Chapter 304

Chapter 304 - Torment Over

Tap, tap, tap... Ji Huan always felt as if he heard footsteps, Black Egg's footsteps.

Ji Huan knew that this was when Black Egg started "running."

Black Egg was very skilled at this game. When he ran away, no one could locate him.

Hopefully, no one would find him this time...

It would be good...

Ji Huan's eyes were slightly open, yet all he saw was darkness.

His body was in extraordinary pain, suffering far beyond the limits that either human flesh or spirit could endure. It was even beyond what most monsters could withstand.

In such agony, most humans and monsters would likely have chosen suicide to escape the torment sooner.

Yet, Ji Huan endured it all with unparalleled resilience, suppressing every suicidal impulse his body attempted. He persevered in this manner.

Though his body suffered, his spirit remained serene.

He was weak. Despite Ajin mentioning that there was a trace of the so-called Nightmare Bloodline within him, it was incredibly diluted. Without the "little stars" bestowed by Hei Dan, he would never have been able to create such a dream the last time.

He was indeed weak. Despite knowing the enemy was right before him, all he could see was a blinding light. He couldn't even discern their figure.

He was truly weak. At such a time, he was powerless to assist Ajin in any way; instead, Ajin had secured all their escape routes...

But he never regretted coming back.

In that moment when the excruciating pain threatened to tear his scalp apart, Ji Huan's first response wasn't agony or torment, but rather, bliss.

The immense happiness of sharing half of Ajin's pain.

Just half the pain was unbearable. How must Ajin have felt, bearing the full brunt of it all alone before his return?

And he had been all alone.

Bearing everything alone is the most heart-wrenching thing.

Yet, he hadn't expected that in the end, he would still leave Hei Dan all alone.

Ajin had already paved a path of escape for Hei Dan in the darkness. If he ran into it, no one would ever find him again.

He had now grown to resemble a human, able to blend in among humans and venture into the world of monsters. He was obedient, literate, and skilled in arithmetic, aware of which plants were edible and which were not... Compared to his peers, he knew a great deal, enough to survive in an unfamiliar world.

Though life surely wouldn't be as comfortable as at home, at least he could live on.

Living, and gradually growing up...

Slowly...

His arm thumped heavily against his side as Ji Huan saw a burst of light pierce through the darkness once more, its intensity stinging his eyes.

Though he couldn't make out the figure, Ji Huan knew: that person had arrived.

Through the blur, he seemed to glimpse a pair of wings, pure white and radiant with holy light. The pristine feathers stood up like razors with a swish, and in that instant, he felt as though he was seeing something white...

Death itself.

"What kind of demonic creature are you to still possess consciousness at this moment?"

"I should have extracted the core from every demon's body."

"No, that can't be right. You're not a demon. You—"

"You don't have a core."

In the snowy white landscape before Ji Huan, all he could hear was chaos as his ears were overwhelmed by jumbled sound waves. This form of "language" was too destructive for a human to withstand.

More blood trickled from his ear canals, the corner of his nose, and even his eyes.

He sensed the other lifting their foot, only to feel a heavy pressure on his chest, right where his heart lay.

"A fleshy core? What exactly are you?"

"How can such a fragile core be utilized by any lifeform?"

Ji Huan sensed the other party lifting their foot.

It was just a lift, but the other person's foot was about to come crashing down with force once more—

Yet, the impact never landed on his body.

Ji Huan felt a soft little object suddenly rush against his chest, followed by a pair of familiar small paws tightly embracing his neck.

Their little monster hadn't run away; it had returned!

Ji Huan should have been astonished, but there was no time for that now.

Despite being unable to see anything, his instinct warned him of an impending attack.

Hastily pulling the little monster into his embrace, he used his remaining strength to shield it securely. In the next moment—

Ji Huan felt a heavy blow to his back.

The long-enduring agony from his heart finally came to an end.

In that very instant when he was struck, Ji Huan heard the sound of his own heart shattering.

Then—

His thoughts plunged into an abyss of utter darkness.

Unaware of what had befallen Jiujiu, Hei Dan merely clung back tightly when Jiujiu embraced him.

"Jiujiu, Dan Dan doesn't want to be someone else's child, Dan Dan won't leave…" Sniffling and weeping, the young monster held onto his Jiujiu with all his might, tears and snot streaming down his face.

But Jiujiu's embrace gradually weakened.

Finally, Ji Huan's hand thumped heavily on the ground.

With a glob of snot dangling from his nose, the little monster suddenly realized that he was no longer in Jiujiu's arms.

Pushing himself out of Jiujiu's arm, he saw Jiujiu's closed eyes and the bloodied, pained expression that didn't resemble sleep at all, but rather—

Hei Dan tentatively reached out a tiny paw to feel for Jiujiu's nose, then froze before cautiously placing his ear against Jiujiu's left chest. Sensing no breath, he pressed his paw forcefully against Jiujiu's heart, and was about to blow air into Jiujiu's mouth next.

Despite his efforts, Jiujiu remained still and unresponsive.

Black Egg stood frozen beside Jiujiu.

A large teardrop, as it welled up in his eye, transformed into an ice bead and rolled down the little monster's face with a thud.

Extending his tiny hand, he gently wiped away the blood from Jiujiu's face, doing his best to clean him up. Then—

He turned his head.

Facing the "man" directly across from him.

The moment their eyes met, the man suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. His golden eyes widened in shock, beads of cold sweat trickling down his forehead.

He suddenly realized that he had misunderstood something.

Just now, upon seeing the little monster, he had thought he was witnessing a resurrected demon.

But he was wrong.

At this moment, the little monster was the genuine, "Reborn Demon"!

The previous innocence and docility were completely gone. Now, its face was shrouded in black fog, with two blood-red eyes embedded within, large and hollow. Its small mouth, also crimson, had transformed into a red hole, opening and closing as it spoke, "Egghead doesn't want to be a good boy anymore."

"Egghead wants to…."

The moment the word "want" left its lips, the black fog that barely maintained the shape of a child suddenly expanded! At the same time, the tiny red mouth snapped wide open, transforming into an utterly terrifying giant maw! With a swift engulfing motion, the black fog was instantly devoured, as if it had consumed itself entirely. The small monster was now a mass of scarlet mist!

And almost instantaneously, as it turned into red fog, the haze enveloped the sky, hurtling towards the creature's direction with a fierce roar!

This was the state of "Nuclear Full Combustion"!

It was actually in the state of "Full Combustion"!

Under the overwhelming red fog that blanketed his golden gaze, the man bathed in divine light desperately swung a beam of white light, barely managing to withstand the first assault.

Yes, just the first attack.

An ordinary monster in "Nuclear Full Combustion" state was several times more powerful than usual, and in this equivalent state, the "Demon" was unstoppable.

Despite his current infantile form, with the presence of his core, he was incredibly powerful.

Moreover, he was desperately absorbing the "Force" around him. The latent power concealed within the soil, meant as a reserve, was being stirred by the core within his body. Amidst the trembling earth and shifting mountains, a horrifying "reclamation of Force" had begun.

The man in the holy light was unaware of how many contingency plans the other had left behind. Nonetheless, he knew that if things continued to escalate, he might not be able to withstand him now!

Back then, even with the combined strength of himself and his teammates, they failed to force the opponent into such a state. Yet, now, the opponent had entered it voluntarily?

Once in this state, when his core burned out, there would be no more "regeneration" this time around!

Despite being relentlessly pursued, the man with golden eyes suddenly smiled amidst the radiant white light.

Indeed, there was no need for him to engage in futile efforts; all he had to do was wait.

It mattered not if the demon grew even more powerful; he would uncover and absorb every shard of the malevolent "force" that the adversary had concealed, which might have served as a stepping stone for their resurrection in the future—

And just as the demon reached its pinnacle, ready to deliver the final blow, he would wield his last remaining feathered wing as a blade, piercing through the enemy's body once more.

Dodging deftly, he narrowed his eyes, observing the transformation of the crimson mist before him.

He witnessed the mist expanding relentlessly. As more and more black "threads" were absorbed into it, the power concealed within the crimson veil grew increasingly menacing.

Gradually, the mist became more condensed.

Through the veil, he could almost discern a pair of black wings hidden within.

Staring at the mass of red, he felt as if he were locking eyes with his most despised foe from years past.

He knew that the final moment was drawing near.

Now was the time!

As a familiar crimson hue rushed towards him, he exerted all his strength to unfold his wings behind him.

As the distance closed in, he finally made out the true appearance of the demon that had been concealed by the red mist.

To his surprise, the demon was, at that very instant, weeping profusely.

Ah... It must be an illusion, right? He actually saw a demon shed tears?

As he thought, he reached behind him with his other hand to grasp the last intact wing. With a forceful pull accompanied by convulsions, he extracted a crimson bone.

Using his own body as a blade, this was the moment he would utterly vanquish the demon!

With a delighted smile on his face, he held up the crimson dagger evenly.

And at that very instant, the demon's final blow arrived.

A tearful final strike.

As his adversary, he heard the opponent's "last words" once more.

This time, the words were --

"Don't be such a good boy, Egg!"

"Egg wants to—"

"Danny wants to kill you!"

Amused by this absurd "last testament," he smiled and raised his blade.

Just as he was fully prepared, ready to strike the fatal blow at his opponent—

Everything seemed to freeze in place.

A sharp pain pierced his chest. He looked down, unable to believe that a sword tip had suddenly appeared there.

It was a sword made from red wing bones, a blade forged from feathers.

At that moment, the sword had just penetrated his chest, still warm with his own blood.

Staring in disbelief at his chest, he fell heavily to the ground.

Dragged down by his massive wings, he plummeted from the southern sky.

As he fell, he saw a gigantic feathered wing slide past his vision.

One half of its form was pure and snowy white, while the other half was drenched in blood, clearly having just undergone a brutal bone extraction.

The owner of those massive wings approached the demon that was descending upon him from the sky.

Approaching it, he then reached out to grasp the mass of red mist.

"Killing people isn't something good children should casually speak of."

"Our little Black Egg, it's best you remain an obedient child."

"Stay forever by Jiujiu's side as a good child."

With wrinkled fingers, he gently stroked the red mist, patting it softly, accompanied by a loud wail. The red fog dissipated, revealing a tiny demonic infant nestled once more in the man's arms.

This was the final sight for the pierced being of holy light.

And it was also the first image that greeted Ji Huan when he opened his eyes.

Author's Note: =-=

Misunderstandings are to be avoided.

Scratching his head in embarrassment,

People's imaginations have been galloping wildly. Though it's somewhat awkward, Little Hua is indeed just an ordinary person with a touch of extraordinariness.

His strength doesn't lie in physical prowess or the power of his bloodline, but elsewhere.