Chapter Forty-Eight: Trapping the Soul Ghost

“Kid, stay here and wait for the right moment to escape,” the Blood Demon said loudly.

“What about you?” Yufan’s eyes fixed on the Blood Demon, a hint of concern shining within them.

“I can’t even win this fight; won’t you be dead then?” the Blood Demon replied.

“Thank you. I will never forget this great kindness,” Yufan said earnestly.

“No need to thank me! I’m just repaying the debt of giving you the token! If anyone deserves thanks, it’s him!” the Blood Demon’s voice faltered.

In an instant, the Blood Demon’s form dissolved into a swirling black mist, like the deepest nightmare cloaked in night, swift and unstoppable as it lunged toward the Elder Soul Ghost. The mist seemed to brim with endless resentment and rage, twisting the very air around it.

The moment the black mist touched the Elder Soul Ghost, a flash of light revealed the Blood Demon had reformed into a lithe human shape, his eyes glowing with bloodthirsty red light. His left hand clamped down with the precision of iron tongs on the Elder’s head, the force so great the surrounding space trembled.

With a low roar, the Blood Demon exerted tremendous strength, hoisting the Elder high before smashing him brutally into the ground.

The impact was like a collapsing mountain; the earth cracked with a thunderous roar, dust and debris scattering, forming a chaotic vortex.

Only the Elder’s twisted face and terrified eyes remained frozen in that final moment of despair.

The air around seemed to freeze, leaving the Blood Demon’s cold silhouette standing resolute amid the dust, proclaiming his thirst for freedom and fearless defiance against a formidable foe.

Suddenly, the air was rent by an invisible blade, shattering the silence with an unforeseen upheaval.

The Blood Demon’s posture, slightly slackened from victory, was caught unaware as a shadow silently slipped behind him.

The once seemingly impenetrable ground dissolved like an illusion, replaced by intricate wooden textures slowly piecing together into the grotesque figure of the Elder Soul Ghost.

The Soul Ghost’s eyes shimmered with an eerie green light in the darkness, a sinister smile curling at his lips, like a vengeful messenger returned from hell.

His form wavered between wood and flesh, each movement accompanied by subtle yet grating cracks, the air thick with a musty, decaying stench.

Yufan’s heart pounded wildly as he pressed against the wall, eyes fixed on the sudden turn of events.

The confrontation between the Blood Demon and the Elder Soul Ghost was like two invisible undercurrents violently clashing in the air, each clash pressing down on him with an intangible weight.

He swallowed hard, fists involuntarily clenching, as if that alone could grant him a flicker of courage to survive.

A chilling breeze swept past, carrying an intensifying aura of decay, rushing straight toward Yufan. He snapped his head around to see a ghostly green light tracing a sinister arc through the darkness, aimed directly at him.

It was the Elder Soul Ghost’s attack—silent but deadly.

Yufan’s heart jolted; instinctively, he sprang off the ground, darting sideways like an arrow released from a bow, narrowly evading the lethal strike.

His thoughts scattered like leaves caught in a storm, chaotic yet resolute.

He drew a deep breath, his gaze sweeping the surroundings, searching for the best escape route.

Moonlight filtered through shattered window panes, casting fragmented shadows that lent the perilous chamber an eerie atmosphere.

He moved stealthily along the wall, each step careful to avoid making a sound, fearful of drawing the attention of the unknown horror.

Suddenly, a faint creak echoed from a nearby corner, tightening Yufan’s chest as his body tensed instantly.

He spun quickly, eyes blazing, to see a loose floorboard slowly shifting, revealing a narrow gap leading into utter darkness—as if opening onto an abyss of the unknown.

Without hesitation, Yufan bent low, using hands and feet to squeeze through the narrow crevice with great effort.

The Blood Demon’s gaze lingered briefly where Yufan had vanished, a complex smile curling his lips—an expression mingling the acceptance of life’s impermanence with relief at the younger’s escape.

He slowly closed his eyes, as if able to pierce the thick floor and see Yufan struggling forward in the darkness.

Then, he took a step, then another, each heavy and deliberate, as though bearing the weight of countless pasts and future hopes.

The Blood Demon’s palm lightly pressed over the gap, warmth contrasting sharply with the cold floor. He closed his eyes in concentration, a dark red power surging from his palm, seeping slowly into every crack beneath.

As his form vanished into the shadows, the floorboard silently settled back into place, as if nothing had happened.

The Elder Soul Ghost’s fury erupted like a volcano. The ground beneath him seemed unable to bear the overwhelming rage, cracking rapidly like a spiderweb, stones scattering and dust blotting out the sky.

His eyes opened wide, the eerie green light flickering violently within, like twin spectral lamps ready to consume all in darkness.

“This brat has trapped me?” he snarled through clenched teeth, each word squeezed out with uncontrollable anger and unwillingness.

With a powerful thrust, the ground collapsed beneath him, but the Elder’s form rose like a phantom, evading the self-destructive attack.

Suspended in midair, surrounded by a thick aura of decay, he whipped his hands fiercely. The swirling green lights accelerated, transforming into sharp green arrows that tore through the air with piercing whistles, aimed straight at the direction Yufan fled, determined to snuff out any hope of escape in darkness.

Amidst this, the Blood Demon’s figure slowly emerged from the shadows, treading upon rings of eerie blood floating like deadly, blooming flowers from the abyss—both beautiful and lethal.

With a gentle wave of his arm, the air seemed to tear apart by an invisible force. Instantly, countless blood-red hands surged from the void, each differing in form—some aged and weathered, others fresh and tender—all emitting a chilling, heart-stopping gleam.

These blood hands raced with astonishing speed, weaving into a vast and intricate crimson web, enveloping the green arrows speeding toward Yufan.

The moment the arrows met the blood web, a harsh friction erupted, green and red light interlacing, filling the air with a pungent blend of blood and decay.

The green arrows, as if pulled by unseen hands, veered from their paths, gently yet firmly ensnared by the Blood Demon’s massive crimson net.

Each arrow’s touch upon the web felt like being drawn into an endless vortex, their green glow struggling and twisting in the sea of red before finally dissipating into delicate wisps of smoke that vanished into the air.

Beneath the blood web, a profound whirlpool seemed to rotate slowly, swallowing surrounding light and plunging the space into deeper darkness and strangeness.

The Elder Soul Ghost halted abruptly midair, a flash of disbelief crossing his eerie green eyes.

He tried to leap again, muscles tensed to their utmost, but was met only with a heavy thud as his feet seemed shackled by invisible chains, unable to break through the seemingly intangible blood barrier.

Time slowed, the air thickening in that moment. The Elder’s face darkened with gloom so palpable it seemed to drip moisture. He looked down at the flickering, roiling barrier beneath his feet, overwhelmed by an unprecedented sense of defeat.

With a roar, he clenched his fists tightly, the aura of rot around him thickening almost to a tangible form, but only causing ripples across the barrier before it settled back into silence.