Chapter 72: The Mask (Fourth Update)
The blood mist around Su Xiao dispersed. Over a dozen meters away, Roggs narrowed his pitch-black eyes. He sensed danger, and when facing danger, eliminating the source of that danger was the simplest solution.
Bang!
Su Xiao and Roggs vanished from their spots simultaneously. Roggs was about to unleash a killing move. Though he had once been an arcane master, his fusion with the Dark Mask had now reached 92%, making him an inhuman existence.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Metal clashed against metal. The long blade met Roggs' nearly half-meter-long dark claws in a shower of sparks.
With a tearing sound, the claws scraped across the blade. Roggs possessed far greater strength than Su Xiao, but Su Xiao was a technique-type fighter, unafraid of such situations.
Bang!
Roggs slammed down a single hand. His right hand, now enlarged, was blocked by Su Xiao's raised blade. Su Xiao leaned back slightly, then exerted force from his entire body.
A shockwave spread. "Perfect Counter" succeeded, temporarily reducing Roggs' strength attribute by 5 points.
Roggs didn't retreat. His other claw pierced through Su Xiao's shoulder—too fast to dodge. Roggs clenched his five fingers and yanked with all his might.
Rip!
Su Xiao's entire left arm was torn off. Warm blood splattered across his face, seeping into his eyes. The wound on his left shoulder didn't hurt—it was just numb. But he knew the pain would soon come, lingering and affecting him.
'Blade Path Sword: Extreme.'
The long blade tore through the air, striking Roggs' skull, slicing off a piece of bone.
"ROAR!!"
Roggs bellowed. A crystal layer formed before Su Xiao, but soul energy mixed with sound waves pierced through it, leaving fine cracks across Su Xiao's chest.
A pair of pale, vertical pupils appeared in Roggs' eyes. His right arm swelled, and he swung a claw horizontally.
Pfft!
The flesh on Su Xiao's chest was torn open, exposing bone in some places. Beneath the ribs, his heart could faintly be seen beating.
That wasn't the most fatal part. Su Xiao's right arm went numb—or rather, Roggs had smashed it into three pieces with brute force. The wound at his shoulder was jagged.
As he flew backward, crystal layers spread from the wound on his right shoulder, quickly forming a crystalline arm. The fragmented Banishment flew in from all directions, producing a series of clinks as it pierced into the crystal arm and merged with it.
Su Xiao raised his crystal right arm, fingers loosely gripping. The Dragon-Slaying Flash, which had been flying away, reversed course and landed in his hand with a slap.
'Blade Path Sword: Time.'
Su Xiao had held back on using "Time," waiting for the right moment. Everything around him slowed. Cyan Steel Shadow energy surged along the blade as he delivered several rapid consecutive slashes.
Black blood flew. Roggs, now over three meters tall and completely pitch-black, opened his gaping maw. Ignoring the slashes, he lunged at Su Xiao with rows of short dagger-like fangs.
Bang! Like two wooden boards smashing together, Roggs bit down on empty air. The long blade pierced upward from under his chin, running through his skull.
Bang!
Su Xiao delivered a straight kick, sending out a shockwave. He released the sword hilt. Roggs stumbled back a few steps before freezing in place.
A crystal war scythe rapidly formed in Su Xiao's right hand. Seeing this, Roggs' long black hair pierced into his own body. Despite being completely numb, he managed to leap up.
'Azure Shadow King.'
The crystal war scythe swung out, cutting through Roggs' chest and abdomen. A blue scar appeared across his torso. His lower body showed cracks like broken porcelain, with faint blue light seeping through.
The pale vertical pupils in Roggs' eyes trembled. He vomited a mouthful of black blood, his feet landing on the ground.
As the crystal war scythe shattered, Su Xiao grabbed the sword hilt protruding from Roggs' chin and pulled out the long blade.
'Blade Path Sword: Demon Blade!'
Everything around seemed to freeze. Splattered blood halted midair. Water droplets hung motionless. The world lost its color, leaving only the long blade in Su Xiao's hand, wreathed in dark blue smoke.
Zheng.
The blade cut through Roggs' neck. As it carved the wound, it left behind wisps of smoke within.
Everything returned to normal. Roggs, now only his upper half remaining, fell with a splash into the accumulated water. The blackness receded from his body, which gradually shrank back to its original form. His long black hair spread out beneath him, gently swaying with the water.
"What... have I become..."
The light in Roggs' eyes quickly faded. The bone-white mask on his face fell off, landing in the water.
"Don't... touch the mask..."
After saying this, Roggs' gaze froze. The expression on his face was relaxed, as if a great weight had been lifted. All these years, he had been doing only one thing: trying by any means to reclaim the Dark Mask and put it on. That was all. He had been seduced by the mask.
Even someone as intelligent as Roggs had been seduced by the Dark Mask, showing just how dangerous this thing was. What was even more terrifying was that Roggs had remained clear-headed all along, yet the obsession in his heart persisted, driving him back to the Holy Land to reclaim the Dark Mask.
This obsession was as ordinary as people's will to live. It was this very ordinariness, so easily overlooked, that was the most dangerous.
Su Xiao sat in the shallow water. He pulled the [Dragon-Hunting Glory] pendant from his neck.
"Boss, how is it?"
Baha was carried over by Amu, who was running with an odd gait—the soul energy had eroded him too severely. Behind Amu was Bubu Wang, smoke still rising from his rear. The look on his dog face suggested he was about to cry.
"Don't break."
Su Xiao muttered under his breath. Baha, being carried over, was puzzled. Seeing the pendant in Su Xiao's hand, he understood.
"Don't break, big bro. Hold on. Damn it."
Crack~
A crisp sound came from Su Xiao's hand.
"It's over."
Baha's crow's mouth proved true. The [Dragon-Hunting Glory] pendant could no longer hold out. It shattered in Su Xiao's hand. The remaining Dragon Blood Force within, now without a container, merged into Su Xiao's body.
[You have absorbed Dragon Blood Force: Origin.]
[Your Health Points have been permanently increased by 2700 points.]
[Your Endurance attribute has been permanently increased by 1 point.]
[Your physical defense has been permanently increased by 12 points.]
...
After these notifications, the [Dragon-Hunting Glory] turned into fragments, falling into the water. Su Xiao and Roggs had fought too fiercely. The constant high-level health recovery had drained the pendant's durability to zero, causing it to shatter permanently.
Su Xiao had only obtained the Dragon-Hunting set in the previous world, and this was its first use. Because the opponent was too strong, this Holy Spirit-rank set was worn out. Or rather, if he hadn't used the set this way, Su Xiao would have died today.
[Notification: You have killed the Eternal: Roggs.]
[You have received 2780 Soul Coins.]
[You have received 28.5% World Source.]
[You have received an Immortal-rank Chest (30%).]
[You have received the Dark Mask (This item cannot be taken out of this world).]
[You have received the Holy Seal: Primordial Soul Energy (Bloodline/Class item, Potential: S-).]
...
The amounts of Soul Coins and World Source gained were higher than expected. The value of the Immortal-rank Chest (30%) needed no explanation. As for the final [Holy Seal: Primordial Soul Energy]...
Su Xiao felt this item was far more valuable than the Dragon-Hunting set. Even at the Eighth Rank, this would be a hot commodity. While Holy Spirit-rank sets were valuable, they paled in comparison to the [Holy Seal: Primordial Soul Energy].
Su Xiao took out a bottle of [Vitality Essence] and drank half. His injuries stabilized somewhat. The severe damage to his arms and chest would need to be healed after returning to Reincarnation Paradise. His severed arms had been preserved—he had prepared for this.
This wasn't the first time his arms had been severed. It was normal. He fought with a blade, and his arms were a priority target for enemies, second only to his head.
For now, he just needed to resist the temptation of the Dark Mask, shatter it, and complete the promotion task. Simply smashing it was useless—someone had tried that before. Without being able to control the Dark Mask, even smashing it to pieces would leave its effects intact. First, he had to control it, then suppress it, and finally destroy it.
Su Xiao wasn't sure how many points his Willpower attribute had, but it should be high. Considering Roggs' Willpower attribute wouldn't be low either, Su Xiao remained inwardly vigilant.
"Bubu, Amu, Baha."
"Understood."
"Woof."
"Moo."
Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha surrounded Su Xiao. The reason he had only drunk half a bottle of recovery potion was precisely this: if touching the Dark Mask caused him to be driven by it, his heavily injured state would make it easier for them to stop him.
Su Xiao's hand touched the Dark Mask. He felt a momentary daze. When he came to, he found Bubu Wang biting his crystal arm, with Amu and Baha also grabbing that arm. The Dark Mask was right in front of him—he had almost put it on.
It wasn't mental control. His blade techniques could resist that, and even if it exceeded the resistance limit, there should have been a warning. It wasn't soul-based seduction either. Given Su Xiao's soul strength, few things could seduce his soul. The Holy Land's Dark Mask likely wasn't one of them.
So, it might be a Charm attribute check. Su Xiao recalled that after Roggs fused with the Dark Mask, his Charm attribute had permanently dropped to 1 point.
"Bubu."
"Woof."
Bubu Wang took the mask and put it on his head. He wouldn't try to fuse with it—the chance of losing Charm attribute was low.
Bubu Wang tilted his head, indicating he felt nothing. The mask slid off his head, and Amu smashed it with a single slap.
Bubu Wang naturally countered the Dark Mask for the following three reasons: