Click.
A crisp metallic sound echoed across the battlefield.
The massive adaptation wheel above Mahoraga rotated once more.
The sound was heavy and ancient—
Like the grinding of fate itself.
The body that had previously been shredded by Sukuna's slashing technique suddenly stabilized.
The disintegrating flesh stopped collapsing.
A pale white glow seeped from the wounds.
When Sukuna's invisible slash struck again—
Instead of cutting through—
It produced a sharp metallic clang.
Sparks scattered.
"Already adapting?"
Ryomen Sukuna narrowed his eyes.
A crooked smile appeared on his face.
"Interesting."
"Very interesting."
However—
Before Sukuna could continue testing the adaptation—
A black afterimage suddenly tore through the battlefield.
BOOM!
The sound of sonic air tearing exploded.
A new force had entered the clash.
"Hey."
Yagami Sora's voice rang out coldly.
"Old man."
"Stop playing around."
Sora appeared behind Mahoraga instantly.
His black wings spread open.
Every feather gleamed like sharpened steel.
Each one was formed from compressed vector energy.
"Vector Manipulation — Black Wing Thousand Needles."
Thousands of blades erupted.
A storm of wind vectors.
Each attack approached from different angles.
Avoiding the trajectories Mahoraga had just adapted to.
PFFFT! PFFFT!
The blades pierced through Mahoraga's armor.
Pinning the gigantic shikigami to the ground.
Dark blood splashed across the broken floor.
Mahoraga roared.
The entire station trembled.
Then—
The wheel rotated again.
Click.
Yagami Sora's eyes sharpened.
He could feel the change immediately.
The black feathers embedded in Mahoraga's body began slowing.
As if some invisible resistance had appeared.
Some even began shifting direction—
Attempting to rebound.
The data stream inside Sora's eyes refreshed rapidly.
[WARNING: Target analyzing vector interaction]
[Parsing progress: 1%... 5%...]
[Alert: Opponent attempting reverse-force computation]
[Constructing counter vector field]
Sora frowned slightly.
Mahoraga wasn't simply adapting to attacks.
It was adapting to the underlying physical rules of the attack.
Then—
Something strange appeared inside the system interface.
A line of golden code.
Not the usual blue.
[Unknown interference source detected]
[Code fragment: vect—protect—α_line_core]
[External computational unit connected]
[Temporary processing power increase: +20%]
[Prediction time reduced: 0.3 seconds]
Yagami Sora froze.
For the first time—
The system had displayed something he didn't recognize.
That sensation…
Was strange.
It felt as though another mind had connected to his.
Across space.
Across time.
Across an immeasurable void.
Someone—
Was accelerating his calculations.
As if an unseen ally was fighting alongside him.
His pupils contracted slightly.
Then he noticed something familiar.
The suffix of the code.
α_line_core
That identifier—
Appeared once before.
During the system settlement of Chapter 55.
When the system marked the timeline labeled:
[Alpha Line]
The timeline where—
Riko Amanai survived.
And Suguru Geto never fell into darkness.
A better world.
A gentler timeline.
His own alternate future.
The system interface updated again.
[System Deep Record]
[Alpha-Line Causal Channel: ACTIVE]
[Source Coordinates: α-Line / Year 2056]
[Sender: Yagami Sora (α)]
[Message: One-time computational support granted]
[Note: Final gift left before death]
Yagami Sora went silent.
For 0.1 seconds.
In battles at this level—
0.1 seconds determined life or death.
But he didn't use it to dodge.
Or attack.
Instead—
He spoke quietly.
"…Thanks."
Whoever you are.
Future me.
Another timeline.
Or someone who saved a different world.
I'll take this power.
The golden code dissolved.
Merging into the system core.
Sora's pupils glowed faint blue.
Processing speed skyrocketed.
Mahoraga's adaptation patterns—
Attack trajectories—
Force vectors—
All appeared as predictive models.
Sora smiled coldly.
"You're trying to analyze me?"
"My calculation speed surpasses a quantum computer."
"You think you can compete with that piece of junk wheel?"
His wings spread wider.
The airflow around the battlefield began distorting.
"You want to adapt?"
"Fine."
"Let's raise the difficulty."
The battlefield trembled.
Because the next attack—
Would no longer follow any predictable pattern.
And Mahoraga—
Was about to face something it had never encountered before.
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