Chapter 1822: Sand Fury

It was well known that the Crab King possessed the most formidable defense in the entire Endless Desert. Yet, he never imagined that a human would, in a single attack, sever his strongest primary weapon. For the Beast King of the Crab Clan, his two enormous front claws were his most prized weapons, equally potent in attack and defense. They represented his inherent greatest threat to other life forms. But to see his most cherished natural weapon cleaved in two by Xu Yang's single sword strike...

At that moment, the Beast King’s emotions teetered on the brink of collapse. Roaring furiously, he fixed his murderous gaze on Xu Yang’s form. He stared coldly at the figure before him, a being who should have been nothing more than an ant, yet this very individual had inflicted an unimaginably fatal wound upon him.

“I truly don’t know what kind of execution could possibly sate my hatred,” he bellowed. “You have committed a mortal sin in my presence! An unforgivable mortal sin.”

The Crab King was enraged to the core. Simultaneously, he began to move all of his enormous tentacles, furiously smashing them towards Xu Yang’s position. In an instant, miles of sand erupted, transforming into towering waves that surged furiously towards Xu Yang. This was one of the Crab King’s innate abilities. By channeling his immensely powerful beast aura, he could make the surrounding sands shift and respond instantly to his rhythm. In this domain, the Crab King held absolute dominance. He spared no expense in wielding this innate home-field advantage, unleashing a barrage of frenzied attacks on Xu Yang, harnessing all the ambient energy he could control.

However, Xu Yang was far from an ordinary cultivator; he had weathered countless trials. A mere crab could hardly pose a significant threat to him. He simply maintained his calm, nonchalant demeanor, offering a dismissive sneer to the colossal beast before him. Simultaneously, he gently waved his right hand once more, unleashing an immensely powerful ice-blue sword aura. A crescent-shaped blade, like a rising moon, descended upon the Crab King’s massive body.

Having learned from the previous brutal lesson, the Crab King no longer possessed the confidence to directly withstand Xu Yang’s terrifying sword energy with his physical defense. Instead, he abruptly allowed half of his colossal body to be enveloped by the endless sands, opting to utilize the surrounding environment to create a defensive barrier. Yet, he still underestimated the devastating power of Xu Yang’s sword. The brilliant ice-blue radiance burst forth, and all the raging sand that had risen from the ground was instantly frozen solid by Xu Yang’s chilling sword edge, preventing any further storm-like attacks.

The Crab King was utterly dumbfounded. Even Poxiao, the female God of Slaughter accompanying him, was completely captivated by the terrifying combat prowess Xu Yang displayed. Though she was the most gifted female God of Slaughter from Tianzong in ten millennia, witnessing Xu Yang's incredibly potent attack capabilities in that moment made her feel inferior, prompting an involuntary gasp.

“Is this truly the most powerful gifted individual among humans?” she mused. “It’s simply incredible. If I had possessed such cultivation talent as yours back then, I imagine I would have surpassed my current Hedao realm cultivation.”

Poxiao couldn’t help but quip, genuinely awestruck by Xu Yang’s astounding talent and formidable cultivation. Yet, it was undoubtedly the Crab King who suffered the most at that moment. She had never imagined that within the sand-swept forbidden zone of the Endless Desert, Xu Yang could unleash any elemental power he desired with such ease and mastery, pushing each to its absolute limit.

“Who exactly are you?” the Crab King finally blurted out. “I have never heard of anyone like you in the Ancient Martial God Path. It’s truly terrifying; the energy you wield isn’t pure martial arts, and that’s what puzzles me most.”

The Crab King had finally voiced his deepest confusion, but with his level of strength and status, he was hardly in a position to challenge Xu Yang. Xu Yang merely sneered and slowly replied: “Your power doesn’t grant you the right to know my secrets. By now, you should be well aware of your own fate.”

As his words faded, Xu Yang ascended into the air once more. Behind him, the colossal Eternal Sword Radiance, centered around his ice-blue Cold Spring divine artifact, unleashed a massive ice-blue sword beam. This sword beam slowly coalesced under the wide-eyed gaze of all onlookers, and then Xu Yang unhesitatingly locked it onto the Crab King’s colossal form.

“Do you have any final words for this desert?” Xu Yang asked. “Though your strength ranks you among the top five in this desert, before me, you are merely a meal on my plate. Once this sword descends, you will bid your final farewell to this world.”

Xu Yang, at this moment, appeared like an incomparable deity, high above, passing judgment on all. Every command he uttered seemed like an irresistible divine decree, and no one present doubted the truth of his words. Everyone knew well that if Xu Yang decided to pass judgment on the Crab King, the beast possessed absolutely no means of resistance.

Indeed, the Crab King now felt true terror in Xu Yang’s presence. It could even sense the unimaginable consequences should the sword behind Xu Yang actually strike him.

In the very next instant, an immeasurably vast sword beam descended fiercely from the depths of the void. The power of this strike was far from as simple as the world imagined. For within this sword energy, Xu Yang had condensed another element, one entirely opposite to the frosty aura. Indeed, it was the power of the phoenix, inherited from the Phoenix God.

Originally, the Crab King had gritted its teeth, intending to make a final desperate stand with its unparalleled physical defense. However, the moment it truly felt the sword beam strike its body, it realized this was no mere elemental burst of frost power. Deep within the boundless icy aura, an incredibly scorching flame resided. This flame, like a phoenix totem reborn from its ashes, unfurled its magnificent colors in the very core of the eternally frozen environment. In a single instant, the fiery-red light fully blossomed, enveloped by the frigid aura – an ultimate intertwining of ice and fire.