"Petty tricks like this, and you dare show your face!" Yao Zhuo sneered, snatching the bead into his palm and squeezing it hard, his face full of mockery and contempt.
But in the very next instant, his expression changed wildly, because an enormously terrifying force suddenly erupted from his palm. The sheer power of it was enough to rattle even a Emperor Realm Second-Order cultivator like himself.
"Emperor's Last Stand Pill!" Yao Zhuo was no stranger to the world of experts, and he immediately realized that the bead Yang Kai had thrown was no ordinary bead — it was an Emperor's Last Stand Pill!
Bone-piercing cold enveloped him all at once. Yao Zhuo shivered uncontrollably, his entire body turning ice-cold, his hands and feet going numb.
Right after, violent waves of power surged one after another, and a graceful phantom figure suddenly appeared before Yao Zhuo.
The instant that phantom manifested, every strong cultivator from Ice Heart Valley was struck dumb. Pair after pair of beautiful eyes gazed upon the phantom, their slender bodies trembling violently.
"Master…" An Ruoyun's strike lost all its force. She simply stared, dazed, at the figure and face she had yearned for across three thousand years, unable to suppress her overwhelming emotions no matter how hard she tried.
Sun Yunxiu, Zhangsun Ying, and the others were all in the same state. The Emperor Realm aura they had been radiating collapsed with a thunderous crash, and they descended from midair one after another, fixing their eyes upon the phantom. Voices calling out "Master" and "Teacher" rose and fell.
"Ice Cloud!" Yao Zhuo looked as though he had seen a ghost in broad daylight, his face pale as he stared at the phantom. He had dealt with Ice Cloud in the past, so he recognized her phantom at a glance. That meant the Emperor's Last Stand Pill had been refined by Ice Cloud herself.
A low hum resonated suddenly through the air. Though soft, the sound carried across all of Ice Heart Valley, striking awe into every heart.
"Ice Blossom Pear Flower Sword!"
As the hum sounded, a long sword manifested in the phantom's hand — composed entirely of pure energy, pristine and flawless. The sword flickered, its killing intent blanketing every vital point on Yao Zhuo's body. The blade struck like a dragon.
Yao Zhuo's face drained of color. With a deep roar, a long halberd appeared in his hands. Sweeping it in wide, devastating arcs, he channeled every ounce of his power into a desperate defense.
Cling, clang, ching — a rapid series of sharp, clear sounds rang out. Imperial might clashed and surged through the air, imperial intent scattered across the void, and the laws of heaven and earth shattered with a deafening roar.
In less than ten breaths, Yao Zhuo suddenly retreated, gasping for air. The phantom of Ice Cloud sheathed her sword and stood still. Then, as if imbued with a life of its own, she turned her head and glanced at An Ruoyun and Sun Yunxiu and the others, before crumbling apart in an instant, dissolving into specks of pale light that vanished without a trace.
Yang Kai's eyes went wide, his face frozen in astonishment.
He had used an Emperor's Last Stand Pill once before. The last time, it was Emperor Suiyue's Emperor's Last Stand Pill — its aura had been magnificent and overwhelming, the power of the four seasons permeating everything, allowing him to gain insight into the Heavenly Dao and martial principles under that temporal force, ultimately breaking through to the Dao Source Third-Order level.
Compared to that, this time was like a candle before the moon.
Ice Cloud's sword intent had been formidable, her sword intent reaching toward the heavens, and the divine ability itself was far from ordinary. But measured in any respect, it couldn't compare to Emperor Suiyue's Emperor's Last Stand Pill. Moreover, it had only lasted ten breaths before dissipating into nothing.
Was this the difference between an ordinary Emperor Realm cultivator and a Great Emperor? But when both had refined their Emperor's Last Stand Pills, each had been a Emperor Realm Third-Order cultivator. In theory, their power should have been roughly equal.
Looking over, Yao Zhuo was in a sorry state but didn't appear to be injured. What was going on?
Just as Yang Kai was growing suspicious, Yao Zhuo's face suddenly turned chalk-white and he let out a stifled grunt. Then, across his entire body, pear blossom-shaped ice flowers bloomed one after another.
Those pear blossoms were white as snow, adorning his shoulders, waist, arms, and legs, making it look as though Yao Zhuo had picked a bunch of pear flowers and pinned them all over himself — vivid and lifelike.
The moment these blossoms appeared, Yao Zhuo felt as though he had plummeted into an ice cellar. His entire body trembled violently, his lips turning purple from the cold.
"Uncle Master!" Feng Xi cried out in alarm, panic seizing her voice.
Yao Zhuo was so cold he couldn't even form a word, his body wreathed in the laws of ice and frost. After a long while, he suddenly erupted with a thunderous shout. His Emperor Yuan vibrated powerfully, shattering the Ice Blossom Pear Flowers that covered his body, and he returned to his normal state.
But his aura had already plummeted to rock bottom. He looked utterly depleted, and the moment he opened his mouth, a spray of blood erupted — clearly, he had suffered a grievous injury.
Feng Xi rushed forward to support him.
"Valley Master An, Elder Sun — is this how Ice Heart Valley treats its guests?" Yao Zhuo forced himself to stay conscious and shouted at An Ruoyun and Sun Yunxiu through gritted teeth.
An Ruoyun's dark brows furrowed slightly, and she replied in an ice-cold tone: "If you were truly guests, Ice Heart Valley would naturally show you every courtesy!"
The implication was clear: Yao Zhuo and Feng Xi did not count as guests of Ice Heart Valley.