A Saint's Claw Shatters Mountains and Rivers! The Calamity-Poison Python Devours Immortal Souls

The gray-green miasma, like a thick, sinister curtain, was forcibly swept aside by an invisible yet overwhelmingly powerful force. The terrifying sight at the bottom of the valley was laid bare without reserve.

Xiao Yi Xian lay limp upon the cold black rock, like a shattered jade doll. Her breath was as faint as a candle flickering in the wind, all but extinguished. Her once lovely, graceful face, like a flower in spring, was now bloodless and white as paper. Beads of cold sweat rolled incessantly from her temples, like pearls slipping from a snapped string, soaking her hair. Her lips had been bitten through from unbearable pain, and thin threads of blood seeped out, stark against her pallid skin. Her eyes, once clear as springs and bright as stars, had been replaced by churning, chaotic whirlpools of dark purple. The frenzied spirals held none of their former light, only endless agony and despair.

Above her, the phantom of a terrifying venomous python, its body covered in dark purple crystal scales and condensed until it seemed almost real, soundlessly opened a maw vast enough to swallow mountains! Its cold, vertical pupils burned with gray-white poisonous flames, like two sharp blades fixed upon the helpless Xiao Yi Xian below. They brimmed with the purest, most frenzied desire for destruction! Dense dark purple poison mist gushed from the python's jaws like boiling acid. Wherever it passed, even iron-hard black rock sizzled with a piercing hiss as it rapidly dissolved, as though devoured without mercy by the Grim Reaper.

The poison was backlashing! Like an unstoppable, surging flood, it struck straight at her very origin! This time, its might far surpassed every previous outbreak, as if a world-ending disaster had descended. The emerald glow from the Detoxification Spirit Bead had been compressed into a thin layer clinging tightly to Xiao Yi Xian's skin. Its light was as dim as a candle flickering in the wind, and beneath the mountainous pressure of the raging poison python, it let out a plaintive groan, as if it could shatter and vanish at any moment.

"No—!" Xiao Yan had only just rushed into the valley entrance when he let out a heart-rending roar, eyes wide with rage. He saw the poison-filled maw of destruction about to devour Xiao Yi Xian without mercy. In that instant, time seemed to freeze; there was no time to think. The Dou Qi in his body burned like a blazing inferno, surging wildly to its limit. With the resolve of one charging into certain death, he hurled the Heavy Xuan Ruler at the python's head, like a meteor streaking across the night sky. At the same time, his body burst forward at the fastest speed of his life, like a moth flying into a flame, recklessly charging toward the girl on the rock. He held to just one unwavering conviction: he had to save her!

"Ant! Get lost!" A hoarse, parched voice, like two dry bones scraping together, rang without warning in the depths of Xiao Yan's soul. Its indifference froze the spirit, like a curse from the depths of hell, and made his soul tremble.

"BOOM—!!!"

The deafening crash burst across the entire space of Poison Barrier Valley like the wrathful thunder of a heavenly god. In an instant, it was as if ice from ten thousand years ago had been plunged into this world. An indescribable pressure, supreme and rooted in the very hierarchy of life, came crashing down like a surging tide. It was cold and heavy, like an invisible mountain bearing down on everyone until they could hardly breathe.

Xiao Yan's frenzied charge came to an abrupt halt, as if a bird in full flight had suddenly slammed into an invisible, unbreakable wall of ice stretching ten thousand zhang high. He grunted as every bone in his body groaned under the strain, as though he were a puppet about to fall apart. The surging Dou Qi within him instantly collapsed like floodwaters bursting through a breached dam. He was held fast in place, as if struck by a binding spell, unable to move even a finger. All he could do was stare, watching the python's enormous maw, wrapped in the terrifying shadow of utter annihilation, lash toward Xiao Yi Xian like a bolt of black lightning.

Despair! A despair as chilling as plunging into an icy abyss instantly swallowed Xiao Yan's heart. He felt as though he had fallen into a boundless pit of darkness, unable to see even the faintest glimmer of hope.

At that critical instant, with the python's maw less than three feet from Xiao Yi Xian's head and about to swallow her the very next moment—

"Vmmmm—!!!"

The ancient black ring on Xiao Yan's left index finger, seemingly ordinary yet holding endless mysteries, suddenly erupted with a radiance more brilliant than ever before. The light was deep and ancient, like the chaotic dark gold of the universe's first dawn. It carried a mysterious aura that seemed capable of embracing all things, yet standing above them all. In an instant, the radiance condensed into a film of light as thin as a cicada's wing yet indestructible, like an enormous inverted bowl protecting Xiao Yi Xian and Xiao Yan, who stood within arm's reach, and shielding them beneath a safe haven.

"SSSS—!!!"

The python's destructive maw clamped down hard upon the dark golden barrier with a shrill, piercing sound, like the roar of the Grim Reaper. Terrifying poison powerful enough to corrode space surged against it like a raging tide, eating away at the barrier. The barrier shook violently, its surface rippling with countless fine waves, like a lake disturbed by a boulder—shimmering, yet concealing danger. But no matter how wildly the dark purple and gray-white poison ravaged it, no matter how desperately it tried to break through, the seemingly fragile barrier stood firm as an ancient rock, steadfastly guarding the two within. All poison that touched it was silently purified and annihilated like snow beneath the blazing sun, reduced to the most primordial nothingness and erased from the world.

The python let out a voiceless, furious roar of unwillingness, like a desperate shriek in the darkness. Its massive body writhed and slammed against the barrier with wild force. Every movement held enough power to destroy heaven and earth, yet it could not advance even a fraction, as if bound fast by invisible shackles.

Inside the barrier, Xiao Yan's gaze was drawn like iron to a lodestone, fixed on Xiao Yi Xian, who lay nearby with a breath as faint as a candle in the wind. His heart pounded so wildly that it seemed ready to leap from his throat, each beat unnaturally clear amid the tension. He slowly lowered his head, staring in disbelief at the dark golden light flowing from the ring on his left hand. The light was warm and vast, like a mysterious power from antiquity. It not only formed a sturdy shield against the world outside and its terrifying poison, it even restored a precious sliver of feeling to his body, which had been frozen almost numb by that dreadful pressure. It was as if a glimmer of dawn had appeared in the darkness.

"Again... its power?!" A tempest raged in Xiao Yan's heart as countless questions and shock churned through his mind.

At that moment, the firmament seemed like a fragile pane of colored glass, savagely torn apart by an invisible yet peerlessly powerful claw. A hundred-zhang spatial rift, burning with ghastly green soul flames, still stretched across the sky in all its terrifying savagery, like a gateway to the abyss of hell, radiating a chilling aura.

The clone of Saint Gu You hunched before the rift, suspended in the air. Dense black soul mist, thick enough to defy dispersal, roiled like surging tides and completely shrouded his figure, making it impossible to glimpse his true form. Only his eyes, burning with ghastly green soulfire, pierced through the layers of mist like two icy lanterns from the deepest pits of hell, coldly and mercilessly surveying the tiny oasis below. The terrifying pressure that froze space and forced all things into submission spread like a tangible cold tide, blanketing every inch of land and plunging the entire oasis into endless fear.

His hoarse, parched voice, like dry bones scraping against each other, had only just thundered across heaven and earth: "The Blood Soul Guide is here... Hand over the Green Lotus Core Flame. Hand over the Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python... Or every living soul here... will suffer a hundred years of soul-refining!" His voice was a death sentence, filled with boundless authority and ice-cold menace. Everyone who heard it was overcome with despair.

The final word, "years," lingered over the vast desert like an icy glint. In an instant, Gu You's eyes, burning with ghastly green soulfire, narrowed like blades and locked precisely onto the direction of Poison Barrier Valley!

His gaze did not settle upon the earth-shaking, destructive dark purple poison python. Nor did he notice Xiao Yan and Xiao Yi Xian, guarded beneath the mysterious barrier of light. His eyes now resembled those of a greedy vulture that had discovered a priceless treasure, brimming with insatiable avarice and ruthlessness as they fixed upon the ring on Xiao Yan's left hand, which was blazing with chaotic dark golden light! That light was deep and mysterious, as though it held the oldest secrets in the universe.

"Hm?! What is this...?!" For the first time, Gu You's voice wavered violently. Beneath its hoarse, parched rasp lay disbelief and astonishment, along with a tremor from the depths of his soul! The aura emanating from the ring was ancient and profound, as if it could commune with the laws of heaven and earth, bearing a mysterious power beyond the mortal world. Even his seemingly powerful clone felt an instinctive... wariness! Like an icy serpent, that wariness silently wound around his heart.

Just as Gu You's attention was drawn deep into the ring, leaving him stunned for this one ten-thousandth of an instant—

"Old fiend! Get—OUT OF MY WAY!!!"

A roar like the cry of an ancient Dragon Phoenix, blazing with fury that could burn the heavens, tore through the frozen space and exploded above the stone hall at the heart of the oasis! It brimmed with boundless rage and determination, as if it would shatter every injustice in the world.

"BOOM—!!!"

The roof of the stone hall burst apart beneath the impact of that terrifying force, as if it were made of paper! Stones flew and dust billowed. A figure in blue-green robes shot skyward, like a demon god tearing through hell, wrapped in a fearsome aura that could burn the eight directions to ashes! The figure surged upward with a forward-driving dominance, as though he would trample heaven and earth beneath his feet.

It was Xiao Zhan! Like a meteor streaking across the night sky, he descended upon this chaotic battlefield, radiating boundless authority and power.

His eyes were like searing furnaces of crimson gold, burning with such palpable fury that it seemed ready to set heaven and earth ablaze! Fine scales of crimson-gold light covered his body, each one shining with mysterious, imposing brilliance. Blue-green flame patterns flowed across them like ancient, arcane runes carved upon the body of a divine beast, radiating a power that made the heart quake.

At that moment, the original power of the Dragon Phoenix Tyrant Body Art and the Green Lotus Core Flame burned and fused within him like two surging rivers, without reserve. Their powers clashed and interwove, unleashing an even more terrifying energy. His aura at the peak of Two-Star Dou Zong surged like a volcano on the verge of eruption, drawing ever closer to the revered threshold of Three-Star Dou Zong, as if it might break through the shackles and enter a new realm at any moment.

Faced with the threat of death posed by Gu You's Dou Sheng clone, Xiao Zhan showed not the slightest fear or retreat, nor did he even consider testing the waters. He knew that against such a powerful enemy, only by giving everything he had would he have even a thread of hope. So his very first strike was one that shook heaven and earth, launched with unshakable resolve.

"Dragon Phoenix Tyrant Body! Green Lotus Heaven-Burning Seal!"

Xiao Zhan's hands flashed through a series of profound, complex hand seals before his chest. Every movement was precise and fluid, as though he had practiced them countless times. Within his dantian, the once-gentle essence of the Green Lotus Core Flame was stirred in an instant, awakening like a slumbering giant and unleashing a torrent of fire. Mixed with the Dragon-Phoenix Bloodline's utmost yang power, that force surged out like a roaring tide, carrying the might to burn the heavens and boil the seas.

"ROAR—!!!"

A mighty dragon's roar and a clear phoenix cry rang out, as if ancient divine beasts were bellowing. A colossal Flame God Seal instantly took shape above Xiao Zhan's head. It was crimson gold from end to end, as though cast from the purest gold, its edges ablaze with condensed, deep blue-green flames. Mysterious runes seemed to flicker amid their dancing tongues. Upon the seal, Dragon Phoenix phantoms coiled in full view, their forms lithe and imposing, complementing the slowly rotating imprint of a twelve-petaled green lotus in a breathtaking spectacle. A terrifying might capable of burning away all evil and purifying heaven and earth erupted like a blazing sun, illuminating the world.

The instant the seal took form, Xiao Zhan did not hesitate. He held both palms toward the heavens, as though lifting a massive mountain, and thrust them fiercely toward Gu You's clone suspended before the rift, with an unyielding resolve.

"Suppress—!!!"

"BOOM—!!!" The crash sounded like heaven and earth collapsing and the stars falling, shaking the entire world.

The Flame God Seal was like a violent star breaking free from the shackles of the universe. With unstoppable force, it tore through space frozen solid as iron. Bearing the force to boil seas, burn the heavens, and destroy the world, it hurtled forward amid boundless heat and fury like a falling meteor of flame, smashing toward Gu You! The air ignited wherever it passed, turning into blazing fireballs that shrieked with piercing detonations, like countless wronged souls wailing in agony. The space scorched by its terrifying heat was etched with twisting black trails, like savage wounds carved into heaven and earth. The oasis's temperature soared, and scorching waves rolled over it, making it feel as if everyone had been plunged into a colossal, blazing furnace, with every inch of skin pressed by suffocating heat.

"Hmph! The light of a firefly dares contend with the brilliance of the moon?" Gu You's hoarse voice rasped like two rusted iron plates rubbing together, edged with irritation at being provoked by an ant. To him, Xiao Zhan's seemingly earth-shattering attack was nothing but a feeble struggle. Facing a blow powerful enough to cripple or even kill an ordinary Dou Zong, he merely extended the withered arm veiled in dense black soul mist. The gesture looked casual, yet carried boundless authority and power.

"Vmmmm—!!!"

The moment that arm reached out, space twisted and rippled like the still surface of a lake struck by a boulder. Countless warped, agonized black specters, filled with endless rancor, shrieked out of the thick soul mist as if escaping thousand-year-old shackles. Their forms were hideous and terrifying, filled with boundless hatred for the world. In an instant, they gathered into an enormous, sky-shrouding ghost claw!

The claw was black as ink, as if condensed from the purest evil in the world. It was formed from nothing but the power of souls' resentment and frigid soulforce, radiating an aura that made one's hair stand on end. Its hooked nails curved as sharply as sickles, gleaming with a cold light and burning with ghastly green soulfire, like will-o'-the-wisps from hell, emanating death. In its palm, a vast ghostly face twisted with agony opened its maw and unleashed a soundless shriek of the soul, one that seemed to pierce the spirit and plunge its victims into endless despair. An icy, despairing aura that froze the soul spread in an instant, overwhelming the scorching heat of the Green Lotus Heaven-Burning Seal and shrouding the entire oasis in the cold shadow of death.

The Nether Ghost Claw! It was a high-level secret art of the Soul Hall, imbued with the sect's countless years of sinister legacy and terrifying power!

"BOOM—!!!"

The Flame God Seal and the Nether Ghost Claw, like two stars blazing with boundless fury, collided violently a thousand zhang above the oasis! In that instant, time seemed to freeze and heaven and earth lost their color. An indescribable, terrifying explosion erupted. The light burst forth like billions of suns blooming at once, so blinding that no one could keep their eyes open. The shockwaves spread wildly in every direction from the two combatants, shattering rocks and reducing trees to dust. The entire oasis trembled beneath the blow.

The first thing that met the eye was an ultimate sphere of energy, like an abyss devouring every ray of light. It resembled a mysterious star fallen from the depths of the universe, containing enough terrifying power to destroy the world. Crimson-gold heat, the liveliness of blue-green flames, black evil, ghastly green gloom... Several utterly different yet equally terrifying energies intertwined wildly within it, annihilating one another and exploding without pause. Every collision of energy was like the rebirth of the Big Bang, releasing dazzling radiance so intense that even the blazing sun in the sky dimmed, as though it were no more than a faint candle before the sphere.

Then came the destructive shockwave, surging forth like a raging tide. It was like billions of tangible waves, spreading in a ring from the heart of the blast. The air was instantly swept away and torn apart in its path, releasing deafening sonic booms like the death knell of doomsday, filling every heart with terror. Several enormous sand dunes along the oasis's edge were as helpless as fragile sandcastles before this terrible force. They were instantly flattened, vaporized, and erased without a trace. The defensive barrier around the oasis flickered violently like a warrior on the verge of death, letting out a groan as if about to shatter, seeming to tell the world just how terrible this calamity was.

Finally, the delayed, terrifying roar that seemed ready to tear heaven and earth apart arrived. It was like thousands upon thousands of thunderclaps exploding beside one's ears. The noise shook everyone in the oasis until blood seeped from their mouths and noses, their eardrums ruptured, and they collapsed to the ground in pain. This roar was power bellowing, destruction passing judgment; it made the entire world tremble.

At the center of the blast, space resembled a shattered mirror, riddled with dense black cracks like wounds in the universe, revealing boundless darkness and danger. The Flame God Seal and the Nether Ghost Claw fought one another to the death within that chaotic space, like two peerless masters locked in a life-or-death duel. Both crumbled inch by inch, their fragments flying in every direction, each one containing terrifying power.

The crimson-gold Dragon-Phoenix Power and the Green Lotus Core Flame intertwined like two furious dragons, frenziedly burning the black vengeful spirits and slowly devouring their evil and darkness. The ghastly green soulfire and frigid soulforce fought back just as fiercely, like cold serpents that constantly eroded and froze the flames, trying to extinguish their scorching power. Two diametrically opposed forces, each embodying ultimate destruction, clashed in the narrow space in the most primal and brutal struggle. Countless energies perished with every second, and new dangers arose with every passing moment.

"Pfft!" A mouthful of blood burst from Xiao Zhan's mouth. He reeled as if struck by lightning, his body rocking violently like a lone tree swaying in a gale. In an instant, his face turned deathly pale, devoid of color. The terrifying soulforce contained within the Nether Ghost Claw surged through the layers of the explosion's aftermath like a hidden current and slammed into his soul.

If the Dragon Phoenix Tyrant Body Art had not shielded his soul like a sturdy barrier, and if the Green Lotus Core Flame did not naturally counter yin souls, that single fierce blow would have gravely wounded his spirit and plunged him into eternal ruin. He fixed his gaze on the energy storm slowly dissipating in the sky, his expression grave, as though staring at an ancient behemoth asleep and on the verge of waking.

By contrast, the soul mist enveloping Gu You's clone merely rippled faintly, like a single wave disturbing a calm lake. A glimmer of undisguised surprise flashed through the ghastly green soulfire in his eyes. "Oh? You actually endured one claw from this Saint? Dragon-Phoenix aura? Green Lotus Core Flame? This little bug is rather interesting..." His gaze drifted over Xiao Zhan, tinged with the amusement of a cat toying with a mouse, as if savoring its prey's final struggles. Yet most of his attention remained fixed, as though drawn by a lodestone, on the strange barrier of chaotic dark gold light in the direction of Poison Barrier Valley, which seemed to conceal endless secrets and beckon him to uncover them.

"However..." Gu You's voice turned abruptly cold, like the howling north wind in midwinter, carrying an unquestionable authority. "The game ends here!"

Before his words had faded, his withered arm, just drawn back, rose once more. The movement seemed slow, yet it carried an endless, terrifying power. This time, rather than forming another ghost claw, he spread his five fingers like a vast hand blotting out the sky and pressed down toward the entire oasis below, especially the direction of Poison Barrier Valley!

"Netherworld... Soul Seizure!"

"Vmmmm—!!!"

An invisible suction force ten times more terrifying than before swept over Snake Abyss Oasis, like a primordial beast awakened! It did not target physical matter. It struck straight at the depths of the soul, as if it meant to wrench the soul of every living being out of their body.

"Ah—!!"

"No—!!"

For a moment, screams rang across the oasis as people's souls struggled in agony beneath that terrifying pull, as if they were trapped in an endless abyss.

In an instant, a string of shrieks, too ghastly to sound human, sliced through the oasis's tranquility like sharp blades, echoing across every corner of the land. They sounded like wails from the depths of hell, filled with boundless pain and despair.

The ordinary Snake-People Tribe warriors, fighting to protect their home, now trembled beneath this terrifying force; the Dou Wang elders, usually so imposing, felt their souls waver like candles in the wind; even Xiao Yan, imprisoned at the valley entrance and hardened by countless trials, felt an invisible, icy hand seize his soul and tear at it mercilessly. His Soul Origin pulsed violently beyond his control, like surging waves rolling through the depths of his spirit. Threads of soulforce were forcibly drawn from between his brows, stripped away like silken fibers and transformed into streams of twisted, agonized light of various colors. The red ones were like blood, carrying fury and unwillingness; the blue ones were like ice, steeped in cold and despair. They converged wildly toward Gu You's outstretched palm, as if they were sacrifices mercilessly dragged along by fate.

The formation's light at the Spirit Gathering Pavilion went out in an instant, like a candle flickering in the wind. The formation that had once shone with mysterious radiance was now dim and lifeless, as though this terrifying force had drained away all its vitality. The dense spiritual energy within the oasis was also thrown into chaos by the dreadful pull on the souls, like a lake lashed by a gale, its waters churning and stripped of their former calm.

The first to bear the brunt was Poison Barrier Valley. The violent dark purple Poison Source Crystal Core within Xiao Yi Xian was woven from pure energy and a will to destroy, like a time bomb concealing boundless danger. Under the pull that struck straight at the Soul Origin, it was like a lone boat caught in the heart of a whirlpool, helplessly swept along.

"Vmmmm—!!!"

The sealing runes on the crystal core instantly shattered, like fragile glass pulverized by a boulder. A still more violent, ancient dark purple torrent, filled with endless poison and resentment, erupted like a primordial poison dragon breaking free of its cage, carrying the power to destroy heaven and earth. The phantom of the poison python that had been battering the barrier instantly became a hundred times more solid. Its body swelled enormously, as though it had emerged from an illusory dream and become real. It raised its head in a soundless roar, one that seemed to pierce the soul and send chills through anyone who heard it. Its colossal body writhed frantically, the dark purple crystal scales shining with ominous light like strange stars in the night sky. The gray-white poison flames were almost solid, blazing fiercely and radiating a suffocating aura of death. Its destructive aura instantly broke through the dark golden barrier, like a beacon in the darkness, drawing all of Gu You's attention and fixing his gaze upon this terrifying power.

"Hm?!" The ghastly green soulfire in Gu You's eyes suddenly flickered, eerie light flashing like lightning. For the first time, undisguised delight and greed entered his voice, like a thirsty traveler suddenly discovering a spring and a feast. "Woe Poison Body?! Poison Origin Crystal?!"

"Hahahaha! Heaven is helping me!" Gu You burst into laughter, the sound like an owl shrieking in the night, sinister and unrestrained. "Such pure poison and resentment, accumulated over ten thousand years! This treasure is a thousand, ten thousand times more valuable than the Green Lotus Core Flame! This woman... this Saint claims her!"

As he spoke, the hand using the soul-seizing art abruptly turned, like a shooting star suddenly changing course across the galaxy. He abandoned the other living beings in the oasis who were struggling for dear life and focused the tremendous soul-pulling force entirely into his five fingers. Those fingers were like five pillars holding up the sky, radiating a chilling aura. They ignored the distance between them and seemed capable of piercing through every barrier.

In an instant, those five fingers pierced through the violently shaking dark golden barrier. It rippled with terrifying waves like a lake struck by a boulder. Then his hand reached down in a vicious grab, aimed straight at Xiao Yi Xian, who had fallen unconscious as the poison within her completely ran wild, her entire body wrapped in dark purple radiance. That radiance was like a ghostly flame from hell, radiating a destructive allure. Gu You's hand reached directly for the Poison Source Crystal Core within her, utterly out of control, as though he meant to seize the most dangerous treasure in the world.

"You dare—!!!"

At that moment, Xiao Zhan's roar thundered through the nine heavens like an injured tyrannosaur bellowing in fury. He watched Gu You's claw-like hand reach for Xiao Yi Xian, and saw Xiao Yan within the barrier, eyes bloodshot as he struggled frantically. It felt as if ten thousand steel needles had pierced his heart at once.

Unprecedented rage and madness burst forth like floodwaters breaking through a dam, sweeping away the walls of reason in an instant. The Dragon-Phoenix Bloodline seethed in his veins as if a thousand troops and ten thousand horses were charging within him; the Green Lotus Core Flame roared in his dantian like a volcano on the verge of erupting; and the Blood Soul Guide's mark seared the depths of his soul, as if it would set his spirit ablaze.

Every ounce of strength, every fury, and every protective instinct burned without reserve in that moment, like a blazing sun radiating boundless light and heat.

"Dragon Phoenix Tyrant Body! Burn the Soul! Burn the Blood!"

"BOOM—!!!"

The crimson-gold Dragon Phoenix scales covering Xiao Zhan's body transformed in an instant into roaring, blazing flames, as though an ancient Dragon God were bellowing within them. Blood mist, speckled with faint golden light, shot from every pore in his body like glittering stars, carrying the radiance of life and the resolve to die. The mist and flames rapidly fused, the hottest and most vital forces in the world colliding, and in an instant transformed him into a blazing golden body wreathed in blood-red flames.

This body of bloodflame and gold radiated a fierce, overbearing aura, as if it would burn everything in the world, using itself as fuel to seize ultimate power. Like a cataclysmic storm, it swept forth with the force to crush all in its path. In that instant, his aura violently broke through the limits of Three-Star Dou Zong and approached the mysterious, powerful realm of Four-Star Dou Zong.

But this power came at a price: his lifespan and Soul Origin were burning away at a frenzied rate, like a candle burning faster in a gale. Every flare of light meant life slipping away.

"Old fiend! You laid a hand on my son and the people I swore to protect—pay for it with your life!!!" Xiao Zhan's bloodflame-wreathed body plunged forward like a falling sun, carrying the resolve and tragic courage to burn everything to ashes, and slammed toward the enormous soul claw reaching for Poison Barrier Valley. He no longer defended himself or dodged in the slightest. He gathered all his power and will into his right fist, ablaze with bloodflame and blue-green flame.

That right fist seemed capable of piercing heaven and earth. Space shattered inch by inch before its advancing knuckles, like silk torn by a blade. His target was the core of Gu You's clone, as though he meant to erase the evil being from existence with this single punch.

Gu You had apparently not expected Xiao Zhan to be so reckless and resolute, risking his life by burning his soul and blood to destroy his own foundation. The soul claw reaching for Xiao Yi Xian slowed slightly, like a giant ship striking a submerged reef.

In that infinitesimal instant of hesitation—

Another change arose within Poison Barrier Valley!

Most of Gu You's terrifying Netherworld Soul-Seizing power was blocked by the dark golden barrier, like a raging tide held back by a sturdy embankment. Yet wisps of it still slipped through, like icy tendrils steeped in endless malice and greed. They not only tugged at the Poison Source Crystal Core but swept over the ring on Xiao Yan's left hand, which was blazing with dark golden light, as though searching for a new target and adding another measure of uncertainty to an already fraught situation.

"Vmmmm—!!!"

The ring seemed like an ancient divine artifact, long dormant, suddenly roused by a violent jolt from a force of the same origin, yet far higher and more evil. In an instant, it erupted with a brilliance it had never shown before. The chaotic dark golden light surged freely like a raging tide. Within it, countless ancient runes, clearer and more profound than ever, flowed frantically, flickering in and out. They seemed to be ancient writings recounting unknown secrets, or mysterious talismans holding the power to destroy heaven and earth.

A fragment of immense, indescribable will erupted from the ring like an ancient titan roused from sleep, its arrival carrying the power to destroy heaven and earth. This will seemed like the sovereign of the vast universe, radiating an authority supreme over all living things, as if every creature beneath the heavens had to bow before it. It also bore an innate revulsion toward soulforce, the netherworld, and every sinister thing, like righteousness declaring war on evil, or light crushing darkness without question!

"Crack!"

The faintest of sounds rang out, yet it seemed to come from a profound fracture within the soul itself, unmistakably clear amid the tension.

The enormous soul claw reaching for Xiao Yi Xian began to dissolve the instant it touched the dark golden light and the ancient fragment of will that burst forth, as if it were a wax figure plunged into strong acid. A steady hiss filled the air, as if the claw were wailing in pain. Its movement abruptly froze, as if an invisible giant hand had seized it tight, and it could advance no farther. The black resentful spirits forming the claw shrieked even more bitterly, like wails from hell, as though they had encountered their true bane. Before this powerful will, they seemed so small and fragile.

"What?!" Gu You's clone reeled as if struck by lightning and, for the first time, let out a scream of genuine shock. The ghastly green soulfire in his eyes flickered like ghost flames swaying in a gale, fixed upon the ring in Xiao Yan's hand. They throbbed violently, as though ready to break free of their sockets. His gaze was filled with disbelief and a fear that reached to the bone, as if he had seen the most impossible thing in the world—the thing that should never have appeared.

A name sealed away for untold tens of thousands of years, a mysterious title mentioned only in the Soul Hall's oldest and most forbidden texts, surged wildly through Gu You's clone with boundless shock and fear, almost bursting from his throat.

"Bronze... Immortal...?!"

But before the words could leave his lips—

"BOOM—!!!"

A tremendous crash erupted like heaven and earth collapsing. Xiao Zhan's death-defying punch, wreathed in bloodflame, blue-green flame, and boundless fury, hurtled in like a world-ending meteor from the depths of the universe. Carrying the resolve and tragic courage to burn everything to ashes, it smashed into the core of Gu You's soul mist, which had faltered slightly in shock. This punch contained all of Xiao Zhan's strength, all of his rage, and every last ounce of his will to protect, as if he would utterly annihilate this evil being from the world.