The battlefield was a tapestry of destruction scorched plains, torn soil, and remnants of shattered stone. Above, the sky bled crimson-orange as twilight descended, casting a dramatic hue over the crumbling terrain of Wolf Territory. Thin mist clung to broken cliffs, whispering through the ruins like fading voices from the past.
Jian Dao, sword still glowing faintly from his previous technique, turned to Mike, his breath ragged. Let me fight by your side… against Ru Fenglie.
Mike clenched his hammer, lifting it with effort. Blood trickled from his lip, but his eyes burned with the same unshakable fire.
Alright, Master, he said quietly, and stepped forward again.
Jian Dao unsheathed his blade, its silver edge catching the last light of the dying sun.
Across the battlefield, Ru Fenglie stood atop a pile of fractured stone, the wind tugging at his torn cloak. He tilted his head and let out a dry laugh. Mike Yeager, I warned you once. I will avenge my best friend. Whoever stands with you… dies with you.
Mike raised his hammer, pointing its head at Ru Fenglie like a declaration. Then come. If you want to see him again so badly, I'll send you there myself.
Snarling, Ru Fenglie's voice dropped into venom. You bastard… .
Two jagged, serpent-shaped weapons materialized in his hands Venomfang Twins: Yueyin and Yuesha, curved like crescent moons and pulsing with a toxic green glow. Without hesitation, he lunged at Mike.
The wind howled.
His strike, swift and lethal, arced toward Mike but Jian Dao stepped in, sword clashing with Ru Fenglie's blades, sparks flying in every direction.
Mike seized the moment and swung his hammer in a wide, crushing arc, but Ru Fenglie twisted away, moving like a shadow, and retaliated. His claws slashed out, but Mike blocked them just in time, his stance shaken. Each blow sent tremors through his arms. He was weakening fast.
Again and again, Ru Fenglie slashed at him, his movements relentless, savage. Mike's hammer held firm against the rain of strikes, but cracks began to appear in his defense. His breath grew heavier, and his legs wobbled beneath him.
Jian Dao rejoined the fray, trying to flank Ru Fenglie. But the swordsman's strikes lacked their usual sharpness the injuries from Han Zetsu's infernal technique still lingered in his bones. Ru Fenglie turned and parried Jian Dao's attack with ease, forcing him back with a sweep of his venom-laced blade.
Is that all? Ru Fenglie spat, controlling the fight like a puppeteer.
His eyes gleamed, and he whispered, Now… let's raise the curtain.
The sky darkened suddenly as Ru Fenglie raised both blades high. Shadows pulsed from his feet outward in waves. Night Fang Torrent!
A storm of slashes erupted, venomous and invisible, tearing toward Jian Dao like a swarm of fanged serpents. The wind screeched, and the very air turned thick and oppressive.
Jian Dao gritted his teeth and stabbed his sword into the ground.
Celestial Sword Cage!
A radiant dome of floating swords shimmered into being around him glowing with holy light, their points angled outward. The blades hummed in harmony, forming a defensive wall.
The collision was deafening.
Venomous fangs clashed against celestial steel, creating a shockwave that threw debris across the battlefield. Trees nearby the few that hadn't been burned bowed and snapped in the gust. Stones cracked. The ground fractured once again beneath their feet.
When the dust cleared, Jian Dao was on one knee inside the cracked cage of swords, coughing. His body trembled with exhaustion.
Master… Mike called out. Please, let me handle it. You need to rest!
Jian Dao wiped blood from his mouth and shook his head. Not yet… Not until it's over.
But Mike could see it. His master was spent.
Across the field, Ru Fenglie floated midair, arms crossed, blood dripping from his lip. He crossed his legs and closed his eyes, forming a hand seal. A shimmering spiritual barrier spread around him like a translucent dome, and the air inside glowed faintly as he began to recover.
Jian Dao eyed the opportunity but then turned away.
No… this time, I'll heal too. He sat cross legged beside a broken stone pillar, sheathed his sword, and looked at Mike.
Guard me.
Mike nodded. Yes, Master.
The sky was darker now, scattered with the first signs of stars. Smoke coiled through the air from burnt shrubs and cratered land. Not far away, another storm was brewing.
At the far edge of the battlefield, Huo Chuntian now stood before Han Zetsu. The land around them was cracked like ancient skin, glowing faintly from residual heat.
Despite his earlier fight with Jian Dao, Han
Zetsu stood tall, his robes torn but his eyes burning with cruelty. Faint traces of corrupted energy still curled around him like smoke.
Huo Chuntian swallowed two spirit pills one to reinforce his form, the other to stabilize his essence.
Han Zetsu sneered. Old bird… You're weaker than you think. One good hit and you're ash.
Huo Chuntian smirked. Maybe. If my spiritual form fades… I'll make sure I take you with me.
Han Zetsu chuckled darkly. You're funny. Come then let's see what kind of squawk you can manage.
With no more words, they lunged at each other. Fists clashed, the ground splitting under their blows. Trees shook violently, their leaves bursting into flame, and the very sky above flickered with pressure.
Then Huo Chuntian roared, pulling back and unleashing his attack
Ultimate Fireball Technique.
A barrage of blazing spheres rained down toward Han Zetsu, each leaving trails of heat behind. The air shimmered. The battlefield looked like it was caught in the middle of a meteor shower.
But Han Zetsu danced through the barrage, smirking as the fireballs crashed harmlessly around him.
Is that it? he mocked. You're tickling me, bird. Try something real then I'll remember you.
With a smirk curling beneath his charred beard, Huo Chuntian's eyes blazed. This is only the beginning, he said.
His hands shimmered as he unleashed a volley
Blazing Ember Orbs.
Tiny, scorching fireballs spun into the air like a swarm of comets. They streaked toward Han Zetsu in wild, fast-moving trajectories, weaving through space like flaming wasps. Each orb exploded on contact, splattering fire qi in scattered bursts, forcing Han Zetsu to twist, dodge, and vault backwards. Smoke curled around him, and heat sizzled across the cracked rocks.
With a grunt, Han Zetsu clenched his fist and shouted
Blood Vein Ward.
A red-tinted dome pulsed into existence around him, formed from coiled tendrils of blood and protective soul force. The orbs burst against it, painting it in fiery sparks, but he stood unharmed within.
When the flames dimmed, Han Zetsu charged. His sword cut the air with a screech as he slashed toward Huo Chuntian, following up with a vicious spinning kick.
Steel met fire.
Huo Chuntian blocked with his bracers, countering with a burning punch aimed at the ribs. Han Zetsu twisted and deflected, grinning.
You tricky bird, he snarled. You think I'm playing with you? You think I'm weak?
Huo Chuntian chuckled, eyes narrow with confidence. You'll see soon enough.
He raised his hand. Fire danced around his fingers like a serpent.
Inferno Spike Barrage
Spikes of burning qi erupted from thin air, hurtling toward Han Zetsu with deadly intent, piercing through the darkness like spears.
But Han Zetsu roared and raised his palm, slicing it open with his own fingernail. Blood spilled, and dark flame surrounded him.
Hellspike Blood Rain
Crimson fire twisted with corrupted qi, cascading like a demonic storm. The two techniques collided in a violent burst of red and gold, shaking the valley floor. Thunder cracked. The sky roared. Both men were thrown back, coughing blood, their bodies torn and burned.
But Huo Chuntian stood tall, trembling.
Enough, he growled. Now I'll crush you.
He drew both arms upward. Flames circled his body like a tornado.
Heaven Flame Devastation Orb
The sky shimmered with heat as a massive molten orb formed above him, pulsing with terrifying energy. It looked alive a heart of fire, ancient and unforgiving. The clouds split. Even the air screamed.
Han Zetsu's eyes widened.
Fear crept into his face.
No… he whispered, backing away.
Panicked, he chanted a desperate technique Crimson Dominion Vein Ward.
Crimson runes flared around him. Tendrils of soul-bound blood rose and coiled, weaving into a dome of defense. The barrier throbbed like a beating organ.
The orb descended.
It cut through the sky, shearing the very edges of space around it. The ground beneath split like paper.
When it struck, the earth exploded. The barrier cracked, shattered and Han Zetsu screamed as he was thrown like a ragdoll across the rocks. Blood poured from his mouth. His robes were scorched black. He fell silent, unmoving.
Elsewhere, Ru Fenglie and Jian Dao finished their recovery in almost perfect synchronization.
And once again, they launched forward.
Ru Fenglie struck first his slashes fast and venomous, a blur of black steel and green light. Jian Dao parried, countered, and retaliated. They traded blows, carving deep rifts in the battlefield. Every movement was a storm. Every impact, a quake.
Mike, bruised but burning with resolve, picked up his hammer and charged. Ru Fenglie twisted and with a brutal kick, launched Mike into a crater, rock exploding around him.
Ru Fenglie grinned darkly. Now, Mike… your end has arrived.
Mike rose slowly, wiping blood from his chin. His armor cracked. His hammer shimmered faintly.
Ru Fenglie knew he needed a distraction and he turned to Jian Dao.
Scourge Mist Domain
From Ru Fenglie's twin blades, a thick, noxious fog erupted black-green, pulsating like a diseased heartbeat. It spread in seconds, swallowing light, air, and space. The mist burned skin, seeped into lungs, and eroded the spiritual core.
Jian Dao stood firm as it engulfed him.
He didn't fight it. Instead, he sat cross-legged within it, focusing inward. No techniques, no defense just pure resilience. He calmed his will, strengthened his body, realigned his qi flow. His only defense: himself.
Ru Fenglie grinned. Exactly what I wanted. He's locked in. Now… .
He turned to Mike.
Your death is mine alone.
Mike stood, hammer clenched. So this is your plan? Come then.
The mist trembled.
In the distance, the crack of space echoed again shockwaves and screams colliding.
Mike was bleeding. Every hit left another fracture on his body. Yet he endured.
Suddenly from deep inside the mist a roar of energy.
Jian Dao emerged like a comet, blade in hand, striking Ru Fenglie with divine force.
You thought you'd kill my disciple in my presence?!
Ru Fenglie cursed. Then I'll kill you first!
He unleashed Night Fang Torrent again a swarm of venomous slashes.
Mike jumped in front of Jian Dao, hammer raised.
A shimmering blue-green barrier formed from the hammer's core deflecting the deadly storm.
The technique shattered and with it, Mike's body buckled. The backlash flung him into the dust, coughing blood, his armor nearly falling apart.
Jian Dao's heart clenched.
Mike stood again, barely.
His suit was ruined, his legs trembled but now a deep aura stirred within him.
The Sea Snake Flame the low form of Dragon Flame began to swirl through his veins, coiling up his arms and into his hammer. Scales of light shimmered faintly along his skin.
The hammer pulsed.
Mike raised it slowly, eyes glowing with fury. Your end has come, Ru Fenglie.
The warrior snarled and unleashed his deadliest spatial slash
Dimensional Angle Sever.
Invisible arcs of space folded and sliced toward Mike, bending reality itself.
Mike saw it.
He felt it.
And his hammer moved in harmony intercepting every cut, absorbing the dimensional force.
His spirit and weapon were in perfect sync.
Jian Dao watched in awe as Mike now stood toe-to-toe with the nightmare they feared.
Meanwhile, Ru Fenglie faltered the failed attack draining what little spiritual energy remained.
Across the field, Han Zetsu collapsed, breath shallow, internal wounds fatal.
And finally the battlefield shifted.
Mike, Huo Chuntian, and Jian Dao stood
side by side, wounded but burning with will.
Their enemies Ru Fenglie and Han Zetsu were on the verge of collapse.
Mike gripped his hammer, its aura rising once more.
I am going to use Autumn's technique, he murmured, but now… this one chose me.
A new power stirred.
A hammer technique, ancient and fearsome, unlocked within him if only temporarily.
He stepped forward.
Let me handle these fools.