Several hundred miles away...
"Haa... haa..."
Zhang Yun bent over slightly, his chest rising and falling violently as he gasped for breath. Sweat dripped down from his forehead and soaked the collar of his robes. His entire body felt heavy, as if every muscle had been pushed far beyond its limit.
"Whew... I almost didn't make it out alive."
He lifted the strange black banner in his hand and stared at it for a moment.
"Fortunately... this strange black banner suddenly activated the moment I poured my spiritual energy into it."
His brows furrowed slightly as he recalled what had happened earlier.
"It seems this banner only functions when it's supplied with a sufficient amount of spiritual qi..."
At the very least, it had saved his life.
Zhang Yun exhaled slowly and finally allowed his body to relax.
He sat down beneath the roots of a large tree, leaning his back against the rough bark. After fleeing for such a long time and exhausting so much strength, the spiritual qi within his body had nearly been depleted.
Even lifting his arms now felt somewhat difficult.
The surrounding forest was quiet.
A gentle breeze drifted through the trees, rustling the leaves softly as it passed. For a brief moment, everything felt strangely peaceful-as if the danger had finally disappeared.
Then suddenly-
Crack!
The sharp sound of a dry branch snapping echoed through the forest.
Zhang Yun's eyes widened instantly.
His exhausted body snapped upright as if struck by lightning, and he immediately assumed a defensive stance.
"Who's there!? Show yourself!"
For a brief moment, silence filled the air.
Then a cold laugh slowly echoed through the forest.
"Ha... ha... ha..."
The laughter gradually grew louder, reverberating through the surrounding trees like the echo of something sinister.
Zhang Yun's heart began to tremble.
A wave of unease rose within his chest, and his body instinctively tensed.
Fear.
Even he could not deny it.
From within the darkness between the trees, a figure slowly stepped forward.
Every movement was unhurried.
Yet each step carried a suffocating aura of killing intent, accompanied by a sinister demonic presence that seemed to stain the air itself.
Zhang Yun's pupils shrank violently.
"N-No... you!"
His voice trembled slightly.
"How did you catch up to me!?"
He stared at the figure in disbelief.
"The distance I teleported should have been at least two hundred miles away from here!"
The cold laughter echoed again, spreading outward like ripples through the forest.
For a moment, it almost felt as if the surrounding space had been sealed by some invisible law.
Zhang Yun gritted his teeth.
"Yin Tian!"
"You think you can kill me within your territory!?"
His voice rose as anger overtook his fear.
"Let me tell you right now-something like that will never happen!"
Yin Tian merely smiled.
A cold, indifferent smile.
The expression on his face showed no reaction to Zhang Yun's words, as if he had just heard something utterly meaningless.
He spoke calmly, without the slightest hint of urgency.
His voice sounded light and relaxed.
Yet each word carried an invisible pressure that spread through the air like an unseen blade pressing down upon the world.
Yin Tian slowly opened his eyes.
His gaze was sharp and merciless.
"It seems... this time you've obtained some opportunities and treasures that might prove somewhat useful."
His eyes drifted briefly toward the black banner in Zhang Yun's hand.
"But if you think you can escape again..."
He paused slightly.
"...that would be impossible."
The corner of his lips curved faintly upward.
"As long as that treasure remains in your hands..."
"Both the treasure-"
"And your life..."
"...will belong to me."
Zhang Yun's face twisted with anger.
"You!"
But Yin Tian had already lost interest in speaking any further.
Words were meaningless now.
Without another moment of delay, the aura surrounding him erupted violently.
Boom!!!
A terrifying surge of energy exploded outward from his body.
"Demonic Domain."
The moment those words fell, the surrounding forest seemed to darken.
An invisible pressure descended upon everything within the area.
Zhang Yun's face turned pale instantly.
How could he not recognize that power?
Earlier, he had personally witnessed the fierce battle between Yin Tian and Long Tu.
Although Yin Tian had been pushed into a disadvantage-or even suffered defeat-it did not mean Zhang Yun possessed the strength to face him.
Not even close.
Within Yin Tian's domain, everything in the surrounding area began to tremble under a crushing invisible force.
The air itself seemed heavier.
Even breathing became difficult.
Streams of blood-red energy erupted continuously from Yin Tian's body, swirling around him like a violent storm of demonic power.
The ground beneath his feet cracked.
The trees around them bent under the pressure.
Zhang Yun's entire body trembled.
But he refused to allow himself to become the weaker side.
"Damn it...!"
He clenched his teeth fiercely.
Without hesitation, Zhang Yun began circulating the remaining energy within his body at full force.
Spiritual qi surged through his meridians like a raging river.
He unleashed it wildly, pushing his cultivation to its absolute limit.
His aura erupted outward as he strengthened his body and internal energy, forcing his own power to rise within a short moment.
Only by doing so could he barely resist the crushing pressure of Yin Tian's Demonic Domain.
The oppressive force of the Demonic Domain spread across the forest like an invisible tide swallowing the land.
The moment Yin Tian released his power, the surrounding world changed.
The sky darkened.
The air became thick and heavy, as if the heavens themselves were being dragged downward by an unseen hand. A deep crimson aura slowly seeped into the environment, spreading like blood staining water.
The ground beneath Zhang Yun's feet trembled.
Cracks spread across the soil like spiderwebs as waves of demonic energy pulsed outward from Yin Tian's body.
Zhang Yun's breathing grew heavier.
Even the spiritual qi within his meridians felt sluggish under the suffocating pressure.
"So this is the true pressure of a Demonic Domain..."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
A thin stream of wind energy slowly began circulating around his body, forming faint currents that pushed against the oppressive aura.
But even then-
He knew the truth.
He was already at a disadvantage.
Yin Tian stood several dozen meters away, his black robes swaying gently in the distorted wind of his own domain. His expression remained calm, almost indifferent, as though the outcome of the battle had already been decided.
"You should feel honored," Yin Tian said quietly.
His voice carried through the air with eerie clarity.
"Very few people are worthy of dying under my domain."
Zhang Yun's lips curled into a faint smile.
"Then it seems I'm quite fortunate."
The moment those words left his mouth-
His body vanished.
BOOM!
A violent gust of wind erupted from the ground as Zhang Yun shot forward like a streak of light.
His sleeve flicked.
The folding fan in his hand snapped open with a sharp crack.
Instantly-
Dozens of crescent-shaped wind blades tore through the air.
The blades howled like raging spirits as they sliced forward, cutting through the demonic aura surrounding Yin Tian.
Each blade carried enough force to cleave through solid steel.
Yet Yin Tian did not move.
He simply raised one hand.
The crimson aura surrounding his body condensed instantly, forming a dark shield of swirling demonic energy.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
The wind blades slammed into the barrier like a storm of blades striking iron.
Shockwaves rippled through the air.
Nearby trees were sliced apart by the stray currents of wind, their trunks splitting cleanly in half.
But Yin Tian remained completely unmoved.
The demonic barrier shattered the wind blades effortlessly.
His eyes glinted faintly.
"So this is the wind technique you used against Long Tu?"
"Disappointing."
The moment he finished speaking-
His figure blurred.
Zhang Yun's pupils shrank.
"Fast!"
A dark streak tore through the air like a shadow cast by lightning.
Before Zhang Yun could fully react-
Yin Tian was already in front of him.
A pair of crimson claws erupted from Yin Tian's hand, the demonic energy shaping itself into curved talons that radiated a terrifying aura.
RIP!
The claws slashed downward.
Zhang Yun twisted his body violently, the wind beneath his feet exploding outward as he used the momentum to dodge.
The claws missed his chest by less than an inch.
Yet even the residual energy was enough to tear through his robe.
A line of blood appeared across his ribs.
Zhang Yun slid backward across the ground, leaving a deep trail behind him as the wind currents tried to stabilize his balance.
"So it's already this intense..."
He wiped the blood from his side with the back of his hand.
Yin Tian tilted his head slightly.
"You dodged."
"For someone who has been running for hours, your reflexes are impressive."
His lips curved faintly.
"But how long can that last?"
Before Zhang Yun could answer-
Yin Tian raised his hand again.
The demonic aura surrounding the forest began to move.
No-
It was gathering.
Dark streams of energy rose from the ground like black smoke, swirling toward Yin Tian's palm.
Within seconds, a sphere of condensed demonic energy formed above his hand.
The sphere pulsed like a living heart.
Crimson lightning crackled within it.
Zhang Yun's eyes sharpened instantly.
"That attack.."
Without hesitation, he slammed his fan shut and thrust it forward.
The wind surrounding him erupted violently.
A spiraling vortex formed beneath his feet, lifting his body several meters into the air.
"Cyclone Step!"
His figure blurred into a streak of wind.
At that exact moment-
Yin Tian released the sphere.
BOOOOM!!
The demonic sphere exploded like a meteor crashing into the earth.
A massive shockwave erupted outward.
The ground collapsed inward, forming a crater nearly ten meters wide.
Chunks of earth and shattered stone blasted into the sky.
But Zhang Yun had already escaped the impact zone.
His body twisted through the air like a drifting leaf carried by a storm.
The wind currents around him shifted rapidly, allowing him to move unpredictably through the battlefield.
Yet Yin Tian merely watched.
Calm.
Silent.
His gaze followed Zhang Yun's movements with unsettling precision.
"Running again?"
"Very well."
His fingers slowly curled.
The demonic aura across the entire domain responded instantly.
The ground trembled violently.
Dark spikes of demonic energy burst from the earth like spears rising from hell itself.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The spikes erupted everywhere, forcing Zhang Yun to change direction repeatedly as he dodged through the storm of attacks.
Each spike carried enough power to impale a cultivator instantly.
"Damn..."
Zhang Yun spun his fan.
A powerful burst of wind erupted outward, shattering several of the spikes before they could reach him.
But even as he moved-
He was calculating.
Every step.
Every attack.
Every movement of Yin Tian's domain.
His eyes flickered slightly.
"So this is how his domain works..."
The demonic energy wasn't random.
It was controlled.
Every attack was guided by Yin Tian's will.
Which meant-
Fighting him directly within this domain was suicidal.
Zhang Yun's expression remained calm.
But inside his mind, countless strategies were forming and collapsing in rapid succession.
He had only one advantage.
Speed.
And unpredictability.
His fan opened again.
The wind around him began to rotate faster and faster.
A powerful pressure gathered around the spinning currents.
Yin Tian raised an eyebrow.
"Oh?"
"Something different this time?"
Zhang Yun said nothing.
He simply raised the fan above his head-
Then slashed it downward.
Instantly-
A massive spiral of wind erupted into existence.
The tornado roared like a wild dragon as it tore across the battlefield, devouring everything in its path.
Trees were ripped from the ground.
Stone shattered into dust.
The entire forest trembled beneath the force of the storm.
Yet Yin Tian merely stepped forward.
The demonic aura around him surged violently.
His hand shot forward-
And the crimson claws expanded several meters in length.
He tore directly into the tornado.
BOOOOM!!!
The clash between wind and demonic power shook the entire battlefield.
The tornado exploded apart in a violent storm of air currents.
But in that moment-
Zhang Yun's eyes flashed.
"Got you."
The moment the tornado shattered-
Zhang Yun's fan flicked again.
But this time, he did not release another attack.
Instead, the scattered fragments of wind that had exploded from the destroyed tornado did not dissipate.
They lingered.
Hundreds... thousands of invisible currents spread silently across the battlefield.
Like threads.
Threads of wind that wove themselves through the forest.
Yin Tian stepped forward slowly, crimson demonic energy swirling around his body like a living tide.
He did not seem to notice anything unusual.
But Zhang Yun's eyes gleamed faintly.
Inside the chaotic winds, his spiritual sense extended quietly through every current.
Each strand of wind had become a part of his perception.
A trap.
The battlefield itself had become his net.
Yin Tian's gaze lifted slightly.
"Still playing tricks?"
He raised his hand.
The demonic aura surged violently again.
The surrounding darkness condensed into several massive spears of crimson energy, each one crackling with faint streaks of black lightning.
"Let me show you what true power looks like."
His hand fell.
The spears shot forward like falling meteors.
BOOOOM!
The ground exploded as the first spear struck.
Zhang Yun vanished in a burst of wind.
The spear tore through the place where he had been standing a fraction of a second earlier.
The second spear followed immediately.
Zhang Yun twisted in midair, using the wind currents to shift his trajectory.
The spear grazed past his shoulder-
RIP!
Blood sprayed through the air.
A deep gash tore across his upper arm.
Zhang Yun gritted his teeth but did not slow down.
Pain was irrelevant.
Time was the real enemy.
The third spear came screaming toward him.
But before it could reach him-
Zhang Yun snapped his fan shut.
"Now."
Instantly-
Every scattered wind current across the battlefield surged at once.
The invisible threads tightened.
The air itself seemed to collapse inward.
A massive spiral of compressed wind formed around Yin Tian from all directions.
Thousands of razor-sharp wind blades erupted from the currents simultaneously.
It was not a single attack.
It was a storm.
A storm that had been prepared silently from the moment the tornado exploded.
Yin Tian's pupils contracted slightly.
"Oh?"
For the first time since the battle began-
He moved.
His demonic aura exploded outward violently.
The crimson energy condensed into a rotating barrier that surrounded his entire body.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
The wind blades slammed into the barrier from every direction.
The impact sounded like a thousand swords striking iron.
Shockwaves rippled outward.
Nearby trees were shredded into splinters by the stray currents.
The ground cracked beneath the pressure.
But Zhang Yun did not stop.
He twisted his fan again.
The wind currents tightened further.
"Wind Prison!"
The spiral of air compressed violently.
The pressure increased tenfold in an instant.
Even Yin Tian's demonic barrier trembled under the force.
The earth beneath his feet began to collapse.
The storm continued grinding inward like a massive millstone.
For a brief moment-
The battlefield fell silent except for the roar of wind.
Then-
BOOOOOM!!!
The barrier exploded.
A shockwave of demonic energy blasted outward.
Zhang Yun was thrown backward by the force, his body slamming into the trunk of a shattered tree.
Blood surged into his throat.
But his eyes remained fixed on the center of the explosion.
The wind slowly dissipated.
Yin Tian stood there.
His robes were torn in several places.
A thin line of blood ran from the corner of his mouth.
But the aura around him had not weakened.
If anything-
It had grown darker.
"Interesting."
His voice was softer now.
More dangerous.
"You actually managed to injure me."
The demonic energy around his body began to change.
The crimson aura thickened into a dark, almost black substance that twisted through the air like smoke.
Zhang Yun felt his heart sink.
That aura...
It was different from before.
Yin Tian lifted his hand slowly.
The darkness condensed above his palm.
This time, it was not a sphere.
It was a claw.
A gigantic claw made entirely of condensed demonic power.
Black lightning flickered across its surface.
"Let's see how long you can keep running."
The claw shot forward.
Not toward Zhang Yun's body-
But toward the air around him.
Zhang Yun's eyes widened.
The claw slammed into the invisible wind threads he had woven across the battlefield.
BOOOOM!
The entire wind network shattered instantly.
Zhang Yun's connection to the currents was severed.
A violent backlash surged through his meridians.
He staggered.
Blood spilled from his mouth.
"Ghh-!"
Yin Tian stepped forward again.
His eyes had become colder.
"You rely too much on your tricks."
The demonic claw expanded again.
This time-
It descended directly toward Zhang Yun.
The pressure alone was enough to crack the ground beneath him.
Zhang Yun forced his body to move.
Wind exploded beneath his feet as he launched himself sideways.
The claw slammed into the earth.
BOOOOOOM!!
A massive crater erupted beneath the impact.
Chunks of stone blasted into the air like shrapnel.
One of them struck Zhang Yun's shoulder.
The impact sent him tumbling across the ground.
His vision blurred for a moment.
Blood dripped from his lips.
Yet even then-
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Finally..."
Yin Tian's brow furrowed slightly.
"Finally what?"
Zhang Yun slowly pushed himself up.
Wind currents gathered around his body again.
But this time-
They were far stronger.
The air across the battlefield began to move.
Leaves rose from the ground.
Dust spiraled upward.
The sky itself seemed to respond to the growing storm.
Zhang Yun lifted his fan.
His breathing was uneven.
Blood soaked through his sleeve.
But his eyes were clear.
"You finally started taking this seriously."
The wind intensified.
The clouds above began to churn.
Yin Tian stared upward.
The demonic aura around him flared.
"So this is your true move?"
Zhang Yun did not answer.
The wind currents surrounding him expanded outward rapidly.
A massive vortex began forming high above the battlefield.
The pressure of the air shifted violently.
Lightning flickered faintly within the swirling clouds.
The forest trembled.
The wind screamed like a thousand dragons awakening.
Yin Tian's gaze sharpened.
"I see..."
"Now this is more like it."
The storm continued growing.
The vortex in the sky expanded wider and wider.
The surrounding atmosphere was being dragged into the rotating mass of wind.
Even Yin Tian's demonic domain began to tremble slightly.
Zhang Yun's body shook as he poured more and more spiritual energy into the technique.
His meridians burned.
Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
But he did not stop.
The storm above finally reached its full form.
A gigantic pillar of wind descended from the sky like a heavenly punishment.
The ground beneath it shattered.
The forest was torn apart as the massive cyclone connected heaven and earth.
Zhang Yun's voice echoed through the roaring storm.
"Heavenly..."
The vortex roared louder.
Lightning flashed across the sky.
"Windstorm!"
The colossal cyclone descended toward Yin Tian like the wrath of the heavens themselves.
The colossal cyclone descended from the heavens like a pillar that connected the sky and the earth.
Wind screamed across the battlefield.
Entire trees were ripped from the ground and dragged into the rotating storm. Massive chunks of earth were torn free as if gravity itself had been overturned.
The forest that had once stretched peacefully for miles was now nothing more than a collapsing ruin.
At the center of the devastation-
Yin Tian stood unmoving.
His black robes fluttered violently beneath the raging wind, yet his body remained rooted in place like an unshakable pillar.
The Demonic Domain around him pulsed.
Crimson energy surged outward like waves crashing against the incoming storm.
The massive cyclone roared downward.
The pressure alone was enough to crush ordinary cultivators into dust.
Yet Yin Tian slowly lifted his head.
His gaze pierced through the storm.
"So this is your ultimate technique..."
Slowly-
It formed the shape of something monstrous behind him.
A gigantic shadow.
Two enormous demonic claws unfolded from the darkness.
The air trembled.
Even the raging cyclone hesitated for a fraction of a second under the pressure of that monstrous aura.
Zhang Yun's eyes widened.
"That technique...!"
He could feel it.
The terrifying density of Yin Tian's power.
This was no ordinary attack.
This was a forbidden demonic art.
Yin Tian raised his hand slowly.
The enormous shadow behind him mirrored the movement.
A colossal demonic claw rose into the air.
Black lightning crawled across its surface like living serpents.
"Let's see..."
His voice was calm.
"...whether your storm can withstand this."
His hand fell.
The demonic claw tore upward.
BOOOOOOM!!!
The claw collided with the descending cyclone.
The impact shook the heavens.
The windstorm exploded outward in every direction as the two powers clashed violently.
Lightning erupted across the sky.
Shockwaves blasted through the forest, flattening everything within several hundred meters.
The massive pillar of wind twisted violently as the demonic claw pushed against it.
For a moment-
The two forces were evenly matched.
Zhang Yun gritted his teeth.
Blood streamed down his face as he continued pouring spiritual energy into the technique.
His meridians burned.
Every breath felt like swallowing fire.
But the storm continued descending.
The cyclone roared like a heavenly dragon.
Lightning crashed down from the swirling clouds above, striking the rotating winds again and again.
Each bolt strengthened the storm.
Yin Tian's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Impressive."
The demonic claw behind him trembled under the pressure.
But his expression did not change.
Instead-
He stepped forward.
The Demonic Domain surged violently.
Dark energy flooded into the giant claw.
The monstrous hand grew larger.
More solid.
More terrifying.
Then-
It clenched.
CRAAACK!!
The sound echoed like the shattering of mountains.
The demonic claw tore directly into the core of the storm.
The cyclone began to collapse.
The wind currents shattered one after another under the overwhelming force.
Zhang Yun felt a violent backlash explode through his body.
"GH-!"
Blood erupted from his mouth.
His body was thrown backward as the Heavenly Windstorm began breaking apart.
The storm that had once connected heaven and earth now shattered into countless fragments of raging wind.
Yin Tian lowered his hand slowly.
The gigantic demonic claw faded behind him.
The battlefield fell silent.
Only the dying winds remained.
Zhang Yun crashed heavily against the broken ground.
His vision spun.
Pain surged through every part of his body.
His spiritual energy was nearly exhausted.
The Heavenly Windstorm-
His strongest technique-
Had been broken.
Heavy footsteps approached.
Zhang Yun forced his eyes open.
Through the haze of blood and dust-
He saw Yin Tian walking toward him.
Each step was calm.
Unhurried.
Yet every movement carried overwhelming pressure.
Yin Tian stopped a few meters away.
His robes were torn.
Blood stained his sleeve.
But the aura around him remained terrifying.
"You fought well."
His voice was quiet.
"Much better than I expected."
Zhang Yun tried to move.
But his body refused to obey.
His meridians felt as though they had been torn apart.
Blood soaked through his clothes.
Even breathing was painful.
Yin Tian looked down at him.
His gaze shifted briefly toward the black banner still clutched in Zhang Yun's hand.
"That treasure..."
A faint smile appeared on his lips.
"It belongs to me."
He raised his hand.
Demonic energy gathered into a sharp claw once more.
"Your life as well."
The claw descended.
At that moment-
Zhang Yun's fingers tightened around the black banner.
A faint pulse spread from the ancient fabric.
Something inside the banner stirred.
Zhang Yun felt it.
A strange connection.
A deep, ancient power sleeping within the darkness.
Until now-
He had only been able to use a tiny fragment of its ability.
But at the brink of death-
The banner responded.
A faint shadow spread across the ground.
Then another.
And another.
The shadows beneath the shattered trees began to move.
Yin Tian's claw halted slightly.
His eyes narrowed.
"Hmm?"
The shadows across the battlefield twisted violently.
Darkness gathered around Zhang Yun's body.
The banner trembled in his hand.
Zhang Yun forced the last fragments of his spiritual energy into it.
Only a tiny fraction responded.
Barely 0.5% of 1% of the banner's true power.
But even that-
Was enough.
The shadows erupted.
They stretched across the battlefield like living creatures, crawling across the ground and swallowing the remaining light.
A deep black crack appeared in the air behind Zhang Yun.
A rift made of pure shadow.
Yin Tian's expression changed for the first time.
"That power..."
The demonic claw shot forward instantly.
But it was too late.
The shadows wrapped around Zhang Yun's body.
His figure blurred as the darkness swallowed him.
The claw tore through the space where he had been lying.
BOOOOM!!
The ground exploded.
But Zhang Yun was already gone.
The shadow rift collapsed.
Silence returned to the battlefield.
Only the ruined forest remained.
Yin Tian stood motionless.
The demonic energy around him slowly faded.
After a long moment-
He lowered his hand.
His gaze lingered on the place where Zhang Yun had disappeared.
A faint line of blood ran down from the corner of his mouth.
He wiped it away slowly.
"Interesting..."
His voice was barely louder than a whisper.
"That banner..."
His eyes gleamed with a dark light.
"And you."
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"You escaped again."
He turned away, looking toward the dark horizon.
"But next time..."
His voice became colder.
"...you won't be so fortunate."
The wind moved quietly through the shattered forest.
The battlefield returned to silence.
Yet somewhere far away-
A severely wounded Zhang Yun had already vanished into the darkness...