Yang Kai was stunned. The last time he'd gone out with Ma Liu and Jiang Sheng, both First-Order Open Heavens, he hadn't witnessed much of their fighting and had no idea what kind of strength they possessed. What's more, the gap between First-Order and Fourth-Order Open Heavens was simply enormous. Now that Duan Hai and Elder Xu had clashed, the mere shockwave from their exchange had nearly cost him his life!
This was the Open Heavens realm! Mid-tier Open Heavens wielded such overwhelming power — so what about the upper tier?
Blood sprayed from his nose and mouth, yet Yang Kai's eyes burned bright as stars!
Dust and debris erupted in all directions as the great hall collapsed, plunging the area into darkness. Yang Kai's entire body screamed with agony — the crumbling structures must have landed on top of him. But there was one small mercy: the force that had been pinning him down was gone.
The place had been destroyed, and the formation laid here had naturally lost its effect. Without the formation's restraint, Yang Kai was free once more.
He shook his arms, hurling the rubble piled atop him aside, and light flooded back into his eyes.
Before he could even assess his surroundings, a faint coughing sound came from nearby. Yang Kai turned his head, a flash of murderous intent in his eyes. He reached out and grasped at empty air, and the Azure Dragon Spear materialized in his palm. The spear shaft trembled as he poured every ounce of his strength into it. A dragon's roar rang out, and he thrust the spear forward with devastating force.
BOOM!
A massive spray of shattered stone erupted, revealing Yu Lian's figure buried beneath.
Blood gushed from Yu Lian's mouth. His eyes bulged like those of a startled ox, his face contorted in shock and horror.
"Die!" Yang Kai roared. As the Laws of Space surged, the tip of the Azure Dragon Spear — already embedded in his opponent's body — flashed with a black sphere that vanished in an instant.
All things collapse!
A gaping hole immediately appeared in Yu Lian's chest, most of his internal organs having vanished entirely. One hand gripped the Azure Dragon Spear desperately while the other reached toward Yang Kai, the palm radiating waves of destructive energy.
Yang Kai drew a deep breath, his chest swelling as he exhaled a blast of razor-sharp qi that sheared through the flesh on his opponent's arm layer by layer, exposing the stark white bone beneath.
A scream tore from Yu Lian's throat. Yang Kai flicked the spear upward, launching his body into the air. A sky full of spear shadows engulfed him.
In the span of three heartbeats, when Yang Kai finally withdrew his spear, Yu Lian crumpled to the ground like a tattered sack. His body was riddled with countless holes, blood fountaining from every wound. His life force dimmed rapidly — it was clear he wouldn't survive.
Before Yang Kai could even register his narrow escape, a killing intent bore down on him from behind. He spun around hastily, leveling his spear to block. A sharp clang rang out as tremendous force struck him, sending him flying backward. Blood sprayed from his mouth in midair.
He hit the ground unsteadily and looked up to see Du Rufang staring blankly to the side, his face a mask of utter disbelief: "Senior Brother Yu?"
Yu Lian's lips moved, but his breath came in thin, ragged gasps — like a fish flopping on dry land, unable to form a single word. Then his head lolled to one side, and the last trace of life left him for good.
Du Rufang's blood ran cold. He could barely process what had just happened. Moments ago, this same senior brother had been brimming with confidence, ready to strip away someone's Wood-element power and advance to Open Heavens. And now, in the blink of an eye, his soul had departed for the underworld!
He understood all too well that this sudden turn of events had been caused by the aftershocks of battle between that unknown powerhouse and the Exalted. In that instant, Du Rufang had genuinely believed he was going to die. Though he'd survived in the end, the shockwave had left him severely injured.
Yu Lian's condition couldn't have been much better — gravely wounded, then caught off guard by a sneak attack. One careless moment and he'd lost his life. A chill gripped Du Rufang's heart: if Yang Kai had targeted him instead of Yu Lian just now, would he have been able to dodge it?
He turned to look. Yang Kai was coughing up blood not far away — clearly he wasn't in great shape either.
"You killed Senior Brother Yu!" Du Rufang's face was so cold it seemed ready to drip frost.
"You're next!" Yang Kai leveled his spear forward, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth.
"Joke!" Du Rufang's features twisted with fury. "How dare you spout such bravado in the presence of an Exalted..."
He stopped mid-sentence, frowning as he swept his divine sense outward. His expression shifted — he realized that Duan Hai seemed to no longer be here.
The truth sank in: something major had happened to Seven Skills Earth, and the Exalted must have rushed off to face the enemy, leaving this place entirely unattended. His heart plummeted. He had no idea who this Xu Huang was, but whoever he was, he had forced the Exalted into a state of genuine alarm.
BOOM... BOOM... BOOM...
Deafening explosions resonated from beyond the sky, accompanied by blinding flashes of light that flickered in and out of existence. Waves of violent energy rippled outward — clearly, powerful cultivators were engaged in fierce combat beyond the heavens.
But that wasn't something he could concern himself with. The Heavenly Sovereign and the seven Exalteds would handle it. Surely, no matter how strong the intruders were, they couldn't possibly match so many Open Heavens cultivators fighting together.
Swish, swish, swish...