Translator: CinderTL
Darkness gathered behind him like a pool of viscous black water, and countless black-red patterns emerged on Wei Jinting's exposed skin, resembling brands.
These patterns were both a curse and shackles.
Wu watched him with great interest, the blade in his hand seemingly gaining a consciousness of its own, emitting a hum akin to excitement.
The corners of Wu's lips curled up, and his once handsome face began to twist into something ferocious. His eyes locked onto Wei Jinting's, filled with an insatiable desire.
Compared to the person before him, all the strange tales he had collected before were mere trash. This was what he truly wanted!
He wanted to make Wei Jinting his most perfect collection.
The most terrifying urban legend!
The darkness surrounding Wu boiled violently, as if a black ocean had been struck by a storm.
In the next second, two blurry shadows collided with tremendous force, their impact sending ripples like two black tidal waves.
The gleaming blade left a deep mark on Wei Jinting's body. If he hadn't dodged in time, his entire left arm would have been severed.
Wei Jinting's once normal left arm now turned ashen, exuding a lifeless aura. Countless blood vessels ruptured, and blood dripped continuously from his slender fingertips.
The splattered blood flowed along the blade's edge, creating a horrifying yet mesmerizing beauty.
What was even more bizarre was that the blood seemed to come alive, boiling violently and transforming into countless dark-red patterns.
The black-red curse that had been on Wei Jinting's body now appeared on Wu's arm holding the blade, even coiling around the blade itself.
The curses wriggled like young snakes, surging toward Wu's body and heart.
Raising his hand, Wu looked at the desperately wriggling curses and showed a disappointed expression. "Is this all?" With a flick of his wrist, he shattered the curses clinging to the blade.
Immediately after, countless hidden curses twisted into dozens of chains, stabbing toward him like giant serpents drawn to blood.
By now, the room had vanished, and the two stood on a vast, pitch-black ocean.
The chains formed entirely from curses swept horizontally toward Wu, but he made no attempt to dodge, instead cutting them apart with his blade.
The curse chains, fearless and relentless, poured out like a black ocean, while Wu stood firm, his blade cutting against the tide.
In the midst of their clash, he had discovered his opponent's weakness.
It seemed Wei Jinting could only attack using the chains formed from curse energy, and during their first exchange, he had been injured the moment Wu closed the distance.
As long as he could get close, the game would be over.
As if sensing Wu's thoughts, countless curse chains tightly wrapped around Wei Jinting's body, as if he were hidden beneath a waterfall of black-red curses.
The blade's light was relentless, severing chains one after another, which then splattered into dark-red curses. While not fatal, they were troublesome to deal with.
Getting close to him was no simple task.
In the next moment, after cutting through a chain that had tried to ambush him from behind, Wu suddenly appeared beside a massive picture book.
Placing a hand on the book, it slowly opened, releasing a sinister aura. What followed was a scene that sent chills down one's spine.
An arm reached out from the book, covered in blood.
No.
Not just one.
Dozens of arms, leaden in color and clearly not belonging to the living, clawed their way out. Countless vengeful spirits crawled out from the book.
Wei Jinting, peering through the gaps, narrowed his eyes sharply.
This Wu... had actually released vengeful spirits from the urban legend.
Dozens of vengeful spirits pounced, grabbing the chains and tearing at them frantically. Though some were crushed by the chains or exploded from the overwhelming curse energy, they still caused significant trouble for Wei Jinting.
Taking advantage of the brief moment when the chains were entangled by the spirits, Wu cut through the curses blocking his path and closed in on Wei Jinting.
In the next second, the sharp blade pierced through Wei Jinting's body.
Wei Jinting coughed up a mouthful of blood, and the mutations on his body melted away like ice. The surrounding darkness receded like a tide.
They were back in Room 808.
Staring at the man who now had only half a life left, Wu expressionlessly pulled out the blade. Wei Jinting clutched his wound, staggering back a few steps before finally managing to steady himself.
"Haah... haah..." He gasped heavily. The blade that had struck him seemed strange; the wound felt like it was being torn apart continuously, the pain excruciating.
He knew that the blade was also tainted with curses.
The despair and curses Wu carried were no less than his own.
"Cough... cough..." He coughed violently, then wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand. After a moment, he grinned, revealing teeth stained with blood. "You're more troublesome than I thought."
Wu looked at him without responding, the blade at his side gleaming coldly.
"Ah, this hurts like hell." Wei Jinting suddenly broke character, clutching his wound and leaning against the wall. He whined in a rather unsportsmanlike manner, "You really went all out, huh? Just you wait, I'll remember this!"
"My abilities aren't suited for combat, so losing to you isn't embarrassing. Besides, we agreed to a one-on-one, but you had to call in reinforcements!" He complained with a hint of regret. "I should've brought my little Ran Ran along. He'd have cut you down in seconds."
"Those who have lost the door will no longer have memories," Wu said, looking at Wei Jinting, who had lost the ability to resist, as if he were a cherished collectible. "So whether you remember me or not is meaningless. In the end, the result will be the same for you."
Wu examined Wei Jinting up and down, his satisfaction unconcealed. A collectible with a door was a rare find.
"It might hurt a little." Tired of wasting words, Wu held the blade upside down and slowly walked toward him. "Bear with it. Soon..." He paused, "you'll never feel pain again."
"Wait!" Wei Jinting, watching Wu approach, suddenly pulled off his hood and shouted, "There's one more thing I need to discuss with you."
Staring at Wei Jinting's face, Wu was momentarily stunned, then seemed to suddenly understand something. He nodded lightly. "So this is your ability."
"Alright, alright, I give up! I surrender, okay?" Wei Jinting, now with a completely different appearance, shouted, "My ability is disguise, and compared to horror comics, I prefer gentler horror novels."
"So if you force me into your urban legend, that would be a violation of civil rights." Wei Jinting snorted, threatening, "That's illegal! The police won't let you off the hook, and you might even end up eating lead."
A flash of impatience crossed Wu's face. He wasn't one to tolerate nonsense, especially from someone so unreasonable.
Seeing that Wu's killing intent had been stirred, Wei Jinting quickly shouted, "You can't kill me! If you kill me, we'll all die!"
(End of the Chapter)
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