Chapter 27: The Incantation of Passing

Lin Danian, alone, managed to entangle all the clay effigies, his fists transforming into afterimages as he struck from every angle.

"Damn it!"

He cursed angrily. Though he seemed unstoppable, each punch knocking back an effigy, the oppressive presence of the statue looming ever closer behind them grew overwhelming.

It was daylight now, and his supernatural abilities were greatly restrained. In such a dire crisis, he found himself powerless to break free.

The clay effigies felt no pain. Even when knocked away, they immediately struggled back to their feet. And as more of them broke apart, countless black beetles surged from the cracks, dense and terrifying to behold.

The effigies, at least, were manageable. Their movements were stiff, and though they feared neither pain nor death, there was still room to dodge their attacks. Even Zhou Bai could weave between them.

But the black beetles were another matter entirely. Their numbers were overwhelming, and their vitality astonishing—unless the wisp of yin energy at their core was destroyed, they would persist even with most of their bodies lost.

Wen Meng switched to defense. The cold air pouring from the compass in his hand condensed into a thick fog, tightly shielding the three of them.

Zhou Bai could feel the temperature plummet by at least six or seven degrees. Wen Meng's method proved effective: any beetle that touched the fog was either killed or injured. Yet, even so, the beetles hurled themselves into it, moths to a flame, perishing in droves.

As the corpses of the beetles piled up on the floor, the fog began to thin—a sign that the yin energy was nearly exhausted.

The statue continued its slow advance, not hurrying, as if deliberately waiting for its prey to collapse from exhaustion. Along the way, the beetles parted, clearing a path for it.

"This can't go on. In daylight, our yin energy is like water without a source," Wen Meng said darkly. The window was less than a few meters away, yet every step felt impossibly hard.

"We're so close—just a little further! Let's fight our way out!" Lin Danian shouted, smashing another effigy. Instantly, more black beetles poured out.

Seeing the oncoming tide of insects they could no longer withstand, his movements faltered. At that moment, another effigy swung a fist at him.

Hesitation cost him: the blow struck his chest and abdomen, throwing his breath into chaos.

The statue was now only a dozen steps away; they could see its gold-foiled face twisting grotesquely.

Clutching his chest, Lin Danian's eyes turned blood-red. Gritting his teeth, he prepared to charge at the statue, but Wen Meng reached out and stopped him.

"Wait—"

"I'll hold off the ghost. You two, take this chance—"

Before Wen Meng could finish, both men caught a faint glimmer of golden light flickering beside them.

"By the Supreme Command, I release you, lonely spirits— all ghosts, all beings, may you receive mercy."

Zhou Bai's voice rang out. Eyes closed, one hand gripping his knife's hilt, with each syllable, his aura grew stronger.

The curse had finally matured, all sixteen characters ready. He unleashed them in one breath, his energy becoming almost tangible.

Unlike before, when only a few words could be spoken, reaching sixteen characters revealed the true depth of his supernatural art, though he had reached a bottleneck—he could not yet conjure the seventeenth character.

The characters appeared on his skin, coursing over his body before dissolving into golden light and merging within him.

His skin turned pale gold, muscles and bones sheathed in shimmering light.

The wind was silent, his spirit as still as calm water.

Light left no shadow; his blade moved without trace.

A gentle breeze brushed his face. He gripped the executioner's blade with both hands, and in one deep breath, his figure flickered, leaving only an afterimage.

In that instant, Zhou Bai fully wielded the power of the curse, releasing it without reservation in a single breath.

To Lin Danian and Wen Meng, his aura exploded, golden light weaving through the swarm of effigies in a continuous line.

Zhou Bai became a flash of lightning, the clanging of metal ringing out in rapid succession, the only trace being the cold gleam each swing of his blade produced.

When his form reappeared, he was half-kneeling, chest heaving, his clothes soaked through with sweat.

The black beetles hung motionless in the air, neither advancing nor retreating. Only a murmur was heard:

"Rebirth..."

"Curse—kill!"

As the words fell, the mass of beetles behind Zhou Bai crashed to the ground like a torrential rain.

This strike shocked not only Lin Danian and Wen Meng, but even Zhou Bai himself.

In the instant the curse was unleashed, he had compressed what would have been minutes of power into a few heartbeats. To the others, only a few seconds had passed, but to Zhou Bai, time itself seemed to slow, his movements reaching their utmost limit.

Yet the exertion of such force left his body drained, frozen in place, unable to move.

"Lin Danian!" Wen Meng shouted, shaking off his astonishment. He withdrew the fog into the compass and slapped Lin Danian on the arm.

Lin Danian reacted instantly, seizing Wen Meng and leaping with all his might toward Zhou Bai.

The floor groaned under his weight, his two-meter frame surging forward with unnatural speed.

The statue reached Lin Danian's back at that moment, its mouth opening slightly. The voices of countless supplicants poured forth.

It raised a golden palm, light suppressed and contained, and swung down violently, just missing Lin Danian.

The floor exploded with a thunderous crash, a handprint a meter wide sinking several yards deep.

Lin Danian dared not look back, acting purely on instinct.

As he landed, he grabbed Luo Qi with his other hand, using the momentum to slide forward.

Bang!

The floor behind them caved in once more with a deafening crash—the statue in relentless pursuit.

Only a few steps from the window, Lin Danian summoned all his strength into his arms and hurled Zhou Bai and Wen Meng outside.

The two flew through the window and landed outside. Lin Danian exhaled in relief and quickly turned around.

The statue's terrifying face stared him down, its eyes utterly devoid of emotion or humanity.

Another palm strike shot straight for Lin Danian's chest.

He was ready. Clenching his right fist, he struck back.

Channeling all his yin energy into his right arm, the veins bulged along its length, swelling to an exaggerated meter long.