Fleeing

However, just at that moment—

"Hmph, ridiculous."

Qian Qizhou let out a cold snort. The sound was not loud, yet it reached the ears of the enraged King of Slaughter with perfect clarity.

"Hum—!!!"

Under the King of Slaughter's furious gaze, Qian Qizhou gripped his Naginata tightly, pouring every ounce of power within him into the weapon without reservation.

Brilliant purple lightning erupted once more across the blade, all of it condensing at the very tip.

"Heh, a deathbed struggle."

Just as the King of Slaughter assumed this brat was about to put up a desperate fight, he saw Qian Qizhou strike the empty air in front of him with his Engulfing Lightning!

"Crack—!!!"

A deafening sound like shattering glass rang out.

The space before him had been forcibly torn open by that single strike, revealing a pitch-black, twisted spatial rift!

Without a moment's hesitation, Qian Qizhou transformed into a streak of light and dove straight into the rift.

The instant his figure vanished into the crack, he glanced back at the enraged and stunned King of Slaughter. "Dead freak, who said I was going to fight you?"

As his voice faded, the spatial rift snapped shut and vanished!

The King of Slaughter: "!!!"

He froze in mid-air, his crimson eyes filled with disbelief... and a towering, humiliated rage.

That ant... that damned ant! He had actually... torn through space right in front of him... and escaped?!

And he had left behind such an insulting remark?!

"Ahhhhhhh!!!"

The King of Slaughter went completely mad, letting out a deafening roar toward the heavens.

A terrifying aura of slaughter erupted uncontrollably, grinding the already ruined palace into fine powder.

At this moment, he felt like a giant being toyed with by a monkey, filled with unbearable frustration and fury.

Meanwhile, hundreds of miles away from the desolate, silent plains outside Slaughter City, above a remote valley.

"Rip—!"

A faint sound of tearing space echoed.

A figure flew gracefully out of the spatial rift and landed steadily on the ground.

It was Qian Qizhou, who had just slipped away from right under the King of Slaughter's nose.

He looked back in the direction of Slaughter City, and only after confirming there was no pursuit did he heave a sigh of relief.

Recalling that thrilling moment, and the way the King of Slaughter had acted so arrogant, insisting on charging up a massive ultimate move only to be outmaneuvered, Qian Qizhou shook his head helplessly. As he replenished his soul power, he muttered, "That's what happens when you're too arrogant..."

"To deal with a Soul King... er, I'm a Soul Emperor now, but that guy actually felt the need to charge up?"

"Pretentious."

However, this adventure had also made Qian Qizhou truly feel the gap between himself and the top-tier powerhouses.

If that guy had attacked with full force from the start, even if he could have escaped, he likely would have been severely injured.

"My strength is still not enough." He set aside his playful thoughts, his expression turning solemn.

Yet, when facing that guy earlier, he seemed to have sensed a familiar aura.

It seemed... he had felt this same aura when Tang Hao fought his father years ago.

Thinking of the oppressive, dark red sky of Slaughter City, Qian Qizhou shook his head, temporarily suppressing the chaotic thoughts in his mind.

He had a nagging feeling that an invisible web of conspiracy was being woven behind the scenes.

But with his current strength, digging deeper was useless; it was better to recover his state and improve his power first.

With that thought, Qian Qizhou flashed, turning into a slightly dim purple streak of light, and flew in the opposite direction of Slaughter City, vanishing into the horizon within a few breaths.

Several days later, in the depths of a remote, primeval mountain range in the northwest of the continent.

Qian Qizhou found a natural cave hidden behind a waterfall, set up a few simple warning mechanisms, and began his seclusion.

Not long after—

"Roar—!!!"

A deafening roar suddenly erupted from the depths of the cave.

The roar contained a terrifying pressure that shook the entire cave violently, causing loose stones to rain down!

Startled awake, Qian Qizhou froze and whipped his head toward the dark depths of the cave.

When he had chosen this cave earlier, he had clearly used his spiritual power to carefully scout it, ensuring there were no signs of life before he felt safe enough to seclude himself here.

How could this be...

Deep within the cave, in the previously pitch-black area, two enormous, scarlet eyes, like small lanterns, suddenly lit up!

Accompanied by heavy and terrifying footsteps, a colossal figure slowly emerged from the shadows!

It was a soul beast of immense size, covered in thick, dark green scales, with a single horn on its head and exposed fangs. It resembled a giant rhinoceros but was far more ferocious and terrifying.

Its entire body emanated violent earth-attribute soul power fluctuations. Its aura was so strong that it was no less than a Soul Douluo among humans, perhaps even superior.

"Earth Vein Dragon Rhino?!" Qian Qizhou recognized this top-tier soul beast, renowned for its terrifying defense and immense strength, and was startled.

Just as he was about to turn and leave, he found himself sealed in by the soul beast's domain, unable to escape.

"Roar!!!" The Earth Vein Dragon Rhino paid no mind to Qian Qizhou's thoughts. It had been disturbed from its deep slumber and was in a state of extreme rage. It slammed its thick, sturdy legs onto the ground!

"RUMBLE!!!"

The entire cave shook violently.

Countless sharp stone spikes erupted from the ground and surrounding walls like a torrential downpour, indiscriminately covering the entire cave!

Simultaneously, it lowered its head, aiming its horn, which glowed with a yellowish-brown light, at Qian Qizhou, and charged forward.

Qian Qizhou sighed and summoned Engulfing Lightning to meet the charge.

Lightning and a mountain-like impact instantly collided within the narrow cave!

He had only just begun to transform his power, and the soul power and elemental energy within him were in an unbalanced state.

This resulted in him being unable to advance or retreat, completely lacking his usual combat prowess.

"Damn it!" Qian Qizhou cursed inwardly. This Earth Vein Dragon Rhino had woken up at the worst possible time.

Gritting his teeth, Qian Qizhou gripped his saber with both hands, channeling the restless soul power into it with all his might. The blade's lightning intensified, and he ferociously slashed at the horn!

"CLANG--!!!!!"

A deafening collision rang out!

Qian Qizhou felt an irresistible, immense force surge through the saber, his arms going numb with pain.

The unstable power within him was further agitated, churning like a stormy sea.

He grunted, his body uncontrollably sent flying backward by the impact, crashing heavily against the cave wall.

"Crack..." The rock wall cracked like a spiderweb.

"Roar!" The Earth Vein Dragon Rhino let out a triumphant roar, lowering its head to charge again, determined to crush this intruder!

Qian Qizhou slid down the rock face, a trickle of blood at the corner of his mouth, his face even paler.

He felt the soul power and elemental energy surging chaotically within him, lamenting his predicament.

This fight was incredibly frustrating.

He possessed the power of a Soul Emperor, but due to his unstable state, he could only unleash sixty to seventy percent of his strength at most. He was completely countered by this thick-skinned beast.