Chapter 303 - 209: Book of the Dead

Faced with the fierce, oncoming blade, the Spirit of the End merely raised two fingers and nonchalantly caught the edge.

Mottled rust spread across the blade at a visible rate. In the blink of an eye, the peerless blade was covered in corrosion. With a light squeeze, it crumbled like a withered petal.

The Spirit of the End scoffed.

"Is that so?"

As if the gates to Hell had been thrown open, chaos and blasphemy erupted in an endless tide of darkness, mercilessly engulfing the shining soul before it.

The wretched screams and mournful cries of countless departed souls exploded in Zhou Chen’s ears. A sea of despair and pain flooded his soul, savagely tearing at his consciousness. The corrupting power from the Abyss rapidly eroded his soul, dragging him down into Hell.

"Ah... it’s been a while since I’ve felt this..."

Zhou Chen panted, a smile on his face that unsettled the Spirit of the End.

After using the power of the Spirit Realm to twist the International Financial Mansion into the Tower of the End, the Spirit of the End had set its mind at ease. This area now belonged to the Spirit Realm.

Its true form, the Forbidden Ancient Book, held the soul fragments of hundreds of thousands of the dead. It had been heavily wounded by the Star Association decades ago, preventing it from unleashing this immense power of misery and despair in the real world. But as long as it was in the Spirit Realm, it could wield this power by leveraging the realm’s unique properties.

This was the source of its confidence in facing the Rebel.

It couldn’t claim to be a match for an Uncrowned, but corrupting a Tier Two Ascender was more than easy enough—even if this particular Tier Two Ascender had once reversed fate.

But now, a sense of foreboding inexplicably washed over the Spirit of the End.

In that instant, a brilliant, pale flame erupted from the body before it. It shot toward the heavens like a sharp sword, unstoppably tearing through the profound darkness.

On its throne, the Spirit of the End’s vision went black. It let out a pained shriek, feeling an indescribable, searing agony.

’This flame... there’s something wrong with this flame... It’s as if... it was suddenly imbued with some powerful attribute...’

The burning flames illuminated the Spirit of the End’s contracting pupils. ’This is...’

A crimson Heavy Hammer, wreathed in raging flames, glowed in Zhou Chen’s hand, tracing the outline of a simple, ancient flame Emblem. Furnace Fire, capable of incinerating all of creation, billowed forth. As tongues of scorching flame danced wildly, the vast essence of despair was incinerated into nothingness.

Then, to the Spirit of the End’s utter disbelief, the Hammer of Forging, radiating terrifying heat, came smashing down.

BOOM!

With a dull, explosive crack, the throne exploded into fragments. The Spirit of the End was sent flying, crashing heavily against the great hall’s white walls. Even the tower itself could barely withstand the power contained in the blow, and it shook violently.

For that strike, Zhou Chen had not only channeled the Hammer of Forging’s [Destruction of All Things] but had also mobilized a portion of the Round Table Hall’s power. The effect was simply perfect.

’This area is the Spirit Realm. That’s why I was confident enough to come here all by myself.’

The Spirit of the End scrambled up from the ground in a sorry state. Cracks spiderwebbed across its body like damaged porcelain. It stared intently at the Hammer of Forging in Zhou Chen’s hand and shrieked, its voice breaking.

"—Authority?!!?!"

"You guessed it! Your prize is another hammer!"

A vortex of flames blazed into existence. Zhou Chen appeared before the Spirit of the End and swung his hammer in a wide arc.

BANG!

A thunderous roar spread out, as if a frenzied lake of crimson flame had just exploded. The Spirit of the End was once again sent flying by the savage power, the cracks on its body growing more numerous.

Zhou Chen frowned slightly. ’This thing really is a handful here in the Spirit Realm. I used [Destruction of All Things] for both strikes, but this purest form of the Power of Destruction inflicted surprisingly little damage on the Spirit of the End.’

’Wait... Destruction...’

Zhou Chen suddenly realized. ’Of course! This thing is called the Spirit of the End! It’s an Abyssal Evil Spirit born for the very purpose of destroying the World. Naturally, the Power of Destruction is less effective against it.’

’In that case, let’s try [Creation of All Things]!’

On the ground, the Spirit of the End coughed as it pushed itself up. Dark Abyssal Essence flowed from the dense cracks covering its body. It felt an excruciating pain it hadn’t experienced in decades, a pain that originated from its very core. Each blow felt as if it would shatter the very essence of its existence.

’Authority...’

’This was something I never could have expected.’

’A Tier Two Ascender... actually wielding the world’s most precious prize, Authority!’

’Even for a Rebel, isn’t this a bit too absurd?’

’That’s supreme Authority! It’s an express ticket to becoming a Crowned King!’

However, this incredible shock was quickly consumed by ravenous greed.

’If I can just possess Zhou Chen’s soul, then this unique Authority will be mine!’

The thought vanished as quickly as it came. As the furiously smashing, scorching hammer descended, the Spirit of the End materialized a shield covered in thorny spikes. The next moment, with a shattering sound, the Thorn Shield disintegrated under the impact. Simultaneously, a cloud of blood mist erupted from Zhou Chen’s body, his skin cracking and splitting all over.

This was the Abyssal Curse: Thorny Evil Shield. Its effect was damage reflection, capable of returning seventy percent of the damage the Shield sustained to the attacker!

The Spirit of the End seized the opportunity to pounce on Zhou Chen. It would use this brief opening to enter the depths of his soul, extinguish his will, and take his place!

But in the next instant, the heavy hammer whistled through the air and unexpectedly smashed into its face. Its vision went black as a tremendous boom and a shockwave sent it flying backward again.

"You think a serious wound is enough to leave me open?"