"Roar!"
"Moo!"
Two deafening roars rang out. A terrifying giant ape, hundreds of meters tall, and a burly bull-headed python, more than a thousand meters long, appeared atop Clear Sky Peak. Their enormous bodies even blotted out the sun.
They brought their full strength to this battle. After all, they had once possessed the cultivation of God Officials. Tai Tan had had one of his Soul Cores shattered, but that alone wasn't enough to kill him.
Azure light burst from the Sky Azure Bull Python, and the air around it twisted. Its enormous blue tail swept across the sky, carrying the four mighty forces of nature—[wind, clouds, thunder, and lightning]—as it lashed toward Baili Du.
The Titan Giant Ape sank into a stance like a human lowering his waist and planting his feet while cultivating. Its bearing instantly grew grave and steady. It slowly swung its right fist, and a mass of pitch-black light gathered across its enormous knuckles.
When it threw that punch, there was no sound and no flash of light. Yet it struck at precisely the same moment as the Sky Azure Bull Python's tail.
If they had faced the Limit Douluos of this era, neither Long Xiaoyao nor Mu En could have easily dodged the combined attack of these two divine beasts. And if they had taken the full brunt of it, they would probably have lost half their lives on the spot.
Unfortunately, their opponent was far too overpowered...
No one saw what Baili Du did. After the world spun around them, the Titan Giant Ape's [Titan God Fist] slammed into the Sky Azure Bull Python, while the Sky Azure Bull Python's [Azure Dragon Tail Whip] cracked against the Titan Giant Ape's huge head.
The two Tang Family livestock's combined attack had just... hit themselves.
The sudden assault left them reeling. The Sky Azure Bull Python's enormous horns had even been snapped halfway off by the Titan Giant Ape's full-force punch. And they had both used all their strength in that attack!
Then Baili Du snapped his fingers, and the two Tang Family livestock were forced out of their beast forms and back into human form.
"This will make it easier for me to beat you."
As soon as Tai Tan, now in human form, managed to steady himself, Baili Du flashed in front of him and kicked sideways at his knee.
[Action reference: Star Platinum kicking DIO]
The kick sent Tai Tan spinning through the air. A spray of blood burst out, and, just as expected, both his legs bent backward at a ninety-degree angle, kicked cleanly out of place...
Before he could even scream, Baili Du clamped a hand around Tai Tan's fist and pulled it back. Then he raised his right arm, bent it, and smashed his elbow down hard.
An elbow strike.
"Crack."
Tai Tan's right arm snapped like a broken chocolate stick.
"AAAHHHH!!!!"
Before Tai Tan could finish screaming, Baili Du kicked him in the face.
Tai Tan's hulking, rugged figure flew backward in a spread-eagle pose, crashing into the base of the mountain behind Haotian Castle. Huge cracks spread outward from his body in every direction. Then he slid down to the ground like trash tossed against a wall.
His face twisted with excruciating pain. Perhaps it hurt so badly that he couldn't even cry out.
Baili Du landed lightly beside Tai Tan. The foot of his black combat boot came down on Tai Tan's huge head, grinding him into the snow and keeping him there.
Damn! Why was this so satisfying!?
Baili Du couldn't stop the corners of his mouth from curling upward. If he got the chance, he'd have to try this on Tang San too!
A bedraggled blue figure staggered out from Clear Sky Peak. When he saw his younger brother's mangled state, Niu Tian's ox eyes widened several times over.
His old vow to protect his younger brother made him want to charge in and fight to the death. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't make his legs move.
He kept stimulating the Sea God Mark in his mind, but for some reason, he got no response at all. It was as if someone had blocked it outright.
"Want to live?"
Niu Tian knew he couldn't let the other man dictate the pace. He took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. "You must be a powerful figure from the Divine Realm, right? Then you surely know who stands behind us..."
Baili Du cut him off, his tone indifferent. "Kneel down and slap yourself a thousand times. Then I'll let you both go."
"!!!"
Niu Tian felt an indescribable fury surge straight to his head.
Whether as the former emperor of the forest or as the current Grand Sect Master of the Clear Sky Sect, no one had ever dared speak to him like that!
Not even Tang San! How dare this man...
Each word ground out between his teeth. "What did you say?!"
Baili Du didn't repeat himself. He kicked Tai Tan's one undamaged left hand over to Niu Tian, then stepped forward, hooked one of Tai Tan's fingers with his toe, and snapped it...
"AAAH..." Tai Tan writhed in agony, but couldn't even get up.
"I hope you can keep that mouth of yours shut until I've snapped all five of his fingers."
His younger brother's screams and Baili Du's unhurried voice kept chipping away at Niu Tian's pride and self-respect. If he were alone, he would rather die fighting than let his dignity be trampled.
But Tai Tan was there—his younger brother, his only younger brother. There was also the little princess in Haotian Castle. If he and his brother died, there would be nothing left...
When Baili Du snapped Tai Tan's fourth finger, Niu Tian's towering figure finally sank to his knees.
"Haha, hahaha! Hahahaha!"
Seeing his old enemy kneel before him, Baili Du was in an excellent mood.
"Go on. I'll count every one."
"Slap!" After a few seconds of silence, Niu Tian slapped himself hard across the face. "Slap, slap, slap..."
After a dozen slaps, Niu Tian's cheek was already swollen. He was clearly putting his full strength into it.
This was a revenge plan Baili Du had devised specifically for Tai Tan and Niu Tian's personalities.
Tai Tan had played the bad cop, beating and kicking him, so Baili Du's revenge focused on the body. Niu Tian, meanwhile, had been Tang San's mouthpiece, striking at his heart. So Baili Du was returning the favor in kind.
It might have seemed like digging up old grievances after the fact, but he had finally made it back to this era. If he didn't settle the score now, he might never get another chance.
"Slap, slap..."
Niu Tian kept striking himself across the face, alternating hands without pause. Gradually, his cheeks swelled up, and blood trickled from the corners of his mouth.
The more it hurt, the dizzier he got; the more he slapped himself, the clearer his mind became. Soon, Niu Tian was in a strange state beyond description, mechanically striking himself across the face.
Niu Tian might have been out of it, but Tai Tan was fully conscious.
Though Baili Du had pinned his head down and left him unable to move, tears and snot streamed down Tai Tan's face.
"Big Brother!!!"
Watching his elder brother give up his dignity for his sake, Tai Tan felt that Niu Tian's image in his heart had shifted in a rather unfortunate direction...
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