The [Hatred Demon] roared in frustration as it watched Alex’s figure disappear back into the crimson mist.
Its crimson eyes burned with fury, its massive body trembling with rage.
It wasn’t stupid, it knew that allowing Alex to hide again could mean the next attack would injure it enough to expose its heart.
And that was something it couldn’t afford.
“You’re not getting away with this!” the [Hatred Demon] shouted, its voice echoing through the mist as it activated [Full Assault].
In an instant, it closed the distance between itself and where Alex had disappeared, its massive claws slashing through the air.
Even in this strange, mist-filled place, the [Hatred Demon] was confident it could catch up to Alex.
The human had been moving in a straight line, and the creature was determined to end this once and for all.
“FOUND YOU!” the [Hatred Demon] laughed, its voice filled with triumph as it saw Alex running ahead.
“Should have thought about revealing yourself!”
Fwish! Slash! Slash!
Its four arms swung forward, the claws tearing through Alex’s figure with brutal force.
But instead of the satisfying feeling of flesh being ripped apart, the [Hatred Demon] felt nothing.
Its claws phased through Alex’s body, and the figure vanished into red mist.
“What the hell?” the [Hatred Demon] muttered, its voice filled with confusion.
It had been so sure that this was the real Alex.
The clones couldn’t attack, so why had this one disappeared?
“Hahahaha~” a voice echoed through the mist, mocking and triumphant.
It was Alex, laughing at the [Hatred Demon]’s failure.
“How the tables have turned.”
“Shut up,” the [Hatred Demon] growled, its voice filled with frustration.
It had realized the truth now: Alex was toying with it.
Somehow, the human had found a way to trap it in this strange place, where he seemed to have full control.
But the [Hatred Demon] wasn’t about to give up.
It had already started to piece together the rules of this place.
First, there was no limit to the mist.
Even with [Full Assault], it couldn’t reach the end, meaning the only way out was to kill Alex.
Second, Alex had tricks in this place, clones that looked exactly like him, with the same aura, but couldn’t attack.
And third, Alex’s goal was to injure the [Hatred Demon] enough to hit its heart twice and kill it, using trickery in the process.
Based on these rules, the [Hatred Demon] came to a simple conclusion: it needed to never let its guard down.
Every power had a limit, and the moment Alex’s mana or whatever he was using ran out, it would be over.
‘How did he even retrieve his missing arm?’ the [Hatred Demon] thought, its eyes darting around as it noticed faint figures and auras moving in the mist.
It didn’t have time to dwell on it.
The clones were coming again.
Slash! Slash!
The assault began once more, with the clones rushing at the [Hatred Demon] one after another.
It slashed at them with its claws, destroying each one with ease.
But this time, it didn’t stop attacking.
It wasn’t going to give Alex the satisfaction of laughing at its failure.
Slash! Slash! Slash!
Thirty seconds passed like this, with over a hundred clones destroyed.
The [Hatred Demon] had stopped counting, its focus entirely on the endless wave of figures.
But then, something unexpected happened.
Fwish! Clang!
Dozens of crimson chains erupted from the mist, wrapping around the [Hatred Demon]’s body.
The creature’s eyes widened in shock as it struggled against the chains, its massive strength straining against the bindings.
‘What the—?’ it thought, its mind racing as it tried to break free.
And then, Alex appeared.
His figure darted out of the mist, charging at the [Hatred Demon] from the front.
His eyes were filled with determination, his [Bleeding Dragon Claws] gleaming with deadly intent.
‘This one seems more determined. It’s him!’ the [Hatred Demon] thought, gritting its teeth as it prepared to strike.
But just as Alex was about to reach it, the [Hatred Demon]’s rage gave it the strength to break free from the chains.
With a roar, it swung its claws at Alex, cutting him into dozens of pieces.
“FUTILE—” it shouted, but before it could finish, it felt a sharp pain at the back of its head.
Turning around, it saw the real Alex, a wide grin on his face.
“IDIOT,” Alex laughed, his voice filled with triumph as he used the momentum to dart back into the mist.
The [Hatred Demon] roared in fury, its voice shaking the mist as it unleashed a screeching sound so loud that even Alex had to cover his ears.
The creature’s frustration was palpable, its rage boiling over as it realized it had been tricked again.
‘Phew,’ Alex thought, his chest heaving as he caught his breath.
Even though he had been laughing and mocking the [Hatred Demon], he wasn’t fearless.
He knew that even in this strange space, he could still die.
One wrong move, and it would all be over.
But what exactly was this place?
How had Alex managed to trap the [Hatred Demon] here?
The answer lay in his [Blood Arts].
When Alex had pointed his severed arm at the [Hatred Demon] and shouted “Blood Mist,” he hadn’t actually used [Blood Mist].
Instead, he had used everything he had to activate his [Blood Arts]’ strongest ability: [Blood Domain].
The moment he used it, the world around him and the [Hatred Demon] shifted.
The entirety of his lost blood was consumed, sending them to this strange, crimson dimension.
As they appeared, notifications flashed before Alex’s eyes.
[Your mastery with your “Blood Arts” has maxed out at “Mastered.”]
‘Damn,’ Alex thought, a grin spreading across his face.
It meant he had fully evolved his [Blood Arts], unlocking its full potential.
But more importantly, a new perk had appeared, one with a description that made his heart race.
[Ultimate Blood Art Perk: Blood Domain; If the user bleeds so heavily they are on the verge of death, and the situation is almost hopeless, they can consume the entirety of their blood to send themselves and the target to the “Blood Domain.”]
[In the Blood Domain, both the user and the target will be stuck in an infinite and inescapable dimension, surrounded by crimson mist that blocks anything, including auras.]
[Fortunately, as it is the user’s domain, they are allowed to see better than the other target and, most importantly, use any of their other blood art perks as much as they like.]
“Wow…” Alex muttered, his eyes wide as he read the description.
This was the real deal.
The activation conditions were harsh, it required Alex to be in a desperate situation, losing an incredible amount of blood, almost enough to empty his body.
But even then, the power it granted was worth it.
Fwash!
Using this perk, Alex immediately regenerated his severed right arm with [Body Regeneration].
He grinned mischievously, his mind racing as the plan began to form in his head.
Blood Clones!
This was the first ability he thought of.
Dozens of clones appeared around him, each one looking exactly like him, ready to follow his orders.
And that was how Alex had been using them, sending wave after wave of clones at the [Hatred Demon] to distract and frustrate it.
As the description said, the [Blood Domain] allowed him to use an unlimited amount of his blood abilities.
He could have used [Blood Blades] or [Giant Blood Blades], but he knew brute force wouldn’t work against the [Hatred Demon].
Instead, he had to outsmart it.
And now, after hitting it twice, the [Hatred Demon] was angry enough to do anything to kill him.
That was exactly what Alex wanted.
The next hit would be at its heart, he was sure of it, as long as his plan worked.
‘Here goes,’ Alex thought, slapping his cheeks to steady himself as he prepared to initiate the final part of his plan.