Chapter 286: That Strike

“Nuonuo An, go block him.” The moment Lord You Lan saw Sikong Yang charging, he gave the order.

“Yes.” The black-robed Nuonuo An immediately responded.

Facing the blazing, sun-like figure, Nuonuo An’s green-glowing eyes gleamed with malevolence. He cackled eerily, then suddenly launched forward. In an instant, his body completely disintegrated into swirling masses of black mist—over a hundred separate clusters.

Each cluster transformed into a demon—some handsome, some hideous, some seductive, some bizarre.

All one hundred demons roared in unison, “Sikong Yang, die!”

Though a hundred demons roared, it sounded as if only one had. In truth, it was indeed the voice of Nuonuo An himself—his body had split into a hundred parts, each possessing a demon. Each demon was his avatar, and with his essence empowering them, their strength surged dramatically.

“Whoosh! Whoosh!” The hundred demons encircled and lunged at Sikong Yang simultaneously.

“Annihilate!” Sikong Yang thrust his palm forward, unleashing a blazing golden fire hand.

“Hahahaha…”

“That’s all? So weak, so very weak.”

The demons surrounded Sikong Yang, each unscathed despite his attacks. Though the strongest among them only possessed top ten Semi-God strength, most were merely seasoned Semi-Gods. Yet each was immortal, nearly indestructible. In an instant, their combined assault overwhelmed Sikong Yang, making it impossible for him to break free.

“Roar!!!” Suddenly, over a hundred demons howled, their cries piercing toward the soul.

Sikong Yang’s body blazed with flames, his terrifying howl blocked by half from his protective aura, and then another eighty to ninety percent by his armor. When he sensed the residual sound faintly piercing his soul, he immediately focused his mind, completely sealing off the howl.

“Such a nuisance! This Nine Dragon Fire God Armor is unbreakable. I can’t use any of my techniques.” Nuonuo An was furious. Even against an expert capable of dominating an era, one must fight to determine who is stronger. But Sikong Yang… nothing could penetrate his defenses. Even Lord You Lan would likely face the same outcome.

That was why You Lan didn’t bother to act.

“This Xia Clan Transcendent, protected by divine armor, could never endure my ‘Ten Thousand Ghosts’ Curse’ otherwise. The poison alone would drive him mad,” General Kuumeng coldly remarked.

“He relies on the Nine Dragon Fire God Armor. What a fine divine treasure, wasted on him. Pity. These Xia Clan artifacts bear techniques left behind by their ancestral gods, so they cannot be fully refined or utilized. Otherwise, bringing a few would be advantageous,” Lord You Lan said, though his eyes remained fixed on the Ding Jiu Warship. He didn’t even care about Sikong Yang.

Because Sikong Yang was merely an era-dominating force, not a real threat to him.

What defines “dominating an era”?

It requires either the condensation of a third-grade Will into a divine heart or reaching the third stage of second-grade Will, while wielding a divine artifact. Only then can one be considered an era-dominating force.

One must possess both “power” and “mastery of rules.”

Sikong Yang, with the Nine Dragon Fire God Armor, had reached divine-level power, but his mastery of rules was only at the fourth-grade divine heart level.

…

“Master Sikong is held back by Nuonuo An!” Inside the main hall of the Ding Jiu Warship, Xia Clan Semi-Gods were anxious. They had hoped Sikong Yang and Lord You Lan would clash and distract each other.

“We have no choice!” Master Chen frowned. “Let’s try it. Initiate the attack.”

“Agreed.”

The divine crystal was a four-sided blue prism, stunningly beautiful.

It was embedded in the Ding Jiu Warship’s power slot. Previously, Master He had manipulated the warship with his own magic energy, but now he withdrew it and began channeling the divine crystal’s power to activate a complex formation—an ancient divine formation. Though Master He could partially comprehend and unleash its power, it was still limited.

“Crack!”

A deep blue lightning bolt tore through the sky like a terrifying serpent. The moment it appeared, the surrounding sky and earth trembled faintly. Where it passed, space itself turned to nothingness, leaving behind black fissures. Its power made Nuonuo An, General Kuumeng, and even Lord You Lan shudder.

This was the ultimate strike of the Xia Clan’s Divine Warship! Though they had mentally prepared for a confrontation with the Xia Clan, this strike still brought a sense of impending death.

Fast!

Unbelievably fast!

The terrifying deep-blue serpent was almost instantly before Lord You Lan.

“Divine Warship!” Lord You Lan had been on high alert. In that moment, his pupils constricted. Outside his own aura, especially in the direction of the serpent, time slowed dramatically. The terrifying deep-blue lightning bolt slowed accordingly.

Yet even slowed, it remained astonishingly fast, sweeping past You Lan’s body in an instant.

Whoosh.

You Lan’s body slowly faded.

Dozens of meters away, You Lan reappeared.

The deep-blue lightning bolt continued its path, silently obliterating the upper half of a distant mountain. In the blink of an eye, it pierced a thousand miles through the earth, finally vanishing deep underground due to the resistance of natural laws.

You Lan exhaled in relief. Fortunately, his Time-Slow Will had worked, sparing him from using his last-resort survival technique.

“Cursed! He actually dodged!”

“So close!” The Xia Clan Semi-Gods inside the Ding Jiu Warship were frustrated and anxious.

“The Ding Jiu Warship’s formation is too complex and profound. I only understand a little,” Master He said grimly. “If my cultivation were higher, I could unleash greater power…”

“Heyuan, this is a divine warship. Even gods must study it carefully to fully unleash its might. You’ve already done the most among us,” Master Chen said anxiously. “And it’s not your fault. His Time-Slow Will is truly troublesome. We attack, and he simply slows time and responds calmly!”

If it were another second-grade Will—

Like an offensive or purely defensive one—

Facing such a terrifying strike from the Ding Jiu Warship, most would be unable to dodge and get hit, likely dying instantly!

“Hahahaha! You Xia Clan really dare to spend! With this strike, you’ve already consumed a divine crystal! Come on, strike again! Let me see how many more tricks you have!” Lord You Lan sneered coldly.

…

Dongbo Xueying was traversing the Void, still searching for the Dark Abyss team.

Whoosh.

He re-entered the Real World again, standing in a serene, beautiful valley.

Though searching, he occasionally returned to the Real World to receive messages.

“Xueying, we’ve found the Dark Abyss team. The rest is our job now.” This was a message from Master Chen. Obviously, Master Chen didn’t want Dongbo Xueying involved, not even revealing the location ‘Black and White Divine Mountain’ to him. In his view, Dongbo Xueying couldn’t help anyway. Could he sneak in through the Void? He was even worried Dongbo Xueying might die because of it.

Because the enemy was too strong!

Other than Sikong Yang, protected by the Nine Dragon Fire God Armor, none of the Xia Clan Semi-Gods could face them directly. They had to rely on the clan’s most sacred treasures!

“Brother Dongbo, the Dark Abyss team has attacked Black and White Divine Mountain! They slaughtered countless Xia Clan mortals and demanded thirty divine scrolls! Even Senior Feng Dong was killed by a Lord You Lan in a single move!”

“Senior Brother Xueying, the battle at Black and White Divine Mountain has begun! Senior Feng Dong died tragically. Forced to beg and kneel for mercy, he refused and was killed outright.”

“Xueying.”

Message after message.

All from Transcendents. At the time, other Xia Clan Transcendents at Black and White Divine Mountain had witnessed the event, furious and enraged, naturally spreading the news. Master Chen had ordered other Transcendents not to interfere—the Semi-Gods were already engaging the enemy! Though they couldn’t go, they still exchanged messages, eventually reaching Dongbo Xueying.

Reading each message, Dongbo Xueying finally understood what had happened. His expression darkened, growing increasingly grim, his face like storm clouds.

“Black and White Divine Mountain!”

Dongbo Xueying immediately waved his hand, tearing open a spatial rift. In an instant, he entered the rift, heading toward Black and White Divine Mountain.

Flying through the spatial tunnel, his body radiated the Ultimate Penetration Will, breaking through all obstacles. At the same time, he held a flat flask in one hand, tilting his head back to drink the antidote ‘Bitter Hundred Returns.’ As the antidote entered his body, the pain was rapidly suppressed. Though still painful, it no longer hindered his combat ability.