Tang San's Crushing Defeat! Yu Xiaogang Misleads His Disciple!

A sky full of cold glints whistled through the air, sealing off every possible path of retreat for Lin Yuan.

The sharp, piercing sound of air being torn apart stung the eardrums of everyone present.

The poison needles shimmering with a ghostly blue luster and the steel caltrops tipped with barbs wove together in mid-air, forming an inescapable net of death that descended upon the black-clad youth on the steps like a torrential downpour.

Yu Xiaogang, overcome with extreme excitement, waved his hands wildly in the air.

In his bloodshot eyes, he had already envisioned the miserable sight of Lin Yuan being turned into a pincushion, kneeling on the ground to beg for mercy.

Yet, facing such a fierce and ruthless killing move, Lin Yuan did not even twitch an eyebrow.

His hands remained casually at his sides; he made no move to dodge, nor did he shift his feet even a single inch.

Just as that cold light was about to touch the space between his brows—at the very last split second—

Lin Yuan lowered his eyelids slightly and parted his thin lips.

"Third Soul Skill, Shadow Devour."

There was no unnecessary buildup, nor any earth-shattering roar.

With the falling of these few understated words, The deep, ink-like ten-thousand-year soul ring at Lin Yuan's feet suddenly erupted with a terrifying black light!

A circle of absolute, pure darkness centered on Lin Yuan's body spread outward like a bursting dam.

In the blink of an eye, a dark domain so dense it swallowed even the light enveloped the area for dozens of meters around him.

The darkness was so profound it chilled the soul, and from within it, the hair-raising, heavy breathing of the Nine Nether Beast could be faintly heard.

The Tang Sect hidden weapons that Tang San took such pride in, the moment they charged into this dark domain, felt as if they had slammed into a dead sea devoid of buoyancy.

The Mysterious Heaven Skill internal energy originally coating those fine steel throwing knives encountered the most terrifying predator in the world.

"Sss-sss-sss—"

A teeth-grinding sound of dissolution echoed continuously through the darkness.

On those arrogant hidden weapons, the blue soul power glow lasted less than half a breath before being drained completely dry by that domineering devouring force.

Stripped of their internal energy and soul power, these hidden weapons that Yu Xiaogang viewed as his trump cards instantly turned into a pile of scrap metal.

"Cling, clang..."

Crisp sounds of metal striking stone echoed through the great hall.

Dozens of hidden weapons, less than half a foot from Lin Yuan's face, mysteriously lost all forward momentum and fell limply onto the hard stone floor like raindrops.

They lay scattered everywhere.

Yu Xiaogang, who had been screaming wildly a second ago, felt as if a handful of rusty nails had been shoved down his throat; all his manic laughter and cheers were choked off mid-air.

He stared with wide eyes at the scrap metal on the ground, his mind falling into a state of extreme blankness.

Tang San, standing opposite, felt his pupils shrink to pinpricks, his entire face instantly drained of all color.

Only he knew exactly what had just happened!

The Mysterious Heaven Skill internal energy he had imbued into those weapons had been sucked dry the moment it touched that black light by a force that was incredibly savage and utterly unreasonable!

It wasn't a defense; it was pure predation!

An unprecedented sense of life-and-death crisis hung over Tang San's head like a sharp blade.

No! I absolutely cannot win!

Conventional methods are nothing but a joke in front of this monster!

Tang San bit his tongue hard, trying to use the sharp pain to keep his focus.

He abruptly retracted his hands, his left palm facing downward, and an incredibly heavy, domineering black light began to condense frantically in his palm.

He had to use his final trump card!

The second martial soul he had been warned repeatedly never to reveal easily—the Clear Sky Hammer!

Only the absolute destructive power of the world's number one tool martial soul could possibly shatter this terrifying dark domain!

The pitch-black halo took shape rapidly in Tang San's left palm, the outline of the hammer handle just beginning to emerge.

However, Lin Yuan's patience had run out.

"Still wasting your effort."

Lin Yuan's voice pierced through the dark domain, transmitted softly yet with an irresistible pressure.

Before the words had even faded, the dense darkness suddenly contracted.

Lin Yuan's figure moved like lightning tearing through space, leaving behind a slowly dissipating afterimage where he had stood.

Tang San didn't even have time to blink.

He felt a blur before his eyes, and the black-clad youth, who resembled a demonic god, had already crossed a dozen meters, appearing ghost-like right in front of his face.

The distance between them was less than half a meter!

In Lin Yuan's deep, pitch-black eyes, there was no emotional fluctuation, as if he were looking at a blade of grass by the roadside.

Tang San's heart hammered wildly; the Clear Sky Hammer in his left hand had only just begun to materialize, leaving him no time to swing it.

Lin Yuan casually curled his right hand into a fist.

There were no flashy opening stances, nor was there the glow of any soul skill being activated.

It was just a plain, incredibly straightforward punch, driven fiercely toward Tang San's abdomen.

Though the punch appeared casual, it actually contained the terrifying physical strength of the Nine Nether Beast, capable of crushing everything in its path.

The fist tore through the air, even triggering a sonic boom!

"BANG!!!"

A dull, scalp-numbing explosion erupted suddenly within Martial Soul Hall.

Tang San's body went rigid in that instant.

His eyes bulged outward, bloodshot and terrifying, his mouth agape, yet he could not emit a single sound.

As the fist struck his abdomen, Tang San felt as if an entire mountain cast from steel had slammed into his body at immense speed.

His internal organs felt as though they had all been displaced in that moment.

Agonizing pain instantly overwhelmed every one of his nerves.

The next second, Tang San was sent flying backward like a cannonball, his body contorted into an extreme arch as he hurtled through the air!

The speed was so great that it left a long wake of air in its path.

"BOOM—"

Tang San's back slammed violently against the thick bluestone wall at the edge of the great hall.

The entire Martial Soul Hall shuddered from the impact.

The sturdy wall could not withstand such terrifying force.

With Tang San's body at the center, thick cracks spread out in all directions like a spiderweb.

Crumbled stone and dust rained down in a steady stream.

Tang San remained pinned to the wall for a full second before sliding down like a heap of mud, collapsing onto the floor.

"BLEH—"

Tang San spat out a massive mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of his internal organs, staining the stone floor before him a deep crimson.

He clutched his abdomen with both hands, his body curled up like a shrimp, twitching uncontrollably.

The phantom of the Clear Sky Hammer, which he had struggled to manifest halfway in his left hand, dissipated at this moment, turning into specks of black light that vanished into the air.

He had lost all ability to fight.