed Jasper doing some sword training. Emmet observed that Jasper's movements were now far more precise and powerful. "Hmm, he must be feeling the same as I am," Emmet thought. He walked straight up to Jasper and said, "Hey there, how are you feeling?"

  Jasper stopped his training. "Oh, you came out! I've never felt better! I feel the demonic energy, not as a weakness, but as a furnace. I can sense every joint, every fiber... look at this!" He snapped a thin, razor-sharp bone spike from his wrist and immediately retracted it, the bone dissolving back into his skin. He then remembered his manners and bent down on one knee. "I forgot to thank you. I owe this to you. I feel great control over my Warrior Divinity and somehow, my skeletal control too. It seems too strong now; I can even create armor from it, and my body seems to heal faster."

  Emmet cautioned him, "Don't get too excited. The demonic energy passing through you is still adopting, and so is your body. You're supposed to take it slow, but I don’t see any drawback in your body. Do you feel any negative side effects?"

  Jasper replied, "No, I don’t. Well, I used to feel a lot of pain when I made a sword out of my bone, but now it seems painless, and the swords are sturdier."

  Emmet’s eyes glinted with excitement. "That’s good. The integration is smoother than I anticipated. Say, all that talk about control... wanna go do a friendly duel with me? We should test the limits of this new power boost while it’s fresh."

  Jasper’s eyes lit up. "I thought you’d never ask! But be warned—I'm stronger than the first time we fought."

  "In that case, I won't hold back... though I don’t think this is a good place to do that," Emmet said.

  Jasper pointed toward a plateau near their hideout. "Sure, let's go there. Don’t disappoint me then."

  Jasper was the first to attack, raising his sword and coating the blade with bone. "Check this out! I can reinforce my sword with both my Divinity and my bone skill. In gratitude to you, I will show you everything I’ve got."

  Bones began to sprout from his joints and other parts of his body, covering him as if he were coating himself in armor made of bone. He then covered this bone armor with his Corrupted Warrior Divinity.

  "Amazing," Emmet said internally, analyzing the thick, personalized plating. "He wasn't lying. He can do that now? The speed of his manifestation is incredible."

  Emmet summoned his Corrupted Obsidian Earth Totem, which started burrowing deep underground, while his two Corrupted Fire Totems floated behind him. Out of the ground, he formed several black obsidian crystal throwing spears. As he formed a spear, the black obsidian crystal hissed softly, and the air around it grew frigid, briefly contrasting with the desert heat.

  "Well, I'm starting, so be on your guard," Emmet announced.

  Jasper looked shocked. "Wait, are you going to use a throwing spear on me? You mean you're not going to fight me in melee?"

  "I’m going all out," Emmet said simply. "So do your best."

  Emmet started throwing the spears, creating a new one as soon as he threw the last. He intended to execute complex, simultaneous multi-vector targeting, maximizing the confusion and fine-tuning his control over the obsidian's mass and its shockwave effect. Each throw resulted in a high-pitched, unnerving whir as the crystal’s vibration cut the wind.

  When the first spear hit, Jasper tried to parry it, but he felt a powerful vibration pushing him, which nearly broke his grip on his sword. "What is this? It has some shockwave effect when it hits! Not good. If I keep getting hit, it might be dangerous. Damn, this spear is troublesome!"

  Emmet was a blur of calculated motion. He was too sly and fast, constantly keeping his distance. He would jump to one spot, unleash a volley, then immediately leap to another direction, throwing more spears while in mid-air. The projectiles weren't just coming from one point; they were coming from multiple, unpredictable directions, giving Jasper no time to properly recalibrate his defense.

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  Jasper was immediately pushed into a state of panicked reaction. Another one! he thought, his eyes wide as he saw a spear aimed at his elbow joint. When he managed to parry one, the shockwave still traveled through his bone sword and into his arms, making the bones in his elbow feel like they were grinding under immense pressure, and his teeth ached with the resonance. When he attempted to evade, he felt spears already whizzing toward the path he was aiming for—Emmet was not just hitting him, he was locking down his movement. A spear clipped his left shoulder pad, shattering the bone plating. He hit me! Instantly, a sharp, quick pain shot through his shoulder, immediately followed by the sound of rapid, clicking growth as his skeletal control instantly calcified a denser, darker shield in its place, consuming a noticeable chunk of his reserves.

  Emmet noted the instantaneous regeneration. His healing is truly enhanced, and his skeletal control is almost autonomous. Remarkable.

  "He's too fast! I can’t pin him down," Jasper gasped. I can’t keep defending! Why am I defending only? I must do some attack too! "I said I'm gonna show him everything I've got, but I can't even lay a scratch on him! He is terrifyingly fast!"

  Defending is less of a worry, Jasper thought grimly. He is deliberately keeping this fight at range, which means he is even more dangerous up close. He is definitely playing with me. If he had gone melee at first, I'm not sure how I could stand toe-to-toe with him. His melee power must be terrifying if he is this dominant at a distance... and those totems just add to his destructive power. Such power!

  Emmet, seeing Jasper falter, analyzed the data. "So, my throwing strength seems good, and the crystal's effect increases its speed. This is a good range attack. I'm enjoying this new attack skill, but for now, I need to increase the damage."

  He summoned a single obsidian spear and calibrated its shockwave effect to a significantly higher level, locking down Jasper's escape routes. "I have no choice but to block this," Jasper declared, resigned.

  Jasper summoned more Warrior Divinity for defense. When the spear struck, he blocked it with his sword with all his might, but he was instantly pushed back, sliding and digging trenches with his heels. Just as he thought he had successfully managed the impact, three more spears—formed instantly from the ground—came at him. The slash and the spears collided, causing a huge shockwave that unfortunately traveled entirely toward Jasper.

  Smoke covered the area, and before the air was even clear, Emmet had vanished and was right in front of Jasper, preparing a one-punch blow. Jasper received the crushing blow, which sent him flying backward, his legs skidding across the ground and causing craters as he was pushed back even further.

  Emmet didn't stop. In a flash, he appeared on Jasper's left side and delivered a powerful side kick. Not good! Where is he? Jasper thought, desperately scanning the smoke.

  "I must defend that hit!" he yelled internally, bracing himself. The kick connected with the bone armor, sending Jasper sliding and reeling sideways.

  Before Jasper could even regain his balance, Emmet disappeared and reappeared directly beneath him, punching upward. A blur. He defies inertia. I was sliding sideways one second, and now he is already using the earth as a launch point. I can’t even track the air displacement he leaves behind. The blow lifted Jasper's heavy, armored body and launched him high into the air.

  In the next instant, Emmet was already above Jasper mid-flight. Above me this time? Oh no, I can't evade this! His too fast! He struck with a fierce downward spiral kick, spiking Jasper toward the ground. Jasper impacted the earth with a tremendous CRASH, creating a deep, jagged crater where he landed, his armor groaning and cracking from the sheer kinetic force.

  Emmet then aimed his two corrupted totems down at the dazed Jasper. Deciding not to aim directly at him, he fired several meters away on either side of the crater, saying, "Hellfire Blast!" Two dark, chaotic, spherical cold fires were unleashed. The air tasted of ozone and burnt rock. Jasper quickly created a wall of bone spikes around him, and Emmet, to ensure Jasper was safe, reinforced the wall with his own obsidian crystal. The ground shook hard, and the blasts caused significant damage. The newly formed crater wasn't just dirt; it was a scar of black, fused earth, still steaming where the corrupted energy had touched it, the two craters merging into one massive one.

  Emmet smiled, satisfied with the Hellfire Blast. "Ahh, the destructive power of my fire totem is many times more powerful than before."

  Jasper stood up, surveying the destruction around him. "Such power," he whispered, feeling the residual shockwaves in the ground and the aches from the rapid-fire melee assault. "And I thought I was going to play with him to show off my skill. I guess he was the one who played me instead. Not only his totems but his overall strength has also become more powerful. This guy is simply a genius, extraordinary... no, he is even way above that. Thanks to him, I have become stronger too, but I can feel the overwhelming gap in our power."

  Emmet then called out, "Hey, are you okay over there? Sorry, I went overboard. I really tried to hold back a little." Emmet rushed over to check on Jasper.

  "You call that holding back?" Jasper said, still reeling from the shock.

  Emmet said, "Well, it’s amazing what you can do with your bone skills now, but I think there is more to it that you need to discover. Oh well, let’s call this duel off for now and head back inside."

  Jasper replied, "My legs are still shaking from those shockwaves and the fire blast, so just leave me for a while, and I will follow you later."

  "Okay," Emmet said. "I'll be back in the research room."

  Jasper watched him walk away. "He didn’t even show any signs of exhaustion." He looked down at his own trembling hands. "Whew, I honestly thought I was done for. The gap is huge, but I can feel I can still become stronger. He is right, there is more to my power that I haven't explored." Jasper was thankful for this duel, even though it terrified him thinking about Emmet's destructive power. He clenched his fist, a fierce resolve hardening his features. "Next time, I will at least make it difficult for him on our next duel. Just you wait, Emmet, I won't fail you next time."