Chapter Nine: Crisis! The Terrifying Shadow
The battle was over.
Yichen slowly approached the Takiyu sprout before him.
The delicate sprout glowed with a jade-like luster under the moonlight.
He carefully plucked the Takiyu sprout.
To prevent its vitality from dissipating, Yichen immediately wrapped it in magical energy, then gently placed it into his pouch.
“It’s finally over…”
Having collected the Takiyu sprout, the mission was complete.
Yichen couldn’t help but exhale in relief.
He took out the Escape Stone, ready to leave the secret realm.
Infusing it with magical power, the Escape Stone, shaped like a die, activated instantly; its surface patterns glowed as the numbers shifted rapidly.
Just as Yichen thought he would soon depart the secret realm,
Suddenly, the stone’s light flickered out.
“What’s going on…”
Yichen was puzzled.
It was the first time the Escape Stone failed to activate.
Could it be a faulty product?
As he prepared to reactivate the stone,
Suddenly, a violent clattering came from his pouch.
Click, click!
It was the Crisis Compass!
Its needle swung wildly.
Yichen immediately recalled the rumors about the Poison Moon Forest and the terrifying level-8 monsters rumored to dwell there...
Could it be...
An inexplicable chill seeped deep into his bones.
Behind him,
A black shadow emerged.
A massive silhouette blotted out the sky—not just in a literal sense,
But more like it swallowed the entire night.
By the time Yichen’s mind regained some clarity,
He saw before him,
A dragon cloaked entirely in pitch black.
Malevolent and profound,
Its body dwarfed that of a serpent by several times, lying low on the ground, dark crimson patterns flickering along its scales.
A violent gust swept through,
And the enormous black dragon vanished.
In its place stood a humanoid figure wrapped in shadow.
Though its features were obscured by the darkness, it was clear it was studying Yichen.
Then, it mimicked him.
Its right hand transformed into a long blade.
Yichen’s expression tightened.
This monster could even imitate humans?
Before he could fully process his shock,
A blade struck.
The shadow attacked.
Yichen immediately raised his sword to block.
The shadow’s power was not overwhelming, even weaker than his own.
Clearly, the monster was holding back its strength.
But no matter what, Yichen’s only option was to fight.
He swung a heavy strike.
The shadow was forced back.
Yichen struck again.
His long blade sliced through the shadow’s form, but only a few wisp-like tendrils were severed.
Such an attack was far from enough to cause real harm.
“Then how about this!”
The Pure Moon Silver Edge!
His sword suddenly shimmered with a silvery, sacred light.
The silver glow pierced the shadow.
This time, a pale silver wound appeared across the shadow’s body.
Effective!
Yet only barely so.
The shadow leapt back, putting distance between them.
It gently touched the wound, which instantly healed as if untouched.
The shadow looked surprised.
It hadn’t expected this frail human before it to cause any injury.
It didn’t strike back but waited to see what other moves Yichen had.
As it focused on Yichen,
The next moment,
Yichen, who had been directly ahead, vanished.
Behind him,
A silver blade came crashing down.
The shadow blocked with its horizontal sword,
But the silver cut still grazed its body.
Yichen pressed his advantage,
Speeding up once more.
Another slash fell.
This time, it struck the shadow’s back.
Blows rained down in succession.
For a moment, Yichen had the shadow firmly suppressed.
Several silver wounds now marked its form.
Particles of silver moonlight and dark energy dispersed continuously.
Though Yichen didn’t understand why the shadow refrained from attacking, he had no time to ponder.
The difference in magical power was simply too vast.
If the enemy unleashed its full might, Yichen might be annihilated in an instant.
The overwhelming fear—
Most others would have succumbed to despair and lost all will to fight.
But Yichen was different.
No matter the desperate situation, he had to try.
A level-8 monster? So be it!
If you want to play, then I’ll play along.
One day, when I become an 8-star hunter, such mere monsters won’t stand a chance against me.
With near reckless courage,
Yichen swung his blade again,
Aiming at the shadow’s neck.
At that moment,
Agony surged through him.
His heart faltered, blood rushed backward, and his mind blurred.
This was the symptom of magical exhaustion.
The silver glow on his sword faded.
The Pure Moon Silver Edge’s effect ended.
Relying solely on willpower and instinct,
Yichen managed to land the strike.
His blade pierced through the shadow’s neck.
Unfortunately, lacking a penetrating effect, the dark energy pulsed and quickly healed once again.
Failure...
Yichen gritted his teeth and held his ground.
Breathing heavily, his magic completely spent, he was utterly drained.
Before him,
The shadow raised its head, dark energy swirling around it, wounds slowly knitting back.
It casually swung its long blade, as if to say, “That’s all you’ve got?”
No matter how strong a hunter, once drained of magic, they were no different from ordinary mortals.
Perhaps bored of the game,
The shadow finally prepared to strike.
Yet even then, it refrained from unleashing its terrifying true power, maintaining a level close to Yichen’s.
It mimicked Yichen’s stance.
Lowering its body slightly, legs spread, one forward, one back, ready to sprint.
With a swift whoosh,
Like a sharp arrow released,
The black blade appeared above Yichen’s head.
Is it over…?
Impossible!
Yichen met the descending blade with blazing eyes.
This was the moment he had been waiting for!
Serpent Martial Art!
Suddenly, boundless magical energy erupted.
Majestic power surged skyward as the silver blade cut through everything.
The Takiyu sprout only grows near ley lines, and ley lines were the prerequisite to activating the Serpent Martial Art!
To fill his body with the nearly infinite power of the ley lines,
Yichen had pushed himself to the limit, expending every ounce of magic.
Under the ley line’s blessing,
The Pure Moon Silver Edge's power multiplied manyfold.
By the time the shadow sensed the threat, it was too late to evade.
Boom!
A pillar of silver light shot forth.
The ferocious magic instantly evaporated the water in the entire pond.
Mist and moonlight particles filled the air,
Then slowly dispersed.
The shadow struck by the silver blade was now battered and broken.
Its dark energy no longer escaped.
Even it couldn’t immediately heal such grievous wounds.
The shadow gazed at Yichen.
Perhaps at that moment, it truly regarded Yichen as an opponent.
“Finally getting serious…”
Yichen activated his Brute Force Armguards.
With endless magic, he could use his skills however he pleased.
The only drawback was being confined within this small space beneath his feet.
To fight a legendary level-8 monster at the strength of a 2-star hunter—
Who would believe such a tale?
But Yichen cared little for others’ opinions.
Infinite magic, boundless fighting spirit!
If a fight was to be had, he would fight with abandon.
There’s a saying:
Madmen are drawn to each other.
Even monsters are no exception.
The shadow discarded its long blade.
It seemed utterly unused to human weapons.
Its body solidified; its arms elongated into razor-sharp claws.
Thud!
A thunderous boom as the shadow launched itself like a cannonball.
Clang!
Claws clashed against steel.
Yichen’s silver blade ignored defenses; every strike inflicted wounds.
The shadow’s claws seemed to have a similar effect—blackened, corrosive spots appeared on Yichen’s body.
Blood energy surged!
Crimson life force swallowed the blackened spots.
With infinite magical support, any wound healed immediately.
The shadow was the same.
Attack, defense, injury, recovery...
A near endless cycle.
Blades and claws collided incessantly.
Their speed and force were so immense, even the air seemed to vanish.
No one could count the number of exchanges.
Only continuous slashes and strikes.
Yichen’s consciousness was wholly immersed in the battle.
All past techniques and forms forgotten.
This was a fight of pure instinct.
How many strikes had he made?
He no longer remembered.
The ground trembled; the nearly limitless ley line energy itself dimmed.
The shadow’s claw attacks grew ever faster.
Yichen’s slashes matched them blow for blow.
Blade and claw engulfed the entire battlefield.
If anyone could pierce through the dance of steel and shadow to see Yichen’s state,
They would surely exclaim.
In this moment, Yichen had entered the coveted flow state all warriors dream of.
His black eyes were serene and emotionless.
His magic eye flickered with a faint golden glow, pulsing like a heartbeat.
The shadow’s attacks were like a scorching furnace,
Tempering Yichen’s blade.
This was pure transcendence.
Yichen’s swordsmanship grew ever more refined.
The shadow seemed to relish this pure combat as well.
Its dark energy surged, a sign of excitement and pleasure.
They were both battle maniacs.
Only in the clash of life and death, blood and fire, could they find supreme joy.
Time ticked by.
This earth-shattering fight nearly caused the Poison Moon Secret Realm to collapse.
Yichen had long since lost consciousness.
Yet his movements never ceased.
His blade remained precise and ruthless.
This was no longer instinct but pure reflex.
His swordsmanship had fused completely with his flesh and blood.
Magic was infinite, but Yichen was still mortal.
There were limits.
Crack!
His sword finally gave out first.
After countless strikes, the enchanted longsword shattered utterly.
At the same time, Yichen’s body reached its limit.
Pop!
His blood vessels burst; blood flowed from all seven orifices.
Yet even as a bloodied mess, his sword broken, Yichen did not fall.
He maintained his swinging motion until the very end.
The shadow still retained its fighting power.
Its claws descended.
Yichen had no strength left to resist.
Then, unexpectedly,
The shadow ceased its attack.
It looked at Yichen, then slowly retreated.
The dark energy surrounding it dissipated and unraveled.
Within it, a girl’s face was revealed.
Her eyes closed, peacefully asleep.
Suddenly, she awoke from her dream.
Opening her crimson eyes.
Her pupils were a strange inverted triangle, cold and sharp, as if forged from pure killing intent and arrogance.
These were no human eyes.
Curiously, she looked around.
She dreamt she had enjoyed a brief and pleasant dream.
In it, she had been battling a fine toy to her heart’s content.
After surveying her surroundings,
She finally noticed Yichen before her.
She stepped close to him.
“The one who fought me... was it you?”
Yichen, now unconscious, could not answer.
Nor did she expect an answer.
After all, in her view,
Toys neither spoke nor needed to.
She lazily stretched.
“Such a delightfully memorable dream…”
She looked at Yichen.
Her ruby tongue licked her fingertips; a faint blush colored her pale, beautiful face.
Her tone turned teasing and seductive:
“Killing you like this… I almost feel reluctant.”
She bared sharp fangs.
Wrapping her arms around Yichen, like a vampire, she bit into his neck.
“Hehe, now you can’t run away.”
She licked the fresh blood at her lips, smiling softly.
Perhaps savoring the taste of blood,
She didn’t even spare the blood on her arms.
Her satisfaction deepened.
With a snap of her fingers,
A portal suddenly appeared in the void.
She looked back at Yichen.
“Next time, I hope you can satisfy me even more.”
“My little toy.”
She smiled faintly, then turned and stepped into the portal, vanishing completely.
As the girl disappeared,
The moon reappeared in the sky above the Poison Moon Forest.
Its phases shifted.
The mist descended.
The next moment, Yichen was transported elsewhere.