For ordinary people, ruptured meridians would be a fatal injury. But for
The ability to fly was indeed critical for low-to-mid-tier Soul Masters, but at Tang San's current level of cultivation, he could fly without even using the soul bone's skill, relying solely on the coordination of his Soul Power. Just like how he had once seen
So flight was not some extraordinarily precious skill attached to the Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone. Its true power lay almost entirely in the property of unrelenting regeneration — the fire that the prairie could never fully extinguish, only to grow again when the spring wind blew. Consider this: even limbs that had been lost could be restored. That alone spoke to how formidable this ability was. As long as Tang San had a single breath left in him, he was practically immortal. The only difference was the speed of recovery, which varied depending on the severity of his injuries.
Right now, as the meridians within Tang San's body ruptured during combat, the energy of the Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone immediately intervened at the first possible moment. It stabilized the damaged meridians, sealing off the cross-sections of the ruptured vessels to prevent catastrophic internal bleeding. The blood Tang San had coughed up came from that brief instant when the meridians had just torn open under the violent tremors. Otherwise, given the degree of meridian damage caused by his use of the Great Avuncular Hammer, he would have been finished long ago.
Once he was removed from battle, the energy of the Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone would first coalesce inside his body into the shape of meridians, connecting each severed meridian to the next, re-establishing normal circulatory pathways so that blood could flow again. Then, through that same power, it would gradually heal the torn meridians it had linked together. This was a major reason why Tang San's Soul Power could recover so quickly.
Now, with Tang San completely calm, he immediately sank into the bliss of cultivation, his entire being entering a state of perfect meditative training. He could vividly feel every meridian knitting itself back together during the healing process. As a powerful cultivator, the first thing one had to master was one's own body. After every increase in physical attributes, if one could not promptly acquaint oneself with the new state of the body, it would be impossible to properly gauge oneself in battle. This was especially true for someone like Tang San, who possessed the Great Avuncular Hammer — an ability that was both domineering and dangerously taxing. He absolutely had to understand the limits of his body in order to avoid pushing past them in combat and losing his life.
Fully immersed in cultivation, his body recovered at the fastest possible rate. This battle against
Winning the bet against Qian Renxue in the end — and reclaiming his Sea God's Trident — had cost Tang San far more mental energy than physical stamina. That final strike, in particular, had been the first time he deployed the Guanyin's Tears, and it had drained nearly every last ounce of his potential. He had dealt Qian Renxue a grave wound, but he himself had been pushed to the brink of total exhaustion. Thanks to
The reason Tang San had insisted on traveling beyond the range of Qian Renxue's divine consciousness before beginning his cultivation was not to conceal his intended direction of escape. Rather, it was to keep Qian Renxue from learning the state of his body. If he cultivated within the Star Dou Great Forest while under the surveillance of her divine sense, she could estimate his injuries and, based on his recovery time, calculate how far he could flee in the remaining window before their agreed deadline.
To win the bet against Qian Renxue, Tang San had played every last card in his hand, and she now had an extremely thorough understanding of his overall capabilities. The only silver lining was the increase in his Soul Power level. His Soul Power had more than doubled, which would serve as a crucial buffer if Qian Renxue caught up. Three days was not a short time for a powerful cultivator, but three days was far from enough for Tang San in his current state. He was certain that no matter which route he took, Qian Renxue would have some chance of catching up — it was only the exact timing that was hard to predict. Therefore, the moment he had chosen to move beyond her range of divine perception and begin cultivating, another round of their chess match had already begun.
It took Tang San nearly eight full hours before he had completely repaired all of his meridians. Just as he had predicted, he had indeed advanced a level. Once his meridians were fully restored, the effects of his ninety-sixth-level Soul Power became immediately apparent. Each circulation of the
He had finished several hours ahead of his own estimate. Tang San knew that his odds of surviving Qian Renxue's pursuit had increased another few notches. This was inseparable from his earlier ability to calm himself and throw his entire being into cultivation.
Taking to the air once more, Tang San locked onto his heading and accelerated to maximum speed, trailing an afterimage through the sky as he hurtled toward the coast. With his Soul Power dramatically increased, even his flight speed had risen.
Tang San maintained his top speed almost without pause. To keep his velocity fully extended, he flew at roughly a thousand meters above the ground. At that altitude, birds were scarce and would not interfere with his flight. Moreover, from a thousand meters up, he was difficult to spot from the ground — and his speed was already incomprehensibly fast.
He stopped to rest only once every six hours. At maximum flight velocity, what was depleted was not merely Soul Power but also mental energy. Of course, if Tang San truly wished to, he could have maintained that speed continuously for three days without stopping. But he knew that doing so would leave his body in a suboptimal state, making the situation far more dangerous if Qian Renxue caught up. By resting every six hours, he could keep his body consistently at peak condition, ready to react at any moment.
After more than two days of flying, the deadline of his agreement with Qian Renxue was drawing close. And under his full-speed flight, the coastline was growing nearer and nearer — he could already smell the salty tang of the ocean in the air.
The Oceanic Protective Shield had been released from his body six hours ago, placing him under a cloak of concealment. This was, of course, to block Qian Renxue's divine sense from searching for him. Tang San knew that if her divine sense truly caught up with him, he would have nowhere to hide. Unless he could find an area no smaller than the Star Dou Great Forest, he had at best a fifty percent chance of going undetected. But clearly, across the entire Soul Land, places like the Star Dou Great Forest were exceedingly rare. And even then, it would not be foolproof. Qian Renxue had not even used a divine artifact the last time she searched for him with her divine sense — who knew how much stronger it would become if she deployed one? Therefore, Tang San simply used the Oceanic Protective Shield for basic concealment and continued his high-speed flight. What he hoped for most right now was that Qian Renxue would misjudge his direction during her search, or that even her god-level speed had some limitation and could not catch him within such a short time. Based on the current situation, in at most three more hours, he would reach the coast. Once he entered the ocean's domain, Qian Renxue's divine sense could double in power and it would not matter.
As the inheritor of the Sea God, if he could be locked down while within the ocean, Tang San might as well give up. The sea was like the
Time ticked by, second by second. Tang San's entire being was locked in a state of tension, his right hand gripping the Sea God's Trident tightly as he maintained his high-speed flight.
The weather today was exceptionally clear. Visibility from the air was excellent, and Tang San's Purple Extreme Demon Eye granted him extraordinary sight as well. After two hours, he could already see the vast outline of the ocean in the distance and feel its towering waves of moisture.
Faster — just a little faster. Even someone as composed as Tang San found his heart beating faster than usual at a time like this. He was almost there. In less than an hour, he would reach the coast.
Two hours past the agreed-upon deadline, and Qian Renxue still had not appeared. Clearly, even as a god, her speed had its limits — she could not teleport across the entire continent at will. It seemed he really was going to escape her pursuit. Qian Renxue, once I become the Sea God, I will repay you tenfold for the humiliation you have inflicted on me today.
But Tang San had celebrated a bit too early. A quarter of an hour later, just as the sea drew even closer, he suddenly felt his body go rigid. His soul, in particular, was wracked by a tremor of dread. A chill ran through his heart. Mid-flight, he spun his head around to look behind him. His heart sank straight to the bottom.
At an unknowable distance, a tiny golden point of light was hurtling toward him at incredible speed. In the span of a single blink, the golden point had doubled in size. One could only imagine how terrifying her velocity was. Besides Qian Renxue, who else could achieve such speed?
Tang San sighed inwardly. The thing he feared most had come to pass. He understood that even if Qian Renxue was a god, she could not have guessed which direction he had taken. The fact that she was catching up could only mean one thing — she must have left some kind of mark on him. Relying on that mark, she had been able to pinpoint his exact trajectory. And it was a mark he himself could not detect.
At the same time, Tang San could sense the sheer determination radiating from the approaching point of light. This time, Qian Renxue had resolved herself to annihilate him completely. The chance to exploit her conflicted feelings toward him was gone. Moreover, she was clearly far more powerful than before. It looked like what he would be facing was the
Only half an hour's flight remained. He was on the very cusp of his destination, on the verge of escaping mortal danger — only to be caught. The feeling was anything but pleasant.
Qian Renxue's silhouette had already appeared within his line of sight. In just a few minutes, she would have him. What could he do?
A flash of cold light crossed Tang San's eyes. He brought the main blade of the Sea God's Trident flat against his forehead, letting the cool touch of the weapon steel his nerves. Gritting his teeth, he veered sharply downward and dove toward the ground.
The Angel God was, in a sense, the sovereign of the sky. Back when Tang San's grandfather,
And so Tang San chose the terrain that best suited his fighting style — the ground. He dove toward the earth at full speed. Below him stretched a vast expanse of hilly terrain. Past these hills, over two more mountains, and he would reach the coast.
Even as he plummeted downward, Tang San raised the Sea God's Trident high. As if signaling to Qian Renxue, he channeled a beam of the Sea God's Light into the Heart of the Sea God. The trident erupted with a blazing pillar of golden radiance that shot toward the sky. Simultaneously, he plunged into the hilly terrain below, and at just the right moment, the Eight Spider Lances sprang from his back, propelling him forward in bounding leaps like a skipping stone.
Qian Renxue saw the light from the Sea God's Trident, of course. A thin, cold smile touched her lips. Her body accelerated once more, her six wings unfurling behind her before snapping back in a single beat. The golden light of the Angel God tore through the space itself, and in just a few breaths, Qian Renxue was directly above Tang San's head.
Surging golden light descended from the heavens, spreading across the earth like sunlight. No matter how fast Tang San was, he could never outrun light. That blinding golden radiance blanketed the entire space in an instant. The golden light rippled — it was the Angel Domain.
Compared to last time, Qian Renxue's Angel Domain had at least doubled in power. The horrifyingly dense golden light was almost solid, like liquid gold. If it truly enveloped his body this time, Tang San would have no chance at all — not even the combined force of the Ring Detonation and the Chaotic Wind Hammer Technique's ultimate strike could shatter a divine-level domain.
Qian Renxue was nothing like the version of her that had faced Tang San before. Gone was the elegant, noble palace gown. In its place was the Angel Divine Armor — evolved from the six Angel Set soul bones. Resplendent golden armor was crafted to perfectly match her proportions: a raised breastplate, a tapered and slender waist guard, a golden battle skirt roughly half a meter long, smoothly rounded pauldrons, and armor that hugged the rest of her body flawlessly, encasing her entirely. At her forehead, the small angel mark was encircled by a golden band. At the very center of the band, a gemstone shaped like a miniature angel blazed with radiant light, with seven wave-like crests rising above the band to form a headpiece reminiscent of a princess's crown.
Feather-like patterns were etched across every surface of the armor. The six wings on her back had become translucent, brilliant gold, and with each gentle beat, concentric ripples of golden light radiated outward from her body. The Angel Sword in her hand had been transmuted entirely into gold, its crossguard unfurling like a pair of angelic wings. A magnificent golden flame blazed across every inch of Qian Renxue's form.
Without question, this Qian Renxue was the true Angel God. The vast torrent of golden light descending from the sky was emanating from the angel-shaped golden gemstone at the center of the halo upon her forehead.
In the flash of that golden light, Tang San's body was frozen in place. His forward momentum ground to a halt. With his Eight Spider Lances deployed, he was like a spider caught in an enormous web — taking even a single step forward was nearly impossible.