Jade tried to resist the mind attack.
He gritted his teeth and forced his thoughts to focus, but it was useless. The strange power invading his mind was too strong. His thoughts scattered like leaves in a storm.
He could no longer calculate.
He could no longer predict Silent Slayer's movements.
The sharp mind that had helped him survive the trial suddenly felt dull and heavy.
Silent Slayer's shadow moved calmly in front of him, like a predator slowly playing with its prey.
Then something even worse happened.
Jade suddenly felt fear.
A deep, bone-chilling fear that made his heart pound violently.
Before he could understand it, the fear vanished and was replaced by hunger.
A terrible hunger that made his stomach twist.
Then came happiness, a strange joy that made him want to laugh.
But that joy was quickly crushed by a wave of sadness so deep that his chest felt heavy.
Emotion after emotion flooded his mind.
Fear.
Hunger.
Joy.
Sadness.
Anger.
Despair.
They came so fast and so violently that Jade felt as if he were drowning in them.
Silent Slayer was literally playing with his emotions.
The spectators watching the fight were confused.
"What's wrong with Blood Slayer?"
"Why is he standing still?"
Henry looked terrified.
"That's a mind attack…"
Jade's vision blurred.
The world spun around him.
But through the chaos in his mind, his eyes caught something.
A faint blue glow.
Hanging from Silent Slayer's neck was a blue pendant.
It pulsed softly with energy.
Even though Jade's thoughts were foggy, something deep inside him understood.
That… is the source.
His body trembled as he struggled to act.
With the last fragments of his will, Jade whispered,
"…Ice… vein…"
A strange liquid appeared in the air.
It shimmered like liquid frost.
The liquid dropped onto his skin and spread quickly across his body.
Within seconds, Jade looked like a man sculpted entirely from ice.
Cold energy surged through him.
His senses cleared slightly.
The ice had not yet fully fused with his skin.
But Jade didn't need long.
With the last bit of consciousness remaining in his cells, he moved.
His body shot forward.
His fist struck out like lightning.
The punch was aimed directly at the pendant.
Silent Slayer's eyes widened.
The attack was so sudden and so fast that he didn't have time to react.
CRACK!
The blue pendant shattered instantly.
Fragments scattered across the ground.
For a moment, everything went silent.
Then Jade felt it.
The fog inside his mind vanished.
The wild emotions disappeared.
His thoughts became clear again.
Control returned.
Inside his mind, the system whispered softly.
"You have destroyed a Data."
"Data name: Mind Attacker."
Jade exhaled slowly.
So the pendant had been a Data artifact used to attack the mind.
Silent Slayer stared at the broken fragments on the ground.
Shock flickered across his face.
"…Interesting."
He had never expected Jade to break free from the Mind Attacker.
However, the artifact itself was not completely destroyed.
Only its container had been shattered.
Even so, Silent Slayer's mood darkened.
He had now lost two Data.
His pet beast.
And the Mind Attacker pendant.
A cold fury rose inside him.
Silent Slayer's body suddenly released a terrifying aura.
The air around him trembled.
Jade instantly felt the pressure pressing down on his body again.
The spectators also felt it and gasped.
"That aura…"
"Silent Slayer is serious now."
Slowly, Silent Slayer removed the hood that covered his face.
The cloak fell back and hung behind him like a dark cape.
His cold eyes stared directly at Jade.
Then something strange happened.
A glowing red liquid appeared in his hand.
It slowly dripped onto his skin.
The liquid spread across his body like living fire.
For a moment, his entire body seemed to ignite.
Flames danced across his skin before the liquid was absorbed into him.
The fiery glow faded, but the heat remained.
The ground beneath his feet began to burn.
Then Silent Slayer moved.
He rushed forward like a blazing comet, leaving scorch marks across the earth.
Jade reacted immediately.
Several vines burst from his chest and shot toward Silent Slayer.
But the moment the vines touched him—
They burned.
The vines instantly shriveled into black ash.
Jade frowned and summoned more.
But the result was the same.
Every vine that touched Silent Slayer was destroyed instantly.
Jade quickly noticed something alarming.
Each time the vines sprouted from his chest…
They became smaller.
Thinner.
Weaker.
That meant something terrible.
His Data energy was being consumed too quickly.
If he kept using the vines, the Data itself might be destroyed.
Jade immediately dismissed them.
He couldn't afford that risk.
Then I'll rely only on Ice Gene.
Silent Slayer suddenly appeared in front of him like a flash of fire.
His fist shot toward Jade.
Jade jumped high into the air and flipped behind him.
But the moment Jade landed—
A burning kick slammed into his chest.
BOOM!
The impact sent Jade flying.
He crashed through one tree.
Then another.
Then another.
Dozens of trees shattered as his body tore through the forest before finally stopping.
Jade lay on the ground for a moment.
His Ice Gene had protected him, but the heat of Silent Slayer's power had still pierced through.
He coughed violently.
Blood splattered onto the ground.
Slowly, he forced himself to stand again.
Anger burned in his chest.
He raised his hand.
"I summon… Relic Rock Armor."
Stone armor instantly formed around his body.
Thick plates covered his chest, shoulders, and arms.
The armor looked exactly like the one worn by the monstrous ape he had killed earlier.
Silent Slayer didn't hesitate.
He rushed forward again.
His sword flashed like lightning.
Strike after strike landed on Jade's body.
Each attack aimed at a vital organ.
Even with his healing ability, the pain was unbearable.
His skin was repairing itself slowly, but the damage kept coming.
Jade endured it.
Then he saw an opening.
He stepped forward and punched with all his strength.
BOOM!
The blow struck Silent Slayer's chest and sent him flying backward.
Silent Slayer slid across the ground before stopping.
He wasn't injured like Jade, but the impact was real.
The spectators watching the battle were stunned.
"Did you see that?"
"Blood Slayer actually pushed him back!"
Henry's face was filled with worry.
"I hope Jade survives…"
Some spectators began whispering darkly.
"Blood Slayer will die."
"He can't win."
Others began placing bets.
"Five shards say Jade dies."
Another man shook his head.
"I'm not sure."
"From what I'm seeing… they might both kill each other."
Someone else sighed deeply.
"I wish they would stop fighting."
The others looked at him.
He continued quietly,
"If they just went to the Shadow Area, survived the night, retrieved the treasure, and killed the creature guarding it…"
"…we could all leave this terrible trial."
Silence fell over the group.
Everyone dreamed of escaping the trial.
But no one moved.
Then suddenly—
A distant explosion echoed through the forest.
BOOM!
The ground trembled.
Everyone turned their heads.
Another explosion followed.
BOOM!
The trees shook violently.
Then a third thunderous sound echoed across the forest.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!