Endless Debt

Not long ago, for Bologue, the Bright Light Blade was an alchemical weapon that was a significant burden. Its consumption of ether was so immense that his ether amount as a Condenser could barely sustain it for long.

But now it was different. With the dual amplification from Tyrant and Aimou, Bologue released ether without hesitation, channeling all his power into the Bright Light Blade to strike down the Jia Meng before him.

The opponent was a Prayer Believer of the King's Secret Sword and possessed a Secret Sword that could traverse spaces. It was tough for Bologue to kill him head-on, and once the battle turned into a stalemate, the opponent had the ability to escape.

Bologue had only one chance, to severely injure him at the moment they met, to smoothly advance the subsequent battle.

The pure, brutal Ethereal Sword sang forward, akin to a straight Light Saber. Jia Meng raised his crimson Secret Sword in an attempt to defend, and as the two clashed, they emitted a piercing buzzing sound.

The Secret Sword is worthy of its name, as the Ethereal Sword couldn't destroy it immediately. The blades were locked in a stalemate, and simultaneously the illusory figure behind Jia Meng began to solidify. The colossal figure once again raised a long knife that could split the heavens, ready to strike Bologue overhead.

Bologue had no intention of evading. The next second, the crimson Iron Armor began to wriggle, bursting forth countless steel spines like countless flying arrows, aiming to nail Jia Meng before him.

The ether reaction on Jia Meng reached its peak, his eyes flashed with a scorching light, as if trying to outdo Bologue in ruthlessness. He also did not evade, letting the attacks rain down upon him.

Seeing this, Bologue grimly smiled, pivoting the Bright Light Blade to avoid the Secret Sword as he moved towards Jia Meng's embrace, vigorously swinging to spin the dense iron branches at him.

Raising the Bright Light Blade high, as the long knife descended, the Ethereal Sword also chopped fiercely.

The intertwined ethereal forces erupted, disrupting and collapsing the ether flow, making the ground's flesh crumble and turning into a scarlet storm that engulfed the view.

When everything quieted down, two disheveled shadows slowly emerged.

The illusory long knife fell beside Bologue. It switched between illusion and reality, becoming illusory when swung and solidified when hitting the target for a slash.

In such close-quarters combat, Bologue had no space to dodge, and his Iron Armor could barely withstand the Prayer Believer's power, but he ultimately managed to avoid the slash as much as possible.

For this, the illusory long knife didn't cleave Bologue in half but did slice through his shoulder armor, subsequently splitting half his body, causing an entire arm to collapse, bones and muscles fractured, blood gushing freely.

But Bologue also held a short sword, which had lost its glow, leaving a scarlet blood cavity in Jia Meng's chest.

Moreover, the wildly dancing iron branches sliced repeatedly at Jia Meng's body like myriads of blades, leaving him covered with wounds of various sizes, bleeding profusely and turning him into a man of blood.

Jia Meng glared at Bologue, never expecting a Condenser to dare launch such an attack on him.

The Secret Sword barely resisted the Ethereal Sword's penetration, and Bologue's assassination failed to completely pierce Jia Meng's heart, but did carve out a deep blood cavity, revealing a slight pulse from the heart below when observed.

Fortunately, Jia Meng retained his Immortal Heart. With one hand, he held onto the container tightly, keeping it safe behind him. The intensive wounds on his body were abhorrent but appeared more dreadful than lethal.

Conversely, Bologue, in this sacrificial strike, indeed inflicted severe damage upon himself, but Jia Meng was poised to eliminate Bologue first.

Bologue coughed up a large spray of blood, the blood soaking his Forbidden Mask, and it dripped out.

"Sorry."

Bologue muttered to himself, while a suppressed wail echoed in his mind.

Eager to kill his enemy, he had forgotten that Aimou was empathically linked with him, allowing his entire pain to pass to Aimou without reserve.

Alchemy Puppets didn't have such acute pain senses as humans do, and the intense pain made Aimou's consciousness blur.

"Bologue, you..."

Aimou was enduring intense pain, and she sensed Bologue's terrible injuries, her tone turning frightened.

"It's okay."

Bologue's tone was relaxed, though his body still fell uncontrollably, soon covered by the crimson flesh creeping all over him.

Jia Meng paid little attention to the corpse in front of him. In his view, he just dealt with another madman driven by greed, the kind of madmen easily found within the Beast Fighting Arena.

Clenching his teeth, he endured the pain emanating from his chest. One hand gripped the Secret Sword, the other held the container. His operation was successful, now he just needed to leave here with the Immortal Heart.

Jia Meng was only a step away from the beginning of his grand aspiration, when suddenly a violent ether reaction rose behind him.

Turning around swiftly, the glaring white light engulfed Jia Meng's sight.

"Always remember to check the body!"

Bologue laughed loudly, the severed arm already regenerated, the Bright Light Blade once again activating the deadly Ethereal Sword.

Jia Meng quickly turned, released Secret Energy again, but this time the illusory long knife could not slash in time, instead solidifying in front of him like a shield, trying to block the Ethereal Sword's path.

Bologue had anticipated this, he thrust out the Ethereal Sword with one hand, while his other hand touched the ground, his whole body moving as if he was stumbling.

The moment he touched the ground, a cyan glow flashed, and the rock broke free from its fleshy bonds, erupting into a dense barrage of long halberds growing madly from underneath Jia Meng.

For the Prayer Believers, the same trick wouldn't work as effectively. Jia Meng would surely guard against his Ethereal Sword, but this would make him overlook other things.

The Ethereal Sword was just a feint, with the real lethal move being the long halberds beneath his feet.

Regrettably, Bologue's strategy was perfect, if facing a Condenser, this move would have the power to kill them outright, but Jia Meng was a Prayer Believer, positioned in a tier above Condensers, and his Secret Energy nature had become increasingly elusive.

To kill him was far from being as simple as it was for the Condenser who previously died at Bologue's hands.

A hazy light enveloped Jia Meng, the towering virtual shadow adhered directly to him, protecting him within its illusory outline, which in an instant solidified into reality.

The stone halberds struck as if hitting an unbreakable Iron Armor, emitting a sad wail of shattering, and crumbled into countless powders.

Amidst the swirling dust, Jia Meng glared angrily at Bologue, draped in the Armor of the Formless, crafted from a virtual light.

Bologue retracted the Bright Light Blade, flinging a hook line from the Arm of Adaptation towards Jia Meng, but upon touching the Illusory Armor, as before, it met something tangible and was easily deflected, while Jia Meng's movements remained unaffected.

Secret Energy: Shadow of Illusion and Reality.

Jia Meng could create an illusory projection, its properties hovering between reality and illusion, making it hard for enemies to judge his attacks and defenses.

The shadow no longer overlapped with Jia Meng, who now possessed a strange afterimage, swinging a long knife toward Bologue.

Conventional defenses couldn't intercept the long knife, as previously witnessed, before striking an enemy, it remained ethereal and lacked substance.

Bologue could only step quickly to evade. Boosted by Ethereal Amplification, his speed was swift, the scarlet figure trailing a slender Whip Blade like a fine tail, dodging and counterattacking with movements.

The shadow allowed dust to pass through but would solidify upon a Whip Blade assault, obstructing all of Bologue's attacks.

Jia Meng glared viciously at Bologue, who casually wielded the Whip Blade or hook line, swiftly maneuvering between platforms and stands. Even though Jia Meng's illusory shadow could swing a massive long knife, it was still hard to accurately hit him at Bologue's speed.

A fiery light ignited above once more as Jia Meng clashed with Bologue. Simultaneously, the battle between Latis and Nade continued, the temperature above reaching a terrifying level. The entire space was swept by high heat, flesh continuously dying and regenerating, remnants falling like ash snow or furnace-shed cinders.

Bologue's speed slowed considerably, as he looked up at the hellish scene.

Unknown debris danced incessantly, heated to crimson by the high temperature, clattering down like gray snow, or ashes poured from a furnace.

When settling on the body, the scraps brought searing residual heat, scorching the ground.

Bologue casually pulled out stone spears from the wall; even if he couldn't harm Jia Meng, the relentless assault kept Jia Meng pinned, immobilized.

Wounds, maintaining the Shadow of Illusion and Reality, Ethereal consumption... various factors slowed Jia Meng's pace, making him gradually aware of Bologue's intent.

Bologue wasn't in a hurry to seize the Immortal Heart; it seemed more like he wanted to trap Jia Meng here. The stone spears intentionally or unintentionally struck the containment vessel, forcing Jia Meng to evade.

Jia Meng began to doubt Bologue's identity. This guy differed from others driven by greed; Bologue's violent offensive carried extreme purposefulness, notably his bizarre Recovery Power.

At first, he thought Bologue was a cultist of the Sanguine Sect, but soon he discovered Bologue was completely different from those cultists, as the corrupt roots didn't protect him but launched attacks instead.

As for whether this Recovery Power was Bologue's Secret Energy? Then how did he manipulate matter?

"Jia Meng, what are you waiting for!"

As he pondered, an angry roar came from above. Amidst the blinding flames, Nade shouted at Jia Meng, "Take it and leave!"

Jia Meng snapped out of his rage; indeed, he didn't have to entangle with Bologue; his real goal was to take the Immortal Heart away.

Latis let out meaningless roars, completely suppressed by Nade, while many cultists of the Sanguine Sect had died in the prior chaos, leaving insufficient forces to stop them.

Bologue heard their conversation, seeing Jia Meng fully gathering his defenses, ignoring Bologue, and heading straight toward the passage they came from.

"Aimou, the crucial moment of victory and defeat has arrived."

Bologue murmured, his figure raced forward, twisting into a crimson phantom.

Jia Meng hurriedly fled toward the Beast Fighting Arena's exit, when a hook line planted itself in his path, halting him abruptly, followed by a scarlet rider descending from the sky.

Face of Horror was fully unleashed, extreme terror oppressed every soul that looked upon him, shortly followed by Bologue's eerie voice.

"It's time to end this meaningless offense and defense."