"Look out" yelled Clay who helplessly attempted to form a rock spike under the monster that was attacking Damian, but it was to no avail since the activation time and piercing speed of the rock spike was too slow to do anything.

Damian was falling back and seemed helpless against the monster after losing balance.

The Wounded Maniac Transformation granted the mercenary a great boost in speed and power and along with that, it had grown long claws and small spikes all around its entire body.

The howling and screaming during the transformation was due to the extreme pain of the transformation and it was horrible to witness.

It was inhumane with the mercenary's body becoming more hunched and its entire bone structure changing. Bones were broken all around his body and while the body was being destroyed, it was being reformatted and the spikes were formed by bones that were protruding from its body.

He gained a crooked and animal-like appearance, but with it came extreme power, speed and animosity.

It seemed that Damian was about to be struck by both the arms of the monster he was facing after losing balance and falling backwards.

The Serpent Step footwork was too complex for him to lose concentration, especially when being attacked with rapid and powerful attacks that he had no choice but to evade.

However as he fell backwards, Damian was still calm and his aura suddenly changed and reverted to his usual blazing aura.

The change was instant and Damian's mastery over his Changeable Energy had greatly improved, while the density of his energy had also increased further after gaining a third Innate Ability.

As soon as his energy changed into Fire Energy, Damian quickly activated the Flame Burst but instead of releasing it from his feet like he usually would, he released it from his palms

The sudden explosion from his palms as he fell back launched him into the air and he flipped to regain balance before landing on the ground and switching his energy back into Shadow Energy.

What had occurred was too shocking and amazing, even for Damian who had never used the Flame Burst Skill through his hands.

His quick thinking, ability to switch the ability he was using and his energy wielding speed were all incredible.

However, despite that, the monster merely became more annoyed and didn't give him any time to rest as it burst towards him.

Damian's could barely avoid its attacks with his perceptive nature, fast reflexes, Serpent Step and the Shadow Speed Technique activated, and yet he was only able to do so because the attacks were wild and easy to predict.

If he fought an opponent with the same power as the monster he was facing, but was more intelligent and aware, he would struggle much more and would likely be unable to survive against them.

"Clay, make an opening" called out Damian as he jumped into the air.

Clay was focused and quick to react as a pillar of rock appeared beneath Damian's feet, allowing him to stand 2 metres above the monster.

Annoyed by the sudden appearance of a pillar of rock, the monster went to smash it, just like Damian and Clay were hoping.

As soon as it swung for the pillar, Damian jumped up off the pillar and quickly switched his Shadow Energy into Fire Energy and formed a fire spear that he pierced into the back of the monster.

Damian was able to switch between Shadow and Fire Energy that it almost seemed as though he could use them both at once and as he landed, on the ground, he turned around to see that his attack had barely damaged the monster.

The spear had pierced all the way through, but its recovery speed, vitality and craziness overcame the pain and damage with ease, and it was willing to destroy its body and burn all of its life force and cultivation in order to kill him.

Burning one's life force was irreversible along with burning one's cultivation and they were only used as a last resort and would require one to have learnt some sort of forbidden method or technique that would allow them to do so.

Although there were consumable treasures and items that could be used to restore one's life force and even reverse ageing, they are extremely rare and impossible for somebody within the Gobe Country to come across.

Meanwhile, burning one's cultivation couldn't be as easily restored by consuming a treasure and would require special items, treasures and medical attention to heal the meridians, dantian and energy pathways.

Then one would need to cultivate again from the beginning, however, it would be easier the second time around and their cultivation speed would be much faster if they were able to fully recover their body, which was nearly impossible.

However, the monster Damian was facing was burning them both its lifeforce and cultivation without a care in the world, which was why it was able to display such great speed, power and recovery speeds.

It swung its arm towards Damian's face, which he was narrowly able to dodge, but was still slashed on the shoulder.

Damian was already fatigued and wounded and was barely able to unleash his full power, but he had no choice but to continue fighting and needed a way to definitively kill the monster.

He had already caused it unnecessary suffering after striking it with a spear and Damian needed to pierce its head or heart, which even the monster wouldn't be able to recover from.

Damian looked over at Clay and the two experienced and intelligent youths seemed to be completely in sync.

"I haven't tried this yet and it will need a lot of control, but I have no choice" mumbled Clay to himself as he streamed a large amount of energy into his palms.

"I will create the opportunity for you to strike, so prepare your most powerful attack" he called out as the ground around the feet of the monster began to change.