The shockwave did not fade—it crawled outward in slow waves, flattening what was left of the forest.
When the dust finally began to settle, the battlefield revealed itself.
The land was carved open.A shallow canyon where a forest once stood.Burned roots sticking out of the ground like broken ribs.
And everywhere—
the aftermath of Ningyue.
Animals lay scattered in every direction.
A deer pinned under a fallen trunk tried to kick free, legs trembling, but half its body had already turned gray—its flesh dissolved into powder where Ningyue's dark qi touched it.A fox lay nearby, fur intact, body empty—skin draped over bones as if all its meat had been quietly stolen.
Birds hung from branches, wings stiff, eyes hollow.Some cried—soft, weak, lost.Others dragged themselves in circles, confused, dying, their minds melted by the clash of qi.
One boar, impaled by a branch, still breathed.Barely.Each exhale whistled through a hole in its chest.
Some animals tried to help their dying companions, nudging them with trembling snouts. Others simply lay frozen, unable to understand the disaster that tore their world apart.
The ground itself buzzed—thin lines of leftover thunder qi climbing up tree stumps, flickering like dying fireflies.The sky above was clear.Too clear.Every cloud had been vaporized, leaving the heavens a huge, empty sheet of blue.
Through all this—
Han Tianci pushed himself free from a pile of shattered stone and earth.
Dust slid off his body in chunks. His face expressionless. His breath steady despite the blood drying on his chest.
His left arm dangled uselessly—what was left of it.Only bone.White, cracked, exposed.
He looked at it once.
Then reached for his saber-spear.
A clean swing.A dull snap.
He severed the broken limb without so much as a wince.
The stump sizzled for a moment, thunder qi instinctively gathering around it, sealing the wound with crackling, lightning-scar flesh.
He stepped forward, boots sinking into ash that wasn't ash.It was what remained of smaller creatures—lizards, birds, insects—turned to fine gray dust by Ningyue's touch.
Han Tianci didn't need to search for her.
He knew she lived.
The air still tasted bitter—like metal soaked in shadow.This was the residue of a demon not yet finished.
He surveyed the ruined battlefield.A squirrel dragged itself with two legs, fur burned off its back.A wolf lay unmoving, ribs showing, half its face melted into smooth stone-gray.Trees near the center of the blast stood as skeletons—bark stripped, branches twisted, their life drained clean.
This was not the aftermath of two cultivators.
This was the mark of war between good and evil.
Behind him, rubble shifted.His companions crawled out—scratched, bleeding, coughing.
They saw his missing arm.
They saw the land.The corpses.The things that used to be alive but now were nothing but shapes with no substance.
Their faces drained of all color.
The stone lion statue rose next—cracked, limping, eyes flickering weakly. It released a hoarse roar and, shaking the dust from its mane, expanded a golden barrier around the others, shielding them from the leftover thunder still crawling through the earth.
Far behind, the mortal army finally arrived—stumbling, terrified. Horses refused to approach. Soldiers were pale, retching from the pressure still hanging in the air.
They saw the crater.They saw the uprooted forest.They saw Han Tianci standing alone among shattered wildlife, one arm missing, spear dripping with qi that scorched the ground.
Silence fell over them like a tomb.
The prince was the only one bold—or foolish—enough to break it.
"Senior Han…!!"
No one else could speak.
Not after seeing what a single battle between cultivators could do in three minutes.
Han Tianci didn't look back at them.
His gaze stayed on the horizon where Ningyue had escaped—a trail of withered plants marking her path, each one collapsing into gray dust seconds after losing its life.
He spoke calmly:
"She's gone."
A breeze passed through the broken forest, carrying dead leaves.
"And she's woken too."
He turned to his comrades, his voice cold and final.
His gaze shifted toward the dying animals.
"Kill them."
His companions stiffened.
"Brother Han—?"
His tone did not waver."What touched her qi will die an agonizing death. Kill them cleanly."
He pointed the spear at the soldiers next.
"And you mortals—stay back. Do NOT go near the corpses. Or you will share their fate."
The soldiers stumbled back in terror.
Han Tianci turned away from everyone, as if none of them mattered.
Slow realization crept across his companions' faces.
"All those times he slowed down… those detours… the stops that made no sense…" Lin Chao whispered.
Now it made sense.
"We… we were followed."
"He wasn't dragging time," Feng Qingzi murmured.
They all turned to Han Tianci—
and suddenly it was obvious.
He finally spoke:
"We're done wasting time. We head to the neighboring kingdom now."
The prince, still clueless, stammered:
"Senior Han… who did you fight…?""W-Were you fighting Li Qiong…?"
Han Tianci answered without turning.
"No."
His grip tightened around the spear.
"Ningyue."
Blank looks.
"…Who?"
His eyes darkened.
"The Heaven-Devouring Demon."
Their breath froze.
"…Who—?"
He stepped past them.
"The Annihilation Doll Demoness."
That was when true fear finally took root.
Because now they understood—
Han Tianci hadn't been delaying.Had not been careless.Had not been caught off guard.
He had been watching all along.
He had merely been keeping them safe from an unknown enemy.