In the void, a squad-level palace Artifact shuttled back and forth like a fish gliding through water, its movements exquisitely agile. As the Open Heaven Realm experts stationed at each formation channelled their power, the formations surged to life, and lash-like beams of energy hammered forward.
Each strike carried the equivalent force of a Seventh-Order Open Heaven cultivator's full-powered attack.
The Ink Clan forces fleeing ahead were utterly incapable of resisting. In the blink of an eye, casualties piled up while the survivors scattered in every direction.
This squad-level palace Artifact was naturally the one belonging to Xu Linggong's squad. It had departed from Yin-Yang Pass and arrived at the designated location within the scheduled timeframe.
Before they had even had a chance to rest, they spotted Ink Clan refugees streaming in from the side.
Both Yang Kai and Xu Linggong understood immediately—these were Ink Clan soldiers fleeing the battlefield at the resource production zone. Seeing this, they knew full well that the human forces on the main front had already gained the upper hand, and had most likely routed the Ink Clan's main body. Otherwise, these stragglers would never have broken away.
These scattered remnants, not even Lord-level among them, were hardly enough to pique Yang Kai's interest. The palace Artifact's offensive power alone would grind them to dust.
The position Yang Kai and his squad currently occupied could be described as a chokepoint along the Ink Clan's escape route—this was a deliberate arrangement by Yin-Yang Pass.
Now they simply had to wait for that gravely wounded Black Abyss Domain Lord to pass through. That would be the moment Yin-Yang Pass's plan truly hinged upon.
For this operation, Yin-Yang Pass had even gone so far as to preemptively ignite the conflict at the resource production zone. The ultimate objective was to get Yang Kai safely into the heart of Ink Clan territory, and every link in this chain of plans was meticulously interlocked, so airtight that the Ink Clan likely never imagined the humans had gone to all this trouble for the sake of a single person—Yang Kai.
The palace Artifact wove through the void for the better part of a day, cutting down numerous fleeing Ink Clan stragglers, before finally encountering a worthy opponent.
It was a formation of over a hundred Ink Clan soldiers, led by two Lords. However, having fought bitterly on the battlefield for an extended time, both Lords bore wounds, and the morale of the entire group had plummeted.
When they suddenly spotted a human palace Artifact in the void, the two Lords were thoroughly startled.
No matter how they tried, they couldn't fathom why a human palace Artifact would appear in a location like this.
Their experience in combat against the humans had not been limited, and the two Lords were well aware of the destructive potential of these palace Artifacts. Though a human squad fielded only a dozen or so members, every squad boasted at least two Seventh-Order cultivators. A squad's personnel combined with a single palace Artifact was more than enough to go head-to-head against their hundred-strong remnant force.
Then again, they recalled that more of their kin would be arriving from behind, and their composure returned at once.
No matter why this human palace Artifact had ended up isolated here, encountering it was a stroke of fortune. They merely needed to pin this human squad in place. Once reinforcements arrived, their numerical advantage alone would be enough to overwhelm them.
This battle had already ended in a devastating loss. If they could snatch some merit here, they might even avoid punishment upon returning.
At the thought, the two Lords exchanged a glance and nodded subtly. No further words were needed; everything was understood.
The more hot-tempered of the two waved his hand and barked, "Pin them down! Don't let them escape!"
With that, he shot forward first, like a cat that had caught the scent of fish, terrified of arriving too late to claim his share.
But what happened next left him utterly stunned.
In his original estimation, a lone human squad confronting such a large Ink Clan force would immediately turn tail and flee. Yet reality played out in completely the opposite manner—not only did the human squad not retreat, it charged straight toward them.
Before the Artifact even arrived, the formation runes on its hull were already flickering with brilliant light.
The Lord at the front paled with alarm. A primal sense of danger washed over him, and he dove aside in haste. The next instant, a lash-like beam of radiance lanced from the palace Artifact, tearing through the void.
Though the Lord had dodged quickly, he could still feel the devastating power behind that strike. Had he taken it head-on in his current wounded state, he would have been either killed or crippled.
Glancing back, the Lord's heart twisted as though pierced by a knife. That single blast had ripped a massive gash through the center of his hundred-strong formation—at least two dozen of his kin had perished in an instant.
The violent fluctuations of energy surged once more, and two more beams of light erupted from the Artifact.
The Ink Clan soldiers had been on guard, yet they still suffered heavy casualties. Just three strikes from the palace Artifact had halved their numbers.
It didn't stop there. A figure exploded from the palace Artifact's hold, spear in hand, body moving in perfect concert with the weapon. A single thrust, and the figure was already before the leading Lord.
The Lord was horrified beyond measure—he had never imagined a human could move with such terrifying speed. He frantically mobilized his Ink Force, fashioning a solid barrier of protection before him.
A defense that should have been foolproof crumbled before the razor-sharp spear. Wherever the spear passed, the Ink Force disintegrated as though it were nothing.
Fortunately, that brief moment's delay was enough for the Lord to adjust his posture and barely dodge the vital spot.
Ink blood sprayed into the air as the spear pierced clean through his shoulder. The wounded Lord, caught between fury and terror, let out a wild roar toward the heavens. His enormous fist clenched tight, and he hurled a devastating punch forward.
That punch carried the force to rend heaven and earth.