Zhao Kongcheng was perplexed.
In such heavy rain, why was that kid out wandering? Moreover, he had already opened the Zone of No Fear—how did he know I was here?
And why did he come now, of all times? Just as I was being slammed into the ground? If he sees me like this…
How embarrassing!
What's worse is that I had just said the task of protecting the world is now on him. If I bring Lin Qiye into this, and something happens to him, I won't be able to forgive myself for the rest of my life.
"What the hell do you care about me coming out here? I know you're fighting that ghost-faced thing inside. Let me in, I'm pretty capable of fighting too," Lin Qiye's voice echoed from outside.
"You can fight, my ass!" Zhao Kongcheng cursed, "This isn't some ghost-faced thing, this is the Ghost Face King! Chuanjing! It's two whole realms higher than you, just a brat who's barely stepped into the Zhanjing realm! How the hell do you expect to fight it with your high schooler body?
And, you're not always so afraid of death? Why are you so eager to rush in now?
Get your ass back home and eat. Listen to me, with me, Zhao Kongcheng here, this thing won't harm a hair on any of your family members!"
"This is a different situation! Although I'm scared of dying, I can't ignore a debt of kindness!" Lin Qiye shouted from outside.
"We're all happily eating together inside. You're telling me you want to fight the Ghost Face King alone out here? If you want to be an unsung hero, I won't stand for it!
If anyone's eating, it's after we kill the Ghost Face King, and you're eating with me!"
Lin Qiye rammed the air next to the signposts with all his might, but it felt like an invisible barrier separated the Zone of No Fear from the outside world. No matter how hard Lin Qiye pushed, the barrier remained unyielding.
Inside the zone, Zhao Kongcheng was once again blasted away by the Ghost Face King. He lay on the ground for a long while, struggling to prop himself up with his blade.
"Don't bother… cough cough. I may not have any realm, but with the Zone of No Fear up, it's more than enough to block anyone below the Chi Jing realm. For you to enter, there are only two options...
One: I let you in myself.
Two… you'll have to wait until I die.
You can't even break my Zone of No Fear, and you want to come in here to face the Ghost Face King? What's the difference between that and walking to your death?"
Zhao Kongcheng's eyes fixed on the Ghost Face King as his voice grew weaker.
After Zhao Kongcheng finished speaking, the outside world fell silent. No more impacts on the Zone of No Fear, and no other sounds reached him.
Zhao Kongcheng waited—one second, two seconds, three seconds…
A smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.
"Now that's more like it… good boy, go home and eat. The rest, leave it to us Nightwatchers..."
With great effort, Zhao Kongcheng straightened his body, breathing heavily, blood dripping from the corners of his mouth. Each breath sent sharp pain through his body, making him tremble slightly.
His body had reached its limit.
In front of him, the Ghost Face King stood like a small mountain in the pouring rain, its body covered in wounds—some old, some new.
Yet it was still as lively as ever, with no sign of falling. This was the abnormal resilience of a mythic creature.
Zhao Kongcheng gripped his blade with one hand, while the other shakily reached into his pocket. After a moment, he pulled out a medallion.
The medallion was engraved with two crossed straight blades, and below them was a name:
Zhao Kongcheng.
In a daze, Zhao Kongcheng seemed to return to the time when he first joined the Nightwatchers as a rookie.
"...The medallion is the Nightwatchers' life!
Not only is it a symbol of faith, but also a means of combat!
On the inside of the medallion is a tiny needle. When you press the switch, it pops out, and at the tip of the needle is a substance called Ghost Spirit Inducer.
This substance, when injected into the body, burns away all of a person's latent potential in a short time, allowing someone who already possesses the Forbidden Ruins to wield its full power at a tremendous boost!
If one doesn't already have Forbidden Ruins, the Ghost Spirit Inducer will forcibly stimulate the body, triggering a Forbidden Ruins buried deep within the person's life essence. This means that even someone without Forbidden Ruins will be granted a temporary one during the drug's effect!
This is a last-ditch method, a chance for a desperate counterattack, and the only opportunity in a lifetime for warriors without Forbidden Ruins to experience their own power.
It must never be used unless absolutely necessary…"
Zhao Kongcheng gripped the medallion, his body swaying uncontrollably as he watched the Ghost Face King slowly approach. A smile crept across his lips.
"You know… how long I've been waiting for this day?"
The rain fell in torrents!
The water mixed with blood, dripping down Zhao Kongcheng's arm and onto the surface of the medallion.
Zhao Kongcheng didn't care if the Ghost Face King could hear him or understand. In the rain, he murmured to himself:
"Men… we're always yearning for supernatural power, thinking one day we'll be able to soar through the skies and earth, punch through mountains, or cover the clouds with a thought...
After all these years as a Nightwatcher, I've been waiting for my own Forbidden Ruins to awaken. Unfortunately, I'm over forty now and still haven't seen mine.
To be honest, it's tough to fit in among the Nightwatchers without Forbidden Ruins. Every time I watch the captain and the others fighting with their Forbidden Ruins, looking so damn cool, I can't help but feel sour…
Later, I thought, if one day I meet an unbeatable enemy, I'll use the Ghost Spirit Inducer before I die, to see what my Forbidden Ruins can do. Even if I die, at least I can die with a smile.
Anyway, thanks for giving me this opportunity."
Zhao Kongcheng opened his hand, letting the rain wash over the medallion's surface. His fingers gently rubbed the side of the medallion, and a slender silver needle shot out.
Taking a deep breath, he drove the needle into the palm of his hand...
"Dammit, that hurts…" Zhao Kongcheng gritted his teeth, muttering a curse.
As the needle pierced his skin, a wave of excruciating pain suddenly receded, replaced by an overwhelming surge of strength.
Every cell in his body seemed to come alive, exuding vitality like never before. His heart beat like the drums of war, fast and powerful!
At the same time, a mysterious force field radiated outward from Zhao Kongcheng, centered around him.
Zhao Kongcheng's eyes glinted.
The Ghost Face King seemed to sense the danger and let out a low growl, its feet kicking up the rain as it launched forward with terrifying momentum!
Zhao Kongcheng straightened his back, his grip on the blade tightening.
The rain hit the blade, making a soft ringing sound as his hand tightened.
He held his blade in the rain, his eyes shining with unprecedented clarity and power.
Then, he raised his hand.
And with one mighty strike, he sent his blade toward the rapidly approaching Ghost Face King.
A black crescent, four to five meters high, swept out from the blade, silently cutting through the rain curtain. In an instant, it pierced through the space in front of the two of them.
The crescent moved with such speed that the Ghost Face King didn't even have time to turn around!
As a result, a mangled, grotesque arm was sent flying high into the air.
With one slash, Zhao Kongcheng severed the Ghost Face King's arm.
Holding his blade, Zhao Kongcheng couldn't suppress the smile that spread across his face...
He looked up to the sky and laughed loudly:
"Forbidden Ruins Sequence 083, The Vanishing Life and Flashing Moon!"
"Hahahaha, I knew it! Zhao Kongcheng… I'm a damn genius!!"