Clang!
The sound of weapons clashing echoed. The skull dagger blocked the long saber, but it was far from over.
Ye Cangtian instantly changed his move. The skull dagger transformed into a black light, thrusting towards the opponent's chest.
On the other side, facing Ye Cangtian's attack, the broken saber showed no panic.
A strange smile flickered across his face. With a flick of his large hand, the broken saber suddenly shattered, turning into a short blade.
Thwack!
Ye Cangtian's dagger fiercely pierced the broken saber's clothes, but the broken saber himself vanished before his eyes.
It was the ninjutsu, the Substitution Technique.
Ah! .oΓg
At this very instant, not far behind, Mandara let out a scream.
Unbeknownst to anyone, the broken saber had bypassed Ye Cangtian's body and appeared in front of Mandara, raising his large saber to strike.
Mandara was a traitor to the Heaven's Bane Tower, and the broken saber would never let him live.
"You think such a low-level Substitution Technique can fool me?"
A cruel smile spread across the broken saber's face. He thought everything was under control, but unexpectedly, he suddenly heard Poxiao's voice again.
The next moment, his vision blurred as Poxiao's figure appeared, blocking Mandara.
What!
Why was he so fast!
The broken saber was filled with terror. He had clashed with Earth-level powerhouses before, but their speed was absolutely no match for Ye Cangtian's current speed.
Speed was directly proportional to strength. Looking at it this way, Poxiao was the most formidable expert he had ever encountered.
Bang!
On the other side, Ye Cangtian gave the broken saber no chance. With a punch that slammed into the broken saber's chest, he instantly neutralized the opponent's attack and sent him flying.
Gush!
The broken saber spat out a mouthful of blood, his internal organs burning with pain.
"Japanese Ninjutsu? Hmph!"
"In the face of an absolute disparity in strength, Japanese Ninjutsu is utter trash!"
Ye Cangtian said dismissively. Although the broken saber had one foot in the Earth level and possessed some tricks, he was still no match for him!
"Poxiao, don't think you've won!"
Hearing Poxiao's words, the broken saber roared, gritted his teeth, and sprang up.
In the next moment, his aura surged, and the short blade in his hand emitted a faint glow.
He had spent decades navigating the ruins and had naturally acquired some ancient techniques.
He was currently employing such a technique, which was extremely overbearing, capable of boosting strength in a short period, but at the cost of vital energy!
"Drinking Poison to Quench Thirst!"
Seeing the broken saber's face grow older and his sparse black hair turn white, Ye Cangtian understood that the increase in his strength came at the expense of his life force.
In that case, how long could he last!
"Poxiao, come and taste my strongest move, Soul Sever!"
The broken saber roared, and the sky seemed to darken, with faint sounds of ghostly wails and howling. At the same time, a short blade descended!
Hmph!
Ye Cangtian snorted coldly. The skull dagger in his hand instantly transformed into a golden great ring saber, and with a single, heaven-shattering strike, he met the attack head-on.
Boom!
An explosive roar erupted. The broken saber, like a kite with a broken string, was sent flying backward, crashing to the ground in a sorry state, unable to stand.
"Impossible! You only just advanced to the Earth level, how can you be so powerful!"
The broken saber roared in fury.
Through secret techniques, his strength was almost equal to the Earth level, even if he hadn't quite reached it.
Coupled with the might of the Soul Sever Saber Technique, it should have been no problem to contend with an ordinary Earth-level powerhouse.
Yet, the other party, having just reached the Earth level, could crush him in a direct confrontation. This was something he absolutely could not accept.
"This is the gap. You underestimated Earth-level powerhouses too much!"
Ye Cangtian smiled slightly, offering no further explanation.
On the other side, seeing the broken saber defeated by Ye Cangtian, the other members of the Heaven's Bane Tower scattered instantly.
It was no joke; with Poxiao present, even the broken saber was no match. Staying would only mean certain death!
Ye Cangtian paid them no mind; they were just insignificant underlings, and it was fine if they ran.
He believed that after today's events, most of these underlings would not dare return to the Heaven's Bane Tower.
After all, in their eyes, the Heaven's Bane Tower was now linked with Japan, and the Dark Association would soon launch retaliatory actions.
Returning to the Heaven's Bane Tower would be tantamount to seeking death!
...
Heaven's Bane Tower.
Tian Can sat in the main hall, his heart filled with unease. It had been a day and a night since the broken saber had left.
Given such a long time, he should have caught up with the escort team and successfully eliminated Xuan San Qi.
Yet, until now, he had received no news, which inevitably led to his wild speculations.
Report!
Just then, a report came.
What appeared before him was a guard covered in mud, in a state of utter disarray.
He rushed frantically to Tian Can and said, "Lord Tower Master, it's bad news! We fell into Poxiao's trap. Lord Broken Saber was severely injured and captured by Poxiao..."
Seeing the guard's demeanor, Tian Can had already prepared himself for bad news, but upon hearing it, he swayed, nearly collapsing.
The broken saber was undoubtedly his right-hand man. Without the broken saber's full assistance, the Heaven's Bane Tower would never have developed to its current state.
And now, with the broken saber falling into Poxiao's hands, even if he had the will to rescue him, it wouldn't be a simple matter!
After all, having just been outmaneuvered by Poxiao once, who knew if Poxiao would use the broken saber to set another trap!
"Why are you the only one back? Where are the others?"
With that thought, Tian Can's gaze fell upon the guard as he inquired.
"Reporting to Lord Tower Master, a few brothers returned with me. They are currently being bandaged. As for the rest, some were killed by the Dark Association, and some scattered to flee!"
Hearing the guard's reply, Tian Can felt another wave of dizziness.
To complete the mission of eliminating Xuan San Qi, those who went with the broken saber this time were all the elites of the Heaven's Bane Tower.
Now, with only a few of these elites returning, it was a devastating blow to the Heaven's Bane Tower. It could be said that years of effort were instantly halved.
"Lord Tower Master, let's flee! We are no match for the Dark Association!"
Seeing that Tian Can remained silent, the guard mustered his courage and advised.
The Heaven's Bane Tower had now been exposed, and the Dark Association was bound to come and clear them out. At that time, the Heaven's Bane Tower would be unable to resist.
Therefore, for now, before the Dark Association took action, retreating was the most important thing...
Swish!
A dagger precisely pierced the guard's chest.
Tian Can glanced at the guard who was slowly falling, and said grimly, "What right do you have to influence my decisions!"
With his right and left hands, the broken saber and Xuan San Qi, successively falling into Poxiao's hands, how could he swallow this insult!
Furthermore, where could he flee?
There were indeed many forces in the entire Dark Ruins that opposed the Dark Association, but the ultimate fate of those forces was to be crushed by the Dark Association.
Even those who were not crushed were merely like farmed piglets, waiting to grow up, only to inevitably fall to the Dark Association's cleaver.
In the ruins, the Dark Association was too powerful. Even the combined forces of the Guangming Hall and the Yinzu were no match for the Dark Association.
As strong allies fell one after another, Tian Can's mindset underwent a subtle shift.
Originally, he believed that as long as they remained hidden, the Heaven's Bane Tower would eventually grow and one day rival, or even overthrow, the Dark Association.
But the successive blows had completely shattered Tian Can's confidence.
Hiding for a moment was easy, but hiding for a lifetime was too difficult.
Just like today, a minor mistake by Xuan San Qi had caused the Heaven's Bane Tower to suffer heavy losses and fall into crisis.
Thus, even if they managed to survive this ordeal, countless dangers lay ahead. With his aging body, he truly lacked the confidence to lead the Heaven's Bane Tower forward.
Therefore, Tian Can made a bold decision, a decision that absolutely went against the wishes of the Ninjutsu Department.
That was revenge!
...