Explosive bangs echoed as four Yvonne Yangs shattered the black flames I hurled at them, one by one. Unable to withstand their assault, I could only dissolve with a crack into a cloud of black mist, planning to escape first and look for another chance.
"Push a little harder! Ethan Zhang is about to collapse. If you defeat him, you can have that book on the ground."
I dodged desperately, clashing head-on with Yvonne Yang, while my mind raced. Her attacks always came in waves, accompanied by the rhythmic clangs and drums from the opera stage. As the tempo quickened, her strikes grew even more ferocious.
I kept analyzing Yvonne Yang's attack patterns, but no matter how I thought about it, I couldn't figure them out. All I could do was keep moving swiftly through the mist with my Specter Web. At that moment, an idea popped into my head—if only I had a long-range weapon, I could take her down.
"Ethan Zhang, at least let me show off a little."
The sound of the Soulreaver Blade rang out. Instantly, I grabbed it from my back. Clang, clang, clang—the blade sang as I miraculously blocked the attacks from four Yvonne Yangs, then, with a surge of power, drove them all back.
Emerging from the mist, I gasped for breath, staring at her and swallowing hard. The sun had already set, and night was about to fall. Once darkness came, the fight would get even harder—my strength would shrink under the weight of desire. I had to defeat Yvonne Yang before night arrived.
Resolute, I decided to track down the source of the opera music. But the sound seemed to come from all directions, impossible to pinpoint. Just then, Yvonne Yang slowly descended.
"What are you doing?" I muttered. She quietly stared at the book on the ground—Polishing Mirror Garden—then shook her head.
"The sun's setting. I want to rest for the night and fight again in the morning."
I stared at Yvonne Yang in surprise and slowly descended to the ground. Isabelle Frost smirked coldly, watching Yvonne.
"Let’s hope this doesn’t become your downfall, little girl. Do you really think Ethan Zhang is a fool?"
I let out a sound of surprise, looking at Isabelle Frost. Yvonne Yang didn’t even look back as she walked toward her residence. I finally breathed a sigh of relief—if the fight continued, I’d probably lose. My ghost aura had already diminished.
Isabelle Frost and I walked back slowly together. She remained silent, only smiling. I didn’t ask anything and simply lay down when we returned.
I hadn’t even eaten lunch today, and now I was hungry. Lying there quietly, I mulled over the moves Yvonne Yang used in the fight—I had to come up with a solution by tomorrow.
The four Yvonne Yangs attacking me were all solid entities, not illusions. Her ghost aura hadn’t decreased because of their appearance—if anything, it was still growing.
In contrast, my ghost aura kept draining with every battle. Now, I couldn’t recover it quickly. As the fighting intensified, I’d only get weaker.
What was up with that opera music? What kind of attack did Yvonne Yang use? I couldn’t figure it out. Maybe she possessed a Shadow Realm? I’d considered that, but if a Shadow Realm appeared, there’d be a rift in space—and I hadn’t seen one.
I’d visited plenty of Blue Wraiths’ Shadow Realms before. The biggest feature was that inside, your own power would be suppressed to some extent.
A gentle, melodious zither rang out, calming my previously restless mind. But I sensed an unusual force within the music. My Specter Web was extended outward, and I realized it was a power of confusion—Yvonne Yang’s doing.
I was bewitched by the music. The zither stopped abruptly, and I jolted upright, looking toward the Octagon Tower—Isabelle Frost was watching me.
"Tomorrow, I’ll defeat her."
I declared firmly. Isabelle Frost smiled.
"I’m looking forward to it—the third stage is next."
Early the next morning, after breakfast, I went across the river. Yvonne Yang was still eating, but she seemed much more normal—just ordinary pastries. After she finished, she floated over to me, and I rose up as well. The battle was about to begin.
But today, Yvonne Yang was different. Determination filled her eyes, and her ghost aura had grown even stronger overnight. I swallowed hard.
Yvonne Yang said nothing. Suddenly, she appeared right in front of me, thrusting her spear. I twisted aside, dodged, and grabbed her spear. Instantly, my Specter Web wrapped around it, but was swiftly severed. With a boom, black flames engulfed Yvonne Yang.
I roared, unleashing a violent surge. Black wind blades swept around, mixed with tiny black ice crystals, sealing her movements—just as I’d planned from the start.
With a crack and a burst of intense drumming, Yvonne Yang broke free from the flames and charged at me. She jabbed upward with her spear, and when I dodged, the spear instantly transformed into a halberd, swinging down at me.
Caught off guard, I took a heavy blow to the chest. Yvonne Yang’s halberd then morphed into a dagger, stabbing toward me. I quickly spread my arms, contracting the Specter Web controlling the wind blades around her.
Clangs rang out as Yvonne Yang blocked the wind blades, her dagger already vanished. I noticed one of the little flags on her back was missing, and my heart tightened. I raised my Hell's Sentinel, blocking behind me.
With a bang, I was struck by a tremendous force and started falling. Just as I was about to dissolve into mist, three Yvonne Yangs attacked from different angles, wielding their fingers like blades, spears, and swords.
There was no time. My hands transformed into two snakes, reaching toward the sword and blade, intending to devour them and then coil around the other two Yvonne Yangs.
With a hiss, Yvonne Yang's spear stabbed into my abdomen first. The cloak on my back suddenly swept over like a stage curtain. With a whoosh, I vanished from in front of Yvonne Yang.
"Over there." As soon as I entered the Shedding Skin space, I sensed it. I'd wrapped Yvonne Yang with my Specter Web earlier precisely to locate her. Now, I pinpointed the source of the sound—just behind Yvonne Yang.
Yvonne Yang was searching for me everywhere. Without hesitation, I exited the Shedding Skin space and swung my Hell's Sentinel at an empty spot.
Swish—there was something real there. Suddenly, a slew of opera props appeared before me, including a small drum that I split in two. Behind me, four Yvonne Yangs closed in.
I really was bewitched by the sound—my vision and Specter Web were completely deceived. This must be the source of Yvonne Yang's power. At that moment, her ghost aura dropped sharply.
I roared, raising my Hell's Sentinel at the pile of instruments, determined to smash them all. I swung wildly, hacking at everything.
With a clang, a streak of blood-red appeared—a Red Spider Lily blocked my Hell's Sentinel. I stared in shock. Behind me, Yvonne Yang had stopped, and Isabelle Frost stood before me. Something felt wrong. My Specter Web seemed to wither in an instant, or rather, a large section was suddenly missing—right near where Isabelle Frost appeared. I knew clearly my Specter Web had covered everything, but now a chunk had vanished inexplicably, right at Isabelle Frost’s location.
"You pass, Ethan Zhang. Little girl, you can take the book."
Isabelle Frost spoke. Yvonne Yang returned to her usual form, turned into a flash of green light, and flew to the book, picking it up with delight.
At that moment, I saw Yvonne Yang's figure begin to blur, as if she was about to vanish. I watched her in astonishment.
"What’s happening?"
"Her desire has changed. Now her body can bear it, so she won’t remain in this forest."
I looked at Yvonne Yang with gratitude, then nodded and shouted loudly.
"Everything must come to an end. You’ll find her—your sister. And for you, after this..."
"It will matter..."
Yvonne Yang gave a warm smile and gradually disappeared into the white light. A gust of wind swept by. Isabelle Frost looked at me coldly, then raised her hand—a green staff, glowing like a sword, appeared in her grip.
"It’s about to begin, Ethan Zhang."
I nodded happily, looking at Isabelle Frost.
"All I need is to hit you once, right?"
Isabelle Frost nodded, speaking each word clearly.
"You only need to strike me once. I won’t use my own power—just ghost aura to fight you."
I glanced again at Isabelle Frost’s hand, where she held two rods as thick as fingers, formed from her ghost aura. I watched her intently as killing aura kept spilling from my body.
"Looks like this will take a while. I’ll count on you, Miss Isabelle."
"Just come at me, Ethan Zhang. Whether you’re eating or sleeping, anytime, anywhere—you just need to truly strike me."