A powerful aura loomed over the void where Xiao Yan stood, like a giant mountain. Not far from Xiao Yan, Zhuo Lin stood imposingly, his Dou Qi surging. The aura of a Two-Star Dou Di pressed down heavily on Xiao Yan with all his might. Judging from his ferocious expression, it seemed as if he wanted to devour Xiao Yan alive.
Under the latter's powerful aura, even if Xiao Yan tried his best, he was powerless to do so. The battle had not even begun before Xiao Yan was already defeated.
On the other side of the void, the One-Horned Whale Serpent writhed wildly, its mouth wide open, emitting ear-piercing roars, desperately trying to charge at Zhuo Lin.
If it could, the One-Horned Whale Serpent would not hesitate to swallow Zhuo Lin whole as well.
Unfortunately, no matter how hard it struggled, it was all in vain. Even when Zhuo Lin looked at it, there was a hint of sneer in his eyes.
When everyone present looked closely, they discovered that a thick layer of energy keratin was spreading rapidly across the One-Horned Whale Serpent's body at an astonishing speed.
Any area covered by that keratinous layer was as if it had been doused with molten copper, rendering it unable to move. That's why the One-Horned Whale Serpent struggled for so long without success, and why Zhuo Lin was able to respond with a sneer.
Xiao Yan, who also witnessed this scene, felt a chill in his heart. He hadn't expected the positive energy keratin layer to spread so quickly. If it continued to spread at this rate, he believed that it wouldn't be long before the One-Horned Whale Serpent was completely covered by this energy keratin layer. At that time, even if it didn't want to, it would have no choice but to enter a deep sleep. And Xiao Yan would be facing two Dou Di powerhouses!
Thinking of this, Xiao Yan felt a sense of unease, but before he could think any further, the terrifying aura and pressure from above came one after another.
"Hmph, at a time like this, you still have the mind to care about this beast? You should think about yourself first!"
With a chilling laugh, Zhuo Lin conjured a short sword in the blink of an eye. He slammed his foot into the void, the terrifying force causing the invisible space to ripple. At the same time, Zhuo Lin shot out, arriving above Xiao Yan's head in the blink of an eye.
With his hand gripping the short sword tightly, Zhuo Lin's face was fierce, and a chilling killing intent surged from his eyes. The corners of his mouth were slightly upturned, revealing a row of gleaming white teeth that gleamed with a sinister light, sending shivers down one's spine.
" Xiao Yan! Die!"
The chilling words were uttered mercilessly by Zhuo Lin, and as the look in his eyes grew increasingly sinister, the short sword in his hand, wreathed in Dou Qi, fell heavily towards Xiao Yan's head.
"Bite!"
The next moment, just as Zhuo Lin's short sword was about to strike Xiao Yan's head, a huge black ruler suddenly appeared above Xiao Yan's head, blocking the fatal blow.
Despite this, Xiao Yan's figure was quite disheveled as he flew backward dozens of steps. Finally, he managed to pull himself back by using the weight of the Heavy Xuan Ruler. Opposite him, where he had stood before, Zhuo Lin stood there, his expression not angry, but rather a mocking smile.
"Hmph, a cornered beast will fight to the death. I'll see how many more times you can hold out!"
The moment Zhuo Lin's mocking laughter subsided, his figure vanished once more, leaving only a wisp of an afterimage.
At the same time, Xiao Yan's expression suddenly changed drastically. He gripped the giant ruler tightly, and with a swift movement, he hurriedly dodged to the side.
"Ha ha!"
Suddenly, a cold, mocking laugh reached Xiao Yan's ears, and at the same time, a sharp blade gleaming with a cold light stabbed fiercely towards Xiao Yan's back.
"Bite!"
The next moment, with a crisp metallic clang, Xiao Yan's figure suddenly lunged forward, while Zhuo Lin's expression changed slightly, and he quickly turned around to dodge the giant ruler that was rushing towards him.
As Xiao Yan regained his footing, Zhuo Lin Xiao Yan forward and charged at him once again.
Hurry up and get to the next moment...
"Laugh!"
A huge ball of Dou Qi aura suddenly brushed past Zhuo Lin's face, just a moment away from striking Zhuo Lin.
A moment later, Zhuo Lin gradually calmed down, his body as still as a statue. When he came to his senses, he found that his clothes were instantly soaked with cold sweat.
What he didn't know was that even at this moment, his face appeared extremely pale.
Although most of the One-Horned Whale Serpent's body was unable to move at all, don't forget that even if it couldn't move itself, it could still use its Dou Qi to help Xiao Yan overcome the danger.
Unfortunately, the final result was much worse than it had hoped for; otherwise, that one strike alone would have been enough to cripple him from all his fighting power!
A strike from Four-Star Dou Di is no joke. With Zhuo Lin's current strength, he is as vulnerable as Half-Emperor compared to the latter.
"Call..."
With a heart full of fear, he slowly exhaled. The next moment, Zhuo Lin suddenly turned around, the fear in his eyes vanishing in an instant, replaced by a chilling, icy aura, like that of the Nine Nether Yellow Springs.
" Zhuo Bentang, kill this beast!"
Zhuo Lin uttered his words in an extremely low voice, each word distinct and deliberate. As he spoke, those present could even feel the void beneath their feet trembling slightly. It was easy to imagine the immense turmoil within Zhuo Lin at that moment.
Upon hearing Zhuo Lin's words, Zhuo Bentang's Elder Zhang face froze instantly. Until now, his young master had truly become enraged.
"Yes!"
Although he knew he was no match for the One-Horned Whale Serpent, he also understood that offending Zhuo Lin would not end well for him either. In fact, his fate might be even more tragic than dying at the hands of the One-Horned Whale Serpent. Compared to that, he felt that facing him head-on might actually give him a sliver of hope.
Immediately, Zhuo Bentang moved swiftly and arrived in front of the One-Horned Whale Serpent. By this time, a thick layer of energy keratin had covered most of the One-Horned Whale Serpent's body, and at this moment, the One-Horned Whale Serpent could only barely move the part of its body below its head.
Meanwhile, on Xiao Yan's side, Zhuo Lin once again focused his gaze on Xiao Yan, his expression growing increasingly cold, a cruel smile curling at the corners of his lips, his entire face appearing distorted and abnormal.
"Die!"
With a swift movement, Zhuo Lin vanished into thin air. Xiao Yan's expression changed again, but he dared not be careless. He quickly moved, dodging in all directions, and brandished the Heavy Xuan Ruler in his hand, barely managing to block some of the incoming attacks. Even so, in a short time, Xiao Yan Xiao Yan suffered many injuries. Although he avoided vital points, the excruciating pain from the contact between his wounds and the air caused his face to contort in agony.
"Hmph."
In response, Zhuo Lin grinned maliciously. With a thought, golden short swords gleaming with a cold light rapidly condensed in the air around him. As soon as Zhuo Lin had a thought, they transformed into streaks of golden light and stabbed fiercely at Xiao Yan from different directions.
"Ding ding ding ding..."
A series of clanging sounds of steel clashing rang out. Most of the sword light was blocked by Xiao Yan's Heavy Xuan Ruler, but quite a few still managed to forcefully break through the corresponding defenses. In just a short moment, many thumb-sized holes were left on Xiao Yan's body, deep to the bone marrow, causing excruciating pain to the soul.
Even so, Xiao Yan could only grit his teeth and endure the pain. Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at where the One-Horned Whale Serpent was standing and saw that the latter was now completely enveloped in the energy keratin layer.
Despite his reluctance, he had to admit that the One-Horned Whale Serpent was like a fish on a chopping board. Despite its thick skin, it was helpless and at the mercy of others. At this moment, Zhuo Bentang was coldly unleashing a series of powerful Dou Technique, trying to break through the energy keratin layer on the One-Horned Whale Serpent's body and kill it completely.
Upon seeing this, Xiao Yan's facial muscles twitched violently. Although Zhuo Bentang's bombardment was like a stone sinking into the sea when it hit that energy keratin layer, if it continued to be consumed endlessly like this, the positive energy keratin layer would eventually be broken, and whether the One-Horned Whale Serpent would live or die was only a matter of time.
"Hateful!"
Immediately, Xiao Yan felt a surge of rage, but even this couldn't change the fact that his own body was equally weak, teetering on the brink of life and death...
If you're in this state yourself, how can you expect to save others?
"Haha! Xiao Yan, what's wrong? Even at a time like this, you still have the mind to care about this beast's life or death? Don't you take me seriously? You're asking for death!"
Zhuo Lin roared angrily, then moved swiftly, appearing in front of Xiao Yan in the blink of an eye. With a flick of his wrist, the short sword in his hand spun in his palm before he slashed at Xiao Yan's throat.
The sudden turn of events startled Xiao Yan. Although he managed to turn around in time and avoid a fatal blow, the short sword still left a shallow bloodstain on his neck.
Blood spilled out, and a chilling feeling immediately surged from the depths of Xiao Yan's heart, even his back felt cold.
Xiao Yan's breath hitched slightly as he carefully touched the spot where he had been injured. Instantly, a sharp pain shot through him, Xiao Yan his heart to stop for a moment. The muscles on his face trembled violently, as if his very soul had been touched.
But a moment later, Xiao Yan's heart became strangely calm.
"Don't worry, I promised you I would get you out of here. I'll keep my word, no matter what!"
He muttered something to himself, and Xiao Yan's rapid breathing calmed down at that moment. Even his pale face seemed to have recovered somewhat.
"Hmm? What, you want to make a final stand? Then come on, let's settle this with one move! Today, I'll let these guys see with their own eyes that Xiao Yan, famous throughout the entire Western Region, will die by my hand!"
Zhuo Lin scoffed coldly, his face full of mockery.
Immediately afterwards, Zhuo Lin waved his hand, and golden Dou Qi burst forth from his palm, flowing like water, rapidly changing and condensing, and finally transforming into a long sword that was entirely golden.
" Golden Cloud Sword!"
"It's the Golden Cloud Sword!"
"Tsk tsk, this is Young Master Zhuo's signature weapon! It's said to have been with him for a long time, and that whenever Young Master Zhuo wields this sword, he is never defeated. It seems that this time, Young Master Zhuo intends to use this sword to continue his legendary feat!"
As Zhuo Lin took out the sword, a stir broke out among the crowd outside the window. Clearly, the so-called Golden Cloud Sword was quite famous in the Western Region.
"Hmph, Xiao Yan, it's worth it for you to die by my Golden Cloud Sword today."
"My Golden Cloud Sword has always only slain those at the Dou Di or above. For you, a mere Half-Emperor, to die by the Golden Cloud Sword is your honor!"
As Zhuo Lin listened to the praises from the crowd outside the arena, he pointed his golden sword at Xiao Yan. At the same time, the powerful Dou Qi within his body surged outwards like it was free, swirling around Zhuo Lin's body like water snakes, coiling around his arms, and finally disappearing into the Golden Cloud Sword in Zhuo Lin's hand.
With the infusion of Dou Qi, the Golden Cloud Sword shone brightly, and an incomparably powerful and domineering aura emanated from it. Anyone who sensed this aura couldn't help but become solemn.
This Golden Cloud Sword is indeed extraordinary. As the weapon of the eldest son of the Zhuo Clan family, the head of the four Four Great Clans, its power is truly incomparable to ordinary weapons.
In contrast to Zhuo Lin's overt display of talent, Xiao Yan's behavior was rather off-putting and strange.
Just when everyone thought Xiao Yan was about to unleash his final Dou Technique, what happened next left everyone present speechless.
Instead of using the Heavy Xuan Ruler, Xiao Yan put it away. Then, under Zhuo Lin's displeased gaze, he spread his hands, and a flash of light appeared in his palms, revealing several Xiao Yan bottles.
"Bang!"
With a slight tremor, Xiao Yan shattered the jade bottle in his hand, revealing dozens of pills of various kinds.
Instantly, a rich aroma of medicine quickly filled the square, causing everyone present to change their expressions.
"This is... a third-tier pill?!"
"These are all third-tier pills!"
"Even if he is Third-Tier Alchemist, to produce so many third-tier pills at once, even the Alchemist Alliance might not have the capability to do so!"
At this moment, everyone present was greatly shocked. All eyes fell on the pills in Xiao Yan Yan's hands. So many third-tier pills would attract countless Dou Di experts to fight over them if they were taken out. Now, they were just placed in front of them. It would be a lie to say that they were not tempted.
But they also knew Xiao Yan's capabilities. Since he dared to take out so many pills in front of everyone, he naturally had a way to protect them.
However...
Amidst everyone's fervent gazes, Xiao Yan opened his mouth wide and simultaneously raised one hand, shoving the pill into his mouth as if he wanted to shove his hand in as well.
"Well..."
This sudden scene caused everyone present to freeze instantly, standing rooted to the spot like statues. They watched as Xiao Yan raised his second hand and then shoved a handful of pills into his mouth.