The battlefield tightened into a focused instrument.
Lin Mu and the Transcendents readied themselves. Xiao Yin slid into the shadow beneath the Titan's roots, tongue of a snake testing the scent of the arrays. Her presence was invisible to all but those tuned to minor Dao traces, yet she moved with the confidence of one who could find a weakness.
From the rear, the Emperor gathered thunder like a smith gathers hammers. He began to pound the sky with a drum of lightning in his palms, a drumbeat that threaded through the marsh of Baleful Qi.
The Titan responded. Vines surged, redirected energy like blood attempting to close a wound. Branches flared with a baleful light and lashes sliced at the Transcendents who dared stand too close.
Lin Mu met those lashes.
Each clash was a contest of will and Dao. His magma-wreathed armor flared, sword intent and fire braided into strikes that sang against the ancient wood. Sparks and steam erupted where magma kissed bark.
