Ryuken, the Hero of Space, finally used one of his divine abilities in the battle and revealed a completely new battle form after merging with the divine spirit called Shuten Dōji. Now his entire visage was covered in this unknown and otherworldly blood-red energy. However, this time, he did not stand at a ceremony to converse with Kahn/Byakuya. Shoot! Like a bullet, he shot forth at Kahn without letting the latter any chance to defend. Bang! Just like before, a massive and impervious wall of Muramasas appeared in front of Kahn and defended against the attack. Crumble! But this time… something unexpected happened which left Kahn stunned on his spot. The previously nigh indestructible swords now suddenly started crumbling and their entirety eroded right in front of his eyes. Shatter! Like a biochemical fog that ate every form of metal, the thousands of swords started shattering on their own. The aura surrounding Ryuken was somehow proving to be lethal against Kahn's cosmic aether, making the latter full of shock. [Ah, this cunning bastard. He was hiding such a powerful tool all along.] thought Kahn. Swoosh! Swoosh! Ryuken then started attacking Kahn again and again as they flew in the sky. For the first time, Kahn was forced to retreat and had the Hero of Space chasing after him. Because the aura covering Ryuken's body didn't belong to this world and it wasn't just some single element of reality or law of nature either. If Kahn had to put it in words… the otherworldly aura enshrouding Ryuken at this moment was a combination of his own blood, his self-developed variant of the space force, and the spiritual power of the divine spirit Toranaga. [So that's the true potential of Spirit Possession?] asked Kahn as he kept dodging frequently, appearing a few kilometers away in the sky with simple teleportation every time he moved. And what was so special about the Divine Ability called Spirit Possession? Kahn remembered vividly what made this divine ability unique. Spirit Possession wasn't just some ability that allowed the user to control a spirit or possess someone's body. Even Ronin had the Soul Possession skill that allowed him to temporarily occupy someone's body as long as the entity was dead or the original soul lost control over the body. However, Ryuken could do it with both dead and living beings while his own body turned into a spirit itself. But there was one restriction that became a key factor for Kahn back when he was selecting his own divine abilities all those years ago. Because the being you could perform the Soul Possession with, needed to acknowledge you and give you their consent. This obvious demerit existed for a reason. Because although the bodies could merge temporarily and create a new form, giving birth to a powerful entity… their souls still existed and would cause a soul dissonance. If performed on the corpse, the soul possession divine ability was without any problem. However, it didn't change the fact that a corpse was a corpse in the end. After a while, it would start to degrade and decay. It would take years for it to come into effect for sure but he would need to return to his original self one way or another. A cheat code for multiple uses and many imaginative ways to utilize it on anyone whether a common soldier or even a king of a country. This was without doubt, a very helpful ability for Kahn during his earlier times in Vantrea. In the second scenario where Ryuken was acknowledged and had the consent to begin with… he would not only get to merge their powers… but both could coexist in this unified form, bringing out the best of their physical, bloodline, spiritual, and magical abilities together. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞 On top of it… there would be no time restriction on the use of this ability and it could be performed for years with no repercussions, unlike the first case. In Kahn's case, he did not choose this divine ability due to his obvious circumstances and the fact that he wasn't entering Vantrea with any companion either. There was no way he would have the means to fight or defeat powerful beings in his starting years and then gain their consent via various means. Also, if you become a saint while possessing someone else's body... all of your progress would remain in it, whether your strength, reflexes or skills. There was no shortcut and you would only have to work on your original body in secret nonetheless. It would have offered more risk than reward for Kahn of the past and that's why he didn't choose it. [Just by the aura… I can tell that the divine spirit Toranaga isn't from this world. He must be from Ryuken's original world, brought here by the God of Space to aid the Hero after his summoning. On top of it… Musashi Sensei told me that Ryuken had contracted a total of 7 divine spirits in his home world. So does that mean he has 6 more different forms like this one?] wondered Kahn with visible curiosity on his countenance. [Wait a minute. The way Ryuken and that divine spirit merged… where have I seen that before?] suddenly, Kahn wondered. Shock! But the very next moment, thanks to his eidetic memory, he quickly remembered where he had seen, rather felt it before. [It was just the same as when the Martial Emperor merged with the Elder Dragon Saalazaar!] spoke Kahn to himself, his eyes wide open in disbelief. Kahn also experienced this exact similar scenario when the original Kahn Salvatore aka Martial Emperor had taken over his body during the fight with Hero of Time. He had used the 5th technique taught to him by Romulus, the Heavenly King of Fire called Personification. During that fight, after using the Black Sun skill that created a literal Black Hole made of pure darkness element… The Martial Emperor was engulfed by the Elder Dragon and he merged with the Black Sun itself. After taking over Kahn's body… they just used a slightly different method with a short activation time. However, the basic principle of its use was exactly similar to how Ryuken and Toranaga merged together. The Shuten Doji form even exuded an unknown aura, reenacting the same scenario when the future Kahn had taken the Dragonoid Form. "So that's why he was insistent on it. He knew that the Hero of Space chose the Soul Possession in the original timeline and since the events of the past are the same for him, the Martial Emperor wanted us to be allies in the fight against the Demon God. There must be a bigger picture or something that will happen in the future. Otherwise, he would not have ordered me to do so. Looks like I'll just have to trust his words and see it for myself in the future.] he concluded. "Well, I can't fall short just because you're using a divine ability now, can I?" asked Kahn with a mischievous smirk. He deactivated his Domain of Infinite Swords and Muramasa's blade appeared on the sword again. Woosh! Swirl! Rumble! Suddenly, Kahn's entire body turned dark blue, a combination of cosmic aether and his black hair turned pristine white while his eyes turned completely white. "Now let's test for how long your transformations can last…" he spoke in a firm and a kingly tone. "Against absolute might."