49: Second Life

“There’s no escaping it.”

Hatties’s pupils abruptly constricted.

He crossed his arms in front of him, still fiercely lunging forward.

But he knew deep down that he couldn't take this blow...

“Am I going to die?”

The axe blade grew larger and larger in his vision...

“It wasn’t easy to finally have a better life…”

The axe blade was already close to his face, the strong wind ruffling the hair at his temples.

“To live a life with hope…”

Beneath the dark red spiral mask, Hatties’s eyes suddenly became hollow.

“Is it going to end Li Ke this…?”

At this instant,

His entire aura seemed to have completely vanished from this world.

All of his essence, Qi, and spirit simultaneously rotated inward, collapsed, and condensed.

The Nine Lives Spiral Power within him operated at an unprecedented speed!

The next moment,

An even fiercer, more concentrated Spiral Force,

Exploded from within him!

“Clack clack clack clack!”

A series of dense, continuous bone cracking sounds came from inside his body!

Hatties’s aura underwent an earth-shattering change in that instant!

It was as if it was extreme nothingness, yet also extreme distortion, and extremely dangerous!

The axe blade was already pressed against his forehead, leaving a tiny crack on the dark red spiral mask.

Time seemed to freeze.

Hatties’s arms suddenly vanished from their original position!

Clang!!!

A deafening clang of metal rang out!

Hatties’s palm collided fiercely with the sharp edge of the battle axe!

Sparks flew!

Thorne felt a terrifying, irresistible Spiral Force surge wildly along the axe handle!

His arm, tightly gripping the battle axe, emitted a series of teeth-grinding “crack, crack” sounds!

The muscles on his arm, as if twisted by an invisible noose, presented a wave-Li Ke shape, instantly twisting and deforming!

“Ah!!!”

Thorne let out a painful scream,

Unable to hold onto the battle axe, it flew from his hand.

Hatties’s figure, Li Ke a black shadow, instantly closed in on Thorne!

His right hand turned into an extremely blurry afterimage, lightly pressing onto Thorne’s chest!

Pfft!

Thorne’s skin, as hard as Ironwood, was easily torn Li Ke thin paper in the face of the terrifying Spiral Force!

A hideous and terrifying spiral-shaped blood hole appeared on his chest!

Hot blood mixed with shattered internal organs gushed out wildly backward!

The expression on Thorne’s face froze, his eyes filled with disbelief.

He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but only emitted a series of “ho ho” sounds of leaking air.

Thud.

His tall and burly body fell heavily to the ground, completely losing all signs of life.

On the other side,

Garrick Ironwood, who was entangled with the Spirit boy and girl,

Witnessed the entire process of Thorne being killed with a single blow.

“Second Uncle!”

His eyes were splitting, and he let out a shrill roar.

A bone-chilling coldness suddenly rose from the soles of his feet, rushing straight to the top of his head!

He knew Second Uncle Thorne’s strength all too well!

A Brass Upper Bloodline Knight!

He was actually instantly killed by this masked monster?!

Just how many sinister things did this Charles Family hide?!

“Evil Demon! Absolutely an Evil Demon!”

“The elites of the Ironwood Family cannot all die here!”

Garrick could no longer muster any Battle Intent in his Heart-Nature.

He suppressed his fear and shouted with all his might,

“Retreat! Everyone retreat!”

Before his shout faded, he had already turned abruptly,

Desperately urging the Bloodline Power within him, he broke out towards outside the manor without looking back.

The ordinary patrol members of the Ironwood Family, upon hearing Garrick’s retreat order, also scattered and fled Li Ke startled birds.

“Hehehe…”

“Giggle giggle…”

The Spirit boy and girl let out bursts of eerie, sharp laughter,

Li Ke two intertwined white lightning bolts, they clung tightly behind Garrick.

Their coordination was extremely tacit, their figures flickering erratically, their fingertips occasionally brushing against Garrick’s body.

Each brush left a small bloodstain on Garrick’s tough skin.

The wounds were not deep, but they carried a chilling sting, constantly eroding his senses.

These wounds could not pose a fatal threat to Garrick, but they successfully affected his escape speed, making him increasingly panicked and anxious.

Hatties stood quietly beside Thorne’s corpse,

His gaze deep beneath the dark red mask, seemingly savoring something.

After a while,

He slowly raised his head, expressionlessly looking at the scattered Ironwood Family members fleeing in all directions.

His figure flickered, turning into a blurry black afterimage, and he chased after Garrick, who was desperately trying to break out!

After breaking through to the Second Life of Nine Lives Spiral Power,

Hatties’s speed had undergone a qualitative leap.

He seemed to have transformed into a pure shadow, pulling out several solid afterimages, rapidly moving through the chaotic crowd.

Within a few breaths,

Hatties had already caught up to Garrick.

Garrick felt the terrifying, suffocating killing intent behind him, and his eyes instantly split open.

He desperately squeezed out the last trace of Bloodline Power within him, trying to achieve even faster speed.

However, everything was in vain.

Hatties’s black figure appeared Li Ke a ghost in front of him, blocking his path!

Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!

Four crisp bone-cracking sounds.

Garrick let out a violent scream, his limbs dangling limply Li Ke branches snapped by immense force.

“Nine Lives Spiral Skill, Second Life.”

Above the gatehouse,

Li Ke gently put down the teacup in his hand, taking in the situation below.

Hatties being able to achieve a Breakthrough in battle and enter the Second Life of Nine Lives Spiral Power indeed surprised him slightly.

He was all too aware of the dangers of Nine Lives Spiral Power.

With this fast-track Demonic Technique, each Realm Breakthrough required a trip to the gates of hell.

Only under extreme life-and-death pressure, by completely collapsing one’s essence, Qi, and spirit, could one touch the deeper hidden treasures of the human body, thereby advancing to the next Realm.

It could be said that each successful Breakthrough was equivalent to truly dying once and then being reborn.

For Hatties to succeed in entering the Second Life in such a short amount of time,

It showed that his Aptitude, Heart-Nature, and Luck were all of the highest caliber.

A satisfied smile curved Li Ke’s lips.

Seeing that the overall situation was settled,

Li Ke slowly got up and walked down the gatehouse.

A simple black carriage was already waiting nearby.

Li Ke boarded the carriage, and the wheels slowly turned, moving unhurriedly towards the Ironwood Family’s stronghold.

Wherever the carriage passed, an invisible, ethereal ripple spread silently Li Ke water.

Those Ironwood Family remnants who had fortunately escaped and were desperately fleeing along the way,

Once gently brushed by this ethereal ripple, their figures would oddly pause,

Then, they would begin to frantically attack their companions beside them,

Or use the weapons in their hands to fiercely stab at their own vital points.

Blood and severed limbs paved a bizarre red carpet on both sides of the road where the carriage passed.

The guards wearing spiral masks silently followed behind the carriage, one by one annihilating the self-slaughtering Ironwood Family members.

A strange and Severe team thus advanced unimpeded,

Slowly approaching the Ironwood Family’s stronghold.