Chapter 978

The Star Surge chaotic space region.

Xu Jin looked at the Yin Phoenix clan’s Space True Person charging toward him, exchanged a knowing smile, and his aura surged abruptly.

The nine-catastrophe Space True Person of the Yin Phoenix clan, just about to launch his attack, suddenly noticed the oddness of the two human cultivators across from him.

With such a vast power disparity, why aren’t they dodging or evading?

And they have the nerve to smile?

What?

In an instant, a chilling aura surged—instinctively, or perhaps due to his cautious nature, he thought to retreat a step.

But the moment he formed this thought, twenty-nine rules-based Dao arts rose simultaneously, locking onto him, filling him with shock.

“I’ve been ambushed.”

The instant this thought surfaced, the twenty-nine rules-based Dao arts struck him with an utterly bizarre speed.

Though subtle perception revealed slight temporal differences, his actual sensation felt as if they all hit at once.

And the speed of their descent was profoundly strange.

He had barely activated his life-saving Star Art—only halfway through—when he was overwhelmed!

What followed held no uncertainty.

The True Person’s protective artifact was instantly destroyed; multiple life-saving artifacts shattered under the assault, and his body was sliced into fragments by countless silver threads.

Even though he poured all his strength into sacrificing his lifeblood to activate a life-saving secret art, it was still too slow.

In the end, his nascent soul, already bearing a hint of divine essence, melted like snow poured with hot broth under Lei Guang, and was ultimately consumed by over seventy percent through the explosive crackling of strange star mushrooms.

In a single instant, this mighty nine-catastrophe peak Space True Person’s body was obliterated, his nascent soul shattered, and he lost all capacity to fight.

“It seems my power still falls just short—I cannot obliterate a nine-catastrophe True Person with a single strike alone.” As Xu Jin sighed, he casually unleashed two Divine Thunderbolts of Extermination.

The shattered nascent soul of the Yin Phoenix clan’s nine-catastrophe Space True Person instantly turned to green smoke, and his True Person blood crystal fell.

“Husband, your casual strike now rivals that of a twelve-limit breakthrough True Person, yet you’re still only at the peak of Star Commander. If you break through—”

Zhu Lin Xiao did not finish her sentence.

She dared not imagine it.

If her husband attains True Personhood, even if only at the initial stage, should his cultivation reach mid or even high level, he would surely possess Emperor-level power!

An Emperor!

“After breaking through, I should be able to obliterate them in one blow.” As Xu Jin spoke, his expression shifted suddenly. “Three more are coming—I take two, you take one.”

“Understood!”

Having received the signal from the slain nine-catastrophe Space True Person, three other True Persons from Xuan Yi Star Island arrived and teleported in from all directions.

They saw Xu Jin and Zhu Lin Xiao—but not their own nine-catastrophe True Person.

In that single instant, Xu Jin and Zhu Lin Xiao launched their attack.

Under a linked sequence of rules-based Dao arts, one eight-catastrophe True Person instantly turned to green smoke, his True Person blood crystal falling.

The seven-catastrophe True Person, witnessing this, his eyes wide with terror, instinctively tried to teleport away.

But a tiny Star Tower suddenly descended from the heavens, pressing down upon him.

He unleashed his full power.

Yet every strike he launched dissolved before the tiny tower.

When the tower descended, terrifying starlight erupted, carrying the weight of billions of mountains—his prized protective artifact, life-saving artifacts, Star Arts, and protective starlight all exploded under the pressure.

Even his body was obliterated in that instant.

His nascent soul barely escaped when it began to dissolve under the impact of chaotic starlight.

When the chaotic starlight struck his body, it did not strike like lightning’s speed—it was more like a dull blade cutting flesh, causing the seven-catastrophe True Person to scream in agony.

But he screamed only once before his nascent soul vanished in Lei Guang.

On the other side, Zhu Lin Xiao blew sharply—first note: Yutang Bei, his body partially dissolved, his spirit paralyzed; second note: body vanished, nascent soul coated in white frost; third note: nascent soul shattered into four pieces.

She also instantly slew a six-catastrophe True Person, only slightly slower than Xu Jin.

Even so, Zhu Lin Xiao had not used her full strength.

She had learned no few rules-based Dao arts.

With four True Person blood crystals in hand, Xu Jin and Zhu Lin Xiao skillfully extracted the four cultivators’ miniature space realms—their loot was merely average.

But when their spiritual sense swept over the True Person blood crystals, their eyes brightened.

The quality of these four True Person blood crystals was unremarkable, yet within them lay thirteen Dao principles ripe for Xu Jin’s contemplation.

The harvest, however, was quite good.

At the same instant, Xu Jin’s gaze shifted—he had sensed the presence of two Emperor-level cultivators.

One was naturally the Duyue Emperor’s aura.

The other’s cultivation aura was just slightly weaker than Duyue Emperor’s.

At this moment, Duyue Emperor had blocked him.

“Duyue, why are you blocking me? I’m merely monitoring the battlefield—I’m not even fighting!” The Tiger Emperor Hu Yi glared with his massive tiger eyes at Duyue Emperor.

“Hu Yi, within ten thousand li, whether any Emperor is present, you and I know instantly—why come closer to disturb the juniors’ battle? Just wait for the outcome!” Duyue Emperor’s golden full moon hung behind her, clearly on full alert.

“Just watching doesn’t break the rules!”

“Watching doesn’t break the rules—but I fear someone might deliberately interfere! If you’re bored, let’s settle this ourselves first!” Duyue Emperor said.

"It's not against the rules to watch, but someone might deliberately disrupt the battle! If you're so bored, let's fight first!" said the Emperor of Duanyue.

Hu Yi Emperor said no more. This woman was strong, and he was no weakling—but fighting her to the death was unnecessary.

If it truly came to a life-or-death struggle, all his hidden divine arts and secret techniques would erupt—who would prevail was uncertain.

When it truly comes to fighting for one’s life, all sorts of forbidden techniques and secret arts never used before erupt—no one knows who will ultimately prevail.

He felt helpless.

Behind him, his dazzling tiger tail twitched helplessly twice.

He wanted to move closer mainly to sneak in a little intervention.

His Tiger Tail Divine Art was astonishing—silent and invisible, unless an Emperor was staring directly, he could activate an extremely covert spirit technique to disrupt the opponent’s True Person’s spirit.

Not lethal—just a disturbance, creating a faint illusion.

But even that tiny illusion could decide victory or defeat.

He wanted both merit and star realm fragments.

Especially since the star island he guarded bore his name—if fortune favored him and it continued to grow during the Star Calamity, it might one day evolve into a great world, becoming the foundation of his Dao.

Especially since the star island he now guards bears his name; if he fares well in the Star Calamity and continues to grow, it may one day evolve into a great world—his very foundation for the Dao.

Though he couldn’t scheme behind the scenes, Hu Yi Emperor still had great confidence in his own star island’s strength.

After all, they had already amassed a massive advantage, and now that advantage would only grow larger.

The star realm fragments from this Star Surge would surely be his.

Even if they ultimately claimed them.

Unfortunately, even Emperor-level cultivators in this Star Surge chaotic space region could barely sense the aura of other Emperors within ten thousand li—much less detect specific battle fluctuations.

Unfortunately, even among their Emperor-tier cultivators, within this Star Surge and Chaotic Void region, they can barely sense the aura of other Emperor-tier cultivators within ten thousand li—let alone detect specific battle fluctuations.

In the Star Ruins’ starry void, after Xu Jin and Zhu Lin Xiao slew four True Persons, they waited over a dozen breaths, found no more True Persons approaching, then swiftly sent a specially crafted message to the Thousand Star Combat Zone, indicating the location of the star realm fragments, and immediately began searching and hunting through this Star Surge chaotic space region.

In the Star Ruin sky, after Xu Jin and Zhu Linxiao slew four True Persons, they waited for more than ten breaths and found no more True Persons approaching; they then flicked their wrists to send a specialized message to the Thousand Stars Combat Zone, indicating the location of the Star Realm fragments, and Xu Jin immediately led Zhu Linxiao into searching and hunting within this chaotic star-current region.