Chapter 855: A Mysterious Power

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The serpents consumed Fuzhang's body rapidly with their power of corrosion. Fuzhang tried to self-destruct, but found that any energy he gathered was immediately consumed by the serpents.

In the end, he died an ignoble death, consumed to the last by the serpents.

After Fuzhang was dealt with, Zhang Lie turned to the battlefields on either side of him.

Li Zongming was bolstered by the world's energy, and heaven's might was ineffective against him. He would be able to hold out for a while longer.

Red Comet, on the other hand, was suffering terribly. It had no means of countering heaven's might, and its gleaming carapace was now riddled with holes and scorch marks. A large patch had been visibly burnt, and the blood-colored genetic energy that surrounded its body rendered its natural healing abilities far less effective. One of its scythes had cracked and half its head was gone.

If Zhang Lie had been any later, Red Comet might have died.

Of course, its opponent wasn't faring much better. Luohou had started the battle with four arms and was down to two.

One had been cut off by Red Comet with incredible speed at the start of the battle, whereas the other was cut off while Luohou was distracted by Fuzhang's death.

Red Comet outshone Luohou in speed, but its battered body meant that Luohou's heaven's might would be able to kill it quickly.

Zhang Lie could hardly stand for this. Red Comet was an important case study for Zhang Lie's future ascension to lord-class, and he couldn't let it die now.

"[The Boundless Blade: the River Lethe]!" Zhang Lie lifted the blade in his hand high above his head as pitch-black energy exploded from him. He looked like a demon descending on the world.

Pitch-black genetic energy filled the battlefield. Even the xuluo had never seen genetic energy so vast and so concentrated.

His genetic energy roared as it took the form of a vast, angry sea. Waves charged forward, sounding like peals of thunder, like stampeding hooves. The surface of the sea frothed with angry waves, like dragons emerging with the tide. The entire sea roiled, and lightning crackled amidst the void. Countless serpents swam across the raging sea as lightning flashed ominously overhead, a scene right out of an apocalypse.

As Zhang Lie struck, an underworld river hurtled into existence, roaring into the sea. The sword energy roiled like black waves. The sea had morphed into a boundless battlefield. The sea breeze was as a horn to action, and the serpents, thousands of courageous soldiers heeding its call.

As he sensed the tremendous pressure bearing down on him, Luohou turned to see the waves, serpents, and black, roiling energy about to overwhelm him. His face turned pale as he crushed the suns and moons he held in his hands, transforming them into the energy with which he mustered a final defense.

𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

The blood-colored sun exploded when it came in contact with the black sea, forming a blood-colored solar sword. Luohou infused heaven's might into it and swung down at the incoming waves.

Solar flares formed the blade of the sword. The flares seemed to extend indefinitely and, bolstered by heaven's might, divided the sea in two.

A beam of sword energy emerged from the parted sea. Zhang Lie, with Guicang in hand, flew over upon launching a strike. Luohou hurriedly defended himself with his blade.

Zhang Lie's presence here meant that Fuzhang had died.

The death of his master enraged Luohou and sent him into a frenzy. He was unable to suppress his anger. His right hand tore apart the bloody moon it held. Fragments of bloody rock formed a storm in the air.

Zhang Lie intoned, clenching his other fist tightly as blue genetic energy gathered around him. Ripples of genetic energy emanated from that arm. A fish the size of a whale materialized in the air.

"[Fists of the Silent Sea: Soar]!" A huge wave soared into the air. As Zhang Lie punched forward, the fish slammed its huge tail on the ground and sent a torrent of water surging toward Luohou.

Ripples of energy spread out from Zhang Lie, warping the space around him and roaring through the skies like galloping steeds, like a rampaging sea.

Zhang Lie's attack struck Luohou's lunar storm and caused so massive an explosion that both combatants were sent flying from the impact.

As the explosion continued, it began to radiate a destructive purple energy.

Luohou hadn't expected that Zhang Lie would use a wide-range attack against him. Doing so at such close distance was essentially a kamikaze attack that would bring them both down.

From the fragments of his crushed moon, Luohou manifested a blood-colored lunar scimitar, which blocked the aftermath of the explosion.

Even so, his body was in tatters. One of his eyes was pierced clean through by a lunar fragment, but losing one eye was no big loss for Luohou, who had four to begin with.

On the other side of the explosion, Zhang Lie's giant fish acted as a shield and nullified the effect of the explosion.

Red Comet, sensing an opportunity, struck forward in a beam of red-gold light.

Luohou summoned a shield around him, but Zhang Lie attacked at the same time. A layer of water-attuned genetic energy covered Guicang. Ripples of energy emanated from Zhang Lie as the giant fish merged with his body.

Zhang Lie and Red Comet launched a pincer-style attack at Luohou. Luohou was forced to block Zhang Lie's attack with the solar sword in his left hand and Red Comet's charge with the lunar scimitar in his right.

"I'll kill you both!" he gritted out.

As heaven's might linked the solar sword and lunar scimitar, Zhang Lie had a bad premonition. Thinking back to the skill that Fuzhang had displayed, he called out to Red Comet, "Retreat!"

Red Comet followed Zhang Lie's command instinctively, and Zhang Lie did the same.

"A pity..." Infused with Luohou's heaven's might, the solar sword pierced through Guicang, and the lunar scimitar through Red Comet's scythe.

If not for Zhang Lie's quick thinking and Red Comet's fast reflexes, that attack would have dealt a heavy wound to both parties.

Luohou slashed his sword in Zhang Lie's direction, causing the solar flames that made up the blade to extend and strike at Zhang Lie. Zhang Lie didn't attempt to block at all; he dodged instead.

Luohou called out, "You're aware of what I'm hiding, aren't you?"