Chu Xingchen's brow furrowed slightly as he felt the relentless waves of pure suppression coming from Xu Linglong. If not for the fact that Wanban was, in a sense, an incarnation of the Heavenly Dao's authority—capable of directly resisting the power of Xu Linglong's Dao Authority—he would not have been able to withstand that single sword strike Xu Linglong had launched.
Once his own spiritual energy and power left his body, even leaving the edge of Wanban's blade, they would be affected by Xu Linglong's Dao Authority. The sensation of this authority was utterly bizarre to Chu Xingchen.
It was as if time itself was rewinding, flattening the energy he released back to its primordial state.
In the midst of their clash, every shred of spiritual energy Chu Xingchen unleashed was simplified back into raw spiritual energy, scattering outward with the shockwaves.
But fortunately, this Dao Authority could not affect Chu Xingchen himself or Wanban.
It only neutralized externally released abilities, reverting them to their original form. Though he didn't understand the specifics, sometimes treating the symptoms was enough.
Chu Xingchen's counter-strategy was brutally simple—force a close-quarters brawl where raw physicality ruled!
Wanban's spiritual energy withdrew inward.
The force in Chu Xingchen's grip surged instantly, every ounce of spiritual energy poured into every inch of his body. As long as he treated his own flesh as a flawless spirit treasure, then he too possessed offensive power at the Tribulation Transcendence level!
Moreover, if Xu Linglong could truly wield this killing move without cost, it should have used it long ago when fighting Bai Xuanling.
Back when the Eight Celestial Demons had them cornered at the absolute brink, Xu Linglong had still held it in reserve.
The cost of using this move must be enormous.
Chu Xingchen had once used the Primordial Chaos Twin Spirit Beads—a treasure of immense burden. Strong? Absolutely. But the cost?!
Chu Xingchen's arm muscles bulged instantly, spiritual light seeping from every pore.
A white light slashed down.
Xu Linglong's condition was exactly as Chu Xingchen had guessed.
The force behind its strikes was no longer as overwhelming as before.
With a desperate slash, Xu Linglong was knocked into the seabed by a single blow from Wanban.
Chu Xingchen's figure shot upward, Wanban aimed straight at Xu Linglong's head for the killing strike.
Xu Linglong's golden eyes fixed on Chu Xingchen's figure, and a flicker of confusion crossed its expression. But it still understood its current advantage.
The long sword in its hand transformed into a great bow. In the instant it was drawn, thousands of rainbow lights shot toward Chu Xingchen.
Xu Linglong twisted its body, using the momentary recoil to pull away and create distance.
Chu Xingchen could now only rely on his physical body to fight.
Xu Linglong's mind was perfectly clear—it understood that the most important thing in fighting a close-range opponent was to keep your distance.
Chu Xingchen's sword intent swept outward, scattering the incoming rainbow lights, and he pressed hard after Xu Linglong.
Xu Linglong raised a hand slightly, and from the sea surface, a colossal dragon made of seawater surged upward, swallowing Chu Xingchen whole as he flew in.
But in the very next instant, the water dragon was cleaved apart by a single strike from Chu Xingchen.
Xu Linglong knew perfectly well that these minor tricks could not harm Chu Xingchen—they could only slow him down, obstruct his movements.
But… that was enough.
If you were heading into a battle of life and death, you must not bring along someone you cared about as dead weight.
Because that was a flaw!
A smile tugged at the corner of Xu Linglong's mouth, and countless water dragons tore across the sea surface toward Chu Xingchen. Even though Chu Xingchen could destroy them all in the next instant…
But in that single instant, Xu Linglong could nock an arrow and aim it at Xie Lingyu.
Even across a considerable distance, a single arrow from a Tribulation Transcendence cultivator was not something an Integration-realm cultivator could easily withstand.
And if Xu Linglong had time for one arrow, it certainly had time for a second.
The Dao Authority's power could not affect Wanban in Chu Xingchen's hand—that, Xu Linglong had already accepted. But the Dao Authority seemed completely ineffective against Chu Xingchen himself, showing no reaction whatsoever, as though he were entirely unaffected.
Xu Linglong did not believe Chu Xingchen could simply nullify the Dao Authority.
It was far more likely that the Primordial Chaos Twin Spirit Beads were blocking the Dao Authority's effects. The supreme treasure of Xuanqing Tianzong had already touched upon the threshold of authority.
Xu Linglong understood clearly—if it bore the immense burden of wielding the Dao Authority and Chu Xingchen's response was only this negligible, then it might as well not use the Dao Authority at all.
But without the Dao Authority, it would almost certainly be dragged to death here by Chu Xingchen.
So the only way to break the deadlock was Xie Lingyu.
If Chu Xingchen truly intended to protect Xie Lingyu, he would have to divert the Twin Spirit Beads' power to shield her.
The moment he did that, Chu Xingchen would have to accept the Dao Authority's erosion.
If it was destined to die here, then at the very least, it would drag Chu Xingchen down with it.
Xu Linglong's arrow aimed at Xie Lingyu was an unmistakable declaration.
Chu Xingchen's movements suddenly accelerated. He smashed through the water dragon with his body alone—the power tore through his protective robes—but in doing so, he seized the opening.
Wanban flashed with white light.
Xu Linglong's dodge was a fraction too slow, and a massive gash was carved into its left shoulder by Wanban.
Unfazed by the wound, Xu Linglong continued to retreat, drawing its bow to a full moon—the target remained Xie Lingyu.
"Guess which of us will kill the other first—you, or me taking out your precious darling?" Xu Linglong's tone was light and leisurely. "Bringing a weakness into battle—this is the price you pay. Today, what other tricks do you have…"
Xu Linglong's words were cut short.
It glanced sideways and saw the Primordial Chaos Twin Spirit Beads split into a stream of pure qi and turbid qi, flying straight toward Xie Lingyu.
A smile curled at the corner of Xu Linglong's mouth.
Indeed, deep affection was such a convenient lever. It hadn't even finished speaking, and Chu Xingchen had already sent the Twin Spirit Beads to protect Xie Lingyu.
Whether Xie Lingyu lived or died meant nothing to Xu Linglong.
If not for the Twin Spirit Beads' power shielding Chu Xingchen, it wouldn't have even bothered glancing at Xie Lingyu.
Nothing in this world mattered more than killing Chu Xingchen right now.
Xu Linglong's bow transformed back into a sword.
Time was running out. Before long, a host of Tribulation Transcendence cultivators would arrive to reinforce him.
Let this final battle of life and death begin!
The originally pure golden glow in Xu Linglong's pupils began to bleed with threads of red, and… pure white.
Chu Xingchen watched as Xu Linglong's state shifted drastically once more. Just because he had withdrawn the Twin Spirit Beads' protection, Xu Linglong had already entered a state of desperate, all-out combat.
It was as though victory was already in its grasp.
But the Twin Spirit Beads had already been eroded by its Dao Authority down to a thin shell of protection—hardly any defense remained for him anyway.
If things were this strange, there had to be a reason.
In that instant, Chu Xingchen understood the situation—under normal circumstances, the Dao Authority should have affected him. Xu Linglong had mistakenly believed the Twin Spirit Beads were blocking it, when in fact the authority simply could not affect his body.
If that was the case…
As Xu Linglong closed in, Chu Xingchen's expression turned deadly serious. His breathing quickened, and spiritual energy began to leak uncontrollably from his body.
His movements shifted from pursuit to retreat.
Something appeared to be affecting Chu Xingchen severely—his movements visibly slowed.
Xu Linglong didn't need to be killed by Chu Xingchen's hand specifically. As long as it died, that was what mattered.
To prevent Xu Linglong from going berserk and choosing to self-detonate near Xie Lingyu—though it might not succeed, it was better to eliminate that risk entirely.
Just as Chu Xingchen had predicted.
A ferocious grin spread across Xu Linglong's face, sword in hand, charging at Chu Xingchen for the kill.
Chu Xingchen's brow knotted tightly, but inwardly he laughed.
Little Linglong.
Time to pay the price for your reckless judgment!