Chapter 325

Wolf King Langlangji slowly descended from the sky, and the surrounding Lin Duo tribespeople, having obtained weapons, gathered together.

Only Rik's eyes held a blazing fighting spirit, and without hesitation he stood in front of the tribespeople.

"Lin Duo, you're not bad; your body holds great power." Wolf King Langlangji looked at Rik, whose eyes were filled with icy, iron-blooded coldness, and praised him.

It could sense that something was being born in the body of this ordinary Lin Duo before it, and it faintly felt a hint of danger.

But this hint of danger was clearly far from enough for the wolf king of the royal clan, Langlangji.

Rik did not face Gamio's opening; he said nothing, merely assuming a ready-to-attack stance.

"Kill all the Lin Duo." Gamio issued the proclamation.

The humans transformed into Langlangji let out a roar, like a hungry wolf facing fresh meat, and lunged at the people wielding weapons.

"Bang!"

Rik stepped forward, the fighting will burning in his heart.

Suddenly, a brilliant red light flared on his arm; he punched the lunging Langlangji in the chest, and then crimson armor like blazing fire appeared on Rik's body.

A pair of golden-yellow horns rose from his head, his crimson pupils seeming to blaze with fire.

The sound of shattering bones exploded in everyone's ears; that Langlangji flew backward at greater speed, smashing a large hole in the nearby house.

"Transformed into Empty Self." Rik clenched his fists and whispered.

Suddenly, fragmented images flashed rapidly through his mind; these were images recorded by the spirit stone, existing only in the cracks of time, and it was precisely these images that let him understand the origin of the belt.

"You? You're actually the second Empty Self, though you appear considerably weaker than the previous Empty Self."

Gamio stared at the Empty Self standing before him, his wolf mouth opened, and his dagger‑sharp teeth let out a sound of astonishment.

"Well, I am indeed weaker than him, but since he entrusted this power to me, I will not disappoint him." Rik clenched his fists and said.

"Empty Self?!"

The village chief, who had painstakingly dug out another spirit stone from his home, stared fixedly at the appearance of another Empty Self, and instantly felt it was unbelievable.

When he was chosen to become the village chief of Lin Duo Village, he not only gained the villagers' support, but also inherited some unknown secrets from his predecessor.

Long ago, Lin Duo likewise fell into a time of dire need for power, just as today.

At that time, volunteers likewise activated the Empty Self's transformation, but the original Empty Self's appearance differed somewhat from that of the current Empty Self.

The original Empty Self was also red, but the horns on his forehead were smaller than those of the present Empty Self, because the Amadamu spirit stone developed at that time was incomplete.

Not only did his power become weak, but it also caused an unimaginable disaster.

When the holy spring dries up, a fierce warrior will appear accompanied by lightning, burying the sun in ultimate darkness.

This record on Lin Duo's ancient scroll describes that: a being whose entire body turns pitch‑black, covered in thorn‑like growths, with blood‑vessel‑like tissue emerging, and whose horns on the head are fully spread, is called the Ultimate Empty Self.

At the moment that warrior regained consciousness, seeing what he had done to his tribespeople, he chose to seal himself until death, and that incomplete Amadamu spirit stone was also sealed away, remaining so to this day.

But the village chief never expected that there were other Amadamu spirit stones, and moreover, one inexplicably appeared inside Rik's body.

However, judging by the horns on his forehead, the Amadamu spirit stone within Rik's body is the complete version, which somewhat relieved the village chief.

It is called incomplete precisely because the risk of losing control is very high.

Rik suddenly became strong. Power poured forth continuously from every part of his body, and the scarlet armor let him no longer fear the tearing and attacks of the Langlangji, making him even stronger.

Rik watched the tribespeople battling the Langlangji all around, reached out and grabbed an iron rod left on the ground nearby, and at that instant the spirit stone at his waist turned deep blue.

The iron rod in his hand was quickly coated by the spirit stone's power, becoming a staff bearing a blue gem.

Rik, with attacks like flowing water, sent every Langlangji flying, and guarded behind him the remaining tribespeople who had not been infected by the black mist.

However, when Rik was besieged by dozens of Langlangji, he suddenly felt he needed the steadfast strength of a mountain, and the spirit stone answered his wish.

The Azure Dragon Staff in his hand underwent another change; a purple hue suffused Rik's body, and the blade's edge first appeared.

Rik instantly felt the pressure greatly lessen; the earth's power from below continually supported him, enabling him to more easily knock down the Langlangji.

"I cannot kill them; they are my tribespeople transformed."

Rik looked at the transformed tribespeople; each time he launched an attack at them, his heart felt as if it were being stabbed by a knife.

Although they have now become monsters, not long ago these Langlangji were his companions who fought alongside him.

What should I do? What should I do? How can I stop them?

Anxious Rik constantly questioned himself in his mind; although he was fighting the Langlangji, the reality was that he merely knocked the Langlangji unable to rise.

Just as he was about to deliver the killing blow, his intended motion involuntarily stopped.

Rik couldn't bring himself to strike; he did not want to hurt anyone.

He waved his weapon, stumbling as he resisted the enemies, passing through house after house.

He had not thought of a solution, but he knew who had turned the tribespeople into this.

Rik brandished his sharp sword, ferociously charging at the wolf‑shaped Langlangji that emitted the black mist; he was like an angry male lion.

Watching Rik rush toward him again and again, Gamio made no move, simply standing before Rik and letting out a soft roar.

The Langlangji gathered around, upon hearing Gamio's command, instantly went mad again; this time they lost even their last vestiges of reason.

All forward routes were blocked by the reason‑less Langlangji; Rik found no path, and his body grew heavy from prolonged combat.

Even though he was wounded and bleeding, he still wanted to protect his tribespeople, protect his sister; he could not give up, he wanted to restore the tribespeople to their original state, he wanted to fight! He wanted to guard everything! He also wanted to kill the one who turned the tribespeople into Langlangji!

An unprecedented fierce will burned in Rik's heart; at that moment, the spirit stone at his waist suddenly blazed with light.

Rik reached out and once again sent the lunging Langlangji flying, but this time the struck Langlangji's body surface suddenly burst forth with an ancient rune mark.

"Swish!"

The ancient characters swiftly spread across the Langlangji's body, but unlike Jiang Xia's, the symbols Rik produced did not explode; they were a true seal.

A gray‑white hue instantly rose from the ground, and the Langlangji transformed from Lin Duo turned to stone just like that.

"So that's how it works; just inscribe the rune inside to seal them."

A flash of insight crossed Rik's mind; the Titan Sword in his hand vanished instantly, and his armor shifted back to a vivid red.

(End of chapter)