Time passed second by second. When the smoke from the explosion had fully dissipated, Cooler reappeared in everyone's line of sight.
But now, he no longer had the confidence and arrogance he had at the beginning.
His damaged mechanical mask and the wounds all over his body made him cut a sorry figure.
Cooler's expression was grim, and his blood-red eyes seethed with murderous intent.
"I thought you might surprise me, but you're such a disappointment. You're too weak, Cooler. The gap between us has become permanent over these past two years." Talot looked at Cooler with his arms crossed, his words transmitted through aura, tinged with a hint of disappointment.
These words, like a lingering demonic chant, echoed in Cooler's ears and deeply stung his pride.
'Whoosh~~!!' An icy blue aura erupted around Cooler.
His aura surged continuously, forming a pressure so intense it dimmed the sky.
Lightning flashed through the dense dark clouds, occasionally illuminating Cooler's demonic appearance.
"Hm? His aura rose again?! Now this is getting interesting." Talot was slightly surprised, becoming more alert.
Cooler's power had clearly reached a new level compared to before.
Though still not quite at Talot's current level, it was close.
At the very least, his power level had exceeded 700 million, but probably around 750 million.
"You damn monkey! I'll grind your bones to dust!" Cooler shouted in fury, raising his hand and firing a highly condensed white-purple energy ball.
Talot responded by raising his own hand, releasing a massive Spiraling Energy Ball.
'Boom~!!!'
The two immensely powerful energy balls collided mid-air, exploding once more into a thick wall of flames.
But it didn't end there. Cooler's furious assault had only just begun.
A Death Slicer cut through the flaming wall, slicing through everything in its path as it charged toward Talot.
Seeing that, Talot slapped, instantly shattering the Death Slicer.
Was it over?!
No!
In the very next second, a torrential barrage of energy blasts rained down like a storm, encircling Talot.
"Such petty tricks, and you dare show them off?" With a wave of his hand, Talot's formless aura expanded outward, detonating all the incoming blasts at once.
The resulting explosion clouded the area in thick smoke, obscuring Talot's vision. Hidden within that smoke, Cooler waited silently for the perfect moment to strike with a killing blow.
"Using the smoke from the explosion to block my line of sight and disrupt my senses, while hiding in the shadows to wait for an opportunity… it's actually a solid tactic. Too bad, it doesn't work on me." Talot had already seen through Cooler's little trick, his sharp Ki Sense locking precisely onto Cooler's location.
Talot swiftly turned and threw a punch that landed squarely on Cooler's abdomen.
The force of the blow pierced through Cooler's body, unleashing a tempest that completely swept away the surrounding smoke.
"Ugh….Aaaahhhh!!!"
Cooler let out a howl of agony from the crushing impact, clutching his stomach as he staggered backward. His face twisted in pain, eyes bulging as wide.
It was clear just how devastating Talot's punch had been.
"Your little tricks are pathetic. Now, let me show you something real." A wicked grin spread across Talot's lips. He had decided to widen Cooler's horizons.
In a flash, Talot's figure began to turn illusory, until he completely vanished from Cooler's sight.
"Gone?! No, this is a stealth technique!!" Cooler, well-versed in psychic powers, instantly recognized the move and widened his eyes even further.
Other than Instant Transmission, there was also an invisibility technique. No wonder he kept making misjudgments during the fight. He had been played for a fool!
While Cooler seethed with hatred, Talot had already launched a silent attack.
'Bang!!!' A dull thud rang out as Cooler took a heavy blow to the face and was instantly knocked backward.
"Damn monkey!! If you've got the guts, fight me head-on!!" Stabilizing himself, Cooler scanned his surroundings, his battle instincts on full alert.
For someone who couldn't use Ki Sense, Talot's invisibility combined with perfect aura control made him completely undetectable.
In the midst of Cooler's panic, Talot silently approached from behind and delivered a fierce kick.
'Boom!!!' Cooler was sent crashing forward in response.
But this time, Cooler didn't go down easily. Enduring the pain, he quickly turned and fired over a dozen Death Beams at his previous position.
However, it was all in vain, a pointless waste of energy.
[You can't even use basic Ki Sense, Cooler. What comes next… you brought it on yourself.] In his invisible state, Talot simply watched Cooler attacking wildly in all directions, as if watching a clown perform.
The next second, Talot's silent torment of Cooler began once more!
Like a ghost, Talot moved around Cooler's body. Every time Cooler showed an opening, Talot would land a punishing blow without mercy.
Blow after blow, Talot's attacks not only battered Cooler's body but also tormented his spirit.
After being struck dozens of times, Cooler's rage reached a boiling point.
In that instant, he no longer cared about anything.
"Enough!!!!!!!" Cooler roared furiously into the sky, his extreme fury unlocking his hidden potential.
His strength surged again, releasing a terrifying aura.
The sheer force of it forced Talot out of his invisible state.
Talot was once again taken aback by the explosive growth in Cooler's power. It was unbelievable.
Originally, he had only intended to push Cooler enough so that he'd give him at least a proper fight. But now, the intensity of his aura has already surpassed his current level!
"Anger served as the fuse to ignite some unknown potential within him… and his strength skyrocketed?" Talot muttered to himself.
Judging by the aura Cooler was now releasing, his power level had definitely exceeded 800 million, reaching 900 million, and the surge was still continuing, seemingly aiming for 1 billion.
"Whether it's Instant Transmission or the Stealth Technique, you won't escape this time! This planet no longer has any reason to exist!!!" With his power soaring, Cooler cast everything else aside.
He no longer cared for things like Instant Transmission!
He was going to reduce this planet to dust in the cosmos.
And this time, he would absolutely not give Talot the chance to escape again.
Cooler erupted with aura, forcibly locking onto Talot's position.
This was specifically to prevent Talot from fleeing.
Then he shot into the sky. Upon reaching a certain height, he raised his hand high, channeling all of his energy into his palm.
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