Cultivating the Laws of Light, Clementine's speed was among the top even within the Pinnacle realm.
Whoosh!
Space shuddered as a streak of light flashed past in the blink of an eye.
"Hmph, those eight really did come to intercept me." Clementine's divine sense clearly detected that Lin Lei and the other seven were positioned ahead to cut him off. Unless he chose not to use the teleportation array to return, there was no way to avoid being intercepted by the eight of them.
The reason it was called "eight" was that in Clementine's eyes, Bei Bei didn't even factor in.
"Pity, what a pity. All they're doing is wasting time." Clementine's beard bristled as a hint of smugness crossed his face. At the same time, his divine sense probed rapidly into the mind of one of his subordinate Highgods. "Dele, report to the Lord of Light immediately. Tell him I've already obtained the Red Rhombus Diamond."
"Yes, my lord."
Among the Highgods Clementine led, there was one whose divine clone resided in the Light Divine Realm, stationed right beside the Lord of Light and ready to relay developments from the Occluan Plane at any moment.
"At the same time, tell the Lord that I'm currently being intercepted by eight Pinnacle experts and the situation is rather troublesome. If I manage to break through, I can still flee back through the teleportation array. But… if I can't get away from the eight of them…" Clementine held no confidence that he could escape when facing eight opponents whose strength was no less than his own.
"If I can't get away, I'll take the Red Rhombus Diamond and enter the Spatial Turbulence! Inform the Lord and have him enter the Spatial Turbulence as soon as possible, heading toward the Occluan Plane. If I'm trapped in there, I'll need the Lord to rescue me." Clementine transmitted.
"Yes, my lord. I'll report to the Lord right away." The intelligence agent replied immediately.
Clementine's two-pronged preparation was nothing short of perfect.
If he could break through, he'd break through. If he couldn't, he'd enter the Spatial Turbulence.
Either way, the Lord of Light would save him. What was there to fear?
Once inside the Spatial Turbulence, even a Pinnacle Highgod could barely control their own direction of movement, instead being swept along aimlessly by the boundless spatial currents.
Of course, that rested on the premise that a Pinnacle expert was invincible among Highgods. If someone were to kill him outright before he had the chance to act, he wouldn't even get the opportunity to flee. In truth, while Clementine's strategy was simple, it could be considered near-perfect. After all, for countless ages, Pinnacle experts had indeed been invincible among Highgods. Even the Sovereigns likely believed as much.
"My lord, the Lord is very pleased and praised you greatly. Furthermore, he has already entered a spatial rift and is currently traversing the Spatial Turbulence, heading toward the Occluan Plane. However, the distance from the outer Spatial Turbulence of the Light Divine Realm to that of the Occluan Plane is extremely vast, and even at the Lord's speed, it will take some time."
"Good." Clementine felt reassured.
"Everything is in place. Now then, I'll play with you eight for a while. Let's see whether you can actually stop me." Clementine's lips curled upward slightly. He had never believed that anyone could seize the Red Rhombus Diamond from his hands.
Lin Lei and the others, spread across eight directions, were flying at maximum speed.
Whoosh whoosh~~~
Waves crashed below. Lin Lei and the others had already reached the space above the ocean. Clementine was heading directly for the Mist Continent, which naturally meant crossing the sea. The other Pinnacle experts, even pushing themselves to the limit, could at most intercept Clementine over the ocean.
"Based on what I've heard, Clementine possesses a material defense Sovereign artifact." A cold, sharp voice transmitted into the minds of Lin Lei and the others. "Therefore, the best way to deal with him is through soul attacks. The only problem is that a Pinnacle expert's soul is inherently powerful. To kill him, all eight of our soul attacks would need to hit him simultaneously for there to be any chance."
The speaker was the only woman among the eight—a Lightning Pinnacle expert.
"Kill him? That would be very difficult." Danington's voice also reached everyone. "I think the faster ones—Bamor, Beyer, Lin Lei, and Ninisha—should focus on containing him. Don't let him get away. If he can't escape and faces our repeated assaults, there's a chance he could be killed."
In history, there had been cases of Pinnacle experts being killed by Sovereigns.
However, there had never been a case of a group of Pinnacle experts killing a single Pinnacle expert. Not because it was impossible, but because gathering multiple Pinnacle experts together and having them coordinate was simply too unlikely.
"Our goal isn't to kill him." A cold voice spoke up. "We only need to force Clementine to hand over the Red Rhombus Diamond."
"And if he hands it over, who does it go to?" Beyer's voice rang out.
The group of Pinnacle experts froze mid-conversation.
Right—if Clementine handed over the Red Rhombus Diamond, who would get it?
"It's too early to discuss that." Lin Lei transmitted to the other seven. "Do any of you really think Clementine will just hand over the Red Rhombus Diamond that easily? Hmph, let's focus on how to make him give it up first. As for who gets the diamond—none of us are going to volunteer to back down, I'm sure. When the time comes, we'll each rely on our own strength."
"Agreed. Each relies on their own strength."
None of the Pinnacle experts would defer to another. Only strength could secure the Red Rhombus Diamond and allow one to break through the blockade and return. Only then would the others accept the outcome.
"Boss, are you confident?" Bei Bei transmitted worriedly. "They just said Clementine has a material defense Sovereign artifact."
"Ninety percent," Lin Lei said, his gaze sharp as he stared into the distance. "All right. He's almost here."
Whether it was Lin Lei's group on the intercepting side or Clementine, both were moving at extraordinary speed.
Facing the blockade of eight powerful experts, there was no chance whatsoever for Clementine to detour and escape.
"Clementine—he's here." The cold, sharp voice rang out. "We'll go with what Danington suggested. I, Bamor, Beyer, and Lin Lei will handle containment. Don't let him escape. Then we'll all unleash soul attacks together. Hmph, one person taking soul attacks from eight Pinnacle experts—I doubt even he can withstand that."
"Bei Bei, stay back and watch for now," Lin Lei transmitted.
"Got it." Bei Bei understood—at this level of combat, he would only be a burden if he got involved.
Without the slightest hesitation, Lin Lei and the other eight spread apart like eight bolts of lightning, closing in on the streak of light in the distance.
"Clementine…" Lin Lei's eyes locked onto the distant streak of light. Suddenly, the light twisted, attempting to maneuver around Lin Lei and the others.