A massive wave of Deathbane Aura surged from behind me, transforming into sharp spikes that stabbed toward the skulls. But the moment they touched, my aura turned to mist and vanished.
"Ethan Zhang, what is it? Are you here to die?"
As Lord Wraith spoke, several skulls lunged at me, their gnashing sounds biting toward me. I quickly infused my fists with Deathbane Aura.
With a loud bang, my punch landed—this time, it worked. One skull was knocked away. Ghost Rakshasa looked surprised as I roared, swinging my bulging fists and sending the attacking skulls flying.
Suddenly, Lord Wraith turned into a flash of green light and flew toward me, his Wraith Fistblades aimed straight at me, murderous intent gleaming in his eyes.
All at once, a figure blocked my way—it was John Chou, his back to me, standing protectively ahead.
"Hey, brother, what are you doing here?"
"Damn."
Lord Wraith's Wraith Fistblade pierced through John Chou's body, the sharp blade right in front of my eyes. I shouted, crouched low, and formed a Deathbane Aura Blade in my hand, stabbing toward Lord Wraith's neck.
"Courting death." Suddenly, Ghost Rakshasa glared at me, his eyes blazing green. My mind buzzed, and I felt a tremendous force stop me cold.
"I told you not to come over here, brother."
Yin Choujian grabbed my collar and yanked hard, sending me flying backward and crashing to the ground. With a bang, his outstretched hand exploded. He coughed, spitting out a mouthful of blood.
I stared at him, wide-eyed and dazed.
"Pull yourself together, John Chou! Damn, what the hell are you doing?"
I shouted, and John Chou smiled.
With a tearing sound, Lord Wraith pulled out his Wraith Fistblade. John Chou collapsed to the ground and closed his eyes. I was completely stunned, staring blankly at him.
Lord Wraith waved his hands, shaking his head mindlessly.
"Boring, heh. So this is John Chou? Sure enough, spend enough time with humans and you turn into a coward. Ha ha..."
Pain shot through my hands as I crawled over and crouched in front of John Chou, staring at him in disbelief. I couldn't accept that this was the same John Chou who always seemed so aloof and untouchable, now lying quietly on the ground.
Cheers erupted all around as the ghosts laughed loudly—except for Basil Bertram and Redmond, who simply watched in silence from the sidelines.
"Lord Judge, what do you think? John Chou is nothing but a broken shell now."
Redmond didn't answer Lord Wraith. He just burst out laughing, clutching his forehead. Rufina Howard hurried over, and I stared dumbly at John Chou.
"His soul is gravely wounded."
As Rufina Howard spoke, she took out a small jar, preparing to cast a spell. Suddenly, Lord Wraith strode over, seized Rufina Howard's head with one hand, and aimed his fist blade at me.
"What do you think you're doing?"
"My business is none of yours. Who crashes someone else's birthday like you?"
Suddenly, Lord Wraith hoisted Rufina Howard up with one hand.
"Let go of me..." Rufina Howard struggled. I immediately stood up, Deathbane Aura gathering again.
Two loud slaps rang out. Lord Wraith's eyes flashed with fear. Redmond, expressionless, gripped Rufina Howard's collar with one hand.
"Let go of me, you bastard Redmond! He's badly hurt, I need to—"
"Shut up, kid. Mind your own business."
As soon as Redmond finished speaking, he vanished. When I turned, Redmond was already back in his seat, while Rufina Howard sat on the ground, pouting.
"Well, Ethan Zhang, is it your turn now? I really can't stand you."
"Shut up." I glared at Lord Wraith, anger burning in my eyes.
Suddenly, Lord Wraith appeared right in front of me. All I saw was a green blur before his hand closed around my throat.
"You're clearly human, but..."
I hadn't finished speaking when two strips of white silk shot over, followed by a paper tiger lunging at Lord Wraith—it was Rachel Lan, rushing to my aid.
I shook my head, forcing myself to say a few words.
"Don't... come closer."
With a crash, the silk and paper tiger instantly disintegrated into dust. I heard a creak as Lord Wraith's grip tightened—the bones in my neck felt like they might snap, and foam spilled from the corner of my mouth.
Rachel Lan kept running toward us.
"Think carefully, brother—why is it that your Deathbane Aura can't hurt him?"
Just then, I heard John Chou's voice echo inside my mind. I stared in shock at him, still lying on the ground.
"Oh, not bad. This woman—bring her back, and she'll be a real treat."
Lord Wraith let out a lewd laugh, then a series of sobs. Suddenly, a dozen skulls bit down on Rachel Lan, pinning her to the ground.
"I've decided. This woman is mine. Heh heh..."
Deathbane Aura kept gathering in my hand. My right fist was completely enveloped, more and more of it swirling around me.
"Damn it!" I roared, swinging my fist at Lord Wraith's chest as he glanced back at Rachel Lan.
With a thud, black light erupted. Lord Wraith turned to me in shock, eyes wide. My fist sank deep into his chest, caving it in. He let go, stumbling back several steps.
I started coughing violently.
"Damn it, have you slept enough? If you have, get up already, you liar!"
Suddenly, a smile appeared at the corner of John Chou's mouth. He opened his eyes, braced himself with one hand, and got up.
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"Brother, I might not be his match. Mind if I borrow something from you?"
I cried out, but nodded anyway.
Suddenly, John Chou placed a hand on my shoulder. His eyes changed—growing wild with excitement. He opened his mouth and bit down hard on my shoulder.
I screamed. Blood—John Chou was drinking my blood.
"Damn it, what the hell are you doing?"
I punched at him, but John Chou dodged nimbly, laughing and slowly rising into the air.
"Brother, you agreed to this, didn't you? It's been too long since I've stretched my legs. Lord Wraith, do you really think you're the only one who's grown stronger? All these years under the Sanzu Force's pressure—I made a few new tricks. Since everyone's so curious, let me show you."
Suddenly, a bone whip shot out beneath my feet, wrapping around me. Another bone whip snared Rachel Lan's feet. The two of us were yanked into a swirl of green light, and when our vision cleared, we were beside Redmond.
"Damn it, John Chou is still as devious as ever. Shit, it's my birthday—what the hell are you trying to pull?"
Redmond shouted, and a catlike yowl echoed. The old man from Naraku appeared before us, brandishing a cat-headed cane. A pale blue shield formed in front of us.
With a crack, the space behind Redmond's men and Basil Bertram's followers split open. Their hundred ghosts dissolved into green light and vanished inside.
"Let's see what tricks you can pull. With the Sanzu Force crushing you, you're already broken." Lord Wraith kept shouting, fist blade raised as he soared upward.
With a clang, John Chou's remaining hand gripped his ghost weapon, blocking Lord Wraith's attack. With a thunderous boom, the sky—sunny a moment before—suddenly turned black.
"Who... are you really?" Lord Wraith muttered, eyes wide.
"Of course, John Chou is still John Chou. Such a clumsy act, and I actually fell for it." A wicked smile crept back onto Ouyang Wei's face.
"Qingyuan, that guy is truly rotten. He wanted your blood, so he staged a whole act. Now he's got what he wanted." Ji Yuner said. I cried out, staring at my bitten shoulder—the bleeding had stopped.
"Just watch, Qingyuan. Since John Chou made such bold claims, I want to see what new tricks he's got."
Basil Bertram smiled faintly, snapped open his paper fan, and sat down.
Drip, drip—John Chou, floating in midair, suddenly melted into a pool of blood. With a splat, he landed on the ground. The sky was now completely dark.
Lord Wraith hovered in the air, his face twisted with terror.
"Run all you want. You—heheh—maybe it's the first time you've seen me like this, even you, Lord Wraith."
John Chou's voice seemed to come from a great distance, yet it was perfectly clear.
While none of us knew what John Chou was planning, a scream rang out. It was the Blue Wraith, who'd stayed to watch. We turned to the sound—the Blue Wraith's body was torn and bloody, as if something had gnawed him to pieces.
Another scream rang out. Among the remaining Blue Wraiths, some lost arms, some lost legs, some lost heads—waves of agonized cries filled the air.
Then I saw a red-and-black figure.
A guttural sound rose from someone's throat. My mouth hung open.
"What is that?" Rufina Howard trembled, clutching Redmond's hand.
Beneath Lord Wraith, I saw something—red and black. The red glowed like blood, yet flowed like magma; the black was streaked through it, and black particles swirled within the red. It looked like a molten, human-shaped monster with a gaping mouth full of jagged teeth.