Lu Jun consolidated his cultivation while simultaneously exploring the effects of his two newly awakened Transcendent Powers.
From the Super Tier onward, magic broke free from fixed frameworks and became bizarre and multifarious, with countless possible paths.
Among them, the most prominent advantage of integrating magical energy into the body was the absence of any need to control star patterns, magic could be released at will. Depending on the amount of magical energy stored within the body, the output and resulting power would vary accordingly.
Lu Jun sensed slightly and discovered that the energy contained within his heterochromatic eyes was comparable to an entire Star Sea. In other words, with a mere thought, he could unleash power on the level of Super Tier magic and it would be instantaneous!
This meant that even before his Psychic-element Super Tier magic was fully stabilized, he was already capable of releasing power comparable to Super Tier spells, albeit in a completely different form.
"Very good. If I face Euryale again, my chances of victory should increase significantly."
As the thought crossed his mind, Lu Jun slowly opened his eyes. He had no intention of continuing his cultivation and instead planned to seek out the Winged Medusa to test his strength.
After all, if he allowed Euryale to fully dispel the curse, then once she recovered to her peak Great Monarch state, he truly would not be able to contend with her.
Previously, the Curse Magic—Book of Life and Death · Nail-Head Seven-Arrow Curse had succeeded not only due to the power of the seven physical curse arrows, but also because of the massive sacrificial altar formed from snake and scorpion monster corpses, which drained a portion of his Imagination power.
Once Euryale became vigilant, as a master of curse arts, she would never fall into the same trap twice.
Out in the wilderness, Apas looked at Lu Jun in the sky with an unreadable expression. Suddenly, her expression shifted as she stared intently at his flawless heterochromatic eyes, sensing an inexhaustible surge of magical energy that shook her soul.
Her own pale-golden serpentine pupils surfaced instinctively, as if reacting to a powerful adversary.
Apas had no choice but to lower her head slightly, her heart trembling in shock. How was this possible?!
Those eyes contained the supreme mysteries of Curse and Psychic magic, clearly different from what her mother wielded, belonging to an entirely separate path.
Though still weak at present, merely a seed, given time it would certainly break into the Emperor tier, shake the world, and stand shoulder to shoulder with the Medusa's Gaze.
A trace of astonishment flashed across her expression. How long had it even been? Just two or three days, and this man's strength had surged by another huge margin.
Apas took the initiative and asked, "Are you going after my sister again?"
"Yes. This time, I'll see if I can kill her."
Lu Jun replied calmly. He was in excellent condition, after refining a massive amount of pure Thought Stones, he had advanced to the Eighth Spiritual Realm, triggering transformations in two Star Seas and giving birth to Transcendent Power.
With such a dramatic increase, Lu Jun even considered whether to have Pang Lai continue collecting Thought Stones for him.
Unfortunately, he felt it wouldn't be feasible in the short term. Thought Stones were simply too rare. After his massive acquisition, prices were guaranteed to skyrocket next year, becoming more expensive year after year.
Pang Lai had already exhausted his connections to gather this many Thought Stones and even owed quite a few favors in the process.
One hundred and forty-four billion Yen wasn't actually cheap—if anything, the real value was even higher. Moreover, the higher one's spiritual realm, the less effect ordinary treasures would have. The number of Thought Stones required later would be astronomical.
"Back then, he even guided my summoning magic. If I ever get the chance, I should find a way to repay that old man."
Lu Jun thought to himself, recalling Pang Lai's long-cherished wish, to summon the Nine Provinces National Beast from the Tomb of Fallen Kingdom Beasts. Perhaps he could look into it someday.
Soon after, the two did not linger and swiftly locked onto the aura of the Winged Medusa, chasing her down.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Midway through, Lu Jun's expression suddenly changed as he looked toward the horizon. Space rippled abruptly, and two pitch-black arrows tore through the void, returning into his body.
Within his spiritual world, deep inside the black-and-crimson Curse Star Sea, the two arrows floated dimly, sinking and rising. They likely wouldn't be usable again for quite some time.
At the same time, Lu Jun's vision blurred slightly as his right eye—the Nether-Gaze Eye—mysteriously connected to a distant location.
A scene unfolded.
In the vast wilderness, a gigantic winged serpent writhed in agony. Two spots on its enormous body glowed with black points of light.
Eventually, the two cursed arrows were slowly forced out, dragging with them large amounts of blackened blood.
Hiss!
The winged serpent let out a sky-shaking roar, its aura growing increasingly powerful.
Moments later, the vision faded. Lu Jun came back to himself, his expression grave as he said, "Hurry. Euryale is gradually dispelling the curse."
Hearing this, Apas's face changed drastically. Silver light flickered around both of them, accompanied by dark green gales as teleportation and flight combined, rushing them forward.
Boom—!
In the wilderness, the Winged Medusa swept her tail, triggering violent tremors across the land.
"Damn human! If you fall into my hands, I'll make sure you suffer unimaginably!"
Euryale roared viciously, then suddenly halted and raised her head toward the sky as two figures descended, carrying overwhelming pressure.
"Again… these annoying insects."
She roared angrily, her eyes transforming into a gold-pink hue as she immediately entered a fully unleashed combat stance, activating Medusa's strongest move and locking her gaze firmly onto the sky.
The wind stopped. The clouds ceased drifting. Dust above and below the heavens hung silently in place.
Immediately after, a terrifying curse power erupted. Centered on the Winged Medusa's eyes, wherever her gaze passed, brownish-gray light spread inch by inch, almost as if time and space had frozen.
Medusa's Gaze!!
Seeing this, Lu Jun and Apas reacted at the same time.
The latter was the most direct—she also revealed her gold-pink serpent pupils, releasing a brownish-gray radiance far weaker than that of her sister Euryale.
Chi chi chi!
In the void, two petrifying curse forces of different scales collided, intertwining with each other and silently shattering space.
The monstrous aura that had raged for dozens of kilometers was torn apart. The black clouds dispersed, and the exposed clear sky was subsequently destroyed as well. Black void rifts continued to expand, sky-rending marks appearing as destructive intent ran rampant.
Apas's face turned pale as she fell into an absolute disadvantage. The brownish-gray radiance contracted, remaining only around the two of them.
Euryale's strength had recovered quite a bit.
Fortunately, Lu Jun made his move. He decisively abandoned his most overpowered ability—the Time Domain.
This move was not very effective against Medusa. Curse petrification involved time and space; even an ordinary Lesser Monarch Medusa had been able to break through it before, let alone Euryale now.
Moreover, once used, it would completely drain his Space-Time Star River. Without the Space element, the most mobile of all magic elements, moving freely afterward would become far more difficult.
Lu Jun chose to place his faith in the newly mastered Curse-element Transcendent Power—[Nether Gaze Eye].
Buzz buzz buzz!
He closed his eyes. When he opened them again, only his right eye was revealed—the deep blood-ink pupil reflecting a phantom of the netherworld. Following an unseen connection, the vast magic power within was unleashed.
Combined with the effect of the curse substance [Blood Abyss Dark Verdict], this move was called [Netherworld Dark Verdict].
In an instant, heaven and earth dimmed. At the focal point of Lu Jun's gaze, a faint black dot appeared, then rapidly expanded. It was pure darkness, spreading bit by bit within the vast brownish-gray radiance filling the sky.
Wherever it passed, even the most formidable curse energy was covered and swallowed—silent, yet incomparably terrifying.
It was as if it possessed a profound devouring force, dragging everything within its field of vision into some mysterious realm.
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