"Hmm?"
The instant Lin Feng activated the White Tiger Fierce Soul Talisman, a faint sound of surprise echoed from the approaching figure. The shadowy killer, who had moved with lethal purpose until now, paused mid-action for the first time.
"A soul attack treasure? Interesting…"
The murmured words carried a hint of astonishment, yet absolutely no fear. Then, the figure simply raised its arm and slashed outward like a blade.
What Lin Feng witnessed next froze the blood in his veins.
A blur of grey radiance shot from the figure's hand. It struck the pouncing White Tiger spirit head-on, cleaving the majestic spectral beast cleanly in two! The fragmented spirit let out a silent roar of agony – then exploded into shimmering motes of fading light, vanishing completely.
The White Tiger spirit… instantly shattered!
Lin Feng's previous failure with the talisman had been against the Crimson Scale Beast – a creature that had narrowly escaped by fleeing before the blow landed. This time was different. Devastatingly different. The Tiger Spirit hadn't missed. It had been brutally obliterated upon impact.
The Tiger Spirit was pure soul energy! Physical attacks shouldn't even touch it! Yet it had been torn apart like paper. A wave of icy dread washed over Lin Feng, chilling him to the bone and robbing him momentarily of speech.
In that split-second of paralyzed shock, the figure moved again. It pushed off the ground, launching itself into the air. Ignoring Chang Gong Xiaojing entirely, its focus locked onto Lin Feng. It flew straight towards him!
Lin Feng blinked. The figure was suddenly looming above him, blotting out the light. The same withered, iron-hard right hand that had slain over a dozen cultivators reached down, grasping for his head!
Lin Feng's eyes snapped into focus. Teeth gritted, he poured energy into the hexagonal jade talisman clutched in his left hand. A shimmering golden shield flared into existence around him.
Thoomp!
The enemy's palm slammed into the barrier. The shield – crafted from low-grade spirit artifacts – shattered instantly like fragile glass. Through the dissolving golden sparks, Lin Feng saw it clearly: a skeletal hand, skin like dried leather stretched over iron bones, talons curving down like a vulture's claw.
Having seen the White Tiger spirit annihilated, Lin Feng hadn't held much hope for the shield. Its destruction was expected. Almost simultaneously with activating the shield, his other hand had moved. The Crimson Soul Flying Sword materialized in his right grip. He swung it upwards in a desperate block, aiming for the descending claw.
As the claw met the blade, metal shrieking against unnatural flesh, their eyes locked.
For the first time, Lin Feng and his monstrous assailant saw each other clearly.
What happened next was utterly unexpected…
The instant Lin Feng saw the attacker's face, his pupils contracted violently. Shock and utter disbelief flooded his expression. The face... it wasn't human. Not living. Its skin was a grotesque, metallic cyan tinged with decay, stretched parchment-thin over rigid bone. The features were frozen, unnaturally stiff, creating a horrific dissonance – like…
A corpse puppet!
More precisely, it looked exactly like the Shadow Corpse Sect's signature 'corpse puppets' Lin Feng had encountered before!
The only difference was the eyes. Unlike the vacant, lifeless orbs of ordinary corpse puppets, this thing's eyes blazed with fierce, unnatural intelligence.
Lin Feng's horror at recognizing the Shadow Corpse Sect's handiwork was understandable. A natural reaction. What happened next, however, was anything but natural.
When the 'corpse puppet' locked eyes with Lin Feng, its rigid, expressionless face… twisted. Its own blazing pupils shrank to pinpricks, mirroring Lin Feng's shock but amplified a hundredfold – raw, primal terror. It was the look of a man seeing a ghost, a fear that sprang from the very depths of its being.
In that fractured moment, it let out a piercing, guttural shriek that scraped like nails on stone:
"IT'S YOU!!!"
"SCREENNNG-KRAAANG!!"
Their expressions shifted in the same instant. As the scream tore from the 'zombie's' throat, Lin Feng's Crimson Soul sword completed its upward slash, meeting the claw head-on. The impact screamed like tortured metal, sending violent tremors up Lin Feng's arm. He ground his teeth, muscles straining, and pushed upwards with every ounce of strength he possessed.
Miraculously, the figure was shoved back!
But this wasn't a sudden surge of Lin Feng's power. The resistance… slackened. Utterly. The 'zombie's' eyes were wide with undiluted panic, pure animalistic fear. It looked as if its courage had shattered. The moment Lin Feng pushed it away, it reacted instantly. With a frantic, powerful stomp on empty air, it propelled itself backward like a loosed arrow, streaking across the vast hall floor!
Its movement screamed pure, unadulterated flight – as if staying a single heartbeat longer meant annihilation.
Its speed was terrifying. In the blink of an eye, it transformed into a speeding blur. It shot straight through the grand hall entrance and vanished into the swirling grey mist shrouding the world beyond.
As it crossed the threshold, however, the air at the entrance rippled violently, like an invisible curtain disturbed. A faint pop echoed. After the figure disappeared, the ripples faded, but the thick grey mist outside reacted violently. It churned and surged, as if stirred by an unseen force. Like a living tide, it began to rush backwards, pouring into the entrance of the grand hall, rapidly thickening and obscuring the view outside…
...
The enemy's sudden, panicked flight left Lin Feng and Chang Gong Xiaojing rooted to the spot. Dazed. Confused. Struggling to process the impossible.
That thing… so monstrously powerful… ran away? Scared off? By… us?
Utter bewilderment warred with a dawning sense of unreality inside Lin Feng. But as the realization solidified – they had survived – a wave of profound, dizzying relief washed over him.
Why didn't matter. The fact was, the creature was gone. He and Chang Gong Xiaojing were alive. That was enough.
"Huh?! NO!!"
His moment of relief shattered. Glancing instinctively towards the vanished enemy, Lin Feng's eyes locked onto the grand hall entrance. His face paled drastically. He saw the fading ripples in the air. He saw the grey mist – now unnaturally thick, boiling like a storm-sea – completely sealing off the exit. The world outside had vanished behind a churning wall of fog.
"Disaster! Move! NOW!" A premonition of profound danger screamed through Lin Feng's mind. He lunged forward, grabbing Chang Gong Xiaojing's hand, and sprinted towards the sealed entrance.
Chang Gong Xiaojing, slower to react, stumbled after him for a few steps before her own eyes registered the churning wall sealing them in. Her expression mirrored his alarm, and she matched his pace, running beside him towards the ominous barrier.
They reached the entrance in seconds. The dense, roiling fog offered no glimpse of escape. Lin Feng gritted his teeth. Activating the shield talisman once more, he enveloped them both in a fragile golden glow. He tensed to charge straight into the murk.
THUD!!!
The impact was jarring, utterly unexpected. Lin Feng hadn't even reached the fog. He slammed face-first into an invisible, impossibly solid wall. The force hurled him backward violently. Chang Gong Xiaojing, close behind, collided with his back. Both crashed to the stone floor in a tangle of limbs.
Lin Feng scrambled up first, pulling Chang Gong Xiaojing to her feet. He stared at the seemingly empty space before the fog, his eyes wide with disbelief. "What… what is this?"
He paused for two frantic heartbeats. Then, decisively, he flicked his wrist. The Crimson Soul Sword shot forward like a crimson bolt.
CLANG!
It rebounded violently after flying barely five meters, sparks flying where it struck thin air. It clattered to the floor at Lin Feng's feet.
Lin Feng's pupils contracted to pinpoints. A terrifying possibility crystallized in his mind.
"Could this be… a barrier formation?!"