Chapter 73: Mutual Destruction?
The long blade came straight for Su Xiao's neck. He could clearly perceive it, but could neither dodge nor block. The situation had reached a dead end.
The Nameless One was different from other enemies. He had once been favored by the Demon Sea World, and coupled with his Chaotic Evil alignment, this meant he would use anything to achieve his goals.
At this moment, the surrounding world was frozen. Normal enemies couldn't do this, and even if they could, they would suffer the world's backlash. But the Nameless One wouldn't.
The broadsword slashed across Su Xiao's neck, blood staining the blade. The Nameless One didn't stop; instead, he brought the sword down toward Su Xiao's head. This was the Nameless One's style—he had to be certain the enemy was completely dead, or he would never stop.
The long blade passed through Su Xiao's head, but this time it didn't touch blood. Sensing this, the Nameless One rested the blade against Su Xiao's neck and began to wait.
The gray that had sealed everything around them faded, including the gray on Su Xiao. As the gray receded from his body, the Nameless One's broadsword sliced across.
Crack, crack, crack~
A crystal layer spread across Su Xiao's neck.
'Blade Path Sword: Time.'
A wave of energy spread out, slowing everything down. Su Xiao twisted his body with all his might while also leaning backward.
The tip of the broadsword slashed past the front of Su Xiao's neck. He covered the side of his neck with one hand, blood seeping through his fingers.
He had managed to dodge those two strikes because, at the moment his neck was hit, he had entered a state of spatial penetration. However, since the surrounding world had been frozen, his entry into spatial penetration was slightly delayed, which was why he had been struck.
'Radius: 10 meters.'
Su Xiao obtained a crucial piece of information. The enemy's world-sealing ability had a radius of 10 meters. Within this range, one would inevitably be frozen by that power. It wasn't as simple as a control ability.
Information 1: The cooldown for this ability wouldn't be short, otherwise the enemy would have used it earlier to establish an overwhelming advantage.
Information 2: The diameter of this ability was 20 meters, with a duration of less than 1.5 seconds.
Information 3: The enemy's speed would be reduced within this range.
Blood pooled beneath Su Xiao. The wounds on his neck and chest were both severe. The side of his neck had been slashed open, damaging the artery. The wound on the front of his neck wasn't serious—just a bloody gash from the blade's tip.
The enemy's shockwave ability was deadly. Once it penetrated to the heart, his heart muscles would immediately contract, pumping a massive amount of blood throughout his body, causing the wounds to spray blood.
A potion appeared in Su Xiao's hand. Wind pressure rushed toward him from the front, shattering the potion bottle. That didn't matter—this potion was absorbed through the skin.
Su Xiao waved his hand, sending the broken bottle flying forward.
Clang, clang, clang...
Su Xiao and the Nameless One exchanged blows repeatedly. Su Xiao was biding his time, waiting for an opportunity.
'Blade Path Sword: Slay.'
A blood-red chain of light slashed out. Fine cut marks appeared all over the Nameless One's body. He was somewhat puzzled, unsure why Su Xiao would use a move that left a slight opening in close combat. But that didn't stop him from striking back. The prolonged battle had made it almost instinctual for him to bring his blade down toward Su Xiao's shoulder, aiming to sever his entire right arm.
'Opening.'
Su Xiao's pupils contracted slightly. This was the 'Heart·Soul·Blade' ability of a Blade Grandmaster, allowing him to detect an enemy's weakness.
The broadsword slashed down with a dark light toward Su Xiao's shoulder. At the same time, Su Xiao delivered a straight kick.
Bang!
Su Xiao's kick landed squarely on the Nameless One's lower abdomen. The Nameless One's veins bulged all over his body. He dropped to one knee, lowering his head.
After the kick, Su Xiao immediately leaped backward. The sensation of that straight kick was too strange—it felt like kicking a steel plate.
The moment his feet touched solid ground, Su Xiao sheathed his long blade.
'Blade Path Sword: Flow.'
A graceful wind scar sliced through. The Nameless One, still on one knee, suddenly raised his broadsword horizontally. This ruthless man was faking it. While enduring the straight kick, he had made all his muscles vibrate to avoid being immobilized by the kick.
Maintaining a distance of over ten meters, Su Xiao took out a scroll and crushed it. Spikes made of seawater stabbed up from below. A total of six water spikes completely pierced the hull of the Doom Number, then impaled the Nameless One's body, lifting him into the air.
This scroll was something Su Xiao had purchased at a high price on Trade Street before entering the Demon Sea World. Originally worth around 2,300 Soul Coins, it was called [Ocean's Revenge]. When used, it could create three water spikes for high-intensity penetration. At sea, the number of spikes doubled, construction time was greatly reduced, and power was also enhanced.
Just before entering the Demon Sea World, Su Xiao had specifically bought ocean-related items to save his life in critical moments. Because he was about to enter the Demon Sea World, the stall owner had ripped him off, raising the price from 2,300 Soul Coins to 2,522, but it was still within acceptable limits.
The six water spikes formed by [Ocean's Revenge] were extremely sudden. Caught off guard, the Nameless One was impaled, even lifted into the air by the six spikes. An opportunity had arrived.
Su Xiao rushed forward, almost gliding at ultra-high speed just above the ground. A crystal war scythe materialized in his hand.
'Azure Shadow King.'
The war scythe shattered, forming a slashing chain of light. Large cuts appeared on the Nameless One's body, exposing the white bones of his ribs on his chest.
Su Xiao suddenly stopped in place. Blood energy erupted violently.
"Roar!"
The Blood Beast instantly formed behind Su Xiao and lunged at the Nameless One.
The Nameless One cut through the water spikes, gripping his sword handle so hard it creaked. The Blood Beast charged head-on. A black blade scar split the Blood Beast, actually severing its massive head. Blood energy exploded violently.
Within the blood energy, the Nameless One's long hair flew wildly. His pitch-black eyes and his current appearance made him look like a demon crawling out of hell, with none of the bearing of a World Child.
In the explosion of blood energy, Su Xiao raised his left hand, clad in a metal arm guard, in front of his face. The Nameless One opposite him slashed his blade through the air. They were only a few meters apart, but the Nameless One didn't release a blade aura.
With a crack, the air was split open. A shockwave force surged toward Su Xiao. He was sent flying backward with a bang. Mid-air, blood splattered from his body, and his bones felt like they were about to fall apart.
Su Xiao had a trump card that he hadn't used since entering the Demon Sea World. It was time to use it.
The Banishment detached from his sleeve, forming a hiltless rapier. A fiery red thread, as thin as a hair, appeared in the center of the pale blue Banishment. The Banishment entered an internal combustion state.
Bang!!
The Banishment pierced through layers of air explosions, reaching the Nameless One in an instant. The Nameless One leaped backward at full speed, but even so, he couldn't dodge the Banishment in its internal combustion state.
After internal combustion, the Banishment's flight speed, elemental penetration, and lethality all skyrocketed. It was Su Xiao's new trump card, with a cooldown of up to five days each time it was used.
While leaping backward mid-air, the Nameless One had already judged that he couldn't dodge it. This thing would pierce his brain.
Determining this, the Nameless One flipped his broadsword, released the handle, and grabbed the middle of the blade's spine.
Clang!
The Banishment stabbed into the Nameless One's forehead. Even though it pierced flesh and bone, it made a sound like striking metal.
This was because, at that moment, the Nameless One was gripping the blade's spine. The front half of the broadsword had stabbed up from under his chin, piercing through his tongue, nasal airway, and even damaging part of his brain. The tip of the blade had even poked out slightly from the top of his skull.
The broadsword that the Nameless One had stabbed into his own head blocked the Banishment's penetration, preventing complete destruction of his brain.
A shockwave force radiated from the Nameless One, knocking the Banishment away. He pulled the broadsword out from under his chin, regripped the handle, and blood dripped from the blade's tip. This was the Nameless One's own blood.
"Ptooey."
The Nameless One spat out blood. When the blood landed, it contained a small piece of his severed tongue tip.
"Kid, my power... is almost back. This is your last chance."
"..."
Su Xiao leaped backward repeatedly. He stood on the battered bow of the ship, while the Nameless One slashed several times, shattering the Doom Number's main mast and captain's cabin, then stood at the stern.
The entire deck of the Doom Number was now flat. This ship was technically a living thing, but now it was as good as dead. It was about to fulfill its purpose.
Su Xiao held his long blade horizontally in front of him. The next strike would decide life or death. That was how battles between technique-type fighters worked—one strike through a vital point was enough.
With a rumble, Su Xiao at the bow and the Nameless One at the stern charged simultaneously. The immense force from their feet caused the already heavily damaged Doom Number to break apart in the middle.
Su Xiao and the Nameless One could no longer see each other. Su Xiao rushed forward along the sloping deck. Reaching the broken section in the center would be the decisive moment.
While running, half of the Cyan Steel Shadow Energy inside Su Xiao enveloped the Dragon-Slaying Flash, turning the blade a dark blue.
Smack!
Su Xiao crushed a large piece of wooden plank, reaching the broken section in the middle of the ship. The Nameless One appeared ahead. The broadsword in his hand looked blurry—this was because he had poured all his shockwave force into the blade, using the blade's vibration to achieve extreme cutting power.
'Blade Path Sword: Absolute Shadow.'
Su Xiao slashed upward diagonally from below. The Nameless One opposite him brought his blade down in a vertical slash. The Dragon-Slaying Flash and the broadsword crossed paths.
Clang!
The sharp sound of the clash pierced the sky. Black and blue blade scars cut through the bodies of Su Xiao and the Nameless One respectively.
Su Xiao landed on the broken deck at the highest point. His left arm and shoulder slid off. His injury wasn't that simple. From the side, a fifth of his left torso had been sliced off. The broadsword had struck from the shoulder beside his neck, cutting through all the flesh and bone near his armpit, finally exiting at the outer side of his thigh, perfectly matching the angle of his forward-leaning charge.
At the large wound, muscle tissue and white broken bones were clearly visible. The broadsword was too sharp. After the severed body part fell, blood only began to seep out.
A broken badge fell from Su Xiao's sleeve. It was the [Sanctuary Badge]. Without it, he would have perished together with the enemy. The shockwave force attached to the blow he had just taken would have been fatal.
Sanctuary Badge: When the 'Life Mark Bearer's' health drops below 0.9%, it will immediately lock life signs for 3 seconds. During these 3 seconds, it will restore 95% of the 'Life Mark Bearer's' health (after this effect is activated once, the Sanctuary Badge will shatter).
Su Xiao shifted his gaze to the Nameless One. The Nameless One sat slumped on the other side of the broken deck, the broadsword stuck in the ground beside him.
"This body of mine... won't die so easily."
As the Nameless One spoke, a diagonal blood mark appeared on his neck, causing his head to slide off. But he raised a hand, caught his falling head, and pressed it back onto the severed neck, continuing:
"But... in swordsmanship, you win."
"..."
Su Xiao sheathed his long blade with a clatter. Almost simultaneously, a barrage of slashes erupted around the Nameless One. The slashes were so dense that they formed a sphere around him, sending blood and shredded flesh flying.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Three intersecting massive slashes finished the attack, seeming to tear huge gashes in space itself before finally shattering. This was the 'Blade Path Sword: Absolute Shadow' that Su Xiao had been perfecting for a long time in the Land of All Beings, Layer Six. Its power was immense, but it required some preparation time. If the timing wasn't right, Su Xiao wouldn't use this move lightly.
Su Xiao leaped down from the Doom Number, landing on the ice more than ten meters away. In the sea, Bubu Wang pushed the ice with his doggy paddle, moving the ice floe away from the sinking Doom Number.
The blood moon in the sky was shattering. By the looks of it, it would be completely broken within a few dozen seconds. Now, only one person remained on the Doom Number.
The Nameless One's broken body lay on the shattered deck. His pitch-black eyes closed. He had spent his life running and killing for his mission. Now, he finally had a chance to rest. As he closed his eyes, faces of the departed appeared in his mind—the people who had once accompanied him into the great whirlpool.
The Doom Number was sinking. The captain would sink with the ship.
"Ruthless man, dare I ask... your name?"
Baha circled in mid-air. It was curious about one thing: what the third captain of the Doom Number was actually called.
"That's just an irrelevant detail."
Seawater swallowed the Doom Number. The Nameless One's aura completely dissipated. His corpse sank to the bottom of the sea along with the Doom Number.
After a while, Bubu Wang poked his dog head out of the sea. He climbed onto the ice, bringing back Su Xiao's severed left arm, shoulder, and part of his torso. They were all connected this time, making them easy to preserve.
After a moment, Baha closed the active preservation box. After doing all this, he was stunned for a moment. Maybe it was because he had done it so many times, but he was already quite skilled at it.
Su Xiao lay on the ice. He had been a hair's breadth away from death just now. Life-saving items were good things, but too hard to buy. Getting the [Sanctuary Badge] last time had been somewhat lucky. After checking the kill notification, he felt that the consumption of the [Sanctuary Badge] had been worth it.
[Notification: Trial Mission: Origin and End (Completed)]
[Hunter may return to Reincarnation Paradise at any time, or be forcibly returned when the trial mission's time limit is reached.]
[After the Hunter returns to Reincarnation Paradise, the four-attribute 200-point attribute barrier breakthrough will be conducted (this process must be carried out in the Attribute Enhancement Pod).]
...
Su Xiao sat up from the ice and lit a cigarette.
"Amuns, you're free. The Doom Number has sunk. The curse energy in Container 3 and Container 4 is enough to sustain you for about a month. You can't get your body back; you can only exist as a spirit. I didn't expect that."
As Su Xiao finished speaking, a semi-transparent phantom emerged from the sea surface.
"Captain, this is already good enough."
Amuns smiled, with the demeanor of an old gentleman.
"Don't call me captain. I'm no longer your captain."
"Goodbye, Captain."
Amuns's spirit sank into the sea. Seeing this, Su Xiao chose to return to Reincarnation Paradise. He had done everything he needed to do. He could take away 12 liters of Primordial Water. The remaining Primordial Water: Kaisa had 17 liters (no one knew how he managed to take so much), Octopus Bro had 10 liters, Wenni had 5 liters, and 6 liters had been sold.
Su Xiao's body gradually became semi-transparent. The same happened to Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha nearby. They all disappeared completely, leaving only a slowly melting patch of ice on the sea surface.
...
Void, Abyssal Dragon Depths.
Black bubbles floated in mid-air. The ground was a layer of cracked rock, with some areas of viscous black semi-fluid. These black semi-fluids were like petroleum—once stepped on, one would be swallowed into them.
That wasn't even the worst part. These were dark substances famous in the Void. After being eroded by them, one would die within a few months, enduring extremely painful erosion during that time.
The Abyssal Dragon Depths were the territory of the Abyssal Dragon. The number of people who died here each year was in the six figures. The reason was that the Abyssal Dragon possessed a Black Maple Tree.
There were three known Black Maple Trees in the Void: one in the Black Abyss, one on Arcane Eternal Star, and the last in the Abyssal Dragon Depths, the private property of the Abyssal Dragon.
The Abyssal Dragon had high intelligence, was brutal and bloodthirsty, and had a unique hobby. Many years ago, it had hired the Slinster Dwarves to set up a large number of levels and traps in the Abyssal Dragon Depths. As long as one's strength was below a certain level, they could attempt the levels. The final reward for clearing the levels was the Black Maple Tree's yield.
This was actually understandable. The Abyssal Dragon stayed here year-round guarding the Black Maple Tree. Without the occasional Law Destroyer coming to fight it, the Abyssal Dragon was bored. Watching various races attempt the levels had become its greatest pastime.
"Challenger, you have failed. Eroded by the dark substance, cherish your last few months."
Deafening laughter echoed through the Abyssal Dragon Depths. A figure with flowing golden hair lay on the rock layer, half-conscious. The lower half of her body was submerged in the dark substance, and she had no strength left to fully crawl out.
"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it! Violent Rat, I'll f*** your ******!"
A furious curse came. A crowned toad hopped over.
"None of my business. Little Cutie needed a Black Maple Tree branch a long time ago. She asked me where to find one. Was I supposed to tell her there was one in the Black Abyss?"
Violent Rat walked over helplessly. Seeing the semi-conscious Little Cutie, he shook his head.
"Her brain isn't very sharp. Didn't you know?"
"I know, but I didn't expect her to be this straightforward."
"You f***ing..."
"Stop, stop, stop. Get her back to Reincarnation Paradise. A super-high-level authority can restore her."
"Talking like that is as useful as farting. That kind of authority, only someone at the Tuanzhang's level can get."
The toad was shaking with rage. It had spent a long time cultivating Little Cutie, finally making her presentable, and now she was about to die?
"Toad, I have a connection."
"Speak!"
"My boss can't help. He's been gone for a long time. That woman named Sha, remember her? Similar authority level to ours."
"I know. What about that tomboy?"
"Sha is a cultivation maniac. I met her a few years ago. She had overdrawn her potential. I saw her recently, and she had actually recovered. I asked her how she recovered, but she was always evasive. From what she said, it didn't seem like it was restored by authority, but by someone helping her."
Hearing Violent Rat's description, the toad's eyes lit up. "Oh? There's such a thing?"
"Yes, there is. Wait, I'll find her imprint number. Found it. I'll try contacting her."
Violent Rat took out a projection device. After a while, Sha's phantom appeared. Sha's aura was now stronger. She stood on a snowy mountain peak, sweat soaking through her thin clothes, white steam rising from her body.
"Dead rat, what do you want from me?"
Sha exhaled a long breath of white air. Her breath was like an arrow, traveling far before dissipating.
"I wanted to ask you..."
After Violent Rat described the general situation, Sha's body suddenly trembled. A hint of fear appeared deep in her pupils. The memory of lying on an operating table, her body being casually toyed with, surfaced. Accompanying it was a heart-wrenching pain that made every cell in her body scream.
"Is that so? The Arbiter you cultivated has been eroded by dark substances."
"Yes, that's right."
The toad looked at her with hope. Seeing this, Sha smiled. A strange sense of satisfaction appeared in her heart.
"Coincidentally, I know an... Alchemist? Let's call him an alchemist for now. He might be able to help your Little Cutie solve the dark substance erosion. But there's one problem: how is your Little Cutie's psychological endurance?"