Chapter 18: The Battle Against Dark River BOSS (3)
Fu Bin finally broke through the interception of the Fear Minions, charging directly at Dark River. His wings flared out dramatically as he swung his black longsword, slicing Dark River in half. However, the black wound on Dark River's body turned into a thin layer of black mist and immediately rejoined.
"You trash, my sword will kill you," Fu Bin roared, his eyes bloodshot. The power of his belief infused the black longsword. He wildly swung his sword, chopping Dark River into pieces, but every time his sword touched Dark River's body, it turned into black mist and avoided the blow. He struck dozens of times, each appearing to hit, but all were dodged by Dark River.
"Face your inner fear. When the gap is significant enough, no amount of belief will help," Dark River's deep, terrifying voice echoed. The black mist on his body repelled all the floating organisms Fu Bin released. "These little tricks won't work on me."
Despite Fu Bin's relentless attacks, Dark River raised his fist. Water vapor swirled within it, and a powerful uppercut landed on Fu Bin's abdomen before he could react.
Fu Bin's movements halted, his black longsword clattered to the ground, and he fell to his knees, clutching his stomach and vomiting blood. Dark River's human form, mostly condensed from water vapor, seemed small but possessed immense mass. One punch from Dark River felt like being hit by a speeding car, causing internal damage. He didn't die instantly because Dark River held back, and his body was protected by shadow magic.
Despite surviving, Fu Bin was in agony. Blood mixed with internal organ fragments spurted from his mouth. His mind blanked out, and nearby, Xiao Zhang's steps faltered. He hesitated to intervene, partly hoping Fu Bin would die and partly fearing being killed by a single punch himself.
"I see your fear. Face your true self, insect," Dark River sneered, not killing Fu Bin immediately. He grabbed Fu Bin's wings, symbols of his belief and mental barriers, and tore them apart, disrupting the structure of Fu Bin's shadow magic. "Your false arrogance is disgraceful."
Dark River tossed Fu Bin's half-dead body aside. The Fear Minions, following Dark River's command, did not attack Fu Bin, allowing him to tremble on the ground in an ORZ position. His self-proclaimed godly dignity was trampled, and the mental barriers he built through self-hypnosis were shattered. He realized his true cowardly and weak self, just a high school student driven by impulsive rage to kill his father and out of anger to kill hooligans, not out of any noble cause. He was merely a criminal, not a god. Many of those he killed were innocent, or at least not deserving of death.
Dark River's attack shattered Fu Bin's mental barriers, exposing everything he hid. In the fear field, all his past fears resurfaced, constantly breaking his will and pushing his personality towards collapse.
Ignoring Fu Bin, Dark River turned his attention to the others. He waved his hand, and all the Fear Minions turned into black mist and gathered behind him, clearing the previously chaotic scene on the bridge.
On one side stood Dark River and the endless black mist behind him. On the other side were scattered mask wearers and Countermeasure Bureau members, with fragments of corpses on the bridge declaring the horror there.
"You are too weak. Where is your belief? If you don't get serious, I'd rather kill you all and find new hosts," Dark River's words provoked their spirits, continuously pressuring them with the fear field, forcing them to strengthen their beliefs.
Fear is a powerful motivator. Under its influence, people can erupt with strong beliefs, as long as they aren't crushed by it. Among the seven mask wearers, the problem with the Shadow Assassin was his special nature, having little jealousy. Lu Li had started preparing for this, but the other mask wearers were disappointing.
Or rather, they hadn't met Lu Li's expectations. Their use of their abilities was too crude. Though each was driven by the corresponding emotion triggered by Lu Li, they had too many distractions. Their primal emotions were not pure enough, requiring more external pressure to force them.
Dark River grinned, and the black mist behind him began to condense into various weapons. These weapons were diverse: spears, short swords, maces, and flails, seemingly endless, formed from the black mist.
This was an ability Dark River developed from his black mist body. He wasn't just in human form. Each wisp of black mist was part of him, and he could control them to form various shapes, condense into his Fear Minions, or turn into weapons.
Countless black weapons floated behind Dark River. The mask wearers and Countermeasure Bureau members turned pale, hearing Dark River's low, terrifying voice, "Unleash your belief, or you'll die."
Dark River snapped his fingers. The endless weapons accelerated, shooting towards the other side of the bridge like cannonballs, each containing terrifying mass.
The bridge shook violently with the impact, debris falling into the river below. A cement block was thrown into the air, caught by Dark River's black claws and enveloped in black mist, turning it black.
As the dust settled on the bridge, a black fire pillar shot out, piercing through Dark River's body before he could react, dispersing that part of him into mist.
The black fire pillar disappeared quickly, revealing a figure made entirely of black flames. It jumped out, hands raised above its head, and the terrifying flames of anger formed a giant fireball, ready to smash down on Dark River.
"Finally, some fun," Dark River grinned, releasing the blackened cement block from his hand...