Inside was hell.
A true lightning hell.
Kanbe Hikaru's consciousness felt as if it were in a sea of purple fire; the lightning slurry that had merged into his body was not as submissive as he had expected, but instead rampaged through his bones and muscles like an enraged beast.
The horn of the thunder beast was the essence of a qualitatively transformed demon.
And although Kanbe Hikaru's body had undergone six mutations, it was still essentially within the scope of Physical Transformation.
If quantitative change is to trigger qualitative change, it must first withstand the crushing weight of quality—compression.
[Sharp Body Transformation] was operating frantically.
Muscle fibers tore and reorganized, attempting to accommodate and assimilate the lightning.
But the lightning was too fierce.
As soon as the muscles adapted, they were torn apart by electric arcs, turning into charred fragments, only to be forcibly repaired by Demonic Qi and torn apart again.
Destruction, regeneration.
Regeneration, destruction.
This tug-of-war played out in every inch of Kanbe Hikaru's body and every single muscle.
Outside, a muffled groan of pain escaped Kanbe Hikaru's throat.
His body began to undergo even more terrifying changes.
The muscles in his limbs swelled and contracted uncontrollably, as if countless snakes were writhing under his skin, while purple electric arcs traveled along the contours of his bones.
Crackle.
Muffled sounds echoed from within his body.
It was the vibration of his bones.
It wasn't even just the bones.
It was his entire body.
The power of lightning was forcibly remodeling his physical structure.
The essence of Sharp Body Transformation is the metamorphosis of physical structure, making the body more suitable for combat, tougher, and more flexible.
And now, the lightning was going to completely rewrite this body.
Bone and flesh trembled and hissed under the baptism of lightning.
The bone vibrations in between were like thunder, like a roar.
The echoes within... were even more like the sounds of tigers, leopards, and thunder!
Every heartbeat driven by Demonic Qi was accompanied by a clap of thunder.
Every breath simulated by demonic power exhaled purple electric fire.
This transformation was a complete rebirth, but it was also extremely dangerous.
Without intervention, this power would eventually burn through his remaining flesh and blood, shatter his skeletal frame, and turn him into a charred corpse.
There had to be a balance.
Something had to neutralize this violent, masculine lightning.
Kanbe Hikaru's consciousness struggled in the chaos. He tried to mobilize the Ghostly Qi in his body to suppress it, but Ghostly Qi was a turbid energy—murky and sinister. Meeting the lightning was like throwing oil on a fire; it only exploded more fiercely.
But inexplicably.
At this moment, Kanbe Hikaru's heart instead grew calm.
He believed he would be fine.
Believing in himself.
And also believing in his priestess outside.
...
In reality.
Inside the Barrier.
The glow of spiritual power had not yet dissipated.
Kikyo lowered the bow in her hand.
Dozens of demon corpses were already piled up in the surrounding darkness. The remaining trash, intimidated by her Sacred Arrow, could only hover in the distance, not daring to cross the line.
But her expression remained solemn.
She knew that the current threat was not outside.
Rather, it was inside.
Kikyo turned around and looked at Kanbe Hikaru, who was sitting cross-legged on the ground.
His condition was very bad.
Truly bad.
That originally pale face was now covered with purple cracks, like a piece of porcelain about to shatter.
His skin was shockingly hot, even distorting the surrounding air.
Kikyo could clearly hear the roaring sounds coming from within him, as if a storm was raging inside that thin body.
"He's losing control."
Kikyo's judgment was undoubtedly correct.
The turbid energy was too strong, and it was an extreme lightning-attribute Demonic Qi; his physical vessel couldn't hold it.
He needed pure energy.
He needed extremely pure spiritual power to soothe that violent lightning and repair his broken shell.
And here, no one but her could do that.
Without hesitation.
Kikyo stepped forward and knelt in front of Kanbe Hikaru.
The priestess in her white robe and red hakama sat before him, her glossy black hair fluttering gently in the night wind, her dark eyes looking down at him.
She reached out, wanting to touch his cheek, but as soon as her fingertips got close, they were repelled by a purple electric arc.
The repulsive force was very strong.
Ordinary contact simply couldn't transmit spiritual power.
It had to be more direct.
It had to be... deeper.
Kikyo looked at Kanbe Hikaru's tightly closed eyes, his body instinctively twitching in pain, and his features that appeared unusually calm instead.
A faint blush appeared on the young girl's cheeks, and her delicate cherry lips pursed slightly, looking exceptionally moving under the reflection of the lightning.
But that shyness only existed for a moment.
Hesitation... was also non-existent.
In the next second, she leaned down.
Her hands cupped Kanbe Hikaru's face, ignoring the electric arcs stinging her skin.
Then, she kissed him.
Their soft lips pressed together.
Kanbe Hikaru's lips were very hot and dry.
While Kikyo's lips were slightly cool and moist.
At the moment of contact, the spiritual power within Kikyo's body surged out like a river breaking a dam.
It wasn't the usual aggressive Sacred Spiritual Power, but the gentlest, purest Purifying Spirit after her extreme control.
Prying open his teeth.
Spiritual power was passed in along with her saliva.
Like a stream of cool spring water, it instantly poured into the burning crater.
...
It suddenly started raining in Kanbe Hikaru's world of consciousness.
It was a white rain.
Gentle, cool, and all-encompassing.
When that violent purple thunder-fire met this white rain, it was like a rowdy child seeing its mother, instantly quieting down.
They began to merge.
Spiritual power enveloped the lightning, and the lightning tempered the spiritual power, finally merging into the trembling body together.
Yin and Yang harmonized.
Pure and turbid coexisted.
The tearing pain receded like a tide, replaced by an unprecedented sense of comfort.
Power.
True power was taking root and sprouting within his body.
He could feel his body undergoing an essential transformation—
Every muscle fiber began to contain lightning.
Every inch of skin began to shimmer with a faint lightning glow.
Sharp Body Transformation was evolving.
Kanbe Hikaru suddenly opened his eyes.
What met his sight was a pair of dark eyes close at hand.
And that familiar, exquisite, and beautiful face.
She had her eyes closed, her long eyelashes trembling slightly, her cheeks flushed, as she concentrated fully on passing her power to him.
Those delicate cherry lips were pressed against his.
Besides that, there was...
Kanbe Hikaru was slightly startled.
He felt it.
That softness.
That moisture.
And that unreserved devotion.
Kikyo seemed to sense his awakening and slowly opened her eyes, her long lashes fluttering, her gaze carrying a hint of panic as it shifted.
Although it hadn't been the first time before this.
But those were just brief tastes, never deep.
This was also the first time it went deep.
The first time they truly blended.
Kikyo was still shy.
She wanted to pull away.
Lips parted, leaving a silver thread.
"You..."
Kikyo's voice was a bit raspy, and her originally cold face was as red as the sunset clouds.
She wanted to explain that it was to save him, to balance the spiritual power.
But before the words could come out.
A hand already supported her waist; it felt slender, yet soft and delicate.
Kanbe Hikaru didn't give her a chance to retreat.
Within his body that had just calmed down, another kind of fire seemed to ignite.
It was a fire even hotter than lightning.
"It's not over yet."
He whispered softly.
Then, he leaned in and kissed her again.
This time, it wasn't for anything else.
It was a response.
It was to ensure Kikyo didn't feel that this was something shameful—if it was, then they would be ashamed together.
Kikyo's body stiffened for a brief moment, but immediately softened.
The longbow in her hand slid down onto the grass.
Her hands unconsciously climbed onto Kanbe Hikaru's shoulders, tightly clutching his collar.
That pure white hair ribbon loosened during the struggle, and a mane of jet-black, beautiful long hair poured down, cascading between the two of them.
In this wilderness, within this Barrier, surrounded by the corpses of demons scattered across the ground.
Compared to becoming stronger...
The response before her was clearly much more important.
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