"Don't get so cocky! You're just a curse that hasn't been around for long!"
Jogo couldn't stand being provoked like this. All of his good temper was reserved solely for his own kind.
Once that distinction was gone, whether the other party was human or cursed spirit, his patience was extremely limited.
He was a curse born from humanity's fear of the earth itself. Though it had taken time to fully coalesce into a Cursed Spirit, a faint consciousness had always been there.
Whether it was chasms, cliffs, or volcanoes—as long as fear and hatred for them existed—cursed energy would continuously flow to him. One could say his existence stretched back far beyond a mere thousand years.
"Haha."
Black Amber didn't mind the rebuttal or the fury. After all, the stronger the reaction, the more fun it was to toy with them.
"Then let this curse, who hasn't been around for long, properly experience the methods of you old relics."
She couldn't be bothered to use Quantumization against these two. Ending the fight too easily wouldn't just give them a quick death—it would bore her to tears.
Since they were existences she despised, she naturally wanted to torment them thoroughly.
"When it comes to playing with ants, nothing is more direct than a good, old-fashioned beating."
Before they could even process it, the girl's words were already whispering in the ears of both Jogo and Hanami.
The two Cursed Spirits recoiled in terror to either side, staring with shock and uncertainty at the girl who now stood between them.
Claws wreathed in cursed energy shot out left and right in the next instant, snatching up both Cursed Spirits and slamming them together with brutal force.
The power was enough to grind bones to dust, crushing them repeatedly. Purple blood sprayed from the mouths of both Hanami and Jogo.
"Don't you look down on me!"
Jogo's eyes bulged. He thrust his hand toward the smirking Black Amber, ready to blast her with flames, but she smashed him into the ground with even greater force, violently disrupting the cursed energy he'd gathered.
Cursed Spirits weren't immune to pain.
Though they were conglomerations of cursed energy, and unlike humans—who required positive energy from Reverse Cursed Technique to heal—their negative energy bodies could be repaired directly with cursed energy, that didn't mean they felt no pain.
Enduring two consecutive attacks with enough force to pulverize a body was agony that seeped into the very marrow, even for a Cursed Spirit.
While Hanami was regenerating, it instantly raised a hand.
Several sharp, hardened trees erupted from the ground beneath Black Amber. Compared to Jogo, who had to release his technique centered on himself, Hanami's technique was far more flexible.
However, its power was on a completely different, lower level.
Black Amber didn't even grant it a glance, casually swiping her claws and shattering all the trees.
"Run, Hanami!"
Jogo hadn't expected their opponent to be this strong. Shock, rage, and confusion warred within him.
He was an incredibly rare and powerful Cursed Spirit! But lately, he kept suffering setbacks.
Suguru Geto could fight him evenly, that Celestial Cursed Spirit who called herself the Herrscher of Sentience had beaten him to a pulp, and now this special grade, who-knows-where-she-came-from, was also displaying terrifying power.
Hanami was reluctant to abandon its companion and flee. Instead, it summoned a massive wooden pillar, its surface covered in dense, honeycombed grooves.
Within each groove was a bud, complete with a mouth and sharp teeth. Under Hanami's control, they shot rapidly toward Black Amber.
These were seeds that grew by absorbing cursed energy. If one used cursed energy to defend, they would parasitize the user. Continue using cursed energy, and they would drain it dry, gradually sprouting until they completely desiccated their host.
But to Black Amber, they were barely an inconvenience. Absolute force shattered all techniques. She simply raised a claw in front of her.
Hanami, who had been hoping the seeds would pierce through the claw formed of cursed energy and parasitize her, watched in disbelief as every single seed was solidly blocked.
"Those claws... aren't they formed from cursed energy!?"
Hanami couldn't believe it.
"Of course they're formed from cursed energy."
Black Amber didn't mind shocking them further.
"But don't flatter yourselves into thinking only you are geniuses at manipulating techniques... Oh, my apologies. What genius? You're merely Cursed Spirits, relying on innate instinct."
After Hanami's two failed attacks, Jogo didn't dare let it stay any longer. "This is no battlefield for you to remain on! Forget here—go and kill those humans instead!"
He knew persuading Hanami to abandon him was hard, so he used another reason to make it leave. As for himself, he immediately expanded his domain right there.
"Domain Expansion: Coffin of the Iron Mountain!"
Seeing the domain explicitly exclude it, Hanami understood Jogo's intention perfectly. Though its heart was heavy, it turned its gaze toward Amber, who was busy resurrecting the dead.
Seeing this, Black Amber felt no urgency.
While her initial plan was appealing, delivering a nice 'experience package' to Amber was also a good option.
Moreover... in this enclosed space for two, it was even better because... she wouldn't have to worry about her methods scaring that coward.
There was no need for words. Black Amber directly initiated Domain Amplification. Under Jogo's stunned gaze, she tanked his full-power attack, and her figure instantly appeared right in front of him.
"You, who claim to be a proud new human! Why collude with the old humans!?"
Jogo roared in condemnation of the girl's actions, swiping a palm directly toward her face.
Yet, his attack was, predictably, effortlessly dodged.
The girl's claws instantly shredded the arm Jogo had attacked with. As he howled in agony, she crushed his left leg.
"How... is this possible!?"
Jogo's body trembled uncontrollably from the pain. "This is my domain!"
"Though you call yourself a new human, you don't seem much different from the old humans you scorn."
Black Amber didn't mind crushing him a little more.
"Weak. Pathetic. Sacrificing yourself for comrades. Clinging to unrealistic dreams. So pitiful, it makes me want to toy with you carefully."
As she spoke, a black-and-red sickle appeared in her hand. With a smooth motion, the sickle effortlessly severed his newly regenerated arm. Seemingly unsatisfied, Black Amber gave the other arm the same treatment.
"Grahhh...!!"
Cursed Spirits didn't sweat, but if they did, Jogo would be drenched. Gasping for breath, he snarled, "Just a curse that submitted to a human, and you dare lecture me?"
He knew, as the loser, any retort was just stubborn pride. But he couldn't stand letting her gloat so freely.
Frantically driving cursed energy to repair his body, Jogo suppressed the searing pain and managed a cold, twisted smile. "You care about your host, don't you? Don't worry, Hanami will kill her soon. I won't let you leave before then!"
"Hahahaha."
The girl laughed as if she'd heard the funniest joke, her demeanor unsettling Jogo deeply.
"You don't actually think this domain can really hold me, do you?"
Jogo's heart lurched. His smile remained, but it became visibly strained. "Isn't it?... Otherwise, you'd have rushed out immediately to save that human, right?"
"What a colossal misunderstanding~"
Black Amber slowly leaned down, her shadow engulfing Jogo's upper body. The sudden closeness made her seem dark and immense.
"I was just curious... about the look on his face when he thinks he's avenging you, only to find himself in a hopeless situation... and the look on yours right now..."
"The look on your face when you realize you've pushed your companion into another hell."
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T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.