Reborn As A Ghost: Time To Build My Undead Army!-Chapter 1688: An Immortal Faces Indescribable Horror
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Despite everything, the White Mist Immortal had another ace up his sleeve.
"You’ve forced my hand!"
He retrieved a small golden ring from his pocket and slipped it on, his body immediately overflowing with new power.
"This is the Golden Lotus Ring! It grants me immense Ki power and reinforces my Immortal Physique! Face despair!"
Maria’s eyes gleamed with interest as she watched the Immortal descend, his long black-and-white hair whipping in the wind, his eyes glowing bright red. A golden lotus bloomed behind him as he struck her with his palms, unleashing a relentless barrage of attacks. His Martial Soul coiled around her, inhibiting her movements and suppressing her phantasmal limbs.
CLASH! CLASH! CLASH! CLASH!
But Maria’s eyes glowed as her Aura surged. Then, as the White Mist Immortal lowered his guard for a single second, she resumed her earlier conversation.
"{Skeletal Titan Goddess of the Stars: Itzpapalotl}"
TRUUUM!
"Ugh?!"
The White Mist Immortal gasped, suddenly feeling an immensely powerful pressure bearing down on him.
This woman.
Someone who wasn’t even a Cultivator. Not a true Martial Artist.
This damned woman.
Not even an Immortal who had ascended the heavens!
She...
"A-Ahh...! AAAHHHHHH!"
She summoned a horror beyond the stars—so terrifying that even the Immortal screamed in fear, losing control of himself as the gigantic skeletal goddess appeared.
This was a Privilege that allowed Maria to transform into such a being.
But from what she had learned in this battle, she had managed to absorb part of the man’s power and imbue it into a vessel born from her soul.
A "Fake Martial Soul."
It wasn’t a Divided Ego Soul, nor a Soul Fragment—certainly not a Phantom Clone.
It was more like the embodiment of her own Aura.
And yet, it was also a separate spiritual being that represented an aspect of her power.
This Privilege... it had begun to evolve into something no longer tied to the System, but directly to her.
"I don’t like this Privilege too much. Too many constraints, it drains my energy like crazy, and it’s really uncomfortable to become a huge skeleton."
Maria smiled as she looked at the screaming man, gently caressing the skeletal chin of the bone goddess behind her—its dark blue bones and long hair resembling a nebula of stars.
"But this is pretty good... I have to thank you earnestly. What you’ve taught me has been very valuable."
"I-I haven’t taught you a damn thing, you stupid bitch! I don’t care about your stupid illusion!"
He quickly pulled out several more artifacts. Among them were three golden-coated lanterns like those used by his disciples.
They released yellow clouds, summoning dragon spirits that rushed toward Maria.
At the same time, he summoned a mirror that floated around him, reflecting the terrifying aura of the skeleton.
Lastly, he summoned a long golden spear crackling with potent lightning.
He had quite the haul of treasures.
Indeed, he was an Immortal through and through.
"You haven’t seen anything yet!"
Then he pulled out a dozen red-colored pills from his pocket and bit into them, releasing a crunchy sound and a red mist.
"Those are... pills?"
As Maria glanced at the Immortal, her powerful "Fake Martial Soul" fought the Yellow Cloud Dragon Spirits. Her gigantic skeletal claws tore them apart with ease.
At the same time—
"{Itzpapalotl’s Starlight Bone Weapons}: {Cloud-Severing Bone Blades}"
FLUOSH!
The skeleton’s claws transformed into massive bone swords glowing with starlight. They slashed through the yellow clouds, cutting down dozens of spirits. Each exploded into yellow Ki, which Maria promptly absorbed through the black hole in her chest. She wasn’t about to let such delicious Ki go to waste.
Then, her phantom hands snatched the lanterns and tossed them into her Inventory faster than the White Mist Immortal could react. Before he could retrieve another artifact, Maria reached him in a flash—her Aura erupting as a giant skeletal fist crashed down.
BOOOM!
"Ngh... Hahah..."
Though he bled, he managed to tank the blow. His eyes turned completely red, his heartbeat slowed, and his skin paled. Maria noticed a red rune-like tattoo glowing on his chest.
"I hate to admit it, but those Vampires from the Upper Floors make some really good medicine! I can feel it now! I’m surpassing the First Stage of the Immortal Ascension Realm! Hah...! Hahahahaha!"
Maria watched as the Immortal gained vampiric traits. Not only had he learned the Shadow Blood Arts, but he had likely ingested Blood Beast Pills—crafted from vampire blood and energy.
They had probably enhanced his stats and granted a temporary transformation, further boosting his Immortal Physique and Golden Core.
Still, Maria looked disappointed.
"I’m a little disappointed. You people really shouldn’t do this," she sighed. "You’re incredible martial artists with your own legacies, and yet you resort to blood pills from those stupid vampires? Seriously, you can’t be real."
"SILENCE!"
The White Mist Immortal hissed, baring sharp vampiric fangs. His ears had grown slightly pointed, and his nails had become long, black claws.
He lunged at Maria with his golden spear, now turned crimson as it absorbed his blood energy. Golden and red thunder erupted with each of his masterful strikes—explosively sharp and devastatingly precise.
Maria didn’t hold back, pushing herself further as she battled the monster. She wanted to learn more—about Martial Arts, about how Murim Immortals fought.
Every blow she took, every strike she evaded, every hit she landed—it all added to her knowledge, feeding the small Enlightenment she had begun to feel.
"{Shadow Blood Mist Arts}: {Abyssal Blood Beast’s Fist}!"
The Immortal roared as he clashed with Maria. His Aura surged, transforming into shadowy blood mist shaped like fists, each blow carrying beast-like claws that tore through her defenses. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦
"I see. So you do this and that... interesting."
Maria nodded, seemingly unfazed. Her armor remained unscathed.
She was...
Mocking him?
"STOP MOCKING ME! I AM A GREAT IMMORTAL! DON’T YOU KNOW HOW MANY CENTURIES IT TOOK ME TO REACH THIS POINT?!"
"I know, and I admire you for that. But you’re also a piece of shit, so that admiration is cancelled. Now you’re worse than garbage."
"Y-YOU DARE...! AAAAHHHH! DIE! DIE! DIE ALREADY! DIE! DIE! DIE! DIE!"
The White Mist Immortal lost control, consumed by fury and frustration. He became a monstrous madman, throwing Maria around, kicking her, punching her.
And yet—it always felt like he was hitting something he couldn’t break through.
There was a wall.
An invisible wall between them.
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