Chapter 192: Defense Arrives

Slayer Demon sent a huge red energy slash racing toward Shi Ji, who casually countered with his own white energy slash.

Though Slayer Demon’s attack was powerful and intense, it looked pitiful next to Shi Ji’s. The red light was swallowed up instantly. It disappeared the moment it collided with the blinding white slash.

“Ahhh!!!” 

Slayer Demon let out a scream as the white energy hit him dead-on.

The slash kept going. It smashed through the shattered stone wall and left a deep, dark hole. It was impossible to see how far it went or what lay on the other side.

After all these clashes, the area was already a wreck. Rubble scattered everywhere and stones still falling from above. If the fight kept going here, the place was bound to collapse sooner or later.

Though the attack had landed squarely on Slayer Demon, the fight wasn’t over.

Shi Ji watched as the dust slowly cleared, a slight change in his expression.

“Oh? This ability of yours… it looks familiar.”

The air was thick with the smell of blood. Bits of reddish flesh drifted around. Somehow, even after that devastating blow, Slayer Demon’s pieces were still twitching.

Just then, a mouth floated by, and, unbelievably, it started to speak.

“Hmph! You’re a tricky one, all right. Even when I’m going all out, I can’t land a hit. But don’t think this is over.”

Shi Ji’s sword dissolved into shimmering particles, and in a flash, he was right in front of that floating mouth. He grabbed it, flung it hard to the ground—wham!—leaving a small dent in the floor, and stomped on it without mercy.

“You talk way too much. You just can’t keep that mouth shut, huh? I’ll stomp it shut for you!”

To Slayer Demon, this was the ultimate humiliation. With only a mouth left to defend himself, he was being utterly crushed by this shameless guy.

“You…ugh… you jerk! I’ll… mmph—”

Slayer Demon tried to talk, but Shi Ji didn’t stop, stomping repeatedly.

Even now, Slayer Demon kept trying to mouth off.

But unable to speak, Slayer Demon’s only option was to concentrate. Gathering his energy, the scattered bits of flesh in the air reformed, quickly shaping into a body—minus the mouth.

In a blink, he swung his fist toward Shi Ji.

Swish, swish!

But in an instant, Shi Ji’s sword sliced through. The fist turned to chunks, and the half-formed body split apart again, scattering back into the air.

Taking advantage of the moment, the mouth floated away and reconnected with the body, finally making Slayer Demon whole again.

Slayer Demon opened his mouth to speak but froze as he realized something was in his mouth.

Ptui!

He spit out a big pebble.

He was a Devil rank aberration, yet he got completely played with here—no chance to fight back. Anyone would be fuming by now.

Watching Shi Ji grinning on the sidelines, Slayer Demon couldn’t shake the feeling of being utterly ignored.

“You brat, you’re going too far! Even if you break my body to pieces, I won’t die. So get ready!”

Shi Ji nodded. “So, if your body is gone, you will die, right?”

“Uh… well…” Slayer Demon froze, realizing he’d been tricked. “You jerk! You’re just trying to get info out of me!”

Frustrated beyond belief, Slayer Demon realized what should have been a serious battle had turned into a joke, thanks to Shi Ji’s antics.

“Flame Judgement Impact!!”

With a loud roar, Slayer Demon spread his feet, extended his right arm, and gripped his right wrist with his left hand. His right palm began to glow an intense red, and within seconds, his whole body was engulfed in that red light.

Stones on the ground started jumping, rising higher and higher in the intense heat that now turned the entire plaza into a blazing furnace. The scorching energy could be felt from a distance.

“Die!”

With another shout, the massive red energy beam shot toward Shi Ji.

Still standing in place, Shi Ji squinted against the blinding light and closed his eyes briefly. Feeling the heatwave coming closer, he made one simple move. He stretched out his right hand, palm facing the incoming red beam.

“Flame Judgement Absorb.”

Yes, those were the words that came out of his mouth.

Just as the massive energy beam closed in, almost hitting Shi Ji’s right hand, something strange happened. The fiery beam began to disappear, getting sucked into his open palm.

Flame Judgement Absorb was a weird name Shi Ji had just made up, but somehow, it fit the situation perfectly.

The whole area was bathed in red light. The beam itself was blindingly bright. Slayer Demon had no idea what was happening on Shi Ji’s end and was just focused on pouring every ounce of energy into his attack.

He realized Shi Ji was way stronger than he’d expected—definitely at an X Rank level. Without his most powerful move, he wouldn’t stand a chance.

Finally, after a while, the light began to dim. The force of the beam weakened as Slayer Demon’s energy started running dry. Covered in sweat, he was left gasping for breath.

He looked forward, waiting to see the results.

“I used up over half of my energy, so this should have…”

Slayer Demon’s eyes went wide at the sight before him, his thoughts suddenly freezing. Words failed him.

The young man was still standing there. He hadn’t even changed his stance. The only difference was his right hand, still raised and pointed directly at Slayer Demon. Suddenly, the cooling air started to heat up again. The plaza was once more bathed in a blazing red light.

“Flame Judgement Impact,” Shi Ji said calmly.

A fierce red beam blasted toward Slayer Demon.

The blast didn’t last long. Shi Ji had compressed the energy, making it hit with higher intensity in a shorter burst.

When everything finally settled, the plaza was in ruins. There was no trace of Slayer Demon, only some rubble falling from above and a deep crater where he’d once been.

“Take this! Death Cannon!”

The silence didn’t last. It was shattered by another voice. Shi Ji turned, raising his right hand once again.

“Defense Mode Activated.”