Exorcist's Self-Cultivation

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Thump, thump, thump…

It was Du Wei knocking on the coffin.

He tried, but discovered that it was impossible to open the stone coffin from the inside and get out.

It seemed

the entire stone coffin was being pressed down by something extremely heavy; even with immense strength, it could not be pushed open.

So,

he had no choice but to abandon the idea.

There were many ways to leave.

He just didn't want to use any of them now.

For example, hiding inside a painting, then entering Tom's dream through Freddy to escape.

This method was very effective.

But after using it, he'd have to say a temporary goodbye to Ryan Hamel, Gascogne, and Brand.

The goal had not been achieved yet.

How could he give up halfway?

Moreover, Du Wei had no intention of letting Ryan Hamel off the hook.

According to what the other party had said,

he was himself, and Ryan was Ryan.

The two were not simply a matter of reincarnation.

It was rather that, after Ryan Hamel had died, he was using some method to attempt a resurrection, while Ryan was merely a byproduct derived from his abilities.

Once Ryan Hamel successfully resurrected, he would surely take back his abilities and deal with Ryan.

Their relationship was somewhat like Du Wei and the Evil Spirit Du Wei.

But in reality, it was not the same at all.

A fusion was completely impossible.

There could only be one replacing the other.

"But where is he?"

Within the dark, enclosed stone coffin, Du Wei's voice sounded increasingly eerie.

Originally, Ryan Hamel had been in the stone coffin.

Now that he had taken the other's place,

could it be that the other had already run outside the stone coffin?

And where were Brand and Gascogne?

Could they be outside as well?

Du Wei was somewhat at a loss.

With too little information, even he could not make an accurate judgment, let alone that the person who had laid out all these contingencies was the so-called genius, Ryan Hamel.

However,

at that moment,

"Huff…"

It sounded like someone was breathing.

Du Wei's complexion immediately turned sour.

He keenly realized

that the breathing was inside the stone coffin, to be exact, right behind his neck.

But how could that be possible?

He was lying in the coffin; behind him was a solid stone slab that could not possibly accommodate another person.

"How interesting."

Du Wei tilted his neck, trying to twist his body within the cramped coffin.

He wanted to see what the hell was behind him.

If it were Ryan Hamel, he would definitely have taken action against him right away, unlikely to make such a prank-like move.

So,

Du Wei strained to turn his body.

Soon, he had flipped over.

During this process, the shadow had always clung to him, shielding him from that strange eroding sensation coming from the stone coffin.

Click…

In the darkness, a lighter was pressed, and its crimson flame immediately illuminated the surroundings.

Then,

Du Wei saw the stone slab, and beyond that, nothing else.

The breathing sound from just now had completely disappeared.

"What's going on?"

Du Wei was puzzled, he had been ready to mark, and yet the target had mysteriously vanished.

"Come out."

He said coldly, "Now that I'm trapped in this stone coffin by you, I have absolutely no power to resist. There's no need for you to keep playing tricks."

"Besides, don't you want to know where your abilities are right now?"

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"Come on, let's finish this, you really want to kill me, don't you?"

"Now is your best chance."

Just as Du Wei finished speaking, behind him once again came the sound of labored breathing.

As if.

The unknown presence had been clinging to his back all along, always breathing against his neck.

If it had been anyone else.

They probably would have been scared out of their wits.

Or thrown into panic and fear.

But this was Du Wei.

He couldn't help but let out a cold laugh, "How ridiculous, I give you the chance and you don't even seize it, are you wary of something?"

Having said this.

The shadow seemed to sense Du Wei's thoughts.

It directly released the possession state and once again transformed into Du Wei's shadow.

In an instant.

A sinister and terrifying face appeared behind Du Wei.

It was not Ryan Hamel.

Rather, it was grotesque, the skin rotting away, no facial features, not even contours could be seen, as if they had been erased.

At that moment.

Du Wei turned his head, facing directly into that face.

The distance between them was only as wide as five fingers.

Immediately.

Du Wei stretched out his right hand without hesitation and grabbed hold.

He wanted to mark the other party.

In the darkness, two daggers also silently stabbed forward, the shadow acting against that face as well.

But what was bizarre was.

Du Wei's hand grasped at nothing.

The face completely ignored his marking ability, only dodging when the shadow made its move.

And then.

It directly overlaid Du Wei's face.

More accurately, the mask he was currently wearing.

"Masked Evil Spirit..."

"No... it's a Demon Spirit."

The thought flashed through Du Wei's mind instantly; he had personally crafted several Masked Evil Spirits and had a profound understanding of these things.

The other party was definitely a Demon Spirit from the mask worn by the thirteenth member of the Vanity Sect.

Only, for some reason, it had appeared inside the coffin.

Moreover, its target seemed to be the mask Du Wei was wearing.

The next second.

Du Wei could not help but groan in pain.

He covered his head, growling in the dark.

The mask on his face felt extremely cold, emitting a bone-chilling chill, and a frantic voice, horrifying and deathly quiet, echoed in his mind.

The purpose of this Masked Demon Spirit was very direct.

It seemed to have lost its medium of existence and having stumbled upon a place that could harbor it, it wanted to take it over.

And also, to take possession of Du Wei's body.

One could say.

What it was doing was exactly the same as what the Du Wei Evil Spirit, or rather the Masked Evil Spirit, aimed for before they acquired Du Wei's personality, memory, and way of thinking.

The difference was.

One was a Demon Spirit, the other an Evil Spirit.

Du Wei could fight against the latter, but when it came to a Demon Spirit, he simply couldn't resist on his own.

"Shadow..."

Du Wei said through gritted teeth, "Kill it for me."

Immediately, the shadow possessed Du Wei.

A Demon Spirit level existence naturally required a similar power to counter it.

Now, the only one who could help Du Wei was the shadow.

Conversely, the envelope in his pocket seemed as if it had been completely suppressed, showing no sign of any vital fluctuations.

Just as the shadow had begun to possess and prepare to drive the Masked Demon Spirit out and kill it.

Suddenly...

Inside the stone coffin, a terrifying, piercing scream rose.

The face merged into the mask tried to struggle out in a most undignified manner.

But it could not achieve this.

Because from the mask emerged countless fine black threads, merging into the face devoid of features, ensuring that no matter how much the Demon Spirit struggled, it could not break a single thread.