"That's right." A cold glint flashed in Mo Yuan's eyes. "My senior brother cultivated for a century, just one step away from breaking through the limits and achieving godhood. It was you who destroyed everything for him, letting him die right before the dawn. Today, I will make you pay the price."
Su Chen said flatly, "Did what your senior brother did not warrant death? Do you have no idea how many people he killed?"
"Those people?" Mo Yuan sneered. "The existence of those people was utterly meaningless; their deaths were sacrifices to the Void. My senior brother was helping them break free from the painful cycle of reincarnation, allowing them to return to the embrace of the Void. You ordinary mortals simply do not understand what true salvation is."
"Salvation?" Su Chen also smiled, his smile full of mockery. "Your salvation is turning everyone into walking corpses? Making everyone lose their emotions and their sense of self? That is not salvation; that is destruction."
"Destruction is rebirth." One of the black-robed men behind Mo Yuan spoke, his voice shrill and piercing. "Only through utter destruction can true nothingness be welcomed. Within the Void, there is no pain, no sorrow, no despair—only eternal tranquility."
Su Chen shook his head: "You are beyond saving."
"Is there any point in spouting this nonsense?" the other black-robed man behind Mo Yuan chimed in, his voice hoarse like a broken gong. "Let's make our move, Lord Guardian."
Mo Yuan nodded. His black robe billowed without any wind, and black mist surged from his body, completely enshrouding him. His Martial Soul was released—it was a massive black python, its body covered in bizarre silver patterns, its two eyes blood-red, radiating a wicked glow. Mo Yuan's soul rings materialized: two yellow, two purple, five black—nine soul rings in total. Furthermore, a faint golden vein could be discerned on the last two black soul rings, a characteristic exclusive to the soul rings of hundred-thousand-year soul beasts.
"A hundred-thousand-year soul ring?" Su Chen frowned slightly. "You hunted a hundred-thousand-year soul beast?"
"Not hunted, sacrificed," Mo Yuan said. "That hundred-thousand-year Frost Python willingly gave up its life, for it knew that only through death could it return to the Void."
"Nonsense," Su Chen sneered. "Soul beasts cherish life the most; how could they possibly sacrifice themselves willingly? You must have used some wicked method."
Mo Yuan did not speak further. His body suddenly moved.
The black python Martial Soul transformed into a streak of black lightning and pounced toward Su Chen. The python opened its bloody maw, spewing a thick cloud of black mist. Wherever the mist passed, the air distorted, and the ice and snow on the ground were instantly corroded into a massive crater.
Su Chen remained unhurried. His Martial Soul was also released—it was a gigantic silver fox, nine tails swaying behind it, with a phantom soul ring on each tail. Su Chen's Martial Soul was the Nine-Tailed Silver Fox, an exceptionally rare intelligence-type Martial Soul, excelling in spiritual power and spatial power. His soul ring configuration was two yellow, two purple, and five black, also a Titled Douluo-level configuration, and his soul power level had reached ninety-seven, two levels higher than Mo Yuan.
"Nine-Tailed Silver Fox First Soul Skill—Spatial Barrier!"
A transparent barrier materialized out of thin air in front of Su Chen. The black mist crashed against the barrier, twisted, folded, and devoured by the power of space, ultimately vanishing without a trace. At the same time, Su Chen activated his second soul skill—Spatial Severance. An invisible blade of space shot out from the barrier, slicing toward Mo Yuan's neck.
Mo Yuan reacted quickly, leaning back to evade the lethal strike of the spatial blade. However, his left shoulder was still slashed open, and blood gushed out. But his blood wasn't red; it was black, exuding a putrid stench.
"Your blood..." Su Chen frowned. "You've been eroded by the power of the Void to such an extent?"
"This isn't erosion; it's evolution." Mo Yuan licked the black blood from the corner of his mouth, the madness in his eyes intensifying. "The power of the Void has allowed me to transcend the limits of humanity, bringing me one step closer to nothingness. One day, I will become a part of the Void and gain eternal tranquility."
"You have already gone mad," Su Chen said.
"Mad?" Mo Yuan laughed uproariously. "You people who stubbornly cling to outdated notions are the true madmen. You obsess over life, obsess over emotions, obsess over those utterly meaningless things, unaware that they are all illusions. Only the Void is real; only death is eternal!"
He lunged forward again, this time bringing the other two black-robed men along. The three formed a triangular formation, surrounding Su Chen in the middle. The Martial Souls of the other two black-robed men were also released—one was a black crow, the other a black spider. The crow Martial Soul excelled in mental attacks, while the spider Martial Soul was adept at binding and control. Coupled with the frontal assault of Mo Yuan's python Martial Soul, they formed a virtually flawless combat formation.
Su Chen felt the pressure. Although his soul power level was higher, he was facing a joint assault from three powerhouses. Moreover, the attributes of their Martial Souls were identical—darkness and the Void—and their coordination was utterly seamless, making it difficult for him to fully leverage his abilities.
The black crow's mental attacks were like invisible arrows, piercing wave after wave into Su Chen's sea of consciousness. Although Su Chen's Nine-Tailed Silver Fox excelled in spiritual power, the crow's attacks carried the power of the Void, which could erode spiritual energy, causing Su Chen to feel bouts of dizziness.
The black spider's silk shot in from all directions, covered in black mist. Once entangled, one would be corroded by the power of the Void. Su Chen continuously used Spatial Severance to cut the silk threads, but the spider's silk seemed inexhaustible—cut one, and ten more would take its place, leaving him exhausted from dealing with them.
Mo Yuan's python Martial Soul was even more ferocious; every strike carried thunderous force. Furthermore, the python's body could shift between virtual and solid states. Although Su Chen's Spatial Severance could wound it, it couldn't inflict fatal damage.
"As expected of Qian Renxue's strategist, you certainly have some skills," Mo Yuan said while attacking. "But how long can you hold out? Your students are already on the verge of collapsing."
Su Chen's heart tightened. His perception rapidly expanded, taking in the state of the battle on Ares' side. Ares was indeed valiant, having slain over thirty enemies, but the situation on the students' side was not optimistic. Five students had already been injured, two of them severely, and they were being protected in the center by the medic and other students. The remaining students were still fighting, but their stamina was heavily depleted, and their movements had noticeably slowed.
What was even more fatal was that the Void Cult's patrol teams didn't seem to be limited to three. Su Chen sensed more soul power fluctuations approaching in the distance—at least forty or fifty more people were rushing over.
"I must end this quickly." Su Chen made a decision in his heart.
He took a deep breath, circulating his soul power to the maximum. All nine soul rings lit up simultaneously, and silver radiance dispelled the surrounding darkness.
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