Facing Tai Tan's ferocious impact, which resembled a dark-gold meteor, Liu Yuan's expression remained calm.
He didn't choose to dodge; instead, he pressed two fingers together in front of him, and his Divine Sense instantly locked onto the Primal Kyogre Spirit.
"Primal Kyogre, Aqua Ring!"
With Liu Yuan's low shout, several thick streams of deep-blue water manifested out of thin air around Primal Kyogre's massive body. These streams twisted and rotated around each other, forming a thick, ring-shaped barrier.
Tai Tan's massive dark-gold body slammed violently into the Aqua Ring, erupting with a dull roar. Visible white ripples of air pressure spread outward due to the intense force.
Every punch Tai Tan threw carried the weight of a thousand tons, kicking up sprays of water that filled the air, but the Aqua Ring possessed an extremely strong self-healing Ability.
The scattered water reconsolidated in an instant, not only neutralizing most of the impact but also sending a counter-shock that made Tai Tan's figure sway.
Primal Kyogre was like an indestructible deep-sea reef, firmly blocking the only path of Tai Tan's charge.
Meanwhile, Mega Rayquaza, weaving through the high-altitude clouds, was in no hurry to join the battle.
Liu Yuan knew very well that with the empowerment of divine force, Tai Tan's defense and explosive power were at their Peak.
To truly inflict heavy damage on the opponent, he had to accumulate enough attack intensity.
"Mega Rayquaza, Dragon Dance! Swords Dance!"
The emerald-green dragon continuously moved through the air, its body tracing profound trajectories.
With every rotation, its speed increased by a level—this was the agility gain brought by Dragon Dance.
The emerald light flickering on its dragon claws grew increasingly piercing due to the stacking of Swords Dance; that sharp aura felt as if it were about to slice the upper cloud layers apart.
As the two strengthening skills were cast alternately, the pressure emitted by Mega Rayquaza surged in a stepwise fashion.
The originally dark-red lightning became denser around its body, emitting the sizzling crackle of electrical explosions.
Due to the excessive stacking of power in a short time, tiny black cracks began to appear in the space around Rayquaza—a sign that its physical destructive power was approaching the plane's endurance limit.
Below, Tai Tan had already fallen into a frenzy. He swung his arms madly, smashing the seawater around Primal Kyogre until it boiled.
"Get out of my way!"
Tai Tan let out a furious roar, the dark-gold light all over his body suddenly contracting before erupting into a heavy, powerful swing.
This punch hit Primal Kyogre squarely in the side. The tyrannical impact pushed the massive Kyogre sideways for dozens of meters, and the Aqua Ring temporarily collapsed as its energy was instantly exhausted.
Just as Tai Tan's face twisted into a ferocious grin, preparing to take advantage of the opening to rush into Haotian Fortress to find Huo Yuhao, an emerald-green bolt of lightning descended from the heavens.
"Extreme Speed!"
Having completed multiple power-ups, Mega Rayquaza's speed had completely surpassed the limits of Tai Tan's visual tracking.
With a crisp 'crack,' Rayquaza's thousand-meter dragon body acted like the heaviest iron whip, striking Tai Tan's dark-gold Martial Soul True Body with an ultra-high frequency that the naked eye couldn't follow.
The massive impact sent Tai Tan's ten-meter-tall body flying like a piece of iron struck by a heavy hammer. He traced a straight horizontal line through the air, smashing through three thick black stone pillars in succession before being deeply embedded into the mountain face outside Haotian Fortress.
"This... how is this possible?"
Tai Tan struggled to stand up from the fissure in the mountain, a trace of blood overflowing from the corner of his mouth. The fury in his eyes was replaced by profound shock; he couldn't understand how that dragon's power had risen to a level capable of crushing him head-on in just a few minutes.
Meanwhile, deep within Haotian Fortress, in an underground ice cellar.
Huo Yuhao, in a state of invisibility, finally passed through the last defensive gate. In the center, a transparent ice coffin made of Ten-Thousand-Year Ice Essence emitted a faint blue light.
Inside the ice coffin, Wang Donger lay with a pale face. Although her life force was weak, her body was perfectly preserved.
Huo Yuhao did not hesitate. He deactivated his imitation Soul Skill and his figure appeared.
"Donger, I'm taking you away!"
Huo Yuhao's eyes were red. He exerted force with both hands, lifting the heavy ice coffin along with Wang Donger inside. Due to the extreme cold of the Ice Essence, his hands were instantly frozen a bruised purple, but he didn't loosen his grip in the slightest.
"Traitor! Put down the Young Miss!"
The Clear Sky Sect disciples guarding the inner wing finally discovered the commotion. However, before they could surround him, Huo Yuhao had already activated his full spirit power, turning into a streak of light and charging out of the fortress.
"You are looking for death!"
Niu Tian, who was being besieged by Kong Deming's trio, sensed the movement of the ice coffin being taken. He let out a low dragon roar. He swung the green heavy sword in his hand violently, and an almost Divine Rank sword pressure erupted, forcibly blowing away Snow Empress's emperor sword, Kong Deming's spatial sphere, and Jing Hongchen's interference beam.
Niu Tian ignored Kong Deming and the others. His gaze was as cold as a ten-thousand-year glacier. With a flash of his body, he crossed several hundred meters, charging toward Huo Yuhao, who was rushing out of the gate holding the ice coffin.
Seeing this, Tai Tan also wanted to join the pincer attack, but he was still being held back firmly by Liu Yuan, who stood in his way.
Seeing that Niu Tian's heavy sword, capable of shattering mountains and splitting ridges, was about to fall on Huo Yuhao's head, Liu Yuan's gaze turned sharp.
"Mega Rayquaza, repel Tai Tan!"
Rayquaza's dragon head slammed forward, knocking the charging Tai Tan back once again.
Liu Yuan himself vanished from his spot, and in the next second, he appeared directly in front of Huo Yuhao.
Liu Yuan crossed his arms. The dual Soul Cores within his body erupted with dazzling brilliance simultaneously, and a protective shield interwoven with emerald-green and bright-blue light instantly expanded.
Bang—!
Niu Tian's heavy sword hacked violently into Liu Yuan's protective shield. Sparks flew everywhere, and the rampaging spirit power aftershocks reduced the ground beneath their feet to dust.
Liu Yuan did not retreat a single step, standing firmly in front of Huo Yuhao, completely blocking Niu Tian's lethal strike.
"Yuhao, take Donger and retreat." Liu Yuan spoke without looking back, his voice carrying an unquestionable firmness. "Leave this to me."
"But, can you handle it alone?" Huo Yuhao was still somewhat hesitant after hearing this.
However, Kong Deming, Snow Empress, and Jing Hongchen had an extremely clear understanding of Liu Yuan's current strength.
They knew that Liu Yuan's strength was now immense; even Tai Tan and Niu Tian might not be able to keep him there. Therefore, after hearing Liu Yuan's words, they immediately did as he said.
Staying here would only be a hindrance.
"Go!"
Kong Deming and Jing Hongchen each took one, directly leading Huo Yuhao and Wang Donger away.
They turned into three streaks of light and flew off. Behind them, Tai Tan and Niu Tian's gazes turned completely furious upon seeing this scene.