The setting sun was as red as blood.
That sinister laugh echoed.
Tunzuo followed the sound and saw a tall, graceful red dragon witch exuding a sinister aura, stepping daintily as she slowly emerged from the shadows.
The sand beneath her feet sizzled under the scorching crimson magic, leaving a trail of charred footprints.
Every step she took carried an affected air that made witches sick.
The corners of her mouth curled into a malicious grin, and her eyes were filled with brutality.
The red dragon witch had a pretty face, but that delicate beauty held a disturbing, wicked aura.
Olivia raised her head with difficulty.
Her golden vertical pupils contracted sharply in pain, and her usual elegant noble poise was completely gone.
She stared fiercely at the newcomer, as if she wanted to devour her alive, and forced a name through gritted teeth.
“Langer…”
Langer Gold, a High-Rank Red Dragon Witch, the eldest daughter of Olivia’s second sister.
“It’s me, Auntie.”
Langer let out a shrill, manic laugh that echoed across the empty beach, startling a flock of seabirds.
She spread her arms wide, as if embracing this cruel and bloody scene.
“So? How do you like the gift I prepared for you, Olivia? It’s been a few years since your illness flared up, hasn’t it? I secretly added some Blaze Golden Beetle to the wine at the Dragon Court banquet, just to let you relive the feeling of being burned by flames again. How about it? Aren’t you grateful to me?”
Tunzuo’s heart sank, and his expression darkened.
So that strange heat he’d felt earlier wasn’t just his imagination.
Something had indeed been slipped into that nectar wine!
But Tunzuo hadn’t expected the poison wasn’t meant for her—it was specifically aimed at Olivia.
She moved her feet without making a sound, shielding the suffering Olivia behind her.
Langer’s use of “Auntie” put Tunzuo on high alert.
“Hahaha! Even though I can’t kill you directly, I’ve always wanted to see you in such a miserable, pathetic state!”
Langer laughed so hard she doubled over, her eyes filled with twisted satisfaction and envy.
“A defective product like you—what right do you have to succeed the family head position? That position should belong to my branch!”
Just as Langer was laughing and about to step forward to get a closer look at Olivia’s misery, her malicious vertical pupils suddenly contracted violently.
Acting on instinct, Langer’s figure flickered as she leaped backward like a startled cheetah.
Boom!
A massive shadow blade tore through the air with a shrill howl and slammed into the spot Langer had just occupied.
Sand flew everywhere.
The flat beach was split open into a bottomless trench, and dark shadow magic crackled at the edges of the fissure.
After landing, Langer patted her chest, still shaken, and narrowed her eyes dangerously.
She looked up and saw Tunzuo raising an arm, standing between her and Olivia with a dark expression.
The soulfire in his emerald eyes blazed fiercely, radiating a murderous intent that made even a witch’s heart tremble.
“Your little pet is quite loyal, Olivia.”
Langer sneered, her gaze roaming unabashedly over Tunzuo, greed undisguised.
She licked her lips, her voice disgusting and greasy.
“But he really is a fine specimen. How about I taste him for you first, Olivia?”
With that, Langer struck out, grabbing for Tunzuo.
Crimson dragon flames gathered at her fingertips, as if she wanted to crush Tunzuo in her grasp.
But the moment her fingers were about to touch Tunzuo’s body, a silver flash burst forth, cutting through space.
Langer’s expression changed drastically.
She rolled to the side in a flustered move, landing on one knee in a sorry posture.
A thin, bloody wound now ran across her previously smooth face, with blood oozing out.
Tunzuo stood emotionlessly on the sand, holding a silver sword.
The sword pointed diagonally at the ground;
Drops of blood slowly dripped from the blade.
Tunzuo’s voice was icy, without a trace of fluctuation.
“Good reflexes. I thought that strike would have slit your throat.”
“But… if it had been Olivia, that sword of mine would never have touched her.”
Faced with Tunzuo’s blatant mockery, Langer flew into a rage.
Tunzuo’s insult twisted her already grotesque face even more.
She let out a roar, and magic surged wildly within her.
But the next second, Langer’s expression changed in terror.
She discovered that the space around her had somehow turned into a rectangular transparent cage.
Countless intricate spatial runes flowed on the cage’s surface, trapping her in place, unable to move.
Yuge stood atop Langer’s head.
The elegant Skeleton Gentleman bowed his head slightly, pointed a long, slender finger downward, and spoke softly.
“Sever.”
The spatial barrier imprisoning Langer began to compress and slice under Yuge’s command.
Langer was shocked.
Unable to dodge, she could only shield herself with crimson-black dragon flames and her inner magic.
But that didn’t help much.
In an instant, Langer’s body was covered in cuts of all sizes, her once gorgeous robes stained crimson with blood.
“You damn vermin!”
With a loud crash, the injured Langer’s eyes turned bloodshot, and she lost all reason.
She gathered her strength and smashed a fist heavily against the spatial barrier, roaring in fury.
Yuge’s spatial barrier shattered.
Langer’s fist, wreathed in dragon flames, carried immense power toward Yuge’s face.
Yuge neither dodged nor avoided.
Just as Langer’s fist was about to hit his nasal bone, Yuge simply clapped his hands.
Snap.
The next second, in Langer’s shocked gaze, her fist passed straight through Yuge’s body without any resistance.
No, that wasn’t Yuge—it was Tunzuo!
Yuge and Tunzuo had suddenly swapped positions.
Langer’s fist struck Tunzuo, who had already turned into black mist, and passed straight through.
Thud!
A dull sound of a blade piercing flesh echoed.
Tunzuo’s figure materialized in front of Langer, his silver sword piercing straight through her left shoulder.
Blood sprayed out along the grooves of the blade, splattering onto Tunzuo’s face.
Before Langer could scream, Tunzuo kicked her hard in the stomach.
Using the leverage to pull out the silver sword, he sent Langer flying with a heavy kick.
Langer tumbled across the sand several times before barely steadying herself.
Holding her pierced shoulder, she stared in terror at the Ghost Witch slowly walking toward her.
Tunzuo glanced at the bloodstains on his silver sword with disgust and flicked them off.
As if he had touched something filthy.
“Stinks. Disgusting.”
Tunzuo said with loathing.
“Bastard! I’ll make you pay! I’ll tear you into pieces!”
Suffering such humiliation, Langer went completely mad.
She roared at Tunzuo.
A massive magic circle composed of crimson-black dragon flames appeared beneath her feet.
The terrifying heat twisted the surrounding air.
Roar!
Nine enormous flame dragons emerged from the magic circle.
They raised their heads and roared.
Their bodies were made of extreme-high-temperature flames, and they charged at Tunzuo with a thunderous roar.
The heat was so intense that even the distant seawater began to boil.
[Five-Circle Spell: Flame Dragon Roar]
Facing Langer’s imposing attack, Tunzuo only cast a cold glance and curled the corner of his mouth in a mocking arc.
He raised his hand and pointed downward.
“Playing such a low-level element in front of me? Showing off before an expert.”
A pitch-black void materialized in the air above the sand.
A violent gravitational force erupted, like a beast opening its abyssal maw.
The nine flame dragons Langer had released were torn, twisted, and finally devoured by the terrifying gravity of the black hole.
Only scorched marks on the ground remained to prove they had ever existed.
[Five-Circle Spell: Shadow Black Hole]
Seeing her attack so easily neutralized by Tunzuo, Langer flew into a furious rage.
She gathered all her magic to deliver a heavy blow to Tunzuo.
Suddenly.
Langer’s ferocious expression froze.
Not just her.
Everything within a one-kilometer radius of Tunzuo—the swirling sand, the surging waves, even the dust in the air—fell into absolute stillness.
Yuge stood behind Tunzuo with his hands behind his back, his voice calm as still water.
“Ten seconds, Young Master.”
Tunzuo nodded silently, his gaze as cold as ice.
“Enough. Just a lizard, not like dealing with Olivia.”
The dark shadow magic within Tunzuo spiraled fiercely, coiling around his silver sword.
Under the reformation of shadow magic, the silver sword began to change shape.
The blade extended and widened, eventually becoming a jet-black tachi with a gleaming emerald edge.
Tunzuo assumed a stance.
He slowly sheathed the tachi at his waist, spread his legs, and leaned forward.
White mist seeped between his teeth—the chill of the underworld.
As Tunzuo gathered power, emerald ghostfire ignited along the tachi’s blade.
A ferocious, terrifying Bōsatsu ghost head phantom slowly manifested behind Tunzuo, baring its fangs in a silent roar.
A cold light flashed in Tunzuo’s eyes.
Killing intent was thick.
He drew the blade.
Heaven and earth changed color.
A flash of emerald light cut through the still world, slicing it in two.
Time began to flow again.
Tunzuo was already standing ten meters behind Langer.
He thrust his tachi into the sand.
Langer stood frozen, her pupils dilated.
The next second, a terrifying wound deep enough to see bone burst open on her chest.
Blood gushed out like a fountain.
This strike not only inflicted physical pain on Langer but also left an unhealable wound on her very soul.
Langer spat out a mouthful of blood, collapsing heavily to the ground, twitching uncontrollably.
But Tunzuo gave her no time to recover.
Several shadow tentacles shot out from Tunzuo’s shadow, wrapping tightly around Langer’s neck.
They lifted her off the sand and hung her in the air.
Tunzuo walked up to Langer, squinting as he stared at her, and asked coldly:
“Where’s the antidote?”
Despite her serious injuries and near death, Langer still flashed Tunzuo a twisted, triumphant smile.
She said weakly:
“There’s no antidote… That’s her own illness, hehehe… ‘Sun of Ruin’—it’s a hereditary disease carved into the bone. No one can save her…”
Langer’s words made Tunzuo’s brows furrow, and an ominous feeling rose in his heart.
Just then, Yuge also whispered in Tunzuo’s ear:
“She’s right, Young Master. The nature of the ‘Sun of Ruin’ can’t be cured with medicine. It’s a backlash from the soul.”
Hearing Yuge’s confirmation, Tunzuo’s expression turned extremely gloomy.
Intense killing intent roiled in his eyes.
“In that case, die.”
The shadow tentacles suddenly tightened.
Langer’s face turned red, her eyes bulging, and the sound of cracking bones came from her throat.
Buzz!
Just as Tunzuo was about to crush Langer’s neck, she used her last bit of strength to crush a ring on her finger.
A dazzling red light flashed.
Accompanied by a tearing sound of space, Langer’s figure vanished from the shadow tentacles, leaving only a mess behind.
“A spatial teleportation artifact. She’s seriously injured, but she shouldn’t have gotten far. Do you want me to pursue her, Young Master?”
Yuge looked at the empty beach, his tone indifferent.
Tunzuo took a deep breath, forced down the killing intent, and shook his head.
“Forget her. Olivia is the priority.”
Tunzuo hurried to Olivia’s side.
By now, Olivia was nearly unconscious.
Golden flames still raged on her body, scorching her once-pale skin black, only to heal again through regeneration.
The cycle repeated, causing unbearable pain.
“Damned dragon! Olivia!”
Tunzuo called out Olivia’s name anxiously, reaching out to touch her.
But the terrifying power of the golden flames forced him back, sending a sharp pain through his palm.
Tunzuo was frantic but didn’t know what to do.
Just then, Yuge walked over and crouched beside Tunzuo, speaking softly:
“First, use your shadow magic to suppress the golden flames and stop the destruction of the ‘Sun of Ruin.’”
Tunzuo immediately did as told.
Without a moment’s hesitation, he aimed both hands at Olivia.
The vast shadow magic within him surged out like a dark tide, flooding into Olivia’s body.
Ink-dark shadow magic and golden flames clashed violently on Olivia’s body.
Tunzuo gritted his teeth, fine beads of sweat forming on his forehead.
He strained to control his shadow magic, wrapping it like a massive net around the raging golden flames and holding them down.
Finally, under Tunzuo’s relentless output of magic, the domineering golden flames began to slowly extinguish.
The blackened skin on Olivia’s body also started to heal rapidly.
Her breathing gradually steadied, and her complexion improved.
“Phew…”
Tunzuo let out a long breath.
He collapsed onto the sand, thoroughly drained, his face pale as paper.
He asked Yuge urgently, his eyes fixed on the still-unconscious Olivia.
“What next? After suppressing it, how do I treat her?”
Yuge looked at Tunzuo, the ghostfire in his hollow eye sockets flickering faintly.
He spoke a shocking sentence.
“Feed her your blood. Your blood is the only thing that can counteract the authority of the ‘Sun of Ruin.’”
Hearing Yuge’s words, Tunzuo didn’t hesitate at all.
Not even a moment’s pause.
He violently slashed his wrist across the tachi’s blade.
Dark purple blood welled up, emitting a deep, ancient aura.
Tunzuo brought his wrist to Olivia’s lips and fed his blood into her mouth.
Though half-conscious, Olivia instinctively parted her lips and swallowed the warm liquid.
As Olivia drank Tunzuo’s blood, a miracle occurred.
Olivia’s originally pale face gradually regained a hint of rosiness.
Her tightly furrowed brows slowly relaxed.
The burning sensation deep in her soul, under the nourishment of Tunzuo’s blood, melted away like snow.
The sea breeze blew, carrying away the smell of blood.
Only the unconscious Olivia remained, lying quietly in Tunzuo’s arms.