On Yang Kai's shoulder, a wound so deep it exposed bone gaped open in a hideous flap. Golden dragon blood sprayed across the void. Zuo Quanhui's first strike had already revealed his terrifying power — had Yang Kai not tilted his head at the critical moment, the consequences would have been unthinkable.
But he did not retreat even an inch!
As though he could not feel the pain, the Azure Dragon Spear thrust straight forward.
Boom, boom, boom…
Layer after layer of defensive barriers were punched through, and even the walls of the Heavenly Sword Palace were pierced on both sides. More than a dozen open heaven cultivators who could not dodge in time were swept up by the spear's might, and without so much as a cry, they exploded into clouds of blood mist. As their Small Worlds collapsed, the power of their worlds bled out and dissolved into the void.
Before Yang Kai could pull back the spear, the Heavenly Sword Palace suddenly blazed with brilliant light. A beam like a bolt of white silk lashed out from within, striking straight at his face.
The beam came without warning, and its power was incomparably terrifying — comparable to a full-force blow from a Sixth-Order Open Heaven cultivator.
Yang Kai could not even determine whether the beam had been fired by Zuo Quanhui himself or whether he had harnessed the grand formation of the Heavenly Sword Palace to unleash it.
Instinctively he raised the spear to block. A torrent of savage force slammed into him. Yang Kai grunted, his entire body sent hurtling backward into the depths of the void.
At the same time, countless beams of light shot out from every direction inside the Heavenly Sword Palace. Though none matched the terrifying power of the one aimed at Yang Kai, each was comparable to a Fifth-Order Open Heaven cultivator's strike.
There were over a thousand of them.
Such an attack was clearly not something the disciples of the Heavenly Sword Alliance could execute — it was unquestionably the power of the grand formation.
The Void Land disciples who had been gathering outside the Heavenly Sword Palace, ceaselessly launching attacks, saw this and did not dare hesitate. One after another they unleashed defensive techniques and Artifacts to shield themselves.
Yet there were inevitably gaps in the defense.
Blood sprayed into the air as dozens of Void Land disciples were pierced through. Most had their souls scattered in an instant; only a handful, tenacious in life, managed to survive. They were received by fellow disciples and hurriedly retreated to find shelter and heal.
Even Zhu Qing, who had revealed her dragon form, nearly met her end — it was only because Emperor Hua Ying blocked the strike for her.
In the blink of an eye, the numerous lower-grade open heaven cultivators of Void Land no longer dared approach the Heavenly Sword Palace carelessly, and they all pulled back.
This was precisely the terror of a large-scale palace Artifact. Such an Artifact functioned like a fortress, capable of both offense and defense, and was exceedingly difficult to contend with.
This was the first time the people of Void Land had encountered such a massive Artifact. Their lack of experience dealing with this kind of enemy had led to unnecessary casualties.
A dragon's roar shook the heavens. Yang Kai, who had been sent flying, flickered back into position with a flash of movement. The moment he laid eyes on the dead and wounded among his subordinates, he barked a sharp command: "Everyone below Fifth Order, provide support from a distance! The rest, follow me and fight!"
Even as the words left his mouth, he led from the front, hefting the enormous Azure Dragon Spear and bringing it crashing down.
A translucent barrier materialized above the Heavenly Sword Palace, but it could not withstand the spear's violent might. The barrier shattered, and a colossal force — like a falling star — struck the Heavenly Sword Palace, slamming it downward and interrupting its charge toward the Star Boundary.
Yang Kai's figure flickered and shifted, appearing like a ghost directly beneath the Heavenly Sword Palace. He swept the spear out once more.
A massive halo of light erupted, and the Heavenly Sword Palace was knocked off course in yet another direction.
After several such blows, the aura of collapsing Small Worlds and dissipating world power could be detected emanating from within the palace — clearly, some people inside had been shaken to death.
Meanwhile, the attacks from the Void Land forces had never ceased.
However, open heaven cultivators below Fifth Order could only provide support from afar, and their contribution was extremely limited. Those who could genuinely threaten the Heavenly Sword Palace were the nineteen Sixth-Order cultivators besides Yang Kai, along with several dozen Fifth-Order open heaven cultivators.
The advantage in numbers that they had enjoyed was now entirely nullified. On the contrary, the Heavenly Sword Alliance was defending from a fortified position, and aside from a handful of unlucky casualties, their numbers had barely changed.
Earlier, relying on their numerical superiority, Void Land had been able to pose a certain level of threat to the Heavenly Sword Palace. But now, the techniques and secret arts they hurled at the palace were rarely able to accomplish anything — almost all of them were intercepted mid-flight.
Zuo Quanhui was also striking from time to time, making Yang Kai hesitate to act recklessly. Though Yang Kai had managed to threaten the Heavenly Sword Palace to some degree with the Laws of Space, he still could not halt its advance toward the Star Boundary.
If this continued and they could not destroy the Heavenly Sword Palace, the Star Boundary was doomed.
Yang Kai's fury blazed to its peak, and he roared: "Old dog, if you have the guts, come out and fight me! Hiding inside the Heavenly Sword Palace — what kind of skill is that?"
Zuo Quanhui's response was an even fiercer barrage of attacks, forcing Yang Kai to dodge and weave.
Chasing and cursing all the while, the two sides fought through the void for a full half month. Neither could gain the upper hand, and yet the Heavenly Sword Palace drew ever closer to the Star Boundary.
Yang Kai's heart burned with anxiety, yet he had no recourse. He was already a Sixth-Order cultivator, but he still felt his own powerlessness.
The Great Emperors felt the same. Their divine senses linked as they discussed strategies for dealing with the enemy, but under such dire circumstances, no stratagem could be put into practice.
The Star Boundary was in mortal peril.