The earth trembled violently, splitting open with jagged cracks. Wild winds howled, sweeping sand and stones through the air. Houses collapsed one after another in the chaos.
"Cousin!" I shouted, reaching out desperately to grab him. Beneath us, a massive fissure had opened. My cousin fell into the crack. Clutching Rachel Lan in my arms, I soared upward, stretching my hand to save him.
Suddenly, a strip of white silk shot into the fissure, wrapped around my cousin, and pulled him back up.
Jun Huang carried Hu Tianshuo and Ruanfu Ruofei on his shoulders. Mao Xiaoyu manipulated a massive yellow talisman beneath him, floating in the air with Yu Mingxuan. Exhausted, he held up the Seven Star Sword, struggling to maintain their position.
"Everyone, be careful."
Quinn Lee's figure had already vanished into the distance. He seemed to have no intention of helping us. Judging by his direction, he was heading straight for the Wraith Palace.
With two swift flashes of enormous white sword light, the Wraith Palace was cleaved into three sections. With a thunderous crash, the entire palace collapsed.
"Quinn Lee, what are you trying to do?" Instantly, four or five Blue Wraiths blocked Quinn Lee's path.
Quinn Lee raised his green longsword, gripping it behind his back, and laughed wildly.
"Hand over the Buddha Statue of Visions, and I'll spare your lives. Otherwise..."
As soon as Quinn Lee finished speaking, dozens of swords formed from white light appeared behind him. The swords spun in a circle, revolving at Quinn Lee's back.
"Despicable, shameless scoundrel, Quinn Lee, taking advantage while our lord..."
"Enough nonsense. Hand over the item, and I'll spare your lives. Today, I will have what I came for."
With a thunderous crash, the ground below collapsed. Jun Huang leapt high into the air, still holding Hu Tianshuo and Ruanfu Ruofei. There was nothing beneath their feet anymore.
Mao Xiaoyu, unable to hold on any longer, lost his strength. The yellow talisman beneath his feet shrank, and he and Yu Mingxuan fell downwards.
The Blue Wraiths who had come for the banquet—forty or fifty in total—flew behind Quinn Lee in an instant.
"Lord of Circle City, aren't you being a bit too petty? Such behavior is unbecoming of the lord of Circle City."
Quinn Lee turned to look at the Blue Wraiths encircling him and smiled.
"You're the subordinates of the Ghost Monk, aren't you? Did you really come just to celebrate a birthday? Or are you after the Buddha Statue of Visions? Hmph, enough talk. If you keep this up, I'll slaughter every last Blue Wraith here..."
Suddenly, blinding green sword lights flashed across the sky. With a deafening roar, the heavens split open, and the surrounding dark clouds were pushed aside by a powerful force. Above Quinn Lee and the others, countless green sword beams pointed downward, their tips densely packed.
"Hmph, Lord Lee, our Ghost Monk has never had any quarrel with you. Why are you interfering?"
"May the capable claim it. If you want the Buddha Statue of Visions, let the Ghost Monk come himself. Why hide in the shadows?"
"Fine, today you win, Lord Lee. With Lord Wraith severely wounded, we may not match you. But I won't let you take the Buddha Statue of Visions without a fight."
The Blue Wraith speaking in the sky suddenly radiated streaks of green light. In an instant, his body seemed to rot, crawling with maggots, centipedes, scorpions, and all sorts of poisonous insects.
Immediately, forty or fifty Blue Wraiths drew their weapons, ready for battle.
"Fine, very well. It seems you're all in this together, sent by the Ghost Monk for the Buddha Statue of Visions. So be it. Today, I, Quinn Lee, will unleash a massacre."
With a swishing sound, three strips of white silk swept out. One wrapped around Jun Huang, the other two around Mao Xiaoyu and Yu Mingxuan. I struggled to fly toward a nearby three-story building that had miraculously survived the collapse.
With a thud, I landed on the rooftop, utterly exhausted but still gripping the Duskmourn Twinblades. I knew I couldn't collapse yet, especially after seeing Quinn Lee's cold, sharp gaze. I realized he might soon become our enemy—the murderous intent was clear from the moment he arrived.
With a thunderous boom, just as Quinn Lee was about to fight the Blue Wraiths, a colossal tree erupted from beneath the Wraith Palace. Fierce winds swept over us, and everyone clung desperately to the eaves, but we were nearly blown away.
Rachel Lan, pale-faced, released strips of white silk to anchor us to the roof. A massive stone was blown toward us.
I shouted, brandishing my black longsword, and charged into the fierce wind. Swinging wildly, I shattered the incoming stone with my blade.
"None of you can escape." Lord Wraith's voice echoed from the sky as clusters of purple and green light rained down like droplets.
Gradually, we saw that what was falling were green and purple Rakshasa Fruits.
The ghosts in the city had already fled into the distance, but the remaining ones were struck by Rakshasa Fruits. Instantly, they screamed in agony. As soon as the fruit touched a ghost, it seemed to bite into them, draining their life until they turned to ash.
Thousands of green sword beams in the sky struck down the falling Rakshasa Fruits.
"It's useless, Quinn Lee. This is my true form."
As Lord Wraith spoke, we saw the enormous Rakshasa Tree north of Wraithhold. From its trunk, a gigantic face grew, with green eyes and a gaping mouth. The Rakshasa Fruits that had absorbed ghosts transformed into streams of purple and green light, flying into the tree's mouth.
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With a scream, I saw in the distant sky a Blue Wraith attending the banquet struck by a Rakshasa Fruit. His body shriveled and then turned to ash.
Quinn Lee watched grimly. Suddenly, a Rakshasa Fruit landed on his hand. Without hesitation, Quinn Lee chopped off his own hand, which then turned into a burst of green light.
All the Blue Wraiths opened their ghost domains and fled inside. Next to the Rakshasa Tree, rifts in space appeared, and the Blue Wraiths flew into them as if escaping for their lives.
The falling Rakshasa Fruits stopped. We were far enough from the Rakshasa Tree not to worry.
"Ethan Zhang, where are you? Come out and die!"
Lord Wraith roared furiously. With a thunderous crash, a shockwave swept toward us from north to east, toppling houses in its path.
"Go!"
I shouted, leading everyone eastward, flying with all my strength. Behind us came a tremendous roar. Looking back, I saw the Rakshasa Tree swelling, its trunk shaking as Lord Wraith howled in rage.
Finally, I couldn't hold on any longer and crashed to the ground. All of us landed hard.
"Is everyone alright?" Hu Tianshuo called out, clutching his arm. The black curtain on the left side of his body gradually faded, revealing my own left side. Rachel Lan looked at me in surprise.
I quickly looked down and saw that my left side was covered in black, with crystalline spikes like stone drills. My hand still tightly gripped the Duskmourn Twinblades.
Lord Wraith seemed to be in great pain, and the colossal Rakshasa Tree shook violently.
"Rest a little, Ethan," Rachel Lan said, placing a hand on my shoulder. I nodded. Gradually, the Rakshasa Tree quieted down, and we could finally catch our breath.
Suddenly, rifts opened in the sky before us, and the Blue Wraiths who had just gone inside began to emerge one after another.
Quinn Lee was covered in wounds but slowly recovering. More than thirty Blue Wraiths surrounded him.
"Watch for a chance to escape," Hu Tianshuo muttered quietly.
We knew all too well that in this situation, our only option was to retreat.
"Quinn Lee, what do you want? The Buddha Statue of Visions is useless to you, but our leader, the Ghost Monk, could put it to great use. Why not do him a favor and sell it to him? Everyone would benefit..."
"Today, I, Quinn Lee, will have it no matter what."
"Amitabha, everyone, cease fighting."
Suddenly, a flash of green light appeared. I stared in surprise as an old monk, glowing green, emerged beside Quinn Lee. He was aged, dressed in a black kasaya embroidered with colorful insects—scorpions, centipedes, spiders, and more.
"Oh, Ghost Monk, why are you here instead of your Insect Mound City?"
"Lord Lee, long time no see." The Blue Wraith known as Ghost Monk reached out, holding the brocade box containing the Buddha Statue of Visions. Instantly, Quinn Lee's face twisted in rage, veins bulging on his forehead.
"Lord Lee, don't be angry. Look." The Ghost Monk opened the box, and all the Blue Wraiths' expressions changed—the Buddha Statue of Visions was gone.
"It wasn't me who took it. The Buddha Statue of Visions is over there..."
Suddenly, the brocade box slipped from the Ghost Monk's hand. He pointed in our direction, and immediately the Blue Wraiths flew toward us.
"What do you want?" I roared, getting to my feet.
"Young benefactor, it's not any of you I'm looking for. It's the corpse of the dead monk among you."
Instantly, a surge of anger rose in my chest, and I glared at them fiercely.