"Shut up!"
Jason yelled with a belly full of rage. He was used to being the one controlling the battles, deciding the fates of others, but today's events were completely different.
It had taken them over a day to track down the person who fled from the lake, and once they finally did, Jason believed that they were in for quite a treat. Not only would they be able to kill whoever it was, they would also be able to take all their things.
However, things had not gone according to plan. He grit his teeth in rage as he gripped his sword tighter. His mind raced for solutions. The power of John's attacks were incredibly powerful, and Jason knew that he would be overwhelmed before long. The fact that the single lightning attack was enough to pierce through Ren was proof of this. Although Ren was facing the other direction and was not prepared for such an attack, most Late Qi Condensation attacks would have only injured, not killed in one blow.
Fleeing was also an option, but how would he break free from John's domain.
A thought suddenly crossed his mind, and he turned to his last remaining ally.
"Brett, group up. You take the lead, and I'll focus on the domain. The domain attacks are more elusive, since they can come from any direction. All you have to do is deal with his straightforward attack from the front."
Upon hearing such a plan, Brett wanted to argue, but knew Jason was stronger than him. Strength was everything in the Bloodfiend Sect, and so Brett had no option but to follow along. He knew he could not block that lightning attack from John, but he had to at least try.
John sat there with an amused smile on his face as he watched them plan their next attack. Although he appeared quite casual and relaxed in his seated position, he was actually using a large portion of his full power. Lightning Ruin and his Heavenly Lightning Domain were two of his strongest essence attacks, and only his Divine Reaping Scythe had more firepower.
However, when compared to his overall combat prowess when he used his body as well, his current combat state was far below his full power. This battle was extremely beneficial for him, as he was learning to control his Heavenly Lightning Domain better. He had even identified a flaw where it could be improved upon, and wanted to explore that after the fight.
"Lets go!" Jason shouted as he instructed Brett to lead the charge.
Brett grit his teeth and began dashing towards John, preparing to unleash his strongest attack. His sword glowed for a brief instant before a powerful sword image pierced straight towards John. John once again casually raised his arm and pointed his finger towards the attack.
Lightning Ruin!
Boom!
The attacks collided, causing a small explosion.
At the same time, a domain attack from behind pierced directly towards Jason. He sent out his strongest attack and managed to barely neutralize it, and quickly turned towards Brett.
Bang!
Jason's foot kicked Bretts back with full force, sending him flying like a broken kite directly towards John. At the same time, he used the rebounding force from the kick to dash away as fast as possible away from the fight. He then utilized his fastest movement technique to flee.
"Jason you bastard!"
Brett yelled out as he struggled to regain his balance. He knew that Jason had used him as a sacrificial tool.
John raised his eyebrows in slight surprise at Jason's actions.
"You keep disappointing me more and more. You really should feel ashamed for your actions today!"
John quickly stood up, and his scythe appeared in his hands.
'I guess it's time to end this. I can't let my prey escape after all.'
Thunderflash Steps!
Supreme Battle Art!
John dashed forward as fast as possible, appearing like a blur to Brett. Brett was still struggling to recover from Jason's attack, and was unable to stop his forward momentum towards John.
Che!
John's scythe sliced forward as he dashed past Brett, cleaving towards him before he could even react.
"Nooo-"
Brett's screams were cut short as his head was cleanly removed from his body. John didn't even give him a second glance as he continued towards Jason, who was quite far ahead due to his previous actions.
However, just as Jason thought he was free..
Bang!
Jason rebounded off an invisible wall that he had previously been unable to detect. The wall lit up slightly as it used its power to block his forward momentum.
Jason's blood tumbled in his body from such an unexpected stop, and his nose was broken from having run face first into the invisible wall.
"What the fuck is this?" Jason yelled as he quickly stood up. His sword slashed forward with all his might, and the invisible wall quickly shattered, opening a gap beyond.
However, this delay was all John needed.
Lightning Ruin!
A lightning ruin pierced directly towards Jason's back, forcing him to turn around and block the attack.
His sword glowed blood red, and he slashed out with all his might!
Boom!
Techniques collided, and Jason was knocked backwards dozens of yards from the exchange. He turned to run once again, but found another Lightning Ruin fast approaching.
Techniques collided once more, and Jason was forced back yet again. After tumbling over several times, he hastily stood to brace for another attack, but his eyes suddenly widened.
Che!
John's scythe sliced forward as he was already directly in front of Jason. The opportunity created by the invisible wall and his Lightning Ruin was all he needed to catch up.
Jason was a hair too late in blocking John's scythe. The lightning ruin that he had blocked with his sword seeped into his arms and then his body. The destructive nature of the lightning slowed his movements for a moment, which was all John needed. Jason's legs were cleanly separated from his body, and his upper half tumbled down to the ground.
"Ahhhh!"
Jason's pained screams echoed out, but before he could do anything more, a hand slammed directly into his lower abdomen. John's hand pierced directly into Jason's dantian, crippling it. Qi slowly began to seep out of Jason's body, until his dantian was eventually no more
Jason's eyes became listless, and he quickly collapsed into unconsciousness from the pain of losing his legs and his dantian.
John looked down at the now unconscious Jason with cold eyes. He had hastily crippled his dantian, after having his previous Bloodfiend Sect victims use their Qi to commit suicide. Without his dantian, such a thing would be impossible.
After a moment of staring at Jason, John looked up at a certain someone approaching.
"I said you could stay in the cave."
"I know, but how could I pass on such an opportunity to show how awesome I am?" Adam replied in a proud tone with his chest puffed out. The invisible wall, similar to the formations that surrounded sparring arenas, was his work.
He had slipped out of the cave when the fighting had started, and began setting up a quick formation in the direction he assumed one of the Bloodfiend Sect members might flee. Although the wall was not powerful, it was enough to stop them for a moment, and had worked out perfectly.
"Well, I can't say it didn't help. Let's return to the cave," John replied as he began to drag Jason by the arm towards the cave. He sent out a simple burst of lightning towards Jason's severed legs, charring the flesh and stopping the bleeding.
He had questions he wanted to ask, and would not let Jason get off easy.
…
Jason's weary eyes slowly opened, taking in the dimly-lit cave he was in. His mind was hazy for a second, before they opened wide in realizing fear. His head swiveled to the side, and he spotted what to him looked like the grim reaper.
John noticed that Jason had woken up, and a smile appeared on his face. He walked over towards Jason and crouched down directly in front of him.
"You and I are going to have a long, long talk."
