This was the second time Evan Chu had seen black flames. The temperature of these flames far surpassed ordinary fire; if he unleashed Fireshift, he might not fear them, but right now he had no intention of exposing his true strength.
Evan Chu’s figure flashed, nimbly dodging the Fire Unicorn’s blow. He stood coolly before the beast and sneered, “Is that all you’ve got? You dare boast in front of me? If this is the best a so-called holy beast can do, your name ought to be erased from the Divine Battlefield today.”
“Don’t get cocky, brat! Take another strike!” the Fire Unicorn roared, its whole body erupting in blazing flames. The surrounding air sizzled, as if the entire sky was about to ignite.
The scorching heat made the lake water begin to boil—a phenomenon Evan Chu had never witnessed before. Even if he used Fireshift, at most he could make the water steam a little. This innate fire-attribute holy beast was truly extraordinary.
The flames gradually shifted from black to cyan. Evan Chu frowned slightly; he didn’t know the name of this fire, but he was certain that even with Fireshift, getting touched by it could still injure him.
"Careful, Evan! That’s Nether Karma Hellfire. It’s almost on par with Samadhi Truefire, basically reaching the Heavenfire grade. This Fire Unicorn really isn’t simple," Luna—the Sword Spirit—warned.
Evan Chu nodded. “Got it. Its flames are fierce, but I’m not just here to run—I’ll let it taste the power of my Fivefold Element-Shift!”
He swung the Frostbane Sword in a swift arc, unleashing Earthsplitter. Right now, Evan had to conserve his strength—Chaos Dragon Force couldn’t be wasted lightly. Facing an eighth-layer Saint Martial holy beast, he needed to stay cautious; every ounce of power was extra insurance.
A sword-qi arc over two meters long sliced toward the Fire Unicorn, but its cyan flames suddenly formed a ring of fire, hurtling at Evan Chu with lightning speed.
The fire ring rapidly expanded, becoming dozens of meters across in an instant. Evan Chu’s sword-qi attack was sucked inside, and the cyan flames only trembled before continuing their assault on him.
The fire ring was massive, but its center was strangely devoid of flames. At first glance, it looked like the safest spot, but Evan Chu knew better—the true lethal force of this fire ring was hidden precisely in that flame-free center.
That was where the temperature soared to its peak. Anything entering the heart of the fireball would be instantly incinerated, reduced to ash. In the nick of time, Evan darted sideways, barely escaping with his life.
The Fire Unicorn was visibly stunned that its attack had been dodged by a mere human. Its eyes glared at Evan, then it spat out another fireball without hesitation.
Right now, Evan was on the defensive. If not for his speed, he’d have no idea how to handle this monster’s attacks. He felt stuck—how could he possibly drive this colossal beast into the water?
The deadlock stretched on for nearly half an hour, neither side able to gain the upper hand. Suddenly, Evan’s eyes flashed as he taunted, “Hey, little unicorn, if you submit to me, I’ll let you off today. Otherwise, I’ll take your life right now—haven’t I been merciful enough?”
For a proud eighth-layer Saint Martial Holy Beast like the Fire Unicorn, being told to submit by a human was the ultimate humiliation. Fury boiled in its heart—it wanted nothing more than to burn Evan to ashes.
Evan was deliberately provoking it, hoping to create an opening for a decisive strike. The odds were slim, but he had to try—this was his only chance.
“Evan, use Watershift to unleash ice-cold sword-qi against it. You might not be able to hurt it directly, but you can restrict its movements. Once the mist fills the air, you’ll have a chance to launch a sneak attack,” Luna advised.
Evan mulled over Luna’s words and realized she was right. With thick mist everywhere, visibility would drop—he might really get a shot at dealing a heavy blow.
His mind made up, Evan unleashed a barrage of Tyrant Cleave strikes with the Frostbane Sword, each one fused with water element. Sword-qi turned icy, and razor-sharp blasts of cold energy shot from his blade, rapidly attacking the Fire Unicorn.
Evan kept shifting positions as he attacked, but every time his icy sword-qi struck the Fire Unicorn’s flames, it melted instantly, turning to vapor. Seeing the water mist slowly build up, Evan felt a surge of hope.
It was a battle of endurance—forming enough mist to obscure vision required an enormous amount of effort. The Fire Unicorn’s flames were so hot that the vapor often vanished in just a few breaths. Evan had no choice but to keep unleashing Tyrant Cleave.
After burning through nearly a third of his Chaos Dragon Force, Evan finally saw the mist thicken until visibility dropped below three meters. He knew his chance had come.
He began chain-teleporting, aiming to completely confuse the Fire Unicorn’s senses. Despite its high cultivation, the beast couldn’t see Evan in the thick mist—unless it used divine sense. But out of arrogance, it didn’t bother, thinking a mere human wasn’t worth such caution.
Seizing the opening, Evan teleported directly above the Fire Unicorn. His heart hammered in his chest, and his grip on the Frostbane Sword was slick with sweat. This was it—success or failure hinged on this one strike. He couldn’t afford a single mistake.
The Fire Unicorn, having lost track of Evan, grew wary. Its azure flames blazed even hotter. If Evan didn’t have Fire-Shift, he’d have been roasted alive, and even now sweat poured down his body from the heat.
With a furious roar, the Fire Unicorn’s flames surged again, angered by Evan’s disappearance. Four gigantic fire rings blasted out in all directions—north, south, east, and west—making escape impossible.
But after unleashing the fire rings, its flames visibly dimmed—a clear sign of heavy energy drain. For Evan, this was the perfect chance to strike.
Summoning all his strength, Evan swung the Frostbane Sword in a mighty Heaven-Cleave, fused with Fivefold Element-Shift—the strongest attack he could muster—aimed straight at the Fire Unicorn’s back.
Boom! The sword struck with a deafening crash, sending the mountain-sized beast tumbling toward the water below, unable to resist the force of the blow.
Evan knew one hit wouldn’t be enough, so as the Fire Unicorn fell, he unleashed another Heaven-Cleave, refusing to let up for a second…