A crescent-shaped crimson blade aura tore through the void, carrying a suffocating scent of death that rippled outward like a tide!

The sheer oppression emanating from the blade made the four Overlord Hall disciples—cultivators at the early and mid-Golden Core Stages—feel an intense, crushing sense of impending doom.

Although Han Lie’s cultivation level wasn’t vastly different from theirs on paper, his actual combat prowess belonged to a different dimension entirely!

A casual slash from Han Lie forced them to burn every ounce of their potential just to barely preserve their lives. After steadying themselves, all four felt a chill run down their spines, their backs soaked in cold sweat.

“Step aside!”

Seeing this, Ye Lang waved his hand and commanded sharply.

He realized it now. These four junior brothers couldn’t offer him any help; they were liabilities who would only hold him back. A mid-Golden Core Stage cultivator wielding a Heaven-grade treasure was not something these small fries could contend with.

“Heh, looks like you want a one-on-one fight with me.” Han Lie smirked.

“Hmph. An ant at the mid-Golden Core Stage is still an ant, even with a Heaven-grade treasure,” Ye Lang said disdainfully. “If I needed help from others to kill a mere mid-Golden Core cultivator, and word got back to the sect, I’d lose all face!”

Immediately after, Ye Lang clenched his hand.

A large, heavy cleaver materialized, flashing with a sharp, cold light. He slowly slid two fingers along the spine of the blade, and an abyssal, sea-like dark spiritual energy began to climb up the steel, writhing like black flames.

Then, Ye Lang lightly tapped the void with his toes.

He descended with the force of a collapsing mountain, slashing furiously towards Han Lie’s crown!

“Haha, well met!”

Surging with blazing spiritual energy, Han Lie laughed heartily towards the sky, utterly fearless!

“This Senior wants to see just what is so extraordinary about the Golden Core Stage Perfection!”

He tightened his grip on Crimson Oath and swung it upward to meet the blow!

Clang!

The sound of metal clashing rang out like a bell tolling from hell, sending sparks flying everywhere. An unparalleled, terrifying shockwave instantly swept outward!

The four disciples not far away were immediately sent tumbling head over heels like dry leaves in a gale. Wherever the shockwave passed, mountain peaks were severed cleanly at their waists, the break surfaces smooth as mirrors!

Sizzle! Sizzle! Sizzle!

The scorching crimson spiritual energy and the eerie dark spiritual energy eroded and annihilated each other in a violent dance. Both Han Lie and Ye Lang frowned tightly, continuously pouring their spiritual energy into the deadlock.

“Impossible!”

Ye Lang’s expression gradually turned grave.

Logically, a mid-Golden Core Stage ant shouldn’t have any room to fight back under his hand. But right now… he was actually locked in a stalemate!

“Golden Core Stage Perfection? A complete mess!” Han Lie mocked through gritted teeth.

“You’re celebrating too early!”

“Hah!”

Ye Lang exerted force abruptly, and the dark spiritual energy on his blade surged dramatically!

A violent energy explosion erupted.

Han Lie was blasted back over a thousand meters before barely managing to steady himself. Looking back at Ye Lang, his body had only trembled slightly. In this direct confrontation of raw power, Ye Lang clearly held the absolute advantage.

Shaking his somewhat numb arm, Han Lie felt not a trace of fear. As the pure Yang power within him surged, his fighting spirit soared even higher!

“I told you, even with a Heaven-grade treasure, it doesn’t change the fact that you’re an ant!”

Ye Lang pointed his large blade from afar, his voice dripping with arrogance. “Without that Heaven-grade treasure, you wouldn’t withstand a single slash from me!”

“So much talk.”

Immediately after, Han Lie moved.

He darted up tens of thousands of meters into the sky. A continuous stream of spiritual energy once again flooded his blade, causing it to scream.

“Soul Devouring Saber Art, Second Form: Soul Severing!”

Boom!

As Han Lie brought his blade down, a fiery red blade aura stretching over a hundred miles long detached from the edge. It was a strike that seemed capable of cleaving heaven and earth itself, bearing down upon Ye Lang to suppress him completely!

“Hmph, petty tricks!”

Facing Han Lie’s powerful slash, Ye Lang snorted disdainfully.

Though his words were contemptuous, he didn’t dare underestimate the attack in the slightest. With a thought, the spiritual energy of the surrounding heaven and earth immediately converged, forming a rushing river of power that flowed into him.

“Dragon Blade·World Destruction!”

Roar!

A dragon’s roar resounded through the sky. Boundless dark spiritual energy condensed into a colossal, endless black dragon. It surged upward to meet the hundred-mile blade aura like Mars colliding with Earth—a spectacular, cataclysmic encounter!

Boom!

An intense energy explosion erupted instantly. The earth trembled violently below, and even space itself cracked under the force of the collision!

However, Han Lie’s true intention lay elsewhere.

He paid no attention to the ongoing energy explosion in the sky. Instead, he raised Crimson Oath and turned his gaze towards the four Overlord Hall disciples cowering on the ground.

“You…!”

“Bastard! His target is us!”

“……”

Seeing Han Lie charging towards them with murderous intent, the pupils of those four disciples contracted sharply. An intense, suffocating sense of death enveloped their hearts.

“Fairies Cai Zhen and Yunxia said they miss you both very much down below. Considering your deep feelings for them, I’ll play the good guy this once and send you down to reunite with them.”

Han Lie wielded Crimson Oath as if entering unopposed territory.

These four early and mid-Golden Core Stage Overlord Hall disciples had almost no ability to fight back against him.

Crimson Oath was like Death’s scythe. Each swing took another disciple’s life, severing heads and limbs with brutal efficiency. The blade drank greedily, draining their blood dry to strengthen itself, leaving behind only shriveled, hollow-eyed corpses.

Hum!

After absorbing the fresh blood of four Golden Core Stage cultivators, Han Lie could clearly feel Crimson Oath trembling in his hand, rejoicing excitedly. It thirsted for more!

Meanwhile.

Above a city at the border of the Great Qin Dynasty.

Several figures stood in mid-air, observing the distant battle. They were Princess Qin Lianyi and a Lieutenant General of the border guard. Mu Feng was also present, standing slightly apart.

Caught between Qin Lianyi and Mu Feng, the Lieutenant General found his position difficult, so he simply chose not to side with either party.

“Such astonishing energy… actually unleashed by someone at the mid-Golden Core Stage?” The Lieutenant General clicked his tongue while watching the towering energy storm on the horizon.

“Heheh.”

Mu Feng gently fanned himself with a paper fan, a meaningful smile playing on his lips. “That demonic cultivator named Han Lie indeed has some skill—but so what? I truly don’t believe he can survive against someone at the Golden Core Stage Perfection.”

Qin Lianyi sneered sarcastically. “Young Master Mu Feng speaks too confidently. How embarrassing would it be if you couldn’t take back your words later? Daoist Lin’s aura shows no signs of weakening whatsoever.”

Mu Feng remained unconcerned. “It has only just begun. Surely Princess Lianyi doesn’t think Golden Core Stage Perfection possesses only this level of strength?”

He turned to her, eyes glinting.

“If the Princess truly has such confidence in Han Lie… how about we make a bet?”

“We won’t play big—just bet one million Spirit Stones. Do you dare?”

Qin Lianyi fell silent. “……”

Seeing Qin Lianyi hesitate to respond made Mu Feng feel smug. “Merely one million Spirit Stones… since the Princess dares not play along, then consider my words unsaid.”

“However, currently it seems your confidence in Han Lie isn’t that strong after all…….”