Chapter 1402: The Battle Begins!
The Tongzhou Great Emperor's tone was frigid, laden not only with intense killing intent but also with palpable threat. His words were, in essence, a clear warning to Yang Haoran: "You had best not fail to appreciate my offer, lest you regret it when it's too late."
The Tongzhou Great Emperor's reply came as no surprise to Yang Haoran. He harbored no doubt that should he perish by the Tongzhou Great Emperor's hand, and his soul fall into the Tongzhou Great Emperor's grasp, his fate would undoubtedly be far more tragic than anything the Tongzhou Great Emperor was now describing!
However, not an iota of fear blossomed in his heart. He had long prepared himself for such eventualities. It was still uncertain who would emerge victorious, let alone whether he would even reach that point. But even if he did, he would not be afraid.
The Tongzhou Great Emperor watched Yang Haoran merely smile without speaking, failing to give an immediate affirmative reply. This greatly displeased him. Especially the faint smile on Yang Haoran's face, which seemed to convey an air of absolute certainty, only deepened his irritation.
“What? You still need to consider this? Any normal person would know how to answer such a multiple-choice question. Could someone as intelligent as you truly not know? ”
The Tongzhou Great Emperor pressed him, his tone growing impatient.
“Haha, Your Excellency is right. This truly isn't a difficult choice; any normal person could make the correct one. I am genuinely honored by Your Excellency's high regard for your subordinate. ”
Yang Haoran replied with a faint smile. Although his words were eloquent, his face betrayed no hint of surprise, nor did he become emotionally agitated. He remained composed, neither humble nor arrogant, revealing no particular joy or displeasure.
The Tongzhou Great Emperor stated in a deep voice. Although Yang Haoran's words were pleasant, the Tongzhou Great Emperor's face showed not the slightest hint of happiness.
“Your subordinate will, of course, give Your Excellency an affirmative reply. However, before that, your subordinate wishes to ask Your Excellency a question. ”
Yang Haoran smiled faintly, then spoke unhurriedly. Upon hearing Yang Haoran's words, the Tongzhou Great Emperor's brows furrowed. He didn't respond immediately but, after a few seconds of silence, gently shook his head.
“There’s no need to ask me any questions. Because I can now almost certainly confirm that you have no intention of surrendering to me. Your prattling here is merely a tactic to buy time, aimed at giving your subordinates more opportunity to escape, as many as possible. Since you have no desire to submit, then I have no choice but to eradicate you. Keeping you around would only be a menace! ”
The Tongzhou Great Emperor's voice was cold, carrying undisguised killing intent. As a Great Emperor of the Underworld Office, he was naturally no ordinary individual. He had seen through Yang Haoran's true intentions, and therefore had no intention of further persuading him to surrender.
If he could bring Yang Haoran under his command without a fight, it would naturally be a good thing for him. But knowing that the other party was merely stalling for time, with no intention of submitting, he would not continue to waste his efforts, nor would he indulge him.
As the Tongzhou Great Emperor's words fell, powerful fluctuations of energy instantly erupted from his body. Dense Yin Qi shrouded him, and three swirling masses of Yin Qi, each gestating a Soul Armament, appeared violently churning at his side. Having already decided to strike at Yang Haoran, he immediately opened his Heaven, Earth, and Life Souls at this moment.
He did not resort to shouting to boost his imposing aura, for it was entirely unnecessary. As a Great Emperor of the Underworld Office, his presence was already overwhelming. With his Heaven, Earth, and Life Souls simultaneously opened, his momentum was unparalleled, rendering any shouts superfluous. Moreover, yelling loudly was unbecoming of his status.
Although the Tongzhou Great Emperor did not believe Yang Haoran would be his match, he did not underestimate him. He had discerned that Yang Haoran had also broken through to the Life Soul realm. Experts at this realm differed fundamentally from those at the Earth Soul realm, with an enormous disparity in strength. Being overly presumptuous could lead to a disadvantage, and he had no desire to capsize in a ditch, so he unhesitatingly opened his Heaven, Earth, and Life Souls.
Yang Haoran did not make the first move, but instead wasted words with the Tongzhou Great Emperor, indeed because he wanted to stall for more time. He hadn't expected his petty cleverness to truly deceive the Tongzhou Great Emperor; he knew this little trick would surely be seen through. Yet, he deliberately persisted, precisely because he aimed to continue stalling even after the Tongzhou Great Emperor had divined his intentions—that was the true art of prolonging the delay as much as possible.
“Your Excellency need not be angry, nor rush to act. Listen to your subordinate finish speaking; perhaps you might just change your mind. ”
Yang Haoran spoke with a smile. Even though the Tongzhou Great Emperor had made himself abundantly clear and had already opened his Heaven, Earth, and Life Souls, Yang Haoran did not give up. He still aimed to stall for as much time as possible, but the Tongzhou Great Emperor granted him no such opportunity.
“Hmph! I'm not interested in anything you have to say now, because I'm only interested in killing you! ”
The Tongzhou Great Emperor first let out a cold snort, then spoke icily. As his words fell, without any visible movement from him, a streak of black light, trailing a long tail, shot out from a violently swirling mass of Yin Qi at his side, its target none other than Yang Haoran, who was still attempting to persuade him.
The power fluctuations emanating from the black light were utterly astonishing. Space trembled in its wake, and in some areas, cracks even appeared, testifying to the immense power of the Tongzhou Great Emperor's strike.
Not only were the power fluctuations unleashed by the black light formidable, but its speed was also incredibly astonishing, reaching Yang Haoran in the blink of an eye.
Boom! !
With an explosive roar, the incoming black light was blasted away. Yang Haoran remained completely unharmed, a feat he achieved because he, too, had opened his Heaven, Earth, and Life Souls at that crucial moment.
Under such circumstances, he had no choice but to act. Had he not, he would certainly have been instantly killed by the Tongzhou Great Emperor's single blow. Although both were at the Life Soul realm, the power gap between one who had opened their souls and one who had not was immense. Without opening his souls, he would have been utterly incapable of blocking a full-powered strike from the Tongzhou Great Emperor's Soul Armament.
Even though the Tongzhou Great Emperor's current strike wasn't at full power, serving merely as a probing attack, it was absolutely capable of inflicting fatal damage on him had his souls not been opened. Naturally, he didn't want to start the fight only to end up severely injured or dead in the flesh due to showing off.
It was precisely because the Tongzhou Great Emperor's strike hadn't been at full power, serving merely as a probing attack, that Yang Haoran was able to repel the incoming Soul Armament upon opening his Heaven, Earth, and Life Souls. Otherwise, whether he could have repelled it at all would have been an unknown.
The black light was repelled, revealing the Soul Armament's true form: a curiously shaped sword-like Soul Armament. The reason for describing its appearance as peculiar was its lack of a hilt despite having a blade, and both ends tapering into points, making it appear incredibly sharp.
This sword-shaped Soul Armament was entirely jet black, a deep, profound darkness, while its blades constantly emanated a sharp, chilling gleam, looking capable of slicing through iron like mud. After being repelled by the powerful force Yang Haoran suddenly unleashed, it revealed its form, yet the dense Yin Qi it released remained undispelled. Under the Tongzhou Great Emperor's control, it once again transformed into a streak of black light, rocketing towards Yang Haoran.
As the Soul Armament was not too far from Yang Haoran, it was completely unrealistic for him to form hand seals and unleash a Ghost Art to defend against it in such a situation. The fastest and most effective approach was, naturally, to control his own Soul Armament for defense.
Under his control, the Soul Armament Remnant Moon surged out from the Yin Qi at his side, meeting the incoming sword-shaped Soul Armament. Along the way, Remnant Moon emitted a hum, instantly expanding in size before colliding with the sword-shaped Soul Armament.
Boom! !
The two Soul Armaments collided, unleashing a deafening roar. Powerful shockwaves spread outwards, causing space to ripple. From this moment, their true battle had finally begun!
In their initial clash, neither party had used their full power. Both remained motionless, without any physical action, simply manipulating their Soul Armaments with their minds, exuding the epitome of expert demeanor.
The two Soul Armaments were forced back by the furious surge of power, yet neither returned to their respective masters. Instead, they continued to clash, each impact stronger than the last, their collision sounds growing progressively louder!
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