Not that it mattered.
Victorious Rebirth was basically a failsafe. But that didn't mean he could just throw away his life.
Prince didn't know how strong he currently was, but he knew he was well past pre-System human bounds. The fact that this squid managed to so completely overwhelm his strength…
It's just a one level difference! Just one!
Suddenly, Prince remembered he had acquired a new skill.
His body sharpened. He would push this skill to its absolute limits.
In the next second, numerous deep cuts littered the under of the tentacles that surrounded him. Prince was hoping the Giant Squid would release him temporarily rather than squeezing him further in retaliation.
It worked, and the hold on him went slack.
Prince activated his speed boost, leaving a trail of bubbles in his wake.
He immediately homed in on the Giant Squid's body. He had to finish this quickly.
Prince landed on a tentacle, sliding across it while the squid tried to figure out how to get him. Prince took to the open water once more, pulling his fist back. His face was filled with pure anger.
"Titan's Fist."
Titan's Fist (I) has evolved into Titan's Fist (II)
[Normal] Titan's Fist (II): Pour all your energy into one singular devastating strike. Add Essence to increase the power of the strike.
Warrior's Aura (I) has evolved into Titan's Awakening (I)
[Rare] Titan's Awakening (I): You have gained slight understanding of the legendary Titans and wish to follow them, creating a pale imitation of a pale imitation of a pale imitation of a Titan at war.
Oh? Did Titan's Fist evolution influence Warrior's Aura-
A surge of power made Prince's eyes widen. A giant, golden phantom fist similar to the palm (yet a bit smaller) slammed into the Giant Squid's face with an insane amount of force.
Prince himself was too focused on his body to look at the effects of the attack, however.
His body was covered in a thin golden sheen, as if he sweat gold. His muscles grew, his whole body gaining a surge of intense strength. His hair turned red and grew, now a wild mess that floated about.
The aura that radiated off of him was twice as strong as Warrior's Will. It did, however, last half as long and would have greater repercussions. Prince could sense that.
But for all intents and purposes, he was temporarily E-Grade.
The squid recovered, throwing a tentacle in surprise. Prince just swung his hand like a sword. The tentacle cut in half without much effort.
This power…!
Prince grinned, cracking his knuckles, the water heating around him. "Now it's a fair fight, huh?"
Prince exploded forward, the water behind him rippling and quaking. He had to be moving at hundreds of miles an hour.
Prince's straightened hand pierced through the squid's fleshy body. Instead of creating a hole the size of his hand, he made it as tall as him. Blood spurted into the surroundings.
The squid shuddered. Prince appeared near its eye.
Prince noticed that after Titan's Fist, his hand had been out of commission- but his regeneration in Titan's Awakening was insane enough that it had already began to heal enough for him to shoot out another one.
Prince grinned again. "Titan's Fist, bitch."
Another golden fist appeared, this time carrying the intent of sharpness behind it. It connected with the Great Squid's eye, blowing a hole through it. Steam curled off of Prince's extended fist.
The Great Squid wasn't looking so great. It had lost a tentacle and a half and had also lost an eye.
Anger welled up within it. It was the apex predator. It had killed everything in its way, it had even broken through into the E-Grade. There was no more time to play.
The Great Squid stroked the water with all tentacles, slamming through many remaining stores. It then flipped so it was sideways, and spread all of its tentacles, so its beak was facing Prince.
Essence and Dao was drawn toward that beak like a vortex. This was an all out attack. Power swelled up within the squid as it prepared for a strike that an early E-Grade would never be able to counter.
Prince sensed this too. He activated his speed boost and began to swim behind the squid. But then its tentacles began to glow, a makeshift wall.
Prince made a beeline toward the other direction, but it was too late.
A blast of epic proportions shot toward Prince. It was thicker than his body, and radiated heat so hot that he felt first degree burns before the attack had connected.
The water around the attack simply evaporated, and the water too far away was boiled until it was scalding.
Prince activated his early E-Grade defense for the first time, his cloak wrapping tightly around him in a ball of white.
But this wasn't an attack blockable by an early E-Grade.
At the cost of most of its body, the Giant Squid had used an all-out attack much stronger than its regular version.
Then the beam connected.
Prince was sweat, his cloak burning hot to the touch- to the point he could feel it. Slowly, a rip appeared, allowing a sliver of the beam to enter inside and through the other side of the cloak- right next to Prince's neck.
"Shit," Prince's neck was already getting 3rd degree burns.
The another beam. And another. Slowly but surely, the attack was tearing through, and there was nothing else to do.
Like a dam breaking, the attack crashed down on Prince's cloak all at once- evaporating it.
He was exposed.
Prince's world went dark.
The attack ended, and an unrecognizable charred husk floated through the water.
The Giant Squid relaxed. All of its tentacles were charred off, and it also spotted some burns. The attack had completely evaporated everything, even creating a gigantic hole in the side of the mall.
VICTORIOUS SPIRIT HAS BEEN ACTIVATED…