DD Black White [196-198] (Patreon)

Chapter 196: Super Break—Falling Star

"You go save them, leave this to me!"

Bone Douluo looked down at Black Firefly with a grave expression. Normally, even a standard Titled Douluo would find it hard to break his defense, yet a Soul Emperor like Black Firefly managed to do it. Is this the terror of a 100,000-year soul ring? Bone Douluo didn't believe a single 100,000-year ring could drastically close the gap between a Soul Emperor and a Titled Douluo, so there had to be other reasons—like martial soul or something else.

He glanced at the distant sky where Dugu Bo and Black Jinhsi were fighting fiercely. Though Dugu Bo currently had the upper hand, defeating Black Jinhsi completely in a short time didn't seem easy.

Teleportation, time slow, state reset, foresight—Black Jinhsi's bizarre abilities in battle made Dugu Bo increasingly alarmed.

He felt extremely stifled. His pride, the deadly poison, was useless against Black Jinhsi, who was formed from negative energy.

His attacks couldn't instantly kill Black Jinhsi, and with any opening, she could reset her state.

In terms of speed, Black Jinhsi could also move within the gaps of time—her speed rivaled teleportation. She could even predict his attacks and next moves to a certain degree.

Dugu Bo had already suffered several losses from this, with many attacks predicted and several sword lights solidly hitting him.

Those sword strikes were extremely strange—each looked like a casual swing, but four slashes would strike from different angles at once, making them unavoidable.

If not for his absolute advantage in soul power, if this was a same-level fight, he'd have been killed by what looked like an ordinary sword swing!

In this era, anyone who could become a Titled Douluo was a chosen one, each with a sense of pride.

But Dugu Bo had to admit, the little girl opposite him had talent far above his own.

If they were the same rank, he might not even see her back.

He understood negative-energy monsters were usually stronger than their originals, but if a copy was this strong, how could the original be weak? Besides, the 100,000-year soul ring was real—if the clone had it, so did the original.

He was filled with doubt, unable to comprehend where such an outrageous Soul Emperor came from, one that was copied by this contamination point.

Dugu Bo even began to doubt whether the Douluo Continent of his memory was fake.

He'd lived on this land so many years, but never met such a ridiculous Soul Emperor.

Overall, Black Jinhsi's power was at the Soul Douluo level, but she was just too troublesome. For Dugu Bo, fighting her was even harder than fighting other Titled Douluo.

While Dugu Bo was locked in a tough fight, trouble was brewing for Bone Douluo as well.

A layer of fiery red markings appeared on his body at some point.

Though the marking did not affect Bone Douluo immediately, no matter what he tried, he couldn't remove it.

Next, Black Firefly shot into the sky like a cannonball, her 100,000-year red ring glowing brilliantly, then she viciously kicked down at Bone Douluo.

Her third skill "Death Star Overload" added a fire weakness to Bone Douluo, while her sixth skill "Super Break—Falling Star" turned her into a meteor, delivering a devastating blow to her target.

Though Bone Douluo didn't know what the red marking did, danger bells rang in his heart and he almost instinctively activated his martial soul avatar.

A bone dragon dozens of meters long appeared, surrounded by thick black light, forming an unbreakable defense.

The meteor, wreathed in black-red flames, trailed a cloud of sonic booms as it crashed into the massive bone dragon.

At that crucial moment, the red Stigmata on the dragon's body flared. The black soul power barrier, once unbreakable, shattered like paper.

Black Firefly's devastating kick landed solidly.

Instantly, black-red flames spread, wrapping the bone dragon and turning it into a fire dragon before smashing it into the ground.

With a huge boom, a shockwave rippled out for hundreds of meters, sending dust everywhere and blotting out the sky.

"Uncle Bone!" Ning Fengzhi's eyes widened in disbelief.

In his mind, Bone Douluo's defense was unmatched— even Sword Douluo would struggle to break it.

But what happened before him shattered this belief.

The famed defense master, level 95 peak Douluo, was forced into his martial soul avatar, and his defense was broken so easily.

Compared to Ning Fengzhi's shock, Sword Douluo was much calmer.

Though shocked, he knew Bone Douluo's true strength well.

He understood that Black Firefly's attack was powerful and surprisingly broke Bone Douluo's defense, but to truly injure him badly was impossible.

Indeed, a deafening dragon roar sounded as the bone dragon flapped its wings, stirring up a tempest.

At the same time, sharp bone spikes erupted from the ground, turning hundreds of meters around into a white-bone hell.

Black Firefly, unfazed, punched out—terrifying flames turned the ground beneath her into magma, blocking the bone spikes.

As a killing machine made of negative energy, her instincts were terrifyingly sharp, instantly neutralizing Bone Douluo's fierce assault.

Plus, her original self was a battlefield veteran, with extreme combat experience.

However, the huge gap in soul power was still a chasm hard to cross.

While her unexpected attacks and debuff skills let her temporarily suppress Bone Douluo, unless she could kill him instantly, once he recovered, her defeat was only a matter of time.

But in this contamination point, what she least lacked were companions.

And being a being of pure killing instinct and no intelligence, she had no concept of one-on-one combat.

So, a silver dragon spear, trailing air currents, whistled down like lightning onto the bone dragon's head.

Crack!

With a crisp sound, the dragon bone struck by the spear shattered instantly.

At the same time, Bone Douluo felt his life force and soul power being crazily drained by the silver spear.

Fortunately, in his martial soul avatar, his huge form meant a few bones breaking wasn't fatal.

But it was horrifying enough.

If that spear had hit his head, even his strongest part, he doubted he could withstand it.

Watching from afar, Lu Jingming's mouth twitched. This planet's will was really extravagant—even artifacts could be copied.

The silver dragon girl in martial soul attachment state was surrounded by elemental orbs, spinning rapidly and radiating dazzling light.

She, too, had two purple, three black, and one red ring, and was fighting Bone Douluo alongside Black Firefly.

The Silver Dragon martial soul was the pinnacle of true dragon martial souls.

Even though Bone Douluo's spirit was a mutated bone dragon, able to control space, under the Silver Dragon's pressure, his power was still suppressed.

Thus, a peak Douluo was temporarily held off by two Soul Emperors.

Not only that, but Black March 7th in the distance fired arrows, creating a stalemate.

"Uncle Sword!" Ning Fengzhi frowned tightly. Things had developed far beyond his expectations.

This contamination point was too strange. The negative-energy monsters, by level, matched a new contamination point, with the strongest being Soul Emperor—no Soul Sages appeared.

But their actual combat power was unbelievable.

Who would have thought Soul Emperors could go toe-to-toe with Titled Douluo, even holding their ground? This was unimaginable before.

Sword Douluo had held back, secretly protecting Ning Fengzhi, Xue Qinghe, and others in case of emergencies.

He could also tell that while the battle was stuck, over time, Dugu Bo and Bone Douluo would eventually win.

But Ning Fengzhi felt they couldn't just wait.

The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda burst into seven-colored light, sending beams onto Dugu Bo, Bone Douluo, Sword Douluo, Meng Shenji, and others.

As sect master, Ning Fengzhi was far stronger than Ning Rongrong.

He had already reached the Seven Aperture Exquisite Heart realm, able to use seven skills on seven targets at once.

With the Pagoda's buffs, Dugu Bo felt all his stats—soul power, spirit, attack, defense—rocket upward.

"Hahaha, so this is the world's best support spirit! I've finally experienced it myself."

Dugu Bo laughed heartily, finally enjoying what Sword Douluo and Bone Douluo usually had.

At the same time, his eighth ring shone, unleashing his eighth skill, "Time Freeze."

A green ripple spread, instantly reaching Black Jinhsi.

Even though time-control skills didn't scare Black Jinhsi, since she too could manipulate time, Dugu Bo knew this—and had held back this skill until now.

But with the Pagoda's boost, its power was greatly increased.

Even Black Jinhsi involuntarily paused for a moment.

In that fleeting instant, Dugu Bo unleashed his skull bone skill—Medusa's Stare.

A petrifying gaze shot out, hitting the immobilized Black Jinhsi.

Gray petrification quickly spread, turning her completely to stone, causing her to fall from a hundred meters up.

Fully petrified, she was doomed to shatter.

Though her actual combat power was high, her soul power was only Soul Emperor level, and with Dugu Bo's buffs, she stood little chance.

Not only Dugu Bo, but Bone Douluo's aura also soared with the Pagoda's support.

Countless bone spikes rained down like a storm, forcing Black Firefly and Black Gu Yue into retreat.

With the tide turning, morale soared.

Soul rings shone like stars, lighting up the valley.

Soul skills erupted in a dazzling display, sweeping away the black-armored soldiers.

But while others cheered, Lu Jingming's gaze locked onto Black March 7th and Black Robin.

Others might not know their skills, but Lu Jingming did.

Sure enough, Black March 7th's fifth ring glowed as she fired an arrow at petrified Black Jinhsi.

The ice-blue arrow struck Black Jinhsi, melting into her body. The petrification vanished instantly.

This was March 7th's fifth skill, "Pure White Prayer," which not only dispelled debuffs but also gave strong defense.

Meanwhile, Black Robin's head glowed with a heavenly ring as white wings spread.

With a melodious song, soul power notes appeared, falling on Black Jinhsi, Black Firefly, and others.

She used three skills: "White Wing Song," "Feather Aria," and "Heaven Ring Sound," boosting all teammates—better than the Seven Treasure Pagoda.

Then her fourth skill, "Thousand-Tone Concerto," turned all fifth rings blood-red, upgrading them to 100,000-year rings.

Her fifth skill, "Stellar Fugue," hit Black Gu Yue and others, raising their power so quickly that all broke through to Soul Sage, gaining a seventh red ring.

Finally, her sixth skill, "Harmonic Hymn," linked everyone in a soul power network.

If anyone used soul power, 10% of the cost would be restored by teammates.

With such powerful support, the blackened group all advanced to Soul Sage, displaying terrifying dominance.

Dugu Bo, as a hundred-meter green scaly snake emperor, was pinned by Black Jinhsi's time dragon.

A giant mecha over fifty meters tall, wreathed in black-red flames, wielded a green giant sword, leaving a shocking sword scar on Bone Douluo's dragon body.

The beautiful but blackened Silver Dragon still radiated noble aura, clawing at Bone Douluo's wings as if to tear them off.

The battle changed rapidly: from Ning Fengzhi's Pagoda boost, to Black Robin powering up Black Jinhsi's side, all advanced to Soul Sage and used spirit avatars—in just a few minutes.

"Fengzhi, be careful!" Sword Douluo could no longer sit still—he called out, drew his Seven Kill Sword, and vanished.

The moment he disappeared, the white-haired youth on the Black Throne opened his eyes.

Seven Kill Sword intent condensed into a blood-red sword, instantly appearing before Black Robin.

Sword Douluo knew Black Robin's support had reversed the battle; his first target was her.

After all, her support had surpassed Ning Fengzhi's; everyone had to accept this fact.

Just as the sword flashed, Black Castorice, who stood near Black Robin, also opened her eyes.

She swung a purple-black scythe, sending a purple blade against the blood sword.

Sword and scythe clashed, unleashing a shockwave as Sword Douluo reappeared.

He looked at the girl who blocked his attack, then at the purple airflow binding his legs, frowning.

Black Castorice had used her second skill, "Nether Domain," spreading a deathly field that weakened all his stats.

In this domain, the effect of the Seven Treasure Pagoda was greatly reduced.

Sword Douluo formed a sword with his fingers, gathering the Seven Kill Sword and aiming at Black Castorice, sword intent and killing intent surging.

But then, a black spear with black-red lightning and terrifying spear intent struck like lightning.

Sword Douluo's face changed, hurriedly blocking with his sword.

The spear tip hit the sword, black-red lightning raging as sword and spear intent clashed, even freezing the space around them.

Black Castorice and Black Robin retreated instantly, leaving the clash zone.

With Black Robin's support, Black Lu Jingming now had two purple, one black, and four red soul rings.

The sixth and seventh rings had golden lightning Stigmatas, very striking.

The four blood-red rings made Sword Douluo's eyelid twitch. He glanced at Lu Jingming by Ning Fengzhi.

"Brother Lu, aren't you a sword cultivator?"

Xue Qinghe looked at Lu Jingming, who was holding a black spear wreathed in black-red lightning and fighting Sword Douluo.

"I do practice swordsmanship, but I never said my martial soul was a sword," Lu Jingming replied helplessly.

He'd always practiced swordsmanship, but who said a swordsman's spirit had to be a sword?

"Brother Lu, you really give me endless surprises!"

Xue Qinghe looked at Black Lu Jingming's strange 100,000-year soul ring, especially the golden lightning, his expression flickering.

As a descendant of the Angel God with a god-given spirit, Xue Qinghe knew many secrets.

For example, after a soul master reached rank 100 and became a god, the tenth ring was a god ring—gold in color.

Seeing Black Lu Jingming's strange rings, his first thought was god rings.

But quickly ruled it out—if it were a god ring, Sword Douluo couldn't block that spear.

So he guessed Lu Jingming's backers, like Spirit Hall, had divine inheritances.

Otherwise, such extraordinary rings and their strange effects were hard to explain.

He also deduced that everyone appearing at this contamination point was likely Lu Jingming's companions.

After all, at the contamination point in Star Luo Empire, a copy of Ning Fengzhi appeared with Sword Douluo as the core.

With this precedent, both Xue Qinghe and Ning Fengzhi concluded the same.

Moreover, Black Robin's support suggested Lu Jingming's true ring configuration was two purple, two black, two red.

This only confirmed Xue Qinghe's suspicions that Lu Jingming's backers were on par with Spirit Hall and Sea God Island, with gods behind the scenes.

Otherwise, without divine help, how could Lu Jingming absorb such rings? Even he, with innate rank 20 soul power and a god-given spirit, supplied with endless treasures, had never absorbed out-of-level rings.

Of course, he didn't need to—just starting the god trial would upgrade his rings naturally.

"Brother Lu, what do you think we should do next?"

Xue Qinghe frowned at Lu Jingming.

Since this was Lu Jingming's own copy, he surely knew its strength.

Lu Jingming stroked his chin and said frankly, "Sword Douluo is extraordinary, and with his soul power, he can defeat that blackened me, but it'll be hard to truly kill me."

Chapter 197: Star-Cutting Universe—Great Glazed Sword

Hearing this, Xue Qinghe and Ning Fengzhi were shaken. Even the original Lu Jingming said so—Sword Douluo likely couldn't kill Black Lu Jingming.

Without killing the contamination point core, it was meaningless—negative energy would endlessly revive the black-armored soldiers to attack again.

Sword Douluo truly couldn't kill Black Lu Jingming; the Black Abyss White Flower had cellular-level regeneration, plus Black Robin's sixth skill could continually restore teammates' soul power.

This contamination point's endless negative energy constantly replenished Black Lu Jingming—Lu Jingming couldn't imagine how to kill him.

Moreover, Black Castorice had a death immunity skill (with cooldown), enough to reverse the battle at a critical time.

Black Jinhsi's third skill, "Time Reversal," could turn back time—a form of resurrection.

Black March 7th's sixth skill, "Eternal Winter Pact," could resurrect a teammate dead less than ten minutes, at the cost of half her soul power.

But most troublesome to Lu Jingming was himself.

He had already given his second martial soul, White Flower, six soul rings—all 100,000-year rings from the World Tree Stigmata.

The second ring's "Holy Remains Resonance" was especially unique—linking all teammates in a life network.

As long as one person in the network survived, the others could not die—unless someone could instantly kill everyone at once.

Sword Douluo clearly couldn't do that; his only fate was being drained to death.

In this contamination point, everyone suffered ongoing negative energy and emotional erosion—no one could fight for long, not even Titled Douluo.

Abundance-type abilities were just that troublesome: no matter how strong the opponent, they couldn't wipe out someone with such powers.

And in Douluo Continent, there was no way to seal recovery skills.

Some soul tools had similar effects, like the God-Sealing Platform, but in this era, such tools didn't exist.

Thus, the current situation was nearly unsolvable.

Even if Lu Jingming brought his original team, fighting the blackened group head-on would become a long war of attrition, with the outcome depending on who lasted longer.

Plus, this contamination point's negative energy was their home field.

In short, the planet's will had created an enormous problem.

Unless Qian Daoliu arrived to erase this point, if more were copied, Heaven Dou City—closest to here—would be doomed.

But getting Qian Daoliu to act was unlikely unless Qian Renxue asked in person.

Moreover, only Lu Jingming knew how powerful the next copied people could be; others had no idea.

So, though they felt a crisis, it wasn't yet urgent.

Even if they took it seriously, the Heaven Dou Empire would likely refuse to ask Spirit Hall for help.

Even if they did, Angel Douluo Qian Daoliu might not act immediately.

By now, everyone had retreated from the Titled Douluo-level battlefield.

Huo Wu, Shui Bing'er, and other students had long since withdrawn, watching from afar and ready to flee.

After all, the battle was far beyond their level—even watching up close was dangerous.

Thus, all academy teachers protected their own students, ready to run if things went south.

The two Soul Douluo, Meng Shenji and Zhi Lin, boosted by the Seven Treasure Pagoda, were busy too.

Zhi Lin went to assist Dugu Bo, while Meng Shenji worked to rescue Bai Baoshan from being frozen.

After all, as Soul Douluo, they weren't easy to kill—Bai Baoshan was frozen but not killed instantly by Black March 7th's arrow.

Zhi Lin's massive Sky Blue Vine martial soul became a vine dragon, joining Dugu Bo's green scaled snake emperor in a brutal fight with Black Jinhsi's time dragon.

As a Soul Sage with extreme light attributes and a 100,000-year ring, Black Jinhsi controlled time. Now, with her martial soul avatar and Black Robin's buffs, her combat power rivaled Titled Douluo.

The battlefield was ablaze, dragons roaring, lasers flying—thousands of meters ruined, the land even more corrupted.

Bone Douluo's bone dragon also struggled, attacked by the Silver Dragon and giant mecha.

If not for his defense and space powers, he'd be badly hurt.

Black Firefly's attacks ignored his defense, restraining him, and Black Gu Yue's space control limited his own space skills.

Still, relying on his deep soul power and the Pagoda's boost, Bone Douluo could last, though looking battered.

Sword Douluo was also fighting all-out; his sword qi changed the valley itself.

Black Lu Jingming went all out, using his soul bone skill "Dominion" to create a black gravity orb, pinning Sword Douluo.

Then his "Heaven-Shaking Phenomena" skill shattered the void, pulling a meteorite to smash Sword Douluo.

At the critical moment, Sword Douluo unleashed his martial soul avatar—the Seven Kill Sword became a hundred-meter giant sword, blood-red sword qi rising.

With this, he broke free and clashed with the meteor head-on.

Boom!

The meteor shattered, raining fiery debris.

The aftermath threatened to kill many students, even though it was just residual power.

At this moment, Lu Jingming, holding a black spear with two purple, two black, two red rings, stabbed the spear into the ground, releasing a black barrier that shielded Xue Qinghe, Xue Ke, and Ning Fengzhi.

The flaming debris dissolved harmlessly upon touching the barrier.

"Thank you, Brother Lu!" Xue Qinghe, seeing Lu Jingming's soul rings, looked satisfied and thanked him sincerely.

Right now, only Lu Jingming could ensure their safety.

"It's nothing. But we need to prepare to retreat."

Lu Jingming shook his head.

Unlike him, Black Lu Jingming would hide nothing, nor care about the Black Abyss White Flower's deadly power.

He suspected Black Lu Jingming could also use self-fusion skills.

The power of the Thunder Stigmata and World Tree Stigmata would surely be revealed in battle.

With Black Robin's buffs, how could Black Lu Jingming lose?

Though only temporarily boosted to Soul Sage, with his foundation, that was enough to challenge Titled Douluo. If he used all his cards, he could even fight Super Douluo, and his survivability was terrifying—even Limit Douluo might not kill him if he wanted to escape.

Of course, Black Lu Jingming would not run—so only Qian Daoliu might erase this contamination point.

"Sorry to trouble you, Brother Lu. My sister and I will rely on you for our safety," Xue Qinghe said, looking at the battlefield.

Ning Fengzhi was fully focused on maintaining the Pagoda's boost—if he failed, the situation would worsen instantly.

"Sun and Moon Shine, Golden Rotation!" At this moment, Shrek Academy's Yu Xiaogang, Flender, and Liu Erlong stood in a triangle, radiating strong soul power.

A moment later, golden light exploded, a dragon roared, and a golden holy dragon with flames and lightning appeared.

Facing it, Black Castorice stepped on air, swinging her scythe to tear space. A purple death dragon emerged, gathering death power.

The deathly breath became a dark purple cannon, roaring forth.

The golden dragon also breathed lightning-flame breath, the beams clashing and creating a huge energy storm.

"Not good, the teachers can't hold on!" Tang San saw the golden breath failing before the death dragon's.

If it hit, everyone would die.

"Martial soul Avatar!"

Zhao Wuji, sensing danger, transformed into the Giant Bear, leaping at Black Castorice.

But suddenly, icy cold filled the air—a crystalline ice mirror appeared near Zhao Wuji.

Black March 7th stepped out from the mirror, right behind Zhao Wuji.

Sensing danger, Zhao Wuji was terrified.

Black March 7th now wielded two ice swords, sword intent freezing everything.

Her swordsmanship, close to Jingliu, drew Sword Douluo's attention.

Compared to Lu Jingming, March 7th's sword intent, able to freeze all and cut stars, was even closer to Jingliu.

Her "Star-Cutting Universe—Great Glazed Sword" was learned from Jingliu, and though lazy in practice, with her talent she was now proficient.

The star-shattering sword intent, mixed with black-red destruction, bore down.

Though a copy, Black March 7th's sword intent was more extreme and destructive.

The sword light split the air, clashing with the rules of the world, erupting in black-red lightning.

Zhao Wuji barely managed to guard his chest, turning to meet the fatal blow.

The Vigorous Vajra Bear was famed for defense, and Zhao Wuji was called the Immovable King.

But at the same level as Soul Sage, with this sword containing Jingliu's essence, he couldn't block it.

With a terrifying sound, Zhao Wuji was sent flying, blood spraying.

He flew straight toward Black Castorice.

Shlick!

The deathly purple scythe pierced his chest.

Zhao Wuji stared wide-eyed at the scythe, feeling his life and soul being devoured by death power.

"Teacher Zhao!" Tang San and the others screamed in grief.

Ning Rongrong, Zhu Zhuqing, Xiao Wu, and the girls covered their mouths, weeping.

Roar!

Flender and the trio, fused as the golden dragon, were enraged by this.

Their anger boosted them, and the golden breath surged, barely holding back the death dragon's breath.

Black Castorice, expressionless, flicked the scythe, and Zhao Wuji's body fell.

As his martial soul avatar faded, he crashed to the ground.

"Teacher Zhao!" Dai Mubai and the others rushed but were met by Black March 7th's merciless slash.

A black-red sword energy ripped the earth, slashing at Shrek's group.

"Not good, Rongrong!" Ning Fengzhi cried out.

Sword Douluo, distracted, was struck by Black Lu Jingming's lightning Stigmata, forming an electromagnetic acceleration field.

The black spear, accelerated, became a meteor and hit Sword Douluo.

The terrifying force, plus high-voltage lightning, far exceeded his expectations.

The railgun sent Sword Douluo flying for thousands of meters until he crashed into a mountain, causing a mushroom cloud.

"Go!" Seeing the carnage, everyone fled with their surviving students.

As the deadly sword energy neared Shrek, Tang San and others tried desperately to block it.

But all their skills—fire, vines, light—were shredded like paper.

Despair appeared on their faces.

At the last moment, Xiao Wu stepped in front of everyone.

Her fourth soul ring glowed, golden light enveloping her, and Invincible Golden Body activated.

Boom!

She blocked the sword energy with her glowing hands; black-red lightning exploded.

The Invincible Golden Body gave her three seconds of immunity, barely enough to block.

"No, Xiao Wu!" Tang San paled, shouting.

He knew Invincible Golden Body cost huge soul power, and as a Soul Ancestor, Xiao Wu couldn't last three seconds against that sword energy.

Indeed, as she blocked, her soul power drained rapidly, the golden light dimming.

Within a second, it was about to shatter.

Xiao Wu's face grew paler.

Soon, she'd be cleaved in two, and the others shredded.

At this critical moment, a dark-gold hammer smashed the black-red sword energy, saving Xiao Wu and Tang San's group.

"That's...? The Clear Sky Hammer—Father!" Tang San was overjoyed.

He already knew from Tai Tan that Tang Hao was his father, so recognized the hammer instantly.

"Xiao San, take your friends and run!"

A slovenly man with a beard, holding the giant black hammer, looked warily at Black March 7th and Black Castorice.

Though a level 95 peak Douluo with a 100,000-year ring, Tang Hao was badly wounded from his fight with Qian Xunji and years of drinking.

Right now, even Sword Douluo would be hard to beat—facing Black March 7th and Black Castorice, he dared not relax.

"Clear Sky Avatar!" Tang Hao instantly summoned his avatar.

A humanoid phantom wielded the massive hammer, spreading the Deathgod Domain, dark gold and blood red covering the sky.

The giant hammer fell, stirring a storm, the pressure making space tremble.

Chapter 198: Holy Spear Reversal!

Facing Tang Hao's Clear Sky Avatar, Black March 7th's expression was cold, her swords raised, sword intent tearing space. The cold of Six-Phase Ice spread, freezing space and momentarily halting Tang Hao.

At the same time, Black Lu Jingming, after blasting Sword Douluo with his railgun, conjured his Black Abyss spear.

In his right hand appeared a white lance, six blood-red rings with green divine patterns entwined, radiating life energy.

"Twin Martial Souls!" Everyone gasped, shocked.

Xue Qinghe and Xue Ke looked at Lu Jingming in disbelief.

Lu Jingming's mouth twitched—Black Lu Jingming was acting decisively, about to use martial soul Fusion Skill.

His Black Abyss White Flower had a 100% fusion rate, so this skill's power would be unimaginable.

Just like the Golden Triangle—99% fusion rate, but two Soul Sages plus Yu Xiaogang could rival Titled Douluo.

Now, a Soul Sage–level Black Lu Jingming would use self-fusion; if he unleashed the Holy Spear Reversal, no one could escape.

Black Abyss White Flower's Holy Spear Reversal could precisely lock onto any target at a distance, and its withering power could erase them completely.

This was Lu Jingming's current strongest move—a sure-kill technique!

"Careful, I have self-fusion—if he uses it, no one can block it!" Lu Jingming warned.

He couldn't tell who Black Lu Jingming's target would be; if it was them, he could only protect himself—Xue Qinghe, Xue Ke, and Ning Fengzhi would likely die.

Everyone knew how terrifying fusion skills were.

"Uncle Sword, Uncle Bone, Poison Douluo, Clear Sky Douluo—careful, it's a martial soul fusion skill!"

Hearing Lu Jingming's reminder, Ning Fengzhi shouted in alarm.

Everyone froze, turning to Black Lu Jingming, holding black and white holy spears.

It was two different martial souls, each with unique rings—definitely Twin Martial Souls.

Yet no one had heard of Twin Martial Souls using fusion skills.

"I am the devouring black, I am the nurturing white, born before creation, existing after annihilation."

Black Lu Jingming raised the spears; with icy words, the two merged into the complete Black Abyss White Flower.

The chilling incantation made everyone shiver.

Not only did this negative-energy copy speak for the first time, but the withering power exuded was like facing death itself.

"Holy Spear Reversal!"

With those cold words, a devouring black light locked onto the most prominent figure—Tang Hao.

After all, he was using his avatar, brandishing the giant hammer, making him an obvious target.

Locked on, Tang Hao felt a flood of death crisis—there was nowhere to hide.

Even if he abandoned Tang San and tried to run, he couldn't escape the shadow of death.

In such a desperate moment, Tang Hao's face twisted. Unable to dodge, he chose to face it.

"Great Sumeru Hammer, Ring Explosion!"

Tang Hao roared, detonating his first ring. Massive soul power surged, making the hammer even more fearsome, now crackling with thunder.

The devouring black light tore through space, everything in its path vanishing.

It reached Tang Hao in a blink.

Muscles taut, old wounds reopened, blood trickled from his mouth, but he had no time to care—he swung the hammer with all his might.

Boom!

The black light and hammer clashed, freezing time and space for a heartbeat.

But in the next instant, a deafening explosion split the sky, even the clouds divided.

The withering black light kept erasing the hammer's power.

Sensing this, Tang Hao detonated his second, third, and fourth rings in sequence, using Ring Explosion to keep up.

The Great Sumeru Hammer was a godly technique, and Ring Explosion could let the user vastly exceed their normal power for a short time.

Tang Hao had once relied on it to escape from Qian Daoliu.

Now, facing the fusion skill, he had no choice but to use it again.

Though he'd be left extremely weak, if he didn't, he'd die.

If killed by a Soul Sage's fusion skill, his reputation would be ruined.

So he didn't hesitate.

Though wounded, as a level 95 peak Douluo, with Ring Explosion, he finally managed to block Holy Spear Reversal.

"Father, careful!"

Tang Hao had just blocked the attack with five exploded rings when Tang San's terrified cry sounded.

He tried to explode his sixth ring, but a graceful, chilly figure—Black Castorice—appeared before him.

Her fifth ring shone, deathly power gathering in her gorgeous purple scythe.

Fifth skill: "Phantom Butterfly's Caress"—death power condensed in the blade, fatal on contact.

A flash, purple butterflies fluttered, and blood splattered.

Tang Hao barely avoided a fatal blow with Ring Explosion, but his chest was still sliced deeply.

Terrifying death power invaded, impossible to expel.

Boom!

Tang Hao, enraged, swung the hammer, shattering the air and blasting Black Castorice away.

"Go!"

Tang Hao grabbed Tang San and Xiao Wu, fleeing desperately.

The golden dragon grabbed Dai Mubai and others, flying from the valley.

"Time Freeze!" Dugu Bo, seeing the chance, used his eighth skill again, freezing Black Jinhsi and rushing to lead his group away.

Sword Douluo, battered by Black Lu Jingming's railgun, struck at Black Gu Yue and Black Firefly to force them back, letting Bone Douluo warp back to Ning Fengzhi.

"Fengzhi, let's go!"

Bone Douluo, burned all over, waved his hand, warping the group away.

Sword Douluo, after a delaying strike, turned into sword light and retreated at top speed.

Meng Shenji saved Bai Baoshan, fleeing as well.

Black March 7th fired one last arrow, but it was blocked by Zhi Lin's vine dragon.

Most strong fighters managed to escape, leaving only a few unlucky souls behind.

In moments, the contamination point core was deserted except for a dozen corpses.

Most were lower-level Soul Emperors, but some, like Soul Sage Zhao Wuji, were unlucky too.

Once everyone escaped, they fled for dozens of kilometers before stopping.

They were all terrified by the negative-energy monsters at this point.

After resting, they recovered from their panic.

Seeing fewer than a hundred left from over a hundred at the start, all battered, everyone was still in shock.

Their confidence at the start was now a stark contrast to their current state.

If not for the Titled Douluo taking most of the fire, none of them would have survived.

"Uncle Sword, Uncle Bone, are you okay?"

Ning Fengzhi looked worriedly at Sword and Bone Douluo.

"We're fine, just minor injuries. We were careless this time!"

They shook their heads, faces ugly.

Though not seriously injured, this experience felt like a dream.

As a level 95 and 97 peak Douluo, with Ning Fengzhi's buffs, being suppressed by a group of Soul Sages was unbelievable!

Lu Jingming shook his head as well.

He knew that without Black Robin's help, Sword and Bone Douluo should have been able to clear this point with ease.

After all, Black Firefly and others, even if strong, were only Soul Emperor level, at best able to fight Titled Douluo.

But with Black Robin's boost, everyone advanced to Soul Sage, and the situation changed.

In the soul master system, Soul Sage was a critical threshold.

Only by breaking through to Soul Sage could one be considered an advanced soul master, and a force needed a Soul Sage to be considered advanced.

So, the strength leap from Soul Emperor to Soul Sage was enormous.

Soul Emperor–level Black Firefly and others could barely fight Titled Douluo.

But as Soul Sages, they could now suppress Titled Douluo, and even several together could suppress a peak Douluo.

So, seeing Black Robin, Lu Jingming knew Sword Douluo and others would suffer.

Events played out exactly as he predicted.

Tang Hao's appearance was also within his expectations. With Black Robin's boost, there were six Titled Douluo–level copies.

His own copy blocked Sword Douluo; Black Jinhsi pinned Dugu Bo; Black Firefly and Black Gu Yue trapped Bone Douluo.

That left Black March 7th and Black Castorice with only the Golden Triangle able to stop them.

So, Tang Hao, hiding to protect Tang San, was inevitably forced out.

That Tang Hao could block Black Abyss White Flower's Holy Spear Reversal surprised Lu Jingming.

The Ring Explosion was indeed mighty—it let Tang San fight Qian Renxue as a god, and Tang Hao used it to block Holy Spear Reversal.

But Tang Hao was hit by Black Castorice's fifth skill; he was doomed, only a matter of time.

Given Tang Hao's state, how long he could last was unknown.

In this world, only Lu Jingming or Castorice, or a god, could save Tang Hao from the death power.

Castorice wasn't in this world, and Lu Jingming felt little for Tang Hao, so he wouldn't save him.

As for gods, they wouldn't intervene.

So Tang Hao was almost certainly doomed—the death power would gradually consume his life until he died.

…

"Father!" Tang San supported Tang Hao, staring at the deadly wound on his chest, deeply worried.

He sent soul power into Tang Hao, shocked to find the death power devouring both life and soul power.

"It's fine, Xiao San, I can hold it back!" Tang Hao knew his own injuries but showed no fear.

For him, death might be relief—a way to join Ah Yin.

His only worry was Tang San and the Clear Sky Sect.

He felt he'd let the sect and his father down, making him unworthy.

He couldn't avenge himself on Spirit Hall; this was his regret.

If not for Tang San, he might have wasted away already.

Now, even if he didn't want to see Ah Yin, he had no choice.

"Dean Flender, what about Teacher Zhao?" Meanwhile, Ning Rongrong and others thought of Zhao Wuji.

"Sigh, it's all my fault." Flender closed his eyes in pain.

If he hadn't brought them here for treasure, Zhao Wuji wouldn't have died—he was deeply remorseful.

Oscar and the others were also heartbroken; the atmosphere was heavy.

…

"Uncle Feng, Uncle Huo, can Aunt be saved?" On another side, Huo Lin and Feng Ying had brought Shui Minger out.

Now, Shui Minger was sealed in ice by Shui Bing'er.

Unlike the negative energy copies, she had a real body.

After leaving the contamination point, the negative energy around her faded, but her body remained.

"I can sense her soul trapped in her body by negative energy, which is good news. But her heart is shattered and her body is dead; once the negative energy fades, her soul will vanish too."

Meng Shenji, as a spiritual Douluo, checked her carefully, surprised by this unusual state, but could do nothing.

"Ye Lingling, come see if you can heal her!" Though he had little hope, Meng Shenji wouldn't ignore someone in need.

He called Ye Lingling over.

"Eh, me?" Ye Lingling hesitated.

She was only a Soul Elder, and this was a tough task.

"It's fine, just try—we're all here!" Dugu Yan comforted her.

If Ye Lingling could save Shui Minger, it'd be a great favor.

Even if she failed, no harm done—this was just a desperate attempt.

"Alright." Ye Lingling nodded, walked to Shui Minger, and sighed.

With her two yellow and one purple rings, she summoned her beautiful pink-white begonia flower.

Her healing light fell on Shui Minger.

Everyone saw her minor wounds heal quickly.

But, sadly, the fatal chest wound remained unchanged.

The Nine-Heart Begonia was powerful, but with only one skill.

Ye Lingling's cultivation was too low to regrow limbs, let alone a heart.

If she were a Titled Douluo, maybe there'd be a hope.

But Shui Minger didn't have that much time, and even a Soul Sage couldn't regrow her heart.

PS: Since Tang San was playing god and messing around in Jingming's timeline, he was now doing the same to Tang San's era. lmao