Chapter 1466: A Man of Few Words and Ruthless Deeds
Yang Haoran soared into the sky, flying towards the most intense part of the battlefield. Ma Ling, Tang Shi, and the siblings Jing Qi and Jing Miao followed closely behind. Behind the four, naturally, were the members of the Myriad Ghost Grotto and the Iron Blood Demon Hall.
The sea demons were momentarily in a panic. After all, Yang Haoran was leading so many masters, advancing with such ferocious momentum. Anyone seeing this scene would feel a certain unease; it was a normal reaction.
Along their path, any sea demon that stood in Yang Haoran's way, whether they actively attacked him or were terrified and tried to flee for their lives, had their bodies instantly sliced into fragments. The one who struck was not Yang Haoran. Yang Haoran's methods were not so perverse; at most, he would cleave an opponent in two, not so bloody as to slice a corpse into fragments.
It was Jing Miao who cleared the obstacles for Yang Haoran. Under Jing Miao's control, twelve slender bone swords shot out from their scabbard, moving with the speed of lightning. The sea demons blocking Yang Haoran's path had barely registered what was happening before their bodies were sliced into fragments by these twelve bone swords. Even some innocent bystanders who hadn't figured out the situation were not spared.
Naturally, clearing obstacles was not something Yang Haoran himself should do. Tang Shi knew this well, as did the siblings Jing Qi and Jing Miao. Tang Shi had originally intended to clear the path for Yang Haoran, but to his surprise, Jing Miao's attack was much faster, stronger, and far more ruthless than he had imagined. This made him cast a few extra glances at the quiet young girl.
Jing Qi, of course, understood his sister's methods perfectly, so he wasn't surprised in the slightest. Ma Ling, on the other hand, was startled by Jing Miao's actions. She had never dreamed that this seemingly frail young girl possessed such immense power. What shocked her most was Jing Miao's bloody method of killing; the sight of sea demons instantly torn into fragments was a powerful visual shock, even making her feel a little nauseous.
Ma Ling had forgotten how she had tormented her enemies in the past. If she had recalled that scene, perhaps she wouldn't have found Jing Miao's methods so bloody now.
Of course, Ma Ling had only resorted to bloody methods when dealing with that particular enemy. To be precise, her methods then were not only bloody but also extremely cruel. However, apart from that one instance, her methods in battle had always been quite normal, indeed far less extreme compared to Jing Miao's current display.
With Jing Miao's twelve bone swords paving the way, Yang Haoran quickly led the members of Myriad Ghost Grotto and Iron Blood Demon Hall above the center of Half-Moon Island. This was where the sea demons were most numerous, the fighting most brutal, and naturally, the most chaotic. As long as the battle here was resolved, the overall war would be nearing its end. To put it plainly, the outcome in this central area determined the victory or defeat of the entire war.
Yang Haoran paused, and the crowd behind him halted their steps as well. With a command from Yang Haoran, Tang Shi led the Myriad Ghost Grotto, and the siblings Jing Qi and Jing Miao led the Iron Blood Demon Hall, as both forces eagerly joined the fray.
Ma Ling also wanted to join the battle, but she was stopped by Yang Haoran. It wasn't that Ma Ling lacked combat power; rather, she was extremely important to Yang Haoran, and indeed, to the entire Half-Moon Island. He wouldn't allow Ma Ling to take risks unless absolutely necessary. Thus, he not only prevented Ma Ling from participating but also kept her close, protecting her. With his protection, Ma Ling's safety was naturally guaranteed to the highest degree; if even he couldn't protect her, then no one on Half-Moon Island would likely be able to.
Although Ma Ling was somewhat reluctant, she knew that Yang Haoran was doing this for her own good. So, she didn't say much, merely complying with Yang Haoran's arrangements and enjoying this unique, special protection.
As the Myriad Ghost Grotto and Iron Blood Demon Hall joined the battle, the situation immediately turned into an overwhelming rout. It wasn't the sea demons crushing Half-Moon Island, but Half-Moon Island crushing the sea demons.
Judging by the number and strength of the slain sea demons, the Myriad Ghost Grotto was clearly far stronger than the Iron Blood Demon Hall. This was partly because the Myriad Ghost Grotto held an advantage in numbers, and partly because the average individual strength of its members also surpassed those of the Iron Blood Demon Hall.
Although the Iron Blood Demon Hall might be inferior to the Myriad Ghost Grotto in terms of raw power, when it came to bloody and cruel methods, the Myriad Ghost Grotto fell far short. Even if the Myriad Ghost Grotto members' methods were far more ruthless than those of ordinary people, compared to the practitioners of the demonic path from the Iron Blood Demon Hall, the two were simply not on the same level.
The strongest member of the Myriad Ghost Grotto was undoubtedly Tang Shi, Yang Haoran's most powerful subordinate. While his strength couldn't compare to Yang Haoran's Guardian Yin Spirit, Zhong Siyu, Tang Shi was far, far stronger than Ghost Kings like Old Master Wu and Lu Wu. Without exaggeration, among all those who cultivated ghost arts under Yang Haoran, Tang Shi was undeniably ranked second; no one could shake his position.
It was precisely because of Tang Shi's extraordinary might that many sea demons met a tragic end at his hands in a short span of time.
However, compared to the siblings Jing Qi and Jing Miao, Tang Shi's combat record was significantly worse. This wasn't because the siblings Jing Qi and Jing Miao surpassed Tang Shi in strength; quite the opposite, their power was far inferior to his. Here, "power" merely referred to the raw strength of the energy within their bodies, not their overall combat prowess. The reason the siblings Jing Qi and Jing Miao's record surpassed Tang Shi's lay in their differing methods.
More accurately, it wasn't that both siblings had different methods, but that Jing Miao's methods were uniquely different. Jing Miao, possessing the Heart Demon Flute, had simply too terrifying a destructive capability. As Jing Miao abandoned the use of her twelve bone swords and chose instead to wield the Demon Cult's supreme treasure, the Heart Demon Flute, against the enemy, the sea demons' inner negative emotions were amplified. Their inner demons awakened and, under the control of the Heart Demon Flute, they not only ceased attacking the people of Half-Moon Island but turned on their own kind, viewing them as targets. For a time, vast numbers of sea demons tragically died at the hands of their comrades, and Jing Miao's combat record thus surpassed Tang Shi's.
Tang Shi's record couldn't even compare to Jing Miao alone, let alone with Jing Qi added to the mix. Although Jing Qi, lacking a supreme treasure like the Heart Demon Flute, didn't kill as many enemies as Jing Miao, the number of sea demons he did slay was still considerable. Therefore, the combined combat record of the two siblings was far beyond Tang Shi's, even though Tang Shi's cultivation realm was higher than theirs.
The overwhelming situation boosted the morale of Half-Moon Island's forces to an unprecedented height. From the current state of affairs, Half-Moon Island was guaranteed to win, and its people believed they had victory in the bag, so their morale couldn't possibly be low. The surge in morale made the people of Half-Moon Island even more valiant, as if they had been injected with chicken blood.
Conversely, the morale of the sea demons attacking Half-Moon Island plummeted to rock bottom. Some even entertained thoughts of fleeing, as they could no longer see any hope of victory; continuing like this was a dead end. Knowing they would die if they persisted, it would be strange indeed for their morale to remain high. In a battle of this scale, once one side loses its momentum, defeat is not far off.
Yang Haoran did not make a move; he observed the situation, then recalled Tang Shi.
Tang Shi was exerting his full strength, slaying sea demons, continuously unleashing various Ghost Arts and Spiritual Arts. He had also noticed that his combat record was far inferior to that of the siblings Jing Qi and Jing Miao, so he wished to catch up.
He represented the Myriad Ghost Grotto, while the siblings Jing Qi and Jing Miao represented the Iron Blood Demon Hall. Although there was no wager between them, and Yang Haoran hadn't asked them to compete for superiority, in such a situation, even without a bet, losing face to the other side was undesirable. This wasn't just losing face for Tang Shi; it was losing face for the entire Myriad Ghost Grotto. Furthermore, his cultivation realm was higher than that of the siblings Jing Qi and Jing Miao. If the difference in their combat records became too great, he would truly suffer a massive loss of face.
This was, of course, not the outcome Tang Shi desired, which was why he had unleashed all his techniques, doing his utmost to slay sea demons. He wanted to shorten the gap between them as much as possible, preferably turning defeat into victory and surpassing the siblings Jing Qi and Jing Miao.
However, Yang Haoran's summons forced him to stop, abandoning the slaughter of sea demons, and return to Yang Haoran's side at the fastest possible speed. Although he felt it a pity, he had no complaints.
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