God's Punishment! The Reversed Killing Blow!

High above, divine might hung like a prison, and the killing intent had nearly solidified into substance.

Facing the encirclement of three gods, Dongyue Xian and Li Yunming wore grave expressions, yet their eyes remained as sharp as ever, without the slightest trace of cowardice. This unusual calmness magnified the unease in Xie Miaojiang's heart once more, gnawing at his confidence like a Poison Snake.

"Something is wrong! Delay breeds change—attack!" Xie Miaojiang roared, unwilling to dwell on it any longer. Dark green poisonous mist erupted around him, transforming into countless twisted phantoms of venomous snakes and centipedes that swept toward Dongyue Xian from all directions. "Ten Thousand Poisons Devour the Heart!"

Dongyue Xian snorted coldly. The Heavenly Heart Ring in his hand blazed with jade-green light, and a gentle yet boundless aura of life formed a massive circular barrier around him. "Heavenly Heart Ward!" The poisonous mist crashed against the green halo with ear-piercing hissing sounds, yet it could not advance an inch. The two extreme forces of life and poison collided violently and annihilated one another.

"Brother Du, end this quickly and take down Li Yunming!" Qiu Qianchen's cold gaze swept over Heavenly Phoenix City below, which appeared utterly defenseless. Cruelty and greed flashed in his eyes. To him, the greatest variables were Li Yunming and Dongyue Xian themselves. As long as they were dealt with swiftly, Heavenly Phoenix City would be meat on the chopping block.

"Heh heh, don't worry. What waves can a junior who just advanced possibly stir up?" Du Yunhe sneered, his gaze fixed tightly on the Sky-Piercing Divine Spear in Li Yunming's hand, greed nearly spilling from his eyes. "Brat, hand over that divine spear obediently, and I'll leave you an intact corpse!"

He thrust both palms forward. Water-blue divine power surged around him, actually drawing upon the moisture between heaven and earth and turning it into wave after wave of roaring blue tides. Each wave rose higher than the last, carrying immense force capable of crushing everything as they swept toward Li Yunming. "Boundless Vast Sea!"

Facing an attack as mighty as nature's wrath, Li Yunming's gaze sharpened without a trace of fear. The Sky-Piercing Divine Spear in his hand erupted with dazzling golden divine light, its shaft trembling with a clear hum.

"Sky-Piercing—Sea-Sundering!"

With a thunderous shout, he advanced rather than retreating. The divine spear in his hand became a bolt of golden lightning that tore through the sky, thrusting forward without flourish! Wherever the spear light passed, the surging blue tides were forcibly split apart by an incomparably concentrated, incomparably sharp will, as though Moses parting the sea! The golden spear tip struck precisely at the very core of the tidal force.

"Boom—!!"

A deafening explosion rang out in the skies. Golden and blue energy currents surged wildly in every direction, shredding even the clouds to pieces. Du Yunhe's expression shifted slightly. He could feel his power of the vast sea being forcibly torn apart and pierced through by that overwhelmingly tyrannical spear intent! "Good brat! You do have some skill!" He put away a sliver of his contempt, and his attacks became even fiercer. The power of the tides shifted unpredictably, sometimes incomparably violent, sometimes soft and entangling, as he tried to expose Li Yunming's weakness.

Meanwhile, Li Yunming wielded his divine spear so tightly that not even water could penetrate. The Sky-Piercing divine light sometimes transformed into beams that swept across the field, sometimes condensed at the spear tip before erupting. Though his soul power level was slightly inferior, his extraordinary spear intent and the sharpness of his divine artifact allowed him to fight Du Yunhe to a standstill, holding his ground for the time being.

On the other side, the battle between Dongyue Xian and Xie Miaojiang was even more perilous. Xie Miaojiang's poison arts were strange and unfathomable. His poisonous mist sometimes condensed into needles that specialized in piercing protective divine light, and sometimes spread into a domain that constantly eroded Dongyue Xian's barrier of life. Relying on the Heavenly Heart Ring's supreme control over life force, Dongyue Xian held his defense steady while occasionally transforming the jade-green halo into streams of light to counterattack, forcing Xie Miaojiang to respond with caution.

Something isn't right... They're far too calm! The longer Xie Miaojiang fought, the more alarmed he became. Dongyue Xian's defense appeared passive, yet he always managed to block his killing moves at the most critical moment.

Just as the four gods were locked in fierce battle, Qiu Qianchen, who had been "overlooked" all this time, revealed a savage smile. His gaze passed over the battlefield and locked directly onto Heavenly Phoenix City below, which had no God Rank protection.

"Li Yunming! Dongyue Xian! I'll destroy your foundation first and see whether you can remain so calm!" He burst into wild laughter as Netherworld divine power gathered frantically into his right palm. An aura of destruction instantly filled heaven and earth. Within Heavenly Phoenix City below, countless people sensed the deadly threat and revealed despairing expressions.

"Netherworld—Annihilation Palm!"

A gigantic black palm that blotted out the sky descended slowly toward Heavenly Phoenix City, entwined with the wails of countless resentful souls and carrying a terrifying aura capable of annihilating all things! If this palm struck solidly, the entire city would likely be reduced to dust!

"Not good!" Li Yunming and Dongyue Xian changed expressions at the same time and tried to rush back, but Du Yunhe and Xie Miaojiang held them tightly in place, leaving them completely unable to break free.

At that critical moment!

"Qiu Qianchen! Your opponents are us!"

Two cold, imposing voices suddenly rang out like judgment descending from the ninth heavens!

At the same time, two figures appeared without warning in the void not far behind Qiu Qianchen! They were Luo Wuya, patriarch of the Astral Sect, and Lin Jingshen, patriarch of the Thunderstorm Sword Sect, who had supposedly already "left"!

Luo Wuya held an ancient staff that seemed to be formed from condensed stars. A massive star gemstone atop the Astral Staff burst forth with brilliant radiance! "Astral Annihilation Wave!" A white beam condensed to the utmost extreme, seemingly capable of piercing through stars, tore through space and shot straight at Qiu Qianchen's back!

Lin Jingshen became one with his sword, his entire body transforming into a streak of purple thunder sword light that stretched across the sky, moving faster than thought itself! "God-Shocking Strike!" The sword light was incomparably sharp, containing the resolute will to sever all things as it aimed directly at Qiu Qianchen's head!

The two had lain in wait for a long time, building up their power, and the moment they attacked, they unleashed thunderous killing blows! Their timing was also exquisite to the extreme: it was precisely when Qiu Qianchen was using his divine skill at full force, his mind most turbulent and his defenses at their weakest!

"What?!!" The savage smile on Qiu Qianchen's face instantly turned into boundless terror and shock! He sensed the two horrifying forces behind him, each enough to kill him, and wanted to turn and defend himself, but it was already too late! The massive Netherworld Annihilation Palm lost its continuing supply of power and shook violently in midair, nearly collapsing.

"No—!" He could only frantically summon his remaining divine power to form a hastily constructed Netherworld shield behind him.

"Boom!!!!"

The astral light wave and the God-Shocking sword light struck the Netherworld shield almost simultaneously! The hastily formed shield shattered instantly like paper! The light wave and sword light continued onward without losing momentum, striking Qiu Qianchen's divine body solidly!

"Aah—!!!"

An agonized scream tore through the sky! Qiu Qianchen fell savagely from the heavens like a kite with its string cut, golden divine blood spraying wildly from his mouth. His back was a mangled mess of flesh, blackened burns and sword wounds crisscrossing it. White astral power and purple thunder sword qi ravaged his wounds like parasites clinging to the bone, preventing his divine body from repairing itself. Even more terrifyingly, his left arm had been severed at the shoulder, the wound as smooth as a mirror—it had been cut off by Lin Jingshen's God-Shocking Strike! Golden divine blood flowed from the severed limb like a stream.

"Thud!" Qiu Qianchen crashed heavily into the wilderness outside Heavenly Phoenix City, kicking up a sky full of dust. He tried to struggle, but Luo Wuya and Lin Jingshen descended like shadows. Two powerful restraints of divine power fell upon him like shackles, suppressing him completely and leaving him unable to move in the slightest. His aura had withered to its lowest point.

This earth-shattering reversal had occurred in the span of a spark!

Du Yunhe and Xie Miaojiang, who had been fiercely fighting Li Yunming and Dongyue Xian, suddenly froze. The victorious expressions on their faces completely stiffened, turning into boundless shock and horror!

The two instinctively broke away from the battle at once, retreating rapidly before gathering together. They stared in disbelief at the suddenly appearing Luo Wuya and Lin Jingshen, as well as Qiu Qianchen below, who had been suppressed and left in a miserable state.

"Luo Wuya! Lin Jingshen! You... you didn't leave?!" Xie Miaojiang's voice trembled faintly, and the poisonous mist around him churned without end from the violent fluctuations in his emotions.

Du Yunhe's expression was even uglier. He stared fixedly at the Astral Staff in Luo Wuya's hand and the God-Shocking Sword in Lin Jingshen's, which flickered with lightning. Then he looked at Dongyue Xian and Li Yunming, who had expended considerable energy but whose fighting spirit had only grown stronger. His heart instantly sank to the bottom.

Three against four! And the enemy had been waiting at ease, while Qiu Qianchen had been severely wounded and lost his combat ability after a single exchange... Now it should be two against four. I was careless. I shouldn't have stepped into this mess.

The situation reversed in an instant!

Li Yunming stood with his spear in hand, the Sky-Piercing Divine Spear pointed directly at Du Yunhe. His voice was icy. "Now, do you still think you can take my divine spear?"

The Heavenly Heart Ring around Dongyue Xian glowed as the aura of life locked onto Xie Miaojiang. His tone carried mockery. "Xie Miaojiang, it seems that today, we shall see whose martial soul changes owners."

Luo Wuya and Lin Jingshen continued suppressing Qiu Qianchen, their cold gazes falling upon the remaining two uninvited guests. Killing intent rose once more between heaven and earth, but this time, the roles of hunter and prey had already switched.