Sato Ichiro reached out and lifted Lu Heng's chin, his devil-like fingers hooked out a wisp of shadow from Lu Heng's body.
This wisp of shadow contained human will, spirit, and consciousness, as if it were the soul being peeled from the body.
This was the ability of the Second Transition Class "Soul Reaper."
Once a human's soul was peeled from the body, it lost all protection, becoming extremely fragile with no means to resist the manipulation of a "Soul Reaper."
Lu Heng's "soul" was pulled out of his body, his face full of panic.
Sato Ichiro made a silencing gesture, slowly saying, "Don't be nervous, this is a wonderful process. However, there is something else to do before this.
"Now, take out your sword, the one that could cut through Hequan Zongzheng."
Previously, at the Coastal International Sword Dojo competition, hundreds of Fusang people witnessed the duel.
At that time, Lu Heng had broken Saito Takeji's Fusang Name Blade, Hequan Zongzheng, with just one strike.
In Fusang, Hequan Zongzheng was a famous blade with a far-reaching reputation.
It was the only blade worthy of a Sword Saint's status.
Yet, such a blade was cut in half with a single strike.
Anyone who had seen the competition could tell that the sword Lu Heng used was definitely a divine weapon, far superior to Hequan Zongzheng.
Therefore, Sato Ichiro's target was not only the Source Material but also Lu Heng's soul, and he wanted everything.
Second Transition Source Material, Lu Heng's soul, and also the Aurora Blade.
"Soul Reaper" was originally a Second Transition Class.
However, he had not yet achieved the full Class but had temporarily acquired the initial Source Material of "Soul Reaper", gaining the temporary ability to reap souls.
Lu Heng, on the other hand, had at least three people's Source Materials within him.
This meant that once he seized the Source Materials from Lu Heng, he could complete the Source Fusion and formally achieve the "Soul Reaper" Class.
Second Transition Class, strong soul, plus a divine weapon.
One action, three kinds of ascension resources.
Who could resist such a temptation?
"Take out the sword," Sato Ichiro commanded again.
A soul without its body's protection could not defy a "Soul Reaper's" command.
However, after repeating the command, Lu Heng still did not follow his will and take out the Aurora Blade.
Lu Heng slowly exhaled, his tone returning to calm, and said, "Sato Ichiro, Class Soul Reaper, skilled in controlling Soul Capturing Monsters, killing people from thousands of miles away invisibly."
Sato Ichiro's gaze sharpened on hearing this.
His plan for this operation was very meticulous, and his identity was supposed to be confidential.
In fact, few people knew that he had come from Fusang.
Furthermore, as a core member of the Sanyo Corporation, a Fusang conglomerate, his appearance in Da Xia meant that the entire Chunshang Group had to follow his arrangements.
Even within Chunshang Group, nobody knew his identity.
Yet, Lu Heng had spoken his name and Class, even knowing about the Soul Capturing Monsters.
Sato Ichiro frowned, puzzled, his eyes narrowing as he asked, "How do you know?"
Lu Heng cracked a dangerous smile, saying, "I also know, Soul Reapers are skilled in controlling Soul Capturing Monsters, their methods cunning and unpredictable.
"But in direct combat, they are weak, and if I face you directly, I just need to move a finger to crush you."
Sato Ichiro was taken aback, hastily stepping back.
But then he calmed down again, saying, "You've been injected with a sedative and are seriously injured; you couldn't possibly still have the capacity to resist."
He had already checked the wounds; they were real.
After calming down, he stepped forward again, not wasting any more time, extending his devilish fingers to pull out Lu Heng's soul again, intending to devour it directly.
As Lu Heng had said, Soul Reapers have cunning methods that are hard to defend against.
But this Class is indeed weak in direct combat, while Lu Heng could crush a Sword Saint directly, indeed, just needing to move a finger to crush him.
Sato Ichiro loved this kind of Class that could kill invisibly from the shadows.
It matched his cautious nature.
He was indeed very cautious, initially wanting the Aurora Blade as well, but now sensing something amiss with Lu Heng, he immediately decided to give up on the Aurora Blade and simply eat Lu Heng's soul first.
His devilish fingers strenuously hooked the soul.
However, something bizarre happened.
The wisp of shadow that emerged from within Lu Heng, instead of being hooked out, sank back in.
"What's going on? Why can't I hook it out?" Sato Ichiro's face showed confusion.
Lu Heng cracked a smile, answering his question, "Because my soul isn't here."
Sato Ichiro's gaze sharpened, his hand flipped over and he drew a Short Tachi, stabbing it backhand into Lu Heng's chest.
The Short Tachi pierced into the chest cavity, but no blood flowed out, and there was no change in Lu Heng's expression.
"Clone! It's a clone! Damn it!"
Sato Ichiro was suddenly panicked, bursting with emotion, slashing violently over a dozen times, bursting Lu Heng's Shadow Clone.
He felt intense fear surge through him because he was a devil who reaped souls from the shadows, unable to compare in combat power with the strong.
Facing someone like Lu Heng, who could kill a Sword Saint with one strike, exposing his identity meant facing the threat of death.
His heart pounded violently, his body breaking out in a cold sweat, then he abruptly turned his head, looking towards another person in the car.