"Ugh~! Ah!~"
Ares let out a muffled scream of immense pain as his hands and arms were sliced bloody by the劫火 (jie huo - tribulation fire)...
"The Main God... Ares, one of the Twelve Main Gods, is... is screaming..."
Shen Potian, who witnessed this scene not far away, murmured in disbelief.
Bing, rushing over after sensing the commotion, froze in place upon seeing this...
Qiao Ying, with tear streaks on her face, was ecstatic.
Yue Yan, however, breathed a heavy sigh of relief. Just moments ago, she had been prepared to disregard everything and prioritize Ye Feng...
...
Meanwhile, on Ye Feng's side,
"The so-called divine power of the gods is nothing but the spiritual energy of the turbulent flow in the universe! It's not even comparable to the first tribulation of a cultivator's Three Tribulations, the劫火 (jie huo), let alone the厄水 (e shui - calamity water) of the second tribulation, or the神雷 (shen lei - divine thunder) of the third tribulation..."
At this moment, the old man's voice sounded again in his mind.
As the words fell, Ye Feng slowly lifted his leg and stepped forward, his body instantly piercing through the spatial barrier that Ares had condensed in an attempt to block Ye Feng, and arriving before Ares.
Into Ares's wide, astonished, resentful, and undeniably fearful eyes, Ye Feng slowly raised his fist and struck.
Ares instinctively tightened his grip on the War Spear he had just forced himself to hold, and parried.
"Clang!"
"Clatter~!"
"Whoosh~ Whoosh~ Huu!~"
"Sizzle~ Sizzle!"
After a dull metallic impact, came a sound like shattering glass, accompanied by the roar of flames and the sound of cutting. Ye Feng's fist had instantly shattered Ares's condensed spatial barrier.
The劫火 (jie huo) shot out, leaving Ares with gaping, charred wounds all over his body...
"Urgh, ah! Ah!"
Ares screamed again, but this time, gritting his teeth, he tossed the War Spear upward and rapidly formed an imprint with his hands.
"Divine Judgment War Prison!"
Ares roared, and a cage formed by a bizarre red-gray light instantly appeared around Ye Feng.
Immediately, a large number of sharp weapons condensed from the bizarre red-gray divine power pierced towards Ye Feng from all directions.
Ye Feng did not dodge or evade, nor did he show any panic on his face. He raised his hand and waved it gently. Golden flames sliced through, instantly severing Ares's condensed Divine Judgment War Prison.
"Whoosh~ Huu~ Whoosh!"
The golden劫火 (jie huo) flashed rapidly, and in the blink of an eye, Ares's Divine Judgment War Prison shattered and dissipated.
"Buzz!"
At this moment, Ares hurled several red-gray divine power spikes towards Ye Feng again from his hand, while his body rapidly merged into the void.
The next instant, Ares appeared behind Bing. He reached out and grabbed at Bing, who was staring in shock, unable to react.
The space behind Ares was torn and twisted, and had not yet recovered, as if he intended to snatch Bing away...
"Bad guy, don't hurt big sister!"
Suddenly, a young girl's voice, filled with clear anger, rang out, and a stone flew rapidly towards the back of Ares's head.
Ares, perhaps out of fear or something else, his hand reaching for Bing suddenly paused. The stone thrown by the girl hit the back of his head squarely...
"Buzz!"
At this moment, Ye Feng's figure arrived before Ares.
Ares's expression changed drastically. He swung the War Spear in his hand, unleashing a dense barrage of red-gray blades, but their target was not Ye Feng, but Xiao Xiao, Qiao Ying, Yue Yan, and Shen Potian in the distance.
Seeing this, Ye Feng's figure flashed, blocking all those red-gray divine power blades...
"Boom~ Huu~ Chirp chirp~"
"Crack~ Whoosh~ Whoosh!"
"Bang bang!"
Just as Ye Feng finished dealing with the red-gray divine power blades aimed at Xiao Xiao and the others, the ground ahead suddenly shook violently, accompanied by a multitude of piercing shrieks. A large number of figures condensed from red-gray divine power, wielding various weapons, charged towards Ye Feng and the others...
Ye Feng frowned slightly and met them, with Xiao Xiao, Qiao Ying, Bing, Yue Yan, and Shen Potian following closely behind.
"Whoosh~ Sizzle!"
"Clang! Clang clang!"
"Bang!~ Whoosh!"
After a series of intense combat sounds, all the red-gray divine power figures created by Ares were defeated by Ye Feng and his companions.
At this moment, Ares's figure had already merged into the distant space, leaving only a very, very small crack...
Ye Feng took a step forward but suddenly stopped.
Almost simultaneously, the last remaining sliver of the rift torn by Ares's departure vanished...
"Don't chase..."
Qiao Ying, Yue Yan, and the others were about to pursue when Ye Feng called out to them. His voice was hoarse, carrying a clear sense of exhaustion and weakness.
"Big brother!"
"Ye Feng!"
Xiao Xiao and the others immediately stopped, turned, and ran towards Ye Feng.
Soon, Xiao Xiao, Qiao Ying, Bing, and Yue Yan all arrived beside Ye Feng, looking at him with concern and questioning eyes. Shen Potian had been knocked into the ground by Ares and was struggling to break free.
"Just now... it wasn't my strength..."
After saying this, Ye Feng's body went limp and he collapsed to the ground.
"Big brother!"
Xiao Xiao reacted the fastest, supporting Ye Feng in her arms.
"This..."
Looking at Ye Feng in Xiao Xiao's embrace, Qiao Ying, Yue Yan, and Bing all changed their expressions.
Because Ye Feng's body was visibly wasting away at a speed that could be seen with the naked eye... his skin became dry and shriveled... and finally, his hair began to turn white...
"Big brother!"
Xiao Xiao cried out in alarm, her pretty face filled with anxiety. White light appeared on her body and then surged madly towards Ye Feng...
"Xiao Xiao... you..."
Qiao Ying knew that Xiao Xiao was using her unique method to share her life force with Ye Feng, thereby achieving the effect of "healing" him...
This would greatly harm Xiao Xiao's body, and even put her life at risk... but at this moment, Qiao Ying could no longer concern herself with that...
As the white light from Xiao Xiao's body rapidly flowed into Ye Feng's, the rapid, almost frenzied aging and withering of Ye Feng's entire body finally stopped...
Meanwhile, Xiao Xiao's forehead was covered in cold sweat, her face was pale, her body trembled slightly, and she began to feel dizzy, but she gritted her teeth and persisted...
"Stop... stop..."
Ye Feng, lying on the ground, opened his eyes and said to Xiao Xiao in a hoarse voice.
Xiao Xiao did not speak, but smiled sweetly, shook her head slightly, and continued to share her life force with Ye Feng...
"Pat!"
Suddenly, Ye Feng, with an unknown surge of strength, raised his withered, tree-like hand and grabbed Xiao Xiao's arm.
"Big... Big brother..."
Xiao Xiao's arm was pinched painfully by Ye Feng. She hesitated, and the white light from her body weakened considerably, as Ye Feng glared at her with an incredibly stern gaze...
"Stop!"
After Ye Feng let out another hoarse sound from his throat, he fainted.
"Xiao Xiao!"
Just as Xiao Xiao was about to continue "treating" Ye Feng, Qiao Ying reached out and grabbed her hand.
...