The authority to decompose all things and return them to nothingness was displayed to its full extent here—even this invisible Domain power, as long as its composition still relied on energy and rules, could be forcibly decomposed and annihilated by this tyrannical authority!
Of course, this wasn't absolutely invincible.
If he encountered a powerhouse like Jing Liu, whose control over her own strength had reached the pinnacle of perfection and whose domain was condensed to the absolute extreme, even if she only deployed a simple Ice Domain, Lu Jingming, at his current strength level, would absolutely not be able to so easily suppress and decompose it with the Withering Domain.
But clearly, the Titan Giant Ape before him was not in that category.
Although his Gravity Domain was formidable and tyrannical, relying on his bloodline talent and immense soul power, he was ultimately only a Level 98 Titled Douluo, far from comparable to the truly top-tier powerhouses.
In the face of the Withering Domain's power of decomposition, which represented death, his Gravity Domain was as fragile as paper.
And the true terror of the Withering Domain was only just beginning to manifest—
The continuously expanding gray halo, like a tide of death, spread out irresistibly, eventually completely enveloping and swallowing the Titan Giant Ape's colossal, mountain-like hundred-meter body.
Almost the instant he was covered by the gray Domain, the Titan Giant Ape's dark, tough fur lost all its luster and vitality at a visible rate. It quickly became dry and withered, turning into a desolate gray-white that blended with the surrounding lifeless environment.
Although he was still alive, his heart was still heavily beating, and terrifying power was still surging through his muscles, he could clearly feel that his vast life force, immense spiritual power, and even the soul power he relied on were all draining away at a horrifying speed.
It was as if an invisible black hole had appeared inside his body, greedily and efficiently devouring all of his energy and vitality.
Within this Withering Domain, everything external to Lu Jingming himself—regardless of its form, whether solid or energy, alive or dead—was subjected to the indiscriminate erosion and decomposition of the "Withering" authority.
If he couldn't unleash a power beyond the Domain's threshold in an extremely short time to instantly defeat or even kill Lu Jingming and break the Domain's shackles... then he could only watch helplessly as his power was slowly drained, his life gradually exhausted in a continuous, irreversible weakening, until he completely lost all ability to resist and became a lamb waiting to be slaughtered, ultimately turning into nothingness.
To be an enemy of Lu Jingming in his current state, unless one's strength could form an absolute crushing advantage, prolonging the fight was undoubtedly the most foolish choice. Only by going all out and seeking a quick resolution was there a sliver of hope for victory.
Though Titan was known for his reckless and fiery temper, he was by no means a mindless brute. As a 100,000-year soul beast that fought its way out of the core area of the brutal Star Dou Great Forest, his combat intelligence and intuition were equally astonishing.
Almost the instant he was covered by the Withering Domain and felt his life force rapidly draining away, he completely understood the desperate danger he had fallen into.
"ROAR—!!!"
A roaring bellow mixed with rage shook the heavens and the earth.
The Titan Giant Ape's colossal body suddenly charged forward with an unprecedented ferocity. His two fists, like two volcanoes that had accumulated power for ten thousand years, clenched and erupted with the terrifying force that warped space. They carried an absolute violence capable of instantly leveling small hills, smashing down fiercely toward Lu Jingming in the center of the deep pit.
The flurry of fists created countless dizzying, heavy afterimages. The violent air current they stirred up was like countless invisible blades, frantically tearing the surrounding air.
Innumerable gigantic, tangible fist shadows layered together, overwhelmingly descending, dense and air-tight, as if intending to smash Lu Jingming, along with the very ground beneath his feet, into the most primitive powder.
When it came to the purest, most savage physical power, the mountain-sized Titan Giant Ape undoubtedly held the absolute advantage.
As a member of the Titan Giant Ape clan, revered for their strength in the Soul Beast world, coupled with the terrifying physical enhancement of his hundred-meter true form, the force of every punch was easily enough to demolish a bustling commercial street, turning steel and concrete into dust.
His desperate, full-force eruption now even caused subtle, wave-like fluctuations in the entire Withering Domain. It seemed that even the power that decomposed all things and returned them to nothingness was about to be forcefully shaken and torn apart by this most primitive, most brute strength.
However, Lu Jingming was never going to be foolish enough to compete with a furious Titan Giant Ape over who had greater raw power.
Although his physical strength and power had been tempered multiple times and far exceeded that of human Soul Masters of the same rank, and even rivaled some top Soul Beasts, a head-on clash with this hundred-meter giant beast, which had the word "Strength" carved into its blood and soul, would undoubtedly be asking for trouble—using his weakness to attack the opponent's strength.
He tightly grasped the White Flower Lancer, which shimmered with a soft silvery-white light and symbolized "Life," in his left hand. In his right hand, he horizontally held the Abyssal Black Spear, which was wreathed in deep inky air currents and represented "Death."
The two spears seemed to be imbued with life and spirituality in his hands. Every seemingly light swing, block, or deflection carried a subtle, refined trajectory.
Facing the Titan Giant Ape's powerful punches, which struck with the force of ten thousand pounds and the speed of a meteor, he would either use the White Flower Spear's shaft to gently guide the force with a yielding softness, causing it to deflect, or he would cleverly slide sideways, utilizing the immense inertia of the rushing punch. He always managed, in the blink of an eye, to subtly neutralize and divert the terrifying, mountain-shattering, and wind-stirring force, letting it all smash into empty space, fruitlessly leaving giant pits in the ground.
The sky above Mingdu was still covered by thick dark clouds. The struggling light of the rising sun could not penetrate the oppressive cloud layer, only staining the edges with a faint halo.
On the battlefield, the violent air currents lifted the scattered white short hair from Lu Jingming's forehead, clearly revealing his pair of crimson eyes, which remained as calm as a deep pool, reflecting the giant ape's frantic attack without the slightest ripple.
What Jing Liu taught him was never just the exquisite art of swordsmanship—it included the shifting and turning of his movement technique, the changing reality and illusion of his footwork, the sustained and restrained quality of his aura, the meticulous perception and insight, and even the precise grasp of combat rhythm.
Anything remotely related to the art of combat was taught to him without reservation and with the most rigorous instruction by the former Sword Head of the Luofu, who once stood at the pinnacle of Xianzhou martial arts.
"Follow the trajectory of your opponent's force, merge with the natural脈(veins) of the surrounding air currents, and make yourself the most agile part of the storm, rather than foolishly being the unyielding rock that resists the storm and will eventually be crushed."
Jing Liu's cool yet profoundly wise teaching seemed to still echo clearly in his ears.
Lu Jingming's movement technique now perfectly embodied this concept.
His figure was as elusive as willow fuzz in the wind, as light as snow falling into a cold pool. Every movement looked perilous, but it concealed a profound secret. He always managed, in the most critical fraction of a second, to avoid the most fatal attacks with the smallest cost, turning the Titan Giant Ape's world-destroying, savage offensive into a fruitless, wasted effort time and time again.
What kind of person was Jing Liu?
She had personally participated in the brutal wars between the Xianzhou and the Abominations of Abundance, wars that could overturn star rivers and bury civilizations. She had fought life-and-death battles with the powerful Emissaries of Abundance.
Her combat experience and technique had long surpassed the scope of merely "rich" experience, reaching a near-Dao level of insight into the very essence of combat.
Let alone the Soul Masters of the Douluo Continent, even the seemingly powerful God-Kings dwelling in the God Realm, if stripped of their divine power level and rule authority, and judged solely on the purest combat technique, killing skill, and grasp of opportunity, they might not even reach one ten-thousandth of her capability.
Having been mentored without reservation by such a master, a veritable God of War, Lu Jingming's combat skills had been honed to perfection.
In terms of just the control of combat rhythm and the ultimate utilization of his and his enemy's power, he could steadily suppress many established, experienced Titled Douluo.
Watching Lu Jingming remain completely at ease and untouched amidst his full-force, storm-like, frantic assault, the Giant Ape's massive beast eyes finally revealed an irrepressible, increasingly intense look of impatience and shock.
He could clearly feel his condition rapidly deteriorating within the all-pervasive Withering Domain.
His immense soul power was draining away uncontrollably like a broken dam. His limbs and body, which had once felt endlessly powerful, now sent waves of weakness, his strength being slowly sapped away.
If this delay continued, he feared he would be utterly exhausted and drained by this strange and tyrannical Domain, without the opponent even having to strike the final blow.
This was undoubtedly a suffocating predicament he had rarely experienced in his long life.
After successfully condensing a Soul Core, a Titled Douluo's soul power recovery speed far surpassed that of an ordinary person, almost seeming inexhaustible. It was rare for them to experience the traditional sense of "dying from exhaustion."
But in this bizarre Withering Domain, even as he fully activated the Soul Core that contained his life's cultivation, desperately drawing in the surrounding Heaven and Earth spiritual energy—which had been thinned by the Domain—the speed at which he converted and replenished his soul power was far outpaced by the speed at which the Domain decomposed and swallowed it.
He could even clearly 'see' the normally brilliant light inside his Soul Core dimming and wilting at a visible speed.
How could he know that to even maintain a precarious balance in soul power expenditure within this supremely tyrannical Withering Domain, one would need to simultaneously operate two Soul Cores, reaching the human Soul Master's peak—the level of a Level 99 Ultimate Douluo—just to barely counteract the constant energy decomposition.
Although he possessed the formidable cultivation of Level 98, seemingly just one step away from that peak, the gap was in fact enormous. He still lacked that single, most crucial step.
What made him even more desperate was that this cursed Domain was decomposing and annihilating far more than just soul power.
His vast life force was being invisibly and forcibly extracted through every pore, causing his tough skin to develop ominous grayness and wrinkles.
His immense spiritual power felt like it was being repeatedly scoured with coarse sandpaper, causing stabbing pains in his Sea of Consciousness, making his thoughts sluggish.
And these two forces, life force and spiritual power, couldn't be quickly restored and supplemented like soul power using a Soul Core.
Once these two powers were completely exhausted, it would be the true end, the oil running out and the lamp extinguishing, the soul perishing, with not a single chance for recovery.
"ROAR!!!"
The Titan Giant Ape let out a roar mixed with pain, anxiety, and unwillingness, his punch speed actually forcefully accelerating a few more fractions of a moment in his desperation.
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