After an indeterminate amount of time, Jared opened his eyes and found himself unexpectedly in a massive cave.
The entire cave looked expansive, and the sound of running water echoed from within. Jared shook his head to relieve his dizziness. At that point, he had no idea where the void fracture had taken him.
“Mr. Vermilion, where are we? Are we still in the Ethereal Realm?” Jared asked, turning to Vermilion Demon Lord.
“You should know I could only sense the outside world through you, right? How am I supposed to know anything when you were unconscious just now? Besides, I’m just a soul remnant in the void fracture. What could I possibly know?” Vermilion Demon Lord replied with a glare.
“You could have just told me you didn’t know nicely instead of losing your temper,” Jared muttered to himself. He must be mad because I refused to let the Vermilion Demon Lord control my body. But I’m the master of my body. How can I simply let him take over as he pleases?
As Jared scrutinized the cave, he was consumed by an indescribable feeling.
He hoped to be transported back to the mundane world, yet he was also filled with apprehension about returning to it.
After all, there were still many things waiting for him to accomplish in the Ethereal Realm.
In addition to those awaiting him in the mundane world, there were also others waiting for him in the Ethereal Realm.
Jared scanned his surroundings, surprised to discover Maurice, who had been at death’s door, now in the same cave as him. Apparently, they had been transported to the same destination.
At this moment, Maurice did not appear to be the expert from the Ultimate Realm that he was known to be. Instead, he seemed more like an elderly man nearing the end of his life.
The ghost mask on his face had disappeared, and his aura became extremely weak. It was evident that he had lost his formidable power as an Ultimate Realm expert.
It was a miracle that Maurice was still alive despite executing the secret technique earlier and having his legs severed by the space-time blades.
Jared stepped forward and nudged Maurice, who remained motionless. It seemed he had passed out.
Upon seeing the situation, Jared slowly crouched down.
“Hey, what are you planning to do? You want to save him?” asked Vermilion Demon Lord.
“Of course not. This guy’s been trying to kill me all along, even wanting to drag me down with him. How could I possibly save him?” Jared replied indifferently. “I only noticed he had an item pouch, which I thought might contain something valuable. I just want to take a look at it.”
Jared was no heroic saint who could easily forgive and forget. Save him? Those who wish to kill me deserve death.
Just as Jared reached out to remove the item pouch from Maurice’s body, Maurice suddenly opened his eyes.
“Go to hell!” Suddenly, Maurice reached out his claws and fiercely aimed for Jared’s neck.
Maurice’s swift strike carried a sharp aura. If it had landed on Jared, his neck would have been severed.
Upon realizing Maurice was feigning unconsciousness and attempting a sneak attack, Jared remained perfectly still.
Maurice became utterly thrilled when he seized Jared by the neck. He burst into laughter and exclaimed, “Finally! I’m still going to kill you after all!”
After speaking, Maurice exerted great force.
Yet, despite his best efforts, he couldn’t break Jared’s neck.
In the end, Maurice grew so frustrated that his face turned red, but his attempt still proved futile.
The moment he looked up at Jared, he realized Jared was looking at him as if he was staring at a fool.
Jared’s body had endured countless trials and tribulations. If Maurice were still an expert in the Ultimate Realm, he would undoubtedly have been able to snap Jared’s neck.
However, Maurice, in his extremely frail state, could even hardly muster the strength of an expert from the Body Fusion Realm.
With his current weakened state, his attempt to snap Jared’s neck was nothing but a joke.
“Do you even realize your condition right now? What makes you think you can break my neck? I bet you can’t even crush a regular stone at this moment,” Jared remarked. He grasped Maurice’s wrist, applying a bit of force, and twisted it.
