Xia Feikuai saw that Fang Yuan had used an Immortal-level killer move, so he had no choice but to deploy his own Immortal-level killer move in response.
The pure white sphere of light didn't travel fast at all — it showed none of the swiftness typical of the Light Path.
But as it flew through the air, it displaced everything in its path, emitting a deep humming sound.
Boom!
The wine-jar-sized sphere of light slammed into the divination tortoise's shell with a weight like a mountain, smashing Fang Yuan's entire divination tortoise transformation into the ground.
The massive divination tortoise's entire body sank more than a foot into the earth.
Xia Feikuai's move was genuinely formidable. The Light Path had always been known for speed and ferocity, but Xia Feikuai's Azure Essence Strike did the opposite — it struck like a heavy fist. When it landed, the sheer force typically caught opponents completely off guard.
However, Fang Yuan's divination tortoise shell remained entirely unscathed.
"Hm?" After the strike, Xia Feikuai examined the result, and his eyes went wide.
Forget about a crater — the entire tortoise shell was perfectly intact, without so much as a dent.
Of course it was.
Xia Feikuai's move used the Light Path to simulate brute force. It was a clever trick.
But Fang Yuan's divination tortoise transformation was a Seventh Transformation Immortal-level killer move, with the Transformation Gu and Divination Tortoise Shell Gu as its core. The latter in particular — Fang Yuan only needed to activate it to gain a shell no weaker than that of an ancient desolate beast divination tortoise.
This was an Immortal-level killer move. With so many auxiliary Gu worms bolstering it, the defensive power of the shell surpassed even a real ancient desolate beast's.
Ancient desolate beasts had always been thick-skinned and tough-fleshed with tremendous vitality, and tortoises were among the most resilient creatures of all species.
It was no surprise that Xia Feikuai's Azure Essence Strike had been ineffective.
But for the person involved, this was a bit much.
"Azure Essence Strike completely neutralized? What a hard shell!" Xia Zhuomo thought in astonishment.
Xia Feikuai stopped attacking outright. He felt a long-familiar emotion — a splitting headache.
Staring at that thick shell, his head ached. He simply didn't know how to proceed.
In truth, he could have targeted other parts of Fang Yuan's body, but he'd chosen to strike the hardest part — the back of the shell. Of course, he'd also wanted to test just how strong Fang Yuan truly was.
"What should I do?" Xia Feikuai's mind raced.
Though he was typically hot-tempered, he could regain his composure during sparring.
But at that moment, Fang Yuan activated his second Immortal-level killer move.
Various Gu worm auras emanated outward — Immortal Gu and mortal Gu alike. Fang Yuan opened his mouth and spat out countless small turtle shells.
The small shells looked remarkably similar to the divination tortoise's back. If you removed the tortoise's head, tail, and limbs, then shrank the result down countless times, you'd have something very close to these small shells.
A vast quantity of small shells hovered in midair, spinning rapidly on their own.
"What are those?" Xia Feikuai halted his thinking. As a precaution, he flew backward, putting distance between himself and Fang Yuan.
Boom!
He threw a punch straight forward — the Azure Essence Strike once again.
But this time, the heavy, wine-jar-sized sphere of light didn't reach the divination tortoise.
Those fist-sized small shells swarmed toward the Azure Essence Strike like flies drawn to something rancid or a hive of bees, rushing in a chaotic wave to surround it.
Bang, bang, bang…
The small shells seemed remarkably tough. In the collision, hundreds of them were destroyed outright.
But the Azure Essence Strike was also whittled down completely, ultimately dissolving into a shower of light fragments that helplessly scattered into the air.
Immortal-level killer move: Hard Back!
This was a move Fang Yuan had refined from his earlier Immortal-level killer move, incorporating his own divination tortoise transformation. It made its debut here in the Southern Border — perhaps even across all Five Regions.
The core of this Immortal-level killer move was, of course, the Sixth Transformation Immortal Gu — Diamond Thought.
But he had also added the Seventh Transformation Perseverance Immortal Gu, along with a large number of mortal Gu for support.
Its power had naturally increased considerably, well worth the immense effort and thought Fang Yuan had invested.
"Ah! Those look like turtle shells, but in essence, they're actually thoughts!" Xia Zhuomo's eyes blazed with strange light as he instantly pierced the secret.
As a Wisdom Path Immortal Gu Master, he was extremely sensitive to all manner of thoughts. This was precisely his forte.
Xia Feikuai cultivated the Light Path, not the Wisdom Path. Despite his Seventh Transformation cultivation, it was only after Xia Zhuomo's reminder that he understood.
"Fellow Immortal Xia Zhuomo has keen eyes and excellent coordination," the divination tortoise spoke in human tongue, its tone dripping with sarcasm.
In truth, Fang Yuan hadn't deliberately tried to obscure anything. It was just that after combining this with the divination tortoise transformation, those originally golden, gleaming thoughts had all turned into dark, drab little turtle shells.
"Little Zhuo, quiet! I'm going to break his shell this fight!" Xia Feikuai declared.
Xia Zhuomo grunted and fell silent. Being mocked by Fang Yuan had soured his expression.
Xia Feikuai closed his eyes.
He began to gather his power.
Various Gu worm auras surged upward one after another, quickly spreading outward.
His red-date Immortal Essence was being consumed at a furious rate.