Blood rain poured from the sky like a crimson tempest, shrouding the entire world beneath its ghastly descent. The very heavens seemed to turn scarlet in that moment. “Is this truly the might of a Battle King warrior…?” As the devastating assault was effortlessly shattered by Hun Tiandi’s overwhelming power, even Gu Yuan and others felt an irrepressible sense of helplessness rise within them. No wonder reaching such a pinnacle had proven so difficult; between their strength and his, there lay two entirely separate realms of existence.
“Do you truly believe yourself fit to play the role of savior with but this puny power?” Hun Tiandi’s bloodshot eyes pierced into Gu Yuan, his tone edged with mockery. With a casual flick of his wrist, a violent jet of crimson energy erupted forth from his palm, obliterating a great mountain below—alongside countless tens of thousands of cultivators caught within. Not one soul managed to escape or resist. At this ruthless display, the expressions across all present turned pale with dread once more.
“This vaunted alliance of yours seems far too frail for my liking. Back then, I granted you a chance, Gu Yuan. Alas, you failed to grasp it,” Hun Tiandi murmured, his red-hued gaze fixed coldly on Gu Yuan. “Everything… ends now.”
Reveling in the fear and despair reflected upon so many faces, Hun Tiandi exhaled languidly. That which had once appeared a formidable challenge no longer held any intrigue. Like deities amongst mortals, the Battle King warriors reigned above all else, while those beneath them amounted merely to insects unworthy of notice.
With those final words, Hun Tiandi extended his long, elegant finger toward Gu Yuan and pressed forward gently. Instantly, the skies trembled as a dense aura of death surged around him. In mere moments, torrents of blood gathered at his fingertip before condensing into a beam of scarlet energy—an arrow of destruction unleashed directly at Gu Yuan.
At this sudden attack, Gu Yuan inwardly flinched, his Dou Qi surging through his body in haste. Yet, just as he began drawing upon the ambient energies of heaven and earth for defense, Hun Tiandi smiled faintly and extended a second finger.
“Seal!” At that utterance, a chilling sensation overtook Gu Yuan—his connection with the vast cosmic energies had vanished entirely.
A dreadful realization gripped him. The might of a Dou Sheng stemmed not solely from abundant Dou Qi, but rather, from unrestricted dominion over the forces of nature itself in battle. Yet here Hun Tiandi stood, dismissing such prowess as easily as silencing a whisper, leaving Gu Yuan crippled in half—a cruel dismemberment of skill and might alike.
“Gu Di Sui Nie Finger!” Despite this horrifying revelation, Gu Yuan wasted no time wallowing in shock. Instead, he channeled his remaining reserves, unleashing his accumulated Dou Qi into a titanic construct—an immense, radiant finger inscribed with enigmatic runes and streaked with divine markings—and fired it headlong against the crimson beam.
With a resounding boom, both collided amidst the heavens, shaking the air itself with violent force. Yet, despite a brief resistance, the finger imploded instantly—its remnants scattering like leaves on the wind. But the blood light persisted unabated, tearing forth to strike the thick barrier of Dou Qi encasing Gu Yuan.
The moment they clashed, the defensive veil—which appeared impenetrable—shattered as though struck by fate’s own hammer, breaking apart in a heartbeat. The force ripped directly into Gu Yuan’s chest, sending forth a gush of dark, arterial blood as he staggered backward, saved only by Zhu Kun rushing forth and steadying him.
“You dare wield Heaven and Earth’s powers before me? Foolishness beyond reckoning,” Hun Tiandi remarked casually, raising his hand again to clutch at the swirling crimson clouds overhead.
A surge followed—the skies cracked and groaned, split wide by a colossal crimson bolt of lightning that slashed down with apocalyptic fury straight for the allied armies.
“Formation! Deploy it now!” Gu Yuan commanded with a shout, hastily wiping blood from the corner of his lips.
Understanding well the consequences of hesitation, the allied armies rallied quickly, weaving together a dragon-shaped stream of endless Dou Qi that rose into the firmament with fiery intensity, slamming head-on into the blood-lightning.
A thunderous detonation rocked the heavens, casting blinding illumination across every corner of Zhongzhou. But soon, the serpentine stormlight cleaved clean through the Dou Qi dragon, dissipating its essence in a heartbeat.
Gasps and gasps arose among the allied masters as countless among them choked on rising bile, spitting streams of blood from internal injuries inflicted by the backlash.
One against an entire host—such was the dread potency of the Battle King!
Even comrades who once seemed invincible found themselves insignificant in his presence. Exchanging a glance with Zhu Kun, both warriors beheld in each other’s eyes the same stunned horror—they’d long suspected such might, yet confronting its reality made victory feel utterly unattainable.
“……The Battle King realm… terrifying beyond imagination,” Yan Jin murmured bitterly, knowing full well no hope remained under such dominance.
“No matter what,” Gu Yuan gritted, fists clenched, “we must stall until Xiao Yan completes his cultivation.”
Upon hearing this, others only winced further. Resistance felt increasingly futile in face of absolute supremacy.
“But delay may be possible still—I can sense the Dragon Seal left within Xiao Yan fading rapidly… This pressure cannot come from anything less than the might of a Battle King!”
The words of Ziyan ignited a sudden shift in their minds. A spark—hopeful at last in these hopeless days.
“In that case, we must buy time regardless the price!” Zhu Kun roared. Eyes alight with rage and grim resolve, he added, “While you rally our remaining allies, allow me handle this fiend for now.” Without another word, he launched himself skyward, transforming mid-ascent into an immense, awe-inspiring dragon—an avatar that countered some small degree of the pervasive gore in the sky.
“The Void-Dragon…” Hun Tiandi smirked approvingly. His gaze flickering briefly with curiosity, he chuckled mirthfully, “I’ve gained ascension to Battle King status—perhaps I need a steed after all. Serve me loyally, and I shall grant mercy upon your entire clan.”
Zhu Kun responded not with words, but with a searing torrent of violet-gold energy blasting forth from open jaws straight toward the tyrant Hun Tiandi.
“Foolish obstinacy.” Shrugging lazily, Hun Tiandi swiped a sleeve, dispersing the fearsome blast effortlessly.
Then, moving like a ghost, he darted across space onto the dragon’s very body and stomped heavily, causing scales to erupt outward like broken crystal. Blood fountains burst from wounds along Zhu Kun’s mighty body, cascading forth like molten waterfalls, staining the sky with lifeblood spilled.
“ROARRRRRRRRRR!!”
Tormented anew, the void-behemoth writhed with monstrous agony—each thrash splitting reality like thunder. And when Hun Tiandi’s foot met his flank once more, the titanic creature crashed violently into the mountainscape below, gouging the terrain into a gaping abyss.
Watching their mightiest warrior fall so easily, despair flooded through many hearts among the alliance ranks.
“How tiresome this conflict has become,” Hun Tiandi said impassively as he returned upon his lotus throne, surveying the masses beneath with detached cruelty. Slowly lifting his right hand towards the ominous, ever-thickening cloud layer of blood hanging over Zhongzhou, a terrible smile curled his lip.
“…Zhongzhou is no more.”
He slashed downward.
Instantly the thickened clouds writhed violently—waves of blood-laced energy coiled and twisted. Crimson lightning lanced wildly through the skies before unleashing its hellish payload downwards.
Zhongzhou quaked, cities collapsing, earth cracking wide open as even hidden souls beneath layers of rock were blown to ash by the seismic devastation. Defenseless hordes without barriers to shield them—millions crushed beneath divine wrath. Their remains painted lands into oceans soaked thick with carnage—survivors stampeded desperately into the Alliance compound—this scene could be described only as doomsday incarnate.
“DAMN YOUUUUUU!!” Gu Yuan screamed aloud—tears mingled with fury—while countless comrades were annihilated alongside helpless lives. Every single blow reduced flesh to dust, souls to mist—nothing escaped this massacre.
Yet amid the crimson inferno, Hun Tiandi only laughed—a laughter that echoed madness from a demon newly risen from hell.
“Fall back—fortify our core!” Gu Yuan rasped.
What little order remained crumbled—desperation gripped their spirits. Alliances fractured further; retreat the only path left. Ziyan and others stood motionless in mute anguish.
Cai Lin clutched tightly onto Xiao Xiao, shielding her young daughter from horrors unseen.
“Mama… will daddy come?”
Pressing tiny arms against Cai Lin’s shoulder, Xiao Xiao’s body trembled lightly.
“Hush love—Daddy will surely appear—he promised he’d come save Xiao Xiao,” Cai Lin soothed, hands stroking Xiao Xiao’s hair reassuringly.
But even as she finished, an unimaginably terrifying force suddenly exploded from deep within Xiao Xiao’s body. The energy overwhelmed Cai Lin’s limits within moments.
In the same instant—
Surges erupted among Xiao Zhan, Xiao Ding, and Xiao Li—bodies heighten, strength ascending swiftly.
“It’s the lineage awakening — their Battle King Bloodline stirs!!” Gu Yuan exclaimed in disbelief and euphoria combined.
Above, flames ignited in magnificent patterns, stretching out across the heavens. A great fire veil unfolded, shielding ten thousand leagues surrounding Xuan Clan territory.
Crushing beams of blood-red lightning slammed repeatedly against it—but this time, destruction halted. Scorching flames burned each crimson bolt into naughtness.
Flames roared and shaped themselves into a towering silhouette cloaked wholly in incandescent radiance. At the sight of the figure, even hardened Gu Yuan couldn’t contain joy—joy borne from surviving annihilation itself.
“Xiao Yan—we have brought it this far…”
And now… it rested fully on your shoulders.
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