Chapter 716: Rapid Decisive Battle

Heaven Smiting Sword’s ferocious attacks, combined with Star God Broken Shadow’s relentless pursuit, meant that once an opponent was suppressed, they had no hope of recovery. Feng Tianyu found himself in this very state. He had lived for centuries, battling countless powerful experts, yet even against foes several times stronger than himself, he had never been so utterly overwhelmed.

Under Yun Che’s hurricane-like assault, Feng Tianyu desperately retreated and defended, continuously driven back over ten miles in mere moments. Throughout the relentless onslaught, counterattacking or escaping was impossible; even a single breath felt like an unattainable luxury. He felt as if he were pinned beneath dozens of colossal mountains, utterly unable to move.

While he had managed to gain a slight advantage during their earlier Phoenix Flame clash, the moment Yun Che unleashed the Heaven Smiting Sword, Feng Tianyu was instantly and completely overwhelmed. Though his immense profound energy prevented immediate defeat or severe injury, Yun Che’s dozens of successive blows had left his entire body’s vital energy churning like a boiling cauldron.

At that moment, a surging wave of energy rapidly approached from the northwest. A flicker of relief finally crossed Feng Tianyu’s pained face. Before the energy wave even drew close, a colossal Phoenix Flame, vast enough to blot out the sky, roared directly towards Yun Che.

Yun Che thrust his sword to fend off Feng Tianyu, then with a powerful sweep, unleashed a colossal profound energy storm. The incoming Phoenix Flame was instantly deflected, arcing behind Yun Che. The moment it struck the ground, it erupted into a towering column of fire, hundreds of feet high.

Illuminated by the fiery glow, Feng Tianyu, finally free from Yun Che’s heavy sword assault and able to draw a breath, found someone standing beside him. It was Feng Tianqing, who had arrived at full speed, similar in age and dressed identically to Feng Tianyu. However, Feng Tianqing’s expression was grim. Like Feng Tianyu, he distinctly felt a terrifying aura from Yun Che, and his heart was consumed by profound shock and disbelief.

Blood streamed from Feng Tianyu’s arms. He quickly took a deep breath, suppressing his injuries, and spoke in a low, strained voice: “Tianqing, this boy is simply a monster; he’s a hundred times stronger than we ever imagined... *hiss*, we must combine our full power... If this child lives... our Divine Sect will never know peace!”

Feng Tianyu didn't need to elaborate; his condition and Yun Che’s aura were ample proof that they had gravely underestimated Yun Che’s power. Feng Tianqing wholeheartedly agreed with Feng Tianyu’s final declaration. Taking a deep breath, Feng Tianqing stated, “There’s no longer any need to capture him alive... strike to kill, and don’t give him a moment to recover.”

“Attack!!” Feng Tianqing took half a step forward, and in that instant, the Phoenix Flames around him surged to dozens of feet in height. In his hand, a heavy, five-foot-long flaming saber materialized. Feng Tianyu followed closely, their Phoenix Flames merging to create what, from a distance, appeared to be a second crimson sun in the sky. Beneath this “scorching sun,” the vast ground quickly transformed into churning magma.

“With these two working together, the longer this battle drags on, the more disadvantageous it will be for you. Any further complications would make it even harder to manage... You must finish this quickly!” Jasmine’s voice was grim.

“I know!” Yun Che gripped the Heaven Smiting Sword with both hands. Even before the blade moved, a colossal aura, like a landslide and a tsunami combined, enveloped the land. Confronted by the combined power of the two Phoenix Monarchs, he showed no inclination to retreat cautiously. Instead, he lunged forward, unleashing a sword strike. The most scorching Phoenix Flames blazed across his body and the sword’s blade, and a near-corporeal phoenix shadow roared, spreading its wings behind him. “Heaven-Extinguishing Earth-Destroying!”

Simultaneously, Feng Tianyu and Feng Tianqing’s Phoenix Flames erupted, engulfing the sky and surging towards Yun Che. “Phoenix Fire Incinerates the Heavens!”

The combined “Phoenix Fire Incinerates the Heavens” attack contained an unimaginable destructive power. Its sky-obscuring blaze eclipsed all other light, appearing like a demon from the abyssal depths of purgatory, poised to consume the approaching Yun Che.

The three monarch-level powers collided head-on, without any embellishment. Instantly, all sound was swallowed. The soaring flames shot directly into the sky, then completely engulfed the surrounding dozens of miles, reducing all living and inanimate things within to dust in a mere instant. Space violently fractured, countless enormous spatial rifts savagely devouring the rampaging power and flames.

The blinding light made it impossible to open one’s eyes. Beneath the sky-obscuring inferno, Feng Tianyu and Feng Tianqing were violently flung backward by the immense force. They managed to brace themselves against each other in mid-air, finally dissipating the kinetic energy and coming to a halt. Their faces were flushed crimson, and their profound energy surged chaotically through their meridians, impossible to suppress. Feng Tianyu’s condition was slightly better; only the injuries to his arms had worsened, and a trickle of blood appeared at the corner of his mouth. Feng Tianqing, however, had a mangled chest, and the bones of his saber-wielding hands were exposed, with at least half of the tendons in both arms destroyed. The excruciating pain and severe wounds made it nearly impossible for him to maintain his grip on the saber hilt.

Clink... With a soft sound, the heavy flaming saber in Feng Tianqing’s hand suddenly shattered, disintegrating from hilt to blade into tiny fragments that scattered to the ground.

Feng Tianyu and Feng Tianqing froze simultaneously. Feng Tianqing let out a long sigh, not in regret for his shattered saber, but stating gravely: “Never mind. With my hands so severely wounded, it will likely take a decade to recover. Ten years is ample time to find another suitable weapon... Tianyu, how are your injuries?”

“I’m fine,” Feng Tianyu replied. Although he had already battled Yun Che once, his profound energy was, after all, slightly superior to Feng Tianqing’s, and his injuries were considerably lighter. He fixed his gaze on the ceaseless, all-consuming fire that blotted out the sky, and spoke in a hoarse voice: “That last attack, both of us poured everything into it. Though we are injured, that fiend... surely must have been incinerated into dust.”

Feng Tianqing nodded slowly. “Although his power is unnaturally strong, he possesses only a Monarch Profound body, so there’s no way he could have survived. Sigh, I truly never imagined that such an unfathomable anomaly would emerge from the small Azure Cloud Nation, requiring us both to unite our strength...”

Rumble... A deep, muffled roar suddenly reverberated. The boundless Phoenix Flames ahead began to flicker erratically, then were violently torn apart. Yun Che, wielding the colossal crimson greatsword even larger than himself, charged forth, accompanied by a terrifying wave of energy no less potent than before.

“Wh-what!!” Feng Tianyu and Feng Tianqing’s eyes widened in unison. In that instant, for the first time in their lives, they truly understood fear. Even if Yun Che had appeared bloody but alive, it would have been somewhat more bearable. But Yun Che’s gaze remained as sharp and cold as a blade, his aura utterly undiminished, and as far as they could tell, there was barely a single visible injury on his body. This was a reality they could not comprehend or accept, even if they died a hundred times over.

In their state of extreme shock, their bodies instinctively reacted in unison: one veered left, the other right, both fleeing at tremendous speed. Yun Che had just unleashed the incredibly profound energy-consuming “Heaven-Extinguishing Earth-Destroying” attack, evidently intending to follow Jasmine’s advice for a swift victory. For even though he maintained absolute superiority, his opponents were, after all, two powerful Monarch Monarchs, not to be easily defeated.

As he was determined to end the battle swiftly, he would not allow them to escape. Yun Che did not pursue either individual. After reaching their previous positions, he paused briefly, a flash of light appearing in his pupils. Above his head, the colossal shadow of an Azure Dragon instantly materialized. “Dragon Soul Domain!”

The soul pressure of the Primordial Dragon God descended from above, engulfing the spirits of both Feng Tianyu and Feng Tianqing. While their monarch-level souls wouldn’t ordinarily be easily overwhelmed by the Dragon Soul Domain, Yun Che had already frightened them nearly out of their wits. Under this immense Dragon Soul pressure, they instantly plummeted into an abyss of terror, their entire bodies collapsing in extreme fear as they fell downwards. Their protective profound energy rapidly dissipated like a receding tide.

Pfft!! With a tearing sound, the Heaven Smiting Sword effortlessly pierced through Feng Tianyu’s back. Surging power, like a torrent, flooded his body, instantly shredding all his meridians, profound veins, and vital organs.

Despite their protective monarch-level power, Yun Che’s previous “Heaven-Extinguishing Earth-Destroying” attack had only caused them moderately severe injuries. Yet, under the Dragon Soul Domain, Yun Che’s casual sword strike instantly took Feng Tianyu’s life, as effortlessly as slaying a common mortal. This was the terrifying power of the Dragon Soul Domain.

Feng Tianyu’s facial features froze, his fading consciousness clearly perceiving his own demise. With his final thought, his head slowly tilted backward, as if he wished to see Yun Che’s face one last time before death claimed him...

“You... mon... ster...” His head only turned halfway before it slumped heavily, and he drew his last breath. The three words, uttered with his dying will, conveyed not resentment or defiance, but an unbearable shock and disbelief that haunted him even in death.

“Hmph, thank you for the compliment,” Yun Che sneered. With a flick of his sword, Feng Tianyu’s corpse was flung far away, landing in the sea of Phoenix Flames, where it instantly turned to ash.

In his centuries of life, Feng Tianyu could never have conceived that he would perish at the hands of a mere twenty-year-old.

Yun Che indifferently turned to face Feng Tianqing. The Dragon Soul Domain had lasted only two breaths before Yun Che retracted it, but whether due to lingering deterrence or utter mental collapse, Feng Tianqing remained slumped on the ground, making no attempt to escape, his eyes hollow as he stared at Yun Che.

“Who... are you, precisely...?” Feng Tianqing’s lips trembled, each word laced with a shudder. The two of them combined had been so utterly defeated by Yun Che; now, with only him remaining, severely wounded, and his mind shattered by the Dragon Soul’s oppressive force, he had completely abandoned any thought of resistance.

“I am Yun Che,” Yun Che stated coldly. “The son-in-law of the Azure Cloud Imperial Family, husband to the current Empress of Azure Cloud, and son-in-law to the former Azure Cloud Emperor whom you murdered! I am a citizen of the Azure Cloud Nation, which you innocently invaded and trampled into a living hell. Do you understand now?!”

“...” Feng Tianqing’s hand dug into the ground as he murmured, “Is this... fate?”

“Fate?” Yun Che scoffed, a low, cold sound. “Hmph, this is the retribution your Phoenix Divine Sect utterly deserves!! And this retribution... has only just begun!”

“Heh heh...” Feng Tianqing chuckled emptily. “Though I am useless and cannot kill you, our Divine Phoenix Sect’s five-thousand-year foundation is not something you can shake... Even if both of us die, you... will certainly not live to see the end of this day.”

Boom!! A muffled explosion erupted from Feng Tianqing’s body. He shuddered, his eyes closed, and blood seeped from his seven orifices before he slowly collapsed. As a Phoenix Grand Elder, unwilling to be killed by Yun Che and knowing he couldn’t escape, he destroyed his own profound veins and vital organs, choosing to die by his own hand. As his body fell, the faint Phoenix Blood within him ignited, incinerating his corpse amidst the Phoenix Flames.

Yun Che turned away, retracting the Heaven Smiting Sword, and let out a soft, cold laugh: “Whether I can shake it is not for you to decide!” As his words faded, he soared into the sky, heading directly towards Phoenix City.