Desperate Counterattack

"Whoosh—"

An arm shot out like an Azure Dragon Emerges from Cave, fiercely clamping down on the Hetu Dao Master's right hand in a lightning flash.

Pain shot through his wrist, and he involuntarily released his grip. The Spirit Banishing Seal fell from midair.

Meanwhile, He Zhao, who had been pinned in place by the Rooting Skeleton Bone, suddenly crouched low. His free right arm darted out and caught the sacrificial vessel.

At the same time, his entire body retreated explosively.

"You!!"

The Hetu Dao Master was utterly dumbfounded. He could rack his brains all he wanted, yet he could not figure out how his opponent had broken free from the Wailing Bone sacrificial vessel's Immobilization.

His face darkened as he instinctively turned to look at Old Huang, only to discover in shock that a crude dagger polished from human bone was nailed into the old man's abdomen.

"Hehe, in the end, I was one move ahead."

Seeing his enemy suffer a setback, He Zhao was beyond delighted.

"Hmph! Even if the Jade Seal is in your hands, you don't know how to use it."

Before the Hetu Dao Master could finish speaking, Ruthless He Zhao pressed the Spirit Banishing Seal against his arm.

A strange power surged forth. The membrane enveloping his Spirit Power melted away and vanished in an instant.

"I won the bet!"

When the four Secret Blood Warriors had entered the room earlier, he had vaguely glimpsed the strange patterns on their arms.

At first, he had assumed they were marks belonging to some faction. But Wancheng had only one Hengshan Boxing Gym, and when he had traveled to Qinghe Town and spent time with A'da and his brother, he had never seen such patterns.

Thus, there was a high probability that the Hetu Dao Master and his people had created them. Then, considering that Old Huang and the others could ignore the sacrificial vessel's power and use the Immobilizing Wailing Bone—

After thinking frantically, he had decided to secretly steal the Tourmaline Seal from their hands to verify his suspicion.

Feeling light all over, He Zhao let out a soft breath. He would not need to start all over again.

Of course, the prerequisite was that Huang had been severely injured by him, interrupting the Spirit Power being fed into the sacrificial vessel!

The Bone Dagger he had casually flung out while striking a pose had laid the crucial foundation for breaking free of the Spirit Banishing Seal.

"Don't let him get it—"

The Hetu Dao Master was no fool. Almost as soon as He Zhao broke free from the Spirit Banishing Seal's power, he roared at the remaining two Secret Blood Warriors.

Unfortunately, He the Person was ultimately more cunning.

A phantom flashed past. He Zhao slammed into Old Huang, and the two rolled out of the room and into the vast courtyard.

As they rolled, he casually yanked out the Bone Dagger from his Cheap Master's lower abdomen, then used Inch Force to viciously strike his throat.

Fatal Scattered Hand—Throat Shattering Strike!

Crack!

Old Huang, the second strongest member of the Hetu Dao, died instantly.

Like the previous two Secret Blood Warriors, he could not rest in peace even in death.

How had such a favorable situation mutated in the blink of an eye?

Bang!

The remaining two Secret Blood Warriors followed close behind. One of them directly smashed Old Huang's corpse apart with a palm strike, then charged at He Zhao, covered in blood.

I can't let the Hetu Dao Master use any other sacrificial vessels!

Who knew whether he had some terrifying object capable of killing instantly?

Nor did He Zhao know whether the man's belongings could drain life force like the Bone Dagger. He had to be on guard.

Otherwise, if he really had to start another round, he could avenge himself then.

"Whoosh—"

With a flick of his hand, the dagger shot toward the Hetu Dao Master!

"This move again."

The Dao Master nearly laughed in anger. That move had just caught Old Huang off guard and severely injured him, allowing his opponent to break free from Immobilization.

And now he actually dared use the same old trick on him?

He neither dodged nor evaded, allowing the flying dagger to shoot toward his heart. He even cast a mocking glance at He Zhao, who was fighting the two Secret Blood Warriors head-on.

Clang!

Sparks flew as the dagger was blocked by armor as solid as steel.

"Rip—"

The Hetu Dao Master casually tore apart his long robe, revealing the Bone White Armor wrapped around his entire body.

At that moment, He Zhao completely ignored the two Secret Blood Warriors' attacks, forcibly taking a punch from each of them.

Bang! Bang!

Two dull impacts rang out. Ruthless He Zhao merely slowed for a moment before continuing his charge at the furious Hetu Dao Master.

The two Secret Blood Warriors were violently knocked aside, astonishment on both their faces.

Their fists seemed to have struck steel plates, and even the bones in their fists faintly ached.

If they had not guessed wrong, their finger bones had definitely cracked.

What kind of Aberration Heart Blood had this man used to become a Secret Blood Warrior?

Why was the gap between them so enormous?

On the other side, the Hetu Dao Master was thoroughly disgusted by He Zhao's determination to attack him even at the cost of severe injury. With no time to use another sacrificial vessel, he could only thrust out his chest, raise both hands to protect his face, and take the punch head-on.

Boom—

With an explosive bang, the Hetu Dao Master staggered back four or five steps.

"You're dead—"

Before he could finish, He the Person drew out the Bone Dagger.

"Wait, how did you—?"

On the floor where he had stood before, a shattered ordinary dagger lay quietly.

"Fuck, I—"

The Hetu Dao Master instantly lost it. A mouthful of old blood lodged in his throat, neither rising nor falling. So the thing that had flown at him earlier had not been a sacrificial vessel?

"Pfft—"

Seizing the opening, He Zhao poured a massive amount of Spirit Power into the Bone Dagger, then stabbed it into his own chest.

"Hmph!"

Three muffled groans rang out. The hearts of the two Secret Blood Warriors who had just stepped forward to rescue the Hetu Dao Master suddenly ached as invisible daggers pierced through them.

Thud! Thud!

Bodies hit the ground, adding two more corpses unable to rest in peace.

He Zhao had made preparations days ago. The entire room and courtyard were covered with Blood-Colored Footprints. Good thing he had been cautious; otherwise, the Hetu Dao Master and the others might not have given him time to make his move!

The Secret Blood Warriors had all been wiped out, but the Dao Master was different. He spat out a mouthful of blood, his face turning deathly pale, yet he did not die immediately.

Thud!

He collapsed onto the ground. His eyes bulged as he gasped violently.

"Huh! You didn't die?"

He Zhao could hardly believe it. This was a sacrificial vessel originating from a Fierce Ghost, with the terrifying effect of a Fatal Strike.

What gave the Hetu Dao Master the right?

"Bleurgh."

He spat out another mouthful of blood, and some color returned to his pale face.

Even though he had not died at once, He Zhao could still sense his life slipping away.

"What an overbearing sacrificial vessel."

If he truly could move, He Zhao would have loved to stomp the man's head apart to eliminate future trouble. Having used the Bone Dagger, he could only wait for the sacrificial vessel to absorb enough life force before the restrictions on his movements would be lifted.

"In the end, I was one move short. Perhaps I should not have chosen you back then. Alas, I still made the wrong choice. If you inherited my lineage, one day you would rival, perhaps even far surpass, my master's grand lineage."

"Hehe."

He Zhao curled his lips dismissively.

Why play the emotional card at a time like this?

Did he think that after the two of them had fought to the death, a few empty words could make He the Person spare his life?

"Did Old Huang never tell you that the Spirit Power we cultivate can, to a certain extent, delay or even exempt us from the attacks of certain Fierce Ghosts and sacrificial vessels?

"Forget it. I don't blame him. Ever since he began following me, he always believed you were doomed to die, so it did not matter whether he taught you or not. Zhao'er, I can only give you this final lesson.

"You more or less know the Spirit Banishing Seal's function, but do not let it become stained with blood. Otherwise, all the Spirit Power you painstakingly cultivated will belong entirely to the Jade Seal itself.

"You can peel off the Bone Armor on my body. Its true form is a section of finger bone. Find someone skilled in medicine to transplant it for you. The only thing you need to be careful of is not allowing the sacrificial vessel to infect all the finger bones in your arm.

"If that happens, you will permanently lose one arm, or your entire body will be enslaved by the sacrificial vessel. All right. Aside from that, there are some miscellaneous books and worldly riches at the place where I undergo secluded cultivation.

"After I die, take them and use them."

The Hetu Dao Master's face was filled with melancholy. Emotion brimmed in his eyes, and his tone did not seem false as he went on and on, making arrangements for after his death.

"Dao Master!"

He Zhao slowly drew out a small section of the Bone Dagger. Amid the Hetu Dao Master's astonished expression, he viciously stabbed it back down.

"Ah—"

With a miserable scream, a broken saber fell from the hand behind the Hetu Dao Master's back.

"You think I'd believe you?! Die, damn it!!"

"Pfft—"

He Zhao drained every last bit of Spirit Power from his body, pulled out half the dagger again, and then viciously drove it down.

It was not that he did not want to pull it out entirely and beat the Hetu Dao Master to death with his bare hands.

The Bone Dagger simply would not allow it!

Until it had drained all of the enemy's life force, even in combat, Severe Injury, or darkness, with every attribute increased by seven, he still could not pull it out completely.

Sacrificial vessels really were not things to be trifled with.

Thud!

The Hetu Dao Master died.

"Phew."

After using the Bone Dagger three times in succession, Death Resistance could not turn the tide.

As for the tiny bit of life the Bone Dagger gave him?

Who was it looking down on!

That was not enough to keep him alive at all.

"Crashing and burning—happens all the time. I'm used to it."

Though his mouth refused to admit defeat, He Zhao lay amid the corpses filling the room, fell backward onto the ground, and immediately went silent.