But now they were caught in a bind — the Saint Energy of all five had already converged at the center, growing denser by the moment. If they withdrew, the consequences could be catastrophic.
What made it worse was that this formation was designed to reflect attacks. With such a massive amount of Saint Energy rebounding, no one could expect to survive unscathed.
Old Man Jiang's brow furrowed into a tight knot.
"There's no need to worry, everyone. Though my cultivation is somewhat lower, I believe my reserves of Saint Energy are second to none — so just focus on your own output." Seeing the anxious looks directed his way, Yang Kai understood exactly what they were thinking and spoke up immediately.
"Braggart!" Burly Man Chen let out a cold snort, then quickly broke into a grin. "Still, I like it!"
"As long as you can back those words up!" Old Man Jiang relaxed slightly, his eyes glinting like cut diamonds. He set his jaw and said, "Since Brother Yang is so confident, then this old man will increase his Saint Energy output. Keep up, everyone!"
With that, he gave a low shout, and the Saint Energy flowing from his palms indeed surged significantly — a dramatic increase, clearly with the intent of finishing this in one decisive push.
He had underestimated the resilience of this Five Elements Adversity Spirit Formation, never expecting the breakthrough to take this long. Now his only thought was to end things quickly, and the only way to do that was to ramp up the Saint Energy output, overwhelming the formation's capacity so that it would collapse under the strain.
Seeing this, the others didn't dare slack off either. They all intensified their own output, increasing both the rate and volume of Saint Energy they channeled.
Yang Kai did the same.
In an instant, five streams of elemental Saint Energy poured into the void at more than double the previous speed, weaving and intertwining together.
Seeing that Yang Kai hadn't been exaggerating — he could actually keep pace with the rest of them — the other four felt somewhat reassured. Old Man Jiang even showed a hint of approval, giving a slight nod.
But their relief was short-lived. As the five streams of Saint Energy continued flooding in, the barrier formation before them showed no signs of breaking.
Everyone grew increasingly anxious.
After a while, Old Man Jiang suddenly bit down on the tip of his tongue and sprayed a fine mist of blood from his mouth. His already pale face flushed crimson.
He had resorted to a secret technique to boost his strength.
Old Man He, Burly Man Chen, and Beautiful Woman Yi all followed suit, each employing their own methods — some consuming rare spirit pills they normally kept hoarded, others activating powerful secret techniques that came with detrimental side effects — all to sustain their flow of Saint Energy.
Yang Kai alone remained unchanged. He looked deathly pale and on the verge of collapsing, yet the Saint Energy pouring from his body hadn't diminished in the slightest.
The other four couldn't help but view him with renewed respect. No one could fathom how much Saint Energy was truly stored within this young man at the first level of the Return to Void realm.
A tense, uneasy atmosphere gradually permeated the group. Everyone was beginning to regret rushing to this place so impulsively, and even more so for having trusted Old Man Jiang's words so readily. But dwelling on it now was clearly pointless.
Realizing that even draining themselves completely might not be enough to break the formation, a ruthless glint flashed in Old Man He's eyes. He suddenly called out, "Everyone, it looks like our combined strength isn't going to crack this Five Elements Adversity Spirit Formation. This old man has a lovely wife waiting at home, so I won't be keeping you company. Everyone's on their own from here!"
The others' faces changed drastically!
Old Man Jiang cried out, "Brother He, what are you doing?!"
"You wouldn't dare!" Burly Man Chen barked sharply.
But Old Man He paid them no mind. His Saint Energy erupted violently as his body shifted into a posture of rapid retreat — he was clearly preparing to pull out of there entirely.
If this dragged on any longer, death was the only outcome. Rather than continuing this stalemate, it was better to abandon now and perhaps cling to a sliver of survival.
Of course, he also had to guard against the formation's violent backlash once he withdrew.
But the first one to quit would naturally have the most time and opportunity to flee. The others, fighting for their lives, would inevitably end up absorbing much of the shock for him.
Of the five, only Burly Man Chen and Beautiful Woman Yi were husband and wife, bound by genuine intimacy. The rest were all strangers who had joined forces solely for the purpose of breaking the formation, with not a shred of camaraderie between them. Why would Old Man He care about the lives of others when his own was at stake?
A husband and wife are like birds in the same forest — when disaster strikes, they fly their separate ways. What more could be said of five people who had only just met?
This fragile alliance shattered the instant Old Man He uttered those words!
The others, shocked into realization, quickly grasped his intentions and hurriedly tried to withdraw their hands and pull back.
But in the very next moment, every face changed — including Yang Kai's, who had been concealing his true strength all along.
Because no one could move a single inch. From the very center of the void, an eerie force had locked them all in place. And it wasn't just their bodies — the Saint Energy inside them was now beyond their control, continuing to pour into the void of its own accord.