There was a ripping sound.
Li Hanshuang's Frost Sword swept across the emerald scales of Dugu Bo's serpentine body. Dugu Bo took the strike head-on. Metal rang against metal, and the force within the sword shattered a patch of his scales, knocking his body sideways.
Dugu Bo forcibly steadied himself in midair and continued charging toward the descending Tang Zong. Poison churned over his hands, solidifying into enormous bladed claws that reached for Tang Zong's Xuan Iron hammer as it came crashing down from the sky.
Tang Zong did not understand why Dugu Bo insisted on coming after him, but it did not matter. This was exactly what he wanted. If he captured Dugu Bo and the treasured land behind him and presented them to the Pope, the greatest credit would be his!
The Seventh Soul Ring revolving around Tang Zong lit up. Immense Soul Power poured into the Xuan Iron hammer in his hands. The hammer swelled in the wind, becoming an enormous hammer dozens of zhang long within a few breaths, then smashed toward Dugu Bo with a shriek through the air.
Seeing this, Li Hanshuang took a step back and stood nearby with his sword, the Soul Rings around him alternating between light and darkness as he prepared to strike at any moment.
Just as Dugu Bo and Tang Zong were about to collide, Dugu Bo suddenly curled his serpentine tail in midair and lashed it at the Xuan Iron hammer from the side, as swift as thunder before the ear could catch it.
The blow knocked the Xuan Iron hammer askew, leaving Tang Zong's face wide open. Dugu Bo thrust his claws straight toward it.
But at that moment, Li Hanshuang moved. His Seventh Soul Ring lit up, and flakes of rust fell away, revealing the original blood-red color beneath. Bloody light blazed from the blade, giving off a thick reek of blood. The corpses on the ground touched by its light began to shrivel, blood flowing from their seven orifices and gathering toward Li Hanshuang.
Li Hanshuang glanced at the blood, which still carried an emerald tinge, and clicked his tongue.
"What a waste. It's poisoned. Can't absorb it."
The Frost Sword in his hand also gave a ringing cry, seemingly very dissatisfied with this situation.
"Looks like you'll have to go hungry today."
The instant he finished speaking, Li Hanshuang appeared beside Dugu Bo. This thrust was extremely fast. Aiming for the spot where he had just shattered the scales, he raised his hand and drove his sword in, burying the blade in flesh.
Then he pulled downward with both hands, trying to drag Dugu Bo out of the air.
Li Hanshuang's pupils contracted slightly. He had not expected Dugu Bo to keep moving without even the slightest pause after taking that thrust. He should have faltered!
But Dugu Bo endured Li Hanshuang's sword just to keep reaching for Tang Zong. With a ripping sound, the sword carved a wound more than a meter long across his body. Dark-red blood sprayed into mist.
The scales scraping against the blade produced an ear-piercing screech.
At that moment, the emerald serpent markings roaming over Dugu Bo's body reached Li Hanshuang and spat a mouthful of venom at him, forcing him to withdraw.
"Fucking hell, why are you only coming after me?!" Tang Zong's voice was both startled and furious.
Dugu Bo's target had never changed from beginning to end. He thrust both claws forward, lunging straight at Tang Zong.
In his haste, Tang Zong only had time to hold his hammer across himself to block. Dugu Bo's right claw swept upward, its tips striking the hammer's shaft and bursting into sparks.
The blow sent Tang Zong flying diagonally backward. Before he could steady himself, Dugu Bo's second strike had already arrived.
Claw after claw, the relentless attacks forced him to do nothing but block with his hammer held across him. He retreated again and again, only finding his footing after landing on the ground.
"Li Hanshuang, what are you doing?! Did I bring you here to watch the show?!" Tang Zong roared at Li Hanshuang, who was gesturing with his sword in the distance.
"It's just that Dugu Bo is fighting so fiercely, I can't easily get close." Li Hanshuang also knew this could not continue. His First Soul Ring lit up, and several blood-red, crescent-shaped sword lights slashed toward Dugu Bo's back.
Splat!
Several more sprays of blood burst from Dugu Bo's back, but they did not slow his offensive, even though most of his scales had already shattered.
For poisoning enemies was not the only way to use poison. Temporarily suppressing one's pain and unleashing one's potential was another cruel application of the path of poison. But its drawback was...
A faint red glow rose within Dugu Bo's molten-gold pupils. Blood-colored edges appeared along the poisonous claws condensed over his hands, looking like bloodstains clinging to them, yet every strike gouged a shallow mark into Tang Zong's Xuan Iron hammer.
"Third Soul Skill: Iron Wall!"
Dark-gold light shone over the Xuan Iron hammer's surface. Now, when Dugu Bo's poisonous claws raked across it, they could only leave white marks.
Tang Zong's heart sank further with every collision. He could tell that Dugu Bo was in a special state that unleashed his potential. He did not know why Dugu Bo still focused solely on him under these circumstances, but he had a vague feeling that this madman intended to keep him here!
Li Hanshuang saw this as well. Knowing that Dugu Bo no longer had the capacity to deal with him, he chased after them with his sword, hoping to cut in from the side and interrupt Dugu Bo's attacks.
But every time he approached, Dugu Bo forced him back with an instinctive sweep of his tail, or a sudden jet of venom barred his way. For a time, this way of fighting actually allowed Dugu Bo to suppress them both.
But Li Hanshuang noticed that the scales on Dugu Bo's body no longer clung tightly to his torso as before. Their edges were curling slightly.
Dugu Bo had burned his essence to the point of near exhaustion!
Li Hengsheng realized this and made a decision. His Eighth Soul Ring lit up, and the Frost Sword hummed in his hand. Holding the sword in his right hand, he drew it across his left, opening a wound deep enough to expose bone, then slowly wiped his hand along the blade.
The color gradually drained from Li Hanshuang's face. A dark-red glow slowly extended forward along the sword in his hand, forming an almost tangible cutting edge.
He drew a deep breath, then stepped forward, pointing the sword straight at the back of Dugu Bo's heart.
"Tang Zong, get out of the way!" he shouted.
At the same time, the fifth Soul Ring around Tang Seng lit up.
"Fifth Soul Skill: Colossal Hammer!"
The hammer, already dozens of zhang long, grew to three times its size. Of course, he was not trying to force Dugu Bo back; he was taking this opportunity to get out of Li Hanshuang's attack range.
"Eighth Soul Skill: Bloodfall!"
The Frost Sword left his hand, becoming a streak of bloody light.
It pierced clean through!
Blood soaked the ground in front of Dugu Bo. A hole had appeared in his body.
"Ha ha! You're finished now, you old bastard!"
Dugu Bo had only just regained clarity from the burning of his essence when he heard that jeer. The corners of his mouth pulled into a mocking smile.
His gaze swiftly swept over the battlefield, assessing the current situation. Then, still facing Tang Zong, he extended both claws.
He could no longer close in as quickly as before to keep Tang Zong suppressed.
His serpentine body twisted forward inch by inch, but in the process, he could no longer maintain even his half-human, half-serpent form. His body shrank bit by bit, and he could no longer sustain even his Martial Soul Avatar.
He returned to human form. The Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor appeared behind him, pushing him forward with its head, like an aging beast helping him fulfill his final wish...