Chapter Sixty-One: The Black Bear's Cave

A long-lost thrill surged within him. His entire body gradually darkened, veins glowing red as crimson blood pulsed furiously through his form. As his physique adapted, his skin slowly returned to its original hue, but it had been strengthened to the point of being impervious to blades and bullets.

He assessed himself. “With the enhancement to my strength, speed, and skin’s toughness, I’ve far surpassed White Scorpion and the others who relied on the ogre potion.”

As the demonic blood coursed through his body, a pair of devil’s eyes suddenly opened atop his back, manifesting in the void. Empowered by these eyes, Blackfeather gained vision that pierced the night, his gaze slicing through the impenetrable darkness to spot the massive Black Demon Bear rampaging toward him, its powerful limbs pounding the ground.

A phantom formed by condensed magic—this was the first stage of transformation. The stronger a magician, the greater their ability to turn magic into substance. The form they condensed depended on their bloodline inheritance. For instance, if Yixin awakened the power of transformation, his form would be the Golden Lion of the Scarlet Flame clan, just like the Lord of Scarlet Flame City, Yisheng.

The surge of power intoxicated Blackfeather, stoking his anticipation for the complete unlocking of the Tenfold Seal.

“When I fully open all ten seals, I’ll reclaim my true strength and go find Xiaoyu.”

The Black Demon Bear was upon him now, its eyes glowing red, its broad back towering like a mountain, claws mutated by magic into blades of steel. With a low roar, it charged at Blackfeather, swinging its paw with brute force straight at his head.

Blackfeather calmly raised his arm to block. It wasn’t that he couldn’t dodge; he deliberately wanted to test the toughness of his newly enhanced skin.

The bear’s sharp claws struck his arm, producing the metallic ring of steel clashing with iron, yet Blackfeather’s feet remained unmoved. His arm withstood the blow without leaving a mark on his skin. A smile curled at his lips, satisfied with the second seal’s strengthening.

The Black Demon Bear, unwilling to tolerate such audacity in its domain, roared again and launched a ferocious assault, raising both massive paws to batter Blackfeather in succession.

Blackfeather met its blows with his fists, countering the attacks. After blocking two strikes, he suddenly sidestepped, covering a distance of nearly ten meters in an instant. Even he was surprised by this speed, his shoulder slamming against the cave wall.

“With the second seal, my speed has increased so much!” he exclaimed in delight.

Observing the bear again from afar, its towering figure stretched ten meters high, its head brushing the cave’s ceiling, its huge body nearly blocking the entrance.

He recalled his first magic training class and couldn’t help but lament—the boar that Yixin felled with a punch was gentle and adorable in comparison; the beasts he faced now were on an entirely different level.

The Black Demon Bear charged again, its thunderous footsteps shaking the cave. Driven by its bloodthirsty instinct, it sought only to crush and tear apart its prey. Its paws battered the air, each blow carrying winds that could rupture eardrums.

Blackfeather, unmoving at the cave wall, relied on his reinforced body to stand against the bear. His swift punches repelled its paws again and again. Suddenly, he caught both descending paws in his hands, holding fast to the bear’s immense frame.

“If you want to test our strength, let’s settle it now.”

With a powerful push from his rear legs, he drove forward. The bear roared, eyes bloodshot, muscles bulging along its back as if two titans were locked in contest.

Yet, despite the difference in size, Blackfeather steadily pressed onward, forcing the enormous beast deeper into the cave, step by relentless step.

Enraged, the Black Demon Bear suddenly exerted all its strength, attempting to run forward, but it could only tread in place, its claws retreating despite the mud flying beneath its feet. Suddenly, it opened its jaws and lunged at Blackfeather’s head.

Blackfeather struck the bear’s paws with clenched fists, then sidestepped several meters, instantly closing in again. With his staff, he unleashed a magical light slash, slicing along the bear’s flank.

The arc of magical light was as broad as a blade; a flash of black ripped open the bear’s tough skin, carving a long wound across its front and side, blood spilling forth, intestines tumbling out.

The Black Demon Bear let out a tortured howl, falling to its knees.

Blackfeather steadied himself at its rear side, satisfied, and concluded, “Excellent. The power of the magic light slash has increased—the range of the black blade is greater, and its cutting force is much stronger.”

As the bear bled, the scent of blood wafted through the air. In his enhanced state, Blackfeather’s sense of smell could detect even the faintest trace of blood, and now, his excitement mounted under the influence of the second seal’s “bloodlust instinct,” the demonic blood boiling within him.

The so-called “bloodlust instinct” meant that, with the second seal unlocked, his dark powers would automatically absorb the ambient scent of blood, converting it into strength. The more blood lost—by himself or his enemy—the more power he drew from this instinct, growing fiercer in battle.

The Black Demon Bear whimpered and stood again. For a beast with a millennium of cultivation, such a wound was nothing, but this time it was even more frenzied. Its body swayed as it charged at Blackfeather.

Blackfeather dodged, letting it crash into the cave wall, dislodging stones from the ceiling.

Lingxiao Tears and Divine Lord Guo waited anxiously outside, their eyes never leaving the dark cave entrance. They saw a flash of black inside, followed by thunderous crashes and falling debris, unsure of what was happening within.

Blackfeather and the berserk bear clashed again. Using his boosted speed and wings, he darted around the beast, circling it and unleashing shining magic light slashes that carved mercilessly into its hide.

Despite its thick skin and flesh, the bear was overwhelmed by the repeated attacks, blood pouring from its mouth, its state nearly deranged. When all its strikes missed, it suddenly ceased targeting Blackfeather, instead using its massive body to block the cave entrance and pounding the ground and walls with desperate fury.

Stones rained down from above, as if to bury Blackfeather alive in the cave, sealing their fate together.

“Stop it, you stupid bear!” Blackfeather shouted in anger.

The bear paid no heed, continuing to hammer the ground, its immense strength shaking the entire cave. Blackfeather tried several times to slip past, but was blocked by its lunges, forced to retreat to his original position.

“This is bad. If this keeps up, the cave will collapse from its onslaught.”