Parrying the pouncing beast, Jian Li glanced behind and saw that Zhang Yan began running after her with his own sword.
In contrast to the beast, which was moving slower after the deflection, Zhang Yan was closing in on her with incredible speed.
Jian Li quickly jumped backwards, avoiding his attack as she readied her body for her next move.
The crash of swords rang through the air as the two fighters continued to whirl around one another. Their movements were quick and calculated as if they had fought countless battles against each other.
Jian Li was able to block every strike, but the strain on her mind was immense.
Zhang Yan's beast would occasionally pounce at her as if to test the limits of her defences, and she always managed to avoid those strikes without too much difficulty. However, the real danger was Zhang Yan.
His attacks grew stronger and faster with each passing moment. Even though she knew that some of the strength behind them were illusionary, the pressure of the attacks made her feel as if her bones were about to shatter under the onslaught. She found herself fighting harder and harder to keep herself calm.
Still, she barely managed to keep Zhang Yan and his hulking beast away. Using every single trick in her book was exhausting, but she had no other options.
Finally, after being on stage for nearly twenty minutes, Jian Li fell onto her knees. The exhaustion was too much for her.
Even as she fell to the ground, Jian Li was still using all her strength to block Zhang Yan's attacks. If she stopped now, he would definitely win.
Zhang Yan snorted as he saw her defiant look.
"I see you still got some spirit left in you. Let's end this quickly, then.", he said as he brought both hands together in a complicated series of hand seals.
Jian Li immediately felt a chill run down her spine as she sensed something sinister coming from him.
In that brief moment of distraction, she was struck in the stomach, landing heavily on her back. Her eyes opened wide as she realized she'd been knocked down by his summoned beast.
She quickly tried to push herself back to her feet when its claws grabbed her by the shoulders. The beast pushed her back down to the floor with a loud crash, causing pain to shoot up her shoulder blades. Zhang Yan snorted derisively as he continued his hand seals.
Now that she had a chance to observe the beast in greater detail, it appeared far larger and fiercer than before. It loomed above her with unsettling intensity, its eyes glowing red and its mouth wide open dripping with saliva.
Jian Li gritted her teeth in pain as her body felt as heavy as a rock. Her limbs trembled as her body rejected her orders to get up.
Her body couldn't stand the pain anymore, so she remained lying on the ground. Jian Li's vision blurred, and she couldn't breathe as blood ran down her face from a gash above her eyebrow.
"Why... Why am I...", Jian Li gasped weakly, struggling to hold on to consciousness, "so exhausted..."
It felt as if someone had punched the inside of her brain directly, leaving her mind unable to process anything else but excruciating agony.
Every muscle in her body was on fire. It wasn't just a physical sensation; she felt like her mind had turned against her and betrayed her body.
There was no longer any way for her to think straight, or fight the monster trying to tear her apart. All she could do was scream silently into the darkness of her mind.
As the creature tore off chunks of her clothes and flesh, it seemed to laugh in amusement as it did so. She was completely lost and didn't even have the strength to lift her finger up, much less summon a weapon.
She had been pushed into such a pitiful state, that even death itself seemed preferable. Yet she still clung desperately to her consciousness, as though afraid that letting it go meant to vanish forever.
"Don't be stupid. Just give in, it will all end sooner.", Zhang Yan's deep voice whispered to her, filling the space in her head.
The sound echoed around her as if he were standing everywhere, all at once. The pressure within her head had grown too intense. There was no escaping from the torment consuming her mind, no matter how hard she struggled.
Jian Li could hear footsteps approach as Zhang Yan unhurriedly drew close. He looked at her and laughed. "So this is your last act, huh? Well done. As a gift for you wasting my time and energy, I hope you don't mind me making you bedridden for a couple of months at least."
The pain inside her mind became worse as she tried to ignore his presence, her entire being consumed by her overwhelming sense of defeat.
She wanted to beg Zhang Yan to take her pain away. She needed relief from her anguish, yet the best that she could manage was to remain still, as her muscles quivered with pain.
Finally, after several heartbeats, she managed to make an inconsequential motion, as she reached out with her right hand and pushed it against Zhang Yan's leg.
Zhang Yan's eyes opened wide, and he took a step back. The beast ravaging her was startled as well as it raised its head to look at him in panic.
He quickly regained control over the beast and calmed it down, before taking another step back from Jian Li.
Zhang Yan looked at her with concern as he muttered to himself.
"What's happening?"
Zhang Yan continued mumbling to himself until his expression changed to one of anger and frustration.
"What are you doing!? What is wrong with you!", Zhang Yan shouted.
A cold shiver shot up her spine.
She could see the change in Zhang Yan's demeanour clearly as his voice became harsher.
Suddenly there was a strange sensation inside her, and the space around her spun, making her black out despite her best efforts not to.
The air surrounding her seemed to shift as she fell deeper and deeper into unconsciousness...