The Mysterious Dragon Seal was a defensive secret technique that Ban Qing had comprehended on his own—the crystallization of a lifetime of cultivation.
Since his ascension to the Emperor Sovereign Realm, he had deployed this technique only three times, and each time his opponents had been fellow Emperor Sovereign Realm powerhouses.
But today, before Yang Kai—a Dao Source Realm warrior—he had no choice but to use it once more.
Because he could feel that if he didn't employ this technique, he would die without question!
This feeling had no logical basis, yet he believed it absolutely.
Dragon shadows emerged, intertwining and converging, condensing before him. In the blink of an eye, a square, shield-shaped barrier of protective light materialized. Upon the shield's surface, the faint outlines of several True Dragons could be seen, vivid and lifelike.
After deploying this technique, Ban Qing felt somewhat reassured. The terror and heart-pounding dread that had gripped him finally subsided.
However—
The blade swept through, plain and unadorned. The Mysterious Dragon Seal, capable of withstanding a full-force strike from an Emperor Sovereign Realm powerhouse, was as fragile as a block of tofu before the weapon in Yang Kai's hand. Without a sound, the solid barrier was sliced cleanly in two. The blade met no resistance as it drove straight toward Ban Qing's chest and abdomen.
If this strike landed cleanly, given the bizarre offensive nature of that blade, even someone as powerful as Ban Qing would be cleaved in two.
Ban Qing's expression changed drastically. He no longer dared to hesitate. With a surge of soul force, he exerted all his strength to throw himself backward.
*Tsss—*
A soft sound rang out. Ban Qing forcibly broke free from the constraints of spatial laws, narrowly avoiding the fatal blow by a mere inch.
But across his chest and abdomen, a wound roughly two chi in length had appeared, running diagonally from his belly all the way up to his shoulder, nearly severing one of his arms entirely.
No blood flowed from the wound. There was no sign of flesh turning outward—not even bone was visible. Yet from within that gash, pure soul energy flowed forth, constantly dissipating into the world around them.
"What a pity!" Yang Kai stared at him and muttered unwillingly. Earlier, he had twice charged recklessly toward Ban Qing, hoping to lure the man into letting his guard down so he could find an opening for a killing blow.
The strategy had been somewhat successful. Yang Kai's two reckless charges had undoubtedly caused Ban Qing to underestimate his abilities, leading him to close the distance directly—which gave Yang Kai the chance to launch a desperate counterattack. But an Emperor Sovereign Realm cultivator was still an Emperor Sovereign Realm cultivator. When faced with mortal danger, his reaction speed was extraordinary. At such close range, with such a sudden attack, he had still managed to dodge.
Across from him, not far away, Ban Qing had been gravely wounded. His eyeballs trembled violently, his expression shifting several times over. Glaring at the blade in Yang Kai's hand, he roared, "What the hell is that?!"
"A Soul-Slaying Blade!" Yang Kai flicked the long blade in his hand, pointing it at Ban Qing from a distance. He grinned savagely. "It doesn't harm flesh—it only slays the soul!"
For this journey into the Shenyou Mirror's world, apart from his soul spirit body, Yang Kai had brought only three things with him.
The first was the Purple Yang Mystic Light Shield that Gao Xueting had given him. The second was the Seven-Colored Warm Spirit Lotus within his sea of consciousness. The third was this Soul-Slaying Blade.
It was the Insect Emperor's treasure.
Years ago, on the Dark Star, the Insect Emperor had brought chaos upon the world. Yang Kai had slain him and obtained the Insect Slave Bracelet and the Soul-Slaying Blade—two Emperor Treasures.
The Insect Slave Bracelet had special effects against various kinds of insects, and Yang Kai had used it to cheat death on several occasions. As for the Soul-Slaying Blade, he had never really put it to use. He hadn't even known it was a soul-type secret treasure.
So when he had first entered this world and inspected his body, discovering the Soul-Slaying Blade among his possessions had come as quite a shock.
Even though he had never refined this Emperor Treasure, its devastating power against the soul was undeniable. With the blade in hand, Yang Kai had gravely wounded a powerhouse like Ban Qing with a single strike. If he refined it even slightly, within the special world of the Shenyou Mirror, taking Ban Qing's life would be child's play.
A fall into the pit, a gain in your wit. Yang Kai silently resolved that once he returned from this trip, he would find the opportunity to properly refine the Emperor Treasures he carried.
The reason he hadn't refined them before was that his strength had been insufficient. But now he had reached the Dao Source Realm, and his divine sense was comparable to the peak of that realm. Refining them shouldn't pose any problem.
Whether the Soul-Slaying Blade or the Insect Slave Bracelet, both could prove invaluable in certain situations.
"Damn it!" Ban Qing hissed through gritted teeth. Though he hadn't understood what Yang Kai meant by "doesn't harm flesh," the exchange just now had made it abundantly clear that the long blade posed a lethal threat to him.
Now gravely wounded while Yang Kai remained completely unscathed—and with Yang Kai apparently commanding several unusual supernatural abilities—Ban Qing had already begun to contemplate retreat.
To be driven off by a Dao Source Realm warrior when one stood at the Emperor Sovereign Realm would certainly be embarrassing if word got out. But at this moment, Ban Qing could no longer afford to care about such things. Survival came first; face was secondary!
Moreover, the cultivation techniques and secret arts that Ban Qing practiced were designed for stealth and assassination. Generally speaking, those who cultivated such techniques were, to put it charitably, cautious—or, more bluntly put, timid as mice. Their approach was always to strike once and, whether successful or not, vanish without a trace. They would never engage an enemy in prolonged combat. In a head-on confrontation, their abilities were significantly diminished.
If the one standing before Yang Kai right now had been a powerhouse like Lian Yan, even if caught off guard and ambushed by Yang Kai, he would not have retreated immediately.
The absolute gap in strength and realm could not be bridged by a mere wound.