Free Web NovelChapter 229: Chapter 188: Peculiar Creature
Han Ning swung his dragon claw, its tip aimed at the space between the man’s eyes. The fiery breath he exhaled shot out for more than a meter.
He gave the man no time to breathe. The blazing radiance of the flame condensed, covering the tip of his claw in dark red lava that pulsed with terrifying heat.
The man also seemed to sense the danger. His eyes grew even more demonic as he stared intently at Han Ning.
"SCREECH!"
A shriek that pierced the heavens sent rolling sonic waves crashing into Han Ning’s mind.
At the same time, the man’s body swelled explosively, transforming into a three-meter-tall figure. Its face was a blur, revealing only a pair of eyes filled with resentment and fury.
The black aura around its body twisted, and eight arms sprouted from its shoulders. At the end of each arm was the head of one of the beast avatars Han Ning had just destroyed.
The moment the strange giant gazed at him, Han Ning’s vision distorted. Specks of golden light flashed, and indescribable phantoms darted across his sight. But this lasted for less than a breath before rage once again consumed his mind.
The piercing shriek made black blood trickle from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth once more. The moment it appeared, the intense heat radiating from his body incinerated it into a foul-smelling gas.
Han Ning took a single step. His wings beat once, and propelled by wind and fire, he instantly appeared before the giant. Expressionless, he stretched his back. His spine cracked and popped like a great dragon, and a faint draconic roar seemed to echo. The lava on his claw tip flared with a brilliant, high-speed spin as he stabbed at the giant’s abdomen.
"ROAR—"
The giant roared in fury. Its four thick arms on each side tensed, and the beast heads howled, all of them biting chaotically toward the same spot.
"BOOM!"
With a deafening boom, the eight heads bit down hard on Han Ning’s dragon claw. A visible, ring-shaped shockwave expanded outward from the point of impact, shattering the dim hall completely.
Suddenly, every muscle in Han Ning’s body tensed, the fine definition of his back muscles popping into view. Large beads of blood, like water on a hot pan, were squeezed from his muscles, trickling down only to evaporate instantly. His body turned so red it looked as if it might start bleeding. The force of the blow smashed him into the ground up to his knees.
The shockwave slammed into the distance, sending the surrounding pitch-black fog into a chaotic churn.
"AHH!!"
This time, it was Han Ning’s Red Lotus Fire that struck. Clinging like a persistent plague, it spread upward from the point of contact. The black aura acted like high-quality fuel, and the flames burned ferociously.
For the first time, the giant let out a bloodcurdling scream.
The black aura that had covered the man’s body was now faint, and the eight arms he had manifested were dim and indistinct, on the verge of vanishing entirely.
He had no obvious wounds, but his skin—both on his face and across his body—had turned an unnatural, demonic shade of red.
Han Ning ignored the blood gushing from the torn web of his hand. He shook his head, his eyes locked on the man, fighting to keep his exhausted, fading mind from succumbing to unconsciousness.
’Pull yourself together. This thing is almost finished. You absolutely cannot collapse now.’
Hom’s faint voice drifted into his mind.
He tried to pull his legs from the ground, but the intense pain and weakness that shot through them made him abandon the thought.
’When two foes meet on a narrow path, the brave one wins.’
The saying inexplicably flashed through his mind.
Han Ning clenched his dragon fist, once again mustering every ounce of his strength.
FWOOSH.
A crimson flame ignited on his claw tip. He lifted his increasingly unresponsive right claw, desperately gathering the Spiritual Energy—or rather, the Spiritual Power—within his body.
As Han Ning recklessly drew upon his Spiritual Power,
the flame on his claw tip surged violently. It turned from crimson to a deep, near-black red, finally coalescing into a blazing, black-and-red Light Spear. freēwēbηovel.c૦m
"Go!"
Han Ning’s eyes widened in fury. With the last dreg of his strength, he hurled the Flaming Spear at the spot between the giant’s eyes!
The spear flew from his grasp, kicking up a scorching wind before sinking squarely into the giant’s chest.
FSHHH—
The Flaming Spear lodged in its chest dissolved into a torrent of heat that enveloped the giant’s massive body. Licks of flame incinerated the copious black aura that tried to escape.
The giant visibly shrank, its three-meter frame dwindling to two meters, then one, until it finally became a fiercely burning orb of black and red flame.
The sphere’s outer layer was composed of dark flames, while inside, a mass of black aura churned, desperately resisting their corrosive power.
"AARGH—"
The mass of black aura rolled and twisted, letting out waves of mournful wails.
As the black aura faded, the surrounding mist began to recede rapidly.
"Huuuh..."
Han Ning forced his heavy eyelids open. Just before losing consciousness, he took one last look at the struggling, screaming Evil Soul. The moment his concentration wavered, his eyes rolled into the back of his head. His upper body slumped forward, and he fainted, his lower half still buried in the ground.
...
When he opened his eyes again.
Everything was incredibly clear.
The dormitory ceiling, the slightly peeling wall paint, the dim sky outside the window... and pairs of expectant eyes staring at him.
He realized his consciousness felt exceptionally sharp. His depleted Spiritual Power had instantly recovered to the level it was at before he passed out.
His long-absent Spiritual World had returned. Furthermore, deep within it, a strange black fog now swirled, radiating a powerful aura.
He could feel a potent Power coursing through his muscles, and his perception of the surrounding Spiritual Energy had reached a new height.
He looked down at his arms. They were exceptionally fair, so much so that he could see the veins beneath the skin.
"Ling~"
The demure Yin Yi handed him a glass of water at just the right moment.
"Mm... You’re a good girl, Yin Yi. How long was I out?"
He took the glass, drank a large gulp of water, and glanced at the alarm clock on a nearby table.
"11:47 PM."
