As Su Afo and Princess Nine-Tails arrived, they witnessed the spectacular scene of tens of thousands of strong cultivators being blasted away. Both were momentarily stunned.
Su Afo's eyes gleamed with excitement. "What a powerhouse! Taking on tens of thousands at once, this is thrilling!"
Indeed, the sea shark clan might not have had the strongest individuals, but the sight of tens of thousands being blasted away at once was an eye-catching spectacle that made one's blood boil.
Zhong Shan flew towards the central island, effortlessly annihilating any who dared to approach him. Every wave of his hand resulted in the obliteration of his foes.
"Attack! Kill him!" A loud command echoed from near the island's barrier.
At this command, the countless sea sharks seemed to receive their orders, launching themselves at Zhong Shan with suicidal determination.
With a fierce glare, Zhong Shan wielded his great blade at a terrifying speed. Against these small fry, even the lesser waves of his attack, the Tenfold Waves or Hundredfold Waves, were sufficient.
This allowed Zhong Shan to move even faster, filling the sky with terrifying blade light. Every sea shark that soared into the sky was cut in half, and those charging at Zhong Shan were met with a shower of blood.
The sky became Zhong Shan's personal stage.
Ferocity! This was true ferocity, the kind that intimidated countless strong cultivators with just a visual impact.
"Should we help?" Su Afo asked, somewhat dazed.
Zhong Shan's onslaught was relentless, with waves of sea shark blood staining the frozen sea beneath them.
"Of course, let's go!" Princess Nine-Tails said excitedly.
She charged forward. Being at the Great Celestial Realm, she easily overwhelmed the sea sharks, whose strongest members were only at the Celestial Realm. With a ribbon in her hand, she moved swiftly, causing any sea shark that touched it to explode.
Su Afo wielded a golden cudgel, a powerful celestial artifact, turning any sea shark it struck into dust.
While Zhong Shan headed straight for the island, Princess Nine-Tails and Su Afo joined the fray for the thrill of the fight.
In no time, Zhong Shan had slaughtered nearly twenty thousand sea sharks and reached the island. The sea shark cultivators who had been attacking the island now looked horrified. The sea shark cultivators who had previously breached the purple barrier quickly retreated, surrounding a young man in white.
Through the purple barrier, Zhong Shan saw her.
His heart trembled.
It was Zi Xun. She was surrounded by seven or eight protectors, all from the Purple Sky Dojo.
With a wave of her right hand, the Heavenly Thunder Pearl she had been using to defend herself disappeared into her palm.
The Heavenly Thunder Pearl—how could Zhong Shan forget? The first time he met Zi Xun, she had used it to blast the Red Luan Old Demon, with Zhong Shan holding her in his arms.
It was still the same Heavenly Thunder Pearl.
As the enemies retreated, Zi Xun turned and saw Zhong Shan's gaze. Her expression changed, showing a flash of eagerness and joy, quickly replaced by sorrow. Though brief, that moment of sadness deeply pierced Zhong Shan's heart.
"Kill him! Elder Sixteen, kill that man for me! I want him dead!" The young man in white, surrounded by many sea sharks, pointed at Zhong Shan with a vicious expression.
The strong cultivators on the surrounding islands were stunned by the sudden turn of events.
Everyone watched in awe at Zhong Shan's ferocity, their blood boiling at the sight. As the attackers of the Purple Sky Dojo's saintess retreated, all eyes turned to the sea shark leaders.
"The young prince of the sea shark clan has had his plans foiled. It seems he's really angry now." "The Sixteenth Elder of the sea shark clan? I heard he reached the Great Celestial Realm a century ago, his power is immense!" "A Great Celestial? The Sacred King of Great Yi might be in trouble now!" "Why? He looks incredibly fierce!" "Fierce? What good is fierceness? That's a Great Celestial, and I've heard the Sacred King of Great Yi has poor innate talent. After opening the heavens, his strength only reached the second level of the Celestial Realm. That wasn't long ago. How can a second-level Celestial match a Great Celestial? Even the weakest Great Celestial!" "No, I heard that during the opening of the heavens, Zhong Shan fought a Great Celestial and was undefeated!" "That wasn't Zhong Shan; it was his nation's supreme beast, the wolf emperor Xuan Sha. He's a genius among geniuses!" "Sixteenth Elder? No wonder the young prince of the sea shark clan is so confident!"
The onlookers engaged in heated discussions as the battle continued.
Upon receiving the young prince's command, the Sixteenth Elder of the sea shark clan charged directly at Zhong Shan. As he approached, the sky turned blue, and he unleashed his 'world,' a blue domain that enveloped Zhong Shan.
Zhong Shan's face hardened, and a murderous glint flashed in his eyes. If he were any later, Zi Xun would have been killed by this elder!
A flash of fierce light passed through Zhong Shan's eyes, and the Sixteenth Elder felt a chill, as if a deathly glare pierced his soul.
Truly enraged, Zhong Shan thrust out his right palm, causing a massive million-foot-wide handprint to appear in the void. This terrifying handprint glowed with silver light, emitting boundless clouds and displaying countless terrifying runes.
At that moment, everyone stopped what they were doing, staring in shock and awe at this display. What kind of technique was this?
Su Afo clutched his golden cudgel, staring at the sky-covering handprint in disbelief. Was this even possible?
The massive handprint descended upon the Sixteenth Elder's 'world.'
"Boom!"
A thunderous explosion echoed as Zhong Shan's enormous handprint gripped the elder's 'world.'
A handprint gripping a 'world'? Could this be real?
Everyone was stunned. The 'world' was supposed to be an intangible concept, only able to be touched by another 'world.' How could a physical handprint grab it? This defied all logic and understanding.
"Boom!"
The second explosion left everyone even more bewildered. The fingers of Zhong Shan's gigantic handprint curled, forcefully grasping the Sixteenth Elder's 'world.' With a deafening roar, the elder's 'world' was torn apart.
The fact that an intangible 'world' could be shattered by a handprint overturned everyone's understanding. They stood frozen in disbelief. How was this possible?
The terrifying power of the Opening Heaven Palm, capable of creating and destroying worlds, was beyond their comprehension.
While the onlookers were filled with shock, only the Sixteenth Elder understood the gravity of the situation. When his 'world' was shattered, he felt an internal shock, his mind severely disrupted.
"Rumble!"
The scene played out with a powerful sound, and the Sixteenth Elder found himself at the mercy of Zhong Shan's overwhelming power.
Zhong Shan's colossal handprint, a manifestation of his Opening Heaven Palm, crushed the Sixteenth Elder's world effortlessly. Shrinking rapidly, the handprint locked onto the Sixteenth Elder, despite his desperate attempts to defend himself, his face showing sheer terror.
Too fast! In a blink, the handprint was only ten feet wide, encasing the elder completely.
"Boom!"
A muffled explosion reverberated, and the giant handprint slowly dissipated.
The explosion seemed to strike at everyone's core. After this terrifying attack, fragments were scattered in the air—fragments of the Sixteenth Elder.
At that moment, a profound silence enveloped the surroundings.
Everyone seemed to be dumbstruck.
Annihilated with a single grasp? The Sacred King of Great Yi?
That was a Great Celestial! Even the weakest Great Celestial was still a Great Celestial! Yet the Sacred King of Great Yi, at the Celestial Realm, had shattered a Great Celestial's world and annihilated him in one grasp?
The onlookers shivered, feeling a deep sense of fear.
The sea shark cultivators were equally stunned, refusing to believe that the overwhelmingly powerful Sixteenth Elder had been killed so easily.
Even Su Afo and Princess Nine-Tails stood frozen in shock. Was this real?
Just then, Hongxiao arrived with a large army, just in time to witness Zhong Shan annihilating a powerful figure with one hand. Hongxiao recognized the fallen Great Celestial—Sixteenth Elder of the sea shark clan, a prodigious talent. Zhong Shan had dispatched him so effortlessly?
Hongxiao's eyelid twitched. Even he would have had to expend significant effort to kill the Sixteenth Elder. But Zhong Shan—he was astonishing!
"Run!"
An unknown sea shark cultivator's panicked scream pierced the air, and the sea shark clan fled in all directions, especially the young prince, drenched in sweat, who was hurriedly escaping under the protection of his subordinates.
"Hongxiao General, kill them!" Zhong Shan commanded sharply, charging towards the sea shark prince.
At that moment, Zhong Shan's commanding aura surged forth again, almost overwhelming Hongxiao's will, nearly making him respond with a resounding "yes."
Snapping back to clarity, Hongxiao felt a wave of astonishment. His face was extremely conflicted.
"Brother Hongxiao, let's kill them. It's too late to turn back now!" Su Afo shouted.
"Hongxiao, have your soldiers kill them all! Leave no one alive! I'll make sure to report to the Sacred King that you did this to save me!" Princess Nine-Tails shouted.
People looked speechlessly at Princess Nine-Tails, but she certainly had the confidence and the authority to make such a statement.
"Target the sea shark clan, kill them all!" Hongxiao ordered.
"Yes!" The twenty thousand elite soldiers responded in unison.
Hongxiao's forces were highly trained, easily slaughtering the remaining fleeing sea sharks.
Meanwhile, Zhong Shan had already captured the sea shark prince, dragging him back to the island.
The purple barrier around the island had been deactivated.
"My father and the other elders are all at Aolai Sea. Let me go now, or you're dead!" the sea shark prince shouted.
"Smack!" Zhong Shan kicked him, sending him sprawling in front of Zi Xun. The kick carried a hidden force, sealing off all the prince's power.
Zi Xun's eyes flickered with complex emotions.
"Thank you, senior!" said the seven or eight surviving members of the Purple Sky Dojo, expressing their gratitude to Zhong Shan.