A burst of violent energy erupted, passing straight through the shadowy figure's body and striking empty air, ripping cracks in the void itself.
With his cover blown, the shadow abandoned all pretense of concealment and thrust the dagger forward with lethal intent, determined to kill Yang Kai on the spot.
Sshh—
Yang Kai's body held firm, but the force of the blow sent him skidding backward, his feet carving two long furrows in the earth as though it had been plowed. He reached out with one hand and seized the dagger buried in his side, not caring that the blade sliced his fingers to the bone, and glared at the figure before him, desperate to make out who it was.
That split second had been a brush with death, filling him with equal parts shock and fury. What shocked him was that the attack had come without the slightest trace — even he hadn't sensed a thing. The assassin's art of killing was nothing short of perfection; with skills like these, who in the world could possibly defend against them? What enraged him was that he had been ambushed.
The fact that he'd survived wasn't because he'd detected any killing intent — he'd simply felt something was off on a gut level and shifted his body at the last instant, just enough to move his vitals out of the blade's path. Otherwise, things would look grim indeed.
Boom, boom, boom—
Waves of savage force channeled through the dagger detonated inside his body, tearing the flesh around his waist into a bloody mess. He had to pour every ounce of his Emperor Yuan into resisting the explosive power. Golden blood seeped from the corner of his mouth as he roared, "Who are you?!"
He'd been led here by Luo Chen and had even been in contact with Gao Xueting beforehand, so he hadn't thought twice about coming. Never would he have expected an assassination attempt in this place.
This was clearly a premeditated kill. He couldn't fathom who he'd offended badly enough to warrant such methods. And through all of this, what part had Luo Chen and Gao Xueting played?
He didn't want to dwell on it, but he had no choice. The immediate priority was to neutralize the crisis before his eyes, then figure out who this assassin was. Luo Chen and Gao Xueting's involvement could be dealt with later.
The shadow gave no answer and continued driving Yang Kai backward at breakneck speed.
Yang Kai swept his divine sense over the figure, yet still couldn't pierce its true form. He couldn't even detect any trace of life — it truly seemed to be nothing more than a phantom, not a physical body at all.
Yang Kai struck out in fury, hurling another punch. The shadow took no evasive action whatsoever, letting the fist connect with its body without absorbing any force at all.
A tingling, numbing sensation spread from his wounded side. Yang Kai's face went pale — the dagger was coated in a deadly poison. He had no idea what kind, but it was acting with terrifying speed.
There was no time left for probing. The Laws of Space rippled outward as Yang Kai spread all five fingers wide and clawed at the shadow.
The shadow grunted, its ethereal body suddenly becoming far more substantial.
Yang Kai's spirits soared. His raw strength had been useless against this foe, and even his Emperor Yuan couldn't wound it. If the Laws of Space failed as well, he'd truly be in mortal danger.
Fortunately, the Laws of Space did not disappoint. Under the crushing pressure of spatial compression, the shadow clearly began to struggle, signs of its true form threatening to emerge.
"Sever!" Yang Kai bellowed. A crescent moon blade materialized out of thin air, tracing a graceful arc as it sliced clean through the shadow's body.
A spray of warm blood fanned outward. The shadow was cut in two, yet its halves eerily reconnected in the blink of an eye. Still, the blurred features on its face were twisted in unmistakable pain — the moon blade hadn't killed it, but it had inflicted real damage.
Before Yang Kai could follow up with a second strike, the shadow suddenly released its grip on the dagger and drifted backward.
Yang Kai had no intention of letting it come and go as it pleased. His outstretched hand clenched into a fist, and the space around the shadow instantly solidified.
The move caught the shadow completely off guard — there was no defending against it. Only then did the assassin realize how dangerous this man truly was. No wonder the order had been to eliminate him first; otherwise, the greater plan could well be ruined.
"Banish!" Yang Kai roared. The void constraining the shadow began to collapse, and a black hole materialized behind it, unleashing an terrifying devouring force that sought to swallow the phantom whole.
This shadow was far too dangerous — even the moon blade couldn't kill it, and Yang Kai had lost all interest in learning its identity. He would simply destroy it first.
The Banishment Art was a technique that cast its target into the cracks between dimensions. No matter how intangible the shadow was, once it was banished into that spatial rift, there would be no escape. It would wither and perish in the void between worlds.
Sensing the emptiness and primordial chaos emanating from the black hole, the shadow finally began to panic. A piercing whistle escaped its lips, and in an instant, over a dozen figures materialized from every direction. Each one wielded a powerful artifact, and without question or hesitation, they unleashed a bombardment upon Yang Kai.
Yang Kai's expression darkened — he hadn't expected this assassin to have reinforcements, and every single one of them was an Emperor Realm cultivator.
He swept his gaze across them and felt a chill run down his spine. Those figures were achingly familiar. Those faces were ones he had only recently crossed paths with — some he'd even spoken to that very day.
They were the Emperor Realm cultivators from the great Sects and families of the Southern Region who had led their delegations to the martial tournament. Yet at this moment, the aura radiating from each of them made Yang Kai's heart tremble. Looking closer, he saw that every one of these Emperor Realm masters was shrouded in a faint, dark mist.
"Demonic energy!"