The battlefield trembled beneath the sheer ferocity of the combatants. The Sundering Legion, under the banner of Jiang Chen, had begun carving their place in the war.
Huo Xingren had already eliminated two warriors, standing amidst the wreckage of shattered ground and bloodied stone, his fists dripping crimson. His body was riddled with cuts from the Emperor Sword Division's swordsman, but his grin never faded.
Jiang Chen, Bai Muchen, and Qin Tian watched from their faction's floating platform above the battlefield, their expressions serious.
"He's strong," Bai Muchen muttered, "but he's taking too much damage."
"He relies too much on endurance," Jiang Chen said, arms crossed. "Brute strength alone won't carry him through."
Qin Tian nodded. "The moment he meets someone with both power and technique, he's done."
And that moment came sooner than expected.
A new challenger stepped onto the battlefield.
A warrior clad in midnight black armor, his spear humming with an eerie, ominous energy. His aura wasn't explosive like a berserker's—it was cold, controlled, and lethal.
Hei Wulong – The Abyss Fang of the Voidshadow Sect.
The Voidshadow Sect specialized in assassination and void energy techniques, making their warriors silent but deadly killers. Unlike their previous assassin, who had relied on speed and sneak attacks, Hei Wulong was a different breed altogether.
Huo Xingren rolled his shoulders, cracks echoing as he adjusted his stance.
"Another one?" he grunted, spitting blood onto the floor. "Good. The last guy broke easy."
Hei Wulong didn't respond.
He simply vanished.
BOOOOOM!
Huo Xingren's eyes widened as an invisible force slammed into his gut, sending him skidding backward. He barely caught himself before another strike came from the opposite direction—
BANG!
A spear's edge sliced past his throat, drawing a thin line of blood.
"Shit—!"
Hei Wulong wasn't teleporting.
He was using the Voidshadow Step, a movement technique that allowed him to shift between light and shadow, making it seem like he was flickering between dimensions.
Jiang Chen's eyes narrowed. "That technique is troublesome. Huo Xingren won't be able to hit what he can't see."
Qin Tian's grip on his sword tightened. "He needs to force him into a direct exchange. If he keeps fighting at Hei Wulong's pace, he'll lose."
On the battlefield—
Huo Xingren planted his feet, his aura flaring.
"Alright, asshole," he growled. "I don't need to see you to hit you."
BOOOOOOOM!
He slammed his fists into the ground, sending a seismic shockwave rippling outward, fracturing the battlefield.
A tactic to break Hei Wulong's footing.
And it worked—
For a moment, a flickering silhouette appeared just behind him.
Huo Xingren swung—
And missed.
Hei Wulong had already moved again.
And this time—
He struck back.
BANG!
A spear pierced Huo Xingren's shoulder, sending a spray of blood into the air.
The burly warrior grunted, stumbling as the weapon's eerie void energy pulsed through his veins, draining his Qi.
Huo Xingren was slowing down.
The battlefield fell into a hushed silence. The first real threat had arrived.
Jiang Chen exhaled through his nose. "He's going to lose."
Bai Muchen cracked his knuckles. "We need to prepare for the next round."
Xiao Dong leaned forward, watching as Huo Xingren's breathing grew heavy. "Damn, looks like it's over for him."
Hei Wulong twisted his spear, his cold, emotionless voice finally breaking the silence.
"You were fun."
And then—
BOOOOOOM!
The final blow pierced through Huo Xingren's chest, sending him crashing into the ground.
The celestial voice rang through the battlefield:
"Sundering Legion – One member eliminated."
Huo Xingren vanished from the battlefield, sent back to the spectator platform above. His face was twisted in frustration, blood still dripping from his wounds.
"Damn it," he muttered. "I thought I had him."
Jiang Chen nodded. "You did well, but that wasn't a fight you could win."
Huo Xingren scoffed, rubbing his shoulder. "Next time, I'll break that bastard in half."
But there wouldn't be a next time.
Because now—
It was Xiao Dong's turn.
Bai Muchen patted his shoulder. "Go teach that assassin what real power looks like."
Xiao Dong grinned, cracking his knuckles.
"Oh, I intend to."
And with that—
He stepped onto the battlefield.
BOOOOOOOOOM!
The next battle was about to begin.
The moment Xiao Dong stepped onto the battlefield, the air changed.
A storm of Qi erupted around him, sending shockwaves outward, cracking the ground beneath his feet. His very presence carried the ferocity of a battle-hardened warrior, a man who thrived in the chaos of war.
Unlike Hei Wulong's silent and lethal aura, Xiao Dong was the complete opposite—raw, unrelenting, and explosive.
He cracked his neck, rolling his shoulders. "Alright, bastards. Which one of you is first?"
A tense silence hung over the battlefield.
And then—
Five warriors rushed him at once.
BOOOOOOM!
The war resumed.
A Hurricane of Blows
Xiao Dong exploded forward, meeting the first attacker—an axe-wielding brute from the Blooddragon Brotherhood. The man's Qi-coated axe came down like a mountain-splitting strike.
Xiao Dong didn't dodge.
He caught the axe with his bare hands.
CRACK!
The impact shattered the ground, dust and debris flying into the air—
But Xiao Dong grinned.
"Too slow."
BOOOOOM!
A devastating uppercut sent the brute soaring into the sky, blood spraying from his mouth as he crashed down dozens of meters away, groaning in pain.
One down.
Another fighter—a spear-wielding disciple from the Moonshadow Sect—struck next, his weapon flickering like a shadow as he thrust toward Xiao Dong's heart.
But before the spear could land—
BANG!
Xiao Dong caught it with his teeth.
The Moonshadow Sect disciple's eyes widened in horror.
"What the fu—"
CRACK!
Xiao Dong bit down, snapping the spear's tip off before launching a devastating elbow strike to the man's jaw, sending him flying into the battlefield's edge.
Two down.
But before he could move, a third warrior, a twin-sword cultivator, appeared behind him, blades humming with sharp energy.
The moment the swords slashed toward his back—
Xiao Dong twisted his body mid-air.
Using the momentum of his own attack, he spun, grabbing the swords with his bare hands before slamming his head directly into the twin-sword cultivator's nose.
BANG!
The man's body flipped backward, blood gushing from his face as he collapsed onto the battlefield.
Three down.
The fourth and fifth fighters hesitated.
Xiao Dong cracked his knuckles, a wide grin stretching across his face. "What's wrong? Thought this was a war?"
Before they could even react, he moved first.
BOOOOOM!
Xiao Dong exploded forward, his fists coated in Qi-infused battle energy, his attacks carrying a storm-like ferocity.
The fourth warrior, a staff-user, barely had time to raise his weapon before Xiao Dong's knee slammed into his ribs, sending him flying backward.
The fifth warrior tried to escape—
Too late.
Xiao Dong grabbed his ankle mid-dash, lifting him into the air and slamming him into the ground so hard the battlefield cracked beneath him.
The crowd watching erupted into chaos.
"What the hell?! He just took out five people in seconds!!"
"Is this guy a demon?!"
Even some of the strongest faction leaders watching from the sidelines narrowed their eyes.
Feng Yuechan, standing with her Phoenix Flame Sect disciples, smirked slightly. "That one's dangerous. But he's entertaining."
Jiang Chen crossed his arms from the Sundering Legion's platform.
He exhaled through his nose. "He's using his instincts better now. He's not just fighting on rage—he's controlling it."
Bai Muchen grinned. "About time."
But as the dust settled—
The battlefield shifted.
More warriors stepped forward—seven of them.
And this time, they weren't the weaklings.
The real monsters had arrived.
The Counterattack – Facing the Elite
BOOOOOOOM!
A golden shockwave erupted, signaling the arrival of a true powerhouse.
A warrior clad in ornate jade battle armor stepped onto the battlefield. His Qi surged, forming the image of a coiling dragon behind him. His presence was like a thunderous war drum, every step he took carrying the pressure of an impending catastrophe.
Xiao Dong's grin faltered slightly. "Oh? You look like you might actually hit me."
The warrior narrowed his eyes.
"Shen Yufei of the Jade Serpent Clan," he announced. "Your arrogance ends here."
Before Xiao Dong could reply—
BOOOOOM!
Shen Yufei attacked first.
His fists, coated in serpentine Qi, moved like flowing water, fast and unpredictable.
Xiao Dong barely blocked the first strike, his arms trembling from the impact.
He grinned. "Finally."
The real fight had begun.
The battle between monsters raged on, their blows shaking the battlefield, sending tremors through the watching crowd.
The faction leaders watched with interest.
Jiang Chen leaned forward, golden-amber eyes sharpened.
"Now let's see what you've really got, Xiao Dong."