A streak of lightning suddenly cut across the battlefield.
Zhao Qing stepped into the fight.
His body was still drenched in blood, wounds from earlier torture tearing painfully with every movement. Yet the moment his soul power surged, thunder burst outward from him like a violent storm.
Behind him, the massive shadow of the Thunder Beast rose, lightning crawling across its body.
Across from him, Yun Fei noticed his arrival.
Her eyes swept over his injured body. A faint mocking smile appeared on her lips. "Oh?" she said casually. "You can still stand?"
Zhao Qing didn't reply. His expression was completely cold.
The moment he stepped forward, thunder exploded.
Lightning erupted beneath his feet as he rushed straight toward her. His fist tore through the air like a falling thunderbolt, carrying brutal force.
Yun Fei reacted quickly, releasing her soul power to block the attack.
But the moment their powers collided— Boom!
The difference became immediately obvious.
Even though Zhao Qing was heavily injured, he was still a Peak Level 68 Soul Emperor. Yun Fei, on the other hand, was only Level 52.
The overwhelming gap in strength crushed through her defense.
Yun Fei was forced backward several steps instantly, her arms trembling from the impact.
Zhao Qing didn't slow down. Another attack followed immediately.
Lightning roared as his strikes descended one after another, fierce and direct, each blow carrying terrifying power. The battlefield shook with every collision as thunder tore through the air.
Yun Fei tried to counterattack, her five soul rings flashing rapidly.
But the difference in strength was too great. Even injured, Zhao Qing's raw power was far beyond what she could withstand.
.....
The pressure at the center of the battlefield continued to rise.
Under the joint assault of Xu Yuan and three Soul Saints, waves of poisonous attacks surged toward Wang Yan from every direction. Crimson sword light flashed continuously as the Demon Roaring Sword clashed against them again and again.
Even with the suppression of the Slaughter Sword Domain, facing four powerful opponents at once was no easy task.
Not far away, Liu Ming and Chen Yu had already forced their opponent—the remaining Soul Saint—into a defensive position.
Liu Ming's spear thrust forward repeatedly, each strike sharp and precise. The Soul Saint was forced to retreat under the pressure of the two peak Soul Emperors working together.
Chen Yu glanced toward the center of the battlefield. What he saw made his expression tighten slightly. Wang Yan was fighting four enemies alone. Even for Wang Yan, that situation could not be maintained forever.
Chen Yu made a decision immediately.
"Liu Ming—hold him!"
Without waiting for an answer, he suddenly broke away from the fight.
Wind exploded beneath his feet as the phantom of the Wind Wolf surged forward. In the next instant, Chen Yu rushed straight toward Wang Yan's battlefield.
Liu Ming understood his intention instantly.
His spear spun once in his hand before striking forward again, intercepting the Soul Saint.
.....
Chen Yu entered the battlefield without hesitation.
Wind surged violently around him as the phantom of the Wind Wolf lunged forward, joining the fight beside Wang Yan. The sudden reinforcement immediately shifted the rhythm of the battle.
Wang Yan's Demon Roaring Sword slashed downward in a powerful arc, forcing one of the Soul Saints back. At the same moment, Chen Yu appeared from the side, his claw-like strike tearing through the air and driving another Soul Saint away from Wang Yan.
For a brief moment, the pressure surrounding Wang Yan eased.
But Xu Yuan saw the change clearly. His eyes narrowed.
The Bloodscale Clan's strength had never relied only on cultivation or numbers.
Their true weapon was their poison.
The enormous Bloodscale Centipede behind him reared up, its crimson body twisting violently as a dense wave of venomous energy gathered around it.
Xu Yuan suddenly changed target.
The poisonous power condensed sharply before surging toward Chen Yu. The attack came fast. Too fast.
Chen Yu had just joined the battlefield and was still adjusting to the rhythm of enemies attacking from different directions.
The poisonous energy struck him directly. For a moment, Chen Yu's body trembled.
The poison immediately invaded his bloodstream.
Unlike ordinary venom, the Bloodscale Clan's poison attacked the blood itself, spreading rapidly through the body like burning fire.
Chen Yu staggered slightly, his breathing growing heavier.
But he did not retreat.
Instead, he clenched his teeth and forced his body to move again.
Wind burst outward from him as he launched another attack beside Wang Yan, the violent winds of the Wind Wolf surging around him as he struck again and again at the enemies before them.
Yet something had already begun to change.
The poison from Xu Yuan's earlier strike had entered his body.
Ordinarily, the venom of the Bloodscale Clan was terrifying. Once it invaded the bloodstream, it spread rapidly, corroding flesh and blood alike. Many opponents had fallen within moments under such poison.
But this battlefield was different.
They were fighting inside the Slaughter Sword Domain.
The dark crimson aura filling the domain suppressed everything within it—enemy power, martial souls, and even the spreading poison itself.
Because of that suppression, the venom inside Chen Yu could not spread freely.
If this battle had taken place outside the domain, the poison would have already erupted through his body. Chen Yu might not even have been able to stand.
But within the crimson field, its effect was restrained.
Even so, the poison had not disappeared.
Each movement Chen Yu made forced the venom to stir again inside his veins. A faint burning sensation spread through his body, slowly growing stronger with every passing moment.
His breathing became heavier.
A thin line of blood slipped from the corner of his mouth as he continued fighting.
Yet Chen Yu did not step back.
The phantom of the Wind Wolf lunged forward again as he struck toward one of the Soul Saints, forcing the opponent to retreat.
Wang Yan noticed it immediately.
From the corner of his eye, he could see the subtle changes in Chen Yu's condition—the slowing movements, the growing strain behind every attack.
The Slaughter Sword Domain was holding the poison back. But it could not erase it completely.
The battle had reached a brutal stalemate.
Every time Wang Yan pressed forward with the Demon Roaring Sword, the surrounding Soul Saints would immediately move to intercept him. Their coordinated attacks continuously forced him to divide his attention, preventing him from focusing his full strength on any single opponent.
The clash of sword light and poisonous power echoed again and again through the crimson domain.
But Wang Yan understood one thing clearly.
If this continued, the battle would only drag on.
And Chen Yu's condition could not endure a prolonged fight.
The moment Chen Yu joined his side had already created a new opening.
Even though the poison inside Chen Yu's body was slowly worsening, the Slaughter Sword Domain was still suppressing its full effect, allowing him to continue fighting.
Wang Yan made a decision instantly.
During a brief exchange of attacks, he moved closer to Chen Yu.
"Hold two of them," Wang Yan said in a low voice. "Just a moment."
Chen Yu did not hesitate.
The phantom of the Wind Wolf surged violently around him as he immediately rushed toward two of the Soul Saints at once. Fierce winds erupted across the battlefield as he attacked them head-on, forcing both of them to respond to him simultaneously.
For a brief moment, their attention shifted away from Wang Yan.
That was the opportunity.
Wang Yan moved.
His figure vanished like a streak of crimson lightning within the domain.
Before the nearest Soul Saint could react, the Demon Roaring Sword had already appeared before him.
The sword fell. The strike was clean and merciless.
The Soul Saint's defense shattered instantly under the overwhelming force. The sword cut straight through him, and his body collapsed onto the battlefield before he could even cry out.
Xu Yuan's eyes narrowed sharply.
But Wang Yan had already moved again.
Without pausing for even a breath, he turned toward the second Soul Saint—the one still being restrained by Chen Yu.
Chen Yu's winds pinned the man's movement for a brief instant.
That instant was enough.
A flash of crimson sword light tore through the air. The Demon Roaring Sword descended once more.
The Soul Saint froze where he stood. Then his body fell heavily to the ground.
Within moments, two Soul Saints were dead.
The battlefield suddenly felt far quieter.
Now only Xu Yuan and one remaining Soul Saint stood within the oppressive crimson domain, facing Wang Yan and Chen Yu.
End of Chapter.