You Su had no idea that his eyes had changed. He only felt a slight burning in them, but compared to the countless wounds covering his body, that bit of abnormality was hardly worth mentioning.
At that very moment, he was racking his brains, trying to figure out how he could hack apart the layer of flesh shielding True Man Ling. Simply dodging would never help him win.
True Man Ling's heart was roiling like a stormy sea. He had cultivated for over a century, and ever since Channel Opening, he had been in daily contact with the evil creatures captured by his master. He was more familiar than anyone with that foul, fishy evil aura. You Su's eyes were absolutely the eyes of an evil creature!
But when had the Dream Centipede ever gained the ability to alter someone's eyes? Though it possessed a fair share of the Dream Lord's authority, it was practically incapable of fighting. Its only talent was inflicting bizarre dreams upon those it possessed, which was why True Man Ling had been able to tame and control it.
What puzzled True Man Ling even more was that the Red Meat Ghost covering his body could likewise only be seen by someone in the Condensing Water Realm. You Su should have seen only the Dream Centipede he had planted in him. The two evil creatures had different types of dependents, so how could You Su see him?
In the blink of an eye, You Su had already launched an attack. True Man Ling's body was covered in those eerie, blood-colored muscles, with only one place left unarmed—his head.
That was also the flaw of True Man Ling's form. If the Red Meat Ghost covered his head as well, he would lose consciousness and completely become food for the Red Meat Ghost.
You Su poured all his strength into this sword strike, even drawing upon the Mystic Qi between heaven and earth. In his own words, the sword carried extraordinary spirit. Naturally, True Man Ling would not let You Su succeed so easily. He crossed both arms to block You Su's sword as the boy leaped high into the air.
But this time, he was no longer unscathed as before. He clearly felt the sensation of his flesh being sliced apart along his arms.
What the hell?! How could a blind boy from such a remote little city possess such profound attainments in the Way of the Sword? What level is this brat even at? He's already touched the threshold of sword intent? Damn it all!
True Man Ling flew into a rage. He grabbed You Su's wrist with one hand and struck at the arm holding the sword with the other. He actually wanted to imitate the move You Su had used to seize his sword when they first met! It was even more vicious than the original. Relying on the tremendous strength of this body, he still had enough left to drive a vicious kick toward You Su's chest!
You Su regretted not keeping his feet on the ground when he struck. That had given his opponent the chance to seize and restrain his arm. His swordsmanship might have been excellent, but it could not overcome such an absolute disparity in strength. His right hand was clamped immovably in place, and he still had to find a way to face that kick capable of splitting mountains and shattering stone.
At the critical moment, You Su gritted his teeth and let go of the Ink Pine Sword. He planted one foot against the leg True Man Ling had kicked at him, then twisted his body with that immense force. He paid no attention to his right arm, twisted into a grotesque shape. No matter how intense the pain became, it could not stop his resolve to kill True Man Ling.
Like a spinning top, he used the opportunity to swing around and cling to True Man Ling's arm. What headed toward True Man Ling's vulnerable face was a kick delivered with every ounce of You Su's strength.
A powerful impact traveled up from the instep of You Su's foot. Just as expected, True Man Ling was kicked flying, his hands releasing You Su in the process.
You Su flipped through the air and landed, then reached out with his left hand to catch the Ink Pine Sword he had just released. He had planned this move long ago! One kick could never take True Man Ling's life. The only thing that could kill him was his own sword!
The instant he caught the sword, You Su suddenly burst forth with astonishing speed, chasing after True Man Ling's collapsed body. Mystic Qi flooded through his entire body, pouring into and flowing between his left hand and the sword. This was the most ferocious strike of the Mandarin Sword, and a killing move he had practiced countless times! Today, it would finally serve its purpose. Even wielded with his non-dominant hand, its power was not diminished in the slightest!
The Mystic Qi around them trembled violently in response to the might of this sword. With a wet puff, You Su drove the full-force strike into True Man Ling's head. For the first time, he found the sensation of a sword slicing through flesh so intoxicating.
You Su collapsed onto the ground in relief. His right arm hung limp as though dislocated. With his hair loose and his body stained in blood, he looked like a life-taking beast beneath the cold moonlight.
I really did it...
You Su wanted to laugh heartily, and he also wanted to howl in grief, but he was so exhausted that he no longer had the strength even to make an expression.
"I spent sixty years painstakingly feeding that Red Meat Ghost! It fed on me until I became neither human nor ghost, and now you've butchered it just like that! How exactly are you going to compensate me?!"
A heart-rending voice suddenly rang out. True Man Ling was not dead!
You Su was like a startled bird. Only then did he realize that what lay beneath his sword was not True Man Ling's head at all, but a compact monster that was blood-red from head to toe, covered in grotesque flesh, and had no eyes! You Su hurriedly raised his head to search for the source of the voice, but aside from a swath of chaos, he could see nothing.
You Su understood at once. At the moment between life and death, True Man Ling had dispelled the state of evil-creature possession and made the evil creature on his body take his death in his place. That was why You Su, who could only see evil creatures, could no longer see him—just as at the beginning of the battle.
You Su had no choice but to use his perception to search, but how could someone who had overdrawn himself so badly still catch True Man Ling's silhouette?
At that moment, thick scarlet fluid began spreading across the ground, winding toward You Su. You Su struggled to rise and hacked wildly with his left hand, but the moment the liquid was severed, it immediately flowed back together.
True Man Ling slowly emerged from the darkness. A huge footprint marred his grotesque face. With one eye drooping, he spat out a mouthful of bloody phlegm and snarled ferociously, "Fight! Weren't you so good at fighting?"
You Su ignored True Man Ling's words. The liquid was like a maggot burrowing into the bone, clinging tightly to all four of his limbs and leaving him unable to move.
"Did you think that staking everything would let you save them? Did you think you were especially clever because you saw through everything and turned the tables on me? What a pity, what a pity! I'm not one of those fools who only know how to refine Qi!" True Man Ling's yellow teeth showed as he grinned, flecked with bloody foam. He laughed without the slightest restraint. "Do you know how much it costs to raise a Red Meat Ghost? But it doesn't matter. I've already thought of how you'll compensate me."
"Among the evil creatures of the Flesh and Blood Type, quite a few are interested only in female cultivators... I'll offer your junior sisters and Mistress to them. Once they've been eaten clean, I'll have the evil creatures possess you."
"Then you can become my new pet... and stay with your junior sisters and Mistress forever, never to be separated, whether in consciousness or in body..." True Man Ling closed his eyes and spread his arms, taking a deep breath as if embracing this delightful world. "You'd better thank me properly from now on."
You Su clenched his teeth so tightly that he nearly shattered his back molars. In his pitch-black eye sockets, a tear of blood unexpectedly seeped out.
He could not see True Man Ling's smug face, yet he stared at him as though he could see straight through him. He recalled the face that had appeared after True Man Ling transformed and swore to remember this beast forever! He would take revenge on him for generation after generation, never resting until one of them was dead!
Can someone come over here? Sob...
Before you continue