Reversal!

Crash!

From the rubble, a bloodstained hand slowly emerged, five fingers gripping the edge of a broken slab of jade. Lu Changsheng struggled to raise his upper body. Beneath his torn green robe, his chest had caved in at an unnatural angle. Every breath tugged at his broken ribs, and bloody foam kept spilling from the corner of his mouth.

He tried to stand, but his legs felt heavy as lead. He had barely pushed himself halfway up when his knees buckled. He slammed back to the ground, his cheek scraping across the shattered jade and leaving a glaring streak of blood.

Battered.

Never had he been so battered.

Lu Changsheng lay facedown on the cold battle platform, feeling the spiritual energy within him run dry. It was like a parched riverbed, unable to stir even the faintest ripple. His Thunder Tribulation Armor had shattered, the Yellow Sand Veiling the Sun Array had broken, and even the Six-Colored Thunder Lotus had failed against his opponent.

Every trump card, every technique—he had used them all. Yet he still could not defeat Tianji Zi in the Minggu Battle Armor.

Was he destined to die here today...?

He slowly closed his eyes. Lin Qingxuan's tearful face surfaced in his mind, followed by Murong Taxue's cool gaze, Shi Jingtian, Tu Jiao, Rui'er... At last, the images settled on two blurred figures.

His parents, whom he had never met. A profound unwillingness surged from the deepest reaches of his heart. Like fire racing across a prairie, it burned through his mind on the verge of collapse.

"Not dead yet?"

A cold, arrogant voice came from above.

Tianji Zi slowly landed. Beneath the Inverted Star River, his dark-gold armor gleamed with an uncanny bloodlight. In Asura Mode, the armor looked as savage as a demon. Blood-red