Chapter 493 - Using The Human Body To Fight A Natural Disaster (2)

Pop!

Another purple star emerged upon his skin, signifying progress in the Southern Dipper Sonic Snake Fist. Before long, his other Southern Dipper fist technique resonated as well, causing a red star to appear.

Both his Southern Dipper fist techniques had reached thirty-seven acupoints.

Southern Dipper Sonic Snake Fist: 36 + 1 = 37

Southern Dipper Red Falcon Fist: 36 + 1 = 37

Indeed, Cassius had already opened thirty-six acupoints before breaking through again. He owed this remarkable progress to sparring in the World of Calamity, since he had managed to open two more acupoints. In the blink of an eye, he was already preparing to push into the fifth stage.

Snapping back to reality, Cassius recalled the information he had obtained from questioning Anthony and the blonde girl.

Anthony practiced a fist technique called Air Shock Fist, formally known as Absolute Nether Air-Shock Fist. Meanwhile, the blonde girl, named Fiona, practiced a fist technique known as Darkflow Water King Technique.

Both hailed from two second-rate sects in the northern Covert Martial Arts community, with centuries of intertwined history and grudges. These two Covert Martial Arts had been created by a single master, so they shared significant similarities, balancing and countering each other.

Cassius believed that, in fact, the two forms originally came from one powerful first-rate Covert Martial Arts, which had since been divided into separate techniques. When Anthony and Fiona had combined forces to produce the steam skull, they had revealed its true form.

They had extracted the moisture in the air and used the power of wind to rapidly vibrate it into expanding steam. It was capable of producing high temperatures and even explosive force. Of course, the split versions alone were powerful. Each offered distinct advantages and focal points.

Beyond their backgrounds, Cassius learned of their goals as well.

It turned out that an extreme combat artist had emerged in the southern region of the Hongli Empire, in the United States of Yana. They were nearly undefeated throughout the land. A month ago, the fighter announced his intention to travel to the southeastern Covert Martial Arts community to challenge the experts there.

News reached the empire's north, prompting numerous powerful warriors and young prodigies who each claimed to be unmatched amongst their peers to converge on the southeastern Covert Martial Arts community of the Hongli Empire.

Seizing the opportunity, the southeastern Covert Martial Arts community of the Hongli Empire planned to host an international Covert Martial Arts exchange, sending word across the nation. After all, it was not just that extreme combat artist who was coming from overseas. Many experts, young prodigies, and martial artist celebrities from the United States of Yana would be arriving.

Geniuses like Anthony and Fiona, who reached the realm of combat artist around age thirty, certainly could not miss such an event. Hence, both departed their sects and journeyed southward through the empire.

Unfortunately, they crossed paths en route. Their old grudges reignited, and a fierce fight led to the current events.

Naturally, both ended up as prisoners of Cassius. However, Cassius did not plan to harm them, as he himself intended to travel to the empire's southeast. Perhaps he could use their status to attend that so-called international exchange, just to see what it was about.

Such a grand event would likely catch the eye of certain forces. Cassius wondered if he might encounter a few General Kings there to kill for some practice.

After a moment's silence by the dried lake, he slowly lowered his head. He glanced at the Book of the Devil in his hand, then surveyed the surrounding wreckage.

Half a second later, he pressed a finger on the jewels again, filling two with essence of calamity. His gaze turned icy and his expression was laced with a hint of mockery. He wanted to see whether the Book of the Devil could still pose any further threat to him. He intended to discover the limits of that wretched book.

Without hesitation, Cassius posed a question to the book regarding the location of certain rare resources in the World of Calamity.

The gems flickered, then went dark, and the Book of the Devil gained another page of information. He did not read further but closed the pages and surveyed his surroundings in silence.

Based on prior experience, two gems' worth of power tended to create disaster on a scale akin to a crashing plane. After two or three breaths, the hairs on Cassius's skin suddenly stood on end.

𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

He sensed a threat, as though something lurking in the air was preparing to unleash a malevolent curse. It felt like a venomous snake crouched in the darkness, watching him coldly.

"I underestimated it. It could still curse me after all... Seems like this mysterious Book of the Devil contains tremendous secrets, seeing how it's capable of recklessly wielding even natural disasters." Cassius felt a jolt in his heart.

He cautiously kept an eye on his surroundings, as his muscles stayed taut, bracing for misfortune to befall him. Yet, a long while passed and nothing happened, as though the earlier sense of danger had been nothing but an illusion.

He frowned slightly and waited a bit longer where he stood. A white bird glided past in the bright blue sky above, flapping its wings.

Plop!

A large dollop of bird droppings fell from high above with unerring aim, seemingly set to land on Cassius's head.

Fzz!

A violet burst flashed momentarily, vaporizing the dropping and reducing the white bird overhead to a mist of blood.

A few white feathers fluttered down slowly.

Cassius looked up at the feathers, then back at the Book of the Devil, and let out a laugh of exasperation. He had expected this object to harbor some shocking power, so he had remained on guard, but was this all it could do? Was it truly spent? Had summoning a meteorite in such a short time exhausted its capacity for calamities?

Heh heh heh... Well, don't blame me for showing no mercy...

Cassius swiftly flipped the book around and asked another specific question about the World of Calamity.

After receiving an answer, he intended to continue, but the Book of the Devil refused to respond any further. After that question, there was no reply nor any new pages. Only the two now recharged gems glowed quietly.

"Heh, so it simply resorted to playing dead then..." Cassius let out a cold chuckle but noticed a thinner white bird flying overhead once more. Another small blob of droppings dropped.

He was about to repeat his trick but, on a mischievous impulse, raised the Book of the Devil instead.

Plop

!

The white droppings landed squarely in the mouth of the skull emblem on the hardcover. All five gems flashed wildly, as though enraged by the insult, then abruptly dimmed.

All traces of its eerie luster vanished, and it reverted into a thin, ragged book. It had withered.

The threatening aura Cassius sensed in his mind evaporated, disappearing without a trace. He stared calmly at the feeble Book of the Devil in his hand, speechless at its stubborn attempt to curse him at any cost.

So be it!

This was its comeuppance, a result of its own meddling...