Knowing his gun was ineffective, Liu Xing cycled his qi and activated his Lightning Palm Technique. The gun absorbed the technique, and Liu Xing reabsorbed it, his hand now coated in lightning, crackling with arcs of electricity.

He created a long blade in his hand and swung it. His lightning blade cleaved through the black cloud, splitting it into two, but they soon merged back together.

The mocking laughter reverberated again, but Liu Xing ignored it and tried a different approach. Instead of slashing, he focused on concentrating energy into the tip of the blade, creating a long hammer. When he swung it at the cloud, it split into two again, and the gap was wide. However, it reformed moments later.

"Tsk tsk, such a stupid youth. If I were myself from the past, you would be dead already. But I'm different now. I'm more merciful, so just go and don't bother me!"

The black cloud increased its speed. Liu Xing realized Skull Hill was nearby, and suspected there was something there.

Still, Liu Xing needed to take action. The last comment from the black cloud made him realize that perhaps the being was wary of something. Why else would it tell Liu Xing to leave?

Liu Xing slashed again and again. The black cloud splitted for a moment, only to reform the next second.

"You're a stubborn one. I like it! That's why I'll tell you where my stash of treasures is. One of my treasures is a lightning rod that enhances lightning attacks. If you leave, I'll tell you where it is."

Liu Xing heard desperation in his voice, but he kept his calm and focus. What he said made Liu Xing think his attacks were somehow effective, but there was also the possibility that the being was luring him into thinking his attacks were effective, so he wouldn't try something different.

As he slashed repeatedly, Liu Xing confirmed the truth.

He noticed the pitch-black cloud was slowly shrinking—not dramatically, just about five centimeters, but it was noticeable to his eyes. His blade was capable of wearing down the cloud.

Seeing a chance to defeat it, Liu Xing grinned. The lightning blade wasn't effective for destroying the cloud due to its thin area of effect. He needed something larger, and luckily, he knew of something bigger that could also be coated in lightning—himself.

Running across the ground, Liu Xing concentrated and spread the Lightning Palm Technique from his hand to his entire body, layering the Lightning Cloak and Lightning Palm on top of each other.

"Finally giving up? Good, good, good!"

"I'm not giving up," Liu Xing retorted. Then, he kicked off the ground and shot toward the black cloud like a cannonball.

In the blink of an eye, he was in front of the black cloud and collided with it using his entire body. From this close, Liu Xing saw the exact moment when he hit the black cloud. Some of the cloud tried to move away from him, but some couldn't escape and disintegrated when his body touched it.

After passing through it, Liu Xing landed on the ground, quickly turned around and hit the cloud again with his body.

He did this several more times, and each time he hit it, the black cloud shrank even more!

The cloud growled, but Liu Xing continued his steady attack. Initially the size of a large car, the cloud has now shrunk to the size of a large man.

"Insolent! Die!" The cloud retaliated by forming an arrow with some of its darkness and shooting it at Liu Xing.

Surprised, Liu Xing's eyes widened. Although he had expected attacks from the cloud, he hadn't expected projectiles. Since he was in the air, dodging was impossible, so with no choice, Liu Xing gritted his teeth, clenched his fist, and punched at the arrow as it approached. It pierced his knuckles before exploding into black smoke.

Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

Another arrow followed swiftly. Reacting quickly, Liu Xing concentrated his qi into his Lightning Palm Technique, forming a lightning blade that he used to slash and destroy the arrow mid-flight.

He hit the cloud, causing it to growl, and landed on the ground.

Liu Xing turned around and prepared to jump again, only to find five more black arrows hurtling toward him. Opting to stand his ground, he slashed at each arrow, detonating them into black smoke.

Now reduced to the size of a normal human, the cloud accelerated toward Skull Hill. Liu Xing, delayed by destroying the arrows, found the distance between them had increased.

He sprinted after the shrinking cloud, seeing a clear path uphill ahead. Channeling more Qi into his Lightning Cloak Technique, he kicked off the ground, creating a crater where he jumped, then Liu Xing shot like lightning towards the cloud, his right arm still covered in energy.

Closing in, Liu Xing extended his arm towards the cloud, intending to sear it with his Lightning Palm. Suddenly, the cloud halted, transforming back into Mo Yan, who lunged at him with a punch.

Wide-eyed, Liu Xing couldn't dodge in time. Mo Yan's fist struck his stomach, stopping his momentum and causing him to spit blood. Spinning in the air, Mo Yan followed up with an axe kick to Liu Xing's shoulder, sending him crashing down like a meteor.

Landing with a thud in a clearing at the top of Skull Hill, Liu Xing noticed a tree with black leaves in the middle of the clearing, and a skeleton with a black skull in a weathered white robe lying beside it.

"You're an annoying bastard!" Mo Yan shouted as he descended with another axe kick aimed at him.

Quickly reacting, Liu Xing dodged and narrowly avoided an attack that caused the ground to shake.

Liu Xing thought that he had arrived at a critical moment in this battle. They seem to have arrived at the special place, and the fact that the black cloud is transforming into Mo Yan again gives him a chance to strike back.

Mo Yan lunged at him, and seeing this, Liu Xing decided to dodge to the side. With Lightning Cloak still shrouding him, Liu Xing still has an advantage in this fight. Liu Xing then bounced around like a rubber ball, trying to confuse Mo Yan and looking for an opportunity to attack.

"Hmph! What a cowardly movement! If you dare, fight me face to face like a true cultivator! Then I, Ji Dongyang, would make sure you die painlessly!"

Ji Dongyang sneered as Liu Xing ignored him and continued his evasive maneuvers. Liu Xing activated the invisibility and disappeared from Ji Dongyang's sight, leaving only silence where crackling blue lightning had once danced.

Liu Xing ceased bouncing and positioned himself behind a tree, gun aimed at the back of Mo Yan's head.

"Impressive technique. Even I, a former Star Collapsing cultivator, can't sense you. But it's cowardly," Ji Dongyang sneered, but his disparaging words did not affect Liu Xing. Stealth was a legitimate tactic, especially against a former Star Collapsing cultivator like Ji Dongyang, who would have been revered as an elder in the Purple Moon Sect.

Liu Xing infused his bullets with Lightning Palm Technique. Despite Ji Dongyang's former prowess, now confined to Mo Yan's body, Liu Xing felt confident in his ability to prevail.

Under the moonlight, with the wind rustling the grass and leaves, Liu Xing aimed his weapon. Ji Dongyang taunted him as he searched for his hiding place. After a moment, Liu Xing pulled the trigger.

A lightning ball shot through the air. Ji Dongyang immediately turned around and gathered black cloud in his hands to stop the bullet.

"There you are!" Ji Dongyang exclaimed, his arm transforming into a claw-like appendage. He swung it, sending a crescent of darkness hurtling toward Liu Xing.

Reacting swiftly, Liu Xing leaped onto a low branch, and when he landed, Ji Dongyang adjusted his aim and launched another attack at him. Liu Xing evaded again, firing several exploding bullets mid-air. Ji Dongyang deflected his exploding bullets with his dark claw, creating a deafening shockwave that shook the trees and stirred up a cloud of dust.

"You waste my time and energy. Why don't you just give up?" Ji Dongyang mocked, as the dust settled around him, revealing his undeterred form within a cracked black barrier.

Liu Xing remained silent. There was no need for words.

"If you seek death, so be it. Your cowardice won't save you," Ji Dongyang declared, darkness swirling around him before seeping into his body.

Mo Yan's body began to transform, muscles bulging and dark veins crawling under his skin. His eyes turned completely black and his ears expanded to an unnatural size, twitching to detect Liu Xing.

"Tch, even with this transformation, I still can't sense you. What an annoying technique," Ji Dongyang grumbled, though he knew any movement would betray Liu Xing's location.

Liu Xing needed a strategy to defeat Ji Dongyang in a single decisive strike.

Several tense moments passed as both combatants stood in silence. Liu Xing weighed his options carefully—using Lightning Palm-infused bullets, unleashing a powerful lightning blade strike, or bombarding Ji Dongyang with explosive rounds?

Each move carried risks, and none guaranteed a swift victory.

What should he do?