Chapter 103: Countdown

"No..." Zhang Xiang roared with his eyes wide open, his voice filled with unrestrained fury. He slashed at Lu Suo with "Blood Piercing" at the same time, but it was too late.

In an environment resembling spacewalking, Lu Suo, the only person who could move freely, easily dodged the already inaccurate "Blood Piercing" and took Hu Zhang away from his original position.

Then, ten fingers appeared in her hand—dried, reddish-brown fingers radiating intense magical power. Everyone's expression froze for a moment, then turned to terror, because they knew what those fingers were.

Two-faced Sukuna fingers.

But why, why are there so many?

Ten ropes were stuffed into the mouth of the tiger staff.

corners of the mouth Her plan succeeded. By splitting her forces to keep the two major powers away for the time being, she temporarily lured the people from the High School out, entered the Hongxing Palace to obtain the fingers collected by the High School, and arrived before her allies were slaughtered to awaken Su Nuo and complete the overwhelming victory.

This was a remedial measure after her plan was thwarted, a desperate gamble. If she failed, she would once again fall into silence and dormancy. Fortunately, with the help of allies who proactively covered up her backdoor, she succeeded.

The next moment, dark lines quickly appeared on Haddock's face—from his forehead to his chin, from his cheeks to his neck, densely packed.

The next instant, his eyes, which had been closed while he was being lulled to sleep, opened again without warning.

The murderous aura and oppressive force were almost tangible.

Everyone was struck dumb; they all knew that at this moment, Tiger Stick had vanished.

Standing there is the strongest curse king from a thousand years ago—Ryomen Sukuna.

Everyone felt as if a bloody red scene suddenly appeared before their eyes, their souls were frozen by an imaginary chill, and their bodies and wills were forcibly controlled at that moment.

The man stretched his neck, and his joints made a crisp sound.

He looked down at his hands, clenched his fist, and then relaxed it.

"Ten." His voice was low, slow, and steady, like the lowest note of a cello.

"Including the previous ones, there are fifteen in total."

He raised his head and looked at the people in front of him—Zhang Xiang, Maki, Fushiguro, Kugizaki, Junpei, and finally fixed his gaze on Makuro and Fushiguro in the distance.

His mouth slowly parted to reveal two rows of white teeth.

"good."

"This seems to be getting interesting."

......

Shibuya.

(Please remember the website 20 ...

The air in the already damaged underground building was damp and stuffy, mixed with dust and the smell of blood. The unsettling environment further exacerbated the anxiety of the ordinary people behind them.

Mingming stood at the entrance of the passage, eyes closed, fingers resting on the wall.

The level one sorcerers behind him waited in silence. Although Mingming was not afraid of sound interference when using spells, everyone still chose to wait silently, as this was the least they could do to respect the work of the information provider.

"No cursed spirits within two hundred meters of the west passage." She opened her eyes. "There are some on the east side, but they're moving north. And on the south side..."

She paused.

"That huge thing is on the south side; we absolutely can't get past it."

Nanami pushed up his glasses, and the reflection in the lenses showed the group of ordinary people huddled in the corner behind him.

The elderly, children, office workers, couples, tourists... about forty people, some were sobbing slightly, some were trembling, and some were staring blankly at the ground, as if all their strength had been drained away.

The unease among the crowd was intensifying. If this situation continued, their emotions would explode at some point, potentially leading to irreversible consequences... These people had to be sent out as soon as possible.

"What about the north side?" Kusakabe frowned.

Mingming glanced at him calmly.

"There are cursed spirits on the north side, not many, which is strange... I think it might be a trap."

"Which way do we go?"

A moment of silence.

Mingming looked at the iron gate at the end of the passage and finally made his decision.

"Let's go to the north side."

"That place is closest to the edge of the barrier, about five kilometers away. Even if it's a trap, we could probably get there by rushing at top speed."

After thinking it over, everyone nodded.

Four first-level mages are already a sufficient fighting force, but the fact that they are accompanied by a large group of people is their biggest weakness. Only by sending these people away and eliminating any worries about their rear can everyone's strength be fully utilized.

Kusakabe took the sword off his back and held it in his hand.

"Let's go."

Everyone was ready to act at any moment.

Nanami turned around and faced the ordinary people.

His voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear.

"Attention everyone, we're about to leave this place. Run! No matter what you hear or see, don't stop, don't look back. Those who follow us, keep running, until you see the light, until you breathe fresh air, until—"

He paused.

"Run to a safe place away from here."

No one speaks; actions speak for themselves.

The old man stood up and helped the young man beside him to his feet. The mother picked up her child, who buried his face in her shoulder, motionless. The office worker in a suit tucked his tie into his pocket, took a deep breath, and prepared himself.

Nanami nodded, then glanced at the others, who all nodded in agreement.

"Walk."

When the iron gate was pushed open, the sounds from outside rushed in.

A cacophony of noise—the distant explosions, the howling wind, and that indescribable, chilling low-frequency hum.

That was the sound of the Cursed Spirit of the Gun moving; the entire city had now become its hunting ground.

"Run!"

5000 meters from the edge of the barrier.

A large group of footsteps suddenly appeared, immediately attracting the attention of the surrounding cursed spirits, but they exploded and died without any reaction the next moment.

Mingming, acting as the team leader and compass, ran at the very front.

The controlled crows in the surrounding airspace provide everyone with a wider field of vision and also eliminate some of the threats within their reach.

"Turn left," she whispered.

The group immediately turned left and entered a small alley.

The walls on both sides were covered with cracks, and broken glass and GG flyers were scattered on the ground.

Suddenly, a woman's high heel broke. She was barefoot on the broken glass, and blood seeped out. She bit her lip and didn't make a sound.

However, his body instinctively leaned forward, and before he could fall and cause a chain reaction accident, Nanami quickly caught him.

Several low-level cursed spirits emerged from the window, but Kusakabe swung his sword a few times and exorcised them before they could react and make a sound.

4000 m.

"Turn right."

A slightly wider shopping street, with most of the shop windows on both sides shattered, mannequins lying crookedly inside, and clothes and precious jewelry scattered all over the ground.

But no one paid attention to these things at the moment, because something more emotionally charged had taken their attention away from them.

In the distance, a huge figure was moving—the Cursed Spirit of the Gun.

Its silhouette slowly shifted across the horizon. Like a walking building, the gun barrels rotated like countless eyes, scanning the city and bringing a chilling intimidation.

Ordinary people don't even dare to look up at it, covering their mouths with their hands for fear of making a sound.

At a certain corner, Mingming's hand rose and clenched into a fist.

The group stopped immediately.

The head of the cursed spirit of the spear, if that twisted metal can be called a head... slowly turned to the other side.

The gun barrels stopped turning, and its pace continued south, into the deeper, more distant darkness, and everyone couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

It's safe for now.

"Walk."

The column continued moving.

They crossed that street, turned into another alley, and then passed through a smashed parking lot.

The three experienced first-level sorcerers worked together seamlessly, and none of the cursed spirits made any noise that would attract attention.

2000 meter

Then—light appeared.

However, it was not sunlight that represented hope, but fire that represented death and despair.

Thanks to the timely intervention of the unseen force, the group was spared the fate of being engulfed by the pillars of fire that shot from their sides.

I turned my head to look.

The Cursed Water clock of Earth and Volcano stands at the end of the street, surrounded by fresh lava, like an active volcano.

Seemingly impatient, he smiled upon seeing the crowd, as expected.

"We've been waiting for you for a long time. You're a little slow."

His calm voice sounded like a stone grinding against another stone to everyone else.

It really was a trap!

Plan A!

As if guided by some unseen force, a crow swooped down from the sky and pounced on the face of the water clock.

The water clock didn't dodge; it simply raised its hand casually, and flames shot out—both fire and magma, at a temperature high enough to melt steel.

The crow turned to ash in the flames without even a cry of pain.

Everyone tensed up, all sharing the same thought: this enemy is very strong!

"run!"

Dog Scroll's incantation was not directed at the water clock blocking his path, but at the large group of ordinary people behind him.

The team began running to the side.

Under the influence of the incantation, they acted instinctively, yet in an orderly manner.

On the other side, three level-one mages had already placed their weapons in front of the water clock. Their task was simple: to prevent this guy from attacking anyone else.

The water clock raised its hand, and a ball of fire condensed and compressed in its palm, gradually transforming into a miniature sun.

We can't let it continue.

By the time Nanami realized this, her sword was already drawn.

Ten-stroke incantation – Waluo Waluo.

Concentrate your magical power on the blade and slash down.

The blade and the fireball collided, exploding into a burst of white-hot light. The attack was neutralized, and Nanami was blasted away. The sleeve on her arm burned away, revealing a charred patch on her arm.

"Don't give it any time to make a move!" he forced out through clenched teeth.

This guy is extremely strong; he can't be easily dealt with by just one or two people. It requires everyone to join forces with a death wish to defeat him.

After just one exchange, Nanami already understood the difference in their strength.

Kusakabe did not hesitate and followed up with another slash imbued with a simple field of energy, but Louju easily dodged it with flames enveloping him.

A volcanic crater appeared underground, and it was about to burn him when it stopped, but just then a giant axe fell, and Mingming swung his weapon to split the small volcano in two.

The water clock tried to catch up, but Nanami's knife arrived again, this time from the side, the blade slicing towards the water clock's neck.

If this weapon is struck without warning, it will be severely injured instantly.

"You're asking for it." Louhu's hand reached out to grab Nanami's face.

At the same time, gunshots rang out.

It's an impeachment from afar.

The bullet flew from a kilometer away, passing through the entire street, through the broken shop windows and the fallen GG signs, and accurately struck Nanami in the back of the head.

Sensing the danger, Nanami did not turn around. He knew there was no time to turn back, and could only hold the knife behind his head.

Before him, a crow attacked from the side with incredible speed at the hand that was reaching for Nanami from the clepsydra.

Ding.

The bullet struck the blade, sending sparks flying.

Nanami's hand was split open, blood was flowing down the hilt of the knife, and his arm was trembling, but the knife did not slip from his grasp.

Flames burned on the water clock's hands, intended to protect it from the crow's attack. Little did it know, this was a level one sorcerer's ultimate technique, "Black Crow Manipulation"—"Divine Wind."

The suicidal binding attack instantly shattered the outstretched arm of the water clock, forcing it to retreat temporarily.

500 m.

The clepsydra didn't seem to have any intention of targeting ordinary people; rather than killing these defenseless individuals, it seemed more suited to the tastes of these level-one sorcerers.

Mingming appeared behind Qihai, holding in her hand another specially made magical tool given to her by the Yue people—a short bow with a string made of magical power.

She drew her bow taut, and the arrow took shape on the string, gleaming with a pale blue light.

"The left side," she said.

Nanami, who was moving forward again, suddenly darted to the right.

The arrow flew past his ear and struck the water clock's face.

Something erupted from the volcano above the latter's head, transforming into something resembling a winged insect, which collided with the arrow and exploded in mid-air.

"As expected, your weapons are all quite troublesome. That guy really pulled something."

These sorcerers wouldn't normally be difficult for it to deal with; it would be quite simple to pick them off one by one when the opportunity arises. However, the weapons they possess that are effective against cursed spirits are quite troublesome, making it somewhat hesitant.

The support from the nearby Cursed Spirit of the Gun arrived again, and bullets flew in from different angles, like a flock of startled birds, dense and overwhelming.

The bow, seemingly drawn taut in the darkness, is now fully drawn.

Three arrows were fired simultaneously, the bullets and arrows colliding in mid-air, exploding into bursts of sparks, helping the group carve out a space for themselves amidst the barrage of bullets.

But it wasn't over yet; the water clock's attack had also arrived.

Nanami didn't dodge; his sword was already beyond recall. He simply used his body to shield Mingming, while in front of them, Kusakabe created a "Simple Domain."

Then a shadow crashed into us from the side.

Xia Youjie, who was observing from the shadows.

His cursed spirit, a huge turtle-shaped cursed spirit covered in shells, stood in front of Kusakabe and helped block the fatal blow.

The flames struck the carapace, and the cursed spirit screamed, but it was not burned to death immediately.

Why are you here?

Nanami's voice was a little hoarse, but it was full of vigilance.

Xia Youjie did not answer.

He simply stared at the water clock, at the enormous, slowly moving silhouette in the distance, and at the cursed sky.

"Now is not the time to discuss this. How about we join forces? Otherwise, we'll all be in trouble."

He spoke very quickly, and it was obvious that he was a little anxious.

Author Hualongzhishe is waiting for you with "Curse Return: The Swordsmith's Start".