The soul influence contained in the Dragon Chant had absolutely no effect on the Crimson Rock Lord.
However...
The most terrifying aspect of the Innate Divine Ability 'Dragon Chant' was its effect on time. Regardless of which law one cultivated, one could not alter the flow of time. Only the heaven-defying 'Innate Divine Ability' could do so. This divine ability was a special existence that transcended law itself! And the Azure Dragon clan's Innate Divine Ability could alter time. The flow of time in the region where the Crimson Rock Lord's soul resided began to shift!
*Whoosh!*
As Lin Lei unleashed the Innate Divine Ability 'Dragon Chant,' his entire body shot forward like a beam of light. The Shadowtrace Divine Sword in his hand plunged mercilessly straight into the Crimson Rock Lord's forehead—his strongest strike—
Circular Void Tear!
*Boom!* A hole appeared in the Crimson Rock Lord's forehead, the Shadowtrace Divine Sword having pierced clean through, stabbing directly into his soul!
Silence. Stunned disbelief.
The massive phantom of the Azure Dragon still lingered in the sky, and the hundreds of millions of people on the ground gazed up in awe at the colossal dragon's manifestation. But when Lin Lei's Shadowtrace Divine Sword pierced the Crimson Rock Lord's forehead, every spectator below went blank.
"The Crimson Rock Lord... is dead?"
Though they couldn't see the Shadowtrace Divine Sword, the weakest among the observers was a Lowgod. After watching for so long, they had all deduced that Lin Lei wielded an invisible blade. Judging from Lin Lei's posture, they understood that the shadowless sword had pierced straight through the Crimson Rock Lord's forehead.
Caught in the slowed flow of time, the Crimson Rock Lord felt that before he could even react, Lin Lei's Shadowtrace Divine Sword had already pierced his forehead. In the Crimson Rock Lord's perception, the speed of Lin Lei's attack seemed to have suddenly increased ten or twentyfold. At this speed, there was simply no way for him to respond.
The Shadowtrace Divine Sword plunged into his mind.
And a completely black barrier was shielding the Crimson Rock Lord's soul—it was the Soul Defense Sovereign Artifact in the Crimson Rock Lord's possession. It was precisely this Soul Defense Sovereign Artifact that allowed him to maintain his seat as the Netherworld Lord.
However, a Soul Defense Sovereign Artifact defended against 'soul attacks.'
Just like...
Soul attacks could bypass physical barriers and ignore material existence, penetrating straight through to assault the soul directly. They could be blocked by Soul Defense Artifacts.
The same principle applied in reverse.
A physical attack similarly ignored soul defenses. If someone tried to use a soul attack to block a physical attack, that would be a complete joke.
The structure of this Soul Defense Sovereign Artifact was fundamentally designed to function against 'soul attacks.' When a physical attack struck, the artifact was as though it didn't exist at all. The Shadowtrace Divine Sword passed straight through it without any resistance. The Soul Defense Sovereign Artifact itself was completely unharmed.
No intersection whatsoever.
Though the flow of time had slowed, the Crimson Rock Lord still knew that Lin Lei's divine sword had penetrated his defenses. He knew that this was the moment of death. But his thought process was too sluggish to fight back. The only thing he could do was—
*Boom!*
In the divine clone within his sea of consciousness, a single drop of Death Sovereign God's Power erupted! The terrifying Sovereign God's Power, channeling the profound insights of the Earth Law, transformed into countless blade shadows, swarming madly toward Lin Lei's Shadowtrace Divine Sword. By now the Crimson Rock Lord was on the verge of madness.
He knew only one thing—
He had to stop it!
So he unleashed his ultimate technique, using this Sovereign God's Power to bombard the Shadowtrace Divine Sword.
*Rumble!*
As the sword drove in, Lin Lei felt wave after wave of powerful force crashing against the 'Shadowtrace Divine Sword' inside the Crimson Rock Lord's mind. Each impact was terrifyingly strong. Lin Lei's entire body shook involuntarily, sent flying backward, and he looked at the Crimson Rock Lord with shock.
"What's going on?" Lin Lei was bewildered.
*Bzzz~* A powerful aura of Death radiated outward from the Crimson Rock Lord's body, and his injuries healed in an instant.
The Crimson Rock Lord's eyes suddenly blazed to life, glaring furiously at Lin Lei. "Lin Lei!" Sovereign God's Power surged powerfully across his body's surface, and when he channeled his profound insights, they were clearly far more potent than before. Lin Lei's 'Blackstone Space' had much less influence on him now. "You bastard." Having just brushed with death, the enraged Crimson Rock Lord was about to charge.
"Do you want to continue?"
Lin Lei's voice rang out.
"Hmm?" The Crimson Rock Lord's body froze, and he stood rooted to the spot.
Though the black halo around his body surged and he had used Sovereign God's Power—greatly boosting his strength—he could indeed kill Lin Lei in his current state. However... he could not kill the Lin Lei of the next moment. Because hovering above Lin Lei's palm was a single drop of earthy-yellow liquid—the Earth Sovereign God's Power!
"Do you want to continue?" Lin Lei's voice echoed still.
The Crimson Rock Lord stared at the Sovereign God's Power floating above Lin Lei's palm, his heart writhing with unwillingness.
But if they continued fighting, the outcome was obvious!
A practitioner of the Earth Law, using 'Earth Sovereign God's Power,' would achieve the strongest possible增幅.
Without Sovereign God's Power, Lin Lei had already held a slight advantage relying on his two great trump cards—the 'Blackstone Space' and the 'Innate Divine Ability.'
And if Sovereign God's Power were employed—the Crimson Rock Lord using Death Sovereign God's Power, and Lin Lei using Earth Sovereign God's Power—the result would be unmistakable: Lin Lei's advantage would increase enormously. The Crimson Rock Lord would... die without a doubt!
"Ahhhhh~!" The Crimson Rock Lord suddenly threw his head back and roared.
Arrogant Death energy erupted in all directions, violent waves of power tearing the surrounding space into crack after crack. The overwhelming aura of his presence sent shockwaves of terror through the countless spectators below. The onlookers still did not know the outcome of the battle.
"I concede!" A low, hoarse voice rang out.
Lin Lei smiled.
This was exactly as he had expected. If they continued, with the Earth Sovereign God's Power, he was fully confident he could kill his opponent. But fighting on like this... he could kill the opponent at most, but he would also expend his only remaining drop of Earth Sovereign God's Power. It was hardly worth it. His opponent might possess a Soul Defense Sovereign Artifact as well.
And even if he obtained that Soul Defense Sovereign Artifact, the Sovereign Gods would eventually reclaim it in the future.
So Lin Lei had no desire to continue fighting. He would preserve this single drop of Earth Sovereign God's Power.
This drop of Earth Sovereign God's Power was the one the family had replenished for him after the earlier conflict between the Four Divine Beast Families and the Eight Great Families—when he had spent a drop of Earth Sovereign God's Power to save 'Elder Gawi.' Once the conflict was resolved, the family had naturally replenished one for Lin Lei, partly in gratitude for Beirut's help to the Four Divine Beast Families.
"Lin Lei." The Crimson Rock Lord gazed at Lin Lei. "Honestly speaking, I lost this battle most unwillingly! In terms of law profoundness, you are far behind me—I'd say you've only fused three or four types at most." With the Crimson Rock Lord's keen eye, he could naturally discern the law profoundness contained in each of Lin Lei's attacks.