While I was chanting a curse, the system said I was Xiao Yan?

Arisaka Jiro quickly calculated in his mind.

A head-on clash? He can't win. This kid's bones are ridiculously hard. His dagger can't even scratch his skin. It's just a waste of energy to keep going.

run?

He couldn't match the young man's speed; that burst of speed just now proved that.

Then there's only one way left: wait it out!

The goal is to wear down the opponent's magical power, wear down their patience, and wear them down until they give up on their own.

This is his most proficient tactic. His spell "Reversal of Strength and Weakness" makes him immune to most attacks, while each attack from the opponent consumes his spell power.

As long as he can hold on, he'll win sooner or later.

Arisaka Jiro took a deep breath, gripped the dagger tightly again, and a smile spread across his face.

"Sato, your punches are pretty good, but they're still lacking something."

He beckoned to Tianyan with his finger: "Come on, let this uncle see what other tricks you have up your sleeve."

Tianyan stopped not far in front of him, looked at him, and did not make a move immediately.

His gaze swept over Arisaka Jiro, from his smiling face to his hands holding the knife, to the dagger that gleamed coldly in the sunlight, to the work clothes striped by the black flash, and the skin underneath that didn't even have a red mark left.

Then Tianyan laughed.

The smile was faint, the corners of his mouth only slightly curved, but the moment Arisaka Jiro saw that smile, an inexplicable unease welled up in his heart.

"Uncle."

Tianyan spoke, his voice not loud but clear: "Your technique is indeed very troublesome, so I'm going to give you something good..."

Then they ran away!

The curse power within his body had been greatly depleted, yet this old guy in front of him couldn't even be harmed by Black Flash, which possesses extremely strong destructive power both internally and externally!

Who knows what kind of trouble might arise if we keep fighting? Fortunately, his attack power and desire to attack don't seem to be very strong, so let him stay here and play by himself!

Tianyan raised his right hand, his five fingers spread out, palm facing up.

Pink flames surged from his palm, dancing in the sunlight, emanating a sweet, heart-pounding aura.

Arisaka Jiro frowned.

The pink fireball wasn't very hot; he couldn't even feel the heat. The color of the flame was as soft as a blooming cherry blossom, and it even looked somewhat...beautiful in the sunlight.

He wasn't unfamiliar with fire-based spells, but this ball of pink fire gave him a strange feeling. It wasn't a threat of temperature, but rather an inexplicable aura that instinctively made him uneasy.

That must have made him nervous; it must have been a very powerful killing move!

"What is this?"

Tianyan did not answer.

He simply flicked his wrist and threw the ball of pink fire away.

The pink flames traced an arc in the air, slowly flying towards Arisaka Jiro. The speed was not fast, and the power did not seem to be great. It was just a small ball of pink fire, not even as impressive as the fire juggling performed by street magicians.

As Arisaka Jiro watched the pink fireball fly towards him, a slight smile curved his lips. He made a judgment in his mind: Had he sacrificed speed for immense destructive power? There wasn't even a trace of high temperature in the air, so all the heat must be confined to that small ball of flame!

That was a powerful move!

It's definitely more powerful than that black flash from before!

But no problem! I can handle it!

Arisaka Jiro grinned, revealing a smile; that was his assessment!

His technique, "Reversal of Strength and Weakness," is best suited to counter such extremely powerful moves!

What I like to deal with most are opponents who keep using their powerful killing moves until they eventually run out of their own magical power!

Come on, I'll take it all for you!

Arisaka Jiro, who was operating the technique at full power, did not dodge.

He didn't even blink, letting the ball of pink fire smash into his chest.

"laugh!"

Like throwing a red-hot iron into water, white steam rose from Arisaka Jiro's chest, accompanied by a piercing hissing sound.

The smile on Arisaka Jiro's face froze for a moment.

His eyes widened, his pupils contracted to the size of pinpoints, and the expression on his face changed from disdain to bewilderment, from bewilderment to shock, and from shock to fear.

The pink flame was not weakened by the "inversion of strength" as he had expected.

It was pressed against his chest, burning fiercely.

The temperature was extremely high, as if it were stuck to his skin, and he couldn't get rid of it no matter what he did!

Arisaka Jiro reached out to pat the flames, but his hand caught fire as well. He tried to cover it with his clothes, but those clothes caught fire the moment they touched the flames.

He rolled on the ground, trying to extinguish the flames with sand, but the flames clung to him as if they were alive.

"What...what the hell is this?!"

His voice finally betrayed fear.

It wasn't pain, it was fear.

Moreover, he sensed that the flame was burning his magical power!

It burned his skin, set his clothes ablaze, and continued to burn the cursed power within him!

The magical power covering his body to maintain the operation of the "Inversion of Strength and Weakness" technique was like dry wood meeting a raging fire, ignited by the pink flames, and then began to burn fiercely!

As he activated the spell, continuously pouring in magical power, the flames burned even more intensely and spread even faster!

It spread from the chest to the shoulders, from the shoulders to the arms, and from the arms to the whole body.

The pink flames grew stronger and stronger, from a small ball to several large balls, and from several large balls to a pink fire coat, enveloping Arisaka Jiro completely.

"Aaaaaaah!"

Arisaka Jiro finally let out a scream.

He could feel himself being violently devoured by that ball of flame! It was as if something was sucking his blood, eating his flesh, and gnawing at his bones, from the inside out and from the outside in, with nowhere to escape!

He rolled frantically on the ground, trying to extinguish the flames, but with each roll, the flames merely moved from one patch of skin to another, never diminishing in the slightest.

His magical power was burning, his body was burning, and his consciousness was burning.

In the flames, his skin began to blacken, crack, and peel off, revealing bright red muscle tissue underneath. Then, that muscle tissue quickly dried up and charred, releasing a nauseating, burnt smell.

The screams of the man with the chestnut head grew weaker and weaker until they finally disappeared completely.

He stopped moving.

The flames burned for about ten seconds before slowly dying down.

All that remained on the ground was a clump of charred remains.

Curled up, stiff, like a piece of charred charcoal.

Hearing the screams behind him, Tianyan stopped running in the opposite direction, stood a short distance away, looked back at the charred mass, remained silent for a moment, and a question mark slowly appeared above his head.

What happened?