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"Oh? A new type of Undead? Is it because they were Martial Artists from Murim? Interesting... So Jiangshi, huh?" Maria mused. "Ah, it's like the Chinese vampire zombies! So cool!"

"Aaaagh..."

"Ugh..."

"Raaaarrgh..."

The disciples Maria had raised as Undead slowly stood up. Their skin turned pale blue, their hands transformed—growing huge, sharp claws. Long fangs protruded from their mouths, their eyes turned completely white, and strange cursed paper talismans appeared on their faces, inscribed with red and blue Ki.

"T-The disciples have become Jiangshi...?" Yoomyung was speechless. This was dark sorcery—atrocities only Evil Sects would commit, the kind he had always condemned. "T-This is... mindless beasts? At the very least, just let them rest in peace..."

"No," Maria replied, snapping her fingers. Instantly, the zombies' eyes regained their original colors, and their consciousness returned.

"Aahh! What?"

"What happened?"

"Ugh... my neck..."

"They're not mindless anymore?" Yoomyung asked, stunned.

"See now? This is her power. She doesn't just create mindless zombies," said Elder Wu. "She can do much more than that. Though, if I'm being honest, this is a fitting punishment for what they dared to do."

"But is it? Perhaps the Master truly desires our deaths..." Yoomyung muttered.

"And if that's the case, what are you going to do—accept that?" Maria asked. "Will you sit down and let your master cut your head off for something you know doesn't make sense? Where's your sense of justice, of what's right?"

"..." Yoomyung smiled faintly and laughed. "It's funny how a necromancer is teaching me about these things—things I should've known from the beginning. You're right..."

He looked at the skies with Wu, while Maria noticed the footsteps of hundreds of soldiers rushing toward the temple. Other disciples began emerging from stairways and underground chambers.

Meanwhile, in the skies above, Fang Sheng and Lucifer continued their battle. Though only a few minutes had passed, they appeared nearly equal in power—thanks to Fang Sheng's Blood Seals, which had boosted him from Core Establishment to Golden Core Realm.

By combining the White Mist Cultivation Technique with the Shadow Blood Arts, he had created the Blood Mist Arts. This allowed him to enhance his cultivation based on the blood energy he could extract, absorb, and synthesize into his body through Alchemy.

Lucifer, who had been analyzing the fight, couldn't help but admire the old man's relentless spirit. Murim was a unique world, with a Realm System unlike any other.

"You said you were Golden Core Realm, right?" Lucifer asked, smirking. "What Rank would that put you in the Tower's System?"

"Right now? I might be almost as strong as L Ranks!" Fang Sheng laughed loudly. "Surprised?!"

"L Rank, huh?" Lucifer nodded. "Yeah, I am surprised. That's impressive. We've only fought a few at that Rank before."

"What?" Fang Sheng blinked, confused.

"Hey Lucifer!" Maria called from below. Lucifer turned to see armies of soldiers surrounding her and the others. "Wrap it up."

Lucifer nodded, glancing back at Fang Sheng as his Aura surged...

FLUOSH!

"Hmph! Pretending to be stronger now? You are indeed a mighty dragon—your size and strength are admirable—but once I unleash my Killing Move, you're done for," said Fang Sheng. "No bluffing will save you... unless you bow down and swear eternal loyalty, becoming my divine mount! How about it? It's better than dying!"

"Hah, you must be joking," Lucifer replied, his eyes glowing bright red. "I am the Dragon King... and a King bows to nobody!"

RUMBLE!

"W-What?!"

Fang Sheng screamed in disbelief as immense pressure erupted from Lucifer's Aura. His latest evolution had elevated him to L++ Rank, and his skills, divinity, and other powers boosted his stats many times over, making him even stronger.

"RAAAAHHHHH!"

Lucifer roared, opening his jaws and unleashing a devastating dragon breath toward the First Elder of the White Mist Sect. The skies trembled, and the clouds were blown away.

TRUUUM!

"Ngaaaahhhhh!"

Fang Sheng screamed in horror, trying to escape. But the overwhelming white void flames consumed his shields and barriers, reducing them to ashes one by one.

He barely managed to evade the breath, watching as a mountain behind him was blasted into oblivion.

BOOOMMM!!!

As the mountain crumbled into boulders, Lucifer lunged from above, striking with his titanic dragon claws.

"{Divinity Shattering Claws}!"

"{Shadow Blood Mist Hydra Fist}!"

Lucifer's blazing claws unleashed a relentless barrage. Fang Sheng combined his techniques, his red and black mist forming a giant hydra around him.

Each blow split into nine, resisting Lucifer's overwhelming power—for a moment, he held his ground.

"I-I am...! Doing it! I will surpass my limits! I will ascend even further! I won't die—not until I become an Immortal and rise beside the Sect Master—no, until I create my own sect! I will win! I know I can! I WILL DEFEAT YOU, DRAGON!"

And yet...

SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH!

"Huh?"

His eyes widened as slicing attacks tore through his body. His arms, legs, and head were severed from his torso.

"W-Wha...?"

He watched his body parts fall, while Lucifer hovered above, his face filled with disappointment.

In the end, the moment Fang Sheng believed he could win was merely an illusion. Lucifer was simply stronger—and more enduring.

Maria smiled as Fang Sheng's remains fell into the temple's center, blood and flesh scattered everywhere.

"F-First Elder?!"

"What?!"

"T-They killed the First Elder!"

"No...!"

"Elder Yoomyung, what is the meaning of this?! You brought these people to kill us all?!"

"That's not it. He tried to kill us and... well, they defended themselves," Yoomyung said, glaring at Fang Sheng's corpse in disbelief. "The Sect Master said he wanted to execute us—but why?! These people made a mistake, but they're not a threat to our city! Elder Wu brought them here and..."

RUMBLE!

As Lucifer descended, the sky darkened. Clouds spiraled, and blue lightning surged across the heavens.

The dark clouds converged into a single point, and a silhouette emerged from the center.

His presence radiated Divine Power, shaking the entire Thousand Mountains Area.

Immense quantities of Divine Power and Ki spread through the skies, forming a pseudo-domain in seconds.

Maria looked up, her eyes glowing as her calm expression shifted into an excited smile.

"Aha~ There he is! Looks like we fished a really big fish this time, everyone."

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