Chapter 8: A Devastating Defeat (Part 2)

At this point, Guo Shier didn’t even have the energy to worry about how much of his spirit he had lost—his life was on the line, so where could he afford to care about such things? Three shockwaves struck the man, causing him to tremble violently. Li Ran and Qi Wu Zhen were overjoyed and launched their attacks simultaneously. Li Ran didn’t even have time to use his most powerful skill; he simply swung his sword downward.
Qi Wu Zhen raised her hands, and two fire dragons flew out. At first, the fire dragons were completely blue, but after flying about a hundred meters, they turned deep purple and rushed at the man with a howling sound.
Although the man was held suspended in midair by the soul shockwaves from the Soul Stabilizing Cauldron, he was incredibly strong and managed to withstand the attacks from Li Ran and Qi Wu Zhen.
When Li Ran swung his sword, he was surprised to find that it slipped away, striking several meters away from the man’s body and creating a huge crack over a kilometer long in the ground. Qi Wu Zhen’s two fire dragons circled the man, burning fiercely, but they couldn’t get within a meter of him. Yet, due to the extreme heat from the dragons, the man’s hair curled rapidly, and large drops of sweat streamed down his face.
Qi Wu Zhen cursed, “What the hell is this?” She suddenly shouted, “Explose!” The two fire dragons burst into flames and blasted the man thousands of meters away.
A few sparks landed on the man’s body, instantly setting him ablaze. Qi Wu Zhen exclaimed in delight, “It worked!”
Guo Shier urgently cried, “Form a formation!”
Li Ran also said, “Hurry, form a formation! That man isn’t done yet!”
At that moment, Ku Mu and Monier rushed over as well, both looking grim. The man was too strong—his power was beyond comprehension. They were all top-tier fighters, but after fighting against him, they not only suffered crushing defeats but also lost two of their members. It was simply unbelievable.
The five of them quickly formed a Five-Star Formation, with two purple chains extending from each person, connecting them together. They chanted spells simultaneously, rapidly completing the formation. This Five-Star Formation was stronger than the one they had created with seven people at first—it was designed for combat, not just travel.
The man was blown thousands of meters away, but this also woke him up. The soul shockwaves couldn’t hurt him, but they could disrupt his soul. With a roar, he immediately moved forward, holding a green gemstone pagoda-like object in his hand.
Li Ran’s pupils narrowed as he said, “Be careful! That thing is monstrous!”
The man casually threw the pagoda and shouted, “Stabilize!”

Guo Shieru unyieldingly pointed at the Soul Suppressing Cauldron and shouted, “Suppress!” The treasures in both of their hands were of a suppressing nature; though different in form, their functions were strikingly similar.
Boom!
The pagoda and the Soul Suppressing Cauldron collided violently, sending shockwaves spreading rapidly, causing large sections of buildings on the ground to collapse. No matter how powerful that man was, he couldn’t withstand those shockwaves and kept retreating.
Guo Shieru couldn’t help but spit out blood. Those shockwaves also harmed Li Ran and the others. Despite having formed a five-star formation with exceptional defensive capabilities, they were still injured.
The man pointed at the pagoda with his hand, causing it to suddenly grow larger, reaching a height of a thousand meters in an instant. Guo Shieru still refused to give up. He roared angrily, “Grow!” As he cast a spell, the Soul Suppressing Cauldron also grew rapidly, soon reaching over a thousand meters in height and appearing even more massive.
Guo Shieru laughed maniacally, “You bastard… Come on again! Fuck you! I’ll smash you!”
Seizing this opportunity, Li Ran, Qi Wuzhen, Kuumu, and Monier attacked the man simultaneously. Their various strange and exotic spells left him in disarray. From initially attacking with ease to now being in a desperate situation, he never expected the remaining five to be so tough, especially Guo Shieru’s Soul Suppressing Cauldron, which posed the greatest threat to him.
Li Ran and the others were also surprised by how effective the Soul Suppressing Cauldron was. In fact, its effectiveness was limited in the world of spells because it was inhabited by professionals who dealt with souls, many of whom had methods to defend against it. But in the greater world, people’s souls were weaker. Even though that man was extraordinary, his soul wasn’t refined or pure enough, giving Guo Shieru an advantage.
But that was about it. Everyone tried various attacks but found it difficult to harm the opponent. The man’s fighting style was extremely peculiar; any attack struggled to get close to him, even if it cost a great deal of spiritual energy. Only by using Guo Shieru’s Soul Suppressing Cauldron to intimidate him could their attacks reach him.
Gradually, despair appeared in everyone’s eyes. If they couldn’t defeat him, it meant they couldn’t harm him, and once he recovered, it would be their turn to suffer. Everyone understood this well.
The continuous collisions between the Soul Suppressing Cauldron and the pagoda dealt a heavy blow to the city below, with buildings collapsing in large numbers. The ground was littered with traces left by the battles.

Among Li Ran and the others, Qi Wu Zhen felt the most powerless. Her flames, whether used in solo combat or group fights, were her best weapon, but they failed completely against that man. Even though she had burned him just now, he only seemed slightly distressed, with no signs of injury at all, which infuriated her greatly.

Ku Mu and Monier gradually found it harder to cope. Although the man’s attacks were distributed evenly among the five of them, their strengths still differed, causing them to expend more and more spiritual energy and altar power, leaving their expressions increasingly grim.

Guo Shier was anxious and asked, “What should we do?”

Li Ran was also confused. He hadn’t expected the main soul to be so powerful. Gritting his teeth, he said, “I’ll hold him off while you all escape!”

Guo Shier shook his head. “That’s impossible!”

Qi Wu Zhen added, “Stay together!”

Li Ran, now desperate, said, “This is my problem!”

Guo Shier cursed, “Damn it, this is everyone’s problem! I can’t and won’t abandon you!”

Li Ran asked, “Damn it, why?”

Guo Shier roared, “If he swallows your soul, we’ll all be dead no matter where we run! Don’t you get it?”

Li Ran suddenly understood. They had become one entity. If that man consumed Li Ran’s soul, he would also know all their secrets, everything Li Ran knew, and gain access to his skills. Killing Guo Shier and the others would be effortless for him.

Qi Wu Zhen said, “We won’t stop until he dies!”

Indeed, it was a fight to the death. If Li Ran was consumed by that man, even if Guo Shier and the others managed to reincarnate, they wouldn’t be able to escape his pursuit. Since Li Ran knew their soul fluctuations, the man could track them down by those fluctuations, and by then, no one would be able to resist him.

The man gradually became accustomed to the suppression of the Soul Stabilizing Cauldron. What once kept him immobilized for a few seconds now only lasted for a moment before he could move freely again. Li Ran gritted his teeth and said, “I’ll use… Boundary Breaker against him. Damn it, I refuse to believe I can’t kill him!”

Guo Shier said, “Okay, I’ll keep him pinned down! After one more soul suppression, I think he’ll adapt! This is our last chance!”

Li Ran said solemnly, “Keep attacking. Shier, get ready! When I say go… release the shock wave!”

Everyone agreed. Qi Wu Zhen, Ku Mu, and Monier launched fierce attacks, with the Five-Star Formation spinning rapidly around the man, producing thunderous booms that shook the heavens.

Although the man was in a somewhat awkward situation, he could still cope. In just a few dozen seconds, Li Ran shouted, “Guo Shier, strike!” Guo Shier slammed his head violently against the Soul Calming Cauldron, causing it to shake violently. He roared, “Soul Kill!” Even Li Ran and the others felt dizzy. Just that one strike cost Guo Shier thousands of his vital souls; this time, he risked everything by using his last reserves. The mouth of the Soul Calming Cauldron was aimed at the man, and a massive wave of energy was emitted. Caught off guard, the man’s entire body glowed with dazzling golden light, and his defenses collapsed instantly. The power of Soul Kill was immense; the man could no longer withstand it and spat out a mouthful of blood. At that exact moment, Li Ran unleashed Break Boundary. With a thunderous crash, Break Boundary struck immediately. It was like thunder splitting the sky, with a deafening noise that shook the earth. Li Ran rapidly chanted spells, shouting repeatedly, “Explosion! Explosion! Explosion…” Despite the man’s extremely strong defenses, they couldn’t withstand the power of Break Boundary. This technique was meant to break through the barriers of small worlds, and its power was unimaginably huge. Especially since Li Ran was going all out, continuously detonating small secret realms within Break Boundary. He was willing to risk everything, using this extremely precious sacrificial artifact as a bomb. He didn’t even expect to kill the opponent; he only hoped to severely injure him. Guo Shier and the others watched anxiously. This was their most powerful attack; if they failed again, they would lose all hope of winning. This strike was truly devastating. The city below was instantly destroyed by the explosion of Break Boundary, with an area of thousands of kilometers nearly ruined, and space itself became unstable, forming large spatial cracks. This strike indeed severely injured the man. He could never have imagined that Li Ran, when pushed to his limits, could be so extreme. He rushed up from hundreds of meters underground, covered in blood. This strike drove him completely mad. In the blink of an eye, he appeared 100 meters outside the Five-Star Formation, sneering, “Good, very good! All of you die!” He pressed his hands downward violently, and countless silver lights flashed. In horror, Li Ran and the others quickly activated their altars, unleashing all their defenses. They hadn’t expected the opponent to attack so quickly, seemingly unharmed. In an instant, Li Ran’s heart turned icy. An extreme sense of unwillingness flashed through his mind—he had reached such a high level, yet he still couldn’t defeat the main soul.

The man’s full-force strike was too much even for five people working together to withstand; with a loud crash, all five were flung aside. Immediately afterward, the man rushed wildly at Guo Shier. It wasn’t Li Ran he hated the most, but Guo Shier. If it weren’t for Guo Shier’s Soul-Stabilizing Cauldron, he wouldn’t have cared about these people at all.
Guo Shier remained calm; at that moment, he was utterly composed. The Jie Baina Pearl Sacrificial Treasure suddenly swelled, and countless fine threads extended rapidly to form a colorful net that immediately covered the man.