Chapter 360 271: Breaking the Tribulation

DRIP! DRIP!

The mysterious figure in the shadows knelt on the ground. Beads of sweat as large as peas gathered on his jaw before dripping down one after another.

'If it weren't for you, I would have made my move long ago. This man... he has to die... HE HAS TO DIE!!!'

'I was going to delay it, to act only after I had complete control of this body. After all, your resistance is just too strong when it comes to him.'

'But I can't wait. His growth is too fast, far beyond my imagination and predictions—even faster than you were back then. If I don't seize this chance to eliminate him, he'll only become more and more trouble. There's no better opportunity than now, and there won't be another one...'

'Even if the price is enormous, even if it means slumbering for another ten years, or a hundred, I don't care! I will act! I will act! He must die! HE MUST DIE!!!'

The mysterious figure muttered to himself in agony. His mood, once stable, grew increasingly crazed and fanatical. Veins bulged all over his body, and his face twisted into a ferocious snarl, as if he were losing his human form. Black blood began to stream from his seven orifices, but the moment it hit the ground, it instantly evaporated into wisps of Black Flame, vanishing as if it had never existed.

On top of his head, at his Baihui Acupoint, an abnormal lump of flesh bulged and pulsed, looking just like a tumor.

'Someone like you... must die!!!'

SWOOSH!!

He seemed to break free from his state of crazed agony and seize control of his body. He shot to his feet, pressed his palms together, and stared out toward the fog-shrouded battlefield.

"Your grasp of the Holy Seed's power is still too shallow. Let me give you a little push!"

The mysterious figure let out a low roar, and some unseen power traversed space, reaching its destination.

「At that very moment, on the battlefield.」

The five figures were still locked in an inseparable, chaotic brawl.

However, as the battle dragged on, the four restricted-level masters were beginning to show signs of fatigue.

The Nether Butterfly Mist pervading the area was gradually thinning. The slashes of the Light Blades, Oono Bonan's bursts of Primordial Qi, and Shinkawa Yue's Spiritual Secret Technique were all weakening in intensity.

They were getting closer and closer to their limits.

Zhao Xuanqi, on the other hand, still seemed tireless. There was no end in sight to his Physical Ability, as if he could maintain this terrifying state indefinitely.

Indeed, the fourth Gate of the Dragon Gate consumed a terrifying amount of energy. But with his Twenty-Seven Celestial Spirit Acupoints open, Zhao Xuanqi had already reached the peak of his Flesh Body. His reserves of Physical Ability far surpassed other experts of the same level. He had no problem maintaining the fourth Gate of the Dragon Gate for extended periods—at least half an hour or more.

In a battle of attrition based on Physical Ability alone, the four restricted-level masters were simply no match for him.

The expressions on Mitsuro and the others' faces grew uglier by the second. Zhao Xuanqi was gaining the upper hand step by step, while they were marching step by step into the abyss!

'Is there really nothing we can do?!'

'Perhaps the only way to defeat him is to further unleash the power of the Holy Seed.'

'But how could the Holy Seed's power be so easily controlled? If we rashly unleashed its abilities beyond what our bodies could handle, we wouldn't even get to use that power before our bodies disintegrated.'

THUMP THUMP!! THUMP THUMP!!

Just then, the four of them suddenly felt the Holy Seeds inside their bodies begin to pound violently.

They knew this was a sign that the Holy Seeds' powers were being unleashed further.

This realization made their hearts leap, as they thought they were about to reach the limits of what their bodies could withstand.

Before they could think any further, however, an incredibly terrifying power erupted from the Holy Seeds within them, surging into every corner of their bodies.

And it wasn't just power. A frenzied will flooded their minds, battering and influencing their thoughts.

Bloodthirsty, savage, frenzied, cruel...

It was as if the will of an ancient Fierce Beast had seized control of their bodies, suppressing their own consciousness.

Outside.

BOOM!!

The four restricted-level masters, who had been on the verge of exhaustion, suddenly erupted with a torrential aura and pressure. All of their abilities were enhanced, and their bodies began to undergo a drastic transformation.

WHOOSH!!

The butterfly wings on Jiang Feiyu's back suddenly expanded. The countless pores on his skin opened all at once—a dense, skin-crawling sight. Then, an even thicker fog shot out from his pores, spreading rapidly.

This time, the fog was so dense it was almost solid. Its very essence seemed to have been greatly enhanced, binding more tightly with the power of the world around it. It was almost tangible, capable of restraining physical objects.

In an instant, the nearly twenty-meter space Zhao Xuanqi had managed to carve out in the thinning fog was compressed. He couldn't even maintain the previous ten-meter radius.

Mitsuro's semi-Rainbow Transformed body twisted and elongated. The iridescent light on his skin condensed into scales, and his tongue flicked in and out of his mouth like a snake's.

HISS!!

Mitsuro then threw his head back, opened his mouth wide, and took a sharp breath. But he wasn't just inhaling air—he was inhaling light!

All the surrounding light was devoured into his mouth, plunging the area into darkness. Even the Holy Armor formed from silver light on Zhao Xuanqi's body was affected by the suction, its brilliance dissipating over a large area.