The change came so suddenly that no one knew what had happened. The two sides of cultivators who had been on the verge of a life-and-death battle each took a step back in the same instant, eyeing the other warily.
None of them feared death, but the anomaly in the Ink Nest space right now was enough to put them on guard. After all, no one knew whether the other side had pulled some trick.
Crack...
Another sharp crack rang out, and every Ninth-Order and Domain Lord in the space raised their head to look up. What entered their vision left them all stunned.
The rift that had just sealed itself had somehow split open once more.
The Human Race Ninth-Orders were overjoyed.
The reason they had been willing to fight the Ink Clan Domain Lords to the death was solely because they had lost all hope of escape. Since they were doomed to perish here anyway, they might as well make the Ink Clan suffer before they went.
But now that the rift had reopened, there was hope of getting out alive. Who would still throw their life away so readily?
They had no idea why the rift had opened again, and what astonished them even more was that the gap seemed wider than the one King Myoshu's self-detonation had created earlier.
Through the rift, vague and indistinct images flickered into view.
There was no time to deliberate. Grand Ancestor Ten Devils bellowed: "Go!"
As the words left his mouth, a liquid like blood streamed down from his right eye!
It had to be remembered that what he currently manifested was a Divine Soul body — there was no such thing as blood. What flowed from his eye was nothing other than his burning Divine Sense.
In this moment, he was staking everything he had.
A surge of blackness spread rapidly outward, enveloping the Domain Lords.
The remaining Human Race Ninth-Orders did not hesitate any longer. While launching attacks to hinder the Ink Clan Domain Lords, they leapt one after another toward the rift above. Grand Ancestor Smiling Moon, whose Divine Sense had been massively depleted earlier, was carried away to safety by another Ninth-Order.
Seeing this, the Ink Clan Domain Lords were not about to let it go. A violent wave of soul power exploded outward as an endless shockwave, attempting to cut off the Ninth-Orders' path of retreat.
Without the Warm Divine Lotus's protection, every Ninth-Order's Divine Sense trembled violently, making each step a struggle. In this state, there was no guarantee they could actually escape.
One Ninth-Order Grand Ancestor steeled himself. He turned away from the rift and charged directly at the Ink Clan Domain Lords instead, a fierce and violent fluctuation erupting from within his soul.
He was staying behind to cover the retreat, choosing the same method as King Myoshu's Ninth-Order — self-detonation of his soul. He only needed to hold those Domain Lords for a single breath, and the others would have their chance to escape.
But before he could carry it out, a soul that was visibly more powerful had already surged past him toward the Domain Lords. Halfway there, the flames of the soul had already engulfed his entire form, making him look like a blazing fireball.
"Battle Citadel has two Ninth-Orders holding the fort — losing one more won't matter. Go!"
The one who had rushed out was none other than the Grand Ancestor from the Battle Citadel. At this moment, he was burning his soul through a forbidden technique, severing his own path of retreat for good!
As he spoke, wave after wave of soul assaults from the Domain Lords hammered into his body, tearing his soul form apart until it was tattered and broken. Yet the Battle Citadel Ninth-Order didn't so much as make a sound, his soul fluctuations barely wavering.
In the blink of an eye, he had reached the cluster of Domain Lords. His soul form bared a savage grin and roared: "Burn!"
The instant the word left his lips, blinding light erupted from within his soul. The already-burning soul form suddenly transformed into a sea of fire that swept down over the Ink Clan Domain Lords.
The several Domain Lords nearest to him were splashed by the soul fire and immediately screamed in agony. The rest were terrified as well, deploying every means they had to defend themselves.
But how could they hope to block it?
Their soul power had become fuel for this inferno at this very moment. The more they pushed, the fiercer the blaze grew.
The flames were not only consuming the Domain Lords — even the twenty Human Race Grand Ancestors fleeing toward the rift could not avoid them. Tongues of flame licked and chased after them, and if any were caught, in the condition the Ninth-Orders were in now, there would be no escape.
Just as the soul fire was about to engulf them, Grand Ancestor Smiling Moon, whose soul was nearly transparent, forcibly channeled the Warm Divine Lotus's power to form a barrier that shielded all the Ninth-Orders within.
The next instant, every last one of them burst through the rift and vanished.
Behind them, the Ink Nest space was left in utter devastation.
A sea of fire blanketed the entire Ink Nest space, as though it intended to burn through the very heavens. The Domain Lords dared not linger here any longer and scrambled toward the rift, dragging their mangled bodies out of the space.
After the brief but savage uproar, this Ink Nest space suddenly emptied of all its inhabitants, leaving only raging flames sweeping through the void.
After all, it was a Ninth-Order Open Heaven's soul that had ignited. No one knew how long it would burn before it finally died down.
……
In an unknown place shrouded in darkness, a piercing shriek echoed through the void, laced with endless agony.
The elder called Cang chuckled softly: "This generation of juniors are all the type to fight to the death. No wonder they've been able to break through. Mo — your end is not far off now."
A voice filled with venom came from within the darkness: "I curse your Human Race to be slaves for all eternity!"
Cang replied coolly: "You don't deserve it."
He turned his head, gazing into the depths of the void. After countless ages of waiting, the day should be almost here.