Mental attacks had some use against Michael, but it was not like his mental defenses were low. On the contrary, Michael had the Legendary Ring Artifact, which strengthened his mental power, and several Soultraits, which enhanced his mind passively.
Last but not least, Wisdom Breaker shattered his mind into countless fragments and refined them before putting them together once again. It was incredible painful and dangerous, but it also drastically strengthened his mental defenses. Therefore, he didn't get knocked out even as one of the Elite Tekur's 3-Star Mind Stab Soultrait, amplified with a Low Elite Class Soul Technique, impacted heavily.
It hurt and was enough to distract him for a quarter of a second, but Michael pinpointed the perpetrator almost instantly and used Cosmic Stride to appear beside him. The Aethyr Claw pierced through the Tekur's skull before he could again release his Soultrait.
Some Supreme Soldiers tried to catch up to him, but Michael was too strong and fast. His body was on the verge of tearing apart, his skin bursting apart, blood gushing out of him from dozens of spots, but Archangel's Grace did an impeccable job keeping him alive.
Several minutes passed in the blink of an eye. Michael slumped to the ground, gasping for air.
[I told you not to overdo it with Foundation Break!] Danny shouted.
Michael wanted to say something, but he couldn't. He was in dire need of some oxygen.
His legs quivered, forcing Michael to sit down for a moment.
"That was amazing!" He murmured once he was done gasping for air.
[Amazing? I can tell your body was about to crumble more than three times in the last five minutes! What are you amazed about? Because you're still alive? What the hell is wrong with you?!?]
Michael would have loved to shove his brother from his mind for a moment, but he knew that Danny would hold a grudge against him if he avoided this argument.
"No risk, no reward," He responded lightly, knowing damn well that Danny wouldn't like this.
[No risk…no reward… Wait! Is that how you normally fight? You charge into the masses of enemies, go all-out, and hope that your enemies die. Is that it?]
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtMichael didn't say anything, but that was the answer enough.
[A single miscalculation and you'll die… You're the cause of 90% of my headaches. Seriously.]
Michael felt like saying, 'You cannot feel headaches,' but he kept his lips sealed. It was probably better not to provoke his brother too much.
[Can you try not to get yourself killed…please?]
"I'm already trying," Michael said before realizing he had made another mistake. He hurriedly added, "But I can change my strategy if you want."
He rested his body for a while, only for Danny's lecture to torment his mind. Michael had to listen to his brother's complaints for an hour before his brother switched to telling him where he could improve.
Even though Danny didn't have a body, he had full access to the changes and movements inside Michael. He could sense the faintest changes in Michael's body whenever he moved. This applied to every trace of origin energy that passed through his body, Michael's lifeforce, and every single time Michael used his techniques and Soultraits.
It took Danny a few months to sense everything as perfectly as he did right now, but now that he was capable of perceiving Michael's body perfectly, he could give his brother some valuable tips.
Michael was glad his brother stopped lecturing him. Tips and tricks were more useful than lectures. Michael wouldn't change the way he approached most battles, either. He sincerely doubted that anything would change merely because Danny told him it was foolish to fight like this.
But while ignoring Danny's lecture, Michael wouldn't dare do the same with his tips and tricks. Michael went through the tips and tricks with genuine interest and tried applying them shortly. He'd rested long enough to start experimenting once again.
He spent the following hours experimenting until his body had fully recuperated. If he had applied Archangel's Grace a little longer, Michael would have been ready to depart earlier, but he was not in a rush.
Since he was the only member of the Tritan Alliance who participated in the Flag War, Michael didn't have to protect anyone but himself. Rushing from battle to battle would endanger him. Furthermore, he had various Memory Orbs to digest.
The Flag War existed to make him stronger, after all.
The Tekur couldn't run from him either. No matter where they were in the isolated dimension, they couldn't escape his grasp.
But now it was time to destroy the Dimensional Pillar.
Michael stood in front of the towering Dimensional Pillar, a faint smile blossoming on his face. The Dimensional Pillar was eerily black and thicker than the towering trees in the Untamed Jungle. Even skyscrapers were tiny in comparison. However, Micahel just smiled.
He activated the Cursed Seals and gathered True Extraction at the tip of his finger. A golden glimmer enveloped his index finger. At first, the hue was only faint, but as time passed, it shone brighter. A thick membrane of Extraction's power formed around his finger. It dazzled brightly at the tip of his finger where most power congregated.
Michael focused entirely on True Extraction and smiled only faintly when a faint spark crackled above his fingernail. The crackling expanded rapidly until it filled the area before Michael. Michael swallowed hard when he saw that the sparks extracted everything they touched. The surface of the Dimensional Pillar was scratched and removed just as easy as the dry soil around them was removed as the sparks impacted.
The sparks transformed into golden currents that swept wildly through the vicinity. It required considerable effort and time to control the wild currents. However, once Michael gained control of them, he compressed the currents into a small globe the size of a dot. The globe crackled wildly as if trying to escape the confinement.
Unfortunately, Michael's willpower overwhelmed the wild currents. The globe expanded as more extraction currents channeled into it, but Michael compressed it again to keep it at the size of a fingernail.
Time passed slowly.
[I know that I told you to improve your control of True Extraction, but aren't you overdoing it?] Danny asked, only for Michael to snap back.
"Now you say I'm doing too much. Is it possible to please you, or will you complain about everything I do?"
Compressing the extraction currents several times into the golden globe was far from easy. It put a heavy toll on Michael's mind, yet he didn't even think of staying silent. It bothered him even more than usual, to be precise.
Fortunately, he was done now.
Michael opened his eyes and disregarded the sweat that poured down his face in streams. He pressed the golden globe lightly against the Dimensional Pillar's surface and pushed further. The Dimensional Pillar gave in without any resistance, and the globe consumed everything in its path.
'Very good.'
The faint smile on his lips widened, and Michael released the globe. He refrained from erupting with its full power until the golden globe reached the center of the Dimensional Pillar.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmThe second the globe reached its destination, Michael stopped trying to control it.
The extraction currents forcefully compressed inside the golden globe before they erupted outward in an uncontrolled burst. They lunged in all directions and consumed everything in their path.
There was no loud explosion. On the contrary, an eerie silence filled the vicinity.
Suddenly, golden currents burst through the pitch-black Dimensional Pillar's surface. They spread in all directions and consumed everything in their path.
Then it happened.
A loud crack reverberated through the vicinity.
The Dimensional Pillar slowly tilted in one direction.
The cracking noises grew louder, sounding like bell chimes in Michael's ears. His plan worked out even better than expected.
At last, the Dimensional Pillar collapsed.
[That was…not bad…] Danny praised reluctantly.
Michael snorted, hoping that he could hit his brother soon.
"That's only one of four. The other Dimensional Pillars are still waiting for me!"
[And a bunch of Tekur.]
"And a bunch of Tekur," Michael agreed, the excitement in his heart rising.
The Flag War was a lot better than he had wished for.
**