Free Web NovelChapter 228: Chapter 187: Scourge and Curse (2)
WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH~
The torch of flame lasted for less than half a second before it suddenly exploded. Within it, a swirling ball of black gas condensed, twisting and morphing into a humanoid shape. A pair of pitch-black hands gripped Han Ning’s dragon claws and violently threw him backward.
THUD. THUD. THUD.
Han Ning was forced back several steps by the surging Giant Power. With each step, the residual force traveling through his feet blasted small, shallow pits into the ground.
The man shrouded in black gas revealed a pair of malevolent eyes. The moment Han Ning met its gaze, a wave of nausea and dizziness washed over him.
’Be careful of that black gas. It not only drains your Spiritual Power, but it also devours your soul.’ freeweɓnovēl.coɱ
His previous attack hadn’t been entirely ineffective. With his currently powerful Insight, Han Ning could see that the black mist shrouding the figure had dimmed ever so slightly.
The man let out a bizarre laugh as his form flickered between solid and illusory, splitting into eight different bestial shadows.
Unsure if his personality was being affected by the negative emotions, Han Ning let out an involuntary sneer. The fiery light in his eyes blazed, making them look like two burning flames.
Empowered by his Spiritual Power, Han Ning could clearly see the black gas masses of varying intensity inside the chests of the eight Soul Shadows. One of them, a one-eyed Soul Shadow billowing black smoke, had the densest concentration.
’It’s you!’
WHOOM WHOOM WHOOM~
A gale suddenly raged within the windless room, accompanied by a low hum like a spinning turbine.
Han Ning used his Spiritual Power to continuously boost his movement speed.
Almost simultaneously, the eight Soul Shadows unleashed their own abilities. There was a monster with the body of a mermaid and a horrifying, hateful face, chanting a soul-stealing, decadent tune. There was a spider with a human face on its abdomen, staring at him with a venomous gaze. There was even a humanoid creature wearing a ferocious, beast-shaped mask that began performing an unknown dance on the spot.
’Molten Rock Pressure, go!’
The violent wind sent rubble flying across the floor. He realized that while here, the speed at which he could condense Soul Techniques was incredibly fast.
A boulder wreathed in surging molten flame smashed toward the seven Soul Shadows charging from different directions.
He, meanwhile, let the wind propel him straight toward the man’s true body.
HWOOSH!
His sharp, chilling dragon claws once again ignited with a vast expanse of Red Lotus Fire. The flames flickered several times, transforming from illusory to solid, forming sharp talons of condensed flame that clung to the surface of his silver-white claws, their light contained within.
By the time Han Ning’s figure appeared before the man, the terrifying sonic boom from his launch finally erupted behind him, echoing through the air and blasting a large hole in the hall’s wall.
A menacing, fiery claw shadow lit up the pitch-black living room before fiercely plunging into the man’s chest.
BANG!
The Soul Shadow before him exploded into a sky full of black gas.
On the other side, the enhanced molten boulder flew into the air.
The seven Soul Shadows’ attacks struck the boulder, sending rock fragments flying from its surface. The molten lava flickered erratically and the boulder rapidly shrank until only a dim speck of firelight remained, which then indiscriminately enveloped the seven Soul Shadows.
SIZZLE SIZZLE SIZZLE.
The Soul Shadows, not being the main body, lacked Spirituality and didn’t know to dodge. They let the large rock sphere cover them as it suddenly erupted.
BOOM!
A powerful gale generated by the explosion blew outwards in all directions.
The seven Soul Shadows let out silent screams, their grotesque faces twisting continuously as their Soul Bodies emitted sizzling black smoke.
’Whew. Good thing Molten Rock Pressure blocked them. Otherwise, I’d be dead or crippled after that wave of attacks.’
Han Ning’s thoughts raced. The fiery light on his dragon claws condensed into a beam, continuously destroying the black gas diffusing around him.
He had just cleared some of it away when the black gas, as if alive, dodged his attacks and automatically converged into a single mass. The man reappeared not far away, completely unharmed, staring at Han Ning with eyes full of hatred.
A dark light flowed over the seven slightly damaged Soul Shadows at the side, as if they were brewing their next round of attacks.
Han Ning’s heart tightened. Seizing the opportunity before their attacks could form, he once again used the wind to appear before the beast-faced monster’s double and thrust a claw into its head.
GAH!
Meeting no resistance, the Soul Shadow exploded into a mass of writhing black gas that enveloped Han Ning with lightning speed.
’It’s a trap.’
He hurriedly channeled his Spiritual Power. The firelight flaring from his body and the black gas fought against each other, mutually annihilating.
The black gas slowed Han Ning’s movement. The other seven Soul Shadows all revealed venomous expressions as they suddenly flew at him from all angles.
He did his utmost to dodge several of the attacks.
PFFT! PFFT! PFFT!
A wolf’s claw, a pincer, and a tentacle, like solid weapons, broke through his protective firelight and scales, plunging viciously into his shoulder, chest, and abdomen.
The moment they entered his body, these corporeal manifestations all shattered, turning into dense black gas that rapidly tainted Han Ning’s own body.
But this "body" was actually just an illusion created from Spiritual Power.
He understood that while it looked like his body was injured, it was actually his Spiritual Power that was being damaged!
Crimson blood, laced with wisps of black gas, gushed from his wounds.
The fiery red light in his eyes dissipated, replaced by a frenzied, insane look.
’Kill! Kill! Kill!’
At this moment, Han Ning’s mind was consumed by killing intent and hatred. He had turned into a monster that knew only slaughter, indiscriminately destroying everything in the hall.
The man’s main body stood to the side, letting out a sinister cackle. Watching Han Ning’s rampaging back, he held out a pair of hands wreathed in black gas. A pure black arrow slowly formed in his palm.
’Sigh. Only Tier Two. His spiritual will is still a bit weak.’
’I was hoping to see Fei Lin’s birth with my own eyes...’
In this strange environment, Hom’s faint sigh could be heard.
「Suddenly.」
A massive, freely burning sun filled Han Ning’s mind.
The burning sun constantly radiated its own light and heat. He continuously constructed a model of this sun within his mind.
BOOM!
His eyes, which had been filled with dark madness, suddenly erupted with two brilliant, burning crimson flames!
The color of his body, wreathed in black gas, instantly changed, turning completely crimson.
A familiar flame filled his entire body.
’What is this?!’
Han Ning’s skin was bright red, and his head felt hot enough to explode, as if he had an endless tide of rage that needed to be unleashed.
The frenzied, tyrannical consciousness was gone, but it had been replaced by an irritable, furious emotion.
He barely maintained his sanity as black gas continuously poured out of his wounds. The black-red blood was completely expelled from his body by the surging flames, dripping onto the ground and turning into small clusters of fire. The muscles in the three gaping wounds writhed and healed, leaving only faint red marks.
Han Ning felt his very blood boiling. There wasn’t a single part of him that wasn’t burning in unbearable pain.
An aggressive heat radiated outward from his body, distorting the surrounding air. The bright light of the fire cast a dark red glow over the pitch-black living room.
An invisible pressure spread out from within his body like ripples, one after another, causing the man’s remaining soul bodies to twist and warp.
’Hot! So hot! It hurts and it’s hot!’
He felt an overwhelming rage, a desire to burn everything to ashes.
Han Ning, who had his back to the man’s main body, suddenly turned his head. His gaze landed on the pitch-black arrow that had just finished forming in the man’s hand.
SWOOSH!
The arrow left a pitch-black trail as it shot straight for the space between his eyebrows.
ZING~
A crimson spark ignited on the tip of his claw, and the flame grew stronger, instantly engulfing his entire dragon arm.
CLANG~
His dragon claw precisely tapped the arrowhead. The crimson flame surrounding the claw tip swept over the arrow, incinerating it completely until it dissipated into wisps of smoke.
The muscles on Han Ning’s body bulged. The sweat on his skin instantly evaporated into thin wisps of white steam.
’I’ll kill you!’
A crazed smile spread across his face. He stomped his foot hard—BANG!—and his figure abruptly blurred. His body’s friction with the air created a trail of dark red afterimages as he charged toward one of the man’s doubles on the left, which was preparing to condense another attack.
SWISH.
The dark red afterimage swept past the spider double with a human face on its abdomen. His claw precisely tapped the center of its brow. Without pausing, he attacked another double over ten meters away to the left.
In less than half a breath, the faint red image where Han Ning had first been standing finally began to fade. Six faint red dragon phantoms in different poses now appeared in the pitch-black hall.
Almost at the same instant, all six doubles exploded into plumes of black smoke, which were then utterly consumed by the crimson flames.
The grotesque and ugly black bestial shadows were instantly swept clean.
"Ha~"
