Dual Cultivation: Beasts and Women!

However, expecting Thal'Korr to be captured by the purple chains rising from the ground and then forced into a passive position, the Spirit Master saw a different situation unfold.

The moment Liam stepped forward and activated {Black Art}, the enemy Spirit Master's eyes widened as he felt the weird sensation of his target's powers.

The magic circle of his Spirit's cannibalism ritual weakened, vibrating as cracks appeared in the magic symbols around it.

The black-skinned demon, who had just been laughing, felt a tremor in his insides as he faced a power that was difficult to counter.

"Shit!" Lemuel also took a step forward, linking his hands in a single instant and activating his strongest power.

Circles and pentagrams of mana appeared around him, weaker than those of his Spirit, but still noticeable enough for Liam to perceive the enemy with irritation.

Thal'Korr moved to attack the enemy, but his opponent still had the bird in position. Even though his cat-type Spirit had exploded with the Guardian Sphere's attack, Lemuel was still fine, with two Spirits in position not to be distracted by Liam's demon attack.

Lemuel directed purple chains at Liam's wrists and shins, intending to devour his opponent's soul and prevent what he felt his Spirit would suffer in a few moments.

Liam felt the action of the enemy's power threaten his existence as chains that looked like purple snakes flew toward him to pull him into the center of the enemy's ritual.

But he was sure he wouldn't survive unless he devoured the demonic Spirit of Lemuel. Ignoring the Spirit Master, he stepped forward until he could touch the shoulders of the black-skinned creature, who was now completely paralyzed.

As much as the Devouris before him was stronger than him, the {Black Art} was no ordinary method. Whoever had invented it had created a power of the highest level. Not only did it give the Spirit Master the ability to feed their demon-type Spirits faster, but it also had a bloodline factor that suppressed beings without the black tablet that Liam had absorbed into his soul space.

The one-level difference between Liam and Togrez wasn't enough for this creature to ignore the effects of {Black Art}'s powers. Within moments, it agonized under the contact of Liam's hands, losing its vitality as its appearance withered, its apparent strength drained by the enemy's touch.

Lemuel felt it when he finally trapped Liam's fists and heels. But by drawing his enemy into the center of his ritual, the Spirit Master couldn't pull Liam away from Togrez.

"Shit! I'm going to kill you!" Lemuel drew a dagger and advanced against one of the weak points in Liam's armor, seeing that he would have no chance of saving his Spirit if he continued to delay.

His cannibal power was awesome. He could absorb enemy souls and grow stronger, increasing his powers with minor damage to his soul. However, this didn't happen without a minor glitch. The process itself wasn't fast, especially if the enemy was conscious and not seriously injured.

Figuring he needed to save his Spirit and hurt Liam before devouring the troubled young man's soul, Lemuel tried his best to cut through the base of his opponent's abdomen.

Blood dripped from Liam's stomach as a sudden weakness spread through his body. But amidst the adrenaline rushing through his blood, he stood his ground and took the last step against Togrez.

"You will die for this." Liam's eyes flashed a murderous light as Lemuel's demon Spirit could no longer resist, all transparent and with almost no mana left.

"No!"

Boom!

Togrez exploded for the last time, dying in front of Lemuel as his essence gradually started to increase the power and purity of the essences of the incubus and Thal'Korr.

Feeling a sudden surge of power, Thal'Korr could finally ignore the paralyzing scream and slashing wings of the bird before him. He used his shadows to attack, destroying some of the creature's internal organs as he moved his claws toward the colorful, feathered creature's long neck.

Thal'Korr's level fluctuated, and when he was only 20 centimeters away from the enemy, his cultivation had reached 9-Star, while his magical quality seemed to be one step away from reaching Ancestor-grade, High-level!

Lemuel couldn't stand it when he lost his dominant Spirit and then had his bird destroyed by Thal'Korr. The magical circles and glowing pentagrams around him dissolved into thin air as he fell to his knees, blood dripping from his ears, nose, and mouth.

With his soul wounded and his mana depleted, he let the powerful mask he had just donned fall away, failing to use his special power of cannibalism for the first time in five years.

In the five years since he arrived at Demon Gate, he had hunted down talented disciples, devoured their souls, and become one of the strongest Spirit Masters in City Thirteen.

Although he had little talent and could only go as far as the end of the third realm, he had reached the 2-Star level of the Spirit Earth Realm at the age of 33. All of this was because of the special power of his demon, who had given him a path to success and the possibility of one day surpassing his own talent.

But after over 20 disciple hunts, his destiny had found an insurmountable rock. When he encountered the first of his targets who possessed the {Black Art}, he couldn't help but ask before he died.

"What kind of power is that? This isn't your Shadowfiend's doing!" he said on his knees, pale and completely different from a few moments ago.

"As you yourself said earlier, 'you don't need to know!', you'll die for defying me!" Liam didn't hesitate to use his sword, moving with grace as he unleashed a horizontal attack on Lemuel's Adam's apple.

As he looked at Liam, Lemuel felt the 'taste' of the blade on his neck before his blood flowed heavily from a wound that opened his throat and also cut his carotid artery.

Lemuel's vision darkened, and then he fell backward, rolling down the stairs until he came to rest near where his 'cat' Spirit had fallen.

A 2-Star Spirit Earth cultivator died like that, in the middle of the night in City Thirteen, in a dormitory on Street Thirty-Nine.

From the beginning to the end, it only took a little over two minutes, not long enough to attract attention, and curious onlookers were yet to appear.

Feeling the adrenaline coursing through his blood and noticing more of the pain in one of his ribs and his abdomen, Liam collected the valuables from Lemuel's body and left, giving up on a visit to Mary's room tonight.

'This place will soon be crawling with investigators from the Law Enforcement Hall. All the residents here will be questioned, so it's probably not a good idea to go to Mary's room.'

Liam had been attacked and had the right to defend himself, and might even become Lemuel's legal heir, considering what had happened. But he didn't want to make it official, preferring to keep the identity of Lemuel's killer a secret.

'A 2-Star Spirit Earth cultivator isn't easy to kill. If the city finds out that I can kill someone like that, I'll be dead. The top of the rank will personally take action against me to ensure my demise.'

Such a thought sent shivers down his spine as he returned to Street Thirty-Seven.

With Lemuel's Arcane Crystal and the man's belongings, Liam went back to his room, ignoring the pain and fatigue. After drinking a recovery portion, he entered his room.

'Thal'Korr, time for you to finish your advance!'

He summoned his Spirit again, along with the crystals he had with him.