Chapter 336: The Strongest Strike
Just a few short words came from the snake demon's mouth, very weak, yet resolute.
Yang Haoran shook his head with a smile and said, "Don't be so pessimistic. A life-or-death struggle is just like a card game; until someone leaves the table, who knows who will win or lose?"
In truth, Yang Haoran's words weren't merely bravado; he had indeed considered every angle before arriving.
If his opponent's strength vastly surpassed his own, he would immediately flee with the snake demon, refusing to confront them head-on.
He wasn't foolish; knowing full well he couldn't defeat an opponent and still stubbornly resisting wasn't courage—it was idiocy.
Of course, if escape wasn't an option, and there was no other choice but to fight with all his might, then that would be another matter entirely. But even if he were to die, he'd still tear a piece of flesh from his opponent.
If the opponent's strength wasn't so overwhelming that he couldn't contend with it, then he naturally wouldn't retreat without a fight. He'd at least have to clash with them, lest he become the laughing stock of a coward.
Although the disheveled man was very strong, in Yang Haoran's view, he wasn't completely without a counter. Given Yang Haoran's personality, how could he possibly dare to stay and clash head-on without some preparations?
The snake demon nodded with a smile, saying nothing more, for she had already made up her mind.
In her eyes, doing so would be immensely meaningful, for it would signify that Yang Haoran had ultimately succeeded in saving her—after all, she wouldn't have died at the disheveled man's hands, but by her own.
Yang Haoran withdrew his gaze from the snake demon, then fixed it on the disheveled man across from him.
"You should prepare yourself," Yang Haoran said with a smile. "For the next strike, I fear you won't be able to withstand it."
The disheveled man's expression remained utterly unchanged by Yang Haoran's words. He gazed at Yang Haoran with indifference, as a large amount of Star Spirit Power continuously poured into the longsword in his hand.
As more and more Star Spirit Power was injected into the longsword, the blade trembled, and the green light intensified. Especially the two mysterious patterns on the sword itself, they now seemed to come alive, writhing across the blade.
"I offer the same words to you," he said. "My next attack, I fear you also won't be able to withstand. You are injured, so it wouldn't be a fair victory for me, but this is your own choice."
The disheveled man spoke with indifference. Clearly, he was preparing a devastating move.
Yang Haoran took all of this in. He wiped the smile from his face, his expression turning solemn. Without another word, he closed his eyes.
As his eyes slightly closed, a dense Yin Qi rose from Yang Haoran's body. Immediately afterward, his hands rapidly formed seals, and the Yin Qi around him violently boiled.
The disheveled man's expression shifted. He glanced at Yang Haoran, whose hands were rapidly forming seals, then looked up at the empty space above. There was nothing visible, yet the disheveled man sensed a powerful energy fluctuation rapidly condensing.
Judging from the current situation, the disheveled man confirmed that Yang Haoran's words weren't a bluff; he indeed possessed even stronger techniques.
Thinking of this, he hesitated. The move he was preparing hadn't been fully completed yet. To unleash its maximum power, he needed to inject a sufficient amount of Star Spirit Power. If the Star Spirit Power injection didn't meet the requirements, the unleashed power would be greatly diminished.
But Yang Haoran was also preparing a devastating move. If he didn't strike first, he might suffer a huge loss.
The best course of action was to strike first and gain the upper hand; he couldn't allow Yang Haoran to successfully unleash this technique
With that thought, the disheveled man stopped injecting Star Spirit Power into the longsword. His gaze sharpened as he stared at Yang Haoran, and sword light erupted from his eyes.
"Go!"
With a sharp cry from the disheveled man, the longsword in his hand slashed down through the air at Yang Haoran.
Whirrr!
The longsword hummed, and its sword qi transformed into a massive green greatsword, cleaving down directly at Yang Haoran.
The greatsword was colossal; the ancient tomb simply couldn't accommodate such an immense blade. As the greatsword cleaved down towards Yang Haoran, the ceiling of the tomb and the stone wall opposite the disheveled man proved as fragile as tofu, effortlessly sliced open by the massive blade.
If one were currently within the Stone Forest scenic area, they would surely witness half of a massive green sword suddenly erupting from underground, then swiftly cleaving downwards.
Because the greatsword's speed was too great, the ancient tomb didn't immediately collapse. It remained as it was, as if nothing had happened.
As the greatsword cleaved down, Yang Haoran didn't open his eyes. The movements of his hands forming seals not only didn't cease but even accelerated slightly.
At the same time, his Soul Armament, Remnant Moon, was summoned, instantly appearing above Yang Haoran's head. As Remnant Moon rapidly spun, its size also expanded. It was like a large black umbrella, not only shielding Yang Haoran beneath it but also enveloping the snake demon Bai Xue.
Boom!
A deafening roar erupted as the greatsword struck Remnant Moon. Remnant Moon vibrated violently, the immense force causing it to suddenly sink, finally stopping less than a foot above Yang Haoran's head.
Crack, crack!
Crack, crack, crack!
Crisp cracking sounds emanated. Facing the disheveled man's sword strike, Remnant Moon actually developed cracks. By the looks of it, in a few breaths at most, the cracked Remnant Moon would completely shatter.
By then, without Remnant Moon's resistance, the disheveled man's sword would cleave directly into Yang Haoran's body.
With the greatsword's terrifying power, once it struck Yang Haoran's body, his physical form would be sliced open with 100% certainty; there would be no bone that could possibly jam the blade. No matter how tough the bone, it wouldn't be able to withstand this sword.
The greatsword was blocked, and the disheveled man's expression turned somewhat grim. He gripped the hilt with both hands, then fiercely pressed down on the longsword.
The longsword in his hand was pressed down a few inches by the disheveled man, and the greatsword blocked by Remnant Moon also pressed down slightly.
Crack, crack!
Remnant Moon gained a few more cracks, its trembling intensifying. It was on the verge of collapsing.
Seeing this, the snake demon let out a roar. Her snake body writhed, struggling to rise, preparing to use her own body to absorb some of the greatsword's power.
However, at this very moment, Yang Haoran's voice suddenly echoed in her ears.
"Why are you panicking? When the water reaches your mouth, isn't there still your nose?"
Yang Haoran's voice made the snake demon pause. For some reason, in such a critical moment, Yang Haoran's voice gave her an immense sense of security, causing her to unconditionally trust him.
She didn't continue to struggle to get up. She simply looked at Yang Haoran.
At that moment, Yang Haoran's hands, which were forming seals, suddenly ceased their movements. His eyes snapped open, and a sharp cry escaped his lips.
"Death God's Law Aspect!"
As the sharp cry rang out, the Death God Seal on Yang Haoran's brow became visible to the naked eye.
At the same time, the space above the disheveled man twisted, and an illusory, insubstantial Death God statue instantly coalesced, erupting with a terrifying energy fluctuation.
This illusory Death God statue before them was precisely the Death God's Law Aspect summoned by Yang Haoran.
Yang Haoran had once seen Deng Feng summon the Death God's Law Aspect to face an enemy in the Ghost Building. At that time, Deng Feng hadn't formed seals but had instantly summoned the Death God's Law Aspect.
And now, the reason Yang Haoran was forming seals was that the Spirit Power in his body was excessively depleted, insufficient to support an instant summoning of the Death God's Law Aspect. He had to complete the summoning through forming seals.
Just like when Deng Feng had summoned the Death God's Law Aspect before, the manifestation Yang Haoran summoned now also had its three eyes tightly shut.
The disheveled man's expression drastically changed. He looked up at the Death God's Law Aspect above, and an intense sense of danger surged in his heart. Before he could make any move, Yang Haoran's voice resounded through the space.
"Seal!"
As the word "Seal" was uttered, the Death God's Law Aspect's three eyes simultaneously snapped open. The space violently fluctuated, and a powerful force directly imprisoned the disheveled man's body.
Yang Haoran spat out a mouthful of fresh blood, but he didn't stop there. Instead, he spoke again in a deep voice.
"Perish!"
As the word "Perish" was uttered, the Death God's Law Aspect slowly raised an arm. As the arm ascended, the surrounding space instantly trembled, and a violent force coalesced in its palm, then slowly pressed down towards the disheveled man below.
Gush!
The palm had just begun its descent when a terrifying force slammed into the disheveled man's body, causing him to instantly spit out a mouthful of fresh blood.
As the palm slowly descended, that irresistible, terrifying force grew stronger and stronger. The disheveled man's pupils violently dilated, his expression filled with shock and pain, for at this moment, his body, unable to withstand such terrifying power, actually began to crack.
The power of the Death God's Law Aspect was truly too immense. If he allowed its palm to fully descend, he had no doubt he would be shattered into pieces under its force, and perhaps even his very soul wouldn't be dispersed.
Looking at the greatsword above Yang Haoran's head, then glancing at the heavily injured snake demon, the disheveled man hesitated for a moment. Then he gritted his teeth, seemingly making a decision that was deeply unwilling for him.
Under his mental control, the greatsword above Yang Haoran's head suddenly shattered, transforming into specks of green Star Spirit Power. These Star Spirit Power fragments rapidly coalesced, then merged into his body.
Empowered by this surge of Star Spirit Power, the disheveled man let out an angry roar, and a terrifying energy fluctuation erupted from within his body.
He didn't use this power to resist the slowly descending palm. Instead, he used it to forcibly break free from the Death God's Law Aspect's confinement.
Boom!
With a loud boom, the confinement on the disheveled man was forcibly broken. Then he swung the longsword in his hand, cleaving open a rift in space. Without any hesitation, he flashed directly into the spatial rift and escaped this place.
The spatial rift healed, and the disheveled man completely vanished. However, the very instant he disappeared, the Death God's Law Aspect above shattered with a crash, while Yang Haoran repeatedly spat out several mouthfuls of fresh blood, his face devoid of any color, his body swaying precariously.
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