Chapter 53 53: Are You Sure You Can Survive After Knowing?

Xu Shan's vision was suddenly interrupted by the flash of a Shadow Sword that seemed to be aimed directly at his neck.

The Shadow Guard's movement was so fast, that the young prince failed to even properly see his movements. All he could discern were faint shadow outlines in the background. The power disparity between the two was significant, as was the difference in their combat expertise.

The Shadow Guard didn't go easy on him, just because he was a youngster who was supposed to be a mortal. Instead, he used his full strength right from the initial attack. It was a similar principle to assassins, which was to kill the opponent in one stroke, without taking any risks.

Unable to see anything, Xu Shan only moved on instinct, raising his dagger, to protect his neck.

Even he didn't understand why he felt that his neck was going to be attacked, but he didn't have time to think about it.

Clank~

A metallic sound resounded as his dagger actually managed to block the shadow sword! Even though his dagger looked ordinary, it was still a Sky Grade Treasure that he received from his father.

Despite their durability, the ordinary daggers would have already broken in the face of such an attack but his dagger was different.

Unfortunately, although the dagger was completely fine, it alone wasn't enough to bridge the gap in strength between the two sides.

Xu Shan managed to avoid a direct hit to his vital organs, but the force of the impact was still so great that it caused his body to be thrown backward.

He experienced a sudden and intense impact, as if a truck had hit him, sending him reeling to the ground. His hands shook uncontrollably as he struggled to regain his balance. The battle before him seemed insurmountable from the outset, leaving him with little hope of victory, or even survival.

On the other side, even the Shadow Guard was stunned to see that Xu Shan actually managed to block his attack!

"I guess even as a mortal, you're still a Prince of a Dynasty. It really isn't easy to crush you, is it?" The Shadow Guard raised the shadow sword once again before moving like lightning.

He swung his sword once again, intending to cut Xu Shan in two.

As Xu Shan rose to his feet, another strike came his way, and he had no choice but to rely on his instincts once again. However, this time the Shadow Guard anticipated this and changed the sword's direction at the last moment.

While Xu Shan was able to defend himself to a considerable degree, he ultimately couldn't escape unscathed. The shadow sword cut through his clothing and left a deep gash on his chest, which bled profusely and turned the cloth a vivid shade of scarlet.

Fortunately, Xu Shan was able to dodge at the very last moment; otherwise, the injury would have been much more severe.

He landed in the distance. His face was already pale. His clothes were tattered, and already covered in blood. Even his breathing was heavy.

Despite being alive, the pain was unbearable and impossible for him to ignore. It felt like his skin was on fire while being incessantly bitten by poisonous ants.

He could only bite his lower lip to make sure that he didn't lose himself in the pain.

"You survived again... For a mortal, you're really quite talented." The Shadow Guard waved his sword lightly, letting Xu Shan's blood drops fall to the ground. It was as if he was worried that the young man's blood was going to dirty his Sword.

"However, even with that talent, you're nothing special at all. I don't understand why His Majesty considers you such a threat." He shook his head lightly. "Is there a secret between you two?"

"If you tell me that secret, I might give you an even quicker and painless death!"

The Shadow Guard was quite confused why Qin Ye wanted Xu Shan dead. It certainly wasn't because of any treasures that Xu Shan possessed. If that was the case, then Qin Ye would've told him to bring back the treasure after killing the young man. That only meant Xu Shan had another secret.

Even though it wasn't his place to inquire into Qin Ye's matters, his curiosity got the best of him. In any case, if he killed Xu Shan, Qin Ye wasn't going to know that he already knew that secret.

Xu Shan held the dagger firmly, as if his life was on the line. He didn't speak anything since dying faster wasn't as interesting a proposition to him as the Shadow Guard thought.

His mind was still distracted by the pain. He was surprised that he was still conscious. He could only guess that it was because his body was more durable after he became stronger.

"It... Hurts..."

While Xu Shan was still looking for an opportunity to kill the Shadow Guard, he heard a strange voice in his head.

'You're finally up.' Xu Shan thought, recognising that voice. It was the voice of his Celestial Spirit of Devouring which had fallen asleep after he last feasted on Ji Yang.

He didn't expect that even his Celestial Spirit was able to feel his pain. Usually, a Celestial Spirit couldn't feel the physical pain of their host, and only spiritual pain.

'Well, it's good that you're awake, since this might be our last moment together. However, I still don't have any intention to die anytime soon.'

He raised his head, gazing at the Shadow Guard who was still waiting for his response.

"You want my secret? Are you sure you will be able to survive after knowing it?"

The Shadow Guard frowned in response. "You don't need to be concerned about it. Just tell me what that secret is!"

Xu Shan took a deep breath. There was slight hesitation on his face. His lips slightly opened as he started speaking, "It's about-"

However, his eyes suddenly lit up in the middle of his sentence. "You're finally here! Kill him!'

The Shadow Guard froze in place. Since he wasn't controlling the flag formation now, he didn't know what was happening inside the palace. Seeing Xu Shan's response, his face went pale. It meant Ye Han was here.

He immediately turned around, swinging his shadow sword.

With a swift motion of his sword, an arc of dense Celestial Energy shot out into the darkness, aimed at Ye Han with the intention of exploiting the situation to his advantage.

Unfortunately, as soon as he turned around, his expressions became ugly!