The forest trembled under the weight of killing intent.
The Azure Sky Blades had formed the Heaven-Slaying Array, six cultivators channeling their qi into a single synchronized killing field. The air warped, blades of light crisscrossing above them like a celestial net ready to descend.
Feng Xueya's voice rang sharp:
"Target his core! Leave no path of escape!"
Qi surged, and their weapons blazed.
But Aezrael—reborn child of chaos—merely tilted his head. His golden-red eyes glimmered with amusement, not fear. He twirled his scythe once, its curved edge shrieking like a predator tasting blood.
The array struck first. Six beams of light converged, collapsing toward him with the weight of mountains. The earth groaned, space itself distorted—yet Aezrael simply raised his clawed hand.
Boom.
He caught it.
The combined strike of six Core Formation elites froze against his palm, his scales burning crimson under the impact. His wings flared, scattering the force like dust in the wind.
Feng Xueya's heart stuttered. Impossible… our combined strike—caught like nothing?!
Aezrael chuckled, low and cruel.
"Is this what passes for strength in your sect? No wonder you hunt in packs… like insects."
He moved.
One flap of his wings and he vanished, reappearing before Han Yuer. Her frost qi erupted instinctively, a wall of ice surging upward—yet the scythe cleaved through it with lazy grace. The blade didn't strike her body, but the air itself before her.
Her chest split open in three bloody gashes.
Han Yuer screamed, staggered back, clutching herself. Aezrael leaned close, his breath brushing her ear, his words a whisper of venom:
"You will be the first to freeze… in despair."
With a flick of his scythe, her right arm spun into the air, blood misting the clearing.
The others roared in unison, breaking formation to shield her. Mo Shuren lunged, halberd swinging in a fiery arc that could split boulders. Aezrael caught the blade mid-swing with his claw, sparks screeching. His tail lashed out, smashing into Mo's ribs with bone-shattering force.
Crack!
The giant flew across the clearing, slamming into a tree, coughing blood and fragments of his teeth.
Lightning split the sky—Wei Zhan's spear shot forward, a bolt of storm piercing Aezrael's chest. For a heartbeat, it seemed to pierce through him.
Then the wound closed, scales knitting back together.
Aezrael smiled, golden eyes glowing. "Do it again. Make me feel something."
Wei Zhan paled.
The fight spiraled into madness. Aezrael danced through their formation, his scythe carving arcs of red light, his claws rending weapons, his tail cracking bones. He didn't kill them outright—no, he toyed with them.
Liang Chao's poisoned blade sank into his arm. Aezrael pulled it deeper on purpose, then licked the blood from the wound with a smirk. "Tastes bitter. Weak poison." He tore the blade from Liang's grasp and shoved it through his thigh.
Mo Shuren staggered back to his feet. Aezrael ripped a tree from the ground and hurled it at him, splintering bone as the giant collapsed beneath the weight.
Han Yuer crawled across the blood-soaked dirt, gasping, as frost qi seeped uncontrollably from her shattered dantian.
Only Feng Xueya still stood firm, her sword blazing with condensed intent. Her voice shook but didn't break.
"Blades! Hold your ground! We are Azure Sky!"
But even she knew—this was no battle. This was slaughter.