Chapter 263: Demon Spider Lord, Submit! (6K)

Inside the miraculous cottage.

Ta Ke sat quietly cross-legged here.

At this moment, what Ta Ke held in his hand was none other than the severed Soul Veil Thread and the Shadow Demon Wolf Thread.

With the fall of Ta Ke's Soul Veil and the death of the Shadow Demon Wolf,

the other end of the thread had been completely obliterated.

and the part Ta Ke was holding was also the part he had actively severed.

The purpose was to prevent that mysterious eighth-rank bloodline overlord from, after sneaking up on Ta Ke, continuing to capture the remnants of Ta Ke's soul.

Last time, Ta Ke let the Soul Veil stand guard, and he already suffered a great loss.

This time, naturally, he wouldn't fall into the same pit twice.

"According to reason, the experts of the Dark Sun Church have already ambushed me once; they wouldn't be so shameless as to launch a second wave of ambushes."

"As a result..."

"These guys just don't play by the rules!"

"One wave hasn't settled before another rises."

"They look determined not to stop until they crush me."

"Fortunately..."

Ta Ke looked toward the outside, at that low, leaden cloud phenomenon.

"I'm on guard; if my true body were to go out today, I might suffer heavy injury or even fall."

Such was his thought.

Ta Ke loosened the thread, letting it dissipate along its original trajectory.

Sitting cross-legged on the wool meditation spot in the living room, Ta Ke carefully deduced the entire process of this ambush strike.

"First, the enemy can indeed use the power of the Dark Sun Curse to seek and strike me."

"Fortunately, in this regard, I had already guessed and taken precautions."

"Second, even if they are eighth-rank overlords, without the corresponding talent they cannot contend with me in deeper dimensions, such as... the world's thread layer."

"After all, I possess a 1500% SSS-rank supernatural talent, plus the SSS-exclusive Steam-World Origin Spirit Form's blessing; in deeper mastery I hold an absolute advantage, and that is precisely why, despite this ambush, the enemy failed to gain a hold over me."

"Then comes..."

Ta Ke's eyes narrowed slightly, killing intent brewing like a storm in the depths of his pupils.

"... I've caught you!"

With Ta Ke on guard, it was naturally impossible for him to suffer a blow for nothing.

The death curse of the Forbidden Curtain Stage clung to him, and in his hand he also clutched a large number of Forbidden Rule Fragments.

While the enemy ambushed Ta Ke,

Ta Ke, having precisely locked onto the enemy, anchored a Forbidden Rule Fragment onto this eighth-rank bloodline overlord who ambushed him.

That is to say, this eighth-rank bloodline overlord.

Had already been cursed by Ta Ke's Curtain Stage.

In the subsequent process, as long as Ta Ke continues to invest seven Forbidden Rule Fragments,

…Ta Ke could then drag this eighth-rank bloodline bishop powerhouse into the Forbidden Curtain Stage and imprison him.

This powerful death-grade Forbidden Curtain Stage curse requires a deity to break.

Naturally, this eighth-rank bloodline bishop overlord cannot open it.

Having already anchored onto the enemy, and with the enemy unable to escape,

Ta Ke did not rush to continue investing the subsequent Forbidden Rule Fragments.

Now is not the time to capture this eighth-rank overlord.

After this round of ecological war ends, Ta Ke will later bring that guy in and slowly settle the score.

Ta Ke gradually gathered his mind.

He shifted his attention away from the eighth-rank overlord's ambush.

His gaze fell upon the Demon Spider Lord inside the Forbidden Curtain Stage, which began to hiss and crawl in all directions, even climbing upward along the stage curtains that resembled mountain ridges.

Ta Ke opened the attribute allocation page.

After examining it for a moment, Ta Ke shook his head.

"Only forbidden objects and lifeforms born under the Forbidden Rules can be weakened or strengthened by my Forbidden Rule Fragments when I complete a curse, inflict harm, or interact with them."

"For lifeforms I pull in using Forbidden Rule Fragments, it has no effect, after all, they belong to an entirely different rule system."

"The Shadowflame Demon Wolf leader was killed, which is somewhat regrettable."

The head-shaking Ta Ke let out a quiet sigh.

"I originally wanted to cultivate it into a lord."

Immediately, Ta Ke aligned with the dimensional threads of the Forbidden Curtain Stage.

"Bang!"

Ta Ke's figure shattered like a bubble.

……

As soon as Ta Ke appeared within the Forbidden Curtain Stage,

"Hiss..."

The furious, hate-filled hiss of the Shadow Demon Spider Lord, from hundreds of meters away, swept over.

Ta Ke lightly clenched his fists.

"Wuu..."

The dual-core steam core let out a low rumble.

A large amount of steam source energy surged out fiercely from beneath Ta Ke's blood-shadow witch robe, from his sleeves and collar.

At the same time, steam, fire, and light converged behind Ta Ke, and the steam-light feather blade quickly condensed.

This time, Ta Ke intends to personally subdue this shadow magic spider lord.

Only in this way can there be hope of making the opponent submit.

A crowd beat the spider lord half to death; given this wild lord's ferocious nature, it would absolutely rather die than submit.

One-on-one, a true man's 1v1 showdown, thoroughly subduing the opponent, that's the only hope.

"Hiss..."

The distance between the two sides was about 50 meters, and the shadow magic spider lord's two front shadow limbs suddenly stabbed into the ground.

"Sizzle..."

Dense patches of "shadow ground thorns" burst forth sharply within a roughly ten-meter radius around Ta Ke.

Ordinary fourth-tier superhuman's heavy armor would be easily pierced.

And as the shadow magic spider lord lifted its two front limbs, Ta Ke had already discerned its attack intention.

Ta Ke lightly moved his step.

A shadow shift moved him over ten meters away, avoiding the shadow ground thorn attack.

One shadow ground thorn attack failed; the shadow magic spider lord's front pair of claws kept stabbing into the ground.

Shadow ground thorns began to sprout in patches around Ta Ke, pursuing him all the way.

And Ta Ke perfectly grasped the shadow magic spider lord's intention.

Whether through "precision-correction" to seize the moment,

or through "steam-world-origin spirit state" to sense fluctuations of world source energy around him,

or through phase vision ability to scout its attack range.

Ta Ke had many ways to avoid the shadow magic spider lord's "shadow ground thorn" sneak attack.

For other superhumans, the shadow ground thorn is extremely swift; this move might be hard to defend against, and a moment's carelessness could cause serious injury.

But for Ta Ke, who masters the surrounding "world," this is hardly a problem.

"Sizzle!"

"Sizzle!"

Seeing that the attack method that had always been effective now failed, the shadow magic spider's mouthparts and appendages kept rubbing together.

Immediately after, the shadow magic spider lord suddenly spat at Ta Ke.

A large mass of shadow power rushed down toward Ta Ke.

As Ta Ke retreated, that mass of shadow power landed on the ground with a "boom!" and exploded.

Dense spider silk burst forth like fireworks.

Afterward, the dense shadow spider silk covered a radius of about forty to fifty meters.

And the spot where Ta Ke landed after his shadow shift was actually over fifty meters away, just having avoided the coverage of this "spider silk bomb."

The dense spider silk from the exploded spider silk bomb fell to the ground and quickly vanished.

Ta Ke couldn't help but glance at it twice.

"This spider silk bomb is interesting."

"After the explosion, it can envelop a large area of enemies."

"When the shadow spider web lands on the ground, its shadowy power quickly seeps underground to act as an anchor, while the highly adhesive spider web part spreads across the surface."

"Once you step onto this area, the more you struggle, the tighter it wraps."

"Hiss..."

Seeing that his own attack had no effect, the shadow magic spider lord began to grow increasingly angry.

Its accumulated power kept spitting toward Ta Ke.

"Puf! Puf! Puf!"

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

One spider silk bomb after another kept spitting toward Ta Ke; even if the explosion failed to catch him, it could likewise be laid on the ground as a spider web trap.

How could Ta Ke fail to guess the spider lord's little scheme?

After a dozen or so spider silk bombs, large areas around the shadow magic spider lord were covered with spider web traps.

Others might not see them, but Ta Ke's "world vision" not only made the invisible spider webs on the surface crystal clear, but also the shadowy vein trajectories seeping underground.

"Hiss!"

It seemed to feel that the formation was set up.

The shadow magic spider lord let out a low hiss toward Ta Ke.

It simply stayed in its own area, not coming out.

Seeing this, Ta Ke was slightly taken aback.

"Entering this strange environment, it actually steadied itself."

"Is this guy trying to fight me in a positional war?"

"Whether it was earlier facing off against my divine abilities, or earlier after I stole its spider crystal and it dared not enter the Saint Lande reality layer, one can see that this guy's intelligence is quite high."

"But... just having intelligence doesn't guarantee your safety."

Ta Ke, who did not attack rashly, quickly pondered.

"Shadow ground thorns, spider silk bombs, spider web traps, shadow jumps, and the divine ability 【Spider Web Complement】—these are probably the main tactics of this fourth-tier lord."

"There might be some other hidden tactics, but... overall, they don't pose much threat to me."

Almost ready to counterattack!

After a deep breath, in an instant a bloody, brutal, cold killing aura intertwined and reappeared from Ta Ke's body.

Ta Ke rubbed his hands together and took a deep breath.

Ta Ke's entire body swiftly inflated like a balloon.

Even the Blood Shadow Witch Robe was quickly stretched into a round shape.

Immediately, Ta Ke suddenly spat out.

A large amount of fire oil, like a flood, turned into a sky‑covering rain of fire that fell upon the Shadow Demon Spider Lord and its web trap.

With a snap of Ta Ke's fingers.

Whoosh… clatter…

The scorching, violent flames instantly ignited an area of several hundred meters.

For a moment, the entire dim stage was lit up by the firelight.

Ta Ke's flames are the Inextinguishable Divine Fire.

The Shadow Demon Spider Lord's painstakingly laid trap was instantly set ablaze by Ta Ke.

Even the Shadow Demon Spider Lord had to flee the area of Ta Ke's spat‑out flames while hissing.

A level‑48, tier‑4 Shadow Demon Spider Lord dared not oppose Ta Ke's current divine fire.

Ta Ke used a phase shift and instantly appeared near the Shadow Demon Spider Lord.

At the same moment, Ta Ke aimed his Fate Revolver at the Shadow Demon Spider Lord.

"Just now you attacked; now it's my turn."

"Bang!"

A single shot fired, a little light burst on the Shadow Demon Spider Lord, exploding into faint shadow ripples; though the overall damage was low, the bullet Ta Ke infused had a light attribute, still making the Lord hiss in pain.

The Fate Revolver's attack isn't about damage; the point is for Ta Ke to harvest the 'life origin'.

This shot let Ta Ke reap about two and a half hours of life origin.

"Not bad!"

Feeling the life origin flowing into his body, Ta Ke gave a light smile.

"Bang bang bang…"

Gunshots rang out continuously.

Ta Ke swiftly harvested the Shadow Demon Spider Lord's life origin.

At the same time, the Shadow Demon Spider Lord's bodily shadows writhed quickly, gathering the flames together, then its body shuddered, shedding some shadow fragments.

The Shadow Demon Spider Lord also successfully escaped the burning of Ta Ke's divine fire.

Glancing at the fallen clump of shadow fragments, Ta Ke raised his eyebrows slightly.

"By controlling combustible material to escape the divine fire's burning, that's a decent tactic—but only shadow‑based beings not limited by bodily composition can use it."

"Other creatures, like werewolves, I've set their 'dog heads' on fire; they can't just tear them off and kick them around like a ball."

"For those imperfectly condensed extraordinary beings, or those easily ignited, my flame divine ability easily counters them."

"Even this Shadow Demon Spider Lord, a powerful lord not overly afraid of fire, struggles to match my flames head‑on, let alone other extraordinary beings."

In the meantime, Ta Ke had already fired over ten shots, gaining a day's worth of lifespan.

"Hiss!"

Having escaped the fire, the Shadow Demon Spider Lord lunged at Ta Ke with a sudden 'Shadow Jump'.

Ta Ke merely shifted his body slightly to dodge.

The Blood Shadow Witch Robe granted Ta Ke high‑intensity flexibility, matching the powerful 'Phase Step'.

Ta Ke stepped on the precise rhythm, completing a position swap with the Shadow Demon Spider Lord.

The Shadow Demon Spider Lord landed where Ta Ke had been, and Ta Ke landed where the Lord had been.

Then Ta Ke kept firing.

Although the Shadow Demon Spider Lord was still in decent shape, the Fate Revolver's damage was merely a scratch.

But that's exactly what Ta Ke wanted.

He needed to keep scratching for a while to gather enough life.

Opportunities to draw life origin from such a mighty lord are few.

He precisely controlled the battlefield.

Ta Ke continually combined Fire Witchcraft with the Fate Revolver, madly harvesting life origin from the Shadow Demon Spider Lord.

But it had only been a dozen or so minutes.

Ta Ke had already harvested from the Lord about a month and a half of life origin.

The Shadow Demon Spider Lord, shot down by Ta Ke ten minutes ago, now began to show a 'wounded' state in its mighty lordly shadow form.

Shadow matter continually oozed from its body, dripping onto the ground.

Amid Ta Ke's slaughter.

The Shadow Demon Spider Lord was completely downwind.

Its various shadow abilities were formidable.

But the problem was, Ta Ke's methods were even more formidable than its.

Not to mention its attacks hardly hit Ta Ke; even if they did, Ta Ke could easily counter them.

In the slaughter, Ta Ke practically opposed it with many combat techniques, fully restraining and striking down the Shadow Demon Spider Lord's various abilities.

He was crushing the enemy's arrogance.

When the Shadow Demon Spider Lord used Shadow Jump, Ta Ke responded with Phase Shift, perfectly tugging at distance and continually counterattacking.

The Shadow Demon Spider Lord spews spider‑silk bombs, and Ta Ke spews divine‑art flames.

It spews as much as it burns, leaving you no room at all.

As for the so‑called shadow spikes, the rapid dash‑and‑pull chase.

This simple trick, trying to outplay Ta Ke, is obviously overambitious.

Let alone a lord of such massive size, a creature with ample movement.

Even an assassination genius would find it hard to get near Ta Ke.

Under Ta Ke's continual barrage with his Fate Revolver's thunderous strikes combined with various sorceries,

when the Shadow Demon Spider Lord first began, it still had a raging, fiery demeanor.

But soon that arrogant aura was brutally suppressed by Ta Ke's all‑sided pressure.

After more than a dozen successive rounds, the lord barely brushed Ta Ke's hem, and the Shadow Demon Spider Lord had already inflicted fairly serious damage on him.

The Shadow Demon Spider Lord no longer displayed its previous arrogant stance.

At this moment, the lord still relied on its powerful fourth‑tier lord physique, stubbornly holding on and seeking a desperate chance to turn the tide.

But Ta Ke's offensive grew ever fiercer.

Rune: Spirit‑Walk Hand, Light‑Molding Spear, Rune: Hurricane Hold, Sacred Healing Art… various methods continuously surged forward.

Among these damages were also shots from Ta Ke's Fate Revolver.

Ta Ke treated this fourth‑tier Shadow Demon Spider Lord as a live target, pouring all his firepower onto it.

While bearing Ta Ke's assault and launching a small‑scale counterattack, the Shadow Demon Spider Lord finally gathered its Lord Divine Art 【Web Capture Realm】.

"Bzzzz…"

As the Divine Art's power coalesced, the surrounding space was swiftly drawn in by the Shadow Demon Spider Lord, and a massive spider‑web materialized behind it.

From behind, the cold‑eyed Ta Ke silently raised his right hand.

The legendary Demon Ring Staff, radiating the legendary ring‑staff aura, hovered over Ta Ke's wrist, forming a dark‑gold crystal light spear.

Layer upon layer of powerful runes emitted a heart‑pounding vibration.

【Steam·Light Feather Blade】 【Light‑Molding Spear】 【Phase Divine Art】

The three Divine Arts, abilities, and sorceries were at that moment perfectly interlinked.

In the perception of the 【World】, the trajectory and threads converged on the Divine Art node in the Shadow Demon Spider Lord's mouth.

A near‑death threat was anchored deep within the lord's soul.

The once‑intimidating scene resurfaced in its mind.

Last time, it was fearful and did not attack.

This time, it had no room to retreat.

Snort—

A sharp screech, and the Divine Art 【Web Capture Realm】 erupted instantly.

At the moment of its Divine Art's eruption,

Steam·Light‑Molding Feather Blade crossed the phase distance, precisely injecting into the eruption node.

"Boom!"

The Divine Art power of 【Web Capture Realm】 reached an extreme burst in the Shadow Demon Spider Lord's mouth apparatus.

The explosion not only shattered the world‑capturing web, but also the lord's upper body.

A torrent of the lord's transcendent matter fell like a light rain.

Only its lower half remained, and the Shadow Demon Spider Lord collapsed completely on the ground.

Yet, as a lord possessing a powerful transcendent form, it was not dead.

It was still straining to restore its body.

Ta Ke took a phase step and arrived beside the Shadow Demon Spider Lord.

He slightly spread his right hand.

"Wow!"

Scorching black‑red Divine Art flames surged and blossomed.

With its upper body already blown away, the Shadow Demon Spider Lord would die for sure if ignited.

"Now, you have two choices!"

"The first choice is to turn to ash in these flames."

"The second choice is to submit to me."

Each of Ta Ke's words trampled upon the Shadow Demon Spider Lord's feeble soul consciousness.

Ta Ke's personally delivered all‑sided crushing strike seemed to work very well.

A moment later, the Shadow Demon Spider Lord transmitted a relatively clear mental voice.

"I am willing to submit!"

Seeing the lord lower its head in submission to him,

Ta Ke pinched with one hand.

The released Nightmare Fireball Art was abruptly erased into nothingness.

As the Shadow Demon Spider Lord began to restore its body outline,

Ta Ke erected a Shadow Summoning Contract ceremony beside it.

Using this Shadow Contract Summoning rite,

Ta Ke could fulfill the contract terms from multiple angles.

This is far more advanced than merely forming a pet‑beast contract.

His gaze swept over the Shadow Demon Spider Lord, whose level reached as high as 48, who had restored his body and was waiting for him to establish a contract.

He also watched his own gradually unfolding "Ritual·Shadow Contract".

For a moment, Ta Ke felt a slight sigh in his heart.

"If I had been stronger back then, La More's defeat wouldn't have been so disastrous."

"Fortunately, I am now strong enough."

Having gathered his focus, Ta Ke built many contract terms upon the Shadow Demon Spider Lord; the Shadow Demon Spider Lord had no qualification to be picky, and accepted them all in one go.

Obviously, the Shadow Demon Spider Lord had a thorough understanding of the present situation.

"There are still a few days left, Shadow Demon Spider Lord......"

Ta Ke looked at the Shadow Demon Spider Lord's upper half that had been blown away.

"Given his recovery speed, it is unlikely he will return to his peak."

"Hmm... I used a bit too much force just now."

"It seems necessary to find a shadow priest for him. I don't know if Beweis Tuwen knows shadow healing techniques."

"After Beweis Tuwen returns, we can just ask him."

"Even if Beweis himself doesn't have it, the caster friends he finds should have it."

"Two of the five soul veil shadows have already been dealt with by the Gloom Sun Church."

"We also need to take the time to replenish them properly."

In his thoughts, Ta Ke began various preparations and arrangements within the Forbidden Veil Layer Domain.

Earlier, the Shadow Demon Spider Lord treated this place as a battlefield formation, instantly giving Ta Ke inspiration.

Ta Ke can fully complete various arrangements here, constructing this place into his own half-homeworld.

This way, once the Gloom Sun Church's geniuses are lured in, Ta Ke can easily slay them; even if fifth-rank genius experts are lured in, Ta Ke can also quickly kill them.

For this forbidden veil stage, Ta Ke seems to have found a better way to open it!