Reincarnated with a lucky draw system

Chapter 428: BLACK SPHERE

He braced the launcher against his shoulder, exhaled slowly, and locked onto the weak point with absolute focus.

The targeting reticle, projected directly into his vision by the weapon’s own enchantments, glowed a steady crimson.

He pulled the trigger.

A single mana explosive launched from the barrel with a deep, resonant thump.

The projectile streaked forward in a blazing arc of violet-black energy, trailing a comet-like tail of shadow and fire.

It passed through the hairline crack in the storm like a needle threading silk, vanishing into the eye of the tempest.

The Oni’s golden eyes widened in sudden realization.

"Shit!" he bellowed, panic cracking his voice for the first time.

He twisted his hands in a desperate bid to redirect the projectile with a final gale, but it was already too late.

The mana explosive detonated at point-blank range inside the storm’s calm center.

A blinding flash erupted from within the cyclone, followed by a muffled boom that shook the grand hall’s foundations.

The tempest wall shattered outward in a violent shockwave of shredded wind and shrapnel, the Oni’s body hurled from the heart of his own storm like a rag doll.

He crashed to the marble floor in a bone-breaking tumble, armor cracked, blood spraying from multiple wounds.

His eyes, once burning with defiance stared blankly at the ceiling, life extinguished.

"And that’s how you deal with tiring situations," Aaron muttered, a satisfied grin spreading across his face.

He let the rocket launcher dissolve back into shadow, the residue of its mana dissipating like smoke.

The hall fell eerily quiet, save for the distant crackle of settling debris and the low, ominous creak of the building’s illusory structure.

He continued deeper into the building, boots echoing on the polished stone.

He stopped once more in front of an Ifrit.

The creature loomed in the wide antechamber, flames licking along its obsidian-black skin, eyes glowing like twin furnaces.

Heat radiated from it in waves, warping the air and carrying the sharp scent of brimstone and molten rock.

"Do you guys realize it was me that dealt with all those guys?" Aaron asked loudly, his voice carrying through the cavernous space with casual amusement.

He tilted his head, studying the Ifrit with mild curiosity.

"It’s almost ironic. They probably just described them to Loki based on what Alice and the others saw during their last invasion."

A low, rumbling chuckle escaped him.

"They handed me a boss lineup of people I’ve already dealt with once," he mused aloud. "Guess the universe has a sense of humor."

The Ifrit snarled, lightning and flames roaring higher along its shoulders, the heat intensifying until the nearest tapestries began to smolder at the edges.

Aaron cracked his neck once, a confident smile plastered on bjs lips.

"Let’s see how much better the second time feels," he said, and lunged.

With a blade in his hands, Aaron lunged into the air, his body cutting through the simulated atmosphere like a dark arrow.

Heat radiated from the Ifrit in pulsing waves, the air around the creature shimmering like a mirage, carrying the sharp, sulfurous bite of brimstone and molten rock.

Aaron’s mystic eyes tracked every detail, the way the flames along the Ifrit’s arms coiled tighter, the subtle shift in its stance as it prepared to counter.

The Ifrit reacted in its own way, roaring with a voice that rattled the stone pillars.

It thrust both arms forward, unleashing two bolts of lightning that tore through the space between them.

The bolts were blinding white-blue, crackling with raw power, their afterimages searing across Aaron’s vision as they raced toward him.

Aaron weaved through the air with effortless precision, body twisting mid-flight like smoke avoiding a gust.

One bolt grazed past his shoulder, close enough that he felt the static sting against his skin; the other missed entirely, slamming into a far wall and exploding in a shower of sparks that rained down like dying fireworks.

The chamber’s temperature spiked, the smell of scorched stone joining the sulfur haze.

Black Sphere metamorphosed in his grip, from sleek blade to a long, sinuous whip in the span of a heartbeat.

The weapon lengthened with a liquid snap, shadows writhing along its length like living veins.

Aaron snapped his wrist forward, the whip lashing out with whip-crack speed.

It coiled around the Ifrit’s thick wrist, the shadowy cord tightening like a noose of night.

"Get off me!" the Ifrit bellowed, swinging its free arm in a savage arc to sever the connection.

Flames erupted along its forearm, the heat intense enough to warp the air into visible ripples, but the whip refused to break.

Using the whip as leverage, Aaron yanked himself forward, hurtling toward the towering creature.

The sudden acceleration pressed against his chest, wind roaring past his ears.

He arrived in front of the Ifrit in an instant, legs snapping together mid-air before delivering a brutal kick straight to the creature’s face.

The impact rang out like a hammer against an anvil bone-crunching force that sent the Ifrit reeling backward.

"Urgh!" it groaned, head snapping to the side, embers flying from its mouth like angry fireflies.

The creature flew several meters before crashing into a row of illusory pillars, stone shattering in a cloud of dust and debris that glittered in the flickering light.

Aaron released the whip at the perfect moment, letting it sail with the Ifrit.

The shadowy cord snapped taut then slackened, retracting slightly as the creature hit the ground with enough force to crack the marble floor beneath it.

"You bastard!" the Ifrit roared, shoving itself upright.

Its eyes blazed like twin furnaces, hatred pouring off it in waves that made the air around Aaron feel heavier, hotter.

The creature’s body began to shift, flames surging higher, muscles bulging, horns lengthening as it transformed into its ultimate form.

The temperature in the chamber spiked again, sweat beading on Aaron’s skin despite the shadows that clung to him like cool armor.

"Yeah, yeah, seen this before," Aaron interjected, voice flat with near boredom.

"Know the best version better than anyone."

He watched the transformation unfold with the detached interest of someone reviewing a familiar rerun, the way the flames turned from orange to white-hot blue, the way the Ifrit’s skin cracked like cooling lava to reveal molten core beneath.

It was impressive, in a textbook sort of way, but nothing he hadn’t dismantled before.

"I will kill you!!!!" the Ifrit screamed, voice cracking like thunder.