"Pupupupu!"
The black wind blades were incredibly fast, reaching Ian Song in an instant. They radiated a chilling aura that made his skin crawl.
A longsword appeared in his hand, and he flicked it out in a swift arc.
"Ding ding ding!"
Ian Song gripped his longsword, weaving through a tight space, batting away each wind blade as it came.
But those black wind blades seemed endless, surging at Ian Song from all directions.
Ian Song swung his sword even faster, knocking away blade after blade.
Light's playful voice rang out: "How do you like the taste of my Black Wind Curse? Should I spice things up a bit?"
"Go ahead, I was just thinking it wasn't spicy enough!"
Ian Song replied nonchalantly.
"Hmph!"
With a cold snort from Light, Ian Song noticed the air around him suddenly grew thick and sticky, hampering his movements. The ground beneath him turned to quicksand, forcing him to hover in midair.
At that moment, a flood of black wind blades erupted from underground.
Seeing this, Ian Song narrowed his eyes and vanished from his spot, reappearing before Light in the blink of an eye. A flash of sword light stabbed straight at Light's chest.
"Puff!"
With a soft sound, Light's chest was pierced, but no blood flowed—because it was just a mirror image.
Light's true figure now appeared dozens of meters above in the sky.
"Try my Fire-Serpent Curse!"
With Light's shout, countless black wind blades spun and shot toward Ian Song, while fire serpents rained down from the sky. The serpents seemed almost alive, hissing and screeching as they swarmed at him.
Ian Song frowned, and another longsword appeared in his hand.
Both swords flashed, one meeting the black wind blades, the other facing the fire serpents.
Ding ding ding ding!!
The black wind blades were knocked away, but when his other sword struck the fire serpents, they scattered into clusters of tiny flames that clung to his blade.
His sword looked ordinary, but it was actually a spirit-tool grade weapon. Yet covered by those flames, it began to show signs of melting.
His heart sank, gaining a deeper understanding of Light's curse arts.
He could tell Light wasn't even fighting at full strength; he was just toying with him like a cat with a mouse.
"Hmph!"
With a cold snort, Ian Song surged his true qi, shaking off the flames from his sword. But those scattered flames quickly reformed into fire serpents that shot at him again.
Art of Great Teleportation!
With a blur, Ian Song appeared above Light's head. Both swords erupted with dazzling sword-light, crashing down in a brilliant strike.
But his strike hit nothing but air.
Light's figure had already appeared hundreds of meters away, high in the sky.
"Looks like I need to get serious!" Light formed a hand seal, and instantly the clear sky was blanketed with dark clouds.
Boom boom boom boom!
Thunder rumbled, and dozens of fist-sized bolts of black lightning crashed down, striking toward Ian Song.
With a flicker, Ian Song vanished again and appeared above Light, swinging his sword down once more.
As expected, he hit nothing but air again.
It was as if Light could anticipate his every move.
At the same time, black wind blades, fire serpents, and heavenly thunder surged at Ian Song from every direction.
"Damn it!"
Ian Song cursed helplessly. Light's summoned attacks were endless, so he decided not to waste any more effort. With a flicker, he used the Art of Great Teleportation and shifted several kilometers away.
But to his shock, Light took a single step and instantly crossed the distance, chasing after him. The black wind blades, fire serpents, and thunder followed close behind.
Seeing this, Ian Song tried to teleport away again, but his expression changed—he found he couldn't use the Art of Great Teleportation.
"I've sealed this space, so you can't escape!" Light said, his tone mocking.
"Fine, I won't run!"
Hearing this, Ian Song's expression returned to normal. A pair of blood-red wings unfurled behind him.
These were the Blood-God Wings he had exchanged for ten billion Fame Points.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh!
A string of afterimages appeared as Ian Song flashed around Light, launching attacks from every angle.
Strangely, no matter how fast Ian Song attacked, he couldn't touch Light at all—he only struck mirror images.
After a while, Ian Song gave up attacking. Dodging black wind blades, fire serpents, and thunder, he asked, "Why can't my attacks hit you?"
Light replied, "It's simple. I don't exist in this dimension at all. What you're seeing is just my projection."
"So that's it!" Ian Song suddenly understood, then sneered, "If you're so powerful, why hide like a rat?"
"There's no need to use reverse psychology on me. I won't fall for it. But out of respect, I'll give you some kind of response!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Ian Song felt his thoughts and body slow down.
Boom boom boom!
Instantly, a barrage of black wind blades, fire serpents, and thunder crashed into him.
Fortunately, he'd cultivated the Body of Ten Thousand Stars, giving him monstrous physical strength. Otherwise, he'd have been blasted to pieces. Even so, he was now charred all over, his body covered in countless wounds.
"You can still hold on after that? Not bad, not bad!"
Light's surprised voice rang out, and another wave of attacks surged toward Ian Song.
"Damn it!"
Cursing under his breath, Ian Song retreated directly into the Divine Temple.
"Huh?"
Watching Ian Song vanish, Light cried out in shock, then grew angry as he realized he'd lost Ian Song's aura.
Inside the Divine Temple, Ian Song, covered in wounds, activated the Radiance of Life. Once healed, he washed up and changed into clean clothes.
Afterward, he began pondering how to deal with Light.
But no matter how much he thought, he couldn't come up with a good solution.
"Old Spirit, do you know about Cursemancers?" Ian Song called out to the starry sky.
"Cursemancers are an ancient and rare profession. Their bodies are generally fragile, but their offensive methods are extremely powerful. As long as their safety is assured, a Cursemancer can defeat at least three experts of the same realm!"
"Is there any way to deal with them?"
"There is—force their true body to appear!" Old Spirit said gravely.
Hearing this, Ian Song frowned and began to ponder.
After a long moment, he came up with a bold plan. But it was extremely risky—if it failed, he might lose his life.