"That was close!"
Realizing the danger, Han Jue instantly activated his "Void" secret technique and vanished into the shadows of the hall's corner. He watched Lord Baizhu, now surrounded in the center of the massive chamber, and patted his chest in relief.
On the field, a full sixty-four Golden-Scaled Beasts at Universe Overlord level had materialized!
To Han Jue's surprise, when these sixty-four beasts gathered together, they could unleash combat power rivaling a third-tier Universe Master, comparable to the ultimate secret technique of a Universe Master executed as a single devastating strike. That coordinated attack had just cost Lord Baizhu twelve percent of his divine body.
"Star Sea Venerable!"
Lord Baizhu's roar echoed with deep resentment.
As a Universe Master, he could naturally see through Han Jue's "Void" secret technique. The Golden-Scaled Beasts, however, were mere Universe Overlords and couldn't detect Han Jue's presence at all.
It would be nearly impossible for Lord Baizhu to lure these beasts toward Han Jue's position, and he might even perish under their relentless assault before succeeding.
"Damn it!"
Lord Baizhu cursed viciously.
Whoosh!
A thick purple bamboo materialized in Lord Baizhu's hand!
The bamboo transformed instantly into a protective house, and Lord Baizhu dove inside, hiding within its walls.
"A palace-type Arcana? So Lord Baizhu really did have a trump card." Han Jue's eyes gleamed as he observed the transformation.
The Northern Frontier Alliance boasted hundreds of Universe Masters, and Lord Baizhu ranked among the lowest tier, his performance unremarkable, his reputation mediocre. As the sole Universe Master of his race, a powerful but desperate species that had joined the alliance seeking protection, his possession of a palace-type Arcana was quite rare. After all, these weaker races that banded together for survival rarely had the resources to acquire such treasures. Those with real strength, like the Yan God Clan, didn't need the alliance's protection.
Ordinary flying palace-type Arcana were typically worth as much as, or even more than, high-grade Arcana. By that calculation, Lord Baizhu possessed the equivalent of two high-grade Arcana.
"Human!"
Hiding within his bamboo house, Lord Baizhu glared at Han Jue through the walls, his eyes burning with resentment.
The Golden-Scaled Beasts still surrounded his protective dwelling, completely oblivious to Han Jue hovering in mid-air. A continuous stream of golden energy beams bombarded the house, as if their divine power was inexhaustible.
However, the attacks of a third-tier Universe Master still couldn't shake this palace-type Arcana, which brought Lord Baizhu some relief.
But soon, Lord Baizhu discovered a critical problem:
The passage to the first level was blocked!
"Star Sea Venerable, why did you do this!"
Lord Baizhu watched helplessly as Han Jue produced the Holy Flame Palace and positioned it across the passage entrance, completely severing his escape route. He could no longer contain his rage.
"Why?" Han Jue chuckled. "You didn't tell me about the Golden-Scaled Beasts' combined attack capability earlier. Weren't you also setting me up?"
"I didn't know these beasts could coordinate their attacks!" Lord Baizhu protested.
"Really? I don't believe you." Han Jue's tone was flat and unconvinced. "You wouldn't have attempted to kill all these Golden-Scaled Beasts before without testing their capabilities first."
"Enough talk."
Han Jue prepared to make his move.
Although Han Jue's combat power hadn't quite reached fourth-tier Universe Master level, placing him solidly at third-tier, he couldn't forget about the Golden-Scaled Beasts surrounding them.
Han Jue had a premonition that these sixty-four beasts were not the end of this trial.
"Boundless Void!"
The Dark Domain instantly engulfed the entire hall.
Everything within, Lord Baizhu, the Golden-Scaled Beasts, the very space itself, became trapped within the Boundless Void Domain!
"A Domain-type treasure!"
Lord Baizhu's voice cracked with shock.
But Han Jue wasn't finished.
'Stellar Domain!'
'Heavenly Prison!'
"Freeze!"
With a thought, Han Jue activated both high-tier Arcana simultaneously, instantly suppressing the Golden-Scaled Beasts along with Lord Baizhu's bamboo house, binding them all to their current positions.
"How is this possible!" Lord Baizhu's voice carried utter devastation as he witnessed Han Jue unleash treasure after treasure.
He'd spent his entire existence carefully protecting his two Arcana, constantly wary of other Northern Frontier Alliance Universe Masters coveting them, or external forces attempting to steal them. Now Han Jue, with his vast arsenal of treasures, was deploying them one after another, completely overwhelming him in an instant!
With the Boundless Void Domain combined with the Stellar Domain and Heavenly Prison, Han Jue estimated that even his teacher, the Lord of Ice Peak, would likely remain under his control for a considerable time.
Next...
Whoosh!
Five-Evolution Sword Qi slashed out instantly!
The Golden-Scaled Beasts had initially targeted Lord Baizhu, not Han Jue. Now that they were all bound by his suppression techniques, they were like lambs to the slaughter, completely at his mercy.
Lord Baizhu had initially been puzzled why Han Jue would bother killing the beasts after binding him, but now understanding dawned.
"Star Sea Venerable, if you kill me, the Northern Frontier Alliance won't let you go!" Lord Baizhu roared with heart-wrenching desperation.
"There are plenty of forces that won't let me go. One more makes no difference," Han Jue said indifferently.
He was being honest. Compared to the Demon Alliance, the Insect Alliance, and the Mechanical Alliance, what was the Northern Frontier Alliance? As a loosely organized peak force, Lord Baizhu had no powerful backers. Most members wouldn't even be willing to hunt down Han Jue for Lord Baizhu's sake, they'd be more motivated by Han Jue's treasures than by vengeance. The Northern Frontier Alliance posed no real threat.
Boom!
In the brief time they'd exchanged words, Han Jue had already slaughtered all the Golden-Scaled Beasts.
With the annihilation of these sixty-four beasts, they'd earned sixty-four days of respite.
Han Jue kept Lord Baizhu confined within the bamboo house. Lord Baizhu didn't dare emerge rashly, even his palace-type Arcana had been suppressed by Han Jue's techniques. If he ventured outside, he'd only be suppressed again immediately.
When the next wave of one hundred twenty-eight Golden-Scaled Beasts appeared, Lord Baizhu might finally have a chance to escape!
Meanwhile, on another part of the second level...
Sizzle!
Lord Youhou dispatched the sixty-fourth Golden-Scaled Beast, his expression grim.
He'd been careless just moments ago and nearly suffered serious injury from the beasts' combined assault!
The sixty-four Golden-Scaled Beasts, working in perfect coordination, had unleashed combat power comparable to a third-tier Universe Master. Lord Youhou didn't possess any powerful armor-type Arcana. If he'd taken that attack directly, he wouldn't have fared well.
"Third-tier now. Will it be fourth-tier next time?" Lord Youhou frowned deeply, lost in thought.
These Golden-Scaled Beasts, when attacking together, possessed astonishing offensive power. Fortunately, their individual defenses weren't particularly strong, they remained at the level of ordinary Universe Overlords. With Lord Youhou's abilities, wiping out an entire group hadn't been too difficult.
Lord Youhou's current concern was far more troubling: what was the upper limit to the number of these Golden-Scaled Beasts?
What if attacks comparable to fifth-tier Universe Masters appeared in later waves?