The Shan Brothers were entertaining thoughts of withdrawal.
But the catch was, they couldn't back down.
Each battle token had its own unique set of rules.
The Nether River Token allowed for a half-loss upon surrender.
The True Martial Token resulted in a loss of attributes upon defeat, or even outright erasure.
The Tianzhao Token was particularly merciless—if one lost, they would lose everything.
These rules were established by Tianzhao himself, and not even he could break them.
Having invoked the Tianzhao Token, the Shan Brothers had no choice but to see the battle through to the bitter end.
Retreat was not an option!
"Attack!" With a shared look between them, Shan Hongzhi suddenly commanded.
"Everyone, attack together!" Shan Tianming gave the order.
The Black Dragon Society's ronin launched their assault. They refrained from targeting Chen Guo, but they mustered the courage to go after the others.
Yet, intimidated by Chen Guo, their morale was low and their actions tentative.
In contrast, the Jade Void Temple was buoyed by Chen Guo's leadership and their recent narrative breakthrough, their spirits riding high.
When it came to raw strength, the Jade Void Temple was outmatched by the Black Dragon Society, whose ranks were filled with former Supreme Dao members, as opposed to the Jade Void Temple's mostly ordinary background.
However, thanks to the gains from their last major conflict, bolstered by Chen Guo's influence, the Jade Void Temple had grown significantly stronger.
They were able to hold their own in terms of ordinary strength, exchanging blows with the Black Dragon Society.
With their morale surging, the two sides were evenly matched, each finding a worthy opponent.
But in the realm of intermediate strength, the Jade Void Temple had a clear edge over the Black Dragon Society.
This was chiefly because Chen Guo had led Zhou Tao and others through the dungeon, reaping substantial rewards, and had also traded golden treasure chests with them, vastly enhancing their combat capabilities.
This allowed Zhou Tao and his group to dominate the Black Dragon Society's intermediate forces, swiftly securing the advantage.
However, the clashes of ordinary and intermediate strength were merely the prelude; the true determinant of victory lay in the high-end strength showdown.
That was the outcome of the battle between the Shan Brothers and Chen Guo.
The Shan Brothers flanked Chen Guo, launching a pincer attack.
On the left, Shan Tianming wasted no time in engaging his Immortal Mode.
Colorful markings flashed across his face as he prepared his ninjutsu. Empowered by Immortal Mode, his ninjutsu's potency surged.
"Immortal Art, Fire Release – Great Fire Annihilation!"
Shan Tianming unleashed a torrent of flames so fierce, it resembled a chemical plant explosion, swiftly engulfing Chen Guo.
Simultaneously, Shan Hongzhi to the right activated his Kaleidoscopic Sharingan.
"Tianzhao!"
This was the formidable first ability of the Kaleidoscopic Sharingan, Tianzhao.
A stream of black flames, embodying the undying essence of the Tianzhao Divine Fire, surged toward Chen Guo.
This Tianzhao flame, said to be inextinguishable by water, soil, or even by cutting off air, would burn until nothing remained.
"These flames pale in comparison to the Divine Fire of Six Ding; they likely don't even match the True Samadhi Fire," Chen Guo mused, invoking a spell, "I call upon the Ancestral Master to embody me!"
As a Heavenly Warrior, Chen Guo was under the watchful eye of the Almighty. The likelihood of successfully summoning a powerful Ancestral Master was high.
"The Three Maos True Lord has taken notice of this battle. Displeased with the three Gods of Plioya, the Three Maos True Lord has answered your call!"
"Great Mao Lord Mao Ying has boosted the power of your Mount Maoshan Dao Arts by 200%!"
"Middle Mao Lord Mao Gu has also enhanced your Mount Maoshan Dao Arts by 200%!"
"Lesser Mao Lord Mao Zhong has increased your Mount Maoshan Dao Arts by another 200%!"
"Your Mount Maoshan Dao Arts now wield a staggering 600% increase in power!"
Unbeknownst to Chen Guo, Xuzuo's blatant rule-breaking had irked the Three Maos True Lord, prompting them to favor Chen Guo within the confines of the rules, generously lending him their strength.
It was a significant feat; ever since the Mount Maoshan sect devised the spell to invoke the presence of the Ancestral Masters, securing the aid of any one of the Three Maos True Lords was a blessing indeed.
The unprecedented feat of summoning the entire Three Maos True Lord was something not even the past sect masters of Mount Maoshan had ever heard of.
Chen Guo felt like he had hit the jackpot!
A 600% increase in the power of Mount Maoshan Dao Arts—what did that even mean?
At this point, Chen Guo's proficiency in magic arts was on par with a terrestrial true immortal.
"Golden Light Shield!"
Chen Guo bit his finger, drew the magic array, and conjured the Golden Light Shield to envelop himself in protection.
The Shan Brothers' Fire Escape and Tianzhao techniques fizzled against the radiant golden light surrounding Chen Guo, not only failing to make any headway but also dissolving completely.
"Trash will always be trash. It's nothing but a tickle to me. Try harder!" Chen Guo taunted, standing with his hands clasped behind his back.
The Shan Brothers were taken aback. They were aware of the vast gap between their abilities and Chen Guo's, but they hadn't anticipated their prized attacks would be mere irritants against his Golden Light Shield.
Panic set in for the Shan Brothers.
Shan Tianming bellowed as he rapidly formed hand signs:
"Immortal Art, Grand Jade Spiral Pill!"
"Immortal Art, Water Escape—Water Dragon Bullet!"
"Immortal Art, Water Escape—Great Waterfall Technique!"
Shan Tianming unleashed a trio of powerful techniques, creating a sea-like surge with a blue spiral pill at its core, which, along with the waves, surged towards Chen Guo.
Exhausted and drenched in sweat from the effort of casting three major spells, even with the boost from Immortal Mode, Shan Tianming was gasping for breath.
Shan Hongzhi, too, was pushing his limits, activating the second ability of his Kaleidoscopic Sharingan.
"Moon Reading!"
"Mental strength inferior to the opponent's, Moon Reading failed!"
Shan Hongzhi's attempt at Moon Reading backfired, causing a stream of blood to trickle from his right eye as his vision deteriorated.
His Kaleidoscopic Sharingan wasn't the eternal variety; overuse could lead to a decline in vision, or even blindness. A failed spell only hastened this deterioration.
"Susanoo!"
Following the botched Moon Reading, Shan Hongzhi, teeth clenched in determination, tapped into the Kaleidoscopic Sharingan's might to summon a colossal purple avatar. This titan bore a semblance to Susanoo, wielding the Kusanagi Sword as it thrust down at Chen Guo.
The audience watching the live stream couldn't contain their amazement:
"True to its name, Immortal Mode's ninjutsu is cataclysmic!"
"The Kaleidoscopic Sharingan is incredibly potent; Xuzuo wields the strength of a demon god!"
"The Shan Brothers do have some tricks up their sleeve!"
Yet, whether it was the world-shattering ninjutsu or the might of Xuzuo, Chen Guo remained unimpressed. Standing with his hands clasped behind his back, he was the picture of calm.
Several massive strikes hit Chen Guo's Golden Light Shield, causing only a brief flicker in its brilliance.
"Is the show over? Now that you've had your turn, it's mine," Chen Guo said with a cold laugh. "Get ready to meet your end, you two fools!"
With that, Chen Guo launched his counterattack.
Despair gripped the Shan Brothers as their most powerful techniques failed to even scratch Chen Guo's defenses.
But there was no escape, no conceding—only the grim resolve to keep battling against Chen Guo.