The death of the woman in red shattered the illusion around them. Like a receding tide, the phantom world dissolved in moments, leaving behind the silent, ruined courtyard. Rubble littered the ground where broken scarecrows now burned like funeral pyres. A scorching heat rolled through the yard, thick with the stench of rot and a toxic, fiery haze.
Jiang Dao rose to his feet, his eyes once again on the system panel. Next to his martial arts, the word [Modifiable] had reappeared.
"Let's go," he said, yanking the Spirit Remover he held by the collar. "Take me to Xie Xuan."
The man trembled, a fresh wave of terror washing over him.
…
Deep within the courtyard, inside a hidden chamber, Xie Xuan's eyes snapped open. They were deep and unsettling. He turned his head to a soul lamp flickering weakly on a stand. As a sinister draft swept through the room, the flame sputtered and died.
"He's dead," Xie Xuan murmured, his expression darkening into a terrifying mask. "It seems I have to handle this myself. A bunch of useless fools can't even manage one simple task."
He pushed himself up from the floor. The inky blackness that stained the left side of his face began to spread like a creeping shadow, consuming the rest of his skin. As it advanced, fine black hairs sprouted, growing longer and thicker until they covered his entire body in a coarse pelt.
His frame began to swell, muscles bulging beneath the skin as if being pumped full of air. Horrifying, dark purple veins crawled across his new physique. In seconds, Xie Xuan had transformed into a ten-foot-tall monster, a hulking brute covered in thick black fur that radiated a sinister energy. Jagged barbs burst from his back, knees, and elbows. His eyes glowed a ghastly blood-red, seeming to pull at the very soul of anyone who met his gaze.
Xie Xuan turned, his aura radiating pure ferocity. With a casual wave of his hand, the chamber door exploded off its hinges. A thick, black fog, reeking of death, billowed out into the night.
…
Not far away, Jiang Dao froze. A prickle of warning ran down his spine. He looked up just as a black blur shot from the shadows.
He reacted instantly, stomping his foot and launching himself backward, shoving the Spirit Remover in front of him as a human shield.
A terrifying black streak—five fingers pressed together into a demonic blade—lanced through the air, aimed straight for his heart. The Spirit Remover's face was a mask of horror, a scream dying in his throat as Xie Xuan's hand plunged through him. A wave of black energy washed over the man, and his body popped like a soap bubble, disintegrating into a shower of gore.
Xie Xuan's attack didn't stop. His hand, now dripping with blood, continued its trajectory toward Jiang Dao.
Jiang Dao's eyes narrowed. He met the attack with a wide, open palm.
BANG!
Their palms slammed together with the force of a thunderclap, unleashing a concussive shockwave. One force was pure, searing Yang energy laced with poison; the other was a sinister, deathly cold. The very air between them hissed and sizzled. The impact sent both men flying, crashing heavily into the ground yards apart.
The courtyard was a disaster zone of shattered flagstones and scorching heat. The air was a toxic soup of poison and dark energy.
Jiang Dao shook himself off and stared at the monster across from him. "Xie Xuan?"
The creature was as tall as he was, a mountain of muscle wrapped in strange black fur, its eyes burning with crimson light. Its ten fingers were long, black, and tipped with claws as sharp as hooks.
"Gang Leader of the Raging Flames?" Xie Xuan's voice was a cold, emotionless rasp.
"Interesting," Jiang Dao grinned, flashing a set of pearly white teeth. "So you're an Evil Spirit? I come to the Black Tiger Gang's headquarters and run into two of you. The Xie family is full of surprises."
Xie Xuan's cold gaze hardened. He wasted no more words. His terrifying form blurred into a streak of black light, ten claws flashing as he lunged at Jiang Dao again.
Jiang Dao's smile widened. He looked at Xie Xuan not as a threat, but as a rare and tempting prize. He met the charge head-on, and the two massive figures collided in a maelstrom of violence.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The courtyard erupted under the force of their blows. They fought with a rabid intensity, a silent, brutal dance of destruction. This was the first true master Jiang Dao had faced since achieving his current level of power.
Suddenly, the black hair covering Xie Xuan's body grew wildly, transforming into a thick, living net that shot out and ensnared Jiang Dao. Before he could react, Xie Xuan was on him, his body a blur as his palms struck again and again, each blow carrying the chilling aura of death.
PFFT!
The black hair binding Jiang Dao exploded outward. He reappeared with a roar, his palm glowing with the terrifying power of pure Yang poison as he slammed it into Xie Xuan's chest. A sickening crunch echoed through the yard as Xie Xuan's sternum caved in.
Jiang Dao pressed his advantage. His hands became blades, flashing through the air in a dizzying, relentless assault—the Frenzied Demon Slash. The world became a storm of toxic blade-light, raining down on Xie Xuan from every angle.
But Xie Xuan was impossibly fast. His arms became a blur, deflecting every single one of the three hundred and sixty slashes. Then, a horrifying, demonic sound ripped from his throat.
"MOO!"
The bellowing roar struck Jiang Dao like a physical blow, his mind going momentarily blank. In that instant, Xie Xuan's claws shot for his throat, intending to rip it out. Jiang Dao snapped back to reality, a cold light in his eyes as he tensed his Extreme Golden Vajra Body to its limit.
CLANG!
Sparks flew as Xie Xuan's claws scraped against Jiang Dao's neck, failing to even pierce the skin. It was like steel striking divine iron.
Jiang Dao's hands, big as shovels, swung in a wide arc and clapped together on either side of Xie Xuan's head. The impact was like swatting a fly. Xie Xuan's mind reeled, blood pouring from his eyes, ears, and nose as he let out a choked groan. A follow-up kick to the chest sent him flying.
Jiang Dao landed lightly, using the momentum to create distance. He stood wreathed in flames, his Fire Poison aura turning the air around him into a shimmering furnace. On his neck, a deep, dark purple claw mark was visible, a grim souvenir from Xie Xuan's attack.
Across the yard, Xie Xuan was a wreck. His chest was caved in, his head was horribly twisted, and one of his eyes had burst. His massive arms were torn and bleeding, the blood giving off a foul stench. He swayed on his feet, his one good eye locked on Jiang Dao.
"I never knew… You were hiding this much power," he rasped. "Who are you? With strength like this, why settle for being a common gang leader?"
"Heh," Jiang Dao chuckled, firelight dancing in his eyes. "Xie Xuan, it looks like you're weaker than I thought. You came after my Raging Flames Gang with this little power?"
Xie Xuan's face went rigid. Another guttural roar tore from his throat. The black hair covering his body began to transform, bleaching bone-white before his very eyes. The white fur grew wildly as his body swelled again, becoming even larger. Four ghastly, sharp fangs erupted from his jaw.
He now stood over thirteen feet tall, a terrifying white-haired demon. With a shriek, he charged. His speed and power had easily doubled.
Jiang Dao's expression hardened. His Fire Poison aura flared, and he met the charge without hesitation.
The two monsters clashed again, this time with no pretense of technique. It was a raw, brutal brawl. They abandoned defense, trading savage, flesh-rending blows. The sounds of splintering bone and tearing muscle echoed through the night.
Finally, with one last earth-shaking BOOM, both figures were thrown back.
Xie Xuan landed like a broken doll, his arms shattered, his chest a crater, his head lolling at an unnatural angle. He lay gasping on the ground, his body broken and his strength gone.
Jiang Dao crashed to the ground nearby, blood trickling from his lips, his body a canvas of wounds. His right arm was clearly broken. He sucked in ragged breaths, his eyes cold as he grabbed the shattered arm and roughly snapped it back into place. He immediately began circulating his Life-Nourishing Art, the healing energy flooding the limb and knitting the bone back together.
He walked toward the fallen Xie Xuan, a grim smile on his face. "Time to end this…"
SHHHIIINNNG!
A piercing shriek cut through the air. A massive spear, glowing with a faint red light, flew from the shadows and impaled Xie Xuan through the heart, pinning his corpse to the unforgiving earth.
Jiang Dao stopped, his face darkening as he stared in the direction the spear had come from.
"Heh heh…" A shadowy figure leaped from the darkness, landing softly in the courtyard. It was a small, wiry man with beady eyes, wrapped in a black robe that seemed to swallow the light around him. A sinister smile played on his lips.
"Who are you?" Jiang Dao demanded.
"Me? Oh, Gang Leader Jiang…" the figure chuckled, his voice a low hiss. "I am the Left Protector of the Spirit Child Palace."
Jiang Dao's pupils constricted. The Spirit Child Palace. He'd run into them again.
The small man in the black robe stood smiling, a chilling, predatory aura rolling off him in waves. He seemed to exist in his own pocket of darkness, a stark contrast to the fiery devastation around him.
He didn't seem to be in any hurry. Casually, he walked over and gripped the spear shaft protruding from Xie Xuan's chest. With a sharp twist, a wave of terrifying black light erupted from the spear, engulfing Xie Xuan's body in roiling black flames. Xie Xuan's corpse twitched, a silent, agonizing scream, before being rapidly consumed, leaving behind nothing but a pile of ash.
"The Xies of Anyang made a pact, merging with Evil Spirits," the Protector said with a chuckle. "If it weren't for the instability in his body, I'm not sure I could have killed him myself. So, for that, Gang Leader Jiang, you have my thanks."
Jiang Dao continued to silently circulate his Life-Nourishing Art, his internal energy working to mend his wounds. "They merge with Evil Spirits?"
"That's right. They coexist. But Xie Xuan wanted to forge his own path. He had the body of an Evil Spirit but the soul of a man. His body was a ticking time bomb," the man sneered. "Your pure Yang energy just lit the fuse, causing his internal damage to explode. You think you could've hurt him otherwise?"
Jiang Dao's mind raced. He thought of the young man in white he'd killed earlier, the one with an Evil Spirit living inside him. So that was their secret. A bizarre and twisted method of cultivation.
"And you?" Jiang Dao asked. "You're not human either, are you?"
"Me? Of course not. In an organization like ours, pure-blooded Spirit Removers are a dying breed." The Protector's smile widened as a strange black light began to glow along the shaft of his spear. "Now, Gang Leader Jiang, it's time we settled our accounts. You've killed so many of our Spirit Children, not to mention our three masters: White Bone, Pang Long, and Dao Yi. For a blood debt of that magnitude… how would you prefer to die?"
Jiang Dao let out a slow breath and rolled his neck. "You're really so sure I'm the one dying today?"
BOOM! BOOM!
The air cracked as both men moved at once, two bolts of lightning streaking across the ruined courtyard.
"Black Flame Burning Spear!" the Protector roared, bringing the spear crashing down with terrifying force.
Jiang Dao tried to catch the spear, but its power was immense. The impact shattered his arm, sending a spray of blood into the air. He roared in defiance and swung his other hand, a massive palm strike aimed at the Protector's face. The small man simply showed a cruel smile and met the blow with a withered hand of his own.
The resulting explosion threw them both back.
Jiang Dao crashed to the ground, his left arm a mangled mess, engulfed in a strange black flame. The fire was corrosive, venomous, and was actively burning away the healing energy he was trying to use. His expression hardened as he flooded his arm with the Life-Nourishing Art, sacrificing nearly a tenth of his reserves to finally extinguish the unholy fire.
But his opponent was already moving.
"Hahaha!" The Protector's eerie laugh echoed as he shot forward again, his body and spear wreathed in black flames. "Black Fiend Lotus!"
The spear became a blur, a thousand afterimages creating the illusion of a terrifying black lotus blooming in the air around Jiang Dao. Each petal was a deadly spear thrust, and from the flower's heart, strange black lights shot out, seeking his flesh.
Jiang Dao blocked and parried frantically, but the black lights were insidious. Even before they made contact, their energy caused his skin and meridians to rupture and bleed.
Rage burned in his chest.
Fire Poison Field!
Fire Poison Gas Net!
He unleashed both abilities at once, simultaneously wrapping his entire body in a three-centimeter-thick armor of invisible internal energy, and charged. He hoped to trap the Protector, but the man was like smoke. His body twisted and contorted as if boneless, slipping through the field and the net with unnatural ease.
As he dodged, his spear flashed out, stabbing Jiang Dao seven or eight more times.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Each strike set off a small explosion against Jiang Dao's energy shield, blasting through to his skin and leaving another patch of black fire burning on his flesh. He couldn't even land a solid blow.
Covered in blood and fresh burns, Jiang Dao was forced back again, his face a grim mask.
"How does it feel?" the Protector taunted. "Don't worry, this is just the beginning. The real pain comes later. This Black Corpse Sacred Flame of mine… it starts as a burn, but soon it'll feel like it's chewing on your very soul. By the end, the strongest man will be screaming for the sweet release of death."
"That's it?" Jiang Dao said, his voice cold as ice. "I've had ant bites worse than this."
"Still talking tough!" the Protector sneered. "Let's see how long that lasts. When I've burned your body to a crisp, I'll pull out your soul and refine it into a new Spirit Child!"
Whoosh!
He became a black blur once more, streaking toward Jiang Dao.
Jiang Dao's face was grim. He made a decision. He pulled his raging Fire Poison aura inward, collapsing it from a wide field into a concentrated point deep within his core, his dantian.
There, three drops of pure Extreme Yang Liquid pulsed with scorching heat.
Suddenly…
POP!
He shattered one of the drops. An explosive wave of violet energy flooded every fiber of his being. This power was different, more primal and volatile than anything he had ever wielded.
Jiang Dao's body felt like it was on fire. He let out a raw, guttural roar as his frame began to change once more. He erupted in size, his muscles swelling with raw, purple power. His spine buckled and grew, bursting through the skin on his back as a ridge of jagged, obsidian barbs.
He grew to a terrifying five meters in height. His eyes ignited, glowing with a molten gold intensity.
ROAR!
He vanished.
The onrushing Protector's face twisted in shock. An unimaginable, terrifying pressure slammed into him, a force as overwhelming as a volcano erupting in his face. He screamed, his own body swelling as he poured all his power into his spear. It spun wildly, a vortex of black fire, a desperate, all-encompassing defense.
It was useless.
Against Jiang Dao's new power, his defense was tissue paper.
CRUUUUNCH!
The world exploded in a tidal wave of fire and poison. Jiang Dao's hand tore straight through the Protector's torso, slamming him into the ground with enough force to shatter the very bedrock beneath them. The courtyard floor disintegrated as rubble and toxic energy blasted outward.
"Aaaargh!" the Protector shrieked in agony.
His features distorted as his body seemed to melt under the sheer power of the attack. His robes were annihilated. Jiang Dao's hand was buried in his chest, pinning him to the cratered earth. The iron spear was bent into a U-shape around his arms, the pressure so great that his limbs were already dissolving into a bloody mist.