"There's something strange about the Cloth this guy is wearing!" Aphrodite said, gritting his teeth. "That's not just any ordinary Silver Cloth!"
Shura's Excalibur might be one thing, but my own Piranha Black Rose is absolutely specialized in destroying Cloths. Unless it's a Gold Cloth, there's no way to be immune to it.
Shura realized what was happening. "I see. Is this Cloth the reason you have the confidence to face three Gold Saints like us?"
Shin's confidence certainly didn't stem from his Cloth, but he wasn't about to explain himself to the three of them. He shrugged and replied, "If that's what you believe, then so be it."
"Now, isn't it my turn to attack?"
The moment he finished speaking, Shin transformed into a streak of light, instantly unleashing a punch.
Countless light-speed punches descended upon him. Shura didn't hesitate, meeting the attack with his own. The radiance of Excalibur and the multitude of fist shadows clashed loudly in the air. However, after just a few seconds, Shura's burning Cosmo began to wane. He gradually felt unable to sustain the assault, yet Shin's fists showed no sign of slowing down; if anything, they seemed to be accelerating.
"Ugh!" In the end, Shura only managed a grunt before being completely overwhelmed by the torrent of fists, instantly sending him flying.
Shin was fundamentally different from the Saints. For a Saint to achieve the speed of light, they must burn their Cosmo. As this energy is intensely explosive, it means Saints can only maintain light speed for a very brief duration.
Furthermore, the Cosmo's burst places immense strain on a Saint's body. This is why Saints primarily use light-speed punches during combat and rarely resort to light-speed movement.
It's not that they are incapable, but the physical stress is too great and consumes massive amounts of stamina, so they simply avoid such unnecessary actions.
But for Shin, light speed was merely his baseline state. Even when choosing to utilize the Cosmo as a driving force, his physical resilience and reaction speed were more than enough to fully withstand all the pressure associated with light speed.
This meant that a Cosmo burst was considered an ultimate technique for orthodox Saints like Shura, but for Shin, it was no different from a basic attack, with absolutely no cooldown period.
Predictably, in a confrontation relying solely on the Cosmo, Shura could fight Shin equally for a short while, but as the battle dragged on, the outcome was inevitably being thoroughly knocked away.
"Shura!" Aphrodite and Deathmask cried out in alarm, both rushing forward simultaneously to catch him.
Shura rolled over, wiped the blood from his mouth, and frowned, asking, "Aiolos's Lightning Plasma Fist?"
The Lightning Plasma Fist was originally the ultimate technique of the Leo Saint, but before Aiolia, the one who mastered it best was his older brother, Sagittarius Aiolos.
Just as Eagle Marin's ultimate move is the Eagle Flash, yet her own Meteor Fist is also perfected, Aiolos, who trained Leo Aiolia since childhood, naturally also had a deep mastery of the Lightning Plasma Fist.
Moreover, when Aiolos fled the Sanctuary, it was Shura who hunted him down, giving him a deep and lasting impression of all of Aiolos's techniques.
Shura wasn't surprised that Saori Kido knew the Plasma Fist; after all, Aiolos was the one who rescued Athena, so it was perfectly normal for Athena to possess his techniques.
What surprised him was that Shin, who appeared to be nothing special, could also use Aiolos's techniques.
However, this was merely a trivial matter. Techniques like the Lightning Plasma Fist were similar to the Pegasus Meteor Fist—a very common ultimate move. While theoretically potent, it was balanced in all aspects and quite easy to learn. Many Saints were capable of using this technique.
Shin nodded slightly, then looked toward the other two. "That was only the start. You two should prepare yourselves."
"Damn it, if it weren't for that Cloth..." Aphrodite began, but Deathmask had already charged forward, leaping into the air and clamping his legs around Shin like giant scissors: "Cancer Scissors!"
"How pathetic. You call that a Gold Saint's ultimate technique?" Shin sneered, suddenly shifting his position and unleashing a Lushan Rising Dragon Punch.
Shin had essentially learned all the Saints' techniques available to Saori Kido through the Cloth. Seeing Cancer's position was so opportune this time, Shin felt it would be a major oversight not to strike.
"Oww!!" Accompanied by a miserable scream, a dragon-shaped punch precisely struck Deathmask right between his legs, beneath the skirt armor. The man's face instantly turned purple, and he was completely flipped over by the force of the blow, falling to the ground with a sickening thud and twitching faintly.
"Idiot!" Seeing this sight, Shura almost couldn't bear to look, and Aphrodite instinctively clamped his own legs together. Although he looked like a woman, he certainly had no desire to genuinely become one.
However, Shin didn't pause after flooring Cancer. He rushed forward again like a streak of light, his fists swinging once more.
"Pegasus Meteor Fist!"
The Meteor Fist is arguably the most widespread punching technique among the Saints. Unlike the Lightning Plasma Fist, which requires at least the Seventh Sense of the Cosmo, virtually any Saint who has awakened their Cosmo can execute the Meteor Fist.
The very fact that this technique is so widespread proves it is nearly flawless. The only way to deal with it is to rely on one's raw strength and meet it head-on.
"How is this possible... Is this guy made of iron? How can he burn his Cosmo for so long?" Aphrodite and Shura were stunned, but facing the attack, they had no choice but to counter move by move.
Shura's Excalibur is a physical ultimate technique, and its Cosmo requirement is arguably the lowest among the Gold Saints. Thus, even when rushed, he could still manage to block Shin's Meteor Fist.
Aphrodite's three types of roses might possess decent lethality, but their physical offensive power was severely lacking. The consequence of being unprepared was being instantly blasted away by the Meteor Fist.
After Aphrodite was sent flying, the battle between Shura and Shin became a virtual replay of their last exchange. Initially, Shura could match Shin's light-speed offensive, but raw power cannot be sustained indefinitely. The burning of the Cosmo and the resulting physical strain always reach a limit. Although Shura desperately tried to maintain his speed, he was, after all, mortal flesh. When his physical fatigue reached a certain point, his speed inevitably dropped slightly, and he was immediately blasted by Shin's Meteor Fist, which showed no sign of slowing down.
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Now available - Chapter 698: Finale (ENDING)