In the vast desert, dozens of shattered, blood-stained corpses lay scattered. Whether they belonged to the demons or Inigo's side, both factions had momentarily ceased their attacks. Meanwhile, Lin Lei and Dilia were holding each other tightly.
"Dilia!" Lin Lei's heart finally settled.
Ever since falling into the desert castle, a deep fear had gripped Lin Lei—the fear that Dilia might die. He would always remember Dilia from her youth at the Ernst Magic Academy, and their reunion years later in the O'Brien Empire.
Decades of shared life and struggles had made Dilia the other half of Lin Lei's existence.
Seeing her now brought a profound peace to Lin Lei's heart.
And for Dilia? Wasn't she feeling the same way?
"Thank heavens," Dilia whispered from Lin Lei's embrace. "Lin Lei, that was incredibly close just now. That highgod almost killed me. But I didn't want to die... I wanted to see you again." The thought of her brush with death sent a shiver through her.
In the face of danger, Dilia had truly risked everything, unleashing the Death Puppet and the profound insights of the Wind Elemental Laws.
Fortunately, she knew the "Clone Technique" and was skilled in "Wind Space," which allowed her to barely escape with her life.
"I won't let you face danger again," Lin Lei said, holding Dilia's hand. Feeling his lover's touch, his soul felt utterly complete.
Just as Lin Lei and Dilia were lost in the joy of their reunion—
"BOOM!"
A terrifying roar echoed from mid-air. A streak of azure light and a streak of black light clashed several times, each impact causing heaven and earth to tremble. Then, the two lights descended onto the desert, transforming into an azure-robed elder and a black-robed man—Leomons.
The azure-robed elder's face was pale. Staring at Leomons before him, he felt a terror deeper than ever. "This Leomons' strength... is even more terrifying than I imagined. That Path of Destruction is horrifying." Initially, the elder had only intended to delay Leomons.
But Leomons' power far exceeded his expectations.
This had instead plunged the elder into crisis. He couldn't even afford to divert his attention to control the "Desert Castle." So, he actively dismissed the castle, focusing all his efforts on facing this terrifying opponent—Leomons.
Leomons held his longsword, his expression indifferent as he gazed at the elder. A faint hint of a smile played at the corner of his lips. "Your strength is decent. You're qualified to receive my most powerful strike."
The elder's expression changed drastically.
"What? Your most powerful strike?" Chilled fear gripped the elder's heart. Surviving the last exchange had already taken everything he had.
The other powerful figures witnessing this scene, having heard Leomons' words, were equally horrified.
"Dilia, let's step back a bit." Lin Lei took Dilia's hand and retreated to stand near Salomon, Bei Bei, and the others, calmly preparing to watch the duel between two supreme experts. "I'm actually quite looking forward to seeing what their attacks will be like!"
He had been stunned by a single strike from Leomons when they encountered robbers earlier. Now, he couldn't miss this chance.
"Those two old foxes played me for a fool!" Inigo cursed silently. He glanced at Salomon. "There's no mistake. But there's no chance now—my teacher seems unable to hold on. I'd better leave first!" Inigo then silently merged his entire body into the desert and vanished. Everyone focused on the battle between the two supreme experts paid no attention to him.
Besides—
Among the demon faction present, only a surviving white-horned elder actually recognized Inigo. But the elder didn't spot the distant Inigo.
"BOOM!"
Leomons erupted with terrifying sword intent. A gray, phantom giant sword manifested around his body, and Leomons himself seemed to become the core of this illusory blade. Sharp sword qi swirled around him.
His sword intent surged higher and higher!
"Ssss—!" The sword qi caused the very space to shudder.
Everyone watching turned pale. This was the Infernal Higher Plane, its stability far surpassing material planes. Yet, even the ambient sword qi was this powerful—so what kind of destruction would Leomons' strongest strike unleash?
"Madman. An absolute madman," the azure-robed elder thought, a chill creeping into his heart.
Leomons' strength had truly terrified him.
"Hmph, so what if you're strong? The Wind Elemental Laws are still the supreme escape art!" Facing Leomons, the elder was already gripped by fear. His entire body instantly split into hundreds of clones, which fled in every direction.
One of the nine profound insights of the Wind System—the Clone Technique!
"So many clones?" Dilia exclaimed in shock. Even Lin Lei was amazed in his heart.
When Dilia used the Clone Technique, her limit was nine clones. Yet this azure-robed elder had formed hundreds. Though it was the same "Clone Technique," the power displayed varied immensely depending on one's strength.
"The Clone Technique is indeed a great escape method. With hundreds of clones and their signatures indistinguishable, it'll be hard for Leomons to catch him," Lin Lei thought. Still, he kept his eyes on Leomons, watching to see how he would respond.
"Running? How disappointing." Leomons' voice rang out.
At the same time—
"Hummm~~~"
Within a radius of nearly a thousand meters around Leomons, countless sharp blades of sword qi materialized out of thin air. The hundreds of clones that had just fled were instantly shredded to pieces by the qi. In mere moments, all hundreds of clones were annihilated, leaving only the real azure-robed elder.
"Impossible!" The elder's face drained of all color.
Leomons shot forward like a dragon, his speed leaving ripples in the space behind him. His velocity was no less swift than the elder's own.
"I can't escape!" Seeing his opponent's speed, the elder knew instantly.
He retreated rapidly while a silver, silken soft-sword appeared in his hand. "If I can't run, then I'll fight!" A desperate, murderous gleam erupted in his eyes. Azure energy spiraled around his body, coalescing into a massive, solid-looking dragon.