Boom, boom, boom...
Swords rained down like a downpour, slamming into Yang Kai's body and sending up dazzling bursts of flame. His massive four-and-a-half-zhang frame was battered and knocked askew by the onslaught from every direction, threatening to topple at any moment.
Sss, sss, sss...
As blood sprayed into the air, Yang Kai bared his teeth in pain, making his already fierce-looking face even more terrifying and ghastly.
He held his ground without moving an inch, curling his entire body into a protective shell with his back exposed, shielding Lin Yun'er from even the slightest harm.
"Uncle Yang!" Little Yun'er looked up and cried out, shock and wonder flashing through her eyes. She clearly hadn't expected such a dramatic transformation from Yang Kai, but after sensing the attacks he was currently enduring, her eyes reddened in an instant.
Yang Kai forced a grin: "Lay low for now. I'll deal with them in a bit."
Lin Yun'er nodded, a trace of grim resolve passing across her face.
The relentless rain of swords continued for quite some time before finally tapering off.
"This..." The Grand Elder's voice rang out, laced with utter astonishment. He truly hadn't imagined Yang Kai could survive within the Sword Diagram. This was the Yin-Yang Five Elements Grand Mystic Sword Diagram powered by a hundred-man formation, with himself—a Second-Order Emperor Realm cultivator—serving as the formation's eye, supplemented by five or six First-Order Emperor Realm cultivators, while the rest were all Third-Order Dao Source Realm experts.
Even a Third-Order Emperor Realm cultivator would have been reduced to nothing after taking that kind of barrage, wouldn't they?
Yet this fellow was not only alive but had transformed entirely.
Two bumps had swelled atop his head, his hands had morphed into sharp claws, and every inch of exposed skin was covered in scales.
What in the hell was this thing?
The Grand Elder was so stunned he could barely speak. His mind raced as he poured even more power into the Sword Diagram.
After that first volley of swords, there had been very few blades left within the Diagram. But in the blink of an eye, swords of varying shapes and auras began materializing from every direction, seemingly inexhaustible.
Those swords flickered between solid and ethereal—impossible to tell which were real and which were illusory—but every single one radiated sword energy that pierced toward the heavens.
Yang Kai's expression turned grave. His divine sense swept outward in every direction, and anxiety gnawed at his heart.
He and Lin Yun'er were trapped inside this Sword Diagram. If they couldn't find a way to break it or escape, their strength would eventually be ground down to nothing. The enemy had superior numbers and could leverage the formation's power to maximize their own strength, while he and Lin Yun'er were hopelessly outmatched—they could endure for a while, but not forever. Yet when his divine sense swept the area, he found no flaw or weakness to exploit.
His knowledge of formations was limited. He couldn't help but think that if Nanmen Dajun were here, he might have some useful insight.
Just as his brows knotted in concentration, Lin Yun'er spoke up in an indignant huff: "Uncle Yang, buy me some time."
Before, she had killed many people with a calm, detached air, as though she weren't taking lives but simply kicking aside pebbles by the roadside. Even when she'd been repeatedly targeted and ambushed in recent times, she hadn't lost her temper. But this time, she was truly angry.
For one reason alone—Uncle Yang had been hurt trying to protect her.
Yang Kai blinked in surprise: "You can break the formation?"
Lin Yun'er replied: "I have a trump card. It should be able to break this!"
"Then by all means." Yang Kai was delighted. "Focus on your technique. I won't let them interfere with you."
"Mm!" Lin Yun'er sat down cross-legged without another word, closing her beautiful eyes. She rested one hand flat against her lower abdomen while the other formed a strange hand seal, her aura fluctuating erratically around her.
Yang Kai didn't know what she was planning, but since she'd said so, he could only place his utmost trust in her. He probably couldn't break this formation anytime soon, so if Lin Yun'er had a method, he had to let her try.
Hopefully she would bring him a pleasant surprise. And if it didn't work, he'd figure something else out then.
"A junior thinks she can break the formation—what audacity," the Grand Elder's voice came again, clearly having overheard their conversation, his tone dripping with contempt.
If the Yin-Yang Five Elements Grand Mystic Sword Diagram were truly that easy to crack, it wouldn't have saved the Feng Yun Pavilion from disaster time and again. Even if these two juniors had some skill in the art of formations, they were far from sufficient to uncover its weaknesses.
With that, the Grand Elder let out another thunderous shout: "Slash!"
A colossal beam of sword light descended with devastating force, aimed directly at Lin Yun'er.
The blade stretched over a dozen zhang long, like a pillar propping up the heavens, and as it cleaved downward, it split the very void with fissures.
The power behind this single strike rivaled the full-force blow of a Third-Order Emperor Realm powerhouse. Its might was nothing short of extraordinary.
Yang Kai bellowed and planted his enormous body between Lin Yun'er and the descending blade, throwing a fist the size of a window forward to meet it head-on.
BOOM!
The sword light shattered upon impact. Yang Kai stumbled back two steps, a fresh gash split open across his knuckles, and blood flowed freely.
"Impressive!" The Grand Elder's expression shifted. Though he had no idea what secret art Yang Kai had activated to make his body grow so enormous, the fact that this young man could withstand a blow from the Grand Mystic Sword Diagram with nothing but his flesh and blood was extraordinary. He gave a cold humph: "Let's see how long you can hold on."
"Slash!"
"Slash!"
"Slash!"
One massive sword light after another descended, intent on driving Yang Kai and Lin Yun'er to total annihilation.