Second World
chapter-1882

Jack's reflex was fast. He managed to activate Shooting Dash before the thrust hit him. He rushed backward and avoided the ambush. When he thought he could take a breather to analyze the situation, his reflection was before him. His reflection also used Shooting Dash to get close.

Jack used the skill's second and third dashes to move further away, but his reflection followed suit. After exhausting the skill, the two's swords finally clashed.

"Who the hell are you? Why are you imitating me?" Jack asked.

His reflection sneered. "I am you! Your time is over. Now, it is my time. Hand over your body to me!" After finished speaking, the reflection's two swords burst at high speed.

"Formless Flowing Sword Style?!" Jack exclaimed in surprise. He didn't expect his reflection could use martial arts, but he didn't stop from the surprise. His two swords also danced with equal speed. The four swords clanged countless times and caused sparks of fire.

Both sides ended their clashes using Flame Strike. Both were knocked back an equal distance. They now stood still and stared at each other.

"... You are the demon who dwells inside the fallen apostle's longsword!" Jack exclaimed.

"Hehe," Demon Jack only sneered in response.

"Hehe," Jack grinned back. "Do you think you can beat me in my own game? Think again, pal! Eat this!"

Jack used Sword of Light. Demon Jack's reflex and movement speed were as fast as Jack's. He easily dodged the crescent light, even after Jack altered its trajectory to chase after his opponent.

Despite failing to hit his target, Jack wasn't discouraged. He had expected that. He did a second slash. As he did, a huge tear in space occurred in the area where Demon Jack was jumping toward.

This was the Void-tearing Slash. When the tear should have engulfed Demon Jack and caused him damage, Demon Jack was instead fine. A thin layer of distortion was seen around Demon Jack's body.

"Void Defense!" Jack exclaimed when he realized what his opponent had used.

He suspected Demon Jack's skills were the same level and grade as his. The max-level Void-tearing Slash lasted 20 seconds, while the max-level Void Defense lasted 30 seconds. His offensive skill wouldn't hit Demon Jack.

Any other offensive skills he sent to Demon Jack while Void Defense was active would also fail to reach Demon Jack, except one. Jack used Void Slash. This attack instantly hit the target without traveling any distance, so Void Defense was useless against this skill.

However, Demon Jack's mana sense was as advanced as Jack's. Demon Jack was able to detect the attack before it hit. He used Teleport Slash to avoid the instant attack.

Jack sensed his demon counterpart appearing behind him. He used Wind Dash and dodged the ambush. His copy did the same. The two exhausted their three dashes chasing one another before continuing with Shooting Dash. Their swords clashed between each dash.

When the dash ended, it was Demon Jack's turn to use the Void-tearing Slash. Jack used Teleport Slash to escape the affected area while backstabbing Demon Jack at the same time. His attempt was blocked by the extra limbs sprouting from his opponent's back. Demon Jack had used Soul Asura. Jack did the same. The two then used Penta Slash. None of their slashes hit their opponents.

"Crap…! You are truly as good as me," Jack cursed.

Jack didn't give up. Skills after skills were exchanged between two equally skilled practitioners. When all the big skills were exhausted, they competed in sword arts. Jack thought his doppelganger wouldn't be able to compete with him in sword expertise because he had Sword's Heart. But after uncountable clashes, he had no choice but to admit Demon Jack also had Sword's Heart. Furthermore, Demon Jack's understanding of the martial art wasn't below his.

Fighting someone as good as himself, how could he win? In his turmoil, he got careless and received a slash.

Demon Jack grinned wickedly after successfully landing that slash. He mocked, "You won't win against yourself, hehe."

"Won't win against myself…?" Jack muttered. The words brought back a memory.

The memory was from his childhood days when he stayed with his grandfather, not long after his parent's accident. Domon forced him to learn martial arts. Domon thought the training might help Jack take his mind off the sadness of losing his parents.

Jack followed Domon's teaching. Partly because it did take his mind off pointless thoughts. The other part was because he didn't wish to disappoint Domon. Unfortunately, his heart was not in martial arts, so he never truly made much progress.

During one such time, he was using a practice dummy to train some moves Domon had taught him. He failed to execute the full sequence of the moves in the allocated time. He failed even after trying lots of times. He dropped to the floor while panting.

"I can't do it! It's too difficult!" Jack complained.

Domon was observing from the side the entire time.

"Get up!" Domon instructed.

"I already said I can't!" Jack replied defiantly.

Domon sighed.

"Afei, you have great talent inside you. After seeing you trained these few weeks, I'm sure of it. You just need to be more confident. Don't lose to yourself."

"I'm not fighting against myself. I'm fighting against this practice dummy!" Jack exclaimed.

"The dummy is stationary. It can't move. The one you are fighting is not this dummy, but yourself," Domon explained.

When Domon saw Jack's confused expression, he asked, "What are you thinking about right now?"

"Uh… I want to go out and play," Jack answered.

"There you go. That's the thought that caused you defeat. Instead of focusing on how to complete your training, you let your mind think about stopping your training and doing other things, other more comfortable things. The first step to success is to acknowledge you have a voice inside you that will always try to tell you to stop trying. The next step is to confront this thought and stop it from controlling you. Only after that can you defeat yourself!"

"Defeat… Myself…?" Jack asked, still confused.

Domon nodded. "All martial art practitioners… No, everyone in the world fights a constant battle against themselves. Those who give up are those who have been defeated by their own selves. By acknowledging and stopping the thoughts that ask you to stop trying, you can push yourself further than you think is possible. Only by outworking yourself can you defeat yourself and become better than you are. Only by persisting to never give up you can continue to improve. Defeat yourself! Be better than you are at this moment. And when you become better, you need to strive to become even better than you are then! Continue to improve! Continue to grow! That's how you defeat yourself!"

Jack was still sitting on the floor with a confused expression. In his mind, he thought, 'Gramps, are you sure this is the right way to lecture a kid like me?'

Jack didn't fully understand Domon's words then, but he was no longer the little kid from before. This memory reminded him of Domon's sermon. Unlike that time, his current self understood the words Domon uttered many years ago.

"To defeat myself… by being better than I am now…," Jack muttered. He then grinned.

"What are you smiling at?" Demon Jack asked.

They hadn't stopped crossing swords even when Jack was lost in his thoughts. Jack had the Hundred Synchronous Thoughts. He had no trouble thinking and fighting at the same time. Demon Jack had the same ability. That's why he could taunt and mock Jack even when he was fully concentrating on the fight.

"To defeat you, I simply have to be better than I am right now!" Jack exclaimed. His swords slashed at high speed.

"Never stop improving," Jack uttered. His swords started to turn at different angles multiple times.

"Never stop trying," Jack continued. He was using his swords in a way he had never done before. He was executing different patterns of swordplay than his usual style.

"What is this?" Demon Jack asked in surprise. He had no idea what Jack was doing. This was not how it was supposed to be. He was supposed to be exactly like the one he possessed. All Jack's abilities, skills, habits, and even thoughts. He should know everything about what Jack was doing and was going to do. But at this moment, he had no idea what Jack was doing.

"Persist in making new moves!" Jack exclaimed as his sword flared with a strong flame.

It was his flame strike. He had practiced manipulating the form of this skill. He could cause the flame to burst upon impact, thus damaging the opponent even when the attack was blocked.

"I know that move!" Demon Jack exclaimed. He also executed Flame Strike. The flame following his slash was condensed at a spot, ready to explode once the sword hit something.

However, he noticed the flame on Jack's sword behaved differently. Instead of condensing, it was forming a long line.

"What…?!" Uncertainty clouded Demon Jack's mind when Jack did something unknown to him. Because of that, his slash wavered a little.

Jack didn't let the chance go. His sword tilted. Their two swords ended up passing one another without clashing. Because of that, the condensed flame on Demon Jack's sword didn't burst. The flame on Jack's sword, on the other hand, extended. Jack was as if holding a fire whip. The extra reach of the fire whip allowed Jack to hit Demon Jack, even when his sword didn't. Damage number came up on Demon Jack's head.

"This is how I defeat myself! By improving and becoming stronger than the moment you copy me!" Jack exclaimed.