I drifted slowly forward. The three-faced, six-armed shadow I had just seen had vanished, and fear flickered in Yuna Ji's eyes.
"So this is your true power, Zane Zhuang!"
Mr. Brown turned to face me, placing a hand on my shoulder.
"Qingyuan, the coming battle might destroy your entire Shadow Realm, but only your realm can withstand this impact. You'll need to keep using baleful energy to repair your Shadow Realm. It won't be easy, but I'm counting on you."
I nodded, raised my hand, and with a crack, a rift split open before me, revealing my apartment building. My power hadn't been suppressed by Battle Instinct; both Slaughter and Battle Instinct entered my Shadow Realm first.
"This is going to get messy, Ethan Zhang. You'd better get ready quickly, or you'll be overwhelmed once the fight starts!"
I nodded again, half-squatting on the ground. Ethan's Spectral Juggernaut stood at the edge of the rooftop, looking at the empty lot on the right side of the building. I pressed both hands to the ground and focused, instantly forming a thick barrier of baleful energy around the lot, enclosing Yuna Ji and Mr. Brown. I closed my eyes, and images flooded into my mind.
Mr. Brown began to change—his hair turned white and stood on end, his eyes slowly faded to white, and his skin gradually shifted to black.
Yuna Ji crouched, gripping her spear tightly, her posture tense and vigilant as she stared at Mr. Brown.
"Let’s begin!"
Mr. Brown spoke in a low voice. With a thunderous crash, cracks split the ground in an instant. Mr. Brown raised his six fists and smashed them toward Yuna Ji. I immediately used baleful energy to begin repairing.
With another boom, Yuna Ji leapt up, her spear blocking two of Mr. Brown’s fists as she jumped to the left. Where she’d been standing, a massive pit had appeared. Baleful energy gathered frantically, starting to patch it up.
I now deeply understand what Battle Instinct meant—just a simple attack, and my Shadow Realm nearly collapsed.
Mr. Brown floated about a meter above the ground, his six arms spread wide. His eyes showed no emotion, only a face twisted by rage.
Suddenly, Mr. Brown moved again—just like before, the whole world seemed to lose its sound. His fists moved slowly; I saw it all clearly, but Yuna Ji couldn’t dodge. She raised her spear, and with a thunderous crash, six fists struck her, sending her flying.
Instantly, the entire open ground began to collapse. My Shadow Realm was pierced with a huge hole; I could see the bone-strewn Nether Hell outside.
I immediately used baleful energy to fill the gap. Yuna Ji got to her feet, sneering as she stared at Mr. Brown, her spear waving in her hand.
With a swish, the spear stabbed toward Mr. Brown’s head. He tilted his head to dodge, then his six fists struck out. Yuna Ji deftly dodged the concentrated blows, sweeping her spear sideways. With a bang, the spear struck Mr. Brown’s arm.
Mr. Brown’s body lurched to the left from the tremendous force. Yuna Ji instantly leapt up and pressed down, and with a rumble, Mr. Brown crashed to the ground. As Yuna Ji rose, she transformed into a black-green spike, unleashing a world-shattering force toward Mr. Brown.
With a crack, my baleful energy barrier shattered instantly. Mr. Brown stood up, half-crouched on the ground, his six arms recoiling violently, then struck out with a thunderous boom.
Black and green forces collided, lifting me into the air. The apartment building beneath my feet was flattened in an instant. I struggled to use baleful energy to keep repairing the shattered Shadow Realm.
The powerful air currents nearly knocked me off my feet. Suddenly, Mr. Brown roared and straightened up. With a thunderous crash, Yuna Ji emerged from the black-green glow, flipping through the air before falling. Mr. Brown crashed sideways toward her.
With a bang, Yuna Ji planted her spear, blocking Mr. Brown’s attack. The spear creaked as it began to bend in her hands.
No technique, just brute force clashing. Both were completely caught up in the fight. Yuna Ji’s spear bent to an unbelievable degree but didn’t snap. Suddenly, she yanked it free. My heart skipped—a black current burst through my Shadow Realm and surged outward.
I’d already moved the Shadow Realm above the Styx. The whole river seemed cut in half. Under the impact of that force, I hurried to repair the damaged Shadow Realm.
Yuna Ji floated in the air, laughing repeatedly.
"Looks like this fight’s going to last a while!"
Mr. Brown didn’t respond. With a swoosh, he appeared before Yuna Ji, his six fists striking wildly. Thunder rumbled as Yuna Ji dodged again and again, occasionally thrusting her spear at him, which Mr. Brown kept evading.
The fight reached a stalemate. Even battling in the air kept shaking my Shadow Realm, and my baleful energy couldn’t keep up with the repairs. That’s when Battle Instinct approached me.
"That crazy woman seems to be enjoying herself. At this rate, Yuna Ji might not hold out much longer. We should stop them!"