The crowd’s excitement surged as the two fighters announced their intention to reveal their trump cards.
What they thought was nearing its end was merely the beginning!
Hou Jingchen felt a surge of exhilaration, while Yan Shouyi harbored his own subtle plans.
Today marked the day he would unite the folk sects. His battle against Hou Jingchen was crucial for establishing his prestige and image. He had to win, and win brilliantly!
Though it might seem disrespectful to Hou Jingchen, Yan Shouyi knew he had to act this way to solidify his position.
At worst, he could always acknowledge Hou Jingchen as a foster father afterward…
“Come!”
Hou Jingchen roared with laughter and opened all the pockets on his person.
What these pockets held were not treasures, but wisps of souls.
The souls were dense and numerous, obscuring the sky and forming a massive dark cloud above, their wails echoing across the heavens and earth.
Yan Shouyi estimated there were tens of thousands of souls.
Furthermore, these were not ordinary malevolent spirits, but… heroic souls!
They were all warriors who had fallen on the battlefield, neither reincarnated in the underworld nor returned to their homes.
How could Hou Jingchen summon so many heroic souls? Had he forcibly enslaved them!?
Yan Shouyi’s heart sank, believing Hou Jingchen to be a hypocrite. However, he soon realized his mistake.
The assembled heroic souls did not seem to be in pain. Instead, they appeared as veterans returning to battle, filled with excitement.
Even more astonishingly, all the heroic souls cried out in unison, “Greetings, General Hou!”
They… were willing to remain by Hou Jingchen’s side, ready to fight and die for him again, all out of admiration for his character!
Yan Shouyi understood. Hou Jingchen had been a general in his previous life, and these heroic souls were the soldiers who had fought alongside him. Even though Hou Jingchen had reincarnated, these souls remained loyal, following him through his rebirth.
This was Hou Jingchen’s ultimate trump card!
Hou Jingchen took out a flask of wine from his pocket, took a swig, and then tossed the remaining wine into the air.
He declared with great authority, “My brothers, lend me your strength once more today to test the mettle of a junior! Remember, we strike only to the point of stopping!”
The heroic souls laughed heartily, “Oh? What kind of outstanding junior has made General Hou summon all of us? How interesting!”
With that, the heroic souls in the sky descended rapidly, forming a spectral image of a general behind Hou Jingchen!
It was precisely Hou Jingchen’s appearance from his past life!
“The power of tens of thousands of heroic souls… this must surely surpass the mortal realm…”
The audience stared in astonishment. Hou Jingchen’s might was far beyond their imagination.
If they were to compare anyone to Hou Jingchen, the only figure they could think of was the late Heavenly Master Zhang Yin.
However, a minority knew that if Yan Chou were to make a move, defeating Hou Jingchen would be child’s play.
As for Yan Shouyi…
Yan Shouyi gazed at the colossal spectral image of the general, his eyes filled not with any hint of retreat, but with unyielding fighting spirit.
Hou Jingchen was very much like him, just older and younger respectively.
If they had known each other in their past lives and belonged to the same faction, they surely would have been close friends despite their age difference.
Since Hou Jingchen had revealed his trump card, Yan Shouyi saw no reason to hold back.
With a gentle flick of his cloak, a terrifying aura erupted from within him!
Without any ostentatious display, the overwhelming aura directly formed a spectral image of General Qing Jiang behind him!
Equally magnificent and imposing!!
“Holy crap, President Yan has one too!”
“So powerful, truly the man I have my eye on!”
“I thought President Yan would lose to Hou Jingchen, but now it’s hard to say who will win!”
“Are you out of your mind? Of course, President Yan will win!”
The crowd erupted in a frenzy, and the barrage of comments caused the live stream to stutter.
Both Yan Shouyi and Hou Jingchen had displayed power that transcended the mortal realm!
This battle had become a clash between gods!
At this moment, Hou Jingchen’s expression was a picture of complex emotion.
He had gathered tens of thousands of heroic souls to form his spectral image, believing he could crush Yan Shouyi.
Yet, he had not expected Yan Shouyi to possess a similar trump card. What was more terrifying was that Yan Shouyi wasn’t borrowing the power of heroic souls like him; that formidable aura was his own power!
Such terrifying killing intent, condensed from this immense aura, was something even tens of thousands of heroic souls combined could not resist!!
This was the true God of Slaughter!
Even if the King of Hell himself crawled out of the underworld, he wouldn’t be any different!
In that instant, Hou Jingchen felt a flicker of hesitation.
But this trace of doubt was quickly suppressed by Hou Jingchen. As a commanding general, how could he possibly retreat?
He had to press on, even if it meant facing the worst!
With gritted teeth, Hou Jingchen urged his thousand-li warhorse, roaring and charging towards Yan Shouyi.
The spectral image of the general behind him also advanced.
But this time, Yan Shouyi remained in place.
He watched silently as Hou Jingchen charged at him.
He was brewing.
Brewing killing intent!
“Why isn’t President Yan moving?” The audience could no longer sit still, rising to their feet in unison, craning their necks to watch.
They didn’t dare to blink, fearing they might miss a crucial moment.
“Yan Shouyi, take this!!”
Hou Jingchen finally reached Yan Shouyi!
At this critical moment, the killing intent in Yan Shouyi’s eyes finally reached its peak!
He raised the Ancestral Dragon Sword, pointing it towards the heavens.
“Heaven and earth, bear witness to my sword’s heart!”
The Ancestral Dragon Sword was engulfed by the fierce aura, transforming into a colossal sword dozens of meters long. It pierced the heavens and descended from above!
The spectral image behind Yan Shouyi caught the giant sword and swung it fiercely towards Hou Jingchen!
Hou Jingchen’s pupils constricted.
In this single strike, he saw ancient battlefields from a thousand years ago, witnessing scenes of carnage and bloodshed thousands of times more brutal than in his own past life!
Yan Shouyi’s past life was far more ferocious than his own!
At this moment, his resolve shattered. The heroic souls lost their anchor. The spectral image behind Hou Jingchen suddenly dissipated, and the souls retreated into the horse lantern!
Hou Jingchen’s legs buckled, and he fell from his warhorse, rolling several times on the ground!
Yet, the spectral image of the giant sword in the sky had not stopped!
“This is bad!”
Wei Changqing, watching from the side, abruptly stood up, his face pale. “Could Shouyi be unable to control the power of his aura and stop the sword?!”
If he were to accidentally kill Hou Jingchen at this moment, it would be counterproductive, ruining a perfectly good situation!
But the dog-like Taoist and the tranquil Monk Miao Ji remained composed.
They smiled and said, “Kang Jinlong, do you think this is Shouyi’s limit? Hmph, this brat hasn’t even unleashed half of his strength!”
“Amitabha!” Miao Ji joined his palms. “If you had witnessed the battle between Shouyi and the Grand Tutor at Changbai Mountain, you wouldn’t be so flustered.”
Wei Changqing rubbed his nose.
Had he been mocked by these two old rascals?
However, according to them, Shouyi’s strength had indeed progressed to a terrifying level…
Wei Changqing wasn’t angry; instead, he felt genuinely happy.
He turned his gaze back to the spectral image of the giant sword cleaving through the sky.
Just as the colossal sword was about to strike Hou Jingchen, it suddenly dissolved into smoke and dissipated.
Hou Jingchen sat on the ground, unharmed.
However, his eyes were vacant, unable to recover from the shock. He stared blankly at Yan Shouyi, speechless for a long time.