As Zhan Liu’s attack surged forward, a shadow of an iron cedar suddenly materialized behind Ling Xiao. Sharp spikes shot up from the ground, stabbing toward Zhan Liu.
Seeing the iron cedar martial soul, Zhan Liu’s heart trembled.
Not because of its power, but because this was his sworn brother’s martial soul.
*Crack! Crack! Crack!*
In a series of collisions, the iron cedar spikes and the green willow branches nearly canceled each other out.
This was largely due to Zhan Liu’s distraction.
The moment Ling Xiao unleashed the iron cedar martial soul, Zhan Liu’s technique noticeably weakened.
“Scoundrel, you dared to steal my brother’s martial soul! If I don’t kill you today, I’m no man!” Zhan Liu roared.
Ling Xiao dug at his ear and chuckled lightly, “Senior Brother Zhan Liu, you’ve said that more than once. Can you stop repeating yourself? My ears are calloused already. If you want to kill me, just come at me. Am I supposed to be scared?”
“Hmph, if that’s all you’ve got, you won’t escape being torn to pieces today! I’ll not only take everything you have but also slaughter all your friends!” Zhan Liu’s expression turned sinister.
“Dai Yuling, Zhao Zhi, and those ignorant outer sect disciples fawning over you—they’ll all die! Not one will survive!”
Ling Xiao didn’t respond.
His expression darkened.
In his eyes, killing intent coalesced into a tangible gaze.
A dragon’s reverse scale—touch it, and fury follows!
Ling Xiao’s reverse scale was his friends and loved ones.
If Zhan Liu had only threatened him, he might have spared him an intact corpse.
But threatening his friends meant Zhan Liu would face true dismemberment!
*Boom~~*
A terrifying aura erupted!
Ling Xiao had been reluctant to enter Human-Dragon form, but now, he no longer hesitated.
To tear Zhan Liu apart, Human-Dragon form was necessary.
In the jungle, many ferocious beasts were watching the battle.
The moment Ling Xiao entered Human-Dragon form, they trembled, collapsing to the ground in worship.
Zhan Liu, staring intently at Ling Xiao, felt a surge of unease. Ling Xiao’s aura had suddenly spiked, and his appearance had changed significantly.
Bluffing?
This guy didn’t seem like the bluffing type.
Kill!
No time to wait!
Zhan Liu didn’t know what Ling Xiao was up to, but he wouldn’t let him succeed. He aimed to kill Ling Xiao before he could complete whatever he was doing!
*Boom~~*
Zhan Liu’s aura also surged, the willow tree shadow behind him growing more vivid, its green hue gleaming like jade.
A tree adorned in jade, with thousands of green silk ribbons hanging down!
A willow is beautiful, but as a martial soul, it was terrifying!
“Die, Ling Xiao!”
Zhan Liu roared, and countless willow branches appeared around him, like sharp arrows, numbering nearly a thousand.
Each branch could kill a Mortal Realm Fifth Layer Divine Strength martial artist.
Even if Ling Xiao was stronger than an average Divine Strength martial artist, so what?
If one branch wasn’t enough, two would do!
“Pity. The moment I entered this form, your defeat was sealed!” Ling Xiao said, taking a deep breath. Wind, rain, thunder, and lightning danced wildly around him.
His terrifying true essence made countless beasts cower, gazing at this demon-like figure.
*Wind and thunder, rain and lightning,*
*Iron cedar reigns supreme!*
*Ten thousand trees wither,*
*Yet you alone thrive!*
“Celestial Phenomenon Power: Iron Wrath!”
The pure celestial force fused with the iron cedar martial soul, unleashing terrifying power.
The roots and spikes buried underground transformed into sharp longswords.
With Ling Xiao at the center, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth surged wildly, visible to the naked eye, pouring into the iron cedar.
Simultaneously, more and stronger spear-like longswords gathered around him.
Wrapped in the energy of wind, rain, thunder, and lightning, they carried the weight of an impending storm, shaking the heavens.
As his voice slowly rose, nearly ten thousand spear-like swords tore through the void, warping space itself.
Amidst the flashing lightning, only Zhan Liu’s horrified, disbelieving expression was visible.
He’d seen Liu Tieshan use his martial soul, but never with such power—this was too bizarre!
Countless spears stabbed toward Zhan Liu, cutting off his thoughts.
He didn’t dare flee.
He knew the consequences of turning his back on these swords.
This monstrous beast! No wonder Heisuo and Tieshan fell to him. With only early Mortal Realm Fifth Layer cultivation, how could he unleash such a terrifying attack?
Was it tied to that strange transformation?
No time to think, Zhan Liu frantically boosted his true essence, even swallowing a high-grade true essence pill. His spears multiplied by thousands, shooting out in response.
He refused to believe that with his late Mortal Realm Seventh Layer Divine Courage cultivation, he couldn’t block Ling Xiao’s attack!
*Boom! Boom! Boom!*
The collisions rang out incessantly.
The beasts hiding in the jungle finally dared to look up.
Wu Yang, Qin Wu, Wang She, and Linglong Fairy arrived at that moment.
Their eyes witnessed an unbelievable scene.
Zhan Liu was being torn apart!
Countless spears pierced his body, shredding it in an instant.
Beasts and humans gasped.
They couldn’t comprehend how a Mortal Realm Fifth Layer early-stage martial artist could reduce a late Mortal Realm Seventh Layer warrior to this state.
Ling Xiao’s side was shrouded in blinding light, obscuring details, but countless willow branches were being repelled, striking nearby rocks and trees, causing explosions.
Even if Ling Xiao was injured, his wounds were likely far less severe than Zhan Liu’s.
This battle’s cruel reality made Wu Yang tremble.
They’d worried Zhan Liu might hoard Ling Xiao’s treasures for himself.
Now, it was clear they’d been worrying about the wrong thing.
What they should’ve feared was whether their Senior Brother Zhan could survive this fight.
As the dust settled, a young man’s figure emerged.
His face was slightly pale, his body marked with wounds and bloodstains, clearly injured.
But compared to Zhan Liu’s mangled corpse, he was far better off.
Ling Xiao had already reverted from Human-Dragon form. Everyone who’d seen it was dead, and he wanted to keep it secret.
The longer he could conceal it, the longer this trump card would remain effective, which was nothing but beneficial.
He’d reverted now because he couldn’t kill the four newcomers.
At most, he could take one down.
