Chapter 26: Desperate Struggle

Tumu's face turned pale as he stared in shock at Jinmo's ethereal figure, feeling a chill run down his spine. Jinmo was not a physical entity, resembling the ghosts of legend, and such abnormal phenomena made even a brave and battle-hardened mercenary like Tumu feel uneasy. He took a step back, wanting to observe the situation before making a move.

Seeing Tumu's hesitation, Shayan immediately seized the opportunity. Like a cheetah, he dashed forward with his dagger and called for Diyalan to join in the attack.

Although Diyalan was also afraid, knowing that the ghostly figure was released by Shayan, she mustered her courage and attacked Tumu from behind.

A pale, ghostly mist, condensed from various negative energies, coiled around like a venomous snake, followed closely by Jinmo's ghostly figure. In an instant, they were right in front of Tumu.

Tumu's heart sank, and he no longer dared to hesitate. Harnessing the profound essence of his peak Third Heaven of the Innate Realm, he used a secret technique to channel it into his left palm, where a bright red light burst forth.

In just a moment, a pure red shield, formed entirely of essence, appeared in Tumu's left palm. The shield, though only the size of a washbasin, emitted a scorching heat.

This pure essence shield was clearly Tumu's ultimate martial skill, one that consumed a great deal of energy to use. As soon as the shield formed, beads of sweat appeared on his forehead, indicating the significant amount of essence he had expended.

The shield clung to Tumu's left hand. As the negative energies released by Shayan approached, Tumu, without a second thought, raised the shield to block both the negative energies and Jinmo's ghostly figure.

"Zzzt, zzzt, zzzt!"

The white mist, filled with various negative energies, and Jinmo's ghostly figure collided with Tumu's shield, suddenly sparking.

In the sparks, the white mist dissipated, and the ghostly figure seemed to melt, gradually dispersing into the air.

Seeing that the shield could neutralize these strange entities, Tumu secretly breathed a sigh of relief and sneered, "Boy, let's see what else you've got!"

A cold, evil aura seeped from the dissipating entities, entering Tumu's body through his pores without his notice.

After his sneer, Tumu's expression suddenly froze, his eyes showing confusion and panic.

A flash of light appeared in Shayan's eyes!

From the change in Tumu's expression, Shayan realized that while Tumu had cleared the energy attached to the negative auras, he could not completely dispel the negative emotions, which had invaded his mind.

"Attack!"

With a roar, Shayan accelerated to his maximum speed, his body leaving a faint trail in the air as he appeared in front of Tumu.

The dagger, glowing blue, shot like a bolt of lightning toward Tumu's neck!

The heat from Tumu's shield, which was continuously intensifying, seemed to snap him out of his daze.

Tumu's eyes suddenly snapped open!

"Roar!"

With a fierce roar, Tumu suppressed the negative emotions flooding his mind. His battle axe, held in his right hand, swung in a wide arc.

"Clang!"

Shayan's dagger struck the battle axe, and a terrifying force erupted from the axe, surging up Shayan's arm through the dagger.

Shayan's arm went numb, and he immediately realized Tumu's essence was extremely powerful. He quickly moved his dagger away from the axe.

Tumu ignored Shayan, spinning like a whirlwind and raising his battle axe to block Diyalan's short sword from behind. He coldly snorted, "I'll deal with you harshly in a moment!"

Shayan's face darkened, and a violent killing intent surged within him.

Wielding his dagger, the muscles in his legs, hidden in his pants, began to contract. The various negative energies in his acupoints surged out through the pores in his legs, enveloping them in a pale, ghostly mist.

With his hands and feet transformed, Shayan could no longer contain his violent killing aura. His body was shrouded in a murderous aura, his eyes gradually turning a blood-red, and his expression became terrifying, like a demon from hell. Even Muru Die, standing nearby, covered her mouth in fear.

"Huff, huff!"

Shayan panted heavily, stomping his foot. He felt an immense power in his legs, and his lean body shot forward ten meters in an instant!

Like an arrow, he was both fast and fierce!

Tumu's battle axe whirled, the clashing sounds of metal forcing Diyalan to retreat step by step. Her hands, holding the short sword, grew numb from the impact of Tumu's fierce essence.

A fierce killing intent suddenly surged from behind, and Tumu's eyes flashed with a fierce light. With a powerful strike, he sent Diyalan reeling backward.

"Bang!"

Tumu, impatient, kicked Diyalan in her smooth abdomen, sending her flying back seven or eight meters.

Diyalan fell backward, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth, her essence in chaos, unable to muster any strength in the short term.

Tumu's kick, filled with explosive power and essence, was meant to completely incapacitate Diyalan so he could focus on Shayan without any distractions.

Turning around, Tumu raised his battle axe and sneered, "Boy, I'll chop you into a hundred pieces!"

Shayan, like an arrow, charged forward, channeling all his essence into his dagger.

As he swung, the dagger's shadow rained down like a storm, and a cold, evil force overflowed from the dagger, enveloping Tumu.

"Hmph!"

Tumu took a deep breath, his left shield moving to release waves of scorching heat, dispersing the cold, evil aura. He then swung his battle axe, striking Shayan's dagger accurately.

"Clang!"

Under the fierce blow, Shayan's wrist ached, and his dagger flew out, landing several meters behind him.

Tumu also felt the impact, the force from Shayan's dagger being equally fierce. He staggered back, his body swaying.

At the same time, a cold, evil, and terrifying aura surged up his arm, quickly entering his mind, pulling him into a bloody realm.

Shayan, standing firmly, saw Tumu's eyes filled with confusion, swaying backward toward Diyalan.

At this moment, his dagger was still several meters behind him. If he rushed to retrieve it and then attacked Tumu, he might miss the best opportunity, and Tumu might regain his senses.

A thought flashed through his mind, and with a cold glint in his eyes, Shayan steeled himself and charged at Tumu, his hands like iron chains, gripping Tumu's waist. He pushed Tumu with all his might toward Diyalan and roared, "Raise your sword! Stab!"

Diyalan, lying limp on the ground, heard Shayan's roar and saw a large shadow falling toward her.

Without hesitation, she gathered all her strength and raised her short sword high.

"Thud!"

The short sword pierced Tumu's back, and the pain jolted him awake. He roared wildly, struggling to maintain his balance.

The short sword, embedded in his back, held him up, and his body tilted in mid-air, but he did not immediately fall on top of Diyalan.

Using the support of the short sword, Tumu somehow maintained a tilted, falling posture, as if his feet were rooted to the ground.

Tumu struggled, but found his hands tightly held by Shayan.

At this moment, Shayan's face was cold, and he grinned, "Stray dog, you're finished!"

Maintaining this position, Tumu roared, "Boy, let go! The short sword will pierce through me and into you! Let go, you don't want to die with me, do you?"

Tumu, indeed fierce, managed to kick out, his knee slamming into Shayan's abdomen.

Shayan's essence surged into his arms, preventing him from using the Black Light Shield. He had to rely on his "Petrified Martial Soul."

Tumu's knee strikes, fueled by explosive power, seemed to concentrate the petrification in Shayan's abdomen, while the rest of his body quickly returned to normal. His abdomen turned gray and hard as iron.

Under the full force of Tumu, a peak Third Heaven of the Innate Realm, Shayan's "Petrified Martial Soul" managed to hold up, though his abdomen ached terribly, he did not even spit out a mouthful of blood, his physical defense was extremely abnormal.

Diyalan, lying below, saw that Shayan and Tumu were face-to-face, tightly embracing. If she pushed the short sword down or Tumu fell, the short sword would pierce through Tumu's body and into Shayan's, pinning them together.

Thinking of Shayan being pierced along with Tumu, Diyalan hesitated, screaming, "Boy, let go!"

"Stray dog, I'm shorter than you! You'll die, and at worst, I'll just lose a hand!"

Shayan's face was cold, and he grinned, using all his strength to press both himself and Tumu onto Diyalan.

"Thud! Thud!"

Two sharp sounds of the short sword piercing flesh and bone echoed, one after the other. Diyalan lay on her back, with Tumu, facing away from her, and Shayan, facing Tumu, stacked on top of her.

As expected, the short sword pierced through both of their bodies, entering Tumu's heart and then piercing Shayan's right shoulder.

Tumu, his heart pierced, swayed, his face filled with fear, and slowly lost his life.

Shayan, his shoulder pierced, his face twisted in pain, continued to grip Tumu tightly, showing no intention of letting go.

Only when Tumu's essence dissipated and entered his body, confirming Tumu's death, did Shayan gradually release his grip, his body weakening and slowly collapsing.

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End of Chapter 26