Chapter 1228: Dongfang Ming's Despair

Gui Nu was in pain.

His tolerance for pain was a hundred times stronger than the average person, but the pain he was feeling was so high that he felt like he was close to fainting.

The energy within his body was going crazy and seemed as though it was ready to tear apart his organ, bones, and flesh if left unchecked. Not even the usage of his soulforce was enough to drive this feeling away.

The sequential attack dealt by Bai Yunfei was not a weak one. So much damage was dealt that the average Soul Emperor would definitely be rendered unable to battle. It was only thanks to Gui Nu's extraordinary body that he was able to endure it.

Gui Nu, or also known as Zhang Zhenshan, was the servant Mo Ni had spent the last decade 'training'. Practically every motion that made a human a human had been stripped away from him. The only concepts that remained were his 'loyalty' to Mo Ni and...his 'hatred' for Bai Yunfei.

Hatred inevitably became the very reason for his existence and the sole reason why he was like this. Not even the loss of his sanity would be enough to wipe away the grudge. The hatred he felt for Bai Yunfei was so deep it was etched into his very bones. Knowing that he was in front of Bai Yunfei, Gui Nu was fully committed to have Bai Yunfei dismembered limb from limb and his death made a painful one!!

But Gui Nu came to a painful realization after his last exchange with Bai Yunfei—he was weaker than Bai Yunfei!

"More! More!! I need more! More power!"

His mind was still able to reflect upon the state of his battle despite the pain. And yet his eyes looked like they were losing more of their clarity every moment. Then his eyes swiveled over in another direction. Like a vulture who had just seen some prey, Gui Nu had spotted something.

The smell of 'prey'! The smell of 'energy'!!

"Roar!!"

Driven by his own instincts and thirst for power, Gui Nu unleashed a howl of excitement and flew towards the gigantic black-red whirlpool!

......

Inside the whirlpool.

"Three Regalias...Three! Damn it!!"

Dongfang Ming was in a state right now. He had never thought Bai Yunfei would've been able to push him this far. His body was weak and his soulforce even weaker like a flickering candle flame ready to be blown out. He had stumps for arms and his left leg was gone at the knee. His skin was the same color of ash and multiple wounds littered the surface of his body so that dark-red blood would flow out in a constant stream. Like rain, the streams of blood disseminated into the whirlpool around him and scattered away.

A third ball of light was rotating around himself now. The first two lights belonged to his helix sword and the bone shield while this new third one was the same blood-red dagger used to injure Zi Jin.

Things were looking slightly better for him now that he wasn't in the Phantasm anymore. Now that there was a source of elemental energy to draw from, he could transform it into soulforce for his demonic core to make use of and help heal his body.

Already, his body was starting to patch up starting from the wound on his torso. The ashen color of his skin was also gradually returning to its original pigmentation.

It brought him no small pleasure to see and feel his body recover. Anytime now, Dongfang Ming was sure, Bai Yunfei's ultimate attack would come. And he'd need all the strength he could for when it did.

"Eh?!"

A powerful aura registered itself to his senses then. Something nearly the same color as the whirlpool around him had entered the vicinity toward him!

"Gui Nu!!"

Dongfang Ming let out a surprised cry, he hadn't thought to see Gui Nu here, but he was glad. Him being here meant Mo Ni was finally taking action, and that meant Gui Nu could delay Bai Yunfei long enough for him to heal.

But the joy on his face quickly turned into shock a moment later...

"Gui Nu!! What—what are you do—argh!!"

Alarmed, Dongfang Ming watched as the blood around him began to float toward Gui Nu and into his body. Not only that, but Gui Nu's energy was also spiking rapidly—he was trying to activate a technique of some kind!

Dongfang Ming hadn't even finished speaking when he saw Gui Nu suddenly plunge his claws into his abdomen!

Everything went cold for Dongfang Ming then. Blood pooled around the new hole in his abdomen and began to be absorbed into the invading hand!

It...it wasn't just the blood that was being absorbed. His soulforce, his own knowledge, and even...his own life!! It was all being taken!

The Bloodsoul Dark Artes!!

Dongfang Ming was horrified upon realizing what was being done to him. The Bloodsoul Dark Artes was one of the most powerful arts taught by the Soul Refining School. And not only was it powerful, but Gui Nu was one of the most adept users of it. Practically peerless in talent in the last thousand years or so, Gui Nu was capable of taking the essence of others into his own and grow even more powerful from it!!

He had been startled when he first saw Gui Nu's talent in it, and how one trained in such an art. Not even he, a man who also followed a dark way of life, had been steel-hearted enough for this. And now...Gui Nu was using that very technique on him!

Dongfang Ming's body felt like it was ready to be torn in half. A massive amount of his strength was already gone in the short amount of time he had been hit. Already, his strength was down to the levels of an Early-stage Soul Emperor!

On the inverse, Gui Nu was now surging with power!

"Bastard!! Agh!!"

Face twisting with pain, Dongfang Ming let out a loud howl and swung his bone shield around to strike Gui Nu!

"Boom!!"

Fracturing, the bone shield transformed into a devastating bomb to send Gui Nu flying away in one direction and Dongfang Ming in the other.

He had sacrificed one of his own soul armaments to escape from harm!

The whirlpool around the two collapsed at once without Dongfang Ming there to maintain focus. He wasn't even able to stabilize himself and tumbled through the air like a small boat in stormy weather.

"......"

A shocked Bai Yunfei stood outside the whirlpool. He had seen what transpired within the whirlpool and was shocked.

Was there an internal conflict?!

He couldn't think of a reason why Gui Nu would suddenly attack Dongfang Ming of all people, but he didn't even care for the reason anyways. If there was an opportunity, Bai Yunfei wasn't going to let that opportunity go to waste!

One of his two enemies was heavily injured in their own internal strife, what a wonderful opportunity!

"It'll be hard to destroy his core in one, Yunfei. But I can seal him since he's a lot weaker now!"

Sealer's voice spoke into Bai Yunfei's mind. Convinced, Bai Yunfei withdrew the Soul Sealing Mandate from his space ring and threw it forward!

The Fire-tipped Spear and Cataclysmic Seal flew ahead of the Soul Sealing Mandate and knocked the helix sword and dagger so the Soul Sealing Mandate could fly unimpeded.

With the last of his safeguards blocked, Dongfang Ming could only watch in horror as his doom approached him...

"Bzz..."

Activated, the Soul Sealing Mandate began to pulsate with a white light!

"Seal!!"