197 Chapter 197: Back to the Basics (1/2)

I watched Hades cautiously, my eyes tracking his every move. Above my shoulder, a green ball of mana coalesced and slowly took form.

”Green Dragon. I'm counting on you.”

A chibi Green Dragon appeared and curled on top of my shoulder, nodding his tiny head. Following which, verdant mana began suffusing my whole body, as well as my two swords. A line of petals began swirling gently around me.

Hades watched me as well, his caution understandable for this was his last life. He wasn't stupid enough to recklessly charge in.

However, his patience wasn't infinite. When he saw that I wasn't going to attack, he sprang forward and raised his Annihilation high up to crush me.

I smiled and waited for him to get within range. On top of my shoulder, Green Dragon stirred and lifted his head to watch the advancing enemy.

”Wind of Fragrant Pollen.”

I swung Gan Jiang with my right hand. A huge wind, filled with the sweet scents belonging to a thousand different flowers, blasted the charging Hades and caught him by surprise. Hades began choking when he inhaled the myriad microscopic pollen that was carried aloft by the wind, the overwhelming scents sending his olfactory senses into overdrive and causing him to feel dizzy. His eyes watering, Hades began sneezing uncontrollably as the innumerable pollen seeped into his nose and lungs, giving him a mild hay fever.

But that was not the true power of the Wind of Fragrant Pollen.

The Fragrant Wind gently enveloped the sneezing spirit. The warm air current began wrapping around his body.

”You think this can stop Hades?” Selina demanded, amused despite the stupid sight of her contracted spirit sneezing unceasingly. ”It's a simple matter for Hades to suppress the pollen in his nose. In fact…” she frowned as she reached out to mentally link with her spirit. ”He finds your little wind very comfortable. Like a warm, gentle breeze on a sunny day. Is that supposed to be an attack?”

I smiled and shrugged. ”Well, it's supposed to do that.”

”Hah!” Selina snorted derisively. ”It's supposed to make your opponent comfortable? Have you lost it?”

At her beckoning, Hades took a step forward.

”You might not want him to do that,” I warned.

”What?” Selina snapped even as Hades stalked toward me.

Blood began dripping from the giant's mouth and nose. Stunned, Hades lifted a hand to wipe it away. Selina gawked at her spirit.

”When…?”

”You heard it, didn't you?” I grinned evilly and turned away, ignoring Selina. ”The gentle song of the Fragrant Wind.”

Blood began spurting out of several dozen wounds on Hades' body.

”GUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUARGH!” Howling in agony, Hades fell to his knees. Throwing his hands out to support himself, the spirit began vomiting huge volumes of blood.

”Even upon your death, you're still enveloped in the comfortable embrace of the Fragrant Wind,” I explained poetically. ”Be thankful, for this is a merciful technique. But after the fleeting sense of comfort comes the grim reality of suffering and dread.”

Hades grunted as he forced himself to his feet, blood running off his body in streams. Black purplish mana flared up all around him, destroying everything in his proximity.

”DESTROY THAT BRAT!” Selina shrieked, all dignity lost. Only fury remained, taking over her humor. She realized that she had played around for too much, and her fear was bubbling just beneath her usually calm exterior. She was frothing in her mouth, though I doubted it was because Anastasia had cut her. ”KILL HIM!”

I sighed and swung Gan Jiang again as Hades barreled toward me with a roar.

”Kaleidoscopic Flower Barrage.”

A rain of flowers, each from a different species, spiraled around Hades, sparkling wildly in a myriad of colors before barraging him from all directions. The razor-sharp petals drew even more blood despite Hades blasting them away with his raging demonic aura.

I didn't take it for granted that he would die from this. Instead, I nodded at Green Dragon before assuming a second stance. Taking a deep breath, I didn't wait for Hades to break out of the barrage before I executed my next technique.

”Green Dragon's Petal Dance.”

Thousands of petals danced across the entire crater, the storm comprising of different varieties and colors. As if they were taken from the pages of a vividly illustrated art book or a painting, the vibrant petals of various shapes and sizes literally came to life, swallowing up the wrathful spirit. The flowers were split apart by the swirling black purplish mana that shrouded Hades, only to divide into even more razor-sharp petals in order to inflict maximum damage.

I watched as the cloud of vibrantly colored flower petals danced around in their full glory, eating and slicing into Hades. Despite their breathtaking beauty, the lovely flowers concealed a ruthless deadliness within their soft petals – just like how every rose would have its thorns. The maelstrom would never cease until it sliced its victim into oblivion, or until I called it off.