On how PhDs become human evil

"Of course, it's your shamelessness to stay by my Setsuna's side all this time, you stinky man."

The person who answered Bai Jie was a young woman in a cheongsam standing not far away. She appeared to be nearly 170 centimeters tall, but was still a teenager. She had long chestnut hair, fair skin, and a strikingly beautiful face. Her slender figure was perfectly complemented by the cheongsam.

Another woman... I feel like Bai Jie has encountered a lot of women in this world.

"Sayaka?"

Suddenly, Himeragi Yukina called out a name, and in the next moment, a beautiful smile spread across the girl's face, and the murderous aura she had been exuding transformed into an aura full of tenderness and love.

"Snow Flower!"

The long-haired girl hugged Setsuna tightly, looking almost like the harmonious sisters who had miraculously reunited. Her hair, tied in a ponytail, wagged happily like a puppy's tail.

"Long time no see, Setsuna, how have you been?"

"Okay...okay."

Seeing the two girls, who suddenly embraced each other with an almost lesbian vibe, Bai Jie rubbed his forehead: "Oh dear, I think I understand what's going on. The Lion King organization did this on purpose, didn't they?"

"Hime Tsubasa, aren't you going to introduce her?"

"Ah, sorry senpai, I left you standing there." Himeragi Yukina hurriedly broke free from the girl's embrace. "This is my roommate from the Lion King Organization, Kirasaka Sayaka, who is a year older than me and is a dancer."

Like the Sword Witch, Wu Weiyuan is a profession within the Lion King Organization. However, unlike the Sword Witch, who targets the demon race, Wu Weiyuan's primary job is assassination and curses.

"Simply put, it's about eliminating you, you stinking man who dares to try and get close to my Yukina, in every sense of the word!" Sayaka Kirasaka glared at Bai Jie. "The Lion King Organization is really something, actually entrusting the task of monitoring this kind of heretical Onmyoji to my Yukina. What is the Execution Department thinking?"

Onmyoji (a type of Taoist priest) from other sects.

Strictly speaking, this statement is not wrong. After all, Ashiya Dōman was an Onmyoji who did not belong to the imperial court and even opposed the imperial court to some extent. It is normal for his descendants to be regarded as unorthodox.

"It's as if I was the one who went over there. It was clearly you who arranged for Ji Dong to come here," Bai Jie said, frowning. "I don't know how close you and Ji Dong are, but if you keep making trouble like this, I won't be polite."

"You bastard—"

"However, before dealing with you, I think it's necessary to deal with that guy over there. After all, small fry can be dealt with anytime, but we can't neglect the big shots over there."

P.S.: I was featured on the recommendation page, so why are my subscriptions decreasing instead of increasing? What's wrong, guys? It's only the beginning of the month! Did I slack off and make you guys not want to subscribe?

Section 385, Question 20: Are all vampires Stand users?

From the moment he stepped onto the upper deck, Bai Jie could feel the presence of that aura.

However, rather than Bai Jie sensing that aura, it would be more accurate to say that the other party had no intention of hiding it at all, and even actively released its aura, appearing extremely arrogant and domineering.

However, the other party has the capital to be so arrogant. Their enormous magical power could only be possessed by vampires, and speaking of vampires, there are only two on this ship.

One is Akago Castle, but we haven't arrived at Akago Castle yet, so there's only one answer left.

"Come forth, Lord Ardial, Demitoriye Vatora."

Bai Jie shouted the name of the vampire who had not yet appeared into the darkness.

Da da da—

The sound of shoes stepping on the deck came from behind, and a person appeared in Bai Jie's field of vision.

Against the backdrop of the dark ocean and night sky, a man stands on the vast deck.

The handsome young man, dressed in a pure white coat, was tall and elegant, and did not exude any sense of intimidation.

The young man tossed his blond hair back and looked at Bai Jie with his azure eyes.

"Crackling—!"

In the blink of an eye, a pale white flash erupted from the young man, hurtling towards Bai Jie with the speed of a laser gun. Faced with this sudden attack, even Himeragi Yukina, who was closest to Bai Jie, was unable to react in time.

"Hurry, hurry, as the law commands (Order)."

A gentle, breezy incantation resounded, and a deep blue Bagua array appeared in front of Bai Jie, blocking the flash of light by a hair's breadth. At that moment, the true form of the flash of light was revealed to Bai Jie.

It was a shimmering, fiery serpent, a vampire familiar enveloped in scorching energy.

"Isn't this going a bit too far as to just say hello?" Bai Jie looked coldly at the blond youth. "Can I take this as a provocation?"

“Personally, I think this level is just right. You must have seen through this to defend at that time,” the blond youth laughed. “But as I expected, a familiar of this level can’t hurt you. Ashiya-sama, you truly deserve to be one of the few whom our True Ancestors consider an opponent.”

"The First True Ancestor? Should I feel honored to be targeted by such a being? I'm just an ordinary Onmyoji."

“You’re too modest. If you’re considered ordinary if you’re among the top three in humanity, then there’s nothing special in the world.” The young man said as he approached Bai Jie and extended his hand. “Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Demitoriye Vatora, and I was granted the title of Duke of Aldialu by our True Ancestor, the ‘Forgotten War King’.”

"Ashiya Dōryū." Bai Jie extended his hand and shook hands with him. "Since we've exchanged greetings, let's get straight to the point. What did you want to see me about?"

"You're such a straightforward person."

"I don't like beating around the bush, or do you want me to be more direct?" Bai Jie stomped his foot.

Seeing Bai Jie's action, Vatora's eyes visibly wavered for a moment, then he shrugged: "I've heard that excellent Onmyoji can see through the flow of spiritual power, magic power and other forces, but I didn't expect it to be so effective."

So what is your answer?

No sooner had Bai Jie finished speaking than Vatola gave his answer, but his answer was not words, but actions!

Magic erupted from Vatora like a volcanic eruption, and the sudden burst of magical energy cracked the fragile deck. The scale of this magic was at least ten times stronger than that of the familiar that had just released that sloppy goods!

Vampires all have incredibly long lifespans, and for them, who are immortal, the only form of entertainment is fighting. Only fighting can make them feel alive.

The moment Vatora saw Bai Jie, he sensed that Bai Jie was definitely a strong person. His eyes, his aura, his attitude... Vatora could feel that Bai Jie was the same kind of person as him, both of them were bored with their long lives and longed for pleasure.

So he took action.

"Sagara!"

As Vatora called out, the familiar residing in his blood awakened, taking shape in his surging magical energy. The next moment, a large serpent covered in blue scales, like a sea snake, coiled out from his body, its sinister eyes fixed on Bai Jie, and it hissed towards the sky.

"hiss--------!"

The snake flicked its tongue wildly, and a violent hurricane erupted the moment the sea serpent appeared. An atmospheric wall composed of tens of thousands of palpitations of pressure squeezed Bai Jie from all directions, and the deck beneath Bai Jie's feet shattered instantly!

Floating silently in mid-air, Bai Jie stood with his hands in his pockets and uttered a single word: "[Disperse]!"

As soon as he spoke, a fierce gust of wind swept outwards from Bai Jie's center, directly overturning the entire deck. The powerful cyclone even cut through the steel railings!

"A familiar that controls air pressure? That's something. So what?"

Bathed in the strong wind, Bai Jie coldly stared at Vatora.

Reaching the same altitude as Bai Jie in mid-air, surrounded by sea serpents, Vatora laughed, "Is that what you call the power of words? With just one word, you made all the atmosphere under my control dissipate. It's truly an eye-opener for me."

"So, and then what?"

Bai Jie repeated the same statement.

Seemingly enraged by Bai Jie's attitude, an even greater surge of magic power erupted from Vatora.

"Nanda! Upananda!"

In the blue light, two serpentine bodies, fully armed with sharp blades, emerged amidst the distortion of magic and intertwined. A silver dragon, its body engulfed in flames, replaced the sea serpent in Bai Jie's eyes.

"Fusing with familiars is my trump card."

"Wow, this looks promising—"

Bai Jie raised his hand towards the giant dragon and then clenched it tightly!

"boom--!"

The dragon immediately exploded! A deluge of magical power poured down like a torrential rain!

Vatora was stunned. He never expected that his fused familiar would be defeated by Bai Jie with a single grasp from a distance! That familiar was almost at the level of a True Ancestor! Although he had been defeated in battles before, he had never been defeated so overwhelmingly!

"What...did you do?"

"As you can see, it was just a handshake, but I used a little bit of 'hitting from afar' technique when I shook hands."

"Hitting an ox across a mountain" is a Yin-Yang technique from the Taoist system, a method that allows one's spiritual power to strike the enemy even from a distance. Bai Jie just skipped the incantation and used this move with one hand to crush the silver dragon out of thin air.

With his hands hanging down, Bai Jie maintained his cold expression and uttered the same words again.

"So, what's next?"

Section 386, Chapter 21: The Serpent, the Dragon, and the Holy Wolf

and then?

These three words were like sharp swords, piercing Vatora's heart one after another.

How many years has it been? How many years has it been since anyone spoke to him like that? Vatola has encountered arrogant people before, but without exception, they all became his familiars' prey. Even renowned powerhouses fell at his feet after a long and drawn-out battle.

"It's so nostalgic. I don't know how long it's been since I last heard those words, especially from a human."

Vatora gave Bai Jie a bright smile, as if he were seeing a long-lost friend; the smile was incredibly sincere and joyful.

But beneath that smile, terrifying magical energy rippled outwards like waves, so powerful that the cruise ship began to tremble, waves surged on the surrounding sea, and whirlwinds danced wildly in the night sky.

Vatora, the strongest vampire after the True Ancestor, the tip of the iceberg of the meaning represented by this title began to be revealed to Bai Jie.

(In terms of the quality and quantity of magic alone, can it really compare to Vali?)

Vali was the strongest White Dragon Emperor in history, and also possessed the bloodline of the Demon King Lucifer. His magic power was so strong that it could replace the life force needed to activate the Tyrant Dragon, making him incredibly powerful. As for Vatora's magic power, judging from Bai Jie's perception, it was definitely no less than Vali's.

This is just magic power. If you include familiars, then Vatora's strength is already barely enough to be among the top ten in the world. He could even fight the top ten in the world to a standstill with his immortality.

(If it were my original body, even if the three True Ancestors were tied together, it would only take one hand to handle them, but with this frail body now... it will take quite a bit of effort.)

With that thought in mind, Bai Jie clasped his hands together and began chanting the Word of Power.

"—Namo Sarva Tathagata Vijaya Sarva Muchi Vijaya Sarvata Juratha Zanna Maha Lusana Qian Khahi Khahi Sarva Vijinan Om Tarazha Hanman—"

Bai Jie's spiritual power, emanating from his body, violently dominated the spiritual energy on the entire sea surface. Then, golden-red flames rose up like wildfire, plunging the entire cruise ship into a world of divine flames.

"coax--!"

Flames burned on Bai Jie's body, draping him in a divine robe of flames. A radiant red lotus bloomed brilliantly at his feet, and the red lotus karmic fire spiraled upwards, eventually transforming into a giant fire dragon nearly a hundred feet long!

Legend has it that Fudo Myoo has eight great attendants under his command, and on the battlefield, these eight attendants will transform into different forms to burn the demon armies of the three thousand worlds to ashes.

Now, the Fire Realm Curse that Bai Jie has displayed has already taken on a mythical form. If Bai Jie himself were to cast it, it would definitely unleash the true [Immovable King Fire Realm Curse], which would burn away all demonic forces and turn the three thousand worlds into scorched earth.