My head rang with a deafening buzz as waves of Sanskrit chanting stabbed into my body like thousands of needles. Black blood spurted from me as I was flung backwards, a sizzling noise coming from my chest where the blow had pierced straight through. I crashed helplessly to the ground, while Howard Zhang radiated a dense black aura, growing fiercer with every strike. He raised Hell's Sentinel and charged after me.
"Now's the time, Ethan Zhang. If you don't want to die, you'd better show your true strength. Howard Zhang was chosen by the Immortality Society from the very beginning—unlike you. You're so conflicted: a human with a ghost's power, now a ghost with a human heart."
I got to my feet, my eyes turning gold and red. Howard's speed, strength, and reflexes were all beyond what I'd anticipated. I gripped Hell's Sentinel and leapt easily to the side. With a thunderous crash, Howard's Hell's Sentinel smashed into the ground.
I immediately jumped back a good distance as the ground split open. Howard swept Hell's Sentinel sideways—his movements with that weapon were unnaturally agile. I retreated again, choosing not to attack recklessly. That last blow had seriously shaken my Ghost Soul.
I decided to wait and watch for a while. Besides, Mr. Oblivion was nearby, and I didn't want to reveal too much with him watching.
"What are you going to do, Ethan Zhang? You can't keep dodging forever."
I dodged Howard's Monk's Staff again, feeling the force and speed intensify—everything about Howard was disturbingly unnatural.
Shadows of the staff flickered before my eyes. After taking a few hits, I turned into black mist and drifted upward. In the air, gusts of black wind swirled around me as I circled Howard, enveloping him in a ring of fog. At that moment, Howard stopped, as if searching for my location.
Suddenly, a dazzling golden light flashed. Howard waved his hand, and a string of Sanskrit script shot toward me. This was bad—I could sense the danger in it.
"Ah, it's the Brahma Lock."
Mr. Oblivion muttered something under his breath. I knew this thing—the Brahma Lock—was extremely dangerous for ghosts. Yuna Ji had been trapped by it for over a hundred years. I couldn't afford to be careless. I burst out of the mist, slashing several Wind Blades through the air.
The spinning Brahma Lock easily deflected my Wind Blades and came straight for me. I shot upward at full speed, but the Brahma Lock relentlessly chased after me. It couldn't quite catch up, but things were looking grim—Howard was already making his move.
In the blink of an eye, Howard was right in front of me. I looked up as his Monk's Staff stabbed through the air, carrying a force so strong it seemed to rip the air apart. My neck burned with searing pain.
The Brahma Lock was right behind me now. I didn't think—just one thought in my mind: run.
"If you don't think of something soon, you'll die, Ethan Zhang."
I knew exactly what was happening. I swung Hell's Sentinel, and with a clang, blocked Howard's downward strike with Hell's Sentinel. But the Brahma Lock spun beneath me, winding around my legs.
Suddenly, I felt my ghost soul wrapped up by something—I couldn't move at all. With a crash, I was flung away again, rolling across the ground several times before coming to a stop.
A surge of black energy accompanied Howard as he came right up to me, crouching low, Monk's Staff raised to strike. My body was failing fast. With a heavy thud, my chest took a direct hit.
My mind spun in turmoil, dizzy and disoriented as I lay on the ground. Howard pointed the Monk's Staff at my neck, while the string of Sanskrit script around my leg began crawling over my body.
It was my Ghost Soul—the Brahma Lock would bind my Ghost Soul completely, and it kept absorbing the ghost energy leaking from my body.
"Howard..." I cried out, my voice trembling with pain and longing.
I screamed Howard's name, my voice raw and desperate. He slowly raised Hell's Sentinel, the black energy around him thickening, and his face twisted with deep, venomous hostility.
Gradually, as we fought, I realized something: Howard was just like the other ghost monks under Brother Owen—his own will had been stripped away, and he'd become nothing but Brother Owen's puppet.
But he still had a heart—I could tell immediately.
"Howard... did you find her? Did you find Sophie Sun?"
I asked the question, and Howard's eyelids twitched as if he was reacting. This time, he'd come here to find Sophie Sun. He was responding—the Monk's Staff he had raised slowly dropped.
"Think hard, Howard. Sophie Sun—do you remember her? You came here for her. Remember, Howard, I'm your cousin, Ethan Zhang."
I shouted, slowly getting to my feet.
"It's no use, Ethan Zhang. You'd better make up your mind soon."
Mr. Oblivion burst into laughter nearby. The coldness on Howard's face began to melt, and his hostility toward me seemed to fade.
Suddenly, Howard's expression changed, turning cold again. He swung the Monk's Staff at me. I stared at him, while Deathbane Aura wrapped around Hell's Sentinel in my hand. Instantly, shards of ice drifted through the air around us.
"Howard, you're no match for me. Stand down. I'm strong now—that's why I came here."
With a whoosh, I swept past Howard with Hell's Sentinel. For a moment, my form seemed to split into countless overlapping shadows, unleashing my killing intent.
With a slash, Howard's Hell's Sentinel split in two. I reached out, grabbing the Brahma Lock as it slipped from Howard's body. With a flick of my wrist, compressed black Wind Blades shattered the golden Brahma Lock in an instant.
(Irrelevant system text, skip translation.)
At Howard's current strength, the Brahma Lock was useless. I stood quietly as a loud tearing sound split the air—Howard's Monk's Vestment ripped apart.
I stared at Howard's chest—there was nothing there, just a gaping hole filled with sticky black liquid.
My Deathbane Aura began to swirl, wrapping around Howard. I glanced around, deciding to take him down from the platform.
"Beautiful strike, Ethan Zhang. You've grown this strong, huh? Still, don't get careless—especially up here on the Lotus Platform."
I didn't want to hear Mr. Oblivion's commentary. I was just searching for a way out. Suddenly, a suffocating pressure descended from the sky. I looked up—seven beams of light shot down. Howard roared, breaking free from my Deathbane Aura and leapt upward.
Cracks spread across the ground. I realized the beams of light were aimed at me. Howard floated above, clenching his fists as the rainbow beams poured into his body. My legs buckled under the immense pressure—I couldn't move.
"If you don't fight back now, you'll die."
Howard's eyes were now completely blank, wisps of black smoke drifting out from them.
I raised both hands, returning Hell's Sentinel to my grip. I sensed Howard still had a heart—after my last strike, his heart was beating again. Even with the crushing force from above, I could hear it thumping.
Suddenly, Howard plummeted from the sky, fist swinging at me, rainbow light swirling across his body. I slowly raised my right hand, Deathbane Aura coiling around it, morphing into a large-caliber revolver. I placed my finger on the trigger, aiming at Howard.
"Howard, you were never this fragile. I remember—when you fought, you never bowed your head."
I smiled. With a thunderous crash, Howard's fist slammed into my chest. I pulled the trigger—a bright white bullet shot into his heart. Then, engulfed in a violent burst of rainbow light, I plummeted downward.
Howard, cold and distant, faded into the distance as darkness swallowed me. My senses slipped away—the force of his blow was overwhelming. My Ghost Soul felt as if it were being pulverized, dragged endlessly downward into the void.
With a crash, I hit the ground, coughing up black blood. The sky turned gray, the rainbow halo vanished, and a colossal stone stele appeared before me, dozens of meters tall.
With a rush, Zhu Tang and Spirit Snake emerged from my body, helping me to my feet. I kept watching the sky—the gaping rift was slowly healing itself. It was the Ghost Domain; my last strike had punched straight through it.
"Don't be so reckless next time, Qingyuan. Just now, all six of us put everything we had into protecting your ghost soul."
I gave a wry smile, staring at the massive stone stele. The writing on it was Sanskrit—I couldn't read it. It must have stood here for countless years, lonely and imposing. At that moment, I was alone in Jialan City.
At the mountain's summit, only this stone stele stood. All around were scattered houses, different from those in Brother Owen's Ghost Domain. The Buddha statues nearby were varied too, filled with compassion.
Suddenly, the surface of the stele began to glow with golden light. Pure, calming Sanskrit chanting echoed all around me.
Filled with reverence, I gazed at the stone stele—the power emanating from within was sacred beyond words.