Bai Lu had fully transformed into a fiendish monster, a terrifying aura rising from her entire body.

Buzz, buzz, buzz! Her tail, now resembling a thorned whip, lashed fiercely behind her. It combined both speed and power, its afterimages so fast they blurred, striking with thunderous force.

Lu Jun's figure moved gracefully and vanished from the spot, swept away by the Dark Ghost Punishment: Black Impermanence. With outsiders nearby, it was inconvenient to use the Space Element's Blink, but the Wind Riding Force from his Heaven and Earth Domain was easier to cast instantly for dodging.

Boom! The blurry tail whip smashed into the ground with a thunderous roar, splitting open a crevice stretching several hundred meters. Boulders flew in all directions.

Bai Lu was no longer human, turning to glare at him with bloodlust.

"Triple Element Advanced Peak: Healing, Poison, Summon... Interesting," Lu Jun muttered, examining the grotesque half-human poison deer, seeing through her strength. After casting the dark ritual, she'd firmly reached the Commander-Level Peak, still far weaker than the Sea Fiend Monster.

His hands itched. He wanted to test whether his conventional combat strength could handle an enemy of this caliber.

Buzz, buzz, buzz! At that moment, the surrounding Black Vatican members closed in, intending to assist their fellow disciple Bai Lu in dealing with Lu Jun only to suddenly find themselves unable to move.

Dense black-red spider threads appeared in the air, charged with immense Curse Magic. Strengthened by Blood Abyss and Fifth Spiritual Realm, the spell's power was overwhelming. Even worse, each of them had been hit by Soul Lock from Afar, a pair of sinister eyes fixating on their backs.

Aaaagh!! Dozens of Black Vatican members screamed in agony as ghost faces devoured their soul energy. Their bodies shriveled rapidly, nearly drained of all life force.

Lu Jun scanned the surrounding enemies. This Black Vatican squad was among the last remaining elite, most of them Mid-Stage Advanced, some even High-Stage Mages.

But he had already slaughtered Commander-level magical beasts by the dozens. Fragile human mages? They were nothing.

Boom!

Seeing the state of her subordinates, Bai Lu became even more furious. She pushed off with both legs, breaking the sound barrier as shockwaves rippled outward.

From afar, Lu Jun stood unmoved. In a blink, Bai Lu charged before him. He let out a low shout, blood energy surging. Crystalline, hardened skin spread with Demonic Ritual Marks. Behind him, a roaring sea shot into the sky as he threw a punch—a dam-breaking Milky Way.

Crashhh! A jet-black waterfall smashed down. The massive creature was instantly sent flying.

The Black Death Water corroded Bai Lu's left claw, hissing and bubbling, leaving pits and gouges in the flesh.

Immediately, Bai Lu emitted a strange blood-colored vitality, rapidly healing. Her claw regenerated completely, its sharp talons gleaming again.

Roar! She bellowed and pounced once more. Lu Jun, ignoring the numbness in his fists, met her with a sharp glare and unleashed punch after punch. The Tidewaves stacked higher and higher. Dark blue radiance lit half the sky, and a fifty-meter-high tsunami rose proudly, visible from all over the city.

Rumble rumble rumble!

The immense destruction from their battle left houses collapsing along the streets and the docks submerged in water.

Luckily, the area was relatively secluded. The surrounding buildings had long been vacated, now just rows of dilapidated wooden houses. Due to Japan's aging population, many regions had become ghost towns.

As for the more developed docks, local residents and tourists had already fled smartly at the first sign of trouble.

The City Patrol Mages responsible for maintaining order watched helplessly from the sidelines. In this small port town, having one or two Advanced Mages was already a blessing. With no strength to interfere in this battle, they could only stand by and wait.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Lu Jun clashed head-on, his Water Magic ceaselessly crashing down. At first, he had to activate Water Curtain for defense below, but as his waves stacked higher, Bai Lu was forced back over a thousand meters, leaving behind a wide, deep trench.

When the black sea waters finally receded, what remained of Bai Lu was a pile of mangled flesh and blood, her red-stained bones and meat still writhing, seemingly trying to regenerate.

Seeing this, Lu Jun shook his head. The Black Vatican's dark ritual came with terrible side effects. Compared to Mo Fan's Demonization, it was a hundred times more inferior. Once used, death was certain.

Despite her nearly invincible healing abilities, Bai Lu had burned through her life source. Even if he hadn't attacked, once the transformation ended, this Eighth Disciple would have perished anyway.

Lu Jun launched one final strike. His eyes glowed with sinister brilliance. Behind him appeared two colossal ghostly shadows like mountain peaks—Qiantian Ghost Fiend and Kuntu Ghost Fiend. The two overlapped and exhaled gently.

Immediately, flying dust and pebbles surged as blue-gray gales swept the area, covering the entire dock in a murky haze once more.

At the center, Bai Lu let out a final scream as her mutilated flesh turned to stone, crumbling under the fierce winds into powder, vanishing into nothingness.

With the combined force of his Water and Curse Element spells, Lu Jun had overwhelmed and slain his foe—this battle was utterly one-sided and devastating.

After this period of cultivation, his strength had grown even further compared to the National Institute Tournament.

He glanced toward the distance. Before Japan's Super-level experts could arrive, he silently summoned the Night Thunder Dream Beast, slipping into the shadows and vanishing.

Of course, before leaving, he used his Portable Dimension to take away the corpses of the Black Vatican members, leaving nothing for the Japanese authorities to investigate. Besides, those Black Vatican members were quite valuable—he could trade their heads for rewards at the Tribunal.

Moments later, Lu Jun reappeared clean and composed by the roadside. His gaze pierced across more than ten kilometers, locking onto the back of the Blue Bat. A smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

"Still trying to run? Soul Lock from Afar really is handy."

On the other side, the Blue Bat, disguised as an elegant tourist lady, walked hastily down the street. At one corner, she nearly bumped into a cold-faced young man.

She looked at Lu Jun as the shadows around him faded and opened her mouth, not knowing what to say.

"Captain of the National Team, Lu Jun—just who are you?"

The Blue Bat realized she couldn't run anymore and stared deeply at him.

Lu Jun smiled and said, "Let's talk somewhere quiet."

The two of them, one after the other, entered a private booth at a nearby café and sat down to talk.

The Blue Bat composed herself and took the initiative to ask, "How do you know about the existence of the Stinger?"

"That's not your concern." Lu Jun replied calmly. "I have my own sources. I don't just know that you're a Stinger—I even know who's behind you: an Elder from the Mu Clan… Mu Tao of the Supreme Tribunal."

The moment he finished, the Blue Bat's heart trembled. She sensed that Lu Jun was far from ordinary there was an unfathomable abyss of darkness behind him.

Which power does he belong to? To know so much about the Tribunal… she instinctively pondered.

Before she could finish speculating, her vision was engulfed in blackness. An intense pain shot through her mind, and her spirit reeled in shock.

When the Blue Bat regained consciousness, she saw Lu Jun sitting across from her, his pupils glowing with strange light. She gasped, "What did you do to me?!"

"Nothing much. Just left a few techniques on your soul."

He continued, "These spells can completely control you. Don't expect the Black Vatican or the Tribunal to be able to remove them. The moment you have any stray thoughts—even from a thousand miles away—I'll sense it. The methods I implanted will activate and obliterate your soul."

"Don't ask where I come from. What I want is for you to serve me completely not the Black Vatican, not the Tribunal, and certainly not Mu Tao."

Lu Jun paused, then said meaningfully, "And don't underestimate the Black Vatican. You really think just becoming the sole Disciple qualifies you to be promoted to a Red Cardinal? You've still got to survive the Trial of Dark Faith."

"It'll twist your spirit and will. Whether your beliefs are strong or not, once you sit on that red throne, you'll be changed entirely."

"Most people would be helpless… but in this field, I'm a professional. I can protect your soul."

As he spoke those words, the Blue Bat felt a deep chill. It was as if the man across from her was watching her from all directions, his gaze like that of a god overlooking everything, inescapable.

For additional chapters

Versatile mage {40 chapters}

Douluo Dalu:This Soul Master is to Weird {30 Chapters}

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