Chapter 577 - The Golem Is Right Behind Me! (2)

"Interesting. I thought this sect was but a toothpick for me, so you've volunteered as appetizers to whet my stomach?" Diaz spread his fingers, letting the gauntlet's slender threads dissipate and drip crimson once more.

He stood still, yet countless dark-red shadows spread like grotesque octopus arms beneath him . They raced along tile gaps and soil fissures, rapidly covering the ground. From the sky, one would see a budding flower of overlapping petals bloom. It was a study in dark beauty.

Shoo! Thud!

Two figures suddenly fell down in front of Diaz at breakneck speed. Their feet touched down with incredible lightness. On the left was a man with a split yin-yang face, wearing a broad cloak like a nocturnal bat. If one looked through the cloak's gaps, his body appeared to be woven of blood mist and gore. It flickered between illusory and real.

The other was an alluring woman in a white lace bonnet. The hat veiled most of her face, baring only plump red lips—seductive yet dangerous. She wore gothic attire, layered with gradient tassels like flower stamens, draping her serpentine form.

"Finally cornered you, zombie-face." The bonneted woman spoke, her voice carrying a magnetic lilt.

"Zombie-face?" Diaz's expression did not change. He glanced down at the pooled blood beneath him that was as smooth as a mirror. It reflected a pallid visage with deep-set and protruding features and slightly exaggerated proportions. It looked fierce and grotesque—the kind of face that instinctively frightened humans.

Since the necro-reincarnation succeeded, Blood Demon Diaz had feasted within Gafa Kingdom's Covert Martial Arts world. In short, his body, affected by unknown forces, had begun a bizarre evolution. Yet Diaz himself perceived nothing amiss.

He merely felt better than ever before. His body and mind had never been so clear. When he saw his face again, he deemed it quite handsome, far fairer than before his revival. It was hardly the "zombie-face" the woman claimed.

"Nonsense. Your taste is as flawed as your brain..." Blood Demon Diaz looked up and spoke icily. Eyeing the pair, his hunger rose started to rise. The formidable aura they leaked would make a fine main course. Who knew Gafa Kingdom's Covert Martial Arts community hid experts like these?

"No matter who you are or which sect you hail from, since you have come to my lips, you are morsels on my plate..." Diaz bared a vicious grin, fangs like tusks. "Now... It is meal time!"

Boom!

The ground burst and blood roared skyward from cracked stone. It shaped itself into a gluttonous maw lunging at the bonneted woman and yin-yang man with terrifying force.

In that instant, Fog Man and Nine Serpents paled, sensing extreme peril.

For over two years, the Treatment Ward's four commanders had honed the Southern Dipper's six fist techniques, fully mastering them under Cassius's guidance. Over a year earlier, Cassius's lake bout with Holy Snake Maya had offered further insight. Now, Fog Man and Nine Serpents both wielded top-tier combat artist strength and were far from the weakest of that tier.

They were already equal to the peak of veteran combat artists, but they had continued to improve, mastering new techniques and gaining strength. The Golem Sect had sent elites to quell the Gate Organization's remnants worldwide, with the prime target within Northern Reef Continent's reaches.

Thus most elders, including Fog Man and Nine Serpents, had come here. Since they happened to be near Gafa Kingdom's border, they had heard of the assault on its martial world and moved at once to intercept the culprit.

Unexpectedly, they had cornered the culprit in Nafei City. However, the villain's strength had exceeded their initial estimate. The overwhelming menace made even their eyelids twitch.

"An extreme combat artist! Where did today's Gate Organization find such a master?" Fog Man spoke through gritted teeth.

His form suddenly swelled, broad cloak billowing outward. He spread his arms, flesh turning into rapidly-spinning mist. A spiral technique was activated, covering his arms like twin drills housing violent vortices. He hurled himself straight at the charging Blood Demon.

Beside him, Nine Serpents grasped the severity, flicking away her white parasol hat. Her arms folded; nine multicoloured serpent heads rose behind her shoulders like powerful limbs. She resembled some kind of eerie Buddha.

"Ripple Fist!"

Wmmm!!!

Every serpent head vibrated; the surrounding air rippled like stacked scales, carrying oscillating force.

"Together!" Nine Serpents and Fog Man struck simultaneously, unleashing their full might.

Bang!

Three powerful forces collided, causing a dreadful shockwave to sweep half the city and topple many buildings.

Several minutes later...

Thud! Thud!

Two figures hurtled out of the blood mist, smashing through several houses before halting. Coughing blood, Nine Serpents and Fog Man glared at the dense haze.

A vast humanoid shadow walked slowly forward.

Thump, thump, thump!

The dark outline drew nearer. Both were now gravely wounded. Nine Serpents had only three serpent heads left and half of Fog Man's body was torn away as blood streamed from his eyes.

Such was the gulf between top-tier and extreme combat artists. Even two top-tier combat artists together could scarcely endure for long against an extreme one. Normally, it took at least a handful of top-tiers to barely spar with an extreme.

The sect's four elders combined might manage it. In truth, had the pairing been Fog Man with Odo or Nine Serpents with Hermit, matters would be far better.

Over the years, the four who perfected the Southern Dipper fist techniques discovered that Illusory Moon Fist with Azure Wind Fist and Fire Stone Fist with Ripple Fist resonated uniquely when combined.

With perfect coordination, they could even strike with extreme-level power. Sadly, Nine Serpents and Fog Man's fist techniques could not resonate. Thus, they could not handle Blood Demon Diaz.

Their sole remaining hope was the protective Qi Cassius had infused into their Golem Seeds. That Qi could summon a Golem phantom for defense.

With a

boom

, Blood Demon burst from the haze. The massive blood figure struck with one palm!

Thump-thump!

Two dull booms spread as shockwaves. An unbelievably dense dark Qi poured from the apertures of their bodies. Black vapor jetted from every pore, instantly shaping a towering Golem phantom. The badly wounded pair roared in unison and counter-attacked Blood Demon.

Thud-thud-thud! Bang!

The savage fight raged for a full ten minutes. Nafei City was almost leveled, with at least half its districts destroyed. Huge footprints had smashed the streets.

"It's useless! I do not know how you gained power beyond yourselves, but borrowed strength is still borrowed. It doesn't last long." The colossal blood figure's maw roared. "Die, become my food and merge with me!"

Opposite, the Golem phantoms on Nine Serpents and Fog Man were thin and tattered. Their height had shrunk from ten metres to barely four. Their strength plummeted and they could no longer resist.

Meanwhile, Diaz's blood figure was still towering at over twenty metres tall. It now looked down on them like insects.

"What two dainty biscuits. You'd go down in a single bite...

Heheheheh...

" The blood figure's shoulders twitched manically.

Its grin grew ever more savage as saw-toothed jaws clicked inside its throat. Diaz's hunger was unbearable; every cell seemed to scream. One desire filled his mind: to feed.

Eat! Eat! Eat! Devour them! Savour the taste!

Eat, eat, ea—hmm???

The huge blood figure suddenly sensed darkness. Irregular shadows spread across the ground as though clouds veiled the sun.

"W-w-what is that?" Diaz's eyes cleared as his crimson pupils contracted. He saw the shadows fuse into one colossal armored humanoid!

A man-shaped mountain!

"He—It—is right behind me!!!" Diaz's mind buzzed, as though fireworks exploded within.

Terror, uncertainty, and danger surged together. Controlling the massive blood figure, he spun around at once.