Jiang Chen killed the tumor-horned cultivator, but his anger was far from quenched. He swung his sword light around without hesitation, directing it at the zombie-faced Old Ma.
Old Ma had not lacked the thought of fleeing. But that impulse had barely formed before his companion was already done for.
By the time he reacted, Jiang Chen's sword formation was already pressing down on his head.
The Great Dream Spring and Autumn Formation Jiang Chen had laid down had long since sealed the surrounding void. Even an Emperor-realm powerhouse would need considerable effort to break through—it was absolutely not so easy as fleeing at will.
This was precisely why Jiang Chen was confident he could kill them.
Old Ma's cultivation was actually a notch above the tumor-horned cultivator's. When Blue Sea Emperor had been tying him down earlier, there had in fact been an opportunity for him to escape.
He simply hadn't expected the situation to turn so swiftly.
For a brief moment, he was unable to process what was happening. By the time he came around, the combined assault-and-trap formation had already locked him in place.
The three Emperor-realm powerhouses were unleashing frantic, lethal attacks against him.
Old Ma's predicament was far more dire than the tumor-horned cultivator's had been. After all, Jiang Chen and his allies could now focus all their attention on this single target.
Beyond Jiang Chen's formation and the three Emperors, there was also a true dragon whose offensive power was in no way inferior to that of an ordinary Emperor-realm expert.
Old Ma nearly coughed up blood on the spot.
There was almost no suspense in the fight. Even though Old Ma had been prideful his entire life and was a bona fide high-tier Emperor, it made no difference.
In raw cultivation alone, Blue Sea Emperor was roughly his equal. And there was the even more formidable Emperor Wushuang.
Emperor Panlong had only recently advanced to the Emperor tier, but he carried true dragon bloodline—a terrifying innate power. Add to that a true dragon and a fearsome formation.
All these forces combined amounted to four or five times his own strength.
Even with godlike abilities, Old Ma had no power to turn the tide.
The battle ended without the slightest suspense.
Two Emperors fell in this nameless corner of the Tiangui Kingdom. Such an event—the death of Emperor-realm powerhouses—was exceedingly rare across the Human Domain in recent centuries.
The rogue cultivators who had been observing would likely never forget the soul-stirring sight for as long as they lived.
"Foreign cultivators trespassing into a mortal kingdom—by rights, that is a capital offense. Today, this young lord is showing leniency. I will not kill you. Leave at once. From this day forward, set foot in this land again and you will die."
Jiang Chen's voice rang out clear and rolling like surging waves, spreading across the entire Royal Capital of the Tiangui Kingdom.
Those cultivators had already been warned off by Blue Sea Emperor and were prepared to leave. But once Blue Sea Emperor was attacked immediately afterward and had no time to mind them, they had grown bold enough to linger—not out of any sinister motive, but simply to watch the spectacle.
After all, a clash between Emperor-realm powerhouses was something they would never have another chance to witness in their lifetimes.
These cultivators were all rogues from various places, and the reason they had been lingering in the Tiangui Kingdom was simply that over the past few years the situation across the Myriad Domains had spiraled out of control, leaving the region essentially lawless and unmanaged.
The minor King of the Tiangui Kingdom had no power whatsoever to rein these cultivators in.
Now, coupled with Jiang Chen's threat and the authority of his status as the young lord of Glazed King City, the cultivators scattered in abject terror, cursing that their parents hadn't given them an extra pair of legs as they fled.
Blue Sea Emperor was somewhat exasperated. "Those fools—I told them to leave yesterday, and still so many of them hung around. Young lord, it seems your words carry more weight than mine."
Jiang Chen chuckled. "If those scoundrels from Danfire City hadn't been causing trouble, they'd have left long ago—there'd have been nothing left for you to worry about. Anyway, there are still three more down there. Let's go have a look."
The three Sovereign-realm cultivators had been restrained by Emperor Wushuang and were lying on the ground.
Seeing that both of their Emperor-realm seniors had been cut down by Glazed King City's cultivators in the blink of an eye, the three were terrified out of their wits.
If they hadn't been pinned down, they would have abandoned their seniors entirely and fled without a second thought.
"Bring them over for a thorough interrogation." Jiang Chen's gaze was detached and cold.
None of the three were made of tough stuff. Under forceful interrogation, they spilled everything like beans from a bag.
"What? You were posted at the Barren Wasteland entrance to investigate whether the Peacock Great Emperor was still alive?" Jiang Chen was visibly startled upon hearing their confession.
He immediately turned to Blue Sea Emperor. "Canghai—back when Shura set this whole affair in motion, do you recall exactly where it was?"
Blue Sea Emperor thought for a moment. "Shura never went into detail about that at the time. But he did say that after being wounded, the Peacock Great Emperor used some special method to bypass the formation barriers and escape into the Barren Wasteland Demon Sealing Ground. It's possible he really is somewhere nearby."
The mere thought of the Peacock Great Emperor set Jiang Chen's nerves on edge.
The Peacock Great Emperor was an elder for whom Jiang Chen held deep admiration. His noble character, his vision and the heights from which he viewed problems—these truly surpassed all the Emperors of Glazed King City, perhaps even anyone Jiang Chen had ever met.