Holy Spirit Douluo Ya Li's face was deathly pale, her body trembling uncontrollably—not from fear, but from overwhelming grief and fury.
Watching her allies die one after another with her own eyes tore at her heart, leaving her seething with hatred and helplessness.
She hated her own weakness—for being unable to save them.
She hated the enemy's cruelty—beasts who slaughtered without mercy.
Xiong Er ground his massive claws together, producing a sharp scraping sound. His gaze toward Ya Li was filled with killing intent as he prepared to strike and end her life.
"The young master said she must be kept alive," Lin San stopped him, not allowing Xiong Er to deliver the fatal blow.
This woman clearly held an extraordinary status; otherwise, so many people would not have been willing to sacrifice themselves to protect her.
The only reason Lin San hadn't captured her yet was precisely because those people had blocked him with their lives.
Xiong Er glanced at Lin San and nodded slightly. Since the young master wanted her alive, he would not disobey.
"No one can save you now," Lin San said coldly as he charged toward Ya Li.
"Get the hell away from her!"
Yun Ming's furious roar rang out. He ignored Di Tian entirely and dove toward Ya Li—he could not allow anything to happen to her.
The shout carried terrifying cultivation power, shaking the air itself and leaving ears ringing.
Yun Ze felt a sharp buzz in his ears, but his expression remained unchanged, showing no sign of pain.
He calmly pressed the final button.
The Dragon God Claw shot out.
The attack was released with extreme precision, perfectly intercepting Yun Ming's path as he rushed to save Ya Li.
It was an ultimate-level strike, forcing Yun Ming to respond.
Yun Ming raised the Sky-Piercing Spear horizontally, blocking the Dragon God Claw head-on. The terrifying impact sent him flying hundreds of meters away.
"Cough—cough!"
After stabilizing himself, Yun Ming spat blood. His previous battle with Di Tian had already left him badly wounded.
Now, after being forced to take that attack head-on, his injuries worsened drastically.
His situation was dire.
A black sword light descended from the heavens—razor-sharp and imbued with extreme darkness. Wherever it passed, darkness followed.
The sword light was like a black curtain falling from the sky, slicing space apart.
Yun Ming's eighth soul ring flared instantly. He thrust the Sky-Piercing Spear upward, unleashing a blazing white spear beam toward the sky.
The beam was dazzling and enormous, its tip radiating brilliance like a blazing sun.
Boom!
Sword light and spear beam collided.
At that moment, time seemed to freeze and space stood still. All eyes were drawn to the clash.
In the next instant, white and black energies exploded outward in opposite directions, each occupying half the sky.
Where the energy swept through, space cracked like a spiderweb—its limits completely exceeded.
The clouds scattered, dust surged from the ground, and a massive black hole formed at the collision point, releasing a terrifying suction force.
Yun Ming was smashed straight into the ground, his body sinking dozens of meters deep.
Di Tian, who had unleashed the sword strike, retreated to an altitude of ten thousand meters.
"Pfft—"
Di Tian's blood surged violently. Unable to hold it back, he spat out a mouthful of blood, his face turning noticeably pale.
After such an intense battle, he too was in terrible condition. His three-word battle armor was severely damaged—nearing complete destruction.
Beneath the shattered armor were blood-soaked wounds, and even his black scales had been torn apart by the Sky-Piercing Spear.
In nearly ten thousand years, this was the first time he had been so badly injured in a one-on-one fight.
The last time he suffered such wounds—because of Chi Wang—was due to being besieged by multiple extreme-level experts from Shrek Academy and the Spirit Transmission Pagoda.
Di Tian wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and transformed into a streak of black light, diving downward with murderous intent.
"Ming-ge!"
Ya Li screamed toward the crater where Yun Ming had fallen, her voice breaking, tears already forming in her eyes.
She forgot her own peril and rushed forward, desperate to see Yun Ming's condition.
"Ya Li, be careful!"
Feng Wuyu—covered in blood—grabbed her and yanked her behind him, stepping forward to face Lin San instead.
Lin San frowned. He had only intended to capture Ya Li and hadn't planned on killing anyone—but since the target had changed, so would the method.
"I'll kill you, you beast!"
Feng Wuyu roared. The deaths of so many comrades had driven him beyond reason.
His martial soul was the Blazing Fire Dragon—a true dragon martial soul.
At level ninety-seven, he was undeniably powerful.
But now, utterly exhausted and barely clinging to life, his combat strength was less than one-tenth of its peak.
How could he possibly contend with Lin San in perfect condition?
Lin San didn't hold back. He effortlessly dodged Feng Wuyu's attack and struck his head with a single palm.
Feng Wuyu's body jolted. His eyes widened as consciousness vanished—and he left this world forever.
Ya Li had just regained her balance when she witnessed the scene. Her heart shattered as she cried out in anguish:
"Feng Wuyu!"
"AAAH! I'll kill you all!"
The surviving Zhuo Shi went berserk. Feng Wuyu's death broke him completely, grief turning into uncontrollable rage as he launched an attack.
"You'd better die first," Lin Er said coldly, unleashing a yellow-brown energy beam from his mouth.
Zhuo Shi resisted with all his might, but his three-word battle armor shattered under the overwhelming force.
"AAAH!"
His face twisted in agony. No matter how hard he struggled, he couldn't stop the attack. His body was pierced straight through.
"Zhuo Shi!"
Ya Li collapsed emotionally. Watching her friends die one by one, she finally broke down, sobbing openly—her usual gentleness and composure completely gone.
"Even if I die today, I'll drag you beasts down with me!"
From afar, Long Yeyue entered a berserk state.
Her rage boosted her strength, but her attacks became wild and chaotic, devoid of structure.
Lin Yi found it easier—not harder—to deal with her. His strikes grew sharper, firmly preventing her from reaching Ya Li.
Throughout the battle, fist imprints appeared all over Long Yeyue's battle armor—each left by Lin Yi's punches.
Di Tian had spent hundreds of thousands of years tempering the Black Dragon Sword.
Lin Yi, meanwhile, had spent the same span of time refining his own scales with soul power.
He treated every scale on his body as a weapon, tempering them until they were indestructible.
Their hardness surpassed even god-tier metals—something evident from the way his fists dented four-word battle armor.
Long Yeyue could do nothing to Lin Yi. His defense was simply too strong for her to truly injure him.
Yun Ming burst out of the crater and flew straight toward Ya Li, only to be intercepted midair by Di Tian, whose sword forced him back.
"Get out of my way!" Yun Ming roared.
He was knocked back but immediately counterattacked, the Sky-Piercing Spear clashing once more with the Black Dragon Sword.
"Our fight isn't over yet. Worry about yourself first," Di Tian said coldly.
Yun Ming's eyes were bloodshot, his gaze fixed on Di Tian with pure hatred—like he wanted to devour him alive.
"If anything happens to her, I'll bury every last one of you," Yun Ming said hoarsely.
"I'd like to see you try," Di Tian replied without fear.
Having lived for so long, he wasn't about to be intimidated by empty threats.
"Yu Guanzhi, are you really still not going to act?!"
Zang Xin roared furiously, his resentment toward Yu Guanzhi boiling over.
This man had been standing by watching the entire time. Things had reached this point, yet he still refused to help—utterly inhuman.
Yu Guanzhi frowned slightly. He knew he could no longer remain uninvolved.
Raising his voice, he shouted:
"Members of the Dragon Phoenix Hall, please stop!"