Evan Chu glanced at the black-clothed figure and slowly walked over. The demonic qi radiating from him made it clear he was one of the Six Demon Generals—though Evan wasn't sure which one.
"Lord Frostbane, you really are quick. No wonder the Lord told us not to provoke you. Right now, are you itching to kill me?" the black-clothed man said.
"I do want to kill you. Someone like you could be killed a thousand, ten thousand times and it still wouldn't vent my hatred. Where's the item? You'd better not disappoint me," Evan said coldly.
"Lord Frostbane, do you really think I'm scared of you? Why don't we have a big fight right now and settle our old scores!" the black-clothed man snapped. Though his face was unreadable, the fury in his voice was unmistakable.
"Hand over the item and I'll fight you. I hope you don't disappoint me. If you're only as strong as the Heavenbane Demon General, you'd better give up now. I'm afraid I'll wipe you out in a single move," Evan replied.
"Hahaha! That's the funniest joke I've ever heard. You think you could wipe me out in one move? Lord Frostbane, are you senile, or is your reincarnated body just stupid? Anyway, here's the item you wanted. I want to see how you'll kill me in one move," the black-clothed man sneered.
As he finished speaking, the black-clothed man produced a red scroll. Evan had never seen this kind of scroll before, but he knew it had to be from Solus, that old freak—the method and route to the Divine Battlefield were recorded on it.
Evan took the scroll and stored it in his ring, then drew the Frostbane Sword and said, "Let's go. We'll fight in the sky—I don't want to wreck my own sect fighting you down here."
"Lord Frostbane, you're pretty cautious. I'll fight you—just don't let me down." With that, the black-clothed figure flashed and vanished into the forest.
But the forest was left swirling with demonic qi. Thanks to Lord Frostbane's memories, Evan knew that only one Demon General could possess such overwhelming demonic power: the Mad Butcher Demon General.
Evan wasn't slow either. With a flash, he soared into the sky and stared at the black-clothed, demonic figure. "Mad Butcher Demon General, have you recovered to the sixth layer of the Saint Martial Realm? If so, we'd better tear open space and fight inside a spatial black hole!"
"You'll find out soon enough if I've reached the sixth layer. Lord Frostbane, I've wanted to fight you for ages. If the Lord hadn't held me back, you'd have died under my sword long ago—I wouldn't have let you grow this strong," Mad Butcher Demon General replied.
From Mad Butcher Demon General's words, Evan realized Solus really had been protecting him, just like Luna the Sword Spirit said. Clearly, Solus needed Evan to keep growing stronger to break the barrier between this world and the next.
Evan glanced at Mad Butcher and smiled grimly. "As you wish—just hope you never meet me in your next life."
He vibrated the Frostbane Sword in his hand, and a dazzling sword-light flashed forth. The surrounding space trembled violently as Evan easily tore open a spatial black hole.
"Come on, Mad Butcher!" Evan called, stepping straight into the spatial black hole.
He wasn't worried the opponent would hesitate—at Mad Butcher Demon General's level, all he craved was a worthy battle. The Mad Butcher lived for fighting; that's how he earned his terrifying reputation.
Sure enough, Mad Butcher Demon General flashed and followed Evan into the spatial black hole—he was a true battle maniac.
"Lord Frostbane, wipe me out in a single move? You think you can unleash Star-Cleave now, with just ninth-layer Divine Martial Realm cultivation? Heaven-Cleave is your limit, isn't it? Still have the nerve to boast you'll kill me—go on, show me your strongest attack!" Mad Butcher Demon General taunted.
"I won't disappoint you. Let's see if you can leave this spatial black hole alive," Evan replied, as a sword-light over two meters long burst from the Frostbane Sword in his hand.
The power of the Fivefold Element-Shift rapidly covered the Frostbane Sword. Evan slashed out with Earthsplitter, fusing all five elements into the strike. This five-element Earthsplitter could rival Heaven-Cleave in might—and it burned far less Chaos Dragon Force.
Evan's sword instantly sent shockwaves through the entire pocket dimension, showing just how terrifying its power was.
Mad Butcher Demon General couldn't afford to be careless anymore. Though he talked big, inside he was shocked—Evan could unleash such power with only ninth-layer Divine Martial Realm cultivation. This guy was no ordinary opponent.
Mad Butcher's cautious nature was key to his survival among the Demon Generals. He might be bloodthirsty, but he knew when not to take a hit head-on. Without that, he wouldn't have survived the ancient Divine Battlefield—even with Solus's help, only sharp instincts kept him alive.
Demonic qi erupted from his body, swirling into a shield of black mist—a defensive barrier known as the Demonic Miasma Aegis, his signature defensive technique.
The Demonic Miasma Aegis could easily block a full-force blow from a fifth-layer Saint Martial expert, and Mad Butcher could attack at the same time. It was an extremely domineering defensive technique.
Mad Butcher wielded a black sword, somewhat like Heavenbane Demon General's Heavenbane Demon Sword, but shaped differently. His sword was serpentine, twisted and curved, with a snake head at the tip—downright eerie.
Suddenly, the snake head spat out a black sword-light nearly three meters long. It was sword-qi, and Evan had never seen anything like it—totally bizarre.
"Evan, don't underestimate that sword-qi—it has powerful corrosive force, almost like Heavenbane Demon General's. Don't let it touch you, or you'll be in trouble," Luna warned suddenly.
Evan immediately activated Earthshift, layering himself in earth-and-stone defense. He cursed himself for being too arrogant—against someone as strong as Mad Butcher, he should've gone all out from the start.
But Earthsplitter was already unleashed—there was no time to follow up with Heaven-Cleave. Evan could only grit his teeth and hope his attack and defense could withstand Mad Butcher's strike.
Their attacks collided with a thunderous roar, shaking the spatial black hole violently—it even showed signs of collapsing...(Note: Today is the second day of the Lunar New Year and the God of Wealth's birthday. Wishing every reader fortune in the Year of the Goat! Good health, success, and a happy Spring Festival!)