Chapter 67: Who Are You?

Chapter 65: Who Are You?

Lothe stared helplessly at the Cursed Soul Butterfly Demon.

Even after reaching Level 5, he couldn’t even lay a finger on him.

So this... is what true power looks like.

The disparity in strength was overwhelming. For the first time since awakening his powers, Lothe felt utterly helpless.

Worse still, he could feel his soul itching from within, as though thousands of invisible hands were gripping it and tearing it apart piece by piece.

"Argh..." Lothe groaned quietly, clutching his chest.

"What is it? Are you alright?" Seana immediately moved beside him, her expression frantic as she checked his pulse.

"What a loving couple," the Cursed Soul Butterfly Demon watched them with distant eyes, as though their interaction had reminded him of something from a much older time.

"I told you it was a mistake that we trespassed into your master’s tomb," Lothe said through gritted teeth. "We didn’t take anything, nor did we steal anything."

He steadied himself, forcing his trembling body upright.

"Just because we’re humans doesn’t give you the right to categorize us according to whatever definition you have of humans!"

Silence descended over the chamber.

The feeling of weakness struck Lothe harder than any physical wound.

It reminded him of Old B—how helpless he had been when Old B died right before his eyes. He had sworn then that he would never be weak again.

Yet now... reality had brutally slapped him in the face.

Against this ancient entity, all his strength meant nothing.

But... I can’t die here.

Lothe turned his gaze toward Seana. She was equally injured, her face pale beneath the suffocating pressure.

And I can’t let anything happen to her!

[WARNING: Life force and soul essence being continuously drained by Soul-Ripping Curse!]

Lothe completely ignored the flickering system prompts. At that moment, surviving wasn’t his only concern—he had someone to protect.

The Void Spear in his hand suddenly hummed, as if responding to his unyielding determination.

Lothe tightened his grip. He gathered every remaining strand of Void Qi within his body.

VRMMMM!

Purple Void Qi coated the shaft of his spear, swirling violently around the weapon. Behind him, space suddenly twisted, tearing open into a dark spatial vortex.

Without hesitation, Lothe stepped backward into it. Space swallowed his body whole.

The Cursed Soul Butterfly Demon stared at the empty space where Lothe had been standing.

Though he refused to admit it, these two humans had surprised him repeatedly—especially the young man. For a brief moment, he had even wondered whether Lothe was truly human.

Seeing them continue their futile struggle almost made him laugh.

"Pointless," his voice was quiet.

Then—his eyes snapped toward the space beside him.

SWISH!

His scythe slashed through the air.

CLANG!

A black spearhead emerged from a spatial distortion, colliding directly with the scythe shaft.

Lothe stepped through the rift.

The Cursed Soul Butterfly Demon immediately condensed dark Qi into his left palm.

BANG!

His palm struck Lothe’s chest, sending him staggering backward.

But before the Demon could follow up—

SHING! SHING! SHING!

Multiple Spatial Blades materialized around the Demon, condensed the instant Lothe emerged!

The Demon spun his scythe in a swift circle.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

Every spatial blade was deflected.

His eyes widened slightly—not from fear, but from genuine astonishment.

Humans can cultivate... but how can one at this level tear through space using his own Qi?

Normally, such spatial teleportation required a supreme divine-grade spatial treasure, which were absurdly rare. Yet this young human was accomplishing it through raw personal authority.

The Demon swung his scythe, unleashing a dark crescent blade.

BOOM!

The remaining spatial blades shattered.

Lothe had already vanished.

Lothe reappeared right beside Seana.

Her eyes widened in shock—even she hadn’t expected him to teleport so seamlessly.

Without hesitation, Lothe wrapped his arm around her waist. A spatial vortex opened beneath their boots, swallowing them both.

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!

Multiple black crescent slashes tore through the empty space where they had been standing a millisecond prior.

The Demon landed lightly on the stone floor, his brow furrowing. "Tricks."

Lothe’s Qi reserves were almost completely drained; he couldn’t execute another spatial teleportation.

FWOOSH!

Multiple thin paper Talismans suddenly flew toward the Demon through the dust.

His eyes narrowed as he sensed the strange energy contained within them. Without underestimating them, he swung his scythe.

SHING!

The Talismans were sliced apart.

The Demon vanished instantly.

SWISH!

He appeared in midair directly above Lothe and Seana, scythe raised to crush them.

Instead of panicking—Lothe smiled.

The Demon paused mid-descent. What is this human planning now?

Lothe released Seana’s waist and flicked several Talismans upward between his fingers.

FWOOSH! FWOOSH! FWOOSH!

The Talismans flew toward the descending Demon. The moment they made contact—

VRMMMM!

Glowing purple Qi lines erupted from the paper, wrapping tightly around the Demon’s frame and seeping into his body.

The Cursed Soul Butterfly Demon froze! For the first time, genuine surprise filled his eyes. The binding force disrupted his momentum, causing his descending body to halt midair before dropping heavily toward the stone floor.

That microscopic opening was all Lothe needed.

"Rift Thrust!"

The Void Spear spun violently in Lothe’s hands before driving forward into space.

SHING!

The spear tore through spatial coordinates.

The Demon broke free of the bindings and chuckled. "Same tricks?"

He raised his hand, condensing black Qi into a barrier before the incoming spear.

But—

SWISH!

Dozens of microscopic spatial blades suddenly erupted from the spearhead!

The Demon hadn’t anticipated the sudden attack! His eyes widened as several spatial blades grazed across his face.

A thin line of dark blood appeared on his cheek.

The Demon touched the cut with his fingers, his expression darkening into cold fury. A mere human... had actually drawn his blood.

"You’ll pay for that," his voice dropped to freezing temperature.

BOOOOOOM!!

Dark Qi erupted from his body.

Suddenly—"Huh?"

The Demon frowned. Something was restricting his movement again!

He looked down to see four [Locking-Binding Talismans] floating in a cardinal formation around him, purple Qi lines pinning his arms and legs in place!

Lothe’s eyes sharpened. "Now!"

Seana understood instantly. "On it!"

She raised the [Blood Moon Sword], her aura flaring!

[Blood Call!]

VRMMMM!

Crimson Qi erupted from her body as thousands of blood swords materialized in the air. But this time, the Qi coating the blades was significantly darker and far more lethal.

Seana triggered her passive skill—[Bloodbane]—infusing deadly, corrosive poison into every single blood sword!

She waved her hand forward. "Go!"

SHOOOOOM!!

Thousands of poisoned blood swords rained down upon the restrained Demon! Simultaneously, Lothe thrust his Void Spear forward, coiling purple spatial energy around the strike!

BOOOOOOM!!

The dual attacks collided directly with the Cursed Soul Butterfly Demon!

The Demon spread his massive wings.

FWOOOOOSH!

The multi-eyed butterfly wings folded around his body like an absolute shield, taking the brunt of the explosion!

"ENOUGH!"

His roar shook the subterranean chamber.

BOOOOOOM!!

An explosive shockwave of black Qi detonated outward, shattering the binding Talismans and blasting both Lothe and Seana backward!

PFFT!

Blood sprayed from their lips as their bodies slammed violently into the stone wall, collapsing onto the floor in a cloud of dust.

The Demon slowly unfolded his wings.

He looked down at his right hand. Spiderweb-like, dark-red cracks had spread across his pale skin—the corrosive effect of Seana’s [Bloodbane]. Part of his black robes had been charred.

His eyes narrowed in anger.

One of the gigantic eyes embedded within his butterfly wings slowly blinked.

FWOOM!

Dark Qi poured from the eye into his corrupted hand. The dark-red cracks receded rapidly, forcibly extracting and purging the Bloodbane poison from his system.

Under the horrified gazes of Lothe and Seana, the poison vanished completely.

The Demon flexed his healed hand. "I’ve tolerated enough tricks from both of you... especially from you."

He raised his scythe.

SWOOSH!

The black blade swept toward them, carrying absolute death.

Lothe and Seana stared at the incoming strike. They could feel the icy touch of Death.

Lothe’s eyes burned with cold, unyielding fire. I refuse to die. Not here. Not now!

Whether it was his supreme willpower or something buried deep within his soul, a dormant power answered his call!

BOOOOOOM!!

Dark, purple-black tendrils suddenly erupted from Lothe’s body, twisting through the air like ravenous serpents!

FWOOSH!

The tendrils rapidly interwove into a massive, spiderweb-like barrier directly in front of them!

CLANG!!!

The Demon’s scythe slammed into the tendrils with world-shaking force, but the blade stopped completely!

The Demon stared at his weapon in disbelief. The purple-black tendrils had wrapped tightly around the steel, holding it in place.

Lothe gritted his teeth, manipulating the tendrils with the last of his strength.

The scythe was violently redirected, shooting backward toward its wielder!

The Demon caught his weapon effortlessly, his face darkening as he prepared to strike with even denser dark Qi.

SHRIIIIK!

Purple-black tendrils erupted from the stone floor beneath his boots! They wrapped around his wrists, his arms, and his legs!

BOOM!

The Demon was dragged downward, his feet slammed against the stone floor!

He struggled, but the tendrils tightened furiously.

SIZZLE!

Black smoke rose from his skin. The purple-black tendrils were burning directly into his flesh, bypassing his natural defenses!

The Demon froze, his eyes widening in shock. This wasn’t ordinary Qi!

His stunned gaze followed the tendrils back to Lothe. His killing intent vanished, replaced by profound suspicion and hesitation.

He looked at the tendrils, then at Lothe.

For the first time since the fight began, the Cursed Soul Butterfly Demon looked at Lothe not with amusement, but with genuine shock.

"Human..." his voice dropped into a dangerously cold register. "...Who are you?"​