**Thunder Storm Battlefield:**
A deafening roar erupted as the two forces collided, unleashing a sea of surging energy waves that radiated in all directions.
Yet, a trace of the stone-fist beam persisted, hurtling toward Lin Xiao.
Shocked, Lin Xiao marveled at the Stone Clan youth’s power. Even his Yaoguang Broken Sword’s attack couldn’t fully neutralize it, allowing the beam to press on.
Facing the strike, Lin Xiao swiftly petrified his arm, raising it to block.
**Bang!** The impact sent him skidding back, but the weakened stone energy was absorbed and refined by his stone hand.
**Boom! Boom! Boom!**
At that moment, Ziling, Yang Dehui, Hu Yue, and others charged in. Ruxian, Mao Chongliang, and Mao Youtan also attacked the Stone Clan youth, their combined forces surging from all sides.
The lean Cao Clan youth joined, unleashing a terrifying blade beam. Not only had the Stone Clan youth struck his clansman, but the youth’s aura posed a threat. If not eliminated together, he too could be in danger.
The collective power of these top powerhouses shook the void, as if it might collapse.
Yet, the Stone Clan youth extended both palms, conjuring stone blocks that expanded from palm-sized to hundreds of zhang. These massive stones barreled toward the incoming attacks.
**Rumble!**
Explosions rang out as the stones shattered, releasing torrents of energy in two directions. Ziling, Hu Yue, Ruxian, and the Cao Clan youth were all flung back.
The crowd gasped. How strong was this Stone Clan youth to repel so many peak Martial Kings with one move?
“Petrified Force!” Lin Xiao stared, stunned. At a high level, the Heaven-Sealing Stone Hand could solidify energy into stone for both defense and attack, with unmatched power.
Ignoring his attackers, the youth fixed his gaze on Lin Xiao, rasping, “His heir…”
A thoughtful look crossed his face. After a pause, he said, “Perhaps letting a human cultivate stone power is intriguing. I’ll make an exception and spare you.”
Lin Xiao blinked, stunned. His heir? Did he mean Yaoguang?
Was the youth sparing him because of the Yaoguang Great Emperor?
How did he know of the Emperor? Was he from that era?
The thought made Lin Xiao’s face twitch. The Yaoguang Great Emperor lived eons ago. If this Stone Clan youth hailed from that time, it was unimaginable.
Even if not, knowing the Emperor and the presence of the Yaoguang Broken Sword suggested a connection.
Anyone aware of the Emperor was no ordinary figure.
Still, being spared was a stroke of luck. With such power at the peak Martial King level, a serious pursuit would have been disastrous.
“Senior, what’s your connection to the Yaoguang lineage?” Lin Xiao couldn’t resist asking.
He avoided mentioning the Emperor directly, knowing it could cause a stir and future trouble, so he referred to the Yaoguang lineage.
“You’re not worthy to know!” the youth snapped, then threw another fist at Lin Xiao.
Lin Xiao’s expression shifted. Hadn’t he been spared? Why attack after a single question?
This Stone Clan youth was too mercurial.
Yet, sensing no killing intent in the gentle stone energy, Lin Xiao met it with his petrified arm.
**Swish!** A surge of energy flooded his arm, far stronger than before but soft, causing no harm.
Still, the force pushed him back dozens of zhang. Ziling and others rushed over, alarmed.
“It’s fine. The senior gave me a gift,” Lin Xiao said, waving them off as his hand sea refined the energy. Ziling and Hu Yue relaxed.
Soon, a powerful fluctuation emanated from his arm, his stone power advancing further.
“Not bad. Barely meets our Stone Clan’s talent threshold,” the youth rasped, then ignored everyone, turning to the thousand-zhang thunder storm piercing the heavens.
“What’s he planning?” The crowd watched, hearts racing, sensing a treasure’s emergence.
**Swoosh!**
To everyone’s shock, no treasure appeared. The youth plunged into the thunder storm.
All blinked. The storm’s energy was terrifying—Martial Kings, even Martial Venerables or Lords, risked death inside. How could he charge in? Was his stone body that resilient?
**Boom! Boom! Boom!**
Terrifying fluctuations emanated from the storm, accompanied by faint beastly roars.
The crowd gasped. Were there fearsome spiritual beasts in the storm or abyss? Was the youth fighting them?
Could any beast survive such conditions?
Or was he refining a treasure, causing the commotion?
Whatever the case, the youth’s power was staggering, creating such a disturbance within the storm.
No one present could survive entering it.
This lasted a stick of incense, while outside, the chaotic battle resumed.
—
**Heavenly Demon Mountain:**
Little Black’s rampage continued, its undead phoenix form dominating. Two Bone Clan Venerables had fallen, and the remaining six fled, convinced it was a disguised Great Saint.
Zhang Ruochen held his own against the Golden Sun Twin Kings, his time swordsmanship and Hidden Mountain Demonic Mirror countering their cauldron.
The space teetered on collapse. Little Black recalled its array flags to preserve them, vowing to slaughter all foes.
The Twin Kings, wary of Little Black, fought cautiously, their strikes less decisive.
Sensing the space’s instability, Zhang Ruochen prepared to escape with Little Black, the *Heavenly Demon Stone Inscription* and mountain secured. The collapsing space would force a final confrontation outside, where the sealing talisman’s suppression would lift, escalating the battle.
—
**Thunder Storm Battlefield (Continued):**
Lin Xiao steadied himself, his arm humming with refined stone power. The Stone Clan youth’s “gift” had elevated his Heaven-Sealing Stone Hand to a new level, its energy denser and more potent.
The youth’s plunge into the storm shifted the battlefield’s focus. The roars and fluctuations suggested a hidden force or treasure within.
Ziling approached, whispering, “That Stone Clan figure… his power rivals a Great Saint. If he’s tied to Yaoguang, we must tread carefully.”
Lin Xiao nodded, gripping his Yaoguang Broken Sword. “He spared me, but his motives are unclear. The storm’s activity likely involves the Dragon God Relic.”
The relic’s glow intensified, its dragon-shaped form pulsing with supreme power. The stone soldiers, now clashing with beasts and humans alike, seemed drawn to the storm’s edge, as if guarding it.
The lean Cao Clan youth, recovering from the earlier repulsion, rallied his allies. “That Stone Clan monster is distracted. We take the relic now!”
Mao Youtan and Ruxian hesitated, wary of the storm’s danger and the youth’s power.
Lin Xiao’s eyes narrowed. The relic was the prize, but the Stone Clan youth’s actions suggested he was either securing or confronting something within. Rushing in blindly was suicide.
“We wait,” Lin Xiao said to Ziling and Hu Yue. “The storm’s too volatile, and that youth’s strength is beyond us. Let others test it.”
As he spoke, a group of Nether Heaven Demon Palace remnants charged the storm, drawn by the relic’s allure.
**Boom!**
Lightning and energy erupted, incinerating them instantly. The crowd recoiled, the storm’s lethality clear.
The Stone Clan youth’s silhouette flickered within, clashing with an unseen force, the roars growing louder.
Lin Xiao’s heart raced. “There’s something alive in there… and he’s fighting it.”
The battlefield’s chaos deepened, with stone soldiers, beasts, and humans locked in a frenzied melee, all eyes on the storm, awaiting the outcome of the youth’s battle and the relic’s fate.
