Since Pete struck Slicer with the Buddha palm strike, there has been no sighting of him. Therefore, Pete decided to check on Kuhn Lau and Yung Fu before fighting him. He flew towards Yung Fu, and when he landed, the aura of flames that coated him dissipated. He returned to his base form and crouched. He grabbed Yung Fu's arm and pulled him up until he stood. He also wrapped his arm around his shoulder.

"Are you ok?"

Yung Fu nodded.

"Holy macro, you're badly injured. Let me help you. I'll give you some energy to fasten your healing rate!"

Yung Fu rubbed his hand on his midsection to alleviate his anguish.

"No, please don't; you will need it more than I do!"

"I don't give a damn; please let me help you. I insist!"

Yung Fu raised his brows with shock. It was a noble act on his account; he didn't have to do it. Especially since Slicer had limitless energy reserves while he didn't, overall, the longer the battle dragged on, the more advantageous it would be for the assassin.

"Fine, do what you must."

He stretched his unclenched hand at Yung Fu. Energy scintillated from his palm. He placed his hand on his chest and directed his qi into his body. His skin absorbed the energy, and within seconds, Yung Fu was renewed with a new tank. His grazes and wounds instantly healed up.

When Yung Fu could stand alone, Pete removed his arm from his shoulder and addressed him.

"We both know that Slicer will not be out that easily. That's why I will need you to gather as many people as possible and relocate them far from the city, where they will be safe!"

He nodded in response; just as Pete was about to take off, Yung Fu grabbed him by the wrist.

"Wait, Pete! Whatever you do, ensure you don't give Slicer an opening!"

"I won't; you have my word!"

His black hair ascended and morphed into a flare of gigantic flames. He raised his hands as a tendril of fiery wings spread from his back. Pieces of the ground ascended at the might of his ethereal form. When he took off, he caused a thunder lap. Yung Fu looked up at him with a smile, pleased by his student's progress.

*************

Slicer patiently waited for him at the top of the nearest building. From afar, he saw a round figure coated with flames drawing nearer. When he closed the gap between them, he halted and kept himself afloat, looking down at the vindictive assassin with dagger eyes. The waft roughly caressed them, increasing the atmosphere's intensity.

"The Golden Phoenix," said Slicer.

"So you know this form? Now don't tell me that you're shaking in your boots?"

Slicer narrowed his eyes with contempt.

"And why would I, when I've trained for hundreds of years to get to where I am? I've been through humility and disgrace because of my shortcomings. I took it upon myself to work diligently and establish myself. Now, I am the best in the Elite Force, and I will not allow you to ruin that, you insufferable scum!"

"Blah blah blah! Like, I give a damn. Why don't you put your money where it's worth and let your fists do all the talking."

Pete said as he directed his unclenched hand at him. His fingers were sticking together in a Buddha palm strike form. He also positioned his fist next to his face while.

Once more, Slicer utilized rapid movement and zipped away from where he stood. With precise speed, he appeared before him and tried to strike him with a punch. However, something bizarre occurred; Pete had vanished from plain sight.

"What the?" He exclaimed.

"To slow!" Pete taunted before clobbering him with a double axe handle from above.

The force of that attack sent him flying. Just as he was about to collide with a building, Pete emerged from behind and struck him with a turning kick. The force of that attack repelled him as he hit another structure.

Frustration clouded his judgment, and rather than finding strategic ways to subdue him, he went after him after his collision. He recklessly attacked him. However, Pete blocked his punches by shielding his countenance with his elbows.

"What's going on, Slicer? Am I too much for you?!"

Slicer landed a barrage of punches; however, they were so slow that Pete didn't bother to block them. Instead, he ducked them by moving his head to the side and also moving sideways when they were in close range. He relished the prospect of his seemingly, inevitable win.

While trying to hit his target, Slicer muttered, "I can't hit him; what is wrong with me? There is no way that he can be this fast. I need to take him out by any means!"

Slicer tried to kick him toward the countenance after his failed attacks. Once more, Pete blocked the attack with his elbow and utilized rapid movement. He appeared above him, only behind, and landed a heinous spinning kick toward his countenance. Slicer was repelled by that attack and collided with another building.

"This power, it feels so great. It's like I have butterflies in my stomach!" Pete reflected

************

Meanwhile, Slicer came crashing down through the lobby of a dairy company. When his body collided with a desk, he growled and crawled up to his feet. As soon as he was on his feet, he took off and flew back to where he had come from.
When he arrived there, Pete was nowhere to be seen. As a result, he scoured his surroundings using his HUD.

"Where are you?"

With the suddenness of a cheetah, Pete appeared out of nowhere and struck him with an elbow blow that focused mainly on the chest. They were two hundred feet in the air, and the force of his attack sent him flying in the direction of the ground.

Pete zipped away from where he stood and reemerged before a falling Slicer. The two were then subjected to the power of free fall as he took hold of his collar and ruthlessly beat him. Their landing left behind a crater; it extended outside the confines of their block.

As the two were falling,  it appeared that the ground had not interrupted their fall; it would seem that Pete was driving Slicer through the crust.

They passed through numerous aquifers and substantial silicate layers. The crust thickened with each passing second until, eventually, they reached layers of a pyroduct, a naturally occurring tube that resembled a cave. It was stuffed with magma. Pete then took hold of Slicer's legs and dipped his upper body into the molten sea.

He then upped his altitude and sent him flying higher into the crust. 

Slicer appeared from the depths of hell and burst through the ground in seconds. And just as he was about to hit the ground once more from falling, Pete appeared above him and delivered a blow to the face; this sent him flying through five buildings until he came crashing to the ground on the other side.

A few moments later, the dust settled, and Slicer crawled up to his feet and muttered with disbelief, "No, no, no, this cannot be happening. A century's worth of training cannot amass to such disgrace. I refuse to fall at the hands of this imbecile!"

Giving heed to his emotions, he came to terms with his inevitable demise. He knew well that fighting reality to a duel would be pointless. After all, his mind wasn't playing tricks with him. Therefore, he soothed his frustration by heaving a sigh. He took a deep breath and calmed down.

"My emotions will not shackle me," he reflected.

He opened his eyes while Pete stood before him, afloat. He narrowed his brows and shunned a piercing gaze through the windows of his soul.

"You've outdone yourself, Mr. Atkinson. I applaud you for giving me the leverage to expose you for who you truly are, a vengeful, selfish vermin."

A look of shock filled Pete's face.

"What are you talking about?"

"So you don't know. Well then, allow me to indulge you."

"You failed to comply with your moral compass. At any rate, you are no better than I am. Seeking to redeem yourself with revenge? Good people do no such!"

"Don't you dare lecture me about right ng, especially when you killed Bianca! Not only that, you tried to kill all of my friends!"

"Even so, Mr. Atkinson, a man of your caliber should never inflict vengeance on those who wronged him. Yet here you are, contradicting yourself. Don't you think it would be better for you to allow me to unlock my full potential; this will make it a fair fight, wouldn't you agree? Or perhaps, you can reject my offer. Then I'll know that you are a hypocrite."

His words stirred conflict in his mind.

"No, it's not true. There's no way he is right. He's trying to manipulate me!"

Slicer perceived that a mental battle unfolded in his mind. Since his plan was falling in motion, he planted a seed of doubt, discouraging him from seeing the clear scope.

"You know that I'm right. Otherwise, you wouldn't be hesitant to respond to my statement."

Pete's fists were laced with frustration, so much so that he desired to pour wrath upon this heartless fiend.

"Yes, Pete, listen to your voice of reason. You know what's right. Therefore, allow me to unleash my full potential. In that way, you will be a nobleman, uncladded by deceit!"

Pete furrowed his brows and gnashed his teeth. After some time, he responded to him, "Fine, but just this once."

"What a fool! He truly is gullible," mumbled Slicer as a crease formed around his brow ridges.

When he turned his head toward the heavens, the gods' unrelenting wrath fell upon him, causing a thunderstorm.

Even Kuhn Lau could see the thunderstorm from two blocks distant due to its intensity.

He fixed his attention on Yung Fu, who, in contrast, transferred some of his qi to a dying Ace. His eyes shot open after the treatment ended, and he immediately climbed to his feet.

"What happened? I thought I was dead."

"No! You only lost a considerable amount of blood. Fortunately, I transferred some of my qi to you."

He looked around and scratched his head.

"Wait, where is everyone? I thought that we were all dead?"

"They are still alive. Kuhn Lau and I resurrected them."

Ace exhaled with relief, "Oh, thank God!"

"Yung Fu, have you seen this?! Kuhn lau Inquired Kuhn Lau from afar.

Yung Fu turned around to face his back, and in doing so, his jaw dropped with bafflement.

"No! Please tell me that Slicer's not the one behind the thunderstorm."

Indistructo led a group of city residents out of the city's western section and toward the city limits. Around 1,200 citizens were following him. It appears that the thunderstorm drew his attention. In hindsight, he cast a sharp stare upward to the darkened sky streaked with red lightning. Such a picture gave him severe chills.

***********
At the epicenter of the duel, a violet lightning bolt burst to the ground in a flash. After that, a dreadful violet lightning aura coated Slicer. The vindictive assassin closed his eyes as Pete's power level was eclipsed by his own.

"My turn to play!"

His eyes shot open, and when that happened, he transitioned away from where he stood. Within a millisecond, he had struck Pete with a blow to the countenance. The force of his punch not only repelled him but also incited a shockwave that caused thousands of windows to rupture.

To Be Continued