"Damn it..."
Ryker rapidly scanned the latest data pouring across the System interface.
['Dark Sacrificial Authority' Status Effect Initiated.]
[Notice: Entering Rule Suppression Phase. The effectiveness of certain traits has been reduced by 30%.]
"How am I supposed to fight this?"
Ryker's heart clenched. The System's rule suppression was devastatingly severe. A 30% flat reduction in effectiveness heavily crippled the raw destructive power of his most lethal techniques.
"I have to shatter its 'Rule Node' first," he whispered to himself.
His eyes locked onto the colossal Dark Eye, scanning for any microscopic fluctuations. Finally, he spotted it—a faintly pulsing pinpoint of light buried deep within the swirling darkness of the pupil.
A new target marker instantly populated his HUD:
[Target: Rule Node "Abyssal Pupil"]
[Objective: Destroy the node within 30 seconds. Failure will result in full-scale Rule Suppression.]
"I'm out of time!" Ryker rapidly recalibrated the frequency of his Lightning Core, his muscles coiling like a compressed spring.
Suddenly, the colossal [Eye of Rules] expanded violently in the void! It seemed to instantly sense Ryker's killing intent. The dark runes inside it flared with blinding intensity, unleashing a torrential, tidal wave of oppressive Nen!
"Lightning Flame: Bursting Edge!"
Ryker let out a guttural roar! His entire right arm transmuted into a massive, jagged blade of pure lightning as he launched himself directly at the Rule Node!
In an instant, the blazing lightning and the pitch-black runes violently collided!
The surrounding space shuddered as if struck by a massive earthquake. The air physically contorted, and a horrifying sensation of "Rules" tearing against each other swept across the battlefield.
KABOOOOOOOM!!!
The node was breached!
The colossal Dark Eye contorted in absolute agony as a massive portion of the suffocating dark energy instantly evaporated!
But the price Ryker paid was catastrophic.
The physical backlash from directly shattering a Dark Continent Rule slammed into his Lightning Core! The core vibrated so violently it felt as though it were about to undergo critical meltdown!
[Lightning Core stability plummeted to 50%.]
[Core Aegis Activated. Entering Forced Recovery Mode.]
"Ryker! Watch out!" Gon screamed, struggling to maintain his footing against the violently shaking earth.
The Dark Eye was wounded, but the pain only caused its fury to skyrocket!
It abruptly unleashed a massive crescent of pitch-black Nen! The blade of pure darkness swept downward like a guillotine, carrying a suffocating wave of Rule Suppression!
Ryker violently twisted his body mid-air. He wove his Lightning Core output together with his pale-gold [Trait Aegis], forming a desperate barrier that barely managed to deflect the apocalyptic slash!
"And now..."
Ryker's eyes lit up with a fanatical glow. He softly called upon the newly fused trait.
"Phantom Mirror Chain-Breath: Burst Form Activated!"
A drastically amplified wave of psychic perception exploded outward from his brain! This hyper-tuned awareness allowed him to perfectly capture the microscopic, internal operating rhythms of the Dark Eye.
And that was when he saw it.
Hidden deep within the shattered remains of the Rule Node were countless, fractured streams of data! They were completely exposed, making them incredibly vulnerable to the System's new [Trait Armament] mechanic!
"System! Initiate [Trait Armament: Data Infiltration]!"
[Infiltration Success Rate: 78%]
[Infiltration Target: Deep-layer data streams within the Rule Node.]
[Notice: Successful infiltration will unlock hidden traits and critical weaknesses.]
Ryker's fingers danced through the air, drawing complex Nen-runes at blinding speed. The blazing lightning and the System's digital data streams intertwined, forcibly injecting Ryker's own trait-code directly into the Eye's Rule Node!
The Dark Eye thrashed violently! The spatial tremors grew even more catastrophic as the entity teetered on the verge of complete structural collapse!
"Is this... the resistance of a Rule?" Ryker thought, gritting his teeth against the pressure.
The System warnings blared incessantly as the [Trait Armament] engine was pushed to its absolute breaking point.
Simultaneously, the [Infinite Trait Plunder System] deep within Ryker's soul unexpectedly triggered a mysterious, entirely unprecedented notification:
[Discovered: "Dark Continent — Core Rule Fragment"]
[Fragment Activation: Can temporarily reverse the Rule Suppression status.]
[Activation Condition: Requires an equivalent sacrifice of System Stability.]
"Use it!" Ryker didn't hesitate for a single microsecond.
A blinding white light erupted from his Lightning Core! It instantly neutralized a massive portion of the Dark Continent's oppressive suppression, immediately pushing the System's Core Stability back up to 80%!
At that exact same moment, the [Infinite Trait Plunder System] underwent an unprecedented ascension. The total number of plundered traits in his registry violently spiked to 108!
[Trait Armament Complete!]
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