196: Chapter 197 Your final attack before death did no damage?

Dark red, viscous blood mist, as if possessing a life of its own, drifted and swam through the air in wisps, painting the originally solemn battlefield like some kind of eerie sacrificial site.

In the center of it all, Alice stood quietly. The hem of her dark red, ornate dress billowed without any wind, and her pale cheeks, set against the blood-colored background, revealed a breathtaking, demonic beauty. Deep within her eyes, which seemed carved from the purest rubies, was a bottomless calm, reflecting the various summons on the field as if she were inspecting a flock of lambs waiting to be slaughtered.

Facing these opponents whose lives she was about to harvest, her heart didn't ripple in the slightest. The long years of struggling to survive in the darkness had long since stripped certain soft things from her soul. To her, clearing enemies was as natural as breathing.

When Hao Qingshan's trump card summon—the Infernal Flame Demon Lord—had its life force directly drained by her five casual blood-sucking attacks, its massive body rapidly shriveled and slumped like a punctured balloon. Before its consciousness completely dissipated, this fierce demon let out one last unwilling roar, a mixture of pain and violence!

“Roar——!”

Along with this roar, its head, composed of pure flames and already flickering, suddenly burst! It wasn't an explosion, but a deeper burning originating from its bloodline's source! Countless flames as black as ink, seemingly capable of swallowing all light, gushed and spread frantically in all directions from its dying body, like thick ink being splashed or an enraged swarm of black bees!

Innate Skill—[Black Flame Funeral]!

This was a desperate strike that the Infernal Flame Demon Lord could only use when its life was in peril or it was completely enraged. These black flames were not ordinary high-temperature flames; they were extremely cold and highly adhesive. Once touched, they would be like maggots on a bone, extremely difficult to extinguish, and would continuously erode the target's life force, dealing terrifying percentage-based true damage based on the target's maximum health!

Its killing mechanism was similar to some of Feng Ling's innate abilities. Although it might be inferior in terms of pure power level and rules, it was definitely a terrifying finishing move that struck fear into people's hearts among those of the same rank!

Hao Qingshan's plan was well-calculated. Even if the Prairie Demon was killed first, as long as this final [Black Flame Funeral] could be successfully released to sweep the field, the terrifying spreading speed and continuous damage of these black flames would be enough to burn most summons on the Martial Arts Stage that lacked high fire resistance or special life-saving means to ashes in a very short time!

At that time, he could still rely on this wave of Death Harvest to plunder a massive amount of kill points, enough for him to occupy an extremely favorable position on the total points leaderboard and even retain hope for a top spot!

The pitch-black flames were like rolling waves, carrying a heart-palpitating low temperature and an aura of destruction, instantly swallowing the Infernal Flame Demon Lord's remaining shell and then spreading ruthlessly toward the entire Martial Arts Stage!

Wherever the flames passed, the air made a strange “sizzling” sound, and even light seemed to be distorted and absorbed, leaving behind ominous dark trails. These flames were extremely fast and seemed to possess some kind of tracking instinct; a thick stream of black fire branched off and lunged straight toward Alice, who was standing still in the distance!

“It's over!”

“It's Hao Qingshan's life-risking skill! Black Flame Funeral! You die if you touch it!”

“Quick, get out of the way! No, you can't! The range is too big!”

“My stealth unit is finished...”

In the contestant seats, the faces of those who had sent out fragile summons or those with average survival capabilities instantly turned pale. They recognized this move; it was one of Hao Qingshan's trump cards. He had once used it in actual combat in the wild to instantly incinerate an elite monster squad! They could almost see their summons wailing as they turned to ash in the black flames.

However, at this critical moment, a huge figure with a booming sound of breaking wind descended from the sky like a meteorite, crashing heavily several meters in front of Alice, making the ground tremble!

It was Wang Meng's Godspeed Titan: Mountain!

This five-meter-tall granite giant, after receiving the death order from its master to “protect Lin Muyang's summon at all costs,” showed a near-clumsy loyalty and bravery that belied its “Godspeed” name. It didn't choose to dodge the black flames that looked extremely dangerous; instead, like the sturdiest shield, it spread its arms and used its thick rock body, like a mountain wall, to firmly block the stream of black flames from Alice!

The next second, the pitch-black, cold torrent of flames slammed into and washed over the Godspeed Titan's chest and back!

Sizzle——!

There was no violent explosion or burning sound as expected, only a tooth-aching sizzle like cold water being poured onto red-hot iron. The black flames, as if alive, instantly spread and climbed frantically along every crack in the Godspeed Titan's rock torso, wrapping most of its body and burning wildly!

“Good!” In the contestant seats, Wang Meng couldn't help but whisper, his fists clenched. Sacrificing a primary summon in exchange for Lin Muyang's favor was a bargain in his eyes! He could almost see his loyal behavior of protecting the master winning Lin Muyang's approval.

However, the Godspeed Titan he had high hopes for, which he thought was suffering the pain of being burned by black flames, felt incredibly strange at this moment.

The expected pain of life force being frantically drained and the rock body being eroded and disintegrated by the cold flames did not come. On the contrary, although those black flames attached to its body looked terrifying and brought a real, bone-chilling touch, they didn't cause any actual damage!

Not only was there no damage, but the cold energy contained in the black flames seemed to be forcibly distorted and transformed by some invisible rule the moment it touched its body. It turned into streams of warm and peaceful currents, quietly seeping through the cracks in the rock. Instead, the little stamina it had consumed in the previous battle received a slight replenishment?!

A moment of dullness seemed to appear on the Godspeed Titan's rock-formed face, which should have been expressionless. It lowered its head, looked at the black flames “burning fiercely” on its chest but achieving nothing, then looked up, somewhat bewildered, at the Vampire girl behind it who remained calm.

Alice also raised her dark red eyes and glanced at the rock giant standing in front of her as if facing a formidable enemy. There was no expression on her exquisite little face, but a very faint, almost speechless ripple rose in her heart.

These black flames don't have any damage capability at all. Why did that big idiot rush over to block them?

However, she didn't speak, nor did she bother to explain. This follower of her master's seemed a bit slow-witted, but his loyalty was certainly demonstrated to the fullest.

At this moment, the situation on the Martial Arts Stage had completely exceeded most people's understanding.

The black flame wave didn't stop because it was blocked by the Godspeed Titan. They quickly diverted like a living black tide, spreading toward every corner of the Martial Arts Stage. Soon, they swept across most of the field, enveloping all summons except for the small area where Alice and the Godspeed Titan were!

“No——!” Some contestants closed their eyes in despair, unable to bear watching their summons be burned to ash.

“Huh? Wait... it doesn't seem to hurt?”

“My Shadow Leopard didn't die? The black fire burned its body, but it felt nothing?”

“My Rock Golem too! The flames attached to it, but there's no damage at all! No... it actually feels a bit comfortable?”

“What's going on? Did Hao Qingshan's ultimate move misfire?”

“Impossible! I've seen the power of these black flames! You die if you touch them!”

The expected tragedy didn't happen. The many summons affected by the black flames, whether they were the stealthed Shadow Assassins, the earth-burrowing Earth-Walking Monsters, or the semi-elementalized spirits, all appeared somewhat bewildered at this moment.

They were more or less stained with those ominous-looking black flames. The flames burned quietly, emitting a cold aura, but weirdly, they didn't cause any damage to them! Not only was there no damage, but some perceptive summons even felt a faint, body-nourishing power from the flames?

This inconceivable scene plunged the entire Martial Arts Hall into a dead silence once again, so quiet that a pin drop could be heard.

Everyone, including the seven knowledgeable Nation-Guarding Level Experts in the VIP seats, now had their eyes wide open, their faces filled with disbelief.

[part:gemini-3.1-flash-lite]

"It's those blood threads!" the old man in military uniform reacted first, shouting in a low, deep voice, his sharp gaze locked onto the summons tainted by the black flames. Every summon had crimson threads, almost imperceptible and seemingly formed from the purest blood, wrapped around their bodies. These were the mysterious blood threads Alice had released with a wave of her hand at the start of the match, wrapping around all enemy units! Originally faint and barely noticeable, they now shimmered under the black flames.

"Those blood threads, they distorted and reversed the nature of the damage!" Xu Ruohan's beautiful eyes sparkled with excitement, her voice filled with uncontrollable astonishment. "It's not nullification, it's not defense; it's directly converting the damage inflicted upon the target into healing! This... what kind of Rule-type ability is this?!"

"Reversing damage... this ability is unheard of!" Zhou Wenyuan also gasped, his gaze towards the petite Vampire girl in the arena filled with gravity and inquiry. "Hao Qingshan's Black Flame Funeral carries true damage and percentage-based burning, which are theoretically extremely difficult to defend against or dispel. Yet it was so easily neutralized, and even converted into a beneficial effect...!"

In the VIP seats, the other Nation-Guarding Level Experts were also moved, exchanging low-voiced opinions, each with a very serious expression. If what Su Daji displayed was absolute control and destructive power, then what Alice was displaying now was another, even more bizarre and unreasonable Rule-type ability!

In the contestant seats, the color drained from Hao Qingshan's face in an instant. He stared fixedly at the many summons on the stage, which were unharmed and even seemingly enjoying the bath of black flames, then looked at the glowing crimson blood threads wrapped around them. A chill shot from his spine to his brain, and his hands and feet instantly turned ice-cold.

"Reversing damage... how could such a skill exist?!" His lips trembled, his voice dry and hoarse, filled with despair and unwillingness. His greatest reliance, the meticulously planned harvest, had been completely dismantled in such an absurd and ridiculous way! Not only did he fail to harvest any points, but it was as if he had collectively healed his opponents? How could he accept this?

At this moment, the most relieved person was Gu Shuanglin. The summon she had sent onto the field was a plant-type summon named "Highly Venomous Snake Vine," shaped like several intertwined dark green venomous snake vines, capable of spitting poison mist and entangling enemies.

In the melee, this fragile but crowd-control-capable summon should have been the priority target. In fact, before the black flames struck, her Highly Venomous Snake Vine had already been targeted by several summons, falling into a siege, and was on the verge of collapse.

However, when the black flames swept through, and when the Highly Venomous Snake Vine instinctively spat poison mist at the enemies besieging it, a strange thing happened. The poison mist enveloped the enemies, but they were unscathed. The enemies' attacks landed on the Highly Venomous Snake Vine, also painless and itch-free. The deadly black flames wrapped around it, not only causing no damage but instead bringing a faint sense of nourishment.

Gu Shuanglin clutched her heart, which was pounding from nervousness, let out a long sigh of relief, and looked in Lin Muyang's direction, her beautiful eyes filled with lingering fear and gratitude. She knew very well that this bizarre situation had everything to do with Lin Muyang's Vampire summon. Although she didn't know the specific principle, there was no doubt that Lin Muyang had once again protected her summon, allowing her to remain on the field and earn more survival points.

"What exactly is the effect of those blood threads?" She was filled with curiosity, but she also understood that this was likely one of Lin Muyang's core secrets, not something she could pry into.

Just as everyone in the arena was shocked, bewildered, relieved, or desperate because of the reversed situation, the protagonist on the Martial Arts Stage, Alice, finally began her performance.

She seemed completely indifferent to the sensation she had caused, as if everything that had just happened was merely an insignificant prelude. Her dark red pupils swept calmly over the enemy summons on the field, who were also momentarily bewildered because the black flames were ineffective.

Then, she raised her right hand, which was so slender it seemed as if it would snap with a single bend, once again.

There was no spell chanting, no majestic aura, not even any obvious energy fluctuations.

She simply hooked her finger gently at the Undead Knight nearest to her, which was covered in bone armor and staring blankly at the "harmless" black flames on its body.

The next moment, the Undead Knight's body trembled violently! The soul fire flickering in its eye sockets suddenly became dim and wavering, and the crimson blood threads wrapped around its body, which were originally almost invisible, instantly became bright and solid! Immediately after, five dark red blood threads, no thicker than a strand of hair, shot out like loyal servants summoned absolutely, from the gaps in the Undead Knight's armor, eye sockets, and mouth and nose, crossing several meters of space and precisely sinking into Alice's slightly parted, crimson, alluring lips.

"Argh—!"

The Undead Knight couldn't even let out a proper scream before its tall body collapsed to the ground like building blocks with all support pulled away, the bones forming its body rapidly losing their luster, becoming gray, white, and brittle, and the soul fire completely extinguished. On Alice's pale cheeks, a faint, satisfied flush flashed, and her aura seemed to grow imperceptibly stronger.

"First."

She thought silently, her movements without the slightest pause. Her slender fingers were like the Grim Reaper's roll-call pen, moving lightly and quickly, pointing at the next target—the half-elemental, mist-like Wind Elemental Spirit.

Similarly, five blood threads left its body and sank into her red lips. The Wind Elemental Spirit couldn't even struggle, letting out a whimper like a dissipating breeze, its mist-like body instantly disintegrating and disappearing into specks of fluorescence.

"Second."

Her fingers moved again, this time pointing at the Earth-Walking Monster that had burrowed underground, revealing only half of its rock head to spy. The blood threads ignored the barrier of the thick soil and plunged directly into the earth. A dull screech came from underground, then there was no more movement; the ground slightly bulged into a small mound, then calmed down.

"Third."

Her movements became faster and faster, her elegantly hooked fingers turning into a dance of death reaping lives in the eyes of the audience. Each tap was accompanied by the rapid withering of a living life. Whether it was the thick-skinned Rock Golem, the agile and bizarre Shadow Assassin, or those capable of casting elemental shields, in the face of that domineering, defense-ignoring, distance-ignoring, and even seemingly resistance-ignoring life-draining skill, they were all as fragile as soap bubbles exposed to the sun, bursting at the slightest touch.

On the Martial Arts Stage, the dark red blood mist became even denser. One after another, the bodies of the summons that had rapidly lost their life breath collapsed to the ground, then turned into light spots and dissipated. The whole process was quiet, rapid, and efficiently creepy. There was no fierce confrontation, no flashy skill exchange, only a one-sided, silent Death Harvest.

Wang Meng's Godspeed Titan still stood stupidly in place, the black flames on its body having gradually extinguished. It watched the petite Vampire girl behind it "sniping" the entire arena as elegantly as if playing the piano. On its rock-composed face, a look of "dullness" seemed to appear. The target it was ordered to protect didn't seem to need its protection at all? And, isn't it a bit too strong?

In the contestant seats, Wang Meng opened his mouth wide, watching his Godspeed Titan standing there like a fool, then looking at the enemy summons on the field being cleared away as quickly as chopping melons and vegetables, then looking at the calm-faced Lin Muyang, his head buzzing. He had originally thought that sending his Godspeed Titan to protect Lin Muyang's summon was like offering help in a time of need, an excellent opportunity to show loyalty. But now it seems like the help was delivered to a volcano? This display of loyalty, how does it look so redundant and ridiculous?

Gu Shuanglin covered her mouth with her small hand to suppress the exclamation that almost escaped. She knew Lin Muyang was strong, knew Alice was definitely not weak, but she never expected it to be this kind of strength! This is no longer a question of strength, this is simply cheating! Making all the opponent's attacks ineffective, while being able to ignore everything and instantly kill the opponent—how is this even playable?

And Hao Qingshan, at this moment, was ashen-faced, slumped back into his seat, his eyes hollow. His last shred of wishful thinking was shattered by the cruel reality before him. He clenched his fists tightly, his nails digging deep into his palms, unaware of the blood seeping out. Lost, completely and utterly lost.

In less than twenty seconds.

With Alice's final finger hook, the last Nightmare Wraith on the field, still attempting to interfere with her using mental shock, let out a piercing scream, its form rapidly shriveling and dissipating like a punctured balloon.

Thus, on the Martial Arts Stage, besides Alice herself, there remained only Wang Meng's Godspeed Titan, which was still in a defensive posture and seemed somewhat at a loss, and Gu Shuanglin's Highly Venomous Snake Vine, which seemed bored because no one was attacking it, and was busy tying knots with its own vines.