“The key to breaking through probably still lies with the old man…”
Muttering to himself, Zhou Yue once again returned to the illusionary realm of Sekiro.
His battle with the Sculptor had taught him a great deal about the art of karmic fire.
And that had only been the Sculptor suppressing the karmic fire within him—not even his complete form.
“I really wish I could see what the old man looks like when he unleashes his full karmic-fire form!”
Zhou Yue sighed wistfully.
Unfortunately, ever since his last battle with the Sculptor, going back to challenge him had yielded little more than another sparring match much like the previous one.
The Sculptor refused to go all out, and no higher-level form appeared.
“Maybe I’m still not strong enough? Or do I need to bring him some sake?”
After challenging the Sculptor one more time, Zhou Yue confirmed that he would make no further progress and stopped bothering the old man.
In the original game from Lu Ze’s previous life, the sake-related side quest came with a great deal of fragmented backstory. Now that Lu Ze had incorporated all of it into their sparring matches, the whole thing seemed considerably more coherent.
“Come to think of it, though, during my last fight with the old man…”
Zhou Yue shifted his gaze toward Emma.
The woman still stood by the entrance of the abandoned temple, her beautiful eyes as gentle as flowing water and a soft smile on her face.
The first time Zhou Yue had fought the Sculptor, just as the old man was about to lose control, it had been this seemingly delicate woman who had suppressed him.
Even Zhou Yue himself had been stunned by her killing intent.
At that moment, he glanced at the barrage of comments floating through the air and finally understood.
“What? Miss Emma isn’t just a skilled doctor, but also an expert swordswoman? She bullied Old Zhong so badly that he started questioning his entire life? Hahaha… Well, even if that’s true, her making Old Zhong question his life and her being a swordmaster probably aren’t necessarily related…”
Seeing Zhong Yi get thoroughly crushed, Zhou Yue immediately burst out laughing.
Though he teased Zhong Yi with his words, he actually agreed that Emma was a master swordswoman.
After all, during their previous encounter, her hand had been hidden inside her sleeve, as if she were about to draw a weapon. If she was skilled with a sword, then everything made perfect sense.
“Duel with Emma? No, no, no. I, Zhou Yue, don’t hit women.”
Zhou Yue shook his head without hesitation.
Unless his principles were involved, he generally wouldn’t take the initiative to challenge a woman. That was why he hadn’t simply attacked her as he had the Sculptor.
“Huh? Old Zhong is getting mauled by a Blazing Bull? He’s been stuck for three hours already?”
When Zhou Yue saw the latest comments in the barrage, he immediately let out a loud laugh.
“Hahaha, now that’s what I call quality entertainment! Keep talking—get your revenge!”
Hearing that his good buddy was being brutalized, Zhou Yue felt an indescribable rush of satisfaction.
“Zhong Yi says the Blazing Bull isn’t humanoid, so it’s difficult to fight? Hah, excuses! Watch Zhou Yue, the genius swordsman, cut down the Blazing Bull with a single strike!”
Zhou Yue drew Kusabimaru and announced this confidently.
He muttered quietly to himself:
‘After fighting the old man’s bestial swordsmanship for so long, dealing with one Blazing Bull should be a piece of cake, right?’
…
…
Half an hour later.
“Damn it!! Is this Blazing Bull freaking poisonous?!”
By the time Zhou Yue shouted those words in a voice that cracked, even Lu Ze—who had been lurking invisibly in the livestream—couldn’t help laughing.
All he could say was: your Blazing Bull daddy is still your Blazing Bull daddy.
The thing was just like the Chained Ogre when you first encountered it. No matter how refined your technique was, it was easy to fall into its traps the first time around.
Especially with the difficulty of the illusionary realm increased by Lu Ze.
Zhou Yue had just defeated the Sculptor and was brimming with confidence in his deflection skills. Naturally, that resulted in the Blazing Bull ramming him until he began questioning his entire existence.
“What rotten luck! What rotten luck!”
Zhou Yue ground his teeth in fury.
Before setting out, he had been full of bold declarations. Now, after being beaten into silence, he couldn’t help blushing with embarrassment as he watched the barrage of comments mocking him from every direction.
“No, no… This must be a problem with my mindset. I need to get myself together!”
Zhou Yue took a deep breath and sat down where he was.
His chosen method for calming his mind was to open Zhong Yi’s livestream.
“Heh heh, let’s see how Old Zhong is dying and have a laugh…”
with countless casualties. As a top-tier gamer, Liu Xuan volunteered to join the fight, intending to dominate with his skills, but instead he obtained the hidden class: [Pacifist]. Unable to attack. Unable to use active skills. Fortunately, with each level gained, he acquired a new passive skill. And so, armed with a body full of passives, Liu Xuan slaughtered his way through the battlefield of ten thousand races! [You attacked Liu Xuan] [You gained the debuffs: 'Poison', 'Fear', 'Burning', 'Bleeding', 'Freeze', 'Silence', etc.] [Your attack speed has been reduced by 99%] [Your armor and magic resistance have been reduced by 99%] Warriors of the Ten Thousand Races: How the hell am I supposed to fight this?!
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
ng to die together with you." Lin Xuan is dead, his body thrown into the river by his scumbag lover and her accomplice. She, the president of the Su Group, is decisive, ruthless, and ice-cold. For three days and three nights, she had his body fished out of the river, and without hesitation, she kissed the bloated corpse of Lin Xuan. She laid down beside him in a cold coffin, their fingers intertwined, a smile lingering on her lips as she closed her eyes. The noble and cold-hearted woman, only bending for one man—Lin Xuan. Lin Xuan, with his golden finger, is reborn and returns to the day of his wedding to the treacherous woman. Su Qiang comes to steal the bride. Lin Xuan's eyes light up, eager to pledge his loyalty on the spot, but instead, her kiss transfers a glass of drugged wine into his mouth, causing him to pass out... 【Male Protagonist with Single Female Lead】【Yandere Tycoon】【Action-Packed】【True vs. Fake Heir】
