Chapter 102: The Soul of the Shadi Emperor

"Incredible, truly incredible! I can feel the power surging through me! Hahahaha!" The player began to laugh maniacally on the spot.

"Is this guy insane?" Long Xin muttered upon seeing this.

"Big Brother Long, there is something strange about him," Tian Zhao remarked.

"Strange?" I muttered, activating my Fiery Golden Eyes. A moment later, the data returned.

Soul of Shadi, Level 65 Boss, other stats unknown.

I immediately shouted, "This guy isn't human! He's a boss!"

Long Xin was stunned. "No way, isn't this the same guy who was just spewing foul language?"

"Let me test him!" Ye Shuang stood up and took the initiative. He lunged forward, unleashing a flurry of combo hits and heavy strikes. They all landed squarely on the opponent's chest, but the target didn't even budge. The damage numbers floating above his head were three -100s.

Ye Shuang retreated instantly. "Hahaha! Human emotions are truly interesting; you resort to violence over such trivial matters." The opponent spoke, his voice bizarre—harsh, rough, yet deeply ominous.

He looked at us as we closed in and said, "Why rush to your deaths? Are you humans always this impatient? Just like this one here."

Tian Zhao asked, "What exactly are you? Ogres are completely inept at magic; how could you abandon your own body to possess a human adventurer?"

"Good! A very good question!" The opponent gave Tian Zhao an appreciative look. "I can tell you—as you said, our Ogre race are magic idiots. Mana is forever beyond our reach. But I am an exception. Long ago, during the racial wars, my new master bestowed upon me extraordinary power, allowing me to abandon my decaying carcass and enter a new vessel to become the herald of his return. Human flesh is the perfect medium for this ritual. Great Master, please bestow upon your loyal servant, the King of the Ogre race, Shadi, your power!"

With a roar, a pillar of red light descended from the sky, enveloping the man. "Wahahahaha..." Accompanied by the wild laughter, a man draped in skintight armor emerged from the red light.

Soul of Shadi, Level 65 Boss, Perfect State. The Fiery Golden Eyes returned a brief data set, but it made me retreat two steps in terror. A Level 65 boss—this was enough to ensure that none of us, hovering between levels thirty and forty, would make it out alive.

Simultaneously, Long Zhan appeared silently behind me. "Master, please step back. Let me handle this fellow."

I said, "No, you might not be able to defeat him alone. Let’s attack together."

"Big Brother Long is right, let's attack together. That will give us a better chance of winning," Tian Zhao added.

"Understood."

"Alright, everyone, attack! Long Zhan, take the lead!" With a sharp shout, we all charged forward.

"Yes, Master!" Following his standard reply, Long Zhan rushed forward first. His dragon tail swept out like a steel whip. The Soul of Shadi jumped into the air, but Long Zhan’s tail quickly pursued and coiled around him. In the next second, those massive dragon jaws snapped shut. The Soul of Shadi immediately used both hands to brace against the dragon's mouth.

"Now!" I yelled, rushing to attack the boss from behind. Ye Shuang, Long Xin, and Tian Zhao also launched strikes at the boss's back. "Damn it, this dragon is just bait. You humans are truly despicable."

"So what? We came here specifically to eliminate you. Long Zhan, burn him!"

"Yes, Master!" As he spoke, a breath of dragon fire erupted from Long Zhan’s mouth. Roaring flames began to roast the boss’s body. Trapped by the dragon’s tail, the boss couldn't move and had to endure our relentless barrage. Health: 82,477/100,000.

The latest data from my Fiery Golden Eyes showed the boss only had 100,000 HP. If Long Zhan could keep him pinned like this, the battle should end soon. But reality was not as kind as we imagined. The Soul of Shadi let out a roar, and with both hands pushing against Long Zhan’s chin, he forcibly lifted the dragon's head.

Still holding the dragon’s chin with one hand, he balled his other hand into a fist and struck Long Zhan’s face repeatedly—900, -1200, -1400, -1350, -1233. Five damage numbers flashed, and Long Zhan was knocked backward, crashing to the ground.

The boss's attack power was truly terrifying; in five hits, he had drained over 6,000 of Long Zhan’s HP. At the same time, Tian Zhao lunged forward, executing a Death Cross Slash.

-5433, -5424. These two hits shaved over 10,000 HP off the boss, but Tian Zhao was kicked aside by the boss as he turned, landing heavily on the ground. She was severely injured, with only 200 health points remaining, unable to stand up for a while.

"Humans, this is getting interesting!" A sinister smile curled at the corners of the Soul of Shadi’s mouth.

"Bastard, taste this!"

"Gather, flames of hell that devour all! Become the power of absolute destruction! Burn everything in this world! Blazing Inferno Flow!" Following Long Xin’s incantation, several blood-red fireballs gathered behind her. They merged into a river of fire that swirled around her, the intense heat raising the surrounding temperature by over a dozen degrees. The ground closest to Long Xin began to emit white smoke.

Long Xin shouted, "Even if you were made of steel, I’d melt you into molten iron with this latest technique I created!"

With a "boom," the river of fire engulfed the boss’s body, producing a deafening roar. A -1000 damage number popped up, followed by continuous -100s as the burning persisted.

Anyone hit by this technique would be unable to bear it. "Cough, cough, cough!" A series of harsh coughs emanated from the thick smoke. When the smoke cleared, the sight before us was horrifying. The armor on his body had melted, and his skin had undergone a gruesome transformation—burnt black and shiny, yet rough and coarse like the bark of an ancient tree. His face was unrecognizable; his nose, ears, eyes, and mouth were all charred black and seemed to have merged together.

"Hahahaha, my new ultimate move, pretty impressive, right?" Long Xin laughed happily.

However, the opponent’s cold voice rang out: "Woman, I won't let you die painlessly."

Long Xin’s expression changed instantly. Ye Shuang’s voice rang out: "Careful! Get out of the way!"

With a "whoosh," the Soul of Shadi suddenly hunched over, curling himself into a ball. He began to spin in place on the ground, producing a sound as if he were slicing through something. A trench half a meter wide was carved into the ground as he flew toward Long Xin at high speed.

He left a trail behind him; anyone could see that if this ultimate move hit a person, they would likely be torn apart on the spot.

Long Xin was stunned, but Long Zhan’s black sword immediately blocked the path in front of her, deflecting the ball-shaped Soul of Shadi. If Long Zhan had been a fraction of a second slower, Long Xin would have been sliced in two.

The Soul of Shadi, still in ball form, quickly changed trajectory, darting around Long Zhan to strike at Long Xin from behind. I rushed forward to shove Long Xin out of the way, simultaneously using a feint and my substitution skill to dodge the lethal blow.

"This guy dares to hurt my Big Brother Long! I will never forgive you!" Tian Zhao shouted.

"Never forgive me?! You can't tolerate my existence, is that it? Save that talk for after you've defeated me!" He lunged toward Tian Zhao.

Tian Zhao pounced as well. They clashed, retreated, and lunged again. I, Ye Shuang, and Long Zhan joined the fray, all four weapons striking him at once. He blasted us back and released a row of black blades. Long Zhan quickly shielded me, Ye Shuang, and Tian Zhao, taking the brunt of the attack himself.

With his health depleted, he retreated into a dormant state. I immediately said, "Tian Zhao, Ye Shuang and I will draw his attention. You find an opening and use Blood-Red Dimension!"

"Understood!" Tian Zhao replied, quietly entering stealth. I added, "Long Xin, cover us."

"Got it, Big Brother." Skills were unleashed, raining down on the boss. Ye Shuang and I flanked him, using our skills to strike from both sides, racking up more damage.

"Clever little tricks!" He roared, a black ring of energy exploding from his body, knocking Ye Shuang and me back. I activated Feint, but I still lost a significant amount of health. Ye Shuang, however, was already at zero health and in critical danger. The shockwave even knocked Long Xin to the ground.

The boss laughed, but not for long. His face, already distorted beyond recognition, went rigid. A rain of blood began to fall. I felt a surge of joy. The rain grew heavier, and the boss stood frozen, staring at the incredible sight. He suddenly looked up, and there was Tian Zhao, hovering in mid-air with an expressionless face. Following that, as the blood pooled on the ground, it began to move as if alive, swirling toward the boss and coiling around his body. His skin began to melt, but this time, instead of turning into blood bubbles, he dissolved directly into a pool of gore.

The boss was dead. He contributed a massive amount of experience, allowing me to level up, and Long Xin and Ye Shuang both gained two levels. However, the system gave no mission completion prompt. Suddenly, a strange phenomenon occurred throughout the hall. Cracks appeared on the floors, walls, and ceiling, and the entire hall began to writhe.

The surrounding scene underwent a terrifying transformation. "This... what is happening?" I exclaimed.