“Do you really think anyone can stand against this old man?” Ji Juan flew into a rage. A twenty-five or twenty-six-year-old managing to force him back was one thing.
That youth might possess some special talent.
But this one was barely twenty. Did he truly believe that a Ninth-Layer Martial Emperor’s foundation, even suppressed, could be casually overpowered?
Brandishing his long sword, Ji Juan unleashed a powerful martial technique. His strike carried unmatched ferocity as it met the attack head-on.
Clang! An ear-piercing screech rang out as sword met pillar in a thunderous collision.
Pfft!
Ji Juan spewed a large mouthful of blood and was sent flying backwards.
Lin Xiao, however, stood firmly in place without moving an inch.
“How… how is this possible?” As he hurtled through the air, Ji Juan was completely dazed.
He had intended to make an example of this youth, to cripple or even kill him in one blow.
Yet the boy was unharmed, while he himself had been injured?
This opponent was only twenty years old.
And he, Ji Juan, had been suppressed from the Ninth Layer!
In Yang Province, he could walk sideways without fear.
Now, he had actually been wounded by a twenty-year-old youth?
Ji Juan could not accept it.
The Ji family crowd was equally stunned.
The chief elder of their Fiftieth Division, a Ninth-Layer Martial Emperor, had been injured after just a few exchanges.
This was simply unbelievable!
Even Xi Yucheng was deeply shocked. He himself had been forced back despite using his ultimate techniques, yet Lin Xiao had directly wounded the man.
Everyone who had seen Lin Xiao strike immediately guessed that this youth was one of the powerhouses who had joined forces to kill the Ji family’s Ninth-Layer Martial Emperor inside the ancient city.
The one forced back earlier must have been the leader who impersonated a Sacred Heaven Sect member.
At the same time, the Purple Corpse Puppet beside them blocked a sword with one palm, then drove its other palm straight through the chest of a Ji family middle-aged man, killing him instantly.
“Corpse puppet!” Ji Juan was both shocked and enraged. The enemy had actually slain a Ji family member right in front of him.
By now, several more Ji family members had charged forward and were clashing with Lin Xiao.
One swing of the pillar each time, and Lin Xiao sent them flying far away. Blood sprayed from the mouths of those flung back. Several were smashed to death on the spot.
In truth, Lin Xiao’s attacks against these people were merely ordinary strikes, far weaker than the power he had used against Ji Juan.
Ji Juan was a Ninth-Layer Martial Emperor. To kill him quickly, that earlier blow had drawn upon the First Nether level of the Nine Nether Demonic Body.
When clashing head-on with such force, even a suppressed Ninth-Layer Martial Emperor could not withstand it.
However, activating the Nine Nether Demonic Body consumed too much energy, so Lin Xiao did not use it against the others.
“Kill!” At that moment, Xi Yucheng charged at Ji Juan again.
“Protect the chief elder!” a loud shout rang out. Most of the Ji family members surged in this direction.
Many had already been heading this way, only a little slower.
Hearing the shout, even more rushed over. In an instant, Ji Juan found himself pushed to the front by his own clansmen.
Lin Xiao’s side also fought desperately. Both forces collided fiercely.
Ji Juan instantly felt utterly depressed. Since when did a grand Ninth-Layer Martial Emperor need protection from others?
It felt like a brutal slap to his face.
Clang, clang, clang!
The battle was incomparably intense. The Ji family had superior numbers, but only a minority were truly powerful.
Most had simply come to watch after the disturbance appeared at the gate.
In contrast, the hundred survivors from the ancient city all possessed relatively strong combat power under this suppression. They had lived through the initial two or three thousand entrants and the final slaughter of two or three hundred.
Their battle strength far exceeded the Ji family’s.
Moreover, with the seal’s duration limited, every one of them fought like their lives depended on it, because they did.
Ji family members were sent flying one after another, slain one by one, falling in swathes.
Ji Juan felt a sharp pain in his chest.
While the two sides clashed fiercely, more and more people gathered outside the three-thousand-zhang perimeter.
Some were from the Ji family, but most belonged to other forces. Seeing the scene before them, they were all shocked.
Someone was actually fighting the Ji family right at their own gate, even cutting them down in waves.
This was utter audacity.
Many wanted to charge in and join the battle, but that moon-like barrier was too strange. They could not break through at all.
“Hurry and inform the chief elder of the Forty-Ninth Division!” Ji Juan immediately roared at the Ji family members outside.
Some acknowledged the order and shot away at once.
Inside the radiance, Ji Juan was surrounded and protected in the centre of the void. His clansmen constantly charged forward around him, constantly being flung back or killed.
From time to time, Ji Juan himself rushed out to attack opponents.
After the fierce battle had continued for some time, Lin Xiao finally seized an opening. He charged straight to Ji Juan, activated the Nine Nether Demonic Body once more, and smashed down with another devastating strike.
Ji Juan had just slain an oncoming attacker with a single sword thrust. Seeing Lin Xiao’s assault, his expression changed. He hurriedly unleashed a powerful ultimate technique and met the blow with a peerlessly domineering sword block.
Clang!
Pfft!
Another mouthful of blood sprayed from his lips. Ji Juan’s body was sent flying again, crashing into the Ji family members behind him and causing one to spit blood as he was knocked forward.
At that moment, more Ji family members surged forward to block Lin Xiao, preventing any follow-up.
The greatest number of attackers swarmed towards Lin Xiao, the Purple Corpse Puppet, and Xi Yucheng, yet that area also suffered the heaviest casualties.
Of course, many from Lin Xiao’s side also rushed to shield them and hold off enemies, allowing the trio to press the attack.
They all knew Lin Xiao and the others were the most likely to kill Ji Juan.
The battle raged on for some time longer. Both sides suffered losses, but far more fell on the Ji family side.
The Ji family was not limited to just Ji Juan as an expert. Several Seventh-Layer Martial Emperors were extremely strong, and one youth was locked in an evenly matched struggle with Bi Zhuang.
By now, less than a quarter of an hour remained.
Only about one hundred and thirty or forty Ji family members were left.
Lin Xiao’s side had been reduced to fifty or sixty people.
In such close-quarters, small-scale melee, the casualty rate was simply too high.
Although Ji Juan was now gravely wounded, he was still tightly protected by layers of clansmen. Killing him in one stroke remained difficult.
“Time is running out. Hurry!” Xi Yucheng’s anxious voice rang out.
Everyone’s hearts trembled at his words. They attacked even more desperately.
If they failed to kill the Ninth-Layer Martial Emperor before time ran out, they were all finished.
Unfortunately, the Ji family also had many experts. Although the attackers could fight one against two or three, constantly wounding and killing opponents, progress was not fast enough.
