The vacant eyes below, the completely unconscious Soul Avatar, still wandered within my instinctive space. I was still pondering the strange events that had just happened to Rachel Lan.
A sense of foreboding gnawed at me—my connection with Rachel Lan had been completely severed, as if some force had utterly isolated her from me.
"What on earth is going on? Why is there a Soul Avatar inside this golden talisman? This guy should be someone from the Daoist Sect who already died."
I stared in confusion at the Soul Avatar drifting below. I had asked Ethan Zhang about this before, and he once said that Soul Avatars never truly disappear. Once cultivated, even if the soul and body are destroyed, the Soul Avatar persists, eventually returning to the Dao. The only reason this one hadn't vanished was because of my involvement, and because, before his death, he used a certain technique to anchor his soul. Later, when I entered the Corpse Realm, he was revived—though only as a soul and Soul Avatar.
If both the soul and the body die, the Soul Avatar is left completely without consciousness.
"Something's off, Ethan. Get rid of this guy first, then find a way out."
I grunted in response. Both the Spirit Snake and Deathbane Ghost agreed—if I let this guy linger in my instinctive space, it would affect me. Besides, something about the situation felt wrong.
"Be careful, Ethan. This force is absolute in restraining ghostly powers."
I grunted again, preparing to unleash a surge of power to expel the Soul Avatar. As the Spirit Snake and Deathbane Ghost vanished, I transformed into a streak of black vapor and flashed behind the Soul Avatar, gripping the Deathbane Aura Blade. Deathbane aura surged from all directions, enveloping the Soul Avatar—I intended to destroy it outright.
With a thunderous roar, the frenzied Deathbane aura crashed like raging waves, instantly consuming the Soul Avatar before me. My Deathbane Aura Blade stabbed straight into its body, with a distinct sensation of piercing something solid.
There's no way out now. If this Soul Avatar keeps pressing on, my Ghost Soul won't be able to withstand it. Just now, I felt my body begin to fracture, as if it might collapse at any moment.
Ordinary practitioners in the world of arts, when trying to eliminate a ghost, if they can't locate the Ghost Soul, are forced into endless struggle—using their techniques to gradually wear down the ghost's power until the Ghost Soul is exposed for a fatal strike. But now, this Soul Avatar, brimming with power, has invaded my Instinctive Space as if I brought a bomb straight into my own core.
"I'm sorry."
I muttered, and suddenly felt stabbing pain rip through my entire body. Instinctively, I dodged to the side—whoosh! A blinding golden light flashed. The Deathbane Aura I had wrapped around myself to devour this Soul Avatar exploded. The Soul Avatar gripped a longsword and lunged at me. I barely evaded the strike, but the surge of golden light instantly vaporized my protective Deathbane Aura.
I crashed to the ground, landing hard on one knee. Fighting inside the Instinctive Space puts me, as a ghost, at a severe disadvantage.
Suddenly, a fierce golden light erupted. My eyes widened in shock—the Soul Avatar's power surged without warning. I had no idea what triggered it, but I had to escape. Or maybe, there was nowhere left to run. I couldn't let that power strike my Ghost Soul.
Boom! Black flames ignited across my body. I gripped the Phoenix Blade in both hands and charged at the Soul Avatar, who radiated waves of golden light tinged with orange—a force so intense it nearly roasted me alive. My flesh sizzled from the heat.
The Soul Avatar began forming seals. My eyes widened in disbelief—a massive golden Yin-Yang Symbol appeared behind him. With his left hand, he wielded the longsword; with his right, he traced shapes in the air.
With a roar, a golden dragon burst from the Eight Trigrams, unleashing overwhelming power. I was crushed, forced to halt and wrap myself in Deathbane Aura. The Golden Dragon closed in, suppressing my strength—things had taken a dire turn.
Whoosh! The Soul Avatar's sword thrust straight at my face. I raised both hands and, with a crack, caught the blade between my palms. The external force kept compressing me, but my power was no longer the same. I took a deep breath, roared, and—boom!—a torrent of wild Deathbane Aura erupted from within.