In this respect, even Xia Zhen and Yu Qi, who had already confessed their feelings to him, did not seem to express their emotions as openly and naturally as she did, and so directly to the depths of one's heart. Ling Yun had to admit that when Mochizuki Nami said "I like you," he suddenly felt a strange liking and impulse, and almost blurted out his agreement in a moment of passion. And clearly, Mochizuki Nami did not use any seductive means. Even without seduction, this girl was full of unparalleled allure, irresistibly driving every man who saw her crazy.
Ling Yun sighed silently. He didn't know what to say. His feelings were complicated, like a jumble of mixed flavors. He was introverted and had always avoided talking about relationships. Although he was a boy, he was actually more introverted and less good at expressing himself than a girl. He didn't even know how to handle his feelings for girls. This was true for Xia Zhen and Yu Qi.
Even with Xiaorou, their feelings were merely mutual and intimate; they never passionately expressed their love for each other. Neither of them were ordinary people; with their extensive experiences, their emotions had become increasingly restrained. Although the passion within them was no less than that of passionately in love couples, they were both able to maintain stable self-control.
What Lingyun really wanted was a sincere companion, someone who could comfort him in times of despair, someone who could make him feel sweet when he missed her, someone who would stay by his side, looking at each other with silent smiles, and understanding each other perfectly. This was completely different from the image of a lover he had before he gained his superpowers. There are many ways to love, and Lingyun felt that he was more suited to a peaceful life of mutual support.
Although Mochizuki Nami gave him a wonderful feeling, a heart-fluttering allure, he already had someone he loved, so he could only let his feelings remain unrequited. Ling Yun pursed his lips, trying to think of the most appropriate way to politely decline, at least not to hurt the girl's sensitive heart.
He suddenly felt an urge to give a bitter laugh. He seemed to have a tendency to be attracted to beautiful women; he softened at the sight of pretty girls. Despite narrowly escaping death several times at Mochizuki Nami's hands, he still harbored feelings for her. Was this a manifestation of a lustful, hypocritical personality?
However, he felt disgust and hatred towards Japanese people like Matsumoto Tomoki. This was certainly related to the arrogant attitude of Matsumoto Tomoki and others during their invasion. But to some extent, Matsumoto Tomoki's methods were the same as Mochizuki Nami's. But for some reason, Ling Yun just couldn't feel any disgust towards Mochizuki Nami.
Nami Mochizuki's bright eyes seemed to see right through him. Despite knowing this would be the outcome, her intelligence was evident in Ling Yun's silence, and a pang of sadness still gripped her heart. "Perhaps I should have met him sooner," Nami thought bitterly. "A man like him is best met, not sought." But outwardly, she maintained a calm smile, seemingly unconcerned by Ling Yun's silent and ambiguous attitude.
"You don't need to rush to reject me. I know you only have Gu Xiaorou in your heart, but she's not here, so you don't need to confess so quickly. Although I'm jealous of her, love is about fate. I like you, but that doesn't mean I'll cling to you relentlessly. However, I won't give up easily either. Lingyun, what I want is for you to truly fall in love with me. I'm confident I can take you away from other women. What I, Mochizuki Nami, want, I never strive for through force. Instead, I obtain it willingly and naturally. So you don't need to worry about anything, Lingyun. I won't become a burden to you." After saying this, a proud expression involuntarily appeared on Mochizuki Nami's beautiful face, making her both adorable and charming, captivating anyone who saw her.
Ling Yun forced a smile at her, opened his mouth as if to say something, but ultimately said nothing.
“However, Ling Yun,” Mochizuki Nami’s expression suddenly turned serious, “Don’t think that just because I like you I won’t give you special treatment. Our positions are different. As long as there is conflict, then we are enemies. I am a ninja, and my highest mission is to protect the interests of my clan. If you continue to stand against the ninja clan, then I will not show you any mercy. Although I have lost to you twice, as you said, you had an element of luck. Luck won’t always be with you. If we meet again and are still opponents, you should be careful of my hard-earned power. So you must keep getting stronger and always surpass me in order to have any hope of survival, do you understand?”
These words seem to be a declaration of war and a severing of ties, but coming from Mochizuki Nami's mouth, they contain an indescribable emotion, and there seems to be another, deeper meaning in her words.
Ling Yun's body trembled, and he silently looked at her. Mochizuki Nami's face was expressionless, but her eyes flickered with a crystalline light, as if silently telling a story.
“I understand what you mean, I will become stronger. However, I have no intention of making enemies of ninja clans. As long as you don’t provoke the interests of us Chinese people and don’t provoke me, I don’t think anyone would want to be enemies with an organization of superhumans.” After a long while, Ling Yun finally said slowly.
He understood the meaning behind Lin Nami's words, and his heart immediately warmed. However, he was powerless to change what actions the ninja clan would take in the future, and could only tell Mochizuki Nami his true thoughts.
Alternatively, one day, Mochizuki Nami may grow into the soul of a ninja clan, and then she will naturally plan the ninjas according to her own ideas, instead of being unable to control her own destiny as she is now.
“I know, but the tree may wish to be still, but the wind will not cease…” Mochizuki Nami seemed to have thought of all this at the same time, and let out a soft, fragrant sigh. The two of them fell into silence together.
A cold winter wind blew by, gently lifting Mochizuki Nami's cloud-like hair, highlighting her stunning beauty, and then howled away. As it passed over a pile of ruins nearly a meter high, it suddenly spun strangely and made a whistling sound.
"By the way, I also wanted to ask you, how did you break my Blood Sacrifice Illusion Technique?" After a long while, Mochizuki Nami changed the subject and asked. Originally, this question had always been her deepest and biggest question, which she should have asked immediately when Ling Yun broke through the net. However, after getting caught up in emotional entanglements, the matter of the battle was forgotten until both of them were in an awkward silence.
"You should know that the Blood Sacrifice Delusion Technique is a delusion technique that can only be practiced by those with the talent for blood sacrifice," Mochizuki Nami said seriously.
"Throughout the entire ninja clan, there are very few people with this kind of bloodline talent. Even those with the talent for blood sacrifice need a lot of luck and perseverance to master the Blood Sacrifice Delusion Technique. However, once you successfully master the Blood Sacrifice Delusion Technique, it will possess immense power. With my current level of Blood Sacrifice Delusion Technique, let alone a strong opponent of the same level, even a strong opponent of a higher level might not be able to see through it. At most, I could only forcefully break through the delusion realm with my powerful mental field, but that would be the most laborious and thankless method, and it would be easy to fall into mental confusion. I originally thought that dealing with you this time would be foolproof, but I didn't expect you to break through the net so quickly. I'm really curious and want to know how you broke the Blood Sacrifice Delusion Technique."
Ling Yun looked at her with a wry smile: "I've already said it, it's all about luck... Actually, you didn't lose to me, nor did I truly defeat you. How should I put it..."
His expression gradually turned serious, with a slight sigh of regret: "Actually, your Blood Sacrifice Delusion Technique is truly the most powerful strange technique I have ever seen in my life. I didn't realize it when I was in the illusion, but only now, after breaking through the illusion, do I understand that the Blood Sacrifice Delusion Technique is actually an overlap of illusions. It continuously constructs new illusions within the ethereal illusion, until the delusion technique becomes a high-dimensional existence, unlike the original illusion which was just a flat, two-dimensional illusion. Therefore, the trapped person can never see through the reality within the illusion and thus cannot break through the illusion. Moreover, the Blood Sacrifice Delusion Technique becomes stronger as the caster's abilities improve. If your strength reaches the level of an elder, perhaps no one in this world will be able to break the Blood Sacrifice Delusion Technique."
Ling Yun's words were filled with amazement and unreserved praise for the Blood Sacrifice Technique. This was not to comfort Mochizuki Nami, but rather out of genuine admiration for the Blood Sacrifice Technique. It was indeed a truly creative and extraordinary technique. Although Ling Yun possessed several powerful and unique extraordinary techniques, he was still amazed by the Blood Sacrifice Technique.
Although the copying ability had perfectly stored the analytical data of the Blood Sacrifice Delusion Technique in his brain, Ling Yun could only sigh in vain because he lacked the talent for blood sacrifice. Of course, the Hand of God could solve this problem, but Ling Yun did not want to spend a great deal of energy and time on something he was only interested in. Although the Blood Sacrifice Delusion Technique was extremely powerful, it was not a necessary path for his power growth. True power cannot be advanced by illusion. Even if the delusion technique was practiced to the highest level, it could only be an aid to true power. Without power, the delusion technique itself was nothing.
Mochizuki Nami looked at him approvingly, her beautiful eyes filled with undisguised admiration: "Well said, 'high-dimensional illusion,' is this a term you coined? It does indeed vividly and aptly describe the essence of the Blood Sacrifice Illusion Technique. However, it hasn't fully touched on the core part yet. Do you have any other insights?"
"Hmm..." Ling Yun frowned, carefully recalling everything that happened in the illusion. Anything that had happened, he would never forget, even if it was an illusion.
The experience of the Blood Sacrifice Delusional Technique was very strange. Ling Yun had never felt anything like it before. Whether it was the void, the stripes, the mirror, the demon god, or countless identical selves, they all brought him a wonderful feeling he had never experienced before. It was as if after stepping into the higher-dimensional delusional realm, he was covered by a thick, invisible shield. However, he could not describe what this shield was. Moreover, even now, after breaking through the delusion, he could not accurately describe his feelings in the delusional realm.
“All illusions are deceptive in nature, and all illusion techniques are like this. The core essence of illusion techniques is to make the victim lose their mind.” Ling Yun said slowly as he pondered. “But the Blood Sacrifice Illusion Technique is different. When I entered the illusion, I already knew it was an illusion and I did not lose myself, but I could still vaguely feel that it was very unreal… This feeling is very strange, but I really can’t explain why.”
Mochizuki Nami smiled slightly: "Now I truly believe that you broke through the illusion by luck. I've finally regained some confidence. Otherwise, Ling Yun, you would really make me feel frustrated. I painstakingly cultivated the strongest Blood Sacrifice Illusion Technique, only to have it broken by you so easily. I really have no confidence in myself."
Ling Yun stared blankly at the ruins where the whirlwind had passed, and smiled calmly: "Actually, I was wrong too. It's not that I'm unlucky, but that you're unlucky."
"Get lost." Mochizuki Nami gave him a playful glare. "You've even learned to be sarcastic. But I really didn't expect you to understand it so deeply in the Blood Sacrifice Illusion. Actually, the Blood Sacrifice Illusion isn't as magical as you feel. You just said that the Blood Sacrifice Illusion is a reconstructed illusion within an illusion. The brilliance of the Blood Sacrifice Illusion lies in the fact that it has unknowingly blinded your mind, while you still think that everything is under your control."
"Oh?" Ling Yun raised an eyebrow in surprise, as if he understood something. "You mean... I, in the Blood Sacrifice Illusion, didn't actually know I was in the Illusion? But I clearly knew? How do you explain that?"
“You know you are in the Blood Sacrifice Illusion, but you don’t know what the Blood Sacrifice Illusion is. That’s the key,” Mochizuki Nami said calmly. “The Blood Sacrifice Illusion constantly constructs overlapping illusions, which in fact overlaps and obscures your consciousness. When you think you are in control of everything, it’s just an illusion caused by double obscuration. And everything you see in the Blood Sacrifice Illusion is just the most real and most illusory reaction deep in your mind. If you can’t break through this obscuration, then you will wander in one illusion after another forever until you run out of power and die.”
Ling Yun nodded, seemingly understanding, but not quite. He vaguely sensed that he understood something, yet it felt unreal. After all, his experience of breaking through illusions wasn't his own, so even after breaking through illusions, he didn't have a particularly deep understanding of the Blood Sacrifice Illusion Technique. Illusion Techniques, which revolve entirely around the mental level, require not only time to understand but also a high level of comprehension, something most ability users don't possess.
"Alright, I won't talk to you anymore, it seems you wouldn't understand anyway." Seeing his confused look, Mochizuki Nami couldn't help but chuckle. "Now, it's time to share your luck with me."
Chapter 256 The Death of Demville
The cool moonlight suddenly dimmed, and the crescent moon seemed to change color in an instant. The silver light began to deepen at a visible speed, as if covered with a thick layer of bloody light. In the blink of an eye, the crescent moon had become a blood moon, as if thick blood was dripping from it.
A series of unsettling, incantation-like sounds disrupted the rhythm of the high-level berserkers' attack. Banir and Gaia realized that physical attacks alone were insufficient to gain the upper hand. The high-level berserkers' formidable strength both surprised and enraged the two marquises. When had a group of filthy, barbaric, stubborn, and inhuman savages, deserving only to eat dead rats, become their equals? To be able to fight the great vampires for so long was an insult to the great vampire race. In Banir and Gaia's view, if they couldn't defeat the high-level berserkers within ten minutes, then this operation would be a failure.
The original purpose of acquiring the Heavenly Eye has been forgotten. The current vampire lords are fighting entirely for the honor of the vampire race. When did a bunch of primitive barbarians dare to insult the noble vampire race? This is intolerable! Even at a great cost, those who insulted the vampire race must be torn to pieces in this dark and damp underground bar, and all the berserkers must be laid to rest here forever. This is what the two marquises truly want.
They seem to have forgotten who initially and swiftly instigated the conflict between the two diametrically opposed forces. But that doesn't matter; the fight has already begun. The berserkers are naturally volatile, but the vampires aren't exactly known for their tempers either, so both sides are evenly matched.
As Banir and Gaia moved at high speed, they continuously chanted unnamed incantations. As the blood moon intensified, the aura of darkness and death also rose wildly. Suddenly, wisps of dark mist rose from the basement, seemingly surging towards Ivanov and Leonid as if they had a mind of their own. This was dark mist generated by vampires, possessing extremely strong corrosive properties. Even the berserker's thick-skinned body had to carefully avoid it, or simply create a powerful gust of wind to blow the black mist away.
Banir and Gaia, however, moved with ease within the black mist. The dark, corrosive environment greatly enhanced their combat abilities; in the blink of an eye, the two marquises' speed and strength nearly doubled. Their metallic claws extended by a full fifty centimeters, gripping the steel-like skin of the high-ranking berserkers, sparks flying from the intense friction. Amidst the afterimages, the high-ranking berserkers' roars and groans of pain echoed, and bloodied muscle tissue flew from the whirlwinds, instantly corroded by the black mist into rotting flesh like ashes.
Ivanov and Leonid also realized something was wrong. With their intelligence and limited understanding of superpowers, they couldn't comprehend why a moon would appear in the narrow, dark basement. Although both of them sensed something amiss with the blood moon, and it was very likely that their opponent's increased strength stemmed from it, no matter how hard the high-level berserker tried to pounce on the moon and shatter it, they found that they were just wasting their time. The moon was still the moon, but it seemed to be an illusion in the air rather than a real entity.
Although the vampire marquis had temporarily gained the upper hand, he was still cautiously maneuvering around the berserker. Despite the pride of the vampire clan making them feel ashamed of this, it was unwise to engage the berserker in a direct confrontation. That was the berserker's forte; every punch he delivered had the power to split mountains and shatter rocks. Even the vampire's powerful body could not withstand the bombardment of thousands of kilograms of force continuously. Although the self-healing ability was powerful, it was not omnipotent. Between destruction and repair, destruction was always faster and more direct.
Fortunately, after being strengthened by the Blood Moon, Banir and Gaia were able to easily tear through the opponent's defenses and tough skin. Although they were not yet able to injure the two berserkers' bodies, if this continued, the berserkers would definitely be greatly reduced in combat power due to being covered in wounds. At that time, it would be time to completely kill Ivanov and Leonid. Therefore, the two vampires calmed down.
Xiao Rou huddled in a corner, silently observing the battle between these powerful figures. Taking advantage of the absence of disturbance, she was rapidly restoring her mental energy field. Her internal injuries had largely healed under the Holy Healing Technique; her primary focus now was recovering her energy so she could fight back in the event of danger. Her strengths lay in combat and composure, unlike Xia Lan, who was adept at assessing situations and exploiting her opponent's contradictions to gain the greatest advantage for herself.
Xiao Rou was deeply impressed by Xia Lan's wisdom and resourcefulness. As expected of a core member of the third generation of powerful individuals in the Superpower Headquarters, she was able to incite two groups of superpowered individuals who could have worked together to engage in a fierce battle with just a few words. The berserkers did not possess a mental field, making it easy for them to communicate with the berserkers' weak and simple emotions. Ivanov seemed to be insulting vampires, but it was actually just a mental fluctuation that Xia Lan had planted in his mind. The simple-minded berserkers were just playing the role of being used and were simply interpreting it.
In a sense, Xia Lan is more like a wise and shrewd strategist. Her intelligence and ability to utilize her environment are her primary solutions, rather than simply relying on force. She only resorts to force when absolutely necessary. She is an outstanding woman who possesses both wisdom and beauty, and is adaptable and resilient, maintaining composure in any situation and skillfully maneuvering to maximize her own interests. Xiao Rou silently made this assessment of Xia Lan's character in her mind.
She longed to learn to be as strong yet gentle as Xia Lan, but her cold and resolute personality made her unaccustomed to bowing her head to her enemies, let alone kneeling before an unbearable vampire like a devout believer. If it were her, she would have used her mental energy field blade to pierce Francis's heart without hesitation.