With the swing of Zhong Shenxiu’s sword, a burst of sword energy shot out, resembling a lit fuse, instantly closing the distance to Thomas.

A sharp crack echoed as the wall not far behind Thomas was brutally gashed, leaving a shocking wound.

Fortunately, Zhong Shenxiu only meant to startle Thomas; the sword energy grazed past his body. Aside from slicing open his clothes, no blood was drawn!

However, the strike achieved its intended effect. Thomas’s incantation stuttered to a halt, his eyes fixed on Zhong Shenxiu in terror.

Thomas understood perfectly well that he had just walked the razor's edge of death. Had that arc of energy deviated even slightly, he would now be a cold corpse.

Terrifying. Absolutely terrifying!

Sweat involuntarily beaded on Thomas’s forehead, and his chest felt constricted, as if a massive stone was pressing down on him.

Watching from the sidelines, Angelia was currently weathering a Level Twelve tsunami of shock. Her astonishment had reached an apex; her eyes were locked on the wall scarred by the sword energy.

This… was his true strength? How had he done that just now?

If Zhong Shenxiu hadn’t been wielding her sword, Angelia might have suspected some secret lay within the blade itself.

But now, there was no longer any need to seek excuses to evade the reality: Zhong Shenxiu not only wielded a sword, but was also a master terrifying enough to chill the bone!

Angelia hadn't anticipated that such a formidable figure would be such a small child, nor that she would come to know him. Least of all did she imagine she was about to be guided by him…

An irrepressible, surging excitement began to rise within Angelia’s heart, a feeling that utterly perplexed her. By all logic, she should be afraid right now. But there was none—only exhilaration and excitement, not a trace of fear!

While Angelia was lost in her thoughts, Zhong Shenxiu suddenly tossed Solomon, whom he had been holding, aside, his gaze locking intently onto Thomas.

Meeting Zhong Shenxiu’s eyes, the tension and dread inside Thomas began to accumulate relentlessly. He had no idea what fate now awaited him.

“Have you been waiting rather impatiently?” Zhong Shenxiu asked Thomas with a slight smile.

His voice wasn't loud, but to Thomas’s ears, every syllable struck like a thunderclap.

“Don’t rush. Now it’s your turn!” Zhong Shenxiu finally uttered the sentence Thomas least wanted to hear.

Thomas’s pupils dilated nearly twofold. He suddenly realized that Zhong Shenxiu, who had just been speaking to him, had vanished—or rather, he was completely invisible!

In the next instant, Zhong Shenxiu’s voice sounded directly behind him.

“Looking at your body, you probably aren’t very resilient. I’ll take it easy then,” Zhong Shenxiu remarked with a tone of reluctant concession.

Thomas turned instinctively, but before his body had fully rotated, he was sent flying. The direction of his flight was rather coincidental (perhaps intentional on Zhong Shenxiu’s part)—straight toward the location where Elena and the others stood.

“Aaaah—!” Cherry let out a piercing shriek.

As the flying Thomas hurtled toward them, about to crash into the group, a bizarre scene unfolded.

Thomas’s body suddenly plummeted downward, slamming heavily into the ground.

With a dull thud, Zhong Shenxiu reappeared.

He stood there, a look of unsatisfied relish on his face, one foot planted firmly on Thomas’s stomach.

As for Thomas? His eyes rolled back, and he passed out cleanly!

Silence. A silence so profound it felt uncanny! Every gaze was fixed on Zhong Shenxiu.

It was then that Zhong Shenxiu finally broke the quiet.

“Truly weak. Knocked out by just one little tap. How boring!”

Was he unconscious? Elena sighed in relief upon hearing this. She had just feared Thomas had died, almost collapsing from the shock!

But that sense of relief lasted less than ten seconds before it was utterly shattered by Zhong Shenxiu’s next action!

Clearly visible, Zhong Shenxiu raised his long sword high above his head, the tip aimed directly at the motionless Thomas!

Elena’s alarm was immense. She could no longer hold back and rushed forward. (Zhong Shenxiu was close to them, less than five meters away.)

“What are you trying to do?” Elena interposed herself in front of Thomas, her eyes fixed on Zhong Shenxiu, displaying a look of fearless resolve.

Zhong Shenxiu smiled, the expression of someone who thought, ‘I knew you’d rush over,’ appearing on his face.

“What do you think I’m trying to do?” Zhong Shenxiu countered, unaware that his question could drive a person to madness!

Elena remained silent, holding his gaze unflinchingly. She had already allowed her negligence to injure her student and her younger brother; she could not afford another mistake.

“Here is my thinking: since you destroyed my Skeleton Warriors, I shall turn you into Skeleton Warriors as well. That seems perfectly reasonable, doesn't it? After all, you started this whole affair!” Zhong Shenxiu finished, observing Elena’s expression.

As expected, a look of horror flashed in Elena’s eyes. Cherry, standing nearby, was even more dramatic, reduced to frightened tears.

Facing Zhong Shenxiu’s threat, Elena had considered resorting to force, but she knew that would only backfire. Zhong Shenxiu’s overwhelming power was beyond anything any of them could handle. That speed and destructive capability meant he could instantly eliminate whomever he chose!

“What must we do for you to spare us?” Elena asked, a hint of surrender in her voice.

Zhong Shenxiu glanced at her, then at the tearful Cherry beside her, a thoughtful look crossing his face. “That depends on my mood!”

Useless. That was as good as saying nothing!

“Relate every detail of what happened that day to me, and perhaps, if I’m in a good mood, I’ll let you go,” Zhong Shenxiu stated after a moment of silence.

“Do you promise?”

“Not necessarily!” Zhong Shenxiu said a phrase that nearly sent Elena into a rage, but he immediately followed up, “This is your only chance right now. Tell me everything, leave absolutely no detail out!”

With no other recourse, Elena recounted the entire sequence: how they encountered the Skeleton Warriors that day, and the multiple engagements they had with them.

Upon hearing her narrative, Zhong Shenxiu’s eyes suddenly brightened—a luminance that only appeared when he discovered something novel!

Just as Zhong Shenxiu had previously suspected, his Skeleton Warriors had indeed undergone a series of mutations. He had not anticipated that the originator of this change would be the very Cherry who was currently weeping!

“I can spare you, but there is one condition!” Zhong Shenxiu declared.

“What condition?” Elena asked, her spirits lifting.

Zhong Shenxiu did not answer immediately. Instead, he turned his gaze toward Cherry, who stood nearby, and a distinctly wicked smile curved his lips.

For some inexplicable reason, seeing that expression on Zhong Shenxiu, both Elena and Cherry were struck by a sudden, intense sense of foreboding…

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