A flash of light.
A pitch-black longsword appeared in Xuan Ye's hand.
Its blade was long and narrow, without a single ornate marking—only pure black, as if it could absorb all light. Nearly invisible silver threads flowed across the blade like the veins of a living creature, pulsing faintly.
The moment his hand closed around the hilt, he felt a connection by blood.
How could a divine weapon painstakingly forged by mortal craftsmen compare to one simply granted by selecting it in the system?
This sword, named Revenge, was born with the ability to harmonize light and darkness.
Simply put, it could convert techniques using Light and Dark Spiritual Power into one another.
For instance, Long Xuanye's various Knight Techniques could be transformed into frenzied versions that drew upon Dark Spiritual Power, surely increasing their might tremendously!
The moment he gripped it, Xuan Ye felt his Inner Spiritual Power increase by at least thirty percent.
At the same time.
As those 10 points of Innate Dark Inner Spiritual Power fully merged with him, something deep within Xuan Ye's bloodline... awakened.
It was an instinct stemming from the Demon God Emperor Bloodline.
A brand-new ability was inscribed upon his soul.
[Bloodline Ability Awakening: Demon God's Shadow.] By consuming Dark Spiritual Power, he could briefly transform himself into a shadow that could not be targeted by physical attacks, greatly increasing his speed and concealment. While active, he could pass through obstacles. When he left the shadow state, he could unleash a single attack infused with Dark Spiritual Power.
Under Revenge's influence, however, he could also turn darkness into light.
An ability that combined survival, burst damage, and utility?
Not bad.
A faint smile tugged at Xuan Ye's lips.
Having a good grandfather really was something.
Without the Demon God Emperor's bloodline, he probably couldn't have awakened such a powerful ability.
Just then.
"Boom—!"
"Boom—!"
Heavy footsteps drew closer, each one making the ground tremble slightly.
A hulking figure over five meters tall appeared in Xuan Ye's field of vision.
Its body was made of hard, gray-black rock. Two masses of burning magma served as its eyes, and it radiated an aura of brutality and destruction.
A Fifth Tier Devil Race, the Rock Demon.
[Notice: A powerful enemy has been detected. Host, please make a choice.] [Choice One: Avoid its sharp edge. Use the bloodline ability [Demon God's Shadow] and the terrain to disguise yourself as a low-level Devil Race and bypass the Rock Demon. Reward: [Revenge] weapon evolution progress +5%.] [Choice Two: Fight. Kill the Fifth Tier Rock Demon head-on. Reward: [Revenge] weapon evolution progress +10%, Innate Dark Inner Spiritual Power +1]
Xuan Ye looked at the Rock Demon, radiating a vicious aura.
The calm in his eyes was replaced by a flicker of madness.
Avoid its sharp edge?
The resentment, fury, and pain pent up in his chest seemed to have found an outlet.
Earlier...
That Rock Demon had worn Cai'er down, causing her eyesight to deteriorate prematurely, if he remembered right...
"Me? Avoid you?"
Xuan Ye muttered under his breath, his voice hoarse.
Right now... he felt incredibly restless!!
The next moment, Xuan Ye tightened his grip on Revenge.
Kill!
Without the slightest hesitation, Xuan Ye moved.
Secret Technique: Instantaneous Movement Steps!
His figure became a bolt of black lightning. Instead of retreating, he charged straight toward the hulking Rock Demon.
The Rock Demon's molten eyes widened in surprise, then flashed with a distinctly humanlike scorn.
Why was there a human here?
Whatever. It didn't matter.
A puny human.
Dared to provoke the mighty Rock Demon Clan!
It roared as its enormous stone arm swept through the air, crashing down toward the tiny figure!
Faced with a strike powerful enough to split mountains and shatter stone, Xuan Ye neither dodged nor retreated.
The Light Spiritual Power within him flowed through the longsword Revenge and was rapidly converted into pure Dark Spiritual Power.
A skill that had once been sacred and righteous in the Knight Temple took on a completely different, sinister and domineering form in his hands.
The Spiritual Power circulated according to the pattern of—Pure White Blade.
But what he released was...
"Shadow Thrust!"
At the very moment the Rock Demon's enormous fist was about to fall, the black sword tip struck precisely at the gap in its wrist joint.
"Clang!"
A sharp sound rang out as metal struck stone.
The Rock Demon's attack was knocked slightly off course, crashing into the ground beside Xuan Ye and blasting out an enormous crater.
Having landed his hit, Xuan Ye didn't pause.
Next, Moonlight Slash!
"Nether Prison Slash!"
Black aura coiled around Revenge's blade as a crescent-shaped wave of black sword energy shot from it, slashing toward the Rock Demon's knee.
Another joint!
The Rock Demon cried out in pain.
Its other arm swept sideways, moving so fast it blocked every possible route of escape.
A trace of frenzy flashed through Xuan Ye's eyes.
He didn't retreat. Instead, he charged toward the sweeping arm and used Instantaneous Movement Steps once more.
An eye for an eye!
Splurt—!
The edge of the Rock Demon's stone arm grazed Xuan Ye's left shoulder, tearing away a large patch of flesh. The sound of his bones breaking rang clear.
Pain surged through him, but he acted as if he couldn't feel it.
Riding the force of the blow, his body shot forward like a cannonball, Revenge tracing a lethal arc through the air.
His target was the stone arm that had just struck him.
Splurt—!
The pitch-black blade of Revenge sank silently into the Rock Demon's hard arm, cutting through it like rotten earth.
From the crook of the elbow, all the way down!
"Roar!!!"
For the first time, its anguished bellow held nothing but pain.
Xuan Ye had used the force of the blow to sever the Rock Demon's enormous arm clean off!
What flowed from the severed stump wasn't blood, but boiling, dark red magma. It sizzled as it scorched the ground.
With one arm cut off, the Rock Demon went completely berserk.
Its remaining arm pounded the ground frantically, sending countless chunks of rock flying toward Xuan Ye like cannonballs.
Enduring the agony in his left shoulder, Xuan Ye weaved through the hail of debris with Instantaneous Movement Steps, his figure flickering unpredictably.
But he knew he was at his limit, too.
The injury to his shoulder kept getting worse. Every movement jarred his shattered bones, and his Spiritual Power was rapidly running out.
He had to end this quickly!
A charging attack skill from the Knight Temple flashed through Xuan Ye's mind.
Sun Radiance Slash.
It gathered Light Spiritual Power at the tip of the sword, forming a blazing sun that burned away the enemy with pure light and heat.
But under the influence of the longsword Revenge and Dark Spiritual Power, the skill gained a whole new name.
Xuan Ye stopped and raised Revenge steadily with his only remaining hand, pointing its tip at the enraged Rock Demon.
The Light Spiritual Power inside him, along with a small amount of Dark Spiritual Power, surged through Revenge in a strange balance.
"Nether Sun Strike!"
At the tip of Revenge, a pitch-black sphere appeared, swallowing the light around it.
The sphere was small, but it radiated an aura of deathly stillness.
"Awooooo!!!"
The Rock Demon sensed the mortal threat. Abandoning its futile attacks, it gathered all its strength into its remaining arm and charged at Xuan Ye!
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