Chapter 656: First Wave Strikes

"Be careful," Isis warned, "if this guy goes mad, no one will be able to stop him. He's too powerful!" An unprecedented agitation and terror appeared on Isis's face. She was, after all, the daughter of the God King, once a figure at the pinnacle of the divine realm. Though she had lost all her former glory, and even her physical body had perished, her honor as the divine empress had never faded. Yet, standing before Chen Xi, she still seemed incredibly vulnerable.

"Lord, which target... should we eliminate?" a subordinate behind him boldly asked. Everyone in Xu Yang's team clearly heard this arrogant remark, yet no one dared to step forward to intervene. Xu Yang, the only one who remained calm, was not in a hurry to act rashly. He needed to fully understand the formidable opponent before him. Otherwise, Xu Yang knew well that for his team, attempting to challenge a top-tier god at their current level would be nothing short of suicide.

Truth be told, without the God-Sealing Edict, Xu Yang's team, with their current configuration, might have stood a chance in battle against them. However, with the God-Sealing Edict in play, the maximum combat power achievable by both sides was separated by an insurmountable gulf, a chasm between heaven and earth that was simply impossible to bridge. Xu Yang clearly understood that, in their current situation, he was the only one in the team who could maintain over 80% of his fighting strength. To protect the others, he absolutely could not be the first to fall.

Chen Xi finally stirred, slowly extending his right hand and rotating a powerful orb of light in his palm, which contained primordial energy. "The shadow cast by this orb will eliminate whoever it lands on," he declared. "If it lands on Xu Yang, it will spin again. The game begins." With his words, Chen Xi gently tossed the unique energy orb into the air. The orb's shadow repeatedly swept across everyone's field of vision. Each rotation caused a slight reduction in its energy until it was fully depleted, marking the ultimate moment of judgment for their fates.

Meanwhile, Xu Yang gently closed his eyes, his face calm, and continued to immerse himself in a state of enlightenment. The others quietly began preparing their defenses. Long Kun's expression was perhaps the most solemn. He had no idea how to defend against the divine attacks from these mysterious powerhouses. Yet, upon seeing Xu Yang's remarkably serene profile, he finally understood why Xu Yang was the irreplaceable leader of their team, while he himself would always be a mere follower.

A person's true strength is not determined solely by their raw power, but more importantly, by an immeasurable depth of inner fortitude. The higher one's mental state, the greater their resilience, and consequently, the stronger their ability to cope with pressure. This is like comparing an ocean to a river. When a storm hits, a river will always surge, churn, or even overflow, whereas the vast ocean, no matter how tempestuous, will eventually find its calm.

Long Kun wasn't precisely in a state of panic, yet the emptiness and unease within him were impossible to conceal or dispel. He simply couldn't fathom why, in the face of such an unparalleled foe, Xu Yang could remain so detached and calmly immerse himself in comprehending the laws of heaven and earth, without a hint of discomposure. Little did he know, Xu Yang's steadfastness stemmed from his clear awareness that he had so many people behind him who needed his protection. He absolutely could not afford to panic!

As the frenzied spinning of the energy orb slowly subsided, the shadow's hovering frequency before everyone gradually slowed down. Apart from Xu Yang and Empress Isis, everyone else, to varying degrees, felt waves of agitation.

With a creaking sound, the shadow finally stopped targeting, and the corresponding slit of shadow settled squarely on the gray-haired elder's head.

"No! Old man..." The team members all looked at the gray-haired elder, their faces filled with complex emotions. They wished to protect him but lacked the power. Yet, the thought of standing by and watching a comrade fall at the feet of these so-called gods ignited a furious and unwilling defiance in every single person present.

Unknown to them, this scene, saturated with the stark colors of judgment, was precisely the most dreadful torment to the spiritual conviction of those observing. There was nothing more despair-inducing than watching a top-tier expert witness their comrade's elimination, utterly powerless to intervene. "Everyone, try your best to remain calm," Isis's soul voice advised the entire group. "This kind of damage, which aims to shatter your spiritual conviction, is the most terrifying. I know this situation is unbearable for anyone, but please look at your leader and try to emulate him. If your heart can be as pure as ice, perhaps you can truly break free from this suffering."

Shi Lingyun was the first to grasp the meaning of Isis's words, slowly closing her eyes and, like Xu Yang, entering a state of enlightenment and inner peace. After all, she was the only one besides Xu Yang who possessed a "Nine-Orifice Exquisite Heart," placing her spiritual realm a level higher than the others, so it was not surprising that she was the first to break free from this spiritual torment. Closely following her, the three mages, including Aipula, also seemed to enter a unique, contemplative state. They all closed their eyes, and a six-pointed star pattern naturally materialized on their foreheads, shielding their souls.

Meanwhile, Long Kun and Ling Yao struggled to maintain their composure, doing their utmost to prevent their mental resilience from collapsing. The shadow above the gray-haired elder's head began to deepen in color, eventually forming a pure, colossal scythe totem behind his body. It seemed to portend an imminent execution of the elder, performed for all to witness.

"Do you have anything else to say to this world, humble ant? You are about to receive the supreme baptism from a god. This is the last chance a god grants you to speak." Chen Xi appeared incredibly solemn and sacred, exuding the full aura of a high-ranking judge.

To everyone's surprise, however, the gray-haired elder slowly uttered his final words. "You four-eyed moron, I'm your grandpa, hehe."Everyone gasped.Chen Xi stared in utter disbelief.

"You... die!" The pleasant expression on Chen Xi's face abruptly vanished. Such a blatant provocation, challenging divine majesty, could not be forgiven. At that moment, the light of judgment crashed down. The massive shadow transformed into a golden divine greatblade, simultaneously obliterating the gray-haired elder's soul and physical body."How could anyone withstand such immense power?" someone whispered. "Is he really... is it over for him?"