The Angel Phantom grew clearer as Life Force poured into it. Its twelve wings turned from semitransparent to solid, every feather shimmering with a lustrous green glow.
The Purple Brilliant Heaven Destroying Dragon's body swelled, too. Its scales grew denser, its horns longer, and dark purple Destruction Force flickered between its scales.
But his body couldn't take it.
Fine cracks began to appear along his meridians. In some places, the damage was happening faster than he could heal.
Blood seeped from the corner of his mouth, dripping onto the floor of his spiritual sea, where each drop spread into a small red stain.
Xu Yanli felt himself sinking.
Just as he thought he couldn't hold on any longer, the Angel Phantom's chest suddenly lit up.
A white glow.
It wasn't large—was even a little faint—but the moment it shone, the entire spiritual sea fell still for an instant.
Faith Force.
The Faith Force in his Martial Soul had been gathering bit by bit—from the classrooms of Xiaoyao Pavilion, from the hearts of the villagers he had helped, from the devout prayers of the Angel Clan. At last, in this moment, it awakened.
White light spread from his chest like a thin veil, gently wrapping around his soul. It didn't resist; it soothed.
The violent Life Force was guided where it needed to go, while the restless Destruction Force had its rough edges smoothed away. The two forces still fought, but his body was no longer their battlefield.
The Angel Phantom and the Purple Brilliant Heaven Destroying Dragon opened their eyes at the same time.
One was compassionate, the other imposing.
A green beam and a purple beam shot up from the spiritual sea, straight into the sky.
Xu Yanli felt himself yanked upward. He passed through the spiritual sea, through