Yun and Hong both wiped the blood from the corners of their mouths at the same time, then glanced over at Su Mo, who was breathing heavily and looking very “tired” as he leaned against the wall.
“You’re playing with us!” they both said in unison. In that instant, they seemed to reach a silent agreement and, surprisingly, turned their attacks away from each other and charged straight at Su Mo.
Seeing this, Su Mo remained calm and collected, simply watching as the two of them got closer and closer to him.
Suddenly, Hong moved faster, getting a full step ahead of Yun and reaching Su Mo first. She swung her palm at him with brutal force, clearly intending to kill him.
Yun was startled and immediately followed, fiercely attacking Hong’s back, forcing her to pull back her hand to defend herself.
Yun knew very well that if Su Mo was gone, she would definitely lose today.
In the past, she had been stronger than Hong, and every time Hong had beaten her, it was through tricks and schemes. But now, Hong had surpassed her in raw strength, so Yun had no choice but to rely on outside help.
Su Mo had taken advantage of Yun’s way of thinking, which was why he was so confident and unafraid. As long as the two of them remained evenly matched in power, he wouldn’t be in too much danger.
Yun and Hong began fighting each other again, and Su Mo stood off to the side, quietly watching. He sighed inwardly and thought to himself, “I have read Romance of the Three Kingdoms, you know…”
Maybe it was because Su Mo’s earlier sneaky moves had really ticked them off, but as they fought, they gradually got more and more heated, eventually pulling out their big moves to clash against each other.
Yun wielded a thin, elegant magical sword with an incredibly subtle technique, while Hong held her spear horizontally in front of her, each move and strike completely unexpected.
A fight between two B-level peak fighters was never just basic attacks. The residual spiritual energy from their spells and techniques collided and shattered the stone walls around them.
Just as the mine shaft began to shake, the two suddenly shifted their bodies and started to dash toward the exit. But Su Mo, as if he had a death wish, turned and ran deeper inside.
“Stop her! The Demon Sky Stone is on her. If she gets buried in there, no one will get it!”
For once, the two of them actually worked together. They both charged into the cave, each grabbing one of Su Mo’s shoulders, ready to drag her out.
Su Mo curled the corner of his lips upward, then suddenly spun around. He tapped each of them once on the chest, then grabbed their wrists.
Yun: “???”
Hong: “???”
Yun started laughing for no apparent reason, while Hong’s face was suddenly covered in tears.
Unlike when he had used this technique on Ye Qingyi and Sakurai Mii before, this time, he put all of his power—twelve times the usual force—into his Jade Maiden Drifting Finger technique.
“Fury Mantra!” Su Mo suddenly activated a technique he hadn’t used in a long time, and his eyes instantly filled with a blood-red glow.
Back when he first got the Fury Mantra, he could only boost his physical abilities by two times on his own. Only when Ye Qingyi amplified him with her Great Destiny Technique could he reach three times.
But now, Su Mo could achieve a three-times amplification all by himself.
Yun and Hong suddenly felt as if they had been grabbed by some ancient, ferocious beast. Its strength was terrifying. They tried to break free, but because they were laughing (or crying) uncontrollably, their bodies wouldn’t cooperate, making it impossible to escape.
Su Mo, looking just like a villain, gave them a wicked smile and said, “Hey, you two sisters, let me treat you to a visual feast!”
A loud boom echoed from his vast and surging Second Chi Sea. Black Yin Fire erupted from his body, part of it burrowing into the two women, and the other part turning into burning black mist that scattered into the air.
At the same time, wisps of Yin Fire hidden in various corners of the mine shaft flared up in response to his call.
“You tampered with these spiritual ores!” Yun shouted in shock. Using her formidable strength, she forcefully broke free from Su Mo’s grip and, despite her uncontrollable laughter, ran toward the cave exit.
Hong, being stronger than Yun, naturally broke free as well and ran away while crying.
Neither of them knew what was about to happen, but instinct told them that if they didn’t run right now, they might actually die.
“Too late…” Su Mo summoned his magic wand. Under the wand’s control, the black Yin Fire exploded with a deafening BOOM. The Yin Fire he had hidden in the spiritual ores earlier all detonated in response.
In an instant, the entire mine shaft became a roaring chaos. Explosions rang out one after another, cold and hot currents intertwined like lovers embracing, as if the apocalypse had truly arrived.
Of course, Su Mo wasn’t about to just stand there and die. He ran after them, heading for the exit.
Just as the three were about to escape the mine shaft, Su Mo suddenly pulled out the Demon Sky Stone and, without a second of hesitation, tossed it back inside.
“You—!” Yun cursed, turning back despite the danger to her life. Hong followed closely behind. The two of them were so desperate for that stone that they were willing to throw their lives away.
For a moment, Su Mo felt a little reluctant, but the feeling passed in an instant.
He stepped out of the cave just as the entrance collapsed behind him.
The violent explosion spread outward from the mine shaft, and within moments, the entire ancient ruin began to tremble.
“What’s going on? Why is the Yin Fire so powerful?” Su Mo was completely baffled.
Of course, the Yin Fire itself wasn’t that powerful. But it could trigger the fire elements inside the spiritual ores to explode along with it.
Although those fire elements weren’t nearly as high-quality as the Yin Fire, there were so many of them—scattered throughout the entire ruin…
Su Mo’s mouth twitched. “Oh crap… I really messed up this time!”
He had thought the explosion would only destroy the mine shaft, and he wasn’t even sure if it would kill Yun and Hong. But now, it looked like he was going to die too.
Mountains crumbled, the ground split apart—scenes he had only ever seen in movies were now playing out in reality.
Su Mo tried to follow the path he had taken to get here, hoping to find a way out of the ruin. But he had no luck.
Winds hundreds of degrees hot howled past, making it impossible for Su Mo to stay on his feet. If he hadn’t had some Yin Fire left inside his body, he probably would have already turned to ash.
Suddenly, a jet of magma burst out from under his feet, sending his body flying into the air.
At the same time, a single walnut inside his white jade ring began to emit a soft, gentle glow.
…
Kagawa Prefecture.
Mount Kanka was the most famous active volcano on Shikoku Island. It hadn’t erupted in a very long time, and many tourists came specifically to see it.
However, this long-dormant volcano was unusually active today. Lava kept splashing up from its crater. Though it hadn’t actually erupted, it was still terrifying to watch.
The tourists couldn’t help but feel nervous. Some locals, however, just smiled and tried to reassure them.
“This is nothing, really. Mount Kanka does this all the time. Don’t worry, it won’t actually erupt.”
“Exactly. I’ve lived here for fifty years, and I see it act up almost every single year. But every time, it just spits out a little bit of lava for fun, maybe shakes a little, and that’s it.”
Hearing the local elders say this, the out-of-town tourists finally relaxed.
The panic slowly settled down. Everyone went back to their normal sightseeing, though some scared tourists chose to leave early, even booking flights out of there.
They just had a bad feeling.
After being unruly for about ten minutes, Mount Kanka suddenly went quiet.
“See? I told you so. Nothing’s wrong. It was just playing around…” The old man who had bragged about living in Kagawa for fifty years looked quite proud of himself.
But then, his expression froze on his face.
After ten seconds of silence, a violent explosion roared from the top of Mount Kanka. The sheer amount of energy couldn’t disperse quickly enough, so it all gathered at the peak, twisting the very space around it.
Almost immediately, the space couldn’t take it anymore. Cracks began to split open, spreading across the sky like a shattered mirror that was still barely holding together.
Rumble, rumble…
With several more explosions, the entire upper half of Mount Kanka simply vanished. Magma rushed out like crazy, as if something terrifying was chasing after it.
People in the city looked up at the sky, completely stunned by what they were seeing. They stood frozen, unable to move.
“Is the apocalypse finally here? Is the Earth about to explode?”
Before they could even finish the thought, a fierce wave of heat slammed into them. Their bodies disappeared on the spot.
It seemed the apocalypse really had arrived.
