Chapter 36: Brushing Past Death
Su Xiao shot forward as a blue blur, and in an instant, he closed to within a dozen meters of the Moon God.
Boom!
Su Xiao slammed headfirst into an invisible wall. This wall completely blocked perception and had no energy fluctuations.
The moment he hit the invisible wall, Su Xiao felt as if his soul recoiled from the impact while his body continued charging forward.
A wave of dizziness hit Su Xiao's mind, and he crashed to the ground with a thud.
A massive bone hand burst from the earth. This skeletal arm was the size of a two-story building. It grabbed Su Xiao in its palm and squeezed with full force.
Crack.
The dirt was compacted, then crushed into clumps harder than stone.
Su Xiao stood on top of the bone hand. The moment he was caught, he activated his Dragon Shadow Flash ability.
The overlapping afterimages in his vision quickly dissipated. Su Xiao stomped on the bone hand and lunged toward the Moon God, who was a dozen meters away.
The Moon God still stood atop that monster's head. He hadn't taken a single step throughout the entire battle. Gods weren't so easy to slay.
As Su Xiao closed to within a few meters of the Moon God, blood energy gathered above him, forming a Blood Beast that lunged forward instantly. This was the strength of the Blood Beast—its attack speed was incredibly fast.
With a thunderous roar, the blood energy exploded, enveloping the Moon God. Large chunks of severed tentacles flew in all directions.
At the same time, Su Xiao received a notification that the monster called the 'Worm Dragon' was dead. Strangely, there was no reward. This put Su Xiao on high alert.
The blood energy gradually dissipated. The Moon God stood amidst the severed tentacles, blue blood dripping from his fingertips.
Clang.
A sharp blade aura shot forward, but before it could reach the Moon God, it was blocked by an invisible force.
With a metallic ring, the Dragon-Slaying Flash in Su Xiao's hand stopped half a meter in front of the Moon God. A rib as thick as a water barrel pierced the ground, blocking the Moon God.
The crisp sound of the clash echoed. The giant rib was severed. Su Xiao stepped forward, swinging his long blade toward the Moon God's neck.
Just as Su Xiao delivered this strike, a hair-raising sense of crisis surged.
Boom!
An invisible attack descended from above, smashing into the spot where Su Xiao had just stood. A circular pit ten meters in diameter appeared in the ground, pitch black and of unknown depth.
Su Xiao successfully penetrated space, shifting sideways. Just as he was about to unleash his ultimate move, the Absolute Shadow Flash, a binding sensation came from all directions.
Crack, crack, crack…
The Moon God's hand clenched slightly, the air between his fingers cracking.
The air around Su Xiao seemed to solidify, pinning him in place. He was about to forcibly use Dragon Shadow Flash when a sound of tearing wind came from in front of him.
Puff, puff, puff…
Bone spears over three meters long pierced through Su Xiao's torso and thighs. His health, which had just recovered, plummeted to 12%.
[Tip: Soul Blade effect activated. This instant-kill effect has been negated.]
A sweet, coppery taste rose in his throat. Blood dripped from the corner of Su Xiao's mouth. That was the closest he had ever come to death.
'Blade Path Sword: Azure Demon.'
A blue-green blade aura shot out instantly. The Moon God tilted his head, and the blade aura severed two protruding bone spikes at the back of his skull.
Seizing this opening, Su Xiao covered his body in a crystal layer. He stomped the ground, forcibly twisting his body. With a crack, the five bone spears piercing him all snapped.
Su Xiao ignored the searing pain from every part of his body. This wasn't just physical pain; it was a soul-wrenching agony.
'Blade Path Sword: Time.'
Thud.
The shockwave spread. The Moon God's movements slowed for an instant, but he waved his hand. Su Xiao, charging forward, felt as if he had been struck by a hammer, nearly sent flying.
The Moon God's attacks were not only terrifyingly powerful but also sudden—either completely invisible or undetectable, defying all logic.
Su Xiao glanced at his health, now only 7%. One more hit from the enemy and he would die here. If not for the permanent enhancement from the Black King set, he would already be in a near-death state, completely incapacitated.
A faint blue light appeared on Su Xiao's surface. The Demon Hunting Hour ability activated. He vanished from his spot, reappearing behind the Moon God.
A gust of wind pressure came from above Su Xiao's head. Almost without thinking, he threw the Dragon-Slaying Flash in his hand.
The Moon God tilted his head slightly, dodging the blade thrusting toward the back of his skull.
Thud!
A dull, heavy impact exploded behind the Moon God. The next moment, Su Xiao suddenly appeared in front of the Moon God, reaching out to grab the hilt of the Dragon-Slaying Flash.
With a tearing sound, the long blade swept through, sending a piece of the Moon God's skull flying, revealing the bright red muscle beneath.
Midair, Su Xiao twisted his body and delivered a side kick, striking the Moon God directly on the neck.
Su Xiao landed. The Moon God flew several meters to the side before stopping in midair.
"God, you underestimate technique too much."
Su Xiao wiped the blood from his chin. His health was recovering quickly. He had already used the Ancient Secret Medicine twice, and its recovery effect was diminishing. A third use might not even restore 20% health, and a fourth would be ineffective, possibly even causing a drug rejection reaction.
The Moon God wasn't as relaxed as he appeared. His bones were covered in cracks. At the start of the battle, he had been eroded by the power of deathly stillness.
By now, the Moon God's health was down to 29.7%. Su Xiao's current strength was far greater than when he fought the Black King. Unfortunately, the Moon God was even harder to deal with. However, his defense wasn't as strong as expected. The Moon God's true strength lay in his soul abilities. Without sufficient power, one wouldn't even qualify to fight him.
If not for the temporary boost in soul strength, Su Xiao might not have lasted this long.
Su Xiao sheathed his long blade. Nearly 3000 points of Cyan Steel Shadow Energy clung to the blade in its scabbard.
The entire long blade turned dark blue, including Su Xiao's right forearm holding the sword. The fragmented form of Banishment floated around him.
Su Xiao assumed a drawing stance, exhaling a puff of white mist. He actively activated the Blade Extreme ability to enhance this strike.
'Absolute Shadow.'
Clang.
At a speed beyond the extreme, even a god couldn't dodge in time.
With a shattering sound, one of the ribs on the Moon God's torso snapped. From that cut, countless blade auras erupted, engulfing the Moon God.
The sound of slashing echoed far and wide. Watching the spherical blade aura from a distance, the Earth Pulse Tree's expression was somewhat dazed. It felt that this human might actually be able to slay the Moon God.
The blade aura dissipated after 32 seconds. The Moon God stood there, covered in cuts.
Puff!
A dark blue spike pierced out from the Moon God's crown. Then, one after another, dark blue spikes thrust out from all over his body.
The Moon God slowly raised an arm, grabbing one of the dark blue spikes. But before he could exert any force, he pitched forward.
With a thud, the Moon God, three meters tall, collapsed to the ground.
"Really… succeeded…"
The Earth Pulse Tree stared at the fallen Moon God. Even though it had lived for countless years, it still found it hard to believe. That was a god older than itself.
"Humans are so strong. Humans are so strong."
Two tree spirits floated up and down, looking like cheerleaders.
"Nice! This damn thing finally went down."
Baha descended from above. But before it landed, Su Xiao raised a blood-covered arm, signaling Baha to stay back. Because… there was no kill notification.
Gurgle, gurgle…
The dead Worm Dragon stirred. More precisely, the flesh on its body was writhing.