The crescent slammed into Luo Tian's body, pinning him like a mountain and leaving him unable to move.
His chest heaved violently, and blood gushed from his mouth, staining the ground red.
The wound on his left shoulder also split open again under the tremendous impact. Blood flowed like a fountain, staining his Shrek uniform red.
"Cough, cough..."
Luo Tian struggled to raise his head:
"How dare you attack me? Do you know who I am?!"
"Of course we do. A disciple of the Shrek Inner Court, a person of very lofty standing indeed." Toji and Father Zhang emerged from the shadows before Luo Tian.
Toji stood at the front, the Heaven-Breaking Sword resting on his shoulder and the faintest hint of a smile on his lips.
He had even dared to kill people from the Body Sect. What did a Shrek disciple amount to?
"Wait, you're..." The moment Luo Tian saw Toji, he noticed that there were no fluctuations of Soul Power anywhere on his body. His expression changed slightly; he had clearly recognized him.
"You're the kid who beat that Evil Soul Master to death five years ago!"
"Correct." Toji looked down at Luo Tian. "I'd really like to know how it felt to sell a nine-year-old child to the Soul Fighting Arena and make him live a life of slaughtering and fighting every day, crawling out of piles of corpses."
"So you're here for revenge." Luo Tian couldn't help laughing aloud. Flames slowly enveloped his body, and he grew somewhat taller as the features of a lion appeared on him. A perfect Soul Ring Configuration of two yellow, two purple, and two black rose from beneath his feet.
"I just don't know if you have what it takes. The other two have such noble identities that trash like you, clinging to life at the bottom, could never guess them, no matter how hard you racked your brains."
As soon as he finished speaking, Liang Wu moved behind him. He, too, had a perfect configuration, and his Soul Power cultivation was even higher than Luo Tian's. His third and sixth soul rings flashed alternately as he swung the long saber in his hand fiercely at Luo Tian, sending out a startling crescent of black saber Qi.
But Luo Tian seemed to have noticed him already. His Second Soul Ring lit up, and a shield of flames emerged from within his body.
Lion King Body Protection!
His third and Fourth Soul Rings rose immediately afterward, and Luo Tian's presence began climbing steadily. A red lion thick with the fire element materialized and pounced at Liang Wu with a roar.
Deal with this traitor first!
But by choosing to deal with Liang Wu, Luo Tian exposed his vulnerable back to Toji and Father Zhang.
The two attacked together, charging at Luo Tian with killing moves.
But after they closed in on his back, Luo Tian's Fifth Soul Ring slowly rose. A powerful burst of fire element erupted behind him, forming a firestorm. The intense burning sensation and high temperature forced them to retreat again and again.
"No wonder he chose to turn his back on us." Toji cursed under his breath and retreated, choosing to circle around and support Liang Wu from another direction.
Father Zhang had told him that although Liang Wu's cultivation was somewhat higher, he had raised it using all kinds of heavenly treasures, leaving his cultivation somewhat unsteady. Father Zhang, on the other hand, had raised his own cultivation through solid effort. That was also the main reason Liang Wu had been beaten back by Father Zhang despite being two levels higher.
Now that he was up against a Shrek Inner Court disciple said to be unbeatable among those of the same age and level, he would probably fare even worse.
Sure enough, Liang Wu gripped his long saber and struggled to resist Luo Tian's violent power of flames.
"Bastard! What good does killing me do you?!" Luo Tian roared. Like a lion charging into battle, he sent Liang Wu flying with a vicious punch.
Toji's greatsword came at him again. This time, Luo Tian was prepared. He caught Toji's greatsword in his right hand and forcibly withstood the blow.
"I've been guarding against you all along. Even if I can't sense you with Soul Power, as long as I keep my guard up, you don't have what it takes to break through my defense." Luo Tian grinned viciously and began a contest of strength with Toji, actually overpowering him for the moment.
Toji said nothing. He flipped over and kicked Luo Tian in the chest, forcibly pulling the Heaven-Breaking Sword free. Father Zhang then rushed in with the Moon Blade and immediately engaged Luo Tian in battle.
Meanwhile, Toji quietly slipped into the shadows.
The enormous gap in cultivation meant Toji could only act as an assassin once more and harass him.
Liang Wu, who had been sent flying, spat blood and joined the battle, fighting alongside Father Zhang.
Their goal was simple: keep dragging the fight out until the poison took effect and left him half-dead. That would be the best chance to kill him.
Inside the room, fire element, saber light, and moonlight intertwined, erupting in deafening booms.
The battle between the three Soul Emperors was ferocious beyond measure. Every clash shook the entire room violently. Walls and floors were torn apart by raging energy, sending fragments flying everywhere.
The battle fell into a stalemate for the moment, but Luo Tian's flame lion king Martial Soul displayed tremendous suppressive power. Scorching flames swept through the room like raging waves, forcing Father Zhang and Liang Wu back step by step.
Although the two joined forces, they still struggled to cope with Luo Tian's furious assault.
The battle gradually began to shift.
Even with deadly poison in his body, Luo Tian still displayed formidable fighting strength and extensive combat experience, pressing the two Soul Emperors back.
The fundamental reason was that Liang Wu was simply too useless. He was nothing like a level-sixty-four Soul Emperor, leaving Father Zhang to bear immense pressure alone.
"You want to kill me? With trash like you?!" Luo Tian roared. The flames around him surged again, and the fire element condensed into a pair of enormous flaming hands that grabbed at Father Zhang.
Father Zhang's expression changed. The fierce heat forced him to retreat repeatedly, evading the pursuing hands.
Liang Wu also wanted to retreat, but he saw Luo Tian's flaming hands suddenly change direction and reach for him.
Liang Wu's heart tightened. His Fifth and Sixth Soul Rings lit up alternately, but the flaming hands were incredibly fast and seized him in an instant.
"Damn it!" Liang Wu's face changed drastically. Before he could break free, the flaming hands swung him around and smashed him viciously into the wall.
Boom!
Liang Wu's body slammed heavily into the wall, which collapsed in an instant. He spat out a mouthful of blood, his face as pale as paper. Clearly, his injuries were not light.
Luo Tian sneered. Now fighting with all his strength, he was like a flame lion king leading a pride. He lifted his proud chin and looked down at Liang Wu:
"If you dare betray me, then die."
Before he finished speaking, the flames around Luo Tian surged again, and his Sixth Soul Ring abruptly lit up. Scorching fire element condensed in his hand into an enormous spear of flame.
The spear of flame radiated a pressure that made the heart tremble, as though even the air had been set alight.
Luo Tian roared and hurled the spear of flame in his hand. Carrying the might to destroy heaven and earth, it shot straight at Liang Wu!
The air warped and twisted wherever the spear passed, and its searing heat sent the temperature of the entire room soaring.
Liang Wu's eyes widened. He wanted to dodge, but his injuries were too severe for him to move. Even so, he felt around in his Storage Soul Tool and found something that could save his life.
Invincible Shield!
Just as he activated the Invincible Shield, he saw the overbearing Luo Tian suddenly spit a jet of blood amid the boundless sea of flames. Blood splashed from his body in great quantities and scattered across the ground.
Behind Luo Tian stood Toji.
"Who said I couldn't break through your defense?"