The giant-like Divine Spirits stepped through the Domain Gate, their bodies rapidly expanding to their true size before crashing down into No Return Pass with a thunderous impact.
The massive fortress shook to its foundations. Shockwaves swept outward in every direction, and countless Ink Nests—once carefully tended by the Ink Clan—vanished in an instant, like snowflakes melting under a blazing sun.
Had such a scene played out just days ago, it would have broken the hearts of countless Ink Clan members. But in this moment, not one of them cared anymore.
The Ink Clan had committed every last shred of their strength. All of No Return Pass had become nothing more than an empty shell. This battle would decide the life and death of every Ink Clan member within the pass. If they won, they could cling to survival a while longer. If they lost, everything would turn to nothing—and who would care about something like Ink Nests then?
The two Divine Spirits began to stride forward, breaking into a run across the vast expanse of No Return Pass. In just two or three steps they surged into the battlefield, charging straight toward the two Ink-colored Divine Spirits.
The Ink Clan forces attempting to block their path suffered terribly. The defensive lines, which had been holding on stubbornly, were smashed apart as A Da and A Er carved out two unobstructed corridors of destruction. Casualties mounted in an instant.
The Ink-colored Divine Spirits, who had been slaughtering the Human Army with abandon, sensed the incoming threat immediately and braced themselves in defensive stances. But in the very next instant they were struck head-on by A Da and A Er respectively, sending all four tumbling together in a heap.
A Da seized his opponent around the waist, hammering his fist into the other's ribs with savage force. His opponent refused to yield, bending an elbow to slam into A Da's lower back while wrapping his other arm around A Da's neck, twisting with all his might as though trying to rip his head clean off.
The battle between the two Divine Spirits was brutally simple—the spectacle looked no different from two ordinary men brawling. Yet every single blow shook the Void, destabilizing the cardinal directions. Terrifying shockwaves spread outward in visible ripples, sending waves undulating through the fabric of space itself.
Every living being in the vicinity, whether Human or Ink Clan, retreated without exception, clearing out a battlefield large enough for the two titans to fight freely.
A Er's fight was no less violent on his side. He and his opponent traded blow for blow, each punch landing with bone-jarring impact, sending both staggering with every hit.
They were old rivals who had clashed in the Void Domain for thousands of years, neither ever gaining the upper hand. This battle was nothing more than a continuation of their ancient war.
Barring any unexpected developments, a contest between Divine Spirits was unlikely to produce a clear winner.
Moreover, neither the Human nor the Ink Clan had the strength to intervene in a battle of this magnitude. Any rash interference risked being caught in the crossfire, with consequences too dire to contemplate.
Only Yang Kai watched from the sidelines with cold, calculating eyes, quietly biding his time—waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
The Ink-colored Divine Spirits had finally entered the fray—exactly what Yang Kai had been hoping for. A Da and A Er had arrived in time to keep them occupied, meaning there was no longer any worry about them threatening the Human Army. All Yang Kai needed to do now was find the right opportunity.
But when—or even whether—that opportunity would present itself was anyone's guess.
Despite having instructed A Da and A Er at length on what to do, Divine Spirits were simple-minded creatures. Whether they could carry out his plan as directed was something even Yang Kai couldn't guarantee.
He didn't rush into the Divine Spirits' battlefield recklessly. Instead, while keeping one eye on them, he continued to roam the battlefield, exploiting Lei Ying's innate ability. Before he launched his ambush, those Pseudo Lords rarely detected him coming—and by the time they did, doom had already arrived.
By this point in the battle, he was no longer limiting himself to Pseudo Lord-Rank targets. If the chance arose, he wouldn't pass up Domain Lords either. Dozens of Pseudo Lord-Ranks had already fallen to his hand, and at least a thousand Domain Lords—and that was just from targets of convenience, not from deliberately hunting Domain Lord-level enemies.
Riding the breach in the defensive line carved out by A Da and A Er, the Wolf Fang Army and the Liang Yi Army had driven deep into the Ink Clan forces. The two Human armies coordinated seamlessly, widening the gap with every passing moment. The Ink Clan tried desperately to pull back and shore up their defenses, but it was no use.
The dawn of victory shone upon every Human soldier. On this chaotic and brutal battlefield, even as countless vibrant lives were snuffed out one after another, nothing could stop the soldiers from pressing forward.
What surprised Yang Kai immensely was that the opportunity he'd been waiting for arrived far sooner than expected.
A roar suddenly rang out across the battlefield—it was A Da's voice, tinged with a hint of excitement: "Little one, come quickly! I've restrained it!"
Almost the very instant the words left A Da's mouth, Yang Kai—who had been monitoring the situation the entire time—was already at A Da's side.
In this moment, A Da and his opponent lay sprawled across the Void, tangled together. A Da had both hands locked around one of the other's arms, clutching it to his chest like a priceless treasure. His legs, twisted like a vice, had coiled around one of the opponent's thighs. In this position, two of his enemy's four limbs were completely pinned, making escape virtually impossible.
Yet this situation was extremely disadvantageous for A Da. Because he had to exert all his strength just to keep his opponent restrained, all four of his limbs were occupied. In contrast, his enemy still had one arm and one leg free. By the time Yang Kai arrived, the Ink-colored Divine Spirit was hammering A Da with a relentless barrage of punches and kicks, each blow making his body shudder violently. Chunks of matter, each roughly the size of an ordinary town, were breaking away from his body's surface.
Because he had been keeping constant watch over all four Divine Spirits, Yang Kai could see everything with perfect clarity.
After charging out from the Void Domain, A Da had grabbed hold of his opponent immediately, using every means at his disposal to restrain him. Through a grueling process of grappling and wrestling for dominance, he had eventually achieved this current position.
This was precisely what he had stressed over and over to A Da and A Er before the battle: once engaged, they had to find a way to restrain the Ink-colored Divine Spirits no matter what!