A Solitary War on the Snowy Summit

The instigators were still clamoring, but Xiao Chen quickly understood, and soon most of the crowd realized as well—such provocations would accomplish little. How many of those who had entered Dragon Island were reckless fools? Who would genuinely allow themselves to be used as another's weapon?

Clearly, those who appeared goaded were feigning it deliberately. They belonged to certain alliances, and the leaders of those alliances wished to seize this opportunity to test Xiao Chen's strength and throw the scene into chaos. They had authorized trusted underlings to probe him, and once he was killed, the true experts would step in to snatch the dragon eggs.

Where there are people, there is strife. Dragon Island was a miniature concrete world, where scheming and brutal slaughter were unavoidable. The human heart and human nature were too complex for any one person to fully depict.

Fearing another avalanche, the Spellmasters and Spiritists took to the air, charging in first.

But a scream immediately followed: "Ah—!"

Xiao Chen had launched himself straight up, leaping over ten meters into the sky. Divine flames rippled around his body as his right leg swept out, cleaving a Spellmaster cleanly in two at the waist. Blood rained down as the two halves of the corpse plummeted to the ground.

It happened too suddenly. No one had expected Xiao Chen to move so fast—almost like flying. In a single exchange, he had slain a Spellmaster at the Third Heaven of Mortal-Shedding.

To be killed in midair by a martial artist—this was a disgrace for any flying Spellmaster. But the dead could no longer feel shame; he had lost his life forever.

"Attack together! Don't fear him!"

"No matter how strong he is, he can't hold out against so many of us!"

...

Xiao Chen's gaze was icy as he locked onto the few who had shouted out. He understood that even without their cries, those who meant to attack would still come. But he decided to eliminate a few first, to make his resolve unmistakably clear.

By this time, over a dozen Spellmasters and Spiritists had flown above him, and nearly twenty more ground-bound practitioners had climbed the snowy peak, encircling him.

Xiao Chen's eyes blazed with divine light, utterly unafraid. Among these opponents, those who had reached the Third Heaven of Mortal-Shedding were considered experts; only a handful had attained the Fourth Heaven. If he wished to flee, he could break through without difficulty.

Thunderous roars erupted from within Xiao Chen's body. A dazzling curtain of light materialized before him—seven radiant energy stars, the Big Dipper, suspended brilliantly in front of him. This light screen he named "Sealing Divinity.”

When the Spellmasters and Spiritists in the sky rained down beams of divine radiance, Xiao Chen streaked across the snow like a meteor, leaving afterimages in his wake as he dodged the surging tide of energy. At the same time, the Sealing Divinity Light Screen blazed with incomparably resplendent light, blocking all the curse energy that pressed close to his body. He charged straight into the ground-bound practitioners surrounding him.

Xiao Chen had plunged into the crowd, targeting the very ones who had been fanning the flames. His right hand lashed out like a blade, severing one of Yarode's underlings at the waist. The divine light of his palm-sword flashed without a trace of blood clinging to it.

Next, Xiao Chen left an afterimage in place, evading the combined assault, and appeared before a member of the Treefolk Valley alliance. He swept his left hand lightly across, and a head flew sideways, its face frozen in terror. A rain of blood erupted; the body hit the ground only after Xiao Chen had moved on.

With a flash of divine light, Xiao Chen broke through the encirclement and appeared beside a member of the Nature Alliance. The Big Dipper Sealing Divinity light screen before him absorbed a blinding blade-strike. Xiao Chen shot through like a bolt of lightning, cleaving the man in two and passing between the halves.

Blood sprayed. In the space of a few breaths, screams rang out repeatedly atop the snowy peak, and the snow was stained red.

Spellmasters' incantations and Spiritists' strange arts transformed into terrifying beams, rampaging wildly across the summit. Divine radiance bathed the peak in brilliant light.

The Sealing Divinity Light Screen followed close around Xiao Chen, revolving continuously, helping him block the overwhelming wave of energy attacks. Most of the spells and abilities from the sky were successfully neutralized.

Xiao Chen's dominance shocked everyone. They had thought that with so many joining forces, they could suppress him, but they never imagined he would claim lives from the very start.

The Spellmasters and Spiritists in the sky kept diving down, their fearsome curses falling like meteor showers, their strange arts sweeping in like tidal waves—blinding lightning, roaring flames, razor wind blades, ice spears raged through the air!

Yet none of this could stop Xiao Chen. Having reached the Sixth Heaven of Mortal-Shedding, he could now fully control the Big Dipper Sealing Divinity, no longer relying on luck as he had against Liu Mu.

The Big Dipper shone, illuminating the sky with dazzling light that almost completely enveloped Xiao Chen. As the dense spells and strange arts were absorbed by the Sealing Divinity Light Screen, the seven stars burned brighter and brighter, until finally, like a volcanic eruption, a blazing column of radiance shot into the sky, engulfing four Spellmasters and Spiritists who had swooped down.

It was a shocking sight—the sky seemed ablaze with a roaring inferno, but it was no flame. It was pure, incandescent light. The Sealing Divinity Light Screen hovered over Xiao Chen, pulverizing the few Spellmasters and Spiritists in an instant.

Everyone felt the terror of Xiao Chen's power.

But now they could not retreat. Matters had reached a point of no return. The Spellmasters and Spiritists in the sky, along with the practitioners on the ground, all shouted in unison, charging at him.

"Kill!"

"Charge!"

A fierce battle raged atop the snowy peak. The cries of slaughter shook the heavens as over thirty experts besieged Xiao Chen.

On the opposite summit, the onlookers were deeply shaken. What realm had Xiao Chen reached? To fight so many alone—his combat prowess was truly astonishing.

The light screen formed from the seven energy-stars wrapped around Xiao Chen like a suit of sacred armor, its radiance eclipsing even the sun. With hair flying loose, wielding a stolen divine sword, he charged and slashed through the crowd.

Sword energy shot into the sky, sweeping in all directions!

Xiao Chen moved with grand, sweeping strokes, unstoppable, irresistible. Wherever the divine sword passed, blood sprayed. The light screen around him had become a curtain of blood, blood-mist curling atop the snowy peak, the pungent scent of gore drifting on the wind.

"Pfff!"

The divine sword shot through like a rainbow, lopping off a grimacing head. A shower of blood burst across the summit.

"Crunch!"

The iron blade swung mercilessly, shearing a practitioner's body from shoulder to hip. The stark white of splintered bone and the crimson of fresh blood clashed harshly, chilling the soul.

"Ssss!"

The blood-drenched sword cleaved away half a practitioner's skull, white pasty matter oozing out followed by a spray of vivid blood. The corpse toppled over, unspeakably bloody and brutal.

Then, scorching sword light shot upward, a dazzling beam that pierced the bodies of three Spellmasters and Spiritists in an instant—bloody holes opened front to back, spilling streams of crimson that stained the sky.

This was an exceptionally savage battle!

The blood-soaked sword astounded the heavens. The world dimmed. The Big Dipper shot into the clouds. Wind and clouds shifted. Xiao Chen fought atop the absolute peak. When the Big Dipper light screen faded, even his long hair was dyed red with blood. The dripping divine sword, the wildly flying tangled locks, the piercing gaze, the tall and stalwart silhouette—all of this was etched deeply into everyone's hearts. Even years later, this indelible image would not fade.