Looking at the two men's twisted faces and the terror-stricken woman they had taken hostage, Ban Shu's expression didn't waver.
"What are you still standing there for? Move!"
The fat man tightened his grip on the woman. "Move, or I'll turn her into a corpse!"
"P-please, save me."
The woman reached out in despair. The suffocating pressure made her instinctively beg Ban Shu for help, hoping he would save her.
Seeing her suffering, the red light in Ban Shu's eyes grew brighter. The red tomoe became clearer and clearer, even beginning to turn slowly.
"Do you think a trick like this will work on me?"
Ban Shu raised the Painted Halberd and slowly advanced, his voice cold and terrifying.
"If I let you go, more people will get hurt. Besides, I have no right to forgive you on behalf of those who died."
"So what if you have a hostage? I've already made up my mind. I'll bear all this evil alone."
As he spoke, Ban Shu suddenly swung his halberd. "First Soul Skill, Thunder Demon!"
The Painted Halberd swept toward the two men amid an endless surge of lightning. From its force, he clearly meant to cut them both down at once.
"This madman!"
The fat man's face changed. He threw the woman aside and retreated, hoping to use her as a shield and carve out a path to escape.
But at that moment, Ban Shu suddenly checked his swing and turned to catch the woman. "Dong'er!"
"Coming!"
Bibi Dong, who had been waiting for her chance nearby, sprang out at once. The Death Spider Emperor behind her gathered Soul Power and spat out a single venomous needle.
But don't underestimate that one needle. It contained all the poison from the others, and a single prick was enough to kill.
"Argh!"
The fat man screamed, clutching his stomach as he rolled across the ground. Gradually, he stopped breathing and collapsed, his head tilted back, eyes staring open in death.
The poison had already eaten away his stomach, leaving nothing but a patch of exposed white bone. His death was gruesome.
"Serves you right! That'll teach you to hurt people!"
Bibi Dong sneered at the fat man.
Carrying the unconscious woman, Ban Shu came to Bibi Dong's side. "Dong'er, I'll leave her to you. There's still a tall, thin Fallen One. I'll go find him."
"Mm. Be careful."
Bibi Dong nodded and took the woman from Ban Shu, watching as he continued farther into the cave.
At the deepest part of the cave, Ban Shu found the tall, thin man. He was standing by a railing, watching Ban Shu in silence.
"What, you know you can't escape, so you've given up?"
Ban Shu slowly approached him, raising the Painted Halberd in his hand, ready to deliver a fatal blow.
"Ha ha ha ha!"
To Ban Shu's surprise, the tall man, who seemed cornered, wasn't afraid at all. Instead, he burst into wild laughter.
"Oh? Looks like you've got a trick up your sleeve."
"That's right!"
The tall man suddenly grabbed a man nearby and plunged his hand into his chest without hesitation. The man struggled a few times, then fell still.
All the blood flowed into a jar, which was already full. Clearly, he had killed many people.
When he was done, the tall man stepped aside. Only then did Ban Shu see the countless corpses piled behind him. They had died just like that man, every drop of blood drained from their bodies, with a gaping hole in each chest.
Looking at the dead, Ban Shu breathed out slowly and closed his eyes.
"Heh, heh, heh."
The tall man didn't care how Ban Shu felt. His face glowed with an unnatural flush, and a crazed roar rang from his throat.
"I've drained the blood of everyone here! Once I activate my Martial Soul, I can unleash a massive explosion powerful enough to destroy this whole cave!"
Laughing wildly, the tall man held the jar out in front of him. "This is the price you pay for leaving no one alive! You're going to die with me! If I can take you with me before I die, then my life will have been worth it!"
As he spoke, the tall man crushed the jar in his hand. He had thought they would die together, but the instant he reached out, lightning flashed around Ban Shu. In the blink of an eye, the halberd had run the man through.
"How... could this happen..."
The man stared at the halberd piercing his chest and swallowed his final breath in despair. His Martial Soul vanished along with him.
"You've made me angry!"
Ban Shu gripped the Painted Halberd. Two blood-red tomoe turned slowly in his eyes. It was only because he had awakened the Sharingan that he had been able to dispatch the Fallen One in that instant.
"Whew..."
Everything had finally settled, and Ban Shu could no longer hold himself up. He slowly collapsed to the ground. His Soul Power was nearly depleted, and the side effects of awakening the Sharingan left him barely able to stand.
"I can't believe I awakened the Sharingan."
Ban Shu instinctively touched his eyes. Seeing the Evil Soul Masters commit such unspeakable atrocities had made anger blaze in his heart.
And when the tall man had tried to take them both down, a cold force had entered Ban Shu's eyes. His opponent's movements had suddenly slowed. Only then had Ban Shu realized he must have awakened the Sharingan.
"Is this a good thing or a bad thing?"
Ban Shu looked at the corpses around him and gave a bitter smile. These innocent people should have been living peacefully in their village, not ending up like this.
"Those detestable Evil Soul Masters shouldn't even exist in this world!"
Thinking of how the Evil Soul Masters would grow ever more rampant after Douluo II, Ban Shu couldn't help frowning. The God of Asura presided over judgment, yet turned a blind eye to the evil appearing right before him, claiming he couldn't interfere with the lower world. It was utterly ridiculous.
"Xiao Ban!"
At that moment, Bibi Dong entered the depths of the cave with Yue Guan and the others. She immediately spotted the dead Fallen One and Ban Shu.
"Xiao Ban, are you all right?"
Bibi Dong hurried over and helped him up.
"I'm fine. I'm just a little tired. Let me rest for a while, Sister Dong'er."
As he spoke, Ban Shu slowly closed his eyes. He had depleted his Soul Power twice in one day, and on top of that came the exhaustion from awakening the Sharingan. His head was splitting, and he felt like sleeping.
"Xiao Ban!"
Thinking that something had happened to him, Bibi Dong hurriedly looked at Yue Guan. "Bishop Yue Guan, what's wrong with Xiao Ban?"
Yue Guan quickly crouched down and carefully checked Xiao Ban's condition. Then he breathed a sigh of relief. "He's fine. Xiao Ban is just exhausted. He'll be all right after some rest."
Hearing that, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
"It's good that he's all right. We owe it to Xiao Ban's warning that we were able to wipe out these Fallen Ones. Let him rest properly."
Before you continue