The great hall instantly transformed into a sea of fire, the flames flooding every inch of space, leaving no corner untouched.
Only around Feng Jun did a gentle breeze linger. Within three zhang of him, not a single flame flickered, as though he were a reef standing firm amid a raging storm. Feng Jun snorted coldly. "You won't see reason until you see the coffin!"
With that, he stepped forward, walking unhurriedly toward Yang Kai. The sea of fire that blanketed the sky instinctively parted on either side, opening a path wide enough for him to pass. Wherever Feng Jun went, the flames simply died out.
In the blink of an eye, he had closed to within ten zhang of Yang Kai. In terms of stature, he was dozens of times smaller than Yang Kai in his current form, but his presence far surpassed it — as though he were the one looking down from on high. He raised his hand lightly, fingers pinching together, and a small fan appeared in his empty right palm. The fan was barely a foot long, yet luminous light flowed across its surface. Feng Jun lifted the fan and waved it gently toward Yang Kai.
A violent gale erupted, and a ribbon-like wind blade shot from the fan, expanding to over a dozen zhang in the blink of an eye as it sliced toward Yang Kai head-on.
Yang Kai tried to dodge, but his perception of time had been distorted — how could he evade it? By the time he registered what was happening, the wind blade was already upon him. In desperation he raised both arms before him, crossing them to shield his face.
A tremendous crash rang out. Yang Kai's massive body shuddered and slid backward, a gaping wound splitting across both arms as blood streamed down.
Using that momentum, he twisted around and swung his dragon tail at Feng Jun in a sweeping strike. The dragon-scaled tail, lashing through the void like a colossal whip, left the very space trembling and shattering in its wake.
Feng Jun let out a derisive snort. He merely lifted his foot and took a few steps aside, evading the blow with effortless ease.
Yang Kai's attack had missed, but he was already lunging forward, the Dragon tongue once again rumbling from his throat. Feng Jun raised the small fan high and waved it again. This time, not one wind blade appeared, but over a dozen — above, below, left, and right, sealing off every possible avenue of escape.
Nowhere to block, nowhere to dodge, yet Yang Kai charged straight into the onslaught. His face was a mask of savage ferocity, radiating a grim determination that screamed he would advance even if a thousand enemies stood in his way.
"How overconfident!" Feng Jun sneered repeatedly. The Endless Hourglass cradled in his left hand trembled slightly, and he prepared to repeat his trick — using the Sand of Years to disrupt Yang Kai's temporal perception once more.
But just then, a loud clang rang out. As rings of light rippled outward, Yang Kai vanished from where he had been standing.
Feng Jun's eyes narrowed. In the next instant, he felt an enormous shadow blot out the light before him. He looked up to see Yang Kai gazing down at him as though regarding an insect, his jaw working as he opened his mouth and spat forth a torrent of dragon breath.
The dragon breath cleaved through the void, seemingly indestructible, and slashed straight down toward the crown of Feng Jun's head.
Feng Jun gasped in surprise and shifted his steps to dodge sideways, but a savage force crashed toward him from the flank — as though it had been waiting for him.
He turned his head and saw Yang Kai's right fist sweeping in from that direction, the power behind it absolutely terrifying. Feng Jun's eye twitched. Although his cultivation surpassed Yang Kai's by a narrow margin, he knew that if he took a punch like that head-on, things would not end well.
Without hesitation, his entire body dissolved into a wisp of weightless breeze and dispersed into the air.
Yang Kai's fist struck empty air, and frustration flickered across his face.
In a corner of the great hall, Feng Jun reappeared, his gaze locking onto the great bell clutched in Yang Kai's other hand. He snorted coldly. "The Mountain and River Bell!"
At that moment, Yang Kai not only held the Mountain and River Bell but was also continuously flicking his fingers against it. The tolling of the bell echoed ceaselessly through the great hall, rings of luminous light radiating outward from the bell as the centerpiece, washing over Yang Kai's body.
Feng Jun had spent a century here, obtained the Endless Hourglass — the relic treasure of the Grand Emperor of Years — and used it to drain Yang Kai's lifespan and distort his temporal perception. But if he possessed a Grand Emperor's relic, didn't Yang Kai?
The Mountain and River Bell was also a Grand Emperor's relic. Both of them held one in hand — so who had anything to fear from the other? The might of a Grand Emperor's relic could only be countered by another Grand Emperor's relic.
And so, when Yang Kai brought forth the Mountain and River Bell and sounded its chime, it naturally restored his perception to normal. However, his link to the Endless Hourglass had not been severed. With the Sand of Years still flowing, Yang Kai's lifespan continued to drain away.
Neither could fully unleash the power of a Grand Emperor's relic — Yang Kai couldn't, and likewise, Feng Jun couldn't bring out the Endless Hourglass's full might. On that level, they were both amateurs.
The bell continued to toll. An invisible weight of suppression spread outward through the air. In some unseen way, Feng Jun felt his body grow heavy, as though an invisible mountain had settled upon his shoulders.
The bell shakes mountains and rivers; the Emperor's presence shifts heaven and earth — such was the Mountain and River Bell. It had never been a treasure for trapping enemies; Yang Kai had simply been inventive in occasionally using it against his opponents in just this way.
Now, with the Mountain and River Bell's power fully activated, Yang Kai broke free from the Endless Hourglass's temporal interference and regained his normal senses at once.