The streets of Nuoding City rapidly receded behind them. Tang San pulled Yu Xiaogang with one hand and dragged Xiao Wu—who was half-carried, half-pulled—with the other. The three pushed their remaining soul power to the limit, desperately sprinting toward the city gates. The faint outline of the gates appeared ahead, symbolizing a glimmer of hope for survival.
But in the next instant, a sharp scream rang out beside him.
"Ah—!"
Tang San abruptly turned his head, his eyes nearly splitting with rage. Xiao Wu, who had been right beside him, was now tightly grasped in a palm faintly shrouded in thunder. The owner of that hand was Chen Yi, who had caught up like a ghost in the blink of an eye.
Xiao Wu's entire body trembled violently. Her once-bright eyes were filled with pain and despair, as if her soul had been seized by that palm, rendering her struggles futile.
"Let Xiao Wu go!"
Tang San's roar was laced with heart-wrenching agony. Without hesitation, he flipped his wrist, and the astonishingly powerful Silent Sleeve Dart instantly appeared in his hand. With a mechanical click, mournful whines filled the air as poison-coated crossbow bolts tore through the sky like a storm, targeting Chen Yi's face and vital points.
At this moment, only one thought filled his mind: Even at the cost of his life, he had to save Xiao Wu!
These bolts had once been enough to threaten the Spirit Hall elders, but Chen Yi's eyes remained indifferent. He lightly pressed his palm harder against Xiao Wu's head, and pure, majestic thunder-attribute soul power surged through her.
Xiao Wu's delicate body stiffened, her gaze rapidly dimming as she fainted without a sound. At the same time, his footsteps shifted, his body floating weightlessly while holding the unconscious Xiao Wu, effortlessly dodging every bolt.
As he retreated, he waved his free left hand, causing a spatial ripple to flash. The unconscious Xiao Wu was tossed into a living soul tool, completely severing her connection to the outside world.
After finishing this, Chen Yi stood firmly, brushing off nonexistent dust from his hands before looking up. His cold eyes, devoid of any human emotion, were like twin ice picks.
Frozen in place from the failed attack, Tang San and Yu Xiaogang trembled in fear. Under that gaze, they felt as if they'd plummeted into an icy cellar, chills piercing from the soles of their feet straight to their crowns, their scalps tingling.
In that moment, they felt as though Death itself had raised its scythe.…
…
At the same time, in the center of the city's battlefield.
"Huff... huff..."
Heavy, blood-foamed breaths escaped Tang Hao's mouth. He knelt on one knee, barely propping himself up with his massive Clear Sky Hammer to avoid collapsing entirely. His tattered clothes were soaked in blood—some his own, some coughed up from internal injuries caused by the enemy's widespread attacks.
His body was covered in deep, glaring wounds, making him look utterly miserable.
He raised his head, staring through disheveled hair at the still-spotless figure in blue before him, his expression blank and incredulous.
His original plan had been to use the Clear Sky Hammer's dominance and the strangeness of the Deathgod Domain to entangle the enemy with full force, buying time for the others to escape. Then, he would seek a chance to flee thousands of miles using the explosive power of his ring detonation.
Confident as he was, few in the world could stop a fleeing Clear Sky Douluo even in defeat.
But reality struck him hard.
This unimaginable powerhouse—hadn't played by common sense. Just as he was building momentum to stack the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer Technique, the opponent had directly unleashed his Martial Soul True Body.
A thunder phantom formed purely from soul power hung behind the Grand Elder, its terrifying force sweeping like an invisible tide, not only suppressing soul power but eroding and influencing the spiritual level.
His killing intent crumbled, his fighting spirit weakened, his soul power muddled. Under that silver light, it felt as though all his thoughts were laid bare to the enemy, every movement sinking into mud, powerless.
This guy didn't even need to fight—the opponent's abilities completely suppressed a power-type soul master!
The elder approached the kneeling Tang Hao with a cold face. His steps were steady, crunching slightly on shattered stone slabs like the tolling of death's bell in Tang Hao's heart.
Behind him, the silver-white thunder phantom exuded awe-inspiring majesty, its silver light flowing as if calculating the mysteries of the universe.
"Wait... just wait!"
Enduring extreme pain and humiliation, Tang Hao squeezed out a voice, attempting a final negotiation.
"Your Excellency... there's no deep hatred between us... why kill us all... I am from the Clear Sky Sect..."
But would the Grand Elder listen to his nonsense? Since it had come to this, they had to be eradicated completely to prevent future troubles.
His eyes were cold as the massive thunder phantom's silver light behind him suddenly surged!
"Buzz—!"
Silver swords condensed purely from soul power materialized in the void, each gleaming with cold metallic luster, their tips aimed directly at Tang Hao.
In the next moment, thousands of soul power swords transformed into a destructive silver storm, overwhelmingly charging at Tang Hao, sealing all escape routes.
"You bastard! This is what you forced me to do!!"
Madness and despair flashed in Tang Hao's eyes. He knew this was the threshold of life and death—no more hesitation!
"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Six deafening explosions rang out in succession!
From Tang Hao's body, starting with the first yellow soul ring, six rings detonated boldly one after another. Violent soul power flooded like a breached dam into his depleted meridians and the Clear Sky Hammer in his hand.
The Clear Sky Hammer instantly expanded, black light soaring skyward with destructive aura, boldly meeting the silver sword rain.
But what drove Tang Hao to despair was that, while the near-indestructible explosive ring power struck the sword rain and briefly halted it, countless soul swords clung like bone maggots, piercing through the explosion's turmoil and continuing toward him.
The absolute gap in power and spiritual levels between the two sides was too vast!
"I'm going to die..."
Cold despair enveloped Tang Hao. In this moment, he felt pierced by ten thousand blades.
At this critical juncture, a mutation occurred!
The Deathgod Domain, faintly suppressed by the opponent's soul power, suddenly fluctuated uncontrollably. Deep within the domain, an invisible yet awakened beast-like cold aura seeped with blood-red light, illuminating the domain abruptly.
"Boom!"
A force utterly different from Tang Hao's soul power—cold, domineering, filled with terrifying killing intent—erupted volcano-like from deep within his body, instantly filling his limbs and bones.
Blessed by this power, his originally waning aura skyrocketed like a rocket, instantly surpassing his limits—to a degree that even frightened himself.
This was that power!
Back when he'd just broken through level 90, relying on the mysterious force hidden deep in the Deathgod Domain, he had severely injured the level 95 Qian Xunji.
Under this blessing, he felt power rivaling his grandfather Tang Chen at his peak.
"Hahaha! Heaven won't destroy me!!"
In dire straits yet ecstatic, Tang Hao burst into laughter, swinging the revitalized Clear Sky Hammer.
Blood-red energy mixed with remnants of the explosive rings, forming a solid blood-red light shield that blocked the Grand Elder's soul sword rain across the sky.
He arrogantly gazed at the slightly frowning Grand Elder, his heart filled with vengeful pleasure: "Old dog! See this? This is power bestowed by God. Today is your end. Pay the price for your arrogance!!"
Tang Hao envisioned crushing the enemy before him into meat paste with this invincible power, avenging endless humiliation.
But his wild laughter hadn't faded when the sudden blood-red power strangely waned without warning, rapidly declining...It seemed merely temporary.
The world-shattering bodily power receded like the tide, returning him to his gravely injured, weakened state. The backlash made his frenzied smile stiffen, turning to endless shock, blankness, and a ridiculous sense of being toyed with by fate.
He dazedly sensed the power's flow, staring again at the silver sword rain filled with killing intent.
Only one thought remained in his mind: "You... won't play with me like this, right?!"
...
Bonus chapter at 300 PS