Chapter 3264: Against The Ancestor

The Hidden Cave Sect Ancestor vanished, reappearing before Lin Mu in an instant, his hand morphing into a black blade that he plunged toward Lin Mu’s heart.

Lin Mu twisted his body, barely deflecting the strike. Even so, a streak of Baleful Qi grazed his arm, tainting the flesh instantly. He could feel the corruption trying to seep deeper, but his physique and magma energy resisted it, burning away the infection.

"This Baleful Qi is stronger than anything... only Death Qi will come close," Lin Mu reckoned.

Their battle continued in the sky, a blur of fire and darkness clashing again and again.

Every impact shattered the clouds. Every swing carved through the air like thunderous echoes of fury and hate.

On the ground, the other Transcendents struggled against their own foes, each locked in brutal combat with the Ephemerach Hollows. But Lin Mu’s duel was different—it was personal.

The Ancestor’s hatred burned hotter than the Baleful Qi surrounding them, and Lin Mu knew, as he met that twisted gaze, that this would not end quickly.

For both of them, this battle was not merely for victory.

It was for retribution.

And not just for one man, but for both. The Hidden Cave Sect Ancestor sought vengeance against Lin Mu, while Lin Mu wished to make him pay for the countless atrocities he and his sect had committed over the years.

With fury burning in their eyes, they clashed against each other again and again, their movements faster than lightning, their blows shaking the heavens.

"This is all you’ve got!? This is what brought my sect to an end?" the Hidden Cave Sect Ancestor shouted, fury spilling along with vile liquid from his mouth. His voice carried the venom of countless years of hatred.

At first, it seemed like Lin Mu wasn’t doing much damage, and the Hidden Cave Ancestor thought the same. But in reality, Lin Mu was simply analyzing the man’s power and his limits.

Having turned into an Ephemerach Hollow, the man’s strength had taken a drastic rise. Not to mention, his ability to wield Baleful Energies made him terrifying. Lin Mu could resist it thanks to his physique, but he knew he couldn’t rely on that forever.

While the Burdenless Dominator physique could resist corruption and even heal from it, the process consumed energy. Even though Lin Mu possessed a vast reservoir of Immortal Essence, Qi, and vitality, it did not mean he could waste it endlessly.

There was no telling how long this entire war would last, or what kind of unforeseen dangers might arise. As such, he had to be conservative with his energy usage. He needed to fight efficiently and uncover the man’s weaknesses before committing fully.

And so far, Lin Mu had learned a few things.

"So the Ephemerach I fought wasn’t a unique being," Lin Mu thought, "but simply a type of Hollow that has reached its peak form. The Hidden Cave Sect Ancestor was already a Transcendent before his corruption, and now his might has increased even further."

Though the ancestor wasn’t quite at the level of a Two Transcendent Tribulation Immortal, Lin Mu estimated that he was close to it. That, combined with his control over Baleful Energies, made him terrifyingly strong.

If it were anyone other than Lin Mu facing him, they might not have lasted long.

In comparison, the other Ephemerachs that the remaining Transcendents were battling were noticeably weaker. Even though they had numbers on their side, Lin Mu was confident the Patriarch and the others would be able to handle them.

But that was not the true issue.

The Ephemerachs would perish eventually, that much was inevitable. The problem was defeating them before the ritual could be completed.

There was no telling what the Ephemera Sect was planning, and Lin Mu did not wish to find out the hard way.

CLANG!

Lin Mu’s two swords collided against a pair of giant claws made from condensed Baleful Energy that the Ancestor had just conjured. The claws screeched as they tried to erode the two blades, but the intense Sword Intent and the searing heat of Magma Asura resisted their corrosion.

"Weak! Too weak!" the Ancestor snarled, his voice a guttural hiss.

He raised one leg, which morphed into the jagged, clawed appendages of a mantis, then slashed at Lin Mu with devastating speed.

TWANG!

Wonder Seeker, Lin Mu’s bow, responded to his will, unleashing a flurry of energy arrows. They shot toward the mantis claw in dazzling arcs, but each one was blocked and consumed by the writhing Baleful Energy that made up the weapon.

DANG!!!

Locked in place by the ancestor’s relentless attacks, Lin Mu had little room to maneuver. The mantis claw struck him squarely, and the impact sent him flying backward, crashing through a mass of clouds before vanishing into a swirl of gray mist.

"Hmph!" the Ancestor harrumphed, his tone thick with contempt. He believed Lin Mu had finally received a fatal blow.

When no cry or even a grunt came from Lin Mu, the Ancestor grinned wickedly. "So, that’s all it took?"

But as the mass of Baleful Energy began to dissipate, his grin faltered. The gray mists cleared, revealing something that made his many eyes widen in disbelief.

"What?" the Ancestor growled, his face twisting in confusion as tens of eyes grotesque opened across his shoulders and torso, all staring ahead in unison.

Before him, a powerful swirl of energy was forming, bright enough to pierce through the storm of corrupted Qi.

There stood Lin Mu.

He held Wonder Seeker with both hands, the bow fully drawn. A red-hot radiance enveloped him, painting the world in shades of molten gold.

But what drew the Ancestor’s attention most was what Lin Mu had notched in the bow.

It wasn’t an energy arrow.

It was Afternoon Pine itself.

The sword’s surface glowed in a brilliant yellow light, flames licking along its blade as its form began to shift. The air around it shimmered with the weight of countless layers of Sword Intent.

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