After the initial exchange with the speared Heroic Spirit, Lin Ran clearly felt that although these beings were quite strange, their physical strength was still inferior to his own.
Even though they were immune to this and that, he could still crush them with his pure personal stats!
Here goes!
Wielding the Slaughter Undying Blade, Lin Ran decisively pressed forward, slashing at the Heroic Spirits' heads one after another.
Although all these attacks were blocked by the Heroic Spirits, they still caused considerable obstruction.
Facing Lin Ran, whose body gleamed with yellow and green light, the Heroic Spirits showed no fear. With a whoosh, they surrounded him and unleashed a barrage of blows.
Taking this opportunity to fend off their assault, Lin Ran also took the time to observe their weapons.
Classified by weapon, these seven Heroic Spirits were: the Saber-wielding Heroic Spirit, the Sword-wielding Heroic Spirit, the Twin Daggers Heroic Spirit, the Shield-wielding Heroic Spirit, the Speared Heroic Spirit, the Halberd-wielding Heroic Spirit, and the Great Axe Heroic Spirit.
Not only were their stat panels incredibly formidable, but their coordination with each other was also top-notch.
If he were to face just one of them, Lin Ran believed he could handle it with relative ease.
However, facing their combined force, which was far greater than the sum of its parts (1+1+1+1+1+1+1), Lin Ran naturally found himself in a difficult fight.
Moreover, two dragon souls, one blue and one green, circled overhead, constantly harassing Lin Ran with ranged attacks while also bestowing inexplicable enhancement buffs upon the Heroic Spirits from time to time.
Although Lin Ran didn't know what those buffs did, just seeing them shining brightly was enough to make him feel annoyed.
Room domain, activate!
Lin Ran promptly took out the Operation-Operation Fruit, which he hadn't used in a long time, and enveloped everyone present within its domain.
Room: Operating Theater!
Utilizing the separation ability of the Operation-Operation Fruit, Lin Ran madly manipulated his mana to cut at the Heroic Spirits, attempting to neutralize their offensive capabilities first.
As expected, it didn't work...
The Heroic Spirits and Dragon Souls, protected by a mysterious power, were completely unfazed by this. The Operation-Operation Fruit's abilities only had a minor effect.
However, Lin Ran was merely probing, and there was no loss in trying.
The main reason he deployed the Room domain was to aid himself...
Like now!
*Crack!*
Just as the Great Axe Heroic Spirit's axe was about to chop down on Lin Ran's arm, Lin Ran's arm suddenly detached from his body, dodging the axe. In the next instant, it reattached itself, and he counter-attacked with his sword, stabbing at the Great Axe Heroic Spirit.
This was the first time Lin Ran had directly attacked a Heroic Spirit's body, but the effect was still not very significant.
The Heroic Spirit's body, covered in a mysterious mist, seemed to be coated in a slippery, transparent liquid. Like a loach, it smoothly deflected Lin Ran's sword.
However, Lin Ran had already achieved his objective. The moment the Slaughter Undying Blade pierced the Great Axe Heroic Spirit, the curse effect it carried was activated.
This curse, visible only to Lin Ran, spread from the point of impact on the Heroic Spirit, gradually covering its entire body.
Seeing his strategy succeed, Lin Ran didn't rush to pursue the Great Axe Heroic Spirit. Instead, he let it go for now and turned to attack the other Heroic Spirits, aiming to distribute the curse power of his Slaughter Undying Blade as evenly as possible.
Watching the intense battle in the arena, Chizuru Ginshiro, whose gaze was drifting, suddenly slapped her thigh.
"Oh no!"
Tanaka Ken'go, who was also intently observing the situation, was startled by her outburst.
"What are you yelling about?! Can't you speak properly?"
"And even if you were to yell, why is it always something negative?"
"Right now, everyone is at best at a stalemate. No one has fully exerted themselves yet, so what's gone wrong?"
"What's more, under this so-called 'normal state' of Lin Ran's strongest form, his mana is draining at an alarming rate..."
"If this drags on, the advantage will be significant!"
Chizuru Ginshiro glanced at Tanaka Ken'go and snorted dismissively.
"Hmph, how many times have I told you, you still haven't grasped the situation..."
"As expected of an old man, you've perfectly embodied the arrogance and stubbornness of elders, along with the foolishness of being unable to learn new things!"
"In this battle, the most crucial element is no longer the clash of strength against strength, but the grinding of rule against rule."
"Only by gaining an advantage in the power of rules can one become the master of the arena!"
"As for other things, they are mere trifles!"
Tanaka Ken'go, however, did not get angry. He continued to smile and asked,
"Then, in your opinion, has the rule power that Lin Ran is currently displaying gained the upper hand in this battle?"
Tanaka Ken'go's deliberate act of feigning ignorance and foolishness with Chizuru Ginshiro was not without purpose.
As an old fox who had lived for so long, how could he be so naive? He had no need to argue with a young girl.
The main reason he was doing this was:
Through his interactions with Chizuru Ginshiro over the past few times, he had discovered that while Chizuru Ginshiro might possess unfathomable strength, her mindset was still that of a very ordinary young girl.
This might be related to the fact that the Priest organization always operated in the shadows and rarely interacted with others.
Facing such a perfect target, extracting information was incredibly simple...
At this moment, he was not only interested in the seemingly preposterous concept of "rule power" that Chizuru Ginshiro spoke of, but he also wanted to take this opportunity to learn more about the little-known Priest organization, and even uncover some secrets about the Heroic Spirit shrines. It was a win-win-win situation.
Moreover, through previous tests and investigations, Tanaka Ken'go knew that Chizuru Ginshiro appeared to be the Saintess of the Priest organization, holding an incredibly high status, making the value of extracting information exceptionally high.
Chizuru Ginshiro's expression improved slightly upon hearing Tanaka Ken'go ask a somewhat more informed question, and she began to generously impart her knowledge.
"Not quite yet... It's mainly because Lin Ran's recent actions have made me uneasy..."
"It's because he seems to have used another type of rule power just now, and it inexplicably bypassed the Heroic Spirits' rule power."
"Now, not only am I unsure of the effect of his rule power, but I also cannot find any way to counter it..."
"The only thing we know for sure now is that the Heroic Spirits seem to have all been hit!"
"And that's not the most important thing..."
"The most important thing is that, including the 'guaranteed hit' rule he used before, he has now displayed two types of rule power!"
"This means that, unlike you, a complete idiot regarding rule power, he is a 'Rule Enforcer' who can both perceive and wield rule power!"