C973 A Chaotic Battle!

The sky was just beginning to lighten when a faint glow started twinkling at the spot where the wandering figures had vanished. Within the shimmer, one could barely make out the teleportation circle, which had been reduced to a fraction of its original size.

Suddenly, the glow swelled, and space and time churned tumultuously. From within emerged a bald elder. His stature was short, and his body was unusually broad and muscular. His arms hung low, reminiscent of the Ape's, as he stood suspended in the void, grinning at the colossal figure in the sky that had transformed into a golden-armored deity.

A powerful aura of fist intent, vast as rivers and waterfalls, radiated from him, filling the entire space. His burly and imposing form shifted, revealing his Divine Visage. Numerous massive fist imprints, dazzling with light, orbited his Divine Visage, each one seemingly infused with the mysteries of space and time.

"Zhongli Dapan!" Yu Yuan exclaimed, his face lighting up with excitement at the sight of the Forgeroses' new sect master bursting forth from the minuscule array. Zhongli Dapan's arrival was a promising signal. His ability to step through indicated that the teleportation circle, transported into an alternate dimension, remained operational and could promptly deliver reinforcements to the forbidden area.

"In the vast Everlands, there are many who are allied with Boulderdawn, including the Untamed!" Yu Yuan thought of the archdemons of the Godsblight Marsh stepping into the forbidden area through the teleportation circle. The numerous archdemons loyal to the Untamed could significantly tip the scales in their favor if they heeded his call and arrived via the rune circle.

The longstanding friendship between the Untamed God and Boulderdawn was evident. With the return of Boulderdawn's mighty warriors, would the Untamed God extend a hand of assistance? Yu Yuan pondered the possibility.

Then, with a hearty laugh, Zhongli Dapan ascended above the Golden Elephant God, his Divine Visage towering and formidable. A barrage of radiant fist imprints, akin to a meteor shower, pummeled the Golden Elephant God with a terrifying force that threatened to shatter space and decelerate time. In response, the Golden Elephant God once again braced for impact, its body aglow with golden radiance, in its immense elephantine form.

As the punches rained down, even the once formidable Dark Deity couldn't bear the assault, plummeting under the force of time and space magic contained within each blow.

The bald elder burst into laughter once more, straddling the elephant's back and delivering crushing blows to its head. Each punch detonated with the force of a Domain exploding.

"Zhongli Dapan!" Mo Baichuan, Feng Pu, Van Heqing, and the other Unbound cultivators glared at him furiously.

Zhongli Dapan, exuding a commanding presence and fist intent that seemed to warp space and time, didn't miss a beat in responding while striking the Golden Elephant God, "What's the matter? I was locked away in Sword Prison for years, and wasn't it you three upper sects behind it? Nie Qingtian, aren't you always their sharpest sword?"

"Do you really think you can eternally dictate what's just and what's evil?"

"I should have been the current Sect Master of Forgeroses! But because I was too wild and refused to submit, because I had edges, and Han Yue was too docile, you propped him up. You aided Lingxu in dividing us, relegating Forgeroses to the ranks of the lower sects!" Zhongli Dapan's words grew more heated with each sentence.

Roar!

The Golden Elephant God, mounted by his Divine Visage, bellowed as he summoned the Gold Mountain. As soon as it touched his colossal form, golden blades that could pierce the void's wall burst forth from his neck, where Zhongli Dapan rode.

Puff! Puff!

Suddenly, Zhongli Dapan's Divine Visage was riddled with holes, oozing golden magma.

"Haha, Golden Elephant, don't be so mad. You know how I am. Even if I target Shadow's Keep, it's not personal against you." Zhongli Dapan's enormous Divine Visage rose into the air, and with a slight application of the Ancient Echoes of the Void mantra, the wounds on the Divine Visage healed instantly.

"Yu Yuan, let me have some fun with this old Golden Elephant," Zhongli Dapan declared, then shot a challenging look at Ghost King Tian Zang, "If you put in your full effort, you could restrain him too."

Tian Zang ignored the challenge, focusing instead on battling Sages Lingxu and Huanmiao with the Blood Altar and the Spawn of Chaos.

"Tian Zang, if you can help me kill Lingxu, I'll have a tremendous surprise for you," Zhongli Dapan declared.

Yet the Ghost King, Tian Zang, remained unmoved.

"Tian Zang..."

Yu Yuan hummed softly.

He grasped Zhongli Dapan's hint. The Ghost King, Tian Zang, once a Star-Spawned Terror, appeared to be holding back, never revealing his true capabilities.

Tian Zang had assured Yu Yuan that if he could handle the Golden Elephant God, he wouldn't abandon the mission and return to the Land of Terror mid-way.

But it was clear that Tian Zang was the most formidable adversary for the Golden Elephant God...

"Young Master!"

At the edge of a vast pit, Qin Yun's Dawn Arrows burst into flames one after another.

Two practitioners from the Skyblight Cult, both in the middle period of their Spirit Walk, a man and a woman, ambushed the loyal servant who had served Yu Yuan for many years. With a fan and a black brush, they inflicted numerous wounds on Qin Yun.

Both attackers, wielding their weapons, were evidently more powerful than Qin Yun.

Elsewhere, a cultivator from the Binders of Shadows, adorned with the garb of a Solar Spirit, had a green Pi Xiu perched on his shoulder. He mockingly scattered spells and runes from the sky upon Qi Yunhong.

Qi Yunhong's eyes, wild with madness, began to show a deranged and sickly glint, as if he had become a bloodthirsty beast.

The green Pi Xiu on the shoulder of the Binders of Shadows cultivator had two points of light in its eyes, which were the phantoms of Qi Yunhong.

This alien beast, leveraging the Binders of Shadows' arcane spells, seized the moment of Qi Yunhong's confusion to extract two strands of his soul from his consciousness. It then used its demon soul to grind them down, tormenting his spiritual wisdom.

On another front, Shi Yuxuan, the current leader of the Sacred Hands, was ensnared by tendrils of dark green smoke, his breathing growing labored and the light in his eyes fading.

Wen Lu, with her Shadowkin lineage, was in the midst of Shi Yuxuan, Qi Yunhong, and Qin Yun, tirelessly invoking her blood magic.

The verdant essence of vitality flowed into the three of them, aiding in the healing of their wounds and alleviating the toxins within their bodies.

"Skyblight Cult, Poison Cult, Binders of Shadows..."

Yu Yuan cast a brief glance and let out a cold snort. He commanded Chebus, Armor Crusher, Silver Chain, and Grimlantern to take action and gave an order to Blood Moon: "You have my permission to consume the blood and refine it!"

Whoosh!

The dark cauldron that had been hovering above his head also departed, making its way toward the area where Shi Yuxuan and the others were.

Suddenly, a horde of menacing Bane demons emerged en masse from the cauldron's maw.

"Disciples of the Thunder Sect! Engage those Bane demons!"

A frosty elder, radiating a chilling aura, took Wei Zhuo's place and bellowed the command. With a swift motion, he positioned himself before Yu Yuan, following the Peacock Queen and Wei Zhuo.

"I am Ruan Fu, Chief Elder of Winter's Bite. Your survival to this point is quite unexpected."

His expression was dark. While he spoke to Yu Yuan, his covetous eyes occasionally flickered toward the Frost Queen, betraying a desire to devour her whole.

"Winter's Bite, Chief Elder Ruan Fu! Your reputation precedes you!"

Yu Yuan couldn't help but chuckle. "Indeed, your name resonates like thunder! Years ago, it struck fear into my heart, chilling me to the bone whenever I heard it."

The Chief Elder of Winter's Bite was the very one who had taken an interest in Lin Zhuyun and sought to bring her into the sect.

He was also the one who, upon learning of Lin Zhuyun's betrothal to someone like Yu Yuan, feared Tang Cen might disapprove and thus instructed Lin Hanyu and Yin Jue to ensure Yu Yuan's untimely demise.

With his death, the engagement would be void.

Furthermore, after Yin Jue's death, it was he who ordered Winter's Bite's other powerhouses to pursue Yu Yuan's death, aiming to eradicate the Yu family entirely and eliminate any future threats.

Upon hearing him reveal his identity, a flood of new and old resentments surged within Yu Yuan, his urge for vengeance stronger than ever before!

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