There was no earth-shattering crash to serve as a prelude.
What came first was an unbroken rumble of muffled thunder deep within the earth.
The sound was not loud, but it carried a heart-stopping, penetrating force that instantly drowned out the crackling of the plank roads still burning at Hanging Skull Pass.
The entire Yuanling Mountain Range began to tremble faintly amid that low roar.
On the walls of Hanging Skull Pass, Xu Yan, the three Soul Douluos, and every soldier wore puzzled expressions.
"Wh... what's that sound?!"
The three Soul Douluos stopped advancing, alarmed and uncertain.
This soul-unsettling tremor from the earth was rapidly spreading up through their feet.
Just as everyone was utterly bewildered, the ground suddenly began to heave violently!
A massive earthquake had struck!
The enormous mountains surged like the surface of water, raising gigantic waves visibly before their eyes!
Towering ancient trees toppled in swathes like fragile stalks of wheat!
The solid layers of rock gave tooth-grating groans before twisting and snapping!
Rumble!!!
The first truly deafening crash, as though it would tear the heavens apart, finally erupted from the heart of the mountains!
It was not a single explosion, but countless destructive roars layered together!
On the battlements, the Soul Douluo preparing to read out the decree, along with everyone throughout Hanging Skull Pass, had their minds go blank beneath that indescribable sonic assault. Their eardrums ruptured instantly, and blood gushed from all seven orifices!
The Soul Douluos unleashed their Soul Power and barely steadied themselves, but all color had already drained from their faces, leaving only boundless horror!
Hundreds of towering, majestic pillars of light, broader than mountain peaks, shot into the sky!
Enormous, visible fissures crisscrossed wildly across the surface of the sprawling Yuanling Mountain Range.
These fissures rapidly widened and deepened,