The Dawn of the New World Chapter 1639

The outer edge of the magic circle lit up like a candle while the blood turned bright red, releasing a string of concentrated spiritual energy into Hao Xuan's body.

He shuddered in disbelief upon feeling the torrential energy coursing through his extremities.

Gudmunder slapped him on the shoulder, "It won't be as good as your innate energy but with this, you outa be able to use a few superficial techniques without too much trouble. The magic circle will cannibalize itself for 7 minutes from the moment you first start using the energy, make sure to finish it before that."

Hao Xuan rubbed the tip of his fingers which were tingling with spiritual energy, filling him up from the outside in.

He smiled thoughtfully, 'It's been so long I forgot what it felt like. The emptiness is becoming lighter and even if it is temporary, I feel a little more like myself again.'

But when he looked at the Hell Knight staring him down from afar, he knew just this would not be enough.

Hao Xuan grabbed two of the chains around his neck and pulled hard enough to shatter the last metal link to pieces.

Gudmunder couldn't sense the change all that well but he could see Hao Xuan's muscles beginning to writhe under his skin.

"The hell did you do?? Was that a seal?!"

But Hao Xuan was so focused on the Hell Knight that he could hardly register his voice anymore.

"Don't get too close and don't interfere," he warned the blood magician, "I want to see what this puppet is made of."

"W-What?! Stop playing around! It's already connected to the True Demon that birthed it and you don't even have any weapons!"

"Don't need 'em," Hao Xuan lightly muttered before disappearing in an explosion of sand.

He shot straight at the demon and it welcomed him with a devilish grin. Their fists shot out in unison, meeting each other with perfect synchronicity.

*BOOOOOOOOOM*

The shockwave flattened everything within 500 meters, throwing poor Gudmunder another 200 meters back.

"AHH! THE FUCK?!" he roared angrily as the only magic circle he had inscribed so far exploded upon impact, "Fucking monsters- BOTH OF YOU!"

*BOOOOM*

*BOOOOOOOM*

*BOOOOOOOOOM*

A series of escalating explosions followed right after, ending with the Hell Knight being pushed back a hundred meters.

Its beastly eyes widened- not from anger or hate, but from the pleasure of finally finding an enemy worth fighting.

[You live up...to your bloodline] it complimented while looking at its smoking fist but Hao Xuan was not that happy to hear that.

He lightly shook his head with a scowl, "And you are wasting my time. I thought you wanted a fight to the death? No? Why are you STILL holding back?! If-"

The Hell Knight straightened its back while its words slowly reached his ears.

[You are...worthy]

Hao Xuan paused, "-Of what?"

[To know my...name]

The Hell Knight reached behind his back and with one swift motion plunged his clawed grip into its own back, ripping out the spine with one quick movement.

But its body barely shook from the brutal action while the pain, if there was any, did not seem to bother it at all.

The bone fragments clicked together like parts of a puzzle and then fused into one solid piece thanks to the extreme Demonic Qi, creating a double-edged blade.

*MMMMMMM*

The air hummed in its presence and even Hao Xuan could feel a chill crawling up his spine.

This blade- this "sword" was almost 2 meters in length from the hilt to the tip. It was quite simple and without any of the usual garnishments that came along with other demonic artifacts.

Hao Xuan needed but a single glance to understand what kind of a "warrior" this Knight of Hell was. The blade was sharp and clean lacking any torturous attachments. There was an air of brutal efficiency about it.

It was not meant to induce fear or to inflict pain simply for the sake of it. It was meant for combat- a tool designed for effective killing and cutting its opponents down with the least amount of trouble.

The demon held the sword with both hands, bringing it up to its face while the gaping wound on its back swiftly closed up.

It met Hao Xuan's gaze and then held it, [I am...Sedat of Eternal Torment!]

It was just as Hao Xuan expected.

'A warrior's soul, huh? So be it.'

Hao Xuan took a stance for the first time, bringing his right foot forward and leaning onward with one open palm and one closed fist.

"You may call me Jin."

The Hell Knight gave a slow nod after a brief moment of deliberation.

[Jin. I will...accept that name. If you can...destroy this...form...then we will...meet again...soon. And then...I will ask...your 'true' name...when I take your soul...as my trophy]

Sedat brought the sword down and pulled it back. All the demonic Qi gathered around his arms and head before exploding in a thick miasma.

[Demonic Art: Echoes of Torment- Fall of the Blood Moon]

The Miasma covered both the blade and the Hell Knight as it barrelled towards him. From afar it really did hold the appearance of a red moon.

But that wasn't the end of it. Every ten steps a second blood moon appeared on either side. By the time it would reach Hao Xuan there would be over fifteen moons and they were all identical so any of them could be hiding the Demon.

But he did not panic.

The magic circle on Hao Xuan's back came to life but instead of slowly burning away like an incense, it similarly exploded and all the energy was pulled towards his fist and palm.

The spiritual energy ignited around his right hand taking the rough shape of a beastly claw and then the same happened around the left fist.

'Ashuras Grand Compendious: 64 Palms of Infernal Flame'

A suffocating pressure rivaling that of the Hell Knight fell upon the area.

"61st Palm: Red Dragons Fury!"

Hao Xuan's figure exploded in a haze of fire and ash, lashing out at the demon with even more ferocity.