In the quiet void of space, the silence only served to heighten the tension.
Lac Long Quan, the Holy Master, and Faker, the three beings standing at the pinnacle of this world, did not rush into battle. They retreated, forming a triangle, their gazes all fixed on the center. They were like judges, honored spectators, quietly observing the battle of the "younger generation," while in truth they were assessing each other's potential and trump cards.
In the center, Lam Minh stood facing four Holy Envoys.
Zeros, the new Young Master of the Dao Saint, remained aloof, standing with his arms crossed, seemingly with no intention to join the fight. His gaze towards Lam Minh was not one of contempt, but of observation and analysis, like a scientist looking at an interesting specimen.
The other four Holy Envoys, from Ninth to Twelfth, did not have that patience. The earlier insult had infuriated them.
"Let's see," said Ninth, a burly figure whose arms had transformed into two giant metal crab claws. "What a Late-stage Golden Core brat can do against the four of us Early-stage Nascent Souls."
Without warning, all four attacked simultaneously.
They had learned from the failures of Eleventh and Tenth. They did not attack individually but coordinated with each other flawlessly.
Ninth charged head-on, his giant crab claws snapping shut, creating a cutting force that could tear space itself.
Tenth (a new replacement, but still holding the old title), who could control gravity, raised his hand, and an invisible pressure bore down on Lam Minh, slowing his speed.
The new Eleventh, a woman who could create sonic illusions, began to sing a mournful, melodious song that directly attacked the soul, causing chaos.
And the new Twelfth, a small, nimble figure, vanished into the darkness, preparing for a fatal assassination strike.
Four people, four types of divine abilities, formed a cage with no blind spots.
Faced with this situation, Lam Minh did not hesitate. He knew that in this space environment, he could not fight a prolonged battle. He had to strike fast, win fast.
He roared, the Dragon God Battle Armor blazing, the God-Slaying Blade in hand. He did not retreat but advanced, charging straight towards Ninth, the one attacking him head-on.
"Bring it on!"
He slashed out, clashing directly with the two giant crab claws.
CLANG!!!
A piercing explosion echoed in the vacuum of space, transmitted by waves of energy.
Lam Minh was pushed back several steps. Even though he was at the Late-stage Golden Core, he was still at a slight disadvantage when facing the pure power of an Early-stage Nascent Soul.
And just as he was pushed back, the gravitational pressure from Tenth weighed down on him. The song of Eleventh also echoed in his mind, causing his soul to waver slightly.
A dark shadow appeared behind him. Twelfth. A fatal stab aimed straight at his heart.
It was a perfect coordinated attack.
But they had underestimated Lam Minh.
Just as Twelfth's stab was about to hit him, Lam Minh suddenly activated "Myriad Waters Return to One."
His body suddenly became fluid, twisting in an unbelievable arc, just barely dodging the stab. At the same time, he used his powerful Golden Core will to temporarily suppress the distracting song.
He had escaped the fatal attack.
But he had also fallen completely into a disadvantageous position. The four Holy Envoys gave him no chance to breathe. They attacked continuously, forcing him into a desperate defense.
The energy from their battles exploded terrifyingly, creating brilliant auroras and spatial ripples that shook the atmosphere below.
On Earth, the people who were joyously celebrating the New Year's moment suddenly saw the night sky flash continuously, and occasionally heard thunderous booms echoing from above. They didn't know that out there, their hero was fighting a life-and-death battle to protect their peace.
The battle lasted for nearly 30 minutes.
Lam Minh could no longer maintain his calm demeanor. His Dragon God Battle Armor was covered in countless cracks. His body was crisscrossed with wounds, and golden dragon blood continuously seeped out, only to be healed slowly.
His spiritual power was nearly depleted.
"Damn it! You're looking down on me too much!" he roared, his voice full of dissatisfaction. "If you've got guts, fight me one-on-one! Stop ganging up on me like this!"
With that, he stopped defending. He knew that if this continued, he would surely lose.
He did something crazy.
He roared, the Golden Core in his body spinning to its absolute limit. His energy was no longer conserved but poured out like a torrent, with no intention of saving any.
He was fighting a "do or die" battle. He used all his remaining strength to trade for one opportunity.
An opportunity to "die."
"Mindless. Is this the junior you said would surpass even you? He's just committing suicide foolishly," the Holy Master turned and said to Lac Long Quan in a mocking tone.
Lac Long Quan just sneered, his eyes never leaving the battle. "Don't use your foolish thinking to judge him. He will surprise you."
Just as Lac Long Quan predicted.
Lam Minh, after exploding with his final burst of power, created a fatal opening.
Ninth and Tenth did not miss the chance. They both unleashed their strongest attacks, aiming straight for him.
Lam Minh didn't dodge. He just smiled.
And in the center of the battlefield.
An earth-shattering explosion occurred.
A ball of brilliant light, brighter than anything else, erupted, swallowing both Lam Minh and the two Holy Envoys.
Even though it was midnight on the other side of the Earth, the light from this explosion still illuminated a large part of the atmosphere, making the ground below as bright as day.
A scene that was both majestic and terrifying.
...
The blinding light from the explosion slowly faded, leaving behind a chaotic space filled with energy ripples and tiny fragments of shattered space.
The Holy Master, Faker, and Lac Long Quan all watched in silence. The battle seemed to have ended in a way no one could have anticipated.
But then, a scene that stunned both the Holy Master and Faker occurred.
From the center of the explosion, not one, but four figures were blown out, flying like broken kites, covered in blood.
They were the four Holy Envoys.
Ninth and Tenth, the two who had launched the final attack, were the most severely injured. Their armor was shattered, their bodies covered in deep burns and cuts. They coughed up blood continuously, their Nascent Soul auras weakened to the extreme.
Eleventh and Twelfth, though standing further away, were also thrown back by the shockwave of the explosion, their internal organs severely shaken. One of them had even fallen unconscious.
All four Nascent Soul Realm Holy Envoys were heavily injured after the cataclysmic explosion.
In the final millisecond, Lam Minh had chosen to self-destruct. A self-destruction of a Late-stage Golden Core, enhanced by Dragon Qi and a crazed will, its power was even greater than when he self-destructed at the bottom of the sea. He had used his own life to take all four enemies with him.
"Useless trash!" the Holy Master coldly spat out a contemptuous remark. He didn't care about the life or death of his subordinates; he was only angry that they had failed to complete their mission.
Faker's jaw dropped, his three eyes wide open. He had lived for thousands of years, had seen countless battles. But for a cultivator, without any warning, to be able to self-destruct so decisively and terrifyingly, this was the first time he had witnessed it.
As for Zeros, who had stood still from the beginning, his icy face showed a hint of surprise for the first time. He didn't understand. This person was too decisive. It seemed that death to him was as light as a feather. Why would someone disregard their own life to such an extent? But what made him ponder more was the rumor about this man's ability to be reborn, a rumor he had never believed.
On the other side, Lac Long Quan was also lost in thought. He looked at the empty space where Lam Minh had just vanished, his heart full of questions.
"This kid... what exactly is his secret?"
He knew that Lam Minh would certainly not die. But this extreme way of fighting, this method of constantly using death as a weapon, had gone beyond his understanding.
"It is the legendary Dragon God Nirvana," Lac Long Quan suddenly said, his voice calm but loud enough for the Holy Master and Faker to hear. His eyelids didn't even twitch.
In reality, the Dragon Clan had no such thing as "Dragon God Nirvana." This was just an excuse, a play he had made up on the spot to cover for Lam Minh, to sow doubt and a "seemingly" reasonable explanation in the enemy's mind.
"Dragon God Nirvana?" Both the Holy Master and Faker frowned. They had heard of this legend, an ability that allowed Dragon Clan descendants to be reborn from ashes, but they had always thought it was just a myth.
Just then.
10... 9... 8...
Golden specks of light once again gathered from the void.
[Host has successfully committed suicide. Received 1 Immortality Point.]
"Bring the entire Dao Saint! I'll take you all on!"
A familiar and arrogant voice echoed. Lam Minh slowly reappeared, his body completely intact.
He didn't look at the four heavily injured Holy Envoys. He just did a few warm-up movements, cracking his neck and rotating his shoulders, as if the life-and-death battle just now had been just a light warm-up.
"Dragon Clan? Nirvana? Are you kidding me?" the Holy Master said, his voice tinged with disbelief. He didn't want to believe it, but he couldn't not believe it. What other explanation was there for someone who had just self-destructed into ash to be able to continue jumping around in front of them so provocatively?
Lam Minh sneered. "One point is one point. Still a profit."
He paid no more attention to the others. His eyes were locked onto one person.
Zeros.
He cracked his knuckles, looking at Zeros with a battle-hungry gaze.
"And now," he said. "It's your turn. Are you ready?"