Chapter 466: Life and Death Remain a Mystery

Even the Black Dragon couldn't help but sigh with emotion, while the White Dragon and Abyssal Demonic Dragon also seemed affected by the crimson dragon light.

Undoubtedly, this strike not only concentrated Dragon Elder Five's current most formidable power but also served as the perfect testament to his Underworld bloodline.

The end of twilight, the beginning of night, would be ushered in by this crimson dragon light!

This was the only time since Xu Yang emerged from seclusion that he truly felt helpless and utterly out of options in a confrontation.

He had exhausted all his strength, creating one wartime legend after another, but unfortunately, he still found it difficult to withstand this mountainous pressure.

Of course, at this moment, he could have decisively abandoned any of his inheritances, such as Barren Sky Limitless or the Nine-Colored Cosmic Bell, permanently losing them and shattering the divine artifacts, to save his life or even retreat completely, escaping into the boundless aura of Jingyun Valley.

However, the only thing Xu Yang did was forcibly suppress and seal their auras, making them retreat deep within his body at this critical moment. He used the master-servant system of bloodline inheritances to compel the two divine artifacts into a deep slumber, preventing them from sacrificing themselves to protect him.

“I told you,” Xu Yang's voice echoed, “I, Xu Yang, have the ability to protect everything around me! Even if you are no longer living entities, as long as you possess souls, I will never abandon you.”

Xu Yang's voice resonated through every fiber of his being, and it was this profound emotion that caused the Nine-Colored Cosmic Bell to erupt with an unparalleled, sacred soul light.

In a trance, it seemed as if the artifact had returned to its former peak, with all its latent potential erupting forth in that sigh of its soul.

Naturally, this light was not a harbinger of its self-destruction; rather, it signified its breaking free from the shackles of its injured seven-colored light, activating the eighth ray—a light of true resurgence!

In that instant, a dazzling, pure silver light engulfed Xu Yang's entire body.

Indeed, white signifies the ultimate power in the mortal realm. Going one step further, to colorless, represents true divine power.

The current resurgence of the Nine-Colored Cosmic Bell, awakening its eighth color—the white bell soul—meant it was now just one step away from its former divine peak.

This world-shaking resurgence, however, had erupted because it was swayed and deeply moved by Xu Yang.

Yet, this was not all. As the bell soul achieved its breakthrough, Xu Yang's potent spiritual encouragement and the sheer conqueror's might of his soul also moved Barren Sky Limitless, along with other divine artifacts like the Asura Sword and the King's Sword. Every inheritance within Xu Yang underwent a transformative elevation, spurred by his profound sentiment of embracing everything amidst life and death.

“Hahaha! A dying struggle, is it? Useless! Boy, even if a god were to descend today, they couldn't save you!”

“Oh? And what if, instead, someone from the netherworld were to descend, what then... would you do?”

Suddenly, at that very moment, such a voice emanated from within Xu Yang.

Not only were the four dragon souls before him utterly stunned, but Xu Yang himself was also completely bewildered.

“Where did that voice come from?”

In the next moment, three indistinct silhouettes materialized out of thin air before Xu Yang. Shrouded by the crimson dragon light, their specific forms were indiscernible; only their bodies, radiating a dense aura of ancient warrior statues, could be seen as they stood in front of Xu Yang.

“Master, leave this resistance to us. Please withdraw first; we will follow shortly.”

The voice was eerily calm, devoid of the slightest emotional fluctuation.

Xu Yang still hesitated, but the Cosmic Bell, having awakened its eighth silver soul, telekinetically transported him thousands of meters away. When he regained his senses, Xu Yang found himself standing before the colorful light array of Jingyun Valley.

He turned around to gaze at the horizon, but the entire sky was nothing but a blur of red; he couldn't discern anything clearly...

“What the hell just happened? Were those ancient warrior statues sleeping inside me? But I know their strength well; they couldn't possibly possess such might. What exactly is going on?”

Xu Yang immediately questioned the several soul presences within his body.

Since Taotie had departed, the Bell Soul and the King's Sword's Sword Soul had become the two closest inherited soul presences to Xu Yang. At this moment, it was likely only they who truly knew what had just transpired.

“Haha, to be honest, I don't know what other miracles are hidden within your sea of consciousness,” the Bell Soul chuckled. “Your sea of consciousness was originally an independent space created by the Taiji Dao laws you pioneered, supported and protected by the power of those laws. It's not something we can arbitrarily observe.”

The Bell Soul offered a helpless tease, yet it was clear from its tone that it was immensely relieved to have narrowly escaped.

“You will likely have to ask yourself for that answer. However, it does appear that those three souls which just spoke were quite unsettling…”

Xu Yang shook his head helplessly. After attempting to guide a soul presence into his sea of consciousness but receiving no feedback, he merely sighed in resignation, abandoning that approach and thought. He then turned and entered the dazzling barrier of Jingyun Valley.

Unbeknownst to him, at that very moment, as Xu Yang's aura temporarily vanished, the all-consuming destructive power unleashed by Dragon Elder Five in the center of the Northern Frontier battlefield was completely dissolved out of thin air.

Naturally, it wasn't dissolved into thin air. The loud explosion just moments ago made it clear that whatever had blocked that power was also utterly shattered, leaving no trace behind.

Even so, to silently withstand the mightiest strike of an Underworld Dragon was certainly no ordinary feat.

Abyssal Demonic Dragon: “Where is he? Was he killed by Elder Five?”

White Dragon: “His aura has vanished… nothing remains.”

Black Dragon: “Something is wrong. Xu Yang shouldn't be dead; in fact, he might have escaped.”

As for Dragon Elder Five himself, he first looked around in bewilderment, then a profound sense of loss welled up within him.

“Ah Jiu, I have avenged you and Elder Eight,” he murmured, “but for some reason, my heart feels utterly empty. For all these years, among the nine of us, only I possessed the ability to leave the continent and return to the Upper Realm at any time, yet I never departed. Instead, I remained here, searching for your whereabouts. Now that I have avenged you, I feel as if I've lost the purpose of staying. Ah Jiu, can you tell me, where should I go from here…?”

Dragon Elder Five, a being of profound emotions, transformed back into his human form. Suddenly, he became a streak of light, vanishing into the sky and disappearing from above the Northern Frontier.

With his departure, the immensely powerful pressure that had hung over the Northern Frontier seemed to suddenly diminish by more than half.

Notably, the three Black Dragon brothers did not depart immediately.

“Second Brother… Elder Five, he…?” The Abyssal Demonic Dragon glanced at the Black Dragon with an awkward expression.

“Don't mind him,” the Black Dragon interjected. “Don't forget our true purpose for being here! Regardless of whether Xu Yang is dead or alive, the most crucial task is still to deal with that Phoenix!”

The White Dragon also nodded gravely. “Big Brother is right,” he affirmed. “The Phoenix is our true target. We absolutely cannot allow him to live!”