Dual Cultivation: Beasts and Women!

But as fast as the hidden enemy was, Liam moved, jumping from one step to the next until he turned around and came face to face with the enemy.

Ignoring the two arrows that missed and damaged the wall behind him, Liam looked at the covered man whose mouth was the only body part visible in the light of the magic lamps around. It formed a smiling bow on the stranger's face, even as he watched his target dodge his attack.

"Well, well, well, it seems that you hide more power than you show," the man said, revealing a voice that ripped through the air and made Liam's hair stand on end.

"Who are you? What do you want?" Liam asked as Thal'Korr appeared behind him, his 8-Star aura reverberating off the walls of the building's stairwell.

If this act was meant to scare the enemy, it didn't work well for Liam. The enemy remained silent and watched him until two Spirits formed on his back, both of them 9-Star Spirit Lords.

But that wasn't all. From the aura of the two creatures and their appearance, one being a wildcat and the other a bird, it was obvious that this hidden cultivator was not a second realm cultivator.

'Shit! A damn Spirit Earth Spirit Master!' Liam's frown deepened several levels as he was faced with this terrible situation.

"Tsk! You don't need to know who I am," uttered the man dressed in all black, raising one hand in the air. "Bring him to me and bestow upon me his powers!" He commanded his Spirits to attack Liam.

The four-foot-tall feline walked up behind the strange man and slowly climbed the stairs, its glowing eyes focused on Liam. The golden-eyed bird stood still, only spreading its wings, which grew large enough to cover the entire room behind it.

Its wings stiffened as it stood upright, as if it were trembling. As it opened its black beak, a high-pitched sound made Liam frown as metallic feathers flew from the creature's wings.

Thal'Korr moved in front of Liam to protect him from the sound and feather attack, while attempting to counterattack the enemies.

Unfortunately for Liam's demon, it was impossible to deal with two 9-Star Spirits. He focused only on the bird, using his Power Amplification from the beginning of the battle.

Liam amplified his powers as well, moving in the brief space he had while the cat watched him strangely. Hypnotized by the big 'cat's' gaze, Liam was afraid to move wrong, limited in that area of the stairs.

When the black 'cat' moved, leaping with one paw pointed in his direction, he grabbed his Third Class sword, just before the Guardian Sphere appeared.

Liam simulated the situation and its development in front of him, allowing himself to be attacked by this creature and preparing to move against the Spirit Master as soon as the Guardian Sphere acted.

'Keep the bird at bay for now. I'll take care of that damned Spirit Master!' Liam communicated with Thal'Korr as the 'cat's' frighteningly sharp claws threatened to touch his chest.

Before the creature touched Liam's body, the Guardian Sphere appeared, forming a protective barrier around its Spirit Master's body before expanding in all directions.

The Spirit that was about to touch Liam felt the claws on its paw snap, but before it could do anything, it was thrown backwards and immediately hit one wall.

A meow of pain came from the creature's direction as the third realm Spirit Master finally stopped smiling.

He didn't hesitate to summon his dominant Spirit as he took two steps back, recognizing that Liam had far more resources than he had expected.

Liam, however, had no intention of waiting. The moment the enemy moved to summon another Spirit, the man with the short black hair stepped forward, sword in hand, attacking and using his powers.

The enemy Spirit Master's shadows vibrated, and small demons appeared, attacking his back.

A small, subtle protective aura emerged from the Spirit Master's body, preventing Liam's shadow demons from reaching his body as the enemy's last Spirit emerged.

When Liam was only a meter away from his opponent and moved his weapon to strike him in the chest, a black-skinned demon prevented him from completing his movement, while a spear appeared in the Spirit's hands.

Clang!

The two weapons touched, just before Liam looked into the demon's eyes, facing a 1-Star Spirit Earth creature for the first time!

'Fuck!' The black-haired man trembled as he moved to defend himself before the enemy moved the spear summoned by his Spirit Master and attacked Liam's body sideways.

Luckily for Liam, the armor he wore under his clothes was of the same class as the enemy's spear. Apart from a severe pain in one of his ribs, probably broken by such an attack, he wasn't injured to the point of bleeding.

He was thrown against the right wall, nearly blocking Thal'Korr in the middle of his battle with the enemy bird.

'If it hadn't been for this confined space, bad for that bastard's Spirits, I'd probably be dead by now!' Liam felt cold sweat trickle down his body as he pondered the situation while trying to hold his ground.

The enemy would clearly have the advantage if his Spirits fought in an open area. One of his Spirits used a weapon that required a certain amount of space, while the other was a bird. But in this city, there was no open area that would allow such an attack, as there were Officers monitoring the area.

The Spirit Master in the black cloak had acted on this place precisely to take advantage of the opportunity to act unnoticed, relying solely on his superior power to that of his target.

The man just hadn't expected Liam to have so many defensive items and to be so much stronger than he seemed on the surface.

'You almost took me completely by surprise. Luckily, I'm much stronger than you!' the Spirit Master thought to himself, clenching his fists as he felt his heart leap in his chest.

"Move, Togrez," he said to his black-skinned demon, making the creature laugh maliciously, dropping his spear.

Liam stared at the demon for a moment, watching the enemy bird retreat and commanding Thal'Korr to do the same.

Then, with himself and his Spirit wounded and more than half of his mana gone, Liam felt a crushing force emanating from the black demon, something that seemed to want to suck him dry.

Closing his mouth and clenching his teeth, Liam understood what this enemy wanted with this sudden action.

'You have a cannibalistic Spirit! You want to use it to devour Thal'Korr and me!' Liam felt a chill run through his body as he recognized the race of the enemy's demonic Spirit.

Recognizing Spirits wasn't always something that happened instantly. When he saw the enemy's dominant Spirit earlier, Liam was already in the middle of a battle that he knew would be difficult and could kill him. It was only when the enemy showed its true power he understood for sure the race and power of that demon.

Demons of the Devouris race could eat other demons and become stronger, gaining some of the characteristics and mana of their targets. Meanwhile, the Spirit Masters who possessed such Spirits could devour the souls of enemy Spirit Masters, thus enhancing their own cultivation!

This was a terrifying power, even more so considering the enemy's stronger cultivation.

However, Liam wasn't willing to give up!

"Let's see who can devour each other the most," he said as he took a step forward, opening his hands as darkness enveloped them.

{Black Art!}