Chapter 263: Life-and-Death Struggle
Ghast's demonic body, which he created with all his might, truly was a remarkable treasure. It possessed not only tremendous physical attack and defense capabilities but also a vast reserve of magical energy.
Essentially, this body was a perfect magical puppet, an ideal match for Adam.
As a product of necromancy, Adam could perform some soul-based magic—that was his innate talent—but he was powerless against non-soul-based magic. The demonic body perfectly compensated for this weakness.
Luke had no shortage of spellbooks. Both the ancient parchment scrolls he obtained from Constantine and the notes he salvaged from the Pyramid of the Sun God contained numerous rare and powerful spells.
To boost Adam's combat ability, Luke even hired Zatanna as a tutor at a high cost. The magician, though young, possessed astonishing knowledge. With her help, Adam quickly mastered foundational spells like invisibility, augmentation, and levitation.
This fight was Adam's first live combat test since learning magic.
The fire dragon soared through the sky. From the dragon's head, where Luke stood, eight spider-leg-like cannons sprang from his back, blue light converging at their muzzles.
Bang!
A blue energy pillar, as thick as a barrel, shot out, slamming violently into Joel Nash.
The demon's barrier shattered instantly, layer after layer exploding. The terrifying impact drove Nash backward, forcing him to slide for nearly a hundred meters before he finally stopped. Half of his thick magical barrier was gone, yet Joel Nash was completely unharmed.
"This guy's magical reserves are truly abundant," Luke muttered under his breath.
While the Green Flame was powerful, it lacked brute force offensive power, especially when facing creatures with strong, resilient souls like Parallax or Ghast. It was difficult to end a fight quickly against such beings.
"I need to find a way to make up for that," Luke thought, his eyes turning stone cold.
The red and green flames savagely clashed, virtually splitting the forest in two. As the fire burned, the color of the sky above began to change, and as the battle raged on, a faint seven-colored aura even appeared high above.
Joel Nash's face was dark. He finally understood why his other half had been killed by this young human.
The green flame!
It was different from the fire of hell's undead—more savage, colder, and possessing absolute suppressive power against the soul.
Having lived countless years, he had never heard of such a terrifying flame existing in the world. The battle had only lasted three minutes, yet Joel Nash could feel a sense of weakness emanating from the depths of his soul. His soul was being eroded by the Green Flame, even without direct contact.
What is the origin of this person?
Joel Nash stared intently at the black armor on the dragon's head. Suddenly, he opened his right hand and clenched it in the air.
Bang!
The flame on Luke's chest exploded, and his body staggered twice. Sensing a mysterious force attempting to invade his heart, Luke snorted, making the flame surge to expel the energy.
"Don't try those cheap tricks! They won't work on me."
"To defeat me, you need raw power. Do you have it?"
Joel Nash remained silent. The black and red markings on his forehead shone brightly. The moonlight abruptly vanished, and the sky turned pitch black. Heavy dark clouds flew in from the distance, accompanied by deafening thunder. Lightning bolts tore across the sky and slammed down heavily.
At the same time, the ground shifted. A deep red wave of light swept across the forest, leaving blinding red auras beneath the feet of every living creature.
The Curse Halo!
Luke narrowed his eyes, his internal alarm reaching its maximum. He had firsthand experience with how repulsive and dangerous this power was.
Joel Nash leaped into the sky. As he spread his wings, countless lightning bolts struck him head-on, the continuous thunder illuminating the night like day.
Dense electrical current enveloped his body. Gradually, his fiery red wings began to change: streaks of blinding white light appeared within the red patterns. The white light rapidly expanded, combining with the red to form a bizarre, spiraling mark.
Joel Nash roared. An ion-energy wave exploded outward from his center, destroying everything in its path—trees, flowers, and rocks—with countless arcs of electricity.
Luke put up a flame shield, his eyes fixed unblinkingly on his opponent through the energy waves.
Such immense power!
Even at this distance, he could clearly feel the oppressive force of the high-density energy.
An ancient demon is truly extraordinary.
Transformed into his lightning-fire form, Joel Nash's speed increased dramatically. He spread his wings and, in the next second, appeared directly in front of Luke, his claw—wreathed in fire and lightning—striking hard.
Boom!
Large cracks spider-webbed across the green flame shield. The fire energy scattered, mixed with tiny arcs of electricity.
Luke's expression hardened, and he hastily raised both hands to brace himself.
Bang!
The claw tore through the shield, and Luke was sent flying backward, shattering three tree trunks before slamming into the ground, leaving a deep crater.
Cough, cough, cough!
Luke was racked by a fit of coughing. Just as he tried to check his body, he felt a chill on his back and instinctively ducked.
A red light scraped past his head and vanished into the depths of the forest. Joel Nash, now behind him, raised his claw. A dagger formed quickly in his grip, crackling with fire and lightning.
"Die!"
The voice, thick with infinite malice, exploded in his ear. Luke was terrified. The Phantom Armor shone with a blinding blue light, and an invisible force field materialized into a terrifying blast. Simultaneously, the ground beneath him erupted as the fire dragon burst forth, snapping and tearing at Joel Nash.
Joel Nash didn't retreat. He clenched the dagger and stabbed down with all his might.
Ffshh!
The dagger pierced the Phantom Armor, punching through Luke's shoulder. At the same moment, Luke's body was blasted away by the shockwave, and Joel Nash was engulfed by the fire dragon.
Two agonizing screams echoed through the forest. Luke spat out clotted blood, the wound from the dagger pulsing with unbearable agony. Joel Nash was in a far worse state, struggling inside the green flames and letting out hysterical shrieks.
"Bastard! You dared to fight me to the death!"
Luke spat out two more mouthfuls of blood, his eyes red with fury. He wobbled to his feet, only to slip and face-plant into the mud.
"Damn this bad luck!"
He cursed vehemently.
"Ava... Ava..."
He called out twice with no response. After two more seconds, a halting, intermittent voice answered,
"System er... error... currently running di... diagnostics."
Luke was speechless.
Great. Just great. Truly worthy of the Curse Halo!
He pressed his lips together, utterly enraged.
Just then, the mud in front of him churned. A seedling broke the soil and rapidly grew, instantly transforming into the familiar figure of the Swamp Thing, covered in leaves and vines.
Luke grimaced. "You took your time getting here!"
"I can't fly. I can only travel through the soil."
The Swamp Thing placed a hand on Luke's back. Natural energy flowed from his palm, nourishing the wound left by the dagger. The bleeding stopped, and new flesh began to sprout. Accompanied by a tingling pain, the hole in his back quickly healed.
Luke flexed his arm, genuinely impressed.
"Your ability truly is enviable."
"It is the blessing of Nature."
The two stood side-by-side, watching coldly as Joel Nash burst out of the fire dragon's body.
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