Beneath the crimson setting sun, in the desolate wilderness, four Two-Winged Angels with white wings of light surrounded Xiao Yan as they flew through the air.
Surrounded, Xiao Yan remained calm. Fiery red Dou Qi coiled around his body, and with a wave of his hand, he blocked the four angels' attacks.
"Saint Domain?" William's expression changed dramatically, then turned to one of utter shock. "You're only seventeen. How is that possible?"
William couldn't believe it, but the facts were right before him.
An ordinary human like Xiao Yan, who could easily block the attacks of four Two-Winged Angels, was beyond even a level-nine warrior who had comprehended the laws.
The look of astonishment on William's face took a long time to fade. It wasn't that he'd never seen a Saint Domain at seventeen, but those had been in the Supreme God Realm. There, not only were Saint Domains common, but there were also countless gods in their teens. But... the Azeron Continent was a Material Plane.
If word got out that someone had reached the Saint Domain at seventeen, it could alarm the gods and draw their attention.
Seeing that William had recognized his strength, Xiao Yan stopped hiding it. Dou Qi transformed into flames that wrapped around his body, and his immense spiritual power surged forth, unleashing a terrifying spiritual pressure upon the land.
Now Xiao Yan stood above them, with the crimson sun at his back and William and the others from the Church of Light before him.
"The tables have turned. The Church of Light could hunt me down, and now I can hunt down the Church of Light."
"From this moment on, I stand above all!"
As he spoke, the elements of heaven and earth surged above Xiao Yan. Countless crimson fireballs, each dozens of meters across, gathered in the sky, radiating scorching heat.
Fire Element forbidden spell—Meteor Volcano!
"Get out of here! Take the news back!" At the sight of this, William knew how terrifying a Fire Element Saint Magus could be. Without the slightest hesitation, he ordered the surrounding knights of light to flee.
William knew that without the Angel Battle Formation, the five of them could pose no threat to Xiao Yan now that he had reached the Saint Domain. Their only option was to hold Xiao Yan off while the knights carried the news back to the Church of Light, giving it time to prepare.
As an angel, William believed the Church of Light's interests came above all else. Knowing how terrifying Xiao Yan's talent was, he had to make sure the knights got the news back to the church, even if it cost him his life.
William stepped in front of Xiao Yan, his whole body radiating dazzling white light. Four white wings burst from his back. As a trickle of blood fell to the ground, he beat his wings and rose into the air, flying toward Xiao Yan.
"Kill!"
The other Two-Winged Angels beat their wings as well and attacked at the same time.
In almost an instant, William reached Xiao Yan. His jade-white hand, wrapped in the power of light and carrying a murderous intent, struck at Xiao Yan's vitals.
The four Two-Winged Angels condensed Angel Battle Swords from their Dou Qi and thrust at Xiao Yan's vitals from different directions.
"If you were here in person, I might show you some respect. But you're merely Descending Angels, and you think you can stop me?"
Xiao Yan's expression remained indifferent. He flicked a finger to deflect William's attack, then turned his hand and slapped William across the face.
William felt an immense force strike his face. Unable to control himself, he plummeted toward the ground and slammed into it like a meteor, gouging out a bottomless pit. The terrifying impact spread for dozens of miles.
Xiao Yan glanced disdainfully at the four Two-Winged Angels. The half-formed Fire Element forbidden spell above him instantly solidified, and terrifying fireballs rained down from the sky.
"Crackle, crackle!" Sparks flew everywhere.
By the time William flew out of the pit again, he ran straight into Xiao Yan, who emerged unhurriedly from the flames like a monarch of fire.
"You've comprehended... the la... laws?" William emerged from the pit, his body already seeping with blood. It was clear this body wouldn't hold out much longer. In just a few seconds, his angelic soul would be completely devoured by the Yulan Plane.
"Half a month ago, when I broke through to the Saint Domain, I was fortunate enough to gain some insight," Xiao Yan replied indifferently.
"I regret... that I didn't find and kill you sooner..." Hearing the answer, William died without closing his eyes, his body crumpling to the ground.
"Actually, you had your chance four years ago. You just didn't take it."
...On the main road outside Wutan City, Xiao Yan expressionlessly caught up with a knight. He waved his hand, and a mass of flame appeared from thin air, burning the knight alive.
"That makes the last one. I'm sure there are no survivors." After counting them in his mind, Xiao Yan's expression eased.
As he relaxed, Xiao Yan caught the smell of blood and furrowed his brow. He looked down at his clothes. The cuff of his sleeve had been stained dark brown with blood, left there when he killed the first angel.
He hadn't noticed during the fighting, but now that it was over, the stain was an eyesore.
"It's a pain not having a Spatial Ring." Xiao Yan glanced at Wutan City. "I'll go into town and change." With that thought, he strode into the city.
The number of Spatial Rings on Lynn's Azeron Continent was far smaller than on the Yulan Plane, even though both were Material Planes, making them much more precious. Aside from Saint Domains belonging to the three great empires, the Church of Light, and similar powers, many ordinary Saint Domains didn't have a Spatial Ring.
Xiao Yan had only recently reached the Saint Domain, so naturally he didn't have one either.
"Next time, I'll take one from the Church of Light!"
It was already night on Wutan City's central street. Few people were out, and most of the shops on either side of the road had closed. Only a few taverns were still open.
"Have you heard? A city in the Laine Principality was taken by a Saint Domain magical beast," a red-haired burly man shouted in a tavern, drawing everyone's attention.
"Another city's been taken? How many times has that happened in the past few years?" An old man leaned against the doorframe with a wine jug in his arms, his face worried.
"They won't make it as far as Wutan City. Those Saint Domain magical beasts wouldn't dare provoke the empire. Why worry about it?" said a young server, wiping a glass.
"Drunk... that's not necessarily true. The Laine Principality is a vassal state of the empire too, and a Saint Domain magical beast still slaughtered a city there. Drunk... who knows, it might come here one day." A clearly inebriated drunkard spoke without thinking.
No one nearby dared to respond to that topic, and they hurriedly changed the subject.
"By the way, don't you think there have been a lot more people from the Church of Light and the Church of Darkness around here these past few years?" The red-haired burly man was the first to speak again.
"I heard that some time ago in the north, a bishop from a branch of the Church of Darkness got into a conflict with the empire's officials. I think someone even died..."
"Rumors. This sort of thing crops up every so often. Before, people said it was the Church of Light that had clashed with the officials, and now they're saying it was the Church of Darkness." The tavern server shook his head.
"Whatever the case, I've felt something's been off these past few years," the old man said. He took a sip of wine, his cheeks flushed red from the liquor.
Passing by the tavern, Xiao Yan heard their conversation and furrowed his brow.
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