Chapter 067: The Warrior Spirit

Do not look directly!

Xiu Nan reacted at once, his entire body frozen in place, his neck as if rusted, unable to turn. Out of the corner of his eye, he could make out the black figure approaching, pressing close to his side. That cold, slippery sensation reminded him of the tentacles of an octopus oozing slime, sending a wave of revulsion through him.

Goosebumps rose inch by inch along his skin, and his heart pounded wildly in his chest. Yet, after a long wait, the shadow made no move, simply pressed quietly against his side.

Was it waiting for Xiu Nan to turn and look at it?

He waited again, and gradually discerned the shadow’s pattern: as long as he didn’t look directly, nothing would happen.

He swallowed hard and took a slow step forward. As he moved, the black shadow advanced in tandem. Yet Xiu Nan could only hear his own footsteps; the shadow made not the slightest sound as it moved.

He began to walk at a normal pace, and the shadow kept up, making no other motion, ever pressed to his side.

“No reaction? Then let’s see what happens if I run.”

In an instant, Xiu Nan shot forward, his movements as agile as a leopard. His explosive speed far surpassed the peak of ordinary human limits; the muscles of his legs tensed with power, ready to unleash tremendous force.

Even then, the shadow kept pace. Only now, the distance between them was no longer so close.

A flicker of joy flashed in Xiu Nan’s heart. “Time for Meditation!”

Thud! Thud! Thud! He could hear his heart drumming in his chest as he shot down the passage, leaving only blurred afterimages in his wake.

The wind whipped his hair, streams of air scraping his cheeks like sharp knives, stinging with pain.

But Xiu Nan breathed easier—he had left the black shadow behind; it had vanished from sight.

A second later, the effect of Meditation Time faded.

Xiu Nan’s figure abruptly reappeared in the corridor, and he collapsed to the ground, body bowed and trembling. His whole form began to shake, a strange buzzing filled his ears, his eyes grew hazy and blurred.

Tears streamed uncontrollably, rendering the passage before him distorted and unclear. His mind was a jumble of chaos.

After five minutes of painful groaning, Xiu Nan staggered back to his feet, utterly spent. It turned out that even without looking at the shadow, he still suffered its effects—if he had been a moment slower in escaping, he might have died on the spot.

Leaning against the wall, he struggled forward. Half an hour later, he finally recovered enough to walk without stumbling.

“Clack, clack, clack, clack…”

Footsteps echoed through the corridor.

Suddenly, Xiu Nan halted—his path was blocked by a stone door. At its center was a blurred relief, resembling a single eye.

He had no idea what it represented.

Xiu Nan tried to push the stone door, but his strength wasn’t enough. He summoned Bai Mu, and together they managed to shift the door inward, opening a narrow gap.

Pressing his eye to the crack, he peered inside.

It was a pitch-black corridor. Faint green moss clung to the rock walls, looking much the same as outside, though the air reeked of heavy mildew.

After a moment’s hesitation, Xiu Nan darted inside.

No sooner had he passed the threshold than alarms blared in his mind.

He dove forward in a roll, landing in the grime with a less-than-elegant sprawl—but it saved him from a lethal ambush. A black shadow streaked past his back, slamming into the wall with great force.

Boom! Chunks of stone rained down from the impact.

Turning, Xiu Nan saw that his attacker was a double-headed python. Its body was as thick as a barrel, easily over ten meters long, covered in dense scales.

Both monstrous heads gaped wide, baring savage fangs and throats that glimmered with red and blue light!

“What is that!” Xiu Nan hastily rolled aside.

Barely out of the way, two entangled beams of red and blue light struck where he’d just stood.

In an instant, the ground exploded in a flurry of stone shards; one half of the blast zone blazed with crimson fire, the other froze into a sheet of blue ice.

The destructive power was shocking, formidable indeed.

Pressed against the wall, Xiu Nan watched as the dual-headed frostfire python lunged again, its gaping maws opening wider and wider, intent on tearing him apart and swallowing him whole.

A piercing screech rang out.

A massive iron talon shot from the side, seizing the python’s body in a vice-like grip, and with a surge of brutal force, drove it back.

Bai Mu seemed to be in a rage, pinning the serpent and smashing it against the opposite wall. With another swipe, Bai Mu’s other talon battered one of the python’s heads, pinning it to the ground with monstrous strength.

Scales clashed with stone, resounding with thunderous booms.

Xiu Nan had already spent two evolution points, yet Bai Mu still had not reached the next stage. Still, his form had grown again—now two-point-three meters tall, his body even more imposing. It seemed all ten evolution points had been poured into raw strength!

The previous evaluation had changed as well: “Within its rank, this extraordinary raptor’s strength is among the very best!”

Soon, the two beasts were locked in ferocious combat. In the end, the blue-eyed eagle Bai Mu, battered and bloodied, emerged victorious. The double-headed python’s corpse lay motionless on the ground.

Just as Xiu Nan approached to examine it, the python’s body dissolved into radiant motes of light, vanishing in a dazzling flare.

“So it was a rune, not a living thing…”

“You have gained: 3 Evolution Points.”

“You have gained a Damaged Rune: Red Flame.”

“You have gained a Damaged Rune: Blue Ice.”

Xiu Nan’s eyes lit up. The evolution points were expected, but the two damaged runes were a pleasant surprise.

“Red Flame Rune, Blue Ice Rune… Are these some kind of auxiliary runes? Or ability runes?” Xiu Nan wasn’t sure if he could use them in the blue-eyed eagle’s evolution.

He pondered for a moment, then suddenly turned his gaze to a corner.

In the shadow near the stone door, there seemed to be someone lying there, body stiff and motionless.

Xiu Nan cautiously backed away several steps, putting a safe distance between himself and the figure, then used all three evolution points on the spot.

Bai Mu let out a low, echoing cry, and his body began to change at last. He continued to grow, but only by another twenty centimeters, stopping at two and a half meters tall. Xiu Nan’s eyes brightened, delight overcoming any disappointment.

For beneath Bai Mu’s lower beak, a new pouch had formed—the foundation for ossification ability, essentially doubling its effect. And not just the beak; a new eye had opened on Bai Mu’s brow, turning him into a four-eyed bird.

Compared to the original ossification ability, the blue-eyed eagle’s effect was now four times stronger!

Xiu Nan was greatly satisfied, his confidence surging. He led Bai Mu straight toward the figure in the corner.

Only upon approaching did he see it was nothing more than a skeleton draped in tattered clothing. This Secret Ring Adept had been dead for ages, the bones nearly crumbling to dust.

The dual-headed frostfire python must have been his rune—impressive that it lasted so long! Perhaps there was something peculiar about this place; Xiu Nan wasn’t sure.

Bending down, he noticed a faint metallic gleam in the skeleton’s hand.

He pried it open and found a badge.

It was entirely bronze in color, with inscriptions on both sides.

Front: Victory and Immortality.

Back: Courage is Life!

The system gave a brief description of the skeleton:

“Battle Wraith: A degenerate lost spirit, still clinging to the honor of its past… A corpse that has lost its ideals.”