Earth's Greatest Magus

Some people would not consider him human.

It was an undeniable fact that 38% of his body was made of metals, with more than half of his organs being replaced and synthesized by state-of-the-art technologies, he couldn't really refute those people as they were right to a certain extent.

Top of the line sensor, advanced processor, and the new experimental Ion reactor that was installed on his inner plexus to function as one of the most successful techno magic integration ever created.

He was a rare specimen, an existence that created history in Techno Magic Integration.

It has been 10 years since he was forced to undergo such an excruciating experiment. Even so, he still recalled the unforgettable memory of him withstanding the torturous pain of being cut apart, examined like a lab rat while bearing the agony of his entire body being destroyed and rebuilt piece by piece.

Yet he survived and pushed forward against all odds. He was modified into something stronger, faster than an ordinary human could.

Atlas III stood strong in the arena to prove to himself that all the sacrifices and pains he had gone through had somehow meant something much greater than everyone perceived.

The half-machine Acolyte was finally here and came to face Eeshoo the Nephilim genius at the same stage. The exact person who was considered as a figure of Perfection by the people who created him.

[Warning! Multiple flying objects approaching]

Floating in the middle of the arena, Eeshoo went on a full-on offense sending his Soaring Shuttles like a swarm of angry bees. But of course, Atlas would not remain still to accept those attacks

[Calculate evading pattern with the most efficient outcome]

Swwwhhhh swwhhhh

As the multiple warnings rang in his head, the advanced processors installed in him helped Atlas to calculate and set the most viable solution to his problem as he quickly dodged in a most effective manner from Eeshoo's Soaring Shuttles.

It was a fierce Aerial battle with both figures flying, one shooting a rain of lightning bolts from his palms while the other controlled a crowd of specialized spirit reader weapons.

Eeshoo soared high into the sky with confidence as he showcased three bright majestic ethereal wings of energy on his back that proclaimed his proficiency in the usage of stage 3 of the Nephilim divine skill [Angelic Descent].

With that level of proficiency, the Nephilim genius could comfortably control 16 of the flying artifacts.

Seeing how Atlas easily maneuvered through his attacks in spite of the overwhelming number, Eeshoo decided to up the stake and stopped holding back.

[Angelic Descent - stage 4]

[Battle power increased by 80]

[Spirit force increase by 400]

Eeshoo made it clear that he has no plan to take it easy fighting against the half-machine acolyte.

Utilizing the boost in his spirit force, Eeshoo went ahead and doubled his attack power by increasing the number of Soaring Shuttle he controlled to a staggering thirty-two. If what Atlas faced before was rain, now it has turned into a storm.

What's more, even with the mental burden increasing in proportion to the number of controlled artifacts, Eeshoo's attacks were still as unrelenting as before. In fact, it just kept on getting much faster, stronger, and more precise.

However, displaying his mettle as the challenger, Atlas did not crumble under the increased intensity of attacks.

The current situation was still under his expectation, as he had gone through recording of Andora's battle and analyzed Eeshoo's power level, and his pattern of attack. All in order to prepare a counter for each card in the latter's repertoire.

Simply put, Atlas had come prepared.

He had also spent the contribution points he received from battle, and got himself a new upgrade on his cybernetic arm. Added with the gruesome weeks of training, Atlas has managed to create a new powerful weapon made especially for this exact scenario where Eeshoo was his opponent.

[Active amplification mode]

[Spirit force resonation in progress]

Thanks to the marvel of technology, Atlas was now capable of changing his current attack into something much more refined. Instead of releasing a powerful blast that wreaked havoc everywhere like he always did, the new weapon refined the crude way of manipulating the energy, turning it into a single concentrated beam of destructive energy.

[Ion Beam]

This new spell-based weapon packed a much more powerful piercing effect, giving it enough strength to stop and even knock back Eeshoo's powerful stage 4 divine skill.

It even carried enough force to create a crack on his robust light defensive barrier.

The spectacle of Atlas flying in the air, narrowly escaping multiple shuttles that bombarded him while managing to counter with his Ion beam at every possible opportunity, brought much cheer from the spectators.

However, Atlas wasn't just flying around. He collected more and more data about Eeshoo, calculating more options with every attack he dodged. He was biding his time, silently preparing for his final attack.

[Calcutes best approach to the target]

With enough data collected by the shuttle attack, the processor in his brain prepared the best pattern for the final attack, and he swiftly took it when the opportunity presented itself.

He flew in the calculated path, evading each attack as if he predicted the future.

8 shuttle

16 shuttle

24 shuttle

Atlas' figure dodged and dashed through them all, causing cheers to explode from the audience. As he entered the requisite range, Atlas cast his strongest spell without an ounce of hesitation, being just 10 meters away from Eeshoo.

A critical unavoidable distance.

[Flare Tempest]

Kaabooommmmmm!!!!

Atlas' strongest combined spell of fire and lightning, which has been drastically amplified by his new cybernetic arms, hit right at his opponent Eeshoo. The air above the arena turned into a huge explosion, threatening the lives of some of the spectators if it were not for the barrier that surrounded the place.

Unfortunately for Atlas, he quickly realized the battle was not done yet.

[Target not destroyed]

When the smoke dissipated, Atlas saw Eeshoo was mostly unscathed, safeguarded by wide, unique metallic shield.

The shield swiftly broke apart into 16 flying blades, each about arm's length with runes engraved all over them.

Not many people were aware about the identity of this item, but as a member of Nephilim himself, Atlas has seen it before.

[Heaven Forbid Shuttle]

The higher-grade of soaring shuttle only to be seen in the hands of the elites of Nephilim magus. Something classified as a Tier 5 item, but if being used in high numbers, its power would far exceed the power of tier 6.

An artifact considered to be the hardest item to control thanks to its complexity, as even a talented spirit reader magus would need dozens of years to be able to control 8 of them. But here, 16 blades flew around the Nephilim putting those predecessors into shame under his genius.

His gaze pierced through the direction of Atlas as he said in indifference with a subtle emotion hidden in his eyes.

"If we had fought 6 months ago, I would probably have lost. But you see.. I too have improved…"

The new shuttle was too strong for Atlas beam, but the half-machine acolyte kept fighting fiercely, aware of his certain defeat.

[Left arm damage - require an immediate solution - system error- danger]

As Eeshoo revealed his card the fight ended up being one-sided, Atlas continuously received multiple warnings of malfunctions.

Not willing to accept such results, he readied himself to once again overcharge his reactor.

However, as if Eeshoo read through his opponent's thoughts, the Nephilim genius pierced one specific part of Atlas's body that instantly powered him down.

[Primary function damage - System shutdown in 10 seconds]

Apparently from the start, as the prince of the faction that created him, Eeshoo was aware of his weakness. A safety switch was installed to shut down their own creation when such a need arises.

It was never a fair fight, to begin with.

Before shutting down, Atlas heard Eeshoo's words turning into a whisper

"For all it's worth, I do enjoy fighting with you again"

"Eeshoo Nephilim wins"