Chapter 1240: Residual Light Extinguished

"Aaah!!"

A terrifying shriek escaped Luo Changsheng as he was violently blasted backward, soaring several miles through the air before crashing heavily to the ground. Yun Che grit his teeth and surged forward, the Heaven Smiting Sword descending once more. But just then, Luo Changsheng suddenly looked up, his eyes still wide with dazed terror. Yet, with immense difficulty, he gathered a trace of profound energy in his hands to meet Yun Che's Heaven Smiting Sword.

With a heavy thud, Luo Changsheng was swept away again. The profound energy he frantically mustered in his fear was perhaps less than ten percent of his full strength, but it was still the power of a Divine King. Yun Che, too, was thrown far back, only managing to halt his momentum after a considerable effort.

Yun Che looked up. Luo Changsheng slowly rose, his right hand clutching his forehead, while a terrifying aura of malevolence coiled around his body. A stream of crimson blood slowly seeped from between the fingers of his right hand.

Yun Che froze, as if struck by lightning, remaining motionless for a long time.

Luo Changsheng lowered his hand, his gaze fixed on the fresh blood. His arms trembled violently before he snapped his head up, a terrifying savagery swelling in his eyes as he glared at Yun Che. "Yun Che... you actually made me bleed... you actually injured my Divine King body!"

Yun Che remained unresponsive, his soul feeling as though it had been swallowed by an abyss.

The Dragon Soul Domain had shattered his soul and profound energy defenses, and that previous sword had struck him directly in the head. Yet, it had only left an insignificant wound on his head!?

However, for Luo Changsheng, this minor wound was an immense humiliation. And how could a direct strike to the head result in only external injury? As he stood up, his vision momentarily blurred, and he stumbled, nearly collapsing to the ground again. Having ascended to Divine King, he had freely unleashed his resentment and fury, believing he could utterly crush Yun Che. Whether it was the red flames or the illusory Divine Dragon Soul, he thought nothing could possibly threaten him anymore. Yet, he had instantly crumbled mentally under Yun Che's Dragon Soul, been injured, and even shown a fleeting moment of vulnerability.

He was a Divine King!

"Yun Che, well done!" Luo Changsheng's gaze turned as sinister as a malevolent spirit. "This is simply *too* good. Tell me, how should I reward you?!"

Someone already consumed by resentment, now further enraged by humiliation, was undoubtedly terrifying. A storm of energy surged around Luo Changsheng. With a low growl, he finally charged directly at Yun Che for the first time, his emitted aura no longer bearing its previous gentleness.

"Be careful!" Mu Bingyun and the others' hearts clenched.

Yun Che remained still, but a sudden flash of azure light flickered in his eyes. The dragon's shadow reappeared, and another world-shaking dragon's roar resonated across the Conferred God Stage.

The Dragon Soul Domain was activated for the second time.

Under the dragon's roar, the entire audience was horrified; even the Divine Sovereigns and Divine Masters, who were not overtly affected, showed expressions of profound shock.

"He can actually activate it a second time..." the Dragon Emperor murmured, his gaze on Yun Che subtly shifting once more.

Activating the Dragon Soul Domain twice in such a short span would undoubtedly inflict severe mental damage, but Yun Che disregarded it completely, for he had no other choice. With the second Dragon Soul now active, he had no retreat whatsoever.

The second Dragon Soul Domain was naturally not as potent as the first, but it still sent tremors through Luo Changsheng's entire body, plunging his mind into an abyss of fear as his freshly surged Divine King profound energy dissipated like a receding tide. Meanwhile, Yun Che leaped into the air, a burst of fiery light erupting from him and shooting towards the heavens.

Ten drops of Phoenix blood...Nine drops of Golden Crow blood...

Barely recovered inside the Samsara Pearl after being forcibly ignited in the previous battle, they were now all instantly ignited by him once more. The combined might of the Phoenix and Golden Crow divine spirits descended, their blazing light so intense it forced everyone to shut their eyes. But this was not all; it was merely the beginning.

A resolute gleam vibrated in Yun Che's pupils, then transformed into two points of scarlet fire.

The Evil God's Fifth Realm... Yama Emperor!!

BOOM!!!!

A horrifying profound light, more vibrant than blood, suddenly erupted from Yun Che's body. His entire being seemed to explode, with over a dozen jets of blood gushing forth as if he had been ripped apart. This was accompanied by a terrifying aura that had multiplied countless times, so overwhelmingly powerful it instantly made hearts pound.

"It's... it's the one from last time..." gasps rippled through the spectator stands.

The world before Yun Che's eyes turned a complete crimson. Such raging power might shred his body to pieces in the next instant, and two consecutive Dragon Soul Domains had pushed his spirit to the verge of complete collapse. Forcibly activating Dragon Soul, forcibly igniting divine blood, forcibly unleashing Yama Emperor... Behind Yun Che lay the boundless Yellow Springs, leaving him not even half a step of retreat.

Because this was the only hope he could grasp...

In a world drowned in crimson, Yun Che's vision could no longer discern Luo Changsheng's form. Yet, an unwavering sliver of will remained firmly locked onto his presence. The Heaven Smiting Sword was raised, and with a roaring, bestial bellow, it descended.

In the previous battle, when he had forcibly activated Yama Emperor, Yun Che's condition was extremely poor, leading to his body and soul instantly collapsing. The life-gambling sword he swung was completely out of control, missing Luo Changsheng directly and only grazing him with its aftershock. This time, however, Yun Che's condition was far superior. Though his body was fracturing, he hadn't completely lost control. Pouring all his strength, will, and final hope into the strike, he brought the sword crashing down on Luo Changsheng. The instant the Heaven Smiting Sword struck, the flesh on Yun Che's arms tore open, and all his meridians ruptured.

Luo Changsheng's entire body trembled in terror, a faint glimmer of clarity barely clinging to his wide, fearful eyes. At the last moment, he crossed his arms before him, a flicker of yellow profound light shining forth...

Luo Changsheng's braced arms and profound energy were shattered in an instant. A crimson sword-light squarely struck Luo Changsheng's body, exploding like a collapsing star. The hundreds-of-zhang Conferred God Stage instantly shattered, and a blood-tinged storm of profound energy raged wildly across the entire platform, lingering without end.

"Waaahhhhhh!!"

A horrifying, piercing shriek mingled with the roar of profound energy, so utterly pathetic that it was impossible to believe it came from an incomparably powerful Divine King. At the epicenter of the Yama Emperor's exploding power, Luo Changsheng was flung away like a withered leaf caught in a hurricane, sent flying tens of miles across and over ten miles high... scattering a continuous rain of crimson blood through the air.

"Changsheng!!" Luo Guixie gasped in alarm, his face abruptly blanching.

"Changsheng..." Luo Changchen, too, suddenly stood, his expression one of profound shock.

The spectator stands erupted in an uproar, jaws agape and eyes wide with disbelief. Countless people simultaneously rubbed their eyes, utterly unable to comprehend what was unfolding before them. It was clearly a situation of complete suppression... Luo Changsheng should have been able to block Yun Che's full-force attack with a single hand... Luo Changsheng had clearly become a mighty Divine King... For power at Yun Che's level, it should have been exceedingly difficult to inflict even minor injuries on a true Divine King!

Yet...

Yun Che's earlier Dragon Soul suppression, followed by a sword strike that wounded Luo Changsheng's head, had already left them wide-eyed with astonishment. But now... they were actually witnessing Luo Changsheng, a Divine King, bleeding profusely and being sent flying by Yun Che's sword...

"This is impossible..." Even Luo Guixie, a Supreme Divine Master and the one most familiar with Luo Changsheng's current power, wore an expression of incredulous shock.

The Evil God's power, as the might of a Creation God transcending even true gods, was beyond mortal comprehension. Yet, Yun Che himself was, after all, still merely a mortal.

With a sword imbued with his final conviction, even his very life, his world became utterly chaotic. The Heaven Smiting Sword slipped from his grasp, clattering heavily to the shattered ground. Then, his body toppled straight backward, collapsing onto the fractured earth. Countless streams of blood rapidly flowed from the ruptures that had burst open across his body. In the blink of an eye, they pooled beneath him, forming a horrifying expanse of crimson.

"What kind of power was that? To actually... severely injure a Divine King," Yan Juehai murmured, stunned.

"Yun Che..." Mu Bingyun rose, murmuring softly, her expression dazed. While that sword had been terrifying beyond compare, its true cost had been painfully evident in the previous battle. She watched Yun Che fall, witnessed his aura rapidly dissipate, and saw the widening pool of blood spreading beneath him... This was Yun Che's all-or-nothing strike, cast in pursuit of that singular, faint hope...

Thud!!

The Conferred God Stage was simply too vast; even this sword couldn't completely blast Luo Changsheng off it. Luo Changsheng was sent flying a great distance through the air before crashing down violently, tumbling more than a dozen times before finally collapsing motionless.

Purifying Venerable frowned deeply, remaining silent.

"Faint... please, just faint!" Mu Bingyun's icy brows were tightly knitted as she silently pleaded with all her might.

But only a few breaths passed before her heart plummeted... Because Luo Changsheng's arm suddenly pushed against the ground, and he slowly, then steadily, stood up... A frantic storm of rage and murderous intent coiled around him.

Across his chest ran an incredibly long and deep bloody gash, revealing stark white sternum and ribs beneath. His entire upper chest was drenched in crimson, a truly horrifying sight. The muscles on Luo Changsheng's face twitched violently with pain, but far more intense than the pain was the humiliation and furious rage that threatened to consume his every last shred of reason. His face and eyes were hideously distorted, terrifying like a mad beast ready to devour every bone and drop of blood. While his wounds appeared frightful, his aura remained that of an overwhelmingly powerful Divine King, showing no significant weakening. If anything, his emotional loss of control due to humiliation and fury only made his aura even more unsettling and terrifying.

"Alas," Mu Bingyun softly closed her eyes. "It's over..."

"It's over..."

Beyond the Conferred God Stage, high above the distant clouds, a petite red silhouette concealed behind the wisps of white uttered the same soft murmur.

As Luo Changsheng stood, Yun Che's last faint glimmer of hope was utterly extinguished. For him... securing the top position in the Conferred God Battle was no longer even a remote possibility. But for some reason, she felt none of the relief she should have. Instead, a painful sense of oppression filled her entire being.

I wanted him to win the top position in the Conferred God Battle to force him to leave in despair... Why did it come to this? He lost, and I can rightfully avoid seeing him. But can he truly go back to how things were now? Back then, though many noticed him, if he had left, he would quickly have been forgotten entirely. But now, he was far too dazzling. To win, he hadn't hesitated to expose many of his secrets, and the consequences were undeniable... He had intensely drawn the attention of many top figures in the Eastern Divine Region.

This isn't the outcome I wanted... Jasmine closed her eyes, murmuring bitterly within her soul.

Yun Che was heavily injured from head to toe, with scarcely a single unmarred spot on his body. His aura had become incredibly faint, and he might not even be able to stand. While Luo Changsheng was also badly hurt, his condition was vastly superior to Yun Che's, and his aura remained terrifyingly potent.

Everything had become a complete foregone conclusion, with not even the slightest alternative possibility.