Suddenly, I saw the nine bony segments on Yuna Ji's back begin to contract, wrapping her tightly within.
John Chou had just finished speaking and stood up. In an instant, I could only see the shadow of him slashing his blade in all directions, leaving streaks of blood-red gashes visible to the naked eye. The swishing sound echoed as those overwhelming bone segments were chopped into pieces and fell to the ground.
A flash of red light appeared before Yuna Ji. John Chou raised Hell's Sentinel and swung at Yuna Ji, who was wrapped in the nine bone segments.
With a swish, I was so shocked I nearly rushed in, but Samantha Simons grabbed me and held me back.
The bones wrapping Yuna Ji were split in two, and her entire body was cut in half at the waist. She glared at John Chou, full of anger.
With a thud, Yuna Ji fell to the ground.
"That hurt like hell, John Chou! Why are you so ruthless?"
"You wretch, you're no different. That punch you landed just now made my face hurt, you know." John Chou laughed and rubbed his face.
"You're lying!" Yuna Ji retorted, unconvinced. Then, her body, split in two, merged back together, and she crouched on the ground.
Suddenly, green circles of light appeared on the ground.
With a creaking sound, skeletons wielding weapons and clad in ancient armor began to rise from the ground. Green light glowed in their skulls as a chorus of wailing filled the air.
"Oh, oh, looks like you want to play the long game with me, you wretch." As he spoke, Yuna Ji's figure had already disappeared.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—the ground was suddenly covered by a rain of arrows, aimed at John Chou. Instantly, John Chou raised Hell's Sentinel to deflect the arrows, but with so many, his shoulder and thigh were both struck. He grimaced, clearly in pain.
I've seen scenes like this in Exile Town before, but these skeletons were obviously different—faster, stronger, and every one of them was armored.
John Chou turned into a burst of red light, landing among the skeletons, wielding Hell's Sentinel as he fought furiously.
Skeleton after skeleton was hacked to pieces, but after a short while, the shattered bones reassembled, piecing themselves back together.
The scene before me was astonishing. These skeletons moved like a disciplined army—those with large shields formed the front line, while archers behind them fired cold arrows, and every so often, spearmen would thrust through the gaps in the shields.
Though John Chou dodged repeatedly, the situation was perilous. Even with Hell's Sentinel, which could cleave through skeletons and shields in a single swing, new skeletons would immediately fill the gaps.
The skeletons split into six formations, completely surrounding John Chou and attacking relentlessly, shifting positions as they pressed their assault.
"Damn it, you wretched woman, get out here!" Another arrow struck John Chou in the neck. With a swish, he split a lunging skeleton in two, yanked the arrow from his neck, and glared fiercely around him.
"Heh heh, John Chou, your Bloodbane Power is useless against my skeleton army, isn't it?"
Suddenly, I saw John Chou swing Hell's Sentinel, sending droplets of blood spraying onto the skeletons. With a series of explosive pops, skeletons shattered, but it was all in vain—their broken forms quickly reassembled.
I noticed John Chou wasn't just swinging his blade wildly; it was as if he was searching for something. Suddenly, he started to smile.
"Found you, wretch," John Chou said, then leapt forward, wielding Hell's Sentinel as he turned into a burst of red light. With a crash, he swept into the left skeleton formation like a hurricane, shattering skeletons instantly.
A fierce gust of wind blew, and with a crash, something like a barrier cracked.
"You love hiding so much—what tricks do you have left now, wretch?"
With a clang, just as John Chou broke through the barrier, he was stopped by something. The swirling yellow sand faded, revealing a massive skeleton, two or three heads taller than John Chou, clad in heavy armor that glowed with purple-black light and wielding a pair of hammers. It blocked John Chou's assault.
"Oh my, wretch, you sure know how to hide. You've brought out your Nine Wraith Generals."
With a snapping sound, the skeletons lined up neatly and knelt on the ground.
Only now did I see clearly: there were nine different skeletons, each wielding a unique weapon—swords, spears, sabers, staves, and more. Beneath them were skeletal mounts: horses, tigers, leopards, bears, and other creatures.
Yuna Ji sat quietly on a bone sedan chair, carried by sixteen skeletons. The chair was adorned with skulls as decorations. Yuna Ji smiled sweetly, resting her cheek in her hand, watching John Chou.
"Your Highness, Princess, for what purpose have you summoned us?"
I saw one of them, a short skeleton riding a tiger, with twin blades strapped to its back, turn to look at Yuna Ji.
"It's just to pass the time. All right, which of you will spar with him?"
"Your Highness, the man before you is, like yourself, of noble status. We..."
"Shut up! Didn't you hear my command?"
Suddenly, the skeleton blocking John Chou roared, its body blazing with purple-black light. In an instant, it sent John Chou flying. Then, stomping the ground, it kicked up a cloud of dust and leapt to where John Chou landed, raising its twin hammers and smashing them down.
"Such strength," John Chou gripped Hell's Sentinel with both hands, blocking the attack. But the desert beneath him was already sunken in deeply.
The clang of metal rang out again as John Chou smiled, dodging the twin hammer strikes repeatedly.
"The strength is impressive, but the attack style is far too ordinary."
As John Chou spoke, he dodged the giant skeleton's attack, raised Hell's Sentinel, and slashed at its neck. Instantly, Hell's Sentinel turned red, and with a single stroke, the skeleton's head was sliced clean off. Its massive body collapsed with a thud.
"Idiot, idiot, pig-headed fool!" Yuna Ji looked exasperated, then reached out and reattached the skeleton's head. It stood up and returned to Yuna Ji, kneeling on one knee before her.
"My lady..."
"You pig-head!" Yuna Ji said, jumping down from the sedan and slapping the skeleton's head.
"You few, attack together."
Yuna Ji suddenly pointed at the other skeletons.
"Your Highness, please hear me out. If so many of us attack one man, what will people say..."
With two crisp slaps, Yuna Ji turned and smacked the short skeleton twice.
"Hey, I said you lot should just get lost if you have nothing to do. Today, I want to spar with this wretch—why are you all getting involved?"
"Let's go, let's go. It's not a real battle, so there's no need to indulge Her Highness's whims. Let's go back." said one skeleton riding a leopard, and the others nodded in agreement.
Waves of green light flashed, and the skeletons disappeared one by one.
Yuna Ji glared at the skeletons, furious that they wouldn't obey her, and shouted in frustration.
"How dare you defy my orders! You... you lot... you..."
"Princess, call us when it's a real battle. This is just like the Beacon Fire Play—using us for amusement. We refuse to take part."
John Chou suddenly burst out laughing, clutching his stomach as he watched Yuna Ji's embarrassed expression. He walked over, holding Hell's Sentinel.
"Keep glaring, John Chou. I've got even tougher creatures."
As Yuna Ji spoke, she placed her hand on the ground. A burst of green light appeared, and suddenly, two enormous claws crawled up from below.
Then, a massive skull belonging to a skeletal monster emerged.
"Grimclaw, teach that man a lesson," Yuna Ji commanded, pointing at John Chou.
"Huh? No time for that, Princess. You're running low on power—better save it. My brothers and I have agreed, we'll never join your mischief again."
I blinked and smiled as the massive skeletal monster sank back into the ground.
John Chou walked up to Yuna Ji, sighed, and raised Hell's Sentinel.
"No more fighting, John Chou. That's enough."
At that moment, John Chou looked coldly at Yuna Ji, raised Hell's Sentinel, and swung it down at her.
"I was wrong, let's not fight anymore. I'm scared, okay?" Yuna Ji pleaded, blinking her big eyes like a little girl. But John Chou's blade still came down.
"You've always been like this—wretch—always hiding, relying on those dead men. What's the point? You should spar with me for real. Your combat instincts are way too dull."
But John Chou didn't strike. Instead, he put Hell's Sentinel away, grabbed Yuna Ji's cheeks with both hands, and pulled hard.
"I get it, I get it! Stop pulling, it hurts!"
Then the desert before us gradually faded away, and the two of them were sitting in the small pavilion again.
"Is it over?" I asked.
"It's my first time seeing all the Nine Generals of the Nether."
"What are those?"
Ying Sima smiled.
"Those nine generals were once loyal subjects of the Ji family, following them to the very end."
"Hey, Ying Sima, my ears are pretty sharp, you know!"
Then Ying Sima bowed, said nothing, walked over, and began massaging Yuna Ji's shoulders.