Over a million gods watching the battle held their breath, and the vast valley fell utterly silent.
"I never thought a coward like you, Rasel, would dare challenge me," the deep, resonant voice of the Blue Lion Lord rumbled forth, his beast-like gaze fixed on his opponent. "Back during the Wind Hunter trial, you cowardly wretch could only tremble and hide on the sidelines."
Rasel's face darkened, his eyes cold. "Don't get cocky. After today, the position of Blue Lion Lord won't be yours anymore."
"So confident," the Blue Lion Lord scoffed.
The Blue Lion Lord naturally extended his divine sense—in battle, relying on eyes alone wasn't enough. Divine sense observation was far more important. The central clearing spanned only a few li in diameter, and as the Blue Lion Lord's divine sense spread outward, it reached the edges of the spectator crowd, where it encompassed Lin Lei, Bei Bei, and Abu!
"Buwei!" The Blue Lion Lord was startled.
As a lord serving under a Chief God, the various lords would occasionally gather to pay respects to the Chief Gods, and at those times they would encounter the legion commander, Buwei. Though Buwei had altered his appearance, his soul aura could not be changed, and the Blue Lion Lord, Umbraphel, instantly recognized Buwei's true identity.
"Abu" was the Chief God's shortened form for Buwei.
The other lords generally addressed him as "Mr. Buwei."
"Why is Buwei here? Moreover, he seems remarkably respectful toward the two beside him. The youth is a Highgod—that I can tell. But that brown-haired man… given Buwei's status as the direct legion commander of the Chief God's Green Hawk Legion, even someone at Perfection wouldn't make Buwei this humble and deferential, would they?" The Blue Lion Lord's mind raced with speculation. "Could it be… a Chief God?"
This thought startled him.
"Umbraphel, fight normally," a voice echoed in the Blue Lion Lord's mind. The speaker was Buwei, who knew that this old acquaintance had recognized him.
"Mr. Buwei, the one beside you…" the Blue Lion Lord immediately transmitted.
"Pretend you didn't notice," Buwei replied.
The Blue Lion Lord was now entirely certain of the brown-haired man's identity.
"I never expected a Chief God to come here! Well then, I'll need to win this one decisively." Knowing the Chief God was watching from the sidelines, the Blue Lion Lord's fighting spirit actually surged. He cast a cold glance at Rasel in the distance and sneered inwardly.
Suddenly—
"Boom!" As if the air itself exploded, the Blue Lion Lord crossed the hundred-meter gap between them in nearly an instant. His stone-like fist gleamed with a dark luster as it traced an arc through the sky like a meteor hurtling through the heavens, tearing through the void and striking toward Rasel.
Earth Meteor!
One of the Blue Lion Lord Umbraphel's signature techniques.
"Hmph." Rasel's face turned cold.
"Whoosh!" A dazzling curtain of blade light, like a waterfall, tore through space.
The cyan blade curtain collided with the fist that blazed like a meteor.
Rasel, wielding a cyan curved blade, used the force of the impact to retreat gracefully at great speed. A flash of cyan light, and he was already dozens of li up in the sky. But in the next instant, Rasel shifted again, covering another dozens of li—his speed so shocking that every spectator was stunned.
"That's incredible speed," Bei Bei exclaimed.
"Faster than an average Commander," Lin Lei said, his eyes lighting up.
Beside them, Abu transmitted: "Chief God, this Rasel and Umbraphel are both divine beasts in their true forms. Rasel is a Nine-Tailed Wind-Hissing Fox—naturally gifted in speed. On top of that, he cultivates the Laws of Wind, so naturally he excels in velocity. Moreover, as a Nine-Tailed Wind-Hissing Fox, he possesses an innate charm ability that makes his soul-based charm attacks truly fearsome. He's a very difficult opponent."
"Not bad. The first candidate we've encountered seems quite promising," Lin Lei said, a smile appearing on his face.
The Blue Lion Lord was like a fortress, while Rasel darted about rapidly, shifting positions constantly and striking from every angle.
"All these years and you're still the same coward who can only run," the Blue Lion Lord scoffed, his gaze growing increasingly frigid. "Rasel, I don't have time to waste on you."
"Boom!" An earth-yellow glow suddenly erupted from the Blue Lion Lord's body.
The power of the Earth Chief God!
"You have it, and you think I don't?" Rasel countered with a cold smile as a pale cyan glow ignited around his body as well. Having come to challenge, Rasel had naturally come fully prepared.
Then—
"Yoww!" A piercing cry suddenly tore from Rasel's throat.
A colossal phantom fox covered in cyan fur, several hundred meters tall, materialized behind Rasel, lying in repose. The fox bore nine fluffy tails that swayed gently, and staring at them made one's vision blur involuntarily. Several watching gods actually collapsed to the ground.
Innate Divine Ability—Charm Illusion Realm!
A transparent sword shadow shot from Rasel's mouth, streaking straight toward the distant Blue Lion Lord.
The Blue Lion Lord, struck by the attack, staggered slightly.
"Roar~~" The Blue Lion Lord suddenly bellowed.
A snow-white-furred giant bear towering a thousand meters materialized, its emerald-glowing eyes locked on Rasel. Its massive paws struck together before its chest with a thunderous "boom," and from the point of impact, earth-yellow ripples spread outward like waves, expanding instantly to engulf several li of surrounding space. Rasel, of course, was within the domain's range.
Innate Divine Ability—Earth Collapse!
Simultaneously—
The transparent sword shadow pierced into the Blue Lion Lord's body, but his frame merely shuddered, with no significant effect.
"Damn it—how is this fellow's soul defense so strong? My full-power attack barely affected him!" Rasel cursed inwardly.
"Haha…" The Blue Lion Lord hurtled toward Rasel at tremendous speed.
"This is bad." Rasel's expression changed drastically. He could clearly sense the transformation of the surrounding space—the constantly propagating ripples made it feel as though he were caught in layer upon layer of surging waves, and the distortion of space produced a peculiar "gravity field" effect. This move devastated Rasel's speed.
Rasel knew he was in trouble. But it was too late.
"Haha…" Laughing with wild abandon, the Blue Lion Lord combined his innate divine ability to unleash his most devastating attack.
A pair of colossal fists, like twin flood dragons tearing through the sky, even caused the space around them to twist and collapse.
"This is bad." Rasel retreated desperately, but within this restricted domain, his speed was now inferior to his opponent's. He could only roar and slash his blade downward in a furious strike.
"Explode!" the Blue Lion Lord thundered.