The wound on my hand, inflicted by John Chou’s ghostly aura during our clash, was still seeping with Deathbane Aura, yet it kept healing. In that brief moment, even though I unleashed all my strength, I was still at a disadvantage.
I was painfully aware of the gap between me and John Chou. Years of battle had left indelible marks deep within his body—his perception, control, and reaction speed all far surpassed mine. Standing before him, I was like a rough stone compared to a perfectly carved jade.
“Brother, even a stone, if polished well, can become a masterpiece. And you, you’re still in the carving stage. Come, let me see for myself.”
In an instant, a streak of red light flashed before me. I raised Hell’s Sentinel and swung it, but with a sharp hiss, a mist of blood-red vapor erupted. The moment I reacted, the mist dispersed—John Chou’s true form was already behind me. I sensed it, all too clearly.
A chill swept over my back, the killing intent was ice-cold and absolute. My whole body creaked, and in a split second, a thick layer of ice formed on my skin. With a crisp crack, Rage Blood pierced right through the ice.
“Mirror!”
I roared, and in a rush, appeared in the sky atop a black mirror. Brandishing Hell’s Sentinel, I slashed downward. With a thunderous crash, John Chou raised Rage Blood and blocked my attack.
“Brother, not bad. You’re starting to understand.”
I shouted, and in an instant, black wind blades swept around me, slicing toward John Chou. With a flurry of slashes, the evil ghost behind him swung its blood-red sword, scattering every wind blade.
I lunged forward, Hell’s Sentinel in hand, driving straight at John Chou. With a swift strike, I aimed for his chest, but he dodged nimbly in midair, knocking aside my weapon. The evil ghost behind him let out a furious roar.
My heart jolted. With a sharp snap, I turned into a cloud of black mist. Two swift slashes followed by a metallic clang—I blocked the evil ghost’s strike, but the other blow swept toward my chest.
Black blood sprayed through the air as I reformed from the mist and flew backward. John Chou advanced, Rage Blood in hand, a cold smile on his lips—pure killing intent. In that instant, his murderous aura surged to new heights.
That icy killing intent was like a dagger pressed against my throat—one wrong move and I’d be dead. Suddenly, I understood something. I steadied myself, Hell’s Sentinel raised and unmoving, waiting for John Chou to approach.
But John Chou didn’t come closer. Instead, he stopped, standing opposite me, smiling.
Just a moment ago, I hadn’t reacted or attacked at all. Strangely, the killing intent around me felt suffocating, as if I were caught in a vortex—one false move and I’d be torn to pieces.
“Is this your power?”
I replied coldly. John Chou laughed. I slowly extended Hell’s Sentinel to my right, letting Deathbane Aura coil around it. The air hissed as black wind blades wrapped along the weapon’s edge.
“That’s right, brother. Heh, if you don’t fight with the intent to kill me, you’ll die here—devoured by my killing intent.”
With a whoosh, I became a streak of black light, Hell’s Sentinel raised, slashing at John Chou’s throat.
With a metallic clang, John Chou raised Rage Blood and blocked my strike. In that instant, the wind blades on Hell’s Sentinel coiled tightly around him, hissing through the air.
I quickly retreated. John Chou’s form blurred within the black wind blades. With a slash, Rage Blood swept past my cheek—a sharp rip, and several wounds opened across my chest.
Two intersecting blades of red light slashed toward me. I had nowhere left to retreat—this was bad. The force shattered my ghost web in an instant, leaving it in ruins.
Without hesitation, I raised Hell’s Sentinel and struck at the cross-shaped blades that had reached me.
As expected, the power around me was crushed. With my defenses gone, I was fully exposed to John Chou’s Rage Blood.
“Brother, what’s your plan?”
With a rush, John Chou was suddenly above me, bringing Rage Blood down mercilessly.
Suddenly, I realized something. As I blocked the cross-shaped blades, I grabbed the corner of my cloak with my left hand. With a rush, I vanished beneath John Chou’s Rage Blood.
The black cloak was struck by Rage Blood and fell to the ground. Gasping for breath, I watched the scene unfold. My vision cleared—John Chou’s ghost web couldn’t sense me. Thanks to this shed skin, I was now hidden in a space surrounded by serpent scales.
It was the spirit snake that warned me at the last moment, letting me escape.
John Chou was searching for any trace of me.
“Brother, that’s it. If you can’t break through head-on, attack from behind. If that fails, hide and wait for your chance.”
John Chou’s ghost web densely filled the sky. I could sense that if I appeared for even a moment, he’d swing Rage Blood at me.
I gripped Hell’s Sentinel tightly, silently observing John Chou as he hovered in the air. I kept searching for a way to win. His instincts were terrifying—though he couldn’t unleash his full power, I’d seen him pierce Zuoqian Si’s heart with ease.
Suddenly, I smiled. With a rush, I appeared behind John Chou, Hell’s Sentinel raised, slashing at him.
[Irrelevant system message. Skip translation.]
With a sharp hiss, John Chou vanished from sight—a phantom. His real body was to my left, just as I’d expected. I swung Hell’s Sentinel to block, but a powerful force knocked me away, sending me plummeting toward the ground.
Out of the corner of my eye, I glimpsed blood-red streaks behind me. My black cloak fluttered as I steadied myself, looking up in shock. Blood-red threads wove together, sealing every escape route around me. John Chou had vanished.
My ghost web couldn’t locate him; instead, it was being devoured by his. Any attempt to expand would immediately connect to his web and turn blood-red—my range of perception was sealed.
“This is how ghosts fight, brother. It’s like battling for territory—devouring your opponent, waiting for a fatal opening. Even with negative ghost souls, if you keep searching and slashing, you’ll eventually get a chance to kill. Until then, either get devoured and destroyed, or devour your opponent and find the killing blow.”
I didn’t dare touch the threads around me. These blood-red lines were John Chou’s ghost web. My perception had shrunk, but I finally understood—ghost webs weren’t just for sensing.
Now, I could only rely on my eyes to search for any clue around me. John Chou wouldn’t give me time to figure things out—he’d attack soon. I couldn’t miss a single opportunity. I had to find a way out of here.
My previous hiding method was useless now. Even if I slipped into the shed skin, it would be the same. I reached out and plucked a red ghost thread from my cloak—John Chou’s thread, stuck to me.
Suddenly, I felt a faint tremor beneath my feet. I twisted my body and slipped through the red threads, flying outward.
“Trying to run, brother?”
John Chou’s voice echoed behind me. Without hesitation, I unleashed Deathbane Aura, forming a protective membrane around my body.
With a boom, my Deathbane Aura collapsed the instant it touched the red threads. These things were indeed John Chou’s instincts, born of slaughter.
Suddenly, the red threads began to tighten. I stopped and swung Hell’s Sentinel, striking them. With a metallic clang, they were as hard as steel, filled with ghostly energy.
With a snap, I turned into black mist, trying to force my way through the tangled red threads. But with two sharp slashes, I clutched my left hand—deep wounds dripping black blood.
“That’s enough, brother. What’s your move now? How will you handle this crisis?”
John Chou’s voice seemed to come from all directions. I couldn’t pinpoint his location.
I tried channeling my power into my ghost web. Gradually, I sensed John Chou’s threads—like countless tiny blades, cutting off every extension of my own web.
The red threads began closing in on me. I shut my eyes, focusing my senses. The tiny blades kept slicing my web. A chill swept over my head—John Chou was above me. I snapped my eyes open and roared.
“Instinct, called... Coexistence....”
With a metallic clang, I blocked John Chou’s Rage Blood. Deathbane Aura whirled wildly around me, and the red threads creaked, coated in black ice. Black snow began to fall from the sky, swirling all around.