The Domain Lord of Yinhu Island looked grim as he dodged the crisscrossing streaks of black light, yet still managed to spare a thought for his opponent. "I never thought Jiuyuan Holy Land would give you the Wushen Thorn."
The Wushen Thorn was a spoils of war claimed from the Outer-Region Battlefield by the Lingtong Race's only Immortal God.
Long ago, the most legendary genius in the history of the Lingtong Race had entered the Guluo Secret Realm of Xuanshang Universe Country. He went to the Outer-Region Battlefield to train as a World Lord, but later died there.
Enraged, the Lingtong Race's Immortal God had also entered the Outer-Region Battlefield to avenge that genius. To his surprise, the Lingtong Immortal's strength had advanced tremendously there, and he had made many fellow Immortals.
After taking revenge, he had never left the Outer-Region Battlefield all these years. He had also brought back many treasures and secret techniques for the Lingtong Race, making it the wealthiest of the six Sacred Lands.
The Wushen Thorn was one of the precious treasures from an Alien Race that the Lingtong Immortal had brought back from the Outer-Region Battlefield.
No one outside knew what the Wushen Thorn was really called, or how it worked. Some guessed that it was coated in a poison produced by an Alien Race; others claimed it was made of a special kind of metal.
Whatever the truth, the Wushen Thorn's tremendous power was undeniable. Even a World Lord struck by it would have much of their World Force corroded, and their Inner World might even be gravely damaged. A Domain Lord had it worse still—just a glancing blow would make their body collapse instantly.
Meng Yi said nothing. He focused on controlling the Wushen Thorn, guiding it along intricate trajectories as it repeatedly stabbed at the Domain Lord of Yinhu Island.
The advantage had shifted. Now it was his turn to force his opponent onto the back foot. Given enough time, an opening was bound to appear. If the Wushen Thorn even grazed him, not even the most powerful Domain Lord could recover.
But suddenly, Meng Yi's expression changed drastically. He glanced toward the distant starry sky, tens of thousands of miles away.
That was where Prose, Kuman, and the other young geniuses of their race were.
A streak of blood red appeared in the still, dark expanse of space.
In a very short time, the deep-red, slender vines grew from tiny shoots into a colossal creature several kilometers long! Its dense, massive roots and twenty-four whipping tendrils made it look like a terrifying monster!
"Moyun Vine!"
The cry came from Meng Yi in shock—and from Prose and the others in near despair.
Although this was Jiang Yao's first time seeing such a plant, he recognized it almost at the same time as Prose, Kuman, and the others.
That was because the Moyun Vine was unquestionably one of the most popular defensive plant lifeforms in the universe.
Though built for defense, it was more than capable of trapping and killing its foes. It was practically essential equipment for anyone traveling the universe.
Its only drawback was its price.
It cost a fortune to raise.
Usually, only major powers could afford to keep one.
The universe-level Moyun Vine before Jiang Yao was as large as a comet. The resources spent raising it to this size could probably have nurtured dozens of universe-level fighters.
In fact, only a dozen or so seconds had passed from the moment Meng Yi led Jiang Yao and the others out of the spaceship to the Moyun Vine's sudden appearance.
Most of them had yet to recover from the swift clash between Meng Yi and the mysterious Domain Lord.
Despair had already appeared on Prose's face. They couldn't hope to escape a universe-level Moyun Vine in a short time—not even a star-level one.
Tens of thousands of miles away, the moment Meng Yi sensed the Moyun Vine's appearance, he immediately rushed toward Prose and the others.
But before he had flown a hundred meters, a flash of silver streaked past. The Domain Lord of Yinhu Island had closed in and slashed at him with a cold expression.
Meng Yi reacted quickly and used his Bloodline Divine Ability again, but the slash sent him flying over a thousand meters. The black streak that followed was dodged by the Domain Lord of Yinhu Island once more!
Meng Yi had not drawn any closer to Prose and the others. Instead, the distance between them had grown.
"You have a backup plan, but I dared to come and kill you, so I made ample preparations too!"
Meng Yi was nearly bug-eyed with fury. He had the Wushen Thorn, which made him invincible, while his opponent had mastered both Fengpo Liuguang and Xingyin Blade to perfection, making him just as untouchable.
The only ones suffering were the star-level geniuses of their race—Prose and the others.
The Domain Lord of Yinhu Island coldly fended off Meng Yi's frenzied attacks, finding chances to hold him back and force him away.
There was a reason his teacher had chosen him for this mission. Among the Domain Lords, no one but him had mastered both of the Wind Origin Law's techniques to such a degree. He could attack or defend with equal ease.
Although the Wushen Thorn's sudden appearance meant they could no longer silence their opponents, wiping out all their star-level geniuses was an unexpected bonus.
The two fought in a flash of lightning.
Tens of thousands of miles away, the Moyun Vine had nearly wrapped its several-kilometer-long tendrils around Jiang Yao and the others.
The Messenger twitched his piglike nose and asked in surprise, "Huh? They're not trying to kill you?"
Jiang Yao gave a bitter smile as Prose, Kuman, and the others frantically attacked the vines without so much as scratching the colossal plant.
Whether their enemies wanted to kill them or capture them, he had no choice now.
"Jiang Yao! What are you doing?!"
Seeing that Jiang Yao wasn't joining the attack, Prose and the others roared at him through mental transmission. To them, it seemed the Lingtong Race's top genius had accepted his fate and given up.
But Jiang Yao had already sat down cross-legged and entered a meditative state.
What was he doing?
Opening the door and letting the bird out!
Prose seemed to realize what Jiang Yao was planning, but he had little hope. He knew that Jiang Yao's awakened Bloodline Divine Ability was extraordinary, but this was a universe-level Moyun Vine!
Forget a star-level fighter's Bloodline Divine Ability—even the Old Patriarch, held back by an enemy in the distance, would need some time to break through the Moyun Vine. Their frantic attacks were only meant to buy the Old Patriarch a little time to rescue them.
Still, if Jiang Yao's Bloodline Divine Ability could buy them even a little time, that would help.
The next moment, Jiang Yao opened his eyes.
In the dark space, completely enclosed by the Moyun Vine's twenty-four tendrils and shaped like a sphere, light suddenly pierced the darkness and drove it away entirely, illuminating every shadow and corner.
It was as if each of his eyes held a small star. Endless light and heat filled the spherical space.
Prose and the others had stopped attacking. They stared at Jiang Yao, dumbfounded, and even had to use their mental power to hold back the rapidly rising temperature.
Crimson-white beams of light shot through gaps all over the spherical mass of vines, now several kilometers across. The Moyun Vine looked like a giant hedgehog.
Even Meng Yi and the Domain Lord of Yinhu Island, still locked in fierce battle tens of thousands of miles away, spared some attention to watch the Moyun Vine in astonishment.
The Domain Lord of Yinhu Island, who had been so confident of victory, looked grim, his heart uneasy.
Meng Yi, who had been desperate and enraged, felt a glimmer of hope.
Something must have happened over there.
A crane's cry rang out!
The ancient call resounded through the void, as if the will of some slumbering being had awakened.
Even the soundless vacuum could not hinder it. The cry seemed to ring in everyone's soul.
It carried a chilling cruelty and savagery, as if brimming with an endless hunger for destruction and slaughter!
And with it came a hunger that chilled the heart!
The previously formless will of Bizhang flew out of Xu Yuan Space and emerged from Jiang Yao's eyes. The Origin Laws of Fire and Light in the surrounding space seemed to awaken, surging wildly.
Bolstered by the two Origin Laws, Desolate God Bizhang's will took form. It had a crane's head, an eagle's beak, and half-spread wings!
The moment Bizhang's will appeared, the entire Moyun Vine instantly froze.
Then, as if it had encountered a natural enemy, the twenty-four tendrils wrapped into a sphere suddenly unfurled, releasing Jiang Yao and the other six.
"Run!"
Jiang Yao struggled to send a mental transmission to Prose and the others.
Of those still stunned, Kuman reacted first. He spread his Domain and quickly carried the others away.
The Moyun Vine seemed to go mad, thrashing its tendrils and writhing in a desperate struggle.
But it was all in vain.
Within its body, everything—from fibers to cells, Origin Energy to genes, moisture to consciousness—seemed to turn into fuel. Its only purpose was to feed the flames.
Every part of its body, every component, seemed flammable.
A blaze of incandescent white started on one tendril. In an instant, it consumed the entire several-kilometer-long main vine, then spread to the roots and the other tendrils. Nothing could stop it!
"Reel it back in! Don't let it keep eating!"
Piglet roared from within the Taihuan Token.
Jiang Yao's consciousness snapped back angrily. "Like I fucking need you to tell me?!"
"Let's go all out!"
Jiang Yao's soul sat in command of Xu Yuan Space. With godlike power bolstering him, he set his soul ablaze. His Origin Energy, mental power, Domain, and will fused completely, connecting with the universe and unleashing his greatest strength.
A mighty force extended from him like countless chains, hooking onto Bizhang's will, which existed between the tangible and intangible, and straining to drag it back.
Tens of thousands of miles away, the Domain Lord of Yinhu Island instinctively dodged another streak of black light. Before he could react, a look of horror flashed in his eyes, and his entire body seemed to freeze.
A thread of savage, brutal will surged from the Moyun Vine's consciousness, followed some mysterious connection, and invaded its owner's soul!
Though the Domain Lord of Yinhu Island was horrified, he focused all his will and immediately expelled it. Even so, his body stiffened for an instant.
Lost in confusion and wild joy, Meng Yi did not let the opportunity slip by. A streak of black light flashed like lightning across the Domain Lord of Yinhu Island's shoulder.
The next moment, the Domain Lord of Yinhu Island's body collapsed in terror, turning to dust!
Meng Yi didn't waste a second. He turned and flew swiftly toward Prose and the others.
To his shock, he saw a bird between the tangible and intangible, its whole body burning with incandescent white flames, being pulled bit by bit back into Jiang Yao's eyes.
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