The crimson glow of the red moon cast long shadows over the battlefield, painting the torn ground in a sinister light.

  The hound that had sunk its fangs into Meng Lin's shoulder trembled for a brief moment before its grip loosened, a faint whimper escaping its throat as it instinctively backed away.

  Meng Lin gritted her teeth, pushing through the searing pain in her arm. The electric current still crackled through her veins, numbing her senses, but she was more focused on the red moon in the sky.

  Then, from within the oppressive glow of the red moon, a figure emerged with a sword raised in the air. Clad in flowing robes and releasing vast amounts of sword Qi into the air, Wu Dao’s voice rang out as the sword in the air was brought down.

  “Secret Art: Lunar Eclipse!”

  Shing!!

  The red moon behind him moved instantly, appearing before Zhao Lu before she had any time to react.

  Peng!!

  A deafening explosion rippled through the battlefield as the red moon’s energy clashed against an unseen force. Dust and debris shot into the air, obscuring the battlefield. The ground beneath cracked, forming jagged fissures that spread outward like a spider’s web.

  Wu Dao’s gaze remained sharp, his sword still humming with residual energy from his strike. He had not held back as he knew that it was the perfect chance since she had already summoned her five half step Rank 5 beasts.

  The Lunar Eclipse was a technique meant to move as soon as it appeared, thus even if she did have something to block it, it was already too late.

  Although he wasn't able to trigger a heavenly tribulation, his aura and Qi have both reached the Half Stage Narscent Soul Realm, plus his activated Sword Physique as well as his Secret Art.

  It was all of that combined that made Wu Dao confident enough to strike to kill on the first attack, However. His eyes narrowed as he gazed at the attack.

  As the dust settled, a shimmering barrier of distorted air flickered in front of Zhao Lu. A tall figure stood between her and Wu Dao’s devastating attack.

  Yin Zhi.

  His robes fluttered slightly from the force of the impact, but his expression remained as composed as ever. With a simple wave of his hand, the remnants of Wu Dao’s attack dispersed like mist.

  Zhao Lu’s tense stance eased, but her eyes flashed with fury as she turned toward Yin Zhi, her voice seething with disdain.

  "Yin Zhi, I don't need your help" she spat.

  Yin Zhi ignored her, his gaze locked onto Wu Dao. “That was a rather heavy-handed greeting, don’t you think?”

  Wu Dao’s eyes narrowed. “Yin Zhi." His thoughts ran as he began to worry.

  Wu Dao’s sword hummed in his grip as he turned toward Meng Lin, his gaze filled with a mixture of caution and calculation.

  The encounter had already taken an unexpected turn. Yin Zhi’s timely intervention was probably no coincidence, the Scarlet Demon Sect probably sent him here to keep Zhao Lu in check.

  He could tell that the man was a genuine Narscent Soul cultivator, an existence he had no desire to underestimate.

  It seems their only option is to get out of here, luckily he had already told the other disciples to leave and go report back to the sect, otherwise they would have all died.

  He passed a few voice transmissions to Meng Lin before turning his attention to the two figures in front of him, although he has no desire to underestimate Yin Zhi, it didn't mean he didn't have the means to fend him off.

  His expression hardened as he began to channel his Qi into a series of rapid, intricate hand seals, his energy flaring around with intensity.

  "Hump, don't interfere with my battles anymore Yin Zhi" Zhao Lu said with a threatening voice, her expression becoming even more angry when she thought back to when she lost an arm, Yin Zhi could have appeared then but he didn't.

  Boom!

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  her aura ripped outward, intensifying with a violent surge of power. With a flick of her wrist, she called to the beasts around her. "You five, come here."

  Her body pulsed with a magnetic force, drawing the five massive beasts toward her. One by one, they were pulled into her, vanishing into her small frame with a terrifying force.

  Thump!

  Zhao Lu’s aura exploded outward with an otherworldly roar, her body twisting as if it could no longer contain her true form. Horns sprouted from her forehead, her legs morphed into canine legs, and her face contorted into the shape of a fiery, twisted lion.

  The mountain trembled beneath her, her aura was suffused with the intense, overwhelming presence of a Narscent Soul Realm.

  As Zhao Lu's form became something beyond mortal comprehension, Yin Zhi’s expression remained unchanged, his eyes cold as ice and unbothered with his surroundings.

  "Hahaha"

  With a maniacal laughter, Zhao Lu's form expanded as she raised her hand to conjure a beam of twisted dark energy.

  Krrr!!

  Space twisted as if to make way for the attack, as a laser streaked across the battlefield, cutting through the air with a devastating shriek.

  The beam shot toward Yin Zhi with unstoppable force, the distortion in the air bending around it as if even space itself recoiled back.

  Yin Zhi remained calm, a slight flicker of his gaze toward the approaching attack, with a flick of his wrist, he vanished from his previous position, his figure disappearing like a shadow in the face of the oncoming attack.

  The twisted beam, continued its relentless path, heading directly toward Wu Dao and Meng Lin.

  Wu Dao’s eye narrowed as he continued his hand signs and Meng Lin walked forward, her arm raised while the space in front of her rippled slightly to reveal the form of the Void-State Tablet.

  The next moment appeared too fast, the Void State Tablet pulsed with an intense light, and Zhao Lu, whose laughter still rang in the air, eye's widened as a twisted beam appeared just inches to her face.

  Boom!!

  At the same time. Wu Dao, with a shocked expression at the situation completed his hand seals, the space around him distorting, and the air vibrating under the pressure. Above him, a massive golden sigil materialized, pulsating with a dark, ominous energy.

  The sigil began to descend slowly, merging with Wu Dao's body, his aura intensifying as a colossal number of sword shapes began to appear around his body and his energy rippling throughout the mountain.

  Yin Zhi, appearing a dozen meters away, raised his eyebrows, his expression changing for the first time since he appeared.

  However it wasn't because of the large amount of aura that Wu Dao was radiating, rather from the event that just transpired with Zhao Lu and Meng Lin.

  Zhao Lu stumbled back, her monstrous form trembling as she caught sight of the tablet’s glow. The beam she had unleashed upon Wu Dao had been reflected, nearly striking her at point-blank range. Though she had managed to react in time, the shock was evident in her widened eyes.

  “You—” Her voice came out as a guttural snarl, her clawed fingers twitching in rage.

  Wu Dao, still mid-transformation, barely spared her a glance. His focus remained on Yin Zhi, whose composed expression had finally shifted into something resembling curiosity.

  “A Spatial Sacred Grade Item…” Yin Zhi muttered, his voice barely above a whisper, yet it carried across the battlefield like a declaration.

  The weight of his words settled heavily in the air. Even Zhao Lu, despite her anger, hesitated for a brief second. The mention of such an item was not lost on any of them—artifacts of this caliber were beyond mere spiritual weapons. They were items that even emperors and sovereigns would kill for.

  Yin Zhi’s gaze flickered between her and the tablet, his calm demeanor returning. “I see,” he mused.

  Zhao Lu, snapping out of her stunned state, let out a sharp breath, her rage boiling over. “It doesn’t matter what tricks you have! You’re dead—”

  Before she could finish, Wu Dao moved.

  The golden sigil above him fully merged with his body, his sword Physique roaring to life as a golden glow emanated from his body.

  Countless sword shadows surrounded him, humming with an intensity that sent tremors through the air. His eyes glowed with power as he directed his blade at Zhao Lu.

  Shing!

  A thousand sword lights erupted in an instant, each one carrying the weight of his full powered attack. The entire sky was consumed by the bright brilliance of the attack.

  Zhao Lu barely had time to react before the first blade reached her. Then the second. The third. The Dozens. The Hundredth.

  Rumble!!

  Her monstrous form twisted, her hardened scales and hide deflecting the first few attacks that came her way, but each sword light carved through her aura, tearing into her limbs, torso, and shoulders, the sheer volume of attacks overwhelmed her defenses.

  “AGH!!” Zhao Lu roared in pain, her voice distorting between human and beast as she struggled to stand admit the thousand swords.

  Wu Dao’s expression remained cold as he slashed his sword forward. The swords had only begun their work.

  The remaining sword lights condensed into a single, blinding crescent slashed through the space ahead.

  Crack!

  A deafening shatter resounded as Zhao Lu's beastly transformation fractured. Her once-demonic frame twisted, her horns splintering, her fangs breaking. The five beasts that had just merged into her were almost expelled as she collapsed to one knee, panting heavily.

  Meng Lin couldn't help but raise her eyebrows, she had known that Wu Dao was strong, but this level of sword mastery was beyond what she had expected.

  Just a few moments ago, she had thought herself on par if not stronger than him, yet he had something like this under his sleeve.

  His thousand sword lights had not only overwhelmed Zhao Lu’s monstrous form, comparable to a nascent soul cultivator.

  It was then that Meng Lin thought to never underestimate others, it seems like she wasn't the only freak around.

  Cough cough

  Zhao Lu’s coughed as she spoke, her voice high "You… think this is enough…?" Her body pulsed as all of a sudden her wounds began healing at an unnatural speed. A crimson aura erupted from her form, warping the air around her.

  Meng Lin narrowed her eyes but Wu Dao remained unshaken, lowering his blade. The golden aura around him was almost gone, as over half his energy was spent on just that single attack, “And now.”

  But just as the words left his lips—

  Boom!

  A deep sudden pressure descended upon the battlefield. A terrifying amount of aura emanated from Yin Zhi’s direction, shocking everyone.

  Even Zhao Lu stopped what she was doing to look in his direction. "Haha" Yin Zhu's previously calm eyes remained the same, his lips curling into an intrigued smirk.

  “This is quite unexpected,” he said, his gaze once again locking onto the Void-State Tablet in Meng Lin’s hand. “I was merely here to ensure Zhao Lu didn’t cause a scene, but now… I find myself interested.”

  Meng Lin, who had remained composed throughout the fight, finally shifted her stance. The Void-State Tablet hummed, pulsing as if aware of Yin Zhi’s gaze.

  Wu Dao clicked his tongue in annoyance as he sent a voice transmission to Meng Lin.

  Meng Lin nodded subtly, understanding his meaning. Yin Zhi was an entirely different threat—one that neither of them could afford to engage with right now.

  Without hesitation, Meng Lin raised the Void-State Tablet once more. Space trembled, a black fissure opening behind her and Wu Dao.

  Yin Zhi’s eyes flashed. “Trying to escape?”

  Shing!

  A single step from him sent a ripple through space, his figure blurring forward, closing the distance in an instant. His hand reached out toward the tablet—

  But just before he could grasp it, he felt a chill go down in his spine causing him to falter.

  Boom!!

  The space around Meng Lin and Wu Dao twisted violently, a powerful suction force pulling them into the fissure. Their figures flickered, then vanished entirely into the void.

  The battlefield fell into silence.

  Yin Zhi exhaled slowly, his hand lowering as he stared at the now-empty spot where Meng Lin and Wu Dao had stood, surprise on his face.

  Zhao Lu, still kneeling in her battered form, clenched her fists, her face surprisingly calm. “why did you let them go?" She asked in a calm voice.

  Yin Zhi remained silent for a moment before chuckling softly. “I felt something just a moment ago” He turned to her, his gaze unbothered. “it seems we've stumbled onto something interesting."

  His fingers traced the lingering distortions in space. “Meng Lin… that artifact of hers… that feeling as well this spatial folding space."

  Zhao Lu, still kneeling, spat blood to the side before wiping her mouth with the back of her clawed hand. "Tch, and it was just getting fun."

  Yin Zhi turned back to her, smiling slightly, "you need to tone down your anger, it's almost not believable."

  Zhao Lu flashed a wicked smile, "is that so?