Yang Kai repeatedly deployed the Dao of Space to close in on the Void Sky Cauldron, but each time Jia Long repelled him with a spell, leaving his expression grim beyond words.
Though Jia Long did not command the power of space, the Void Sky Cauldron was right there. If Yang Kai wanted to seize the Origin Heaven Fruit, he had no choice but to get close to it—all Jia Long needed to do was exert pressure around the area.
None of the Star Boundary's pseudo-emperors could break through the half-sages' defensive perimeter, which meant they had no hope of reaching the Origin Heaven Fruit. In this final stretch, the extra demons on their side had become the decisive factor.
Time ticked on, the battle raged without cease, and the pseudo-emperors could only watch helplessly as the half-sages drew ever closer to the Void Sky Cauldron, seething with frustration.
At last, the moment came—the Void Sky Cauldron was within arm's reach. Jia Long barked, "Hold them off!"
With that, he spun around and charged toward the cauldron, spreading his great hand wide to seize the Origin Heaven Fruit. A feverish light blazed in his eyes. If he could claim this fruit, he would win the final victory—not only would the Star Boundary's side lose everything they'd invested, but the Demon Race would gain an additional Demon Sovereign. By then, the Star Boundary would have no power left to resist.
And just at that moment, a low voice drifted over: "Heaven-Breaking… Strike!"
A terrifying wave of divine sense erupted and spread outward in all directions. That invisible, formless soul attack now materialized into a short spear visible to the naked eye, hurtling straight toward the back of Jia Long's head.
Yang Kai's eyes went wide. He whipped his head toward the speaker and saw a middle-aged man there, offering him a slight smile brimming with cunning.
Yang Kai recognized this middle-aged man, though they weren't close. He was none other than the Fire Lord, one of the four great Lord Envoys of the Demonic Heaven Dao.
When Yang Kai had first entered the Profound Sky Hall, he had made a point of observing this person. After all, he was the only human in the Demon Race's camp—standing out like a crane among chickens, impossible not to notice.
Inside the Profound Sky Hall's secret realm, Yang Kai hadn't crossed paths with him or exchanged so much as a word. During the earlier chaotic melee they had clashed a handful of times, but since both sides had been holding back, Yang Kai hadn't been able to gauge the man's true depth.
Who could have guessed that he would suddenly strike now—and target Jia Long of all people?
The move was utterly unexpected. Just as Yang Kai had previously made a sudden dash for Cang Mo, the Demon Race's side presumably never imagined that the Fire Lord of the Demonic Heaven Dao would have the audacity to ambush the Demon Race's foremost half-sage.
Only Yang Kai's eyes lit up, startled and delighted in equal measure.
If the Fire Lord had stayed silent, Yang Kai might never have figured out what was going on and would simply have assumed the man harbored his own ambitions, trying to snatch the Origin Heaven Fruit for himself. But the moment those words—"Heaven-Breaking Strike"—rang out, everything clicked into place.
Yang Kai knew this soul secret art. In fact, the person who had taught it to him was Tian Yan, whom he had once encountered within the Spirit Soul Mirror of the Azure Sun Temple.
Tian Yan was born within the Spirit Soul Mirror and grew up inside it. Without a physical body, his attainments in soul cultivation were terrifyingly profound. The Spirit Soul Mirror was itself an entire world, and Tian Yan's mastery of soul arts had unquestionably reached the level of a Great Emperor.
Later, by sheer fortune, Yang Kai had obtained the Living Body Fruit, refined it into a Living Body Pill, and used it to forge a physical body for Tian Yan, freeing him from the shackles of the Spirit Soul Mirror so that he could exist in the world.
However, when Tian Yan's body had just been formed, his strength was feeble. After spending some time at the Azure Sun Temple and growing slightly stronger, he had set off to wander the world.
After that, there had been no word from him. Yang Kai had thought about seeking news of him, but with the Demon Race invading and the Star Boundary thrown into chaos, he simply hadn't had the energy to pursue it.
He never would have guessed that the long-lost senior had been right before his eyes all along—not only that, but he had become one of the Demonic Heaven Dao's four great Lord Envoys, infiltrated the Profound Sky Hall, and turned on the Demon Race at the most critical juncture.
Yang Kai didn't know what Tian Yan had experienced over the years to take him from nothing all the way to the pseudo-emperor realm, but then again, it wasn't all that strange. Tian Yan had once possessed the foundation of a Great Emperor—he had simply lacked a physical body. With Yang Kai's help in forging one, all of his martial insights remained intact. He only needed to cultivate steadily, step by step, and his advancement would naturally be swift, unconstrained by the bottlenecks and limitations that held other warriors back.
As for the change in his appearance, that was most likely the result of some secret technique as well.
Tian Yan's soul cultivation was already at the Great Emperor level. Even with his power significantly restricted and unable to unleash its full might, this strike was not to be underestimated.
The visible soul-spear crashed unimpeded into the back of Jia Long's mind, catching him completely off guard. Jia Long's burly frame went rigid on the spot, rooted in place, unable to move. His outstretched hand, reaching for the Origin Heaven Fruit, was barely a foot away from the seven-colored divine fruit.
But it wasn't over. After launching his surprise attack, Tian Yan didn't even bother watching Jia Long. He pressed his palms together, then thrust them outward to either side.
A massive ring of fire erupted from him and expanded outward with a thunderous roar. Scorching power surged within the ring, catching the demon half-sages completely off guard and sending them tumbling head over heels. Their tight formation was torn wide open in an instant.
"What are you waiting for!" Tian Yan glanced at the stunned, overjoyed Yang Kai and chuckled.
"Thank you, Senior!" Yang Kai blurted, and with a flicker of his figure he shot through the gap Tian Yan had torn open. In the blink of an eye, he stood before the Void Sky Cauldron.
"Insolent!" Only now did Jia Long snap back to awareness. Gritting through the piercing agony inside his skull, he converted his outstretched palm into a fist and drove it toward Yang Kai's waist.