With that pause, Sho knew that the enemy in front of him started to think if he still had any ace up his sleeves. Sho doesn't have any. But that doesn't mean he would just give up.
He's a human.
A human who knows how to struggle for his own life. Who has been so creative ever since he arrived on Sho's body.
He didn't have any ultimate move. But his mind worked wonders when he thought he couldn't get out of predicament anymore.
It felt almost natural to know how to escape and survive.
A lot of scrambled thoughts were going in Sho's mind but he immediately put them aside and rushed towards Asterion.
Upon reaching him, he extended his arm and tried to grab the body of Rahmath.
But Asterion was already alert. Sho just miserably grabbed at air. Yet he didn't give up. With his knowledge of Qi Energy, he started accumulating Energy, giving himself fuel as he ran after Asterion.
"Damn restriction." Asterion hissed while still dodging.
On the other hand, when Sho heard that, he felt glee.
He knew when Asterion admitted it was Asterion, he had no chance at all. He didn't think any human would know him. That a human who should fear him was now going after him.
A human contesting with a Mythical Creature? He was not even a demi-God. He was not some kind of hero who was born strong at all. Only with restriction can Sho contest to survive.
Sho had a clue earlier when his skill worked on Asterion. He knew there was some kind of chain binding Asterion. Like how there was a chain binding Fenrir. He instantly connected the two because for him, both were Mythical Creatures with their stories being locked up by their own people.
But clearly, Fenrir was not absolutely hostile while Asterion was hostile to everyone. It didn't hesitate to kill.
The difference between the two made him realize something. Feeling the light of hope, he got inspired and gathered more pure Qi Energy as he ran. He needed to catch up with Asterion. But even with it restricted, he still couldn't catch up. It was obvious because the Mythical Creature has a lower body of a bull. An animal surpasses humans way high above.
But Sho didn't felt discourage. *If I can't catch up as a plain human, then I'll use what I know to catch up! I'll use Qi Energy to catch up!*
He stubbornly gathered more Qi Energy. This time, as he continued to chase after Asterion, he was already using the Qi he gathered to travel in his way. Most of it was on his feet, calf and thigh. Just like his experiment with Qi on his brain, he wanted to increase the power in his feet–his speed! Using Qi Energy to catch up with the speed of an animal!
It might not have been possible before, but now, with Qi Energy and his experience with it, he knew it was possible.
"Damn mortal being!" Asterion hissed as it saw how Sho was speeding little by little. "You're just a mere mortal! A sacrifice! Food for me! Stop struggling!" It was visibly angered by Sho's treachery.
But Sho didn't care. He continued the chase.
Asterion was maddened and decided to teach him a lesson. The dodging half-man half-bull on the woman's body immediately changed position to charge. It stomped its feet and the next instant, it collided with Sho.
Sho was caught unprepared. He coughed up blood as he felt something inside him bleed. Yes, in Soul Avatar form, he felt hurt. But he gritted his teeth. His plan was to get hold of Asterion. And now, the Mythical Creature is charging at him! It was a chance he wouldn't let go!
So, even with the great impact that charged at him, he didn't dodge. He grabbed on Rahmath's body, hugging her and locking his hands into fist tightly with each other. He was lucky that Rahmath was a woman. If it was Evan or Zhuang, Sho who was just eighteen years old wouldn't be able to hug the whole body of an adult man. But with Rahmath, he could even lock his fingers to make sure Asterion wouldn't get out of his grip.
He didn't wait any second. As soon as his fingers intertwined, he immediately casted his skill.
"Hobbies!" he shouted. Because of the intensity of the battle, letting out his pained cry was his hope that it would be success.
His plan was simple. He needed to hold on to Rahmath, cast his Hobbies skill, then try to expel Asterion. It was like an exorcism. He thought of it after realizing the rebound Asterion experienced when he activated Hobbies.
But that wasn't his only goal. He wanted to take back his life force too. He was hoping that if his skill felt that someone had the hold of his life force, it would passively activate and get back what was his.
It was his gamble.
But he willingly took it.
Firstly, it was because he might be able to save Rahmath. If he successfully kicked out Asterion out of her body, then she would be saved. Her body was still moving, who can say that her Soul Avatar or Life Force was gone for good? He didn't know, so he could only try! He made a promise to Sho's best friend. He would try his best to save everyone he could! This is why he was doing it.
And second, if he didn't get his life force back, he knew that Sho's body would die in just five years time. Sho was supposed to be lucky! It would be too unlucky for the guy to just die suddenly.
That's why he gambled. He believed in Sho's luck.