Chapter 242: Fire of Hope (1/2)

Chains and shackles!

Every hair on Lu Yun’s body bristled with fear. He shifted out of the bindings’ way just in time, ducking right under the proverbial razor’s edge.

He’d seen these trappings before. When he’d been deceived by the Skandha Extinction Tomb’s certain death layout, an akasha ghost had come. That ghost had used chains and shackles to lock him up; in fact, his soul had nearly been taken away from him. Without Qing Han’s reckless aid, he might’ve died then and there.

If his soul was bound, he would be unable to use death arts or return to hell. He hadn’t expected to see the chains and shackles again so soon, and from the nothingness in the depths of the netherworld itself to boot!

By now, Lu Yun was dodging about as quickly as he could. Alas, the shackles nipped at his heels in hot pursuit like a great black serpent. It didn’t matter how he weaved and bobbed, the chains were relentless. The Tome of Life and Death was unresponsive; it wasn’t blocking the bindings for him!

He had to face them alone.

“What are these things?” he gasped, pushing himself to go faster still. If those terrifying bindings touched him, he would truly be done for.

The akasha ghost ignored him outright. It diverted its efforts back to permeating hell with resentment; the peculiar summoning ritual continued.

Stroke after stroke of sword aura flooded from the Sugato Sword. The Vast Dragon Seaturner, Peng of Kun, and Starstream Stroke were all unleashed over and over. Alas, the blade aura that should’ve been indomitable melted away upon touching the black chains.

The Sugato Sword failed against them.

Clang!

Violetgrave gleamed in Lu Yun’s hand, slashing out a stroke in amethyst that sent them flying back a short distance.

“Wait, that worked?!” Lu Yun’s eyes lit up excitedly. Though Violetgrave was a ninth-grade immortal sword, there was far more to it than met the eye. A grand mausoleum was hidden within the sword, vast enough to bury an ancient immortal emperor’s corpse.

Rattle!

The repelled chains and shackles shook themselves off before circling back in renewed assault. Lu Yun put away his Sugato Sword, drawing Violetgrave instead.

Hum...

The blade shook, discharging a meteoric shower of sword lights. They enshrouded the youth’s body, turning into piece after piece of violet dragon scales.

Nineteen Cerulean Sword Dragons.

Lu Yun no longer made use of his own sword intent. Instead, he channeled Violetgrave’s intrinsic power with this old technique. The violet dragons soared in hell’s sky, silhouetted by the shadow of a monumental mausoleum.

When the bindings sensed the latter, they retracted into the dark void in a fearful hurry.

“The monster on the other end of those bindings is afraid!” Lu Yun immediately detected the emotion behind the action. “It’s afraid Violetgrave will bury it!”

Violetgrave could ward off the monsters in the depths of hell!

Sword in hand, he hurtled toward the akasha ghost. The violet dragons aloft lunged at their master’s target, responding instantly to his will. The ghost shrieked, exploding with a storm of resentment to ward off its assailant.

“Violetgrave can deal with that monster in the darkness, but not the akasha ghost,” Lu Yun frowned.

Clink, clank!

The shackles and chains jolted against each other in the darkness, ready for the very moment that Violetgrave’s shadowy mausoleum disappeared.

The akasha ghost was transforming! The girl-turned-vengeful-ghost was no more; its pale, ghastly face a horrible hybrid between grin and grimace. Will-o-wisps burned in its eye sockets and it was at least three times stronger than before. At the same time, Lu Yun detected the faintest sniff of karmic retribution.

“I’ve got it!” he exclaimed. The vengeful ghost the girl had become wasn’t an akasha ghost; it was being possessed by one! The akasha ghost was using the girl as a vessel, making use of her resentment to seal away its own bad karma. She’d been prepared as a ready container.

Could akasha ghosts have been responsible for the end of that civilization?

Were akasha ghosts behind everything in this tomb?

What were they, exactly? Why would they do all this?

All sorts of questions filled Lu Yun’s head.

Fwoom.

A sinister white streamer appeared in the akasha ghost’s hands. When waved, it released a terrifying power that collided with Lu Yun. Violetgrave’s sword intent was nearly shattered by the streamer’s strength.

Lu Yun coughed up a large mouthful of blood, a metallic aftertaste lingering on his tongue.

“Such strength! If we were outside, I would die from its smallest breath!” Hell’s fortitude restored his vitality, healing his injuries.

The akasha ghost had released some more of its full power, and was now superior to Lu Yun. However, it didn’t do more than that. If it went any further, its retribution would manifest, and the Judgment of Life and Death would then send it up in smoke.