Shin's fusion ability, although effective on living organisms, certainly requires a level of tacit understanding.
Two people fused by the Gulp-Gulp Fruit would essentially become a schizophrenic with a split personality if their temperaments were completely incompatible. Shin dared to fully fuse with the cloth not only because the cloth's self-awareness was thin and his status as a Gulp-Gulp Fruit user gave him an absolute advantage, but also because his own mental strength was incredibly powerful, leaving him with no fear of the cloth's resistance.
In contrast, Saori Kido was of another type; as soon as these cloths felt Athena's Cosmo, they turned into sycophants, immediately imparting all their experience without reservation.
Ripples of change appeared in the universe within the void. Shin immediately discovered that, besides Athena's Cosmo and the Cosmo stimulated by the gold cloth, Saori Kido herself began to give birth to an incredibly weak Cosmo.
Under the infusion of various memories and Cosmo imprints within the gold cloth, the intensity of this Cosmo surged rapidly in a very short time, stopping only when it was about to awaken the Seventh Sense.
It wasn't that Saori Kido couldn't awaken the Seventh Sense, but rather that her physical body didn't seem to have reached the standard yet.
However, Shin also keenly noticed that after this round of explosion, Athena's Cosmo seemed to have accelerated the transformation of Saori Kido. The seemingly delicate Saori Kido's physical strength was also skyrocketing.
"Just like that, she's reached the peak of the Silver level." Shin lamented slightly. If one factored in the even more powerful Athena's Cosmo within Saori's body, it could be said that the current Saori Kido's combat power already surpassed all Saints below the Seventh Sense.
Even if she truly encountered Gold Saint, with the occasionally working Athena Cosmo, the outcome would still be uncertain.
Furthermore, after absorbing so much combat experience recorded in the cloths, while Saori Kido's combat experience could still be called a weak point, it was definitely no longer a fatal flaw.
"Not bad." Shin smiled slightly, burning the Cosmo inherent in the Centaurus Cloth to its limit, reaching the peak of the Seventh Sense: "Now then, let's test your combat power!"
Closing her eyes to sense the Cosmo, Saori Kido opened them. A powerful sense of strength filled her entire body, making her eager to try.
"Take this, Plasma Light Speed Punch!" Saori Kido gave a delicate shout, and with the support of the gold cloth, she rapidly threw a Light Speed Punch.
However, Shin dodged lightly, evading all the punches, and without hesitation, he smashed a fist into the goddess's lower abdomen, making her spit blood on the spot and fall to her knees.
"Ugh, it hurts... is this the training for Saints?"
Activating the Yang Release Chakra in his hand, he easily healed Saori Kido's injuries. Shin spoke, "This is just the beginning, get up quickly! Continue the fight!"
"The punch path just now was too direct! The attack was rigid and stiff, completely following a set pattern without any real adjustment to corner me!"
"In a battle between Saints, although Cosmo accounts for the vast majority, at the same level, technique also makes up a large part of the combat power!"
In a Saints's battle, besides Cosmo, the specific fighting methods are divided into Punch, Kick, Throw, Tool, and Heart—namely fist techniques, movement speed, ranged attacks, weapon usage, and special abilities.
Although Saori Kido had some combat experience imparted to her by the cloth, it was only experience gained in her mind, not true muscle memory. To truly utilize it, she still needed a period of training.
Fortunately, Shin used his space control ability to stretch the time in the Dark Dimension; half an hour was enough for him to stretch it to over ten days.
"So strict!" Saori Kido slowly stood up. Although her face still showed a pained expression, she didn't complain. Instead, she resumed a fighting stance.
"That's more like it. During this time, I will train you well, at least until you can reach the level of fighting Gold Saint! Otherwise, going to the Sanctuary would just be throwing your life away!" Seeing that Saori Kido had some perseverance and determination, Shin couldn't help but nod secretly.
Relying on his Super Brain, Shin's combat techniques were actually quite sophisticated. Guiding the current Saori Kido was more than enough.
Time in the Dark Dimension gradually passed. Saori Kido went from being instakilled at the start to gradually being able to hold out for a few moves against Shin. Her rate of progress could be said to be lightning-fast, as expected of someone with a War Divinity.
In particular, Saori Kido's tolerance for pain also greatly improved. Originally, after taking a punch, she would need to recover for a moment, but now she could endure the pain and continue fighting. The weakness in her eyes began to fade, replaced by a hint of sharpness.
"This is the correct way to do it! Obviously, in any extraordinary system, the boss is the one who can fight the most and needs to train the most. Yet, she was protected so well by these Saints that she was about to go to the battlefield knowing nothing. If it weren't for the divine Cosmo and soul's inherent experience, she would probably have been killed on the spot!"
"Fortunately, all the divine bosses here have this kind of temperament; otherwise, Athena might have been finished long ago."
When Saori Kido saw the night sky outside again, she already felt as if a lifetime had passed.
The gold cloth had receded. She clenched her slender fingers. It had only been a few short days in the Dark Dimension, and only half an hour in reality, but she already felt surging power flowing in her palms.
Through constant combat, Saori Kido's physical fitness had also improved significantly under the dual nourishment of Athena's Cosmo and the Yang Release Chakra Shin used to heal her. Now, she was already able to use the Seventh Sense occasionally.
However, Athena's divine Cosmo had no requirements for physical fitness. Now that Saori Kido had experience, she was much more at ease using this Cosmo. It was no longer just a Summoning Technique used to put on a show and tell the Saints her identity.
"Hmm!? An unfamiliar Cosmo is approaching!" Saori Kido suddenly looked up at the pitch-black night sky.
A dark cloud was flying toward them in the night sky. Looking closely, it wasn't a dark cloud at all, but a large flock of Crows flying here. At first glance, it looked like a dark cloud, quite well-hidden in the night.
However, the current Saori Kido was no longer that little girl who only had Cosmo but no way to use it. Using her Cosmo, she easily discovered the truth of that dark cloud and even sensed the Silver Saints hidden within.
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Now available - Chapter 698: Finale (ENDING)