Returning to the Mysterious Era

Chapter 318 - Ultimate Fist

Whoosh... Whoosh... Whoosh...

Three figures swiftly traversed the maze-like corridors on the fifth level of the Akaba Ruins. Unlike the upper three levels, the structures here didn't resemble underground buildings but rather an ancient miniature city. The entire fifth level of the Akaba Ruins seemed to be situated within a hollowed-out rock cavern.

The space was an enormous flattened oval. The ceiling was covered with glowing green moss, casting a hazy fluorescent hue over the entire fifth level.

The miniature city was enveloped in this light, with shadows of densely packed buildings overlapping each other. There were mushroom-shaped houses resembling earthen forts, towering spire structures similar to religious cathedrals, and ordinary low-rise dwellings.

Everything was made of a special kind of white stone. The surfaces were rough, as if they had been weathered by time. Gaps between the numerous buildings naturally formed various narrow and twisted alleyways. Combined with the main roads constructed during the city's planning, they created a complex labyrinth.

As Cassius walked through the city, he inexplicably felt a sense of deja vu, as if he were back in Black Rain Manor. It didn’t remind him of the explored area, but the unknown zone he had once accidentally entered.

Silence, eeriness, darkness—all of it permeated with a scent of decay...

They had been on the fifth level for ten minutes without encountering any danger, but Cassius already felt a storm brewing. His senses had been honed from years of navigating peril.

Tap, tap, tap...

The trio moved swiftly down a main road toward their designated location.

"Wait!" Cassius suddenly halted, stretching out his arm to stop the two behind him. His face was as cold as steel, his gaze fixed intently on the tall, spire-like building that resembled a cathedral.

"What's wrong?" Before Saint Feinan could finish speaking, blood suddenly fountained from the top of the stone cathedral. The viscous liquid cascaded down the building's surface like a waterfall.

The blood seemed alive as it drenched the road and started to crawl over the stone slabs and buildings. It dyed the surrounding dozen or so houses a crimson red.

Buzz...

The air vibrated as humanoid figures emerged from the surface of the blood. Layers of muscles rapidly stacked upon each other, skeletal outlines expanded, and heavy armor grew over them in layers.

The fluorescent light reflected off a pair of blood-red armored arms as a knight mounted on a warhorse silently came into being. It was similar in size to an ordinary person but clad entirely in armor.

Sinews as vigorous as wild grass, sinister and sharp-edged, grew between the armor's gaps. Over a dozen blood-red knights either appeared on the avenue or stood tall atop building roofs on their steeds in mere moments. Over fifty cold, indifferent gazes of humans and horses fell on the three intruders. .

"Ji!"

The knights collectively uttered a strange sound resembling a charging call, tugged their reins, and leaped down. They moved like a battle-hardened, highly coordinated elite squad. Every action was efficient and precise, as if they were carbon copies of each other.

On the avenue, a wave of crimson flames swept wildly toward them.

"Dead blood?! Amalgamation?!" Cassius was stunned. These blood-red knights resembled the Amalgamation that Blood Spirit Society's President Lotus had manifested during the Tulip Antique Exhibition battle.

Many of their features matched one by one. This inevitably made him link the two together.

"Go! Charge straight through!" Cassius quickly snapped back to reality as his foes charged. He instantly entered combat mode; his body grew several times over as he transformed into a muscular hulk.

An even more abundant sense of strength enveloped his robust limbs. His feet pressed into the ground like hydraulic presses, unleashing immense force as his figure shot forward like a cannonball.

Boom!

A burst of white air exploded mid-air. The hazy, semi-transparent mist spread like a thick fog, covering half the street.

Zing!

A knight squad charged like a fiery red giant serpent, raising the same lance in unison!

Yes. It was a gigantic lance over thirty meters long. It was entirely crimson, its surface swirling and transforming with viscous liquid.

The terrifying weapon was more imposing than a battering ram. Over a dozen knights carried the shaft, the tip thrusting straight toward a giant figure over two meters tall! The streak of red was incredibly swift, like a speeding train slamming heavily into a building.

Crash!

A four-story building was utterly demolished by the collision. Its sturdy structure collapsed, white rubble falling like rain. Dust burst into the air, spreading wildly in all directions. A gray-white color engulfed everything.

"Cassius!!!" A figure resembling a bird of prey swooped down from a nearby building, his hands crimson and concern evident in his voice.

Feng Liusi was astonished by that meteoric lance. Its destructive power was undoubtedly immense. Even with Cassius's formidable physique, taking it head-on would surely result in serious injury!

He approached rapidly, ready to attack the knight squad.

"Get back!!!" A thunderous roar rang out from within the smoke.

The thick fog instantly swirled, and was inhaled like a beast awakening. The dozen blood-red knights were blown back with a bang, their sinister steeds stumbling under the terrifying force.

A colossal yet somewhat disheveled figure charged out. His body resembled a white iron tower with a rocky hue. However, his perfectly sculpted abdominal muscles were now a bruised blue-black, covered with a dense spiderweb of cracks.

The lines weren't just on the surface but penetrated deeply. One could vaguely see crimson muscle fibers in the gaps. Blood was slowly seeping out and soaking into the cracks.

Just a bit more... If the knight squad had just a few more blood-red knights, that meteoric lance would have pierced through Cassius in his Golem state! He would have been impaled by a thirty-meter-long giant lance!

Fortunately, the worst hadn’t happened. Cassius cast a wary glance at the blood-red knight squad, which had regained its footing.

Their uniform charge, the seamlessly combined power, and the suddenly merged, massively enhanced knight's lance—the squad seemed like a man-made war machine designed specifically to combat and slaughter abnormally large beasts. They resembled weaponized puppets, which was the polar opposite of chaotic Dead Blood.

Though they were similar, there were many differences.

Screech!

A raptor’s screech pierced the air and a pair of crimson wings covered the sky as a Blood Vulture dove into the fray. It crashed straight into the knight squad like a fighter jet.

Once he saw Cassius's condition with his own eyes, Feng Liusi wasted no time asking questions. He attacked directly, executing the Southern Dipper Fist techniques.

Zing!!!

Saint Feinan followed closely, his 1.8-meter-long Spiral-Eye Sword's blade growing dramatically. Its surface emitted a flame-like black outline as he slashed out a wave of sword light. A black crescent moon fiercely cleaved through the air.

Boom boom boom... Clang clang clang...

Both sides started battling with renewed fervor. The aftershocks of a combat artist-level battle spread inch by inch, ravaging the still-intact street walls.

For the first time since his lungs underwent Golem transformation, Cassius continuously used his Third Breath technique. Once he had created the Golem Covert Martial Arts, his body had been modified to have dual blood circulation.

This allowed the oxygen content in Cassius's body to double. He could initiate the first stage of the Triple Breath technique, significantly increasing his attack speed and enter the Breathless Chain Strike state. When that was combined with his speed, his moves flowed like mercury.

Recently, he had unexpectedly completed the Golem transformation of his lungs, allowing him to filter and absorb more oxygen. This further enhanced the stamina, explosive power, and attack speed of the Third Breath technique. One could say he had reached the second stage of the Third Breath technique, with an even denser attack frequency.

It was as if there were no pauses between his attacks. His hands were constantly swinging, delivering powerful strikes onto the lance's surface. The massive lance trembled, emitting a tearing buzz.

Waves of sword light flew, slashing onto the blood-red knights' armor and exploding into showers of sparks like metal grinding against metal. The Blood Vulture relentlessly swooped down on the knight squad’s rear, trying to tear its prey with iron claws and sharp beak.

The situation quickly became a stalemate that slightly favored Cassius's side. They had been caught off guard earlier, but now that all three were battling, the blood-red knight squad didn't hold an advantage. Thus, the intense clash continued for another one or two minutes.

"They seem to have a special energy connection! The impact of hitting one blood-red knight gets distributed to the others evenly!" Feng Liusi finally noticed some details after they failed to defeat a single knight even after fighting for so long.

"It's the lance! The knight's lance. Chop off their hands!" Cassius noticed a potential weakness and was about to rally the three to attack together when he felt danger coming from the corridor corner.

Another gigantic lance smashed through a building on the corner. It was wrapped in a fiery red mass as it charged forward. Fortunately, Cassius's keen senses had detected the sudden danger in advance. He leaped aside, and rolled a few times on the ground. He then leaped up, and dashed to the top of a building without looking back.

Not far away, two other figures followed suit without needing a call. They tacitly formed a triangle formation.

Yes, they were running away...

It wasn't just one blood-red knight squad; it had become two. There might even be a third or fourth forming. Their earlier attempt to crush the enemy was foolish. This place was the hazardous zone of the fifth level.

The best strategy had always been to fight while advancing, until their enemies were shaken off. Just like their earlier mistake, a minute or two of stubborn fighting could attract even more lethal dangers.

Cassius’s anger from nearly being impaled by the gigantic lance quickly subsided. He took a deep breath, lightly pressing the indentation between his eyebrows with his fingers. The Killer Persona couldn't determine his actions. Otherwise, it would not only affect his personality, but also lower his combat intelligence at critical moments.

After a quick reflection, Cassius circulated his life vibration energy to heal his injuries. The group quickly headed in another direction.

Several hours later, in a corridor bathed in green fluorescence, a strong wind howled past as three figures moved more swiftly and agilely than leopards.

Buildings of varying heights on both sides cast overlapping silhouettes of looming shadows. Deeper masses of black fluid seemed to dart like shadows, constantly chasing the three figures ahead.

Feng Liusi and Saint Feinan sped through an intersection, while Cassius suddenly turned and planted his feet. Behind him, the green fluorescence covered the intersection, blocking the shadows of the buildings on the main street.

Sure enough, the encroaching darkness leaped out one after another, transforming mid-air into hunched, twisted humanoid forms. Their claws were most distinctive. They were three to four times larger than a normal person's, and as sharp as fanged daggers.

Cassius took a deep breath. The air turned into a white stream spiraling into his nose as it was sucked into his lungs. He spread his hands, pushing upward with countless terrifying fists.

Bang bang bang! Bang bang bang...

The clawed shadows tried to swarm him, but were mercilessly shattered by the violent force. Many shadows were slain instantly; however, they seemed endless. They fell on him like a raging black waterfall, with no end in sight.

Cassius's eyes flared with blood-red light. He suddenly threw a punch that sent sparks flying through the air from friction. A semi-transparent air sphere that was the size of half a person blasted forward like a cannonball, smashing shadows along the way and crashing into the other end of the street.

When the dust settled, Cassius was nowhere to be seen.

An hour later...

"Blood-red knights similar to Dead Blood Amalgamation, shadowy figures resembling Shadow Demons, half-bodied mantis men with totem rituals branded on their arms..." At the moment, Cassius had vaguely latched onto an idea, but he didn't dare to make connections yet.

"We're almost there. Stay focused." Beside him, Feng Liusi reminded him.

The three stayed focused as they rushed through a gray archway into the tall building resembling a cathedral before them. It was the location marked on the map as the site of the Southern Dipper Covert Martial Inheritance.

Southern Dipper Sonic Snake Fist... a distant and mysterious ancient inheritance...

Creak, creak, creak!

They pushed open the heavy, massive metal door, allowing a greenish glow to shine through the gap. The air was murky, and at certain angles, one could see debris floating like tiny insects.

A human figure stood in the center of the vast hall with its back to the three. He wore a black robe that was long since tattered.

"..." The atmosphere inexplicably grew tense.

Cassius and the others unconsciously slowed their steps and walked in. The iron door closed automatically behind them with a click.

Boom!

The dried corpse stood up as if it was supporting the sky and earth, sending endless waves of Qi crashing throughout the hall.

It was overwhelming enough to block out the sun! Its Qi taking form was as heavy as a rock, as turbulent as a storm, and like an inescapable net!

"Holy Fist!!!" Feng Liusi shouted incredulously.

He took two steps back, his posture unconsciously assuming the most defensive stance he knew as extreme apprehension appeared in his eyes.

"No, not Holy Fist. But... Ultimate Fist!!!"

"This is the corpse of an Ultimate Fist practitioner!!!"