Chapter 344: Curse Spirit

First, Muria waved her hand to send Auston, who had become stiff under the oppressive aura of the curse spirit, into the demi-plane. Then, standing in the void, she calmly watched the demonic apparition in front of her, which was enough to make any ordinary creature tremble. She even had the leisure to compare its appearance to the genie from Aladdin's tale in her previous life.

The apparition that emerged from the cursed book had a form similar to the genie, with an upper body solid and the lower body fading into smoke that connected to an object. However, unlike the genie whose smoke connected to a lamp, this shadow's smoky tail linked to a book shrouded in black mist.

Furthermore, while Aladdin's genie would fulfill any wish of its summoner, anyone who dared to disturb this being in front of Muria without sufficient strength would meet their demise.

"Cackle! You, the ignorant and weak creature, think you can be my master?" The curse spirit nurtured by the Book of the Mourner glared at Muria with malicious intent, its dark aura slowly turning the clear blue sky around them dark.

From the ground, looking up at Muria in the sky was like seeing a drop of ink falling into a serene landscape painting, creating a stark discordance.

"Think?" Muria looked at the curse spirit, her lips curling into a mocking smile. "I am already your master."

"Cackle!" The monstrous shadow laughed loudly, as if it heard a joke. "You're not even a legend, and you want to be my master? What a pitifully ignorant creature."

"Clang!" The harsh sound of metal clashing rang out. Muria, unfazed by the curse spirit's taunts, drew her Sword of the Seven Sins and struck at the spirit, shrouded in swirling black mist, sending sparks flying.

A deep gash appeared on the cover of the Book of the Mourner, and the curse spirit let out a piercing scream. The ferocious apparition twisted violently, and many parts of it dissipated into black mist.

"Behave and let me imprint my spirit."

"Roar! Damn you, ant." The curse spirit, pained beyond bearing by Muria's strike, roared and split into thick black mists like serpents, rushing towards her.

The curse spirit, evolved from the Book of the Mourner, was essentially the cursed book itself and shouldn't have felt pain like a creature of flesh and blood. However, Muria's weapon possessed soul-destroying properties, and this was the first time the curse spirit experienced what pain was.

"Idiot!" As the black mists surged towards her, Muria stood fearless, without any defense or resistance, even though she knew these mists were various curses.

A golden dragon king's phantom appeared behind Muria, roaring skyward. All the black mist dissipated, and the tainted blue sky and clouds were instantly cleared.

Curses could not touch her; only curses capable of harming gods could affect Muria. Clearly, the Book of the Mourner lacked such powerful curses; otherwise, it wouldn't have appeared in Muria's hands.

"What exactly are you?" Protected by a drop of dragon king's blood within her, Muria watched as the curse spirit's black mist dissipated, and an even more tragic scream echoed.

"Your master!" Hearing this scream, Muria reached for the gravely weakened cursed book. Her spiritual power extended, effortlessly ignoring its feeble resistance, and naturally imprinted her spirit within.

"Even if you imprint me, I will not obey you." Slowly, several black mists rose from the cursed book, laboriously condensing into a vague demonic apparition.

"Is that so?" Muria looked at the slowly healing slash on the book's metal cover, a disdainful smile on her face, then swung her sword again.

"Ow! Even if you destroy me, I will not submit to you. No one can control me; I seek freedom." The curse spirit wailed pitifully, like a steadfast martyr.

"Oh, I didn't realize a mere book spirit would have aspirations for freedom," Muria remarked with a hint of admiration, then her sword came down again, leaving a deep cut on the book.

"Clang! Clang!"... Regular strikes filled the air with a unique rhythm. Initially, each strike was accompanied by a scream and some defiant words.

Gradually, the screams turned into weak moans, and the defiant words became pleas for mercy.

"Master, stop chopping; if you continue, I will truly die." The cursed book, covered in knife marks, showed a nearly transparent apparition that was no larger than a halfling, its face groveling for mercy.

"You wanted freedom, didn't you? For freedom, even extinction is a worthy sacrifice." Muria looked disdainfully at the curse spirit, which had begun begging for mercy early on.

"Never overestimate yourself." After Muria had struck five times, the curse spirit abandoned all its dignity and began pleading with her for mercy.

With each strike, part of its existence was erased, and the agony of this gradual obliteration, coupled with the fear of self-dissipation, was unbearable for the curse spirit. It had never before encountered someone like Muria, who could completely disregard its curses.

Since its curses were ineffective, the curse spirit posed no threat to Muria. It couldn't escape and was left at Muria's mercy to be chopped repeatedly until it had no choice but to beg.

"I don't want freedom anymore, master. Now, I just want to continue existing." There was no deception in the curse spirit's voice as it revealed its most genuine thoughts under Muria's blade.

"Are you willing to obey?" Muria, still holding the Sword of the Seven Sins, asked menacingly, ready to strike again at any sign of defiance.

"I am willing," the curse spirit nodded vigorously.

"Then good. Trace the locations of these scales' owners." Muria waved her hand, scattering the yet unlocated multicolored dragon scales.

"No problem, master." The heavy book opened, and its pages—crafted from the skin of a demon—flipped rapidly. One by one, the dragon scales fell into the book, serving as a medium to manifest the images of their original owners.

As lively and agile dragon images appeared on the pages, Muria's face showed a satisfied smile.

"Do you want to curse these giants? Master, if you wish, I can make them die in pain and fear."

"They are my subordinates!" Muria responded firmly, indicating that these dragons were under her command and protection, not targets for cursing. This statement underlined her control and set the boundaries for the use of the curse spirit, now subdued and ready to serve under the terms laid out by its new master.

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