The black-robed man slammed his staff into the ground, and the black gemstones inlaid with it glowed strangely. The surrounding black fog surged like a living thing, shrouding the entire lake in gloom. Duan Litang felt that it was becoming difficult to breathe. The thick dark aura was like a pair of invisible hands, tightly strangling his throat. Ye Li's hand holding the long whip trembled slightly, and she whispered: "Litang, this aura is stronger than when we were in Yongye Port."

  Before he finished speaking, the black-robed man waved his staff, and a black energy wave swept towards them like a surging black tide. Duan Litang quickly swung the blood sword, and the power of the blood contract surged wildly, and a blood-colored light blade rushed up to meet it. The light blade collided with the energy wave, and a deafening roar broke out. The strong air wave shook the surrounding trees to the ground, and the leaves fell one after another. Ye Li took the opportunity to swing out the long whip, and the tip of the whip went straight to the wrist of the black-robed man, but when it approached the black-robed man, it was bounced off by a layer of black barrier. The huge recoil force made her retreat again and again, and her knuckles were cracked, and blood dripped along the long whip.

  "Is that all you can do?" The man in black robe sneered sinisterly, "It would be a waste if the Stone of Light fell into your hands." As he spoke, he quickly formed seals with his hands, and suddenly a huge black vortex appeared in the sky. Countless black spikes fell from the vortex and smashed towards Duan Litang and Ye Li like a dense rainstorm.

  Duan Litang shouted, raising the power of the blood contract to the extreme, and the blood sword danced in front of him to form a blood-colored light curtain. Ye Li also endured the pain and waved the long whip, cooperating with Duan Litang to resist the attack of the spikes. The spikes kept hitting the light curtain and the long whip, sparks flew, and a harsh metal collision sound was made. But there were too many spikes, and Duan Litang and Ye Li gradually became a little powerless, and many more wounds appeared on their bodies.

  Just when they felt desperate, the Stone of Light suspended above the altar suddenly emitted a dazzling light, which was like a warm sun, dispelling some of the surrounding black fog. Duan Litang and Ye Li were enveloped by the light, and the wounds on their bodies felt cool, and the pain miraculously began to heal.

  "This is." A hint of surprise flashed in Duan Litang's eyes.

  "It seems that the Stone of Light has sensed our predicament." Ye Li said, his eyes full of hope.

  The black-robed man saw this and his face turned terribly gloomy: "There are indeed some tricks, but this can't change the outcome of your failure!" He clenched his fists suddenly, and a huge black shadow appeared in the black vortex. The shadow had a ferocious face and opened its bloody mouth, and pounced towards Duan Litang and Ye Li.

  Duan Litang took a deep breath and tried to merge the power of the blood contract with the power of the light stone. A layer of golden and blood-colored light suddenly appeared around his body, and the blood sword in his hand became even hotter. He shouted loudly, swung his sword and slashed at the black shadow, and a huge sword energy containing the power of light and darkness rose into the sky. Ye Li also took the opportunity to launch an attack, and the long whip was wrapped with the power of light, like a golden lightning, whipping towards the black-robed man.

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  The black shadow collided with the sword energy, bursting out a strong light, and the whole space shook violently. The black-robed man had to use part of his strength to resist Ye Li's attack. He waved his staff and a black shield appeared in front of him, blocking the long whip's attack. But Ye Li's attack also bought time for Duan Litang. Duan Litang's sword energy broke through the black shadow's defense and approached the black-robed man.

  The black-robed man's face changed drastically. He quickly cast a spell and his body turned into a ball of black mist, disappearing on the spot. The sword energy slashed the ground, leaving a deep gully, and the surrounding rocks were shattered into powder. Duan Litang looked around vigilantly, looking for the trace of the black-robed man.

  "Watch out behind you!" Ye Li suddenly shouted. Duan Litang instinctively fell forward, and a black claw rubbed his back, leaving three long cuts on his clothes. Duan Litang turned over and saw a man in black robes appear behind him at some point, with a sinister smile on his face.

  Duan Litang and Ye Li stood back to back, staring at the black-robed man. They knew that the battle had reached the most critical moment. Although the light of the Light Stone gave them strength, the black-robed man was too powerful, and every attack made them feel tremendous pressure.

  "Do you think you can defeat me with the Stone of Light?" The man in black sneered, "Too naive!" He raised the staff again, and the black energy gathered at the top of the staff, forming a huge black sphere. The sphere flickered with a strange purple light and exuded an aura of destruction.

  Duan Litang looked at the blood sword in his hand, then looked at Ye Li, his eyes full of determination: "No matter how difficult it is, we can't let him succeed!" Ye Li nodded, gripped the whip tightly, and made the final preparations.

  Just as the black-robed man was about to launch an attack, the heart of the forest suddenly burst out with a strong light again, and an illusory figure appeared in the light. Duan Litang took a closer look and found that it was the mythical beast he had encountered before. The body of the mythical beast was surrounded by golden light, and its eyes were full of majesty: "Human, fully release the power of the Stone of Light, and I will lend you a helping hand!"

  Duan Litang and Ye Li looked at each other, they concentrated their minds and injected all the power in their bodies into the Light Stone. The light of the Light Stone suddenly surged, illuminating the entire forest, and the black fog of the black-robed man continued to dissipate under the light. The beast opened its mouth and a beam of light containing a powerful light power shot towards the black-robed man. Duan Litang and Ye Li also launched an attack at the same time, and the blood sword and long whip were flashing with dazzling light.

  The black-robed man watched all this in horror. He waved his staff frantically, trying to resist the attack, but under the powerful attack of the power of light, his resistance seemed so powerless. Finally, under the joint attack of the divine beast, Duan Litang and Ye Li, the black-robed man let out a shrill scream, and his body was completely swallowed by the light and disappeared without a trace.

  After the battle, Duan Litang and Ye Li collapsed to the ground exhausted. They looked at the Light Stone floating in the air, their hearts filled with emotion. The figure of the beast gradually became transparent, and it said: "Thank you, humans. The Light Stone has recognized you, take it to lift my curse. However, the road ahead is still full of dangers, you must be careful." After that, the figure of the beast completely disappeared.

  Duan Litang and Ye Li slowly stood up, walked to the altar, and carefully picked up the Light Stone. The Light Stone radiated warm light in their hands, as if telling of a new mission. They knew that this was just the beginning, and there were still the Fountain of Life and the Sword of the Soul waiting for them to find, and the threat of the Dark Palace still existed.