Yun Lintian raised a hand, and the laws of space around Long Chen and Qian Jinglei collapsed inward like a dying star. A simple test—one that should have crushed any True God instantly.
But the grey flames surrounding Long Chen flared violently, resisting the spatial annihilation. Qian Jinglei didn’t even blink as frost spread from her feet, freezing the collapsing space in place.
Yun Lintian’s eyes narrowed slightly.
Primordial God Realm.
The realization came without surprise. The Abyssal Ghost Knight had enhanced them beyond reason.
Long Chen moved first. His spear—once gleaming silver, now blackened by death energy—thrust forward. The simple motion unraveled causality itself; the attack had already landed before the movement began.
Yun Lintian’s chest erupted as the spear pierced through. But his form flickered—an afterimage. The real Yun Lintian stood three paces to the left, unharmed.
"Interesting," he murmured.
Qian Jinglei didn’t give him time to observe further. She raised a delicate hand, and the very concept of "cold" inverted. Frost became flame, burning not with heat but with absolute zero. The grey wasteland crystallized instantly.
Yun Lintian exhaled, and his breath carried the weight of a dying universe.
The frozen world shattered like glass.
Back and forth they fought—not with fists or blades, but with the fundamental laws of existence.
Long Chen twisted time, creating paradoxes where Yun Lintian’s attacks never existed. Qian Jinglei rewrote reality, turning his divine energy against itself.
Yet Yun Lintian remained calm, always a half-step ahead. He let them press him, studying their enhanced abilities.
Their power isn’t stable, he noted. The death energy sustaining them flickered at odd intervals—like a candle fighting a storm.
Yun Lintian stood calmly amidst the shattered remnants of frozen space, his gaze sweeping over Long Chen and Qian Jinglei. The grey flames of death energy pulsed around them erratically, their unstable power distorting the very fabric of reality.
"I didn’t expect the Abyssal Ghost Knight to enhance his puppets to this extent," Yun Lintian mused aloud. His voice carried neither surprise nor fear—only quiet observation. "You’ve mastered laws your original selves could never touch."
Long Chen’s hollow eyes burned with unnatural light as he raised his corrupted spear. The weapon trembled, its edge cutting through dimensions with each slight movement.
Qian Jinglei remained silent, but the air around her warped as she manipulated the concept of "existence" itself, preparing to erase Yun Lintian from reality.
Yun Lintian exhaled softly. "This confirms it—the Abyssal Ghost Knight is indeed a God of Death." His golden eyes gleamed with divine insight. "The question is... which one?"
Before his enemies could react, Yun Lintian raised his hand.
The Heaven Sunderer Greatsword materialized in his grasp, its obsidian blade humming with the combined power of Creation and Destruction. The moment it appeared, the grey wasteland trembled, unable to withstand its presence.
Yun Lintian tightened his grip. "Now, it’s my turn." His voice remained calm, but an unfathomable pressure radiated from him. "Let’s see if you can resist this."
The greatsword moved.
Not through space, but through the concept of "connection" itself. The blade passed through Long Chen’s body without touching flesh—instead, it severed the threads of death energy binding his soul to corruption.
Long Chen’s grey flames flickered violently. His movements froze mid-strike, his hollow eyes widening as clarity briefly returned.
"Senior...Yun...?" His voice, though weak, was his own again.
But the reprieve was short-lived. The death energy surged anew, attempting to reclaim its puppet.
At this moment, Qian Jinglei’s frost-reversed flames surged toward him, seeking to freeze his very existence. But the Heaven Sunderer Greatsword cleaved through the unnatural cold, unraveling the inverted laws.
The blade’s edge touched nothingness—and yet, the frost shattered like glass. Qian Jinglei staggered back, her cold eyes flickering with something akin to pain.
For the first time, hesitation crossed her corrupted mind.
Yun Lintian didn’t give them time to recover. He raised the greatsword high, and this time, the blade shone with golden light—the power of the Tree of Life.
The grey wasteland trembled as life and death clashed. The corrupted energies sustaining Long Chen and Qian Jinglei screamed in protest, their hold weakening.
For a brief moment, both puppets collapsed to their knees, their true selves struggling against the death energy’s grip.
Yun Lintian watched silently, his expression unreadable.
Slow, mocking applause echoed through the wasteland.
The Abyssal Ghost Knight stepped out from the void, his skeletal armor radiating an aura far older than death itself.
"Impressive," the knight mused, his voice layered with countless whispers. "But can you save them without killing them?"
Yun Lintian’s mismatched eyes locked onto the Abyssal Ghost Knight. The skeletal mask concealed his face, but the aura of death radiating from him was unmistakable—this was undoubtedly a God of Death. Yet, there was something... familiar about him.
The Ghost Knight chuckled, his voice layered with echoes. "I have been waiting for you to reach this level. Finally, worthy of being my opponent."
Yun Lintian remained calm, though his grip on the Heaven Sunderer tightened slightly. "I don’t know who you are," he said evenly. "But since you dared to touch my people, I hope you’ve prepared for the consequences."
The Ghost Knight tilted his head, amused. "The Yun Lintian I remember didn’t make empty threats. What changed? Did refining the Seed of Time make you arrogant?"
He gestured toward Long Chen and Qian Jinglei, who still knelt weakly, caught between corruption and clarity. "If you’re that confident, let’s see if you can truly purify them without killing them."
Yun Lintian ignored the taunt. "Who are you?" His voice carried a rare edge. "What’s your purpose in provoking me ?"
The Ghost Knight spread his arms dramatically. "Do I need a reason? It’s simple—the same reason you’ve spent years chasing strength." His skeletal fingers curled into fists. "To become the strongest. To realize my dream."
Yun Lintian’s eyes narrowed. "Dream?"
The Ghost Knight’s laughter echoed unnaturally. "Yes, dream. Do you think you are the only one who has a dream?"
He shook his head and said further. "My dream is simple as well. I want to end this world. Nothing will be left. When the time comes, no one will suffer again... Don’t you think it’s quite a great dream?"