Lin Mo also charged into the swarm of Void monsters with his sword drawn. Faint golden soul power coated his blade; with every swing, he could slay several of the smaller creatures. His swordplay was fierce and precise. Coupled with Qian Renxue's Angelic power, he quickly cleared out an entire sector, significantly relieving the pressure on the reinforcement team.
Qian Renxue maintained the golden dome, but her internal energy was draining rapidly, and her face grew increasingly pale. She knew that while the dome was highly effective at countering the Void monsters, the consumption of her Angelic power was far too great. In her current state, she wouldn't be able to hold it for long. Furthermore, she could sense that even more powerful enemies had yet to emerge from the rift. Once that power descended, everyone here would be in grave peril.
"Everyone, pick up the pace! Try to wipe out the monsters in front of us! I won't be able to keep this dome up for much longer!" Qian Renxue shouted to the crowd. Her voice carried a hint of exhaustion, but it remained as resolute as ever.
Hearing her words, the Soul Masters immediately increased their offensive tempo. Zhao Feng led the most capable members to specifically target the Soul Douluo-level giant Void monsters. Lin Mo led the rest of the team in clearing out the smaller creatures, while the medical Soul Masters at the rear worked frantically to patch up the wounded. The entire battlefield devolved into a fierce, desperate melee.
Just as they were on the verge of wiping out the remaining monsters in their immediate vicinity, a deafening roar echoed from within the rift. A terrifying aura—several times more powerful than the Void Lord they had faced earlier—surged out. The ground shook violently, and the grayish-white mist grew so dense that it began to condense into physical matter, forming black tornadoes that swept toward them.
"Damn it, a stronger enemy is here!" Qian Renxue's face drastically changed. She instantly pushed her Angelic power to its absolute limit, reinforcing the golden dome to block the onslaught of the black tornadoes. But this time, the force behind the tornadoes was simply too great. The golden dome shook violently, and deep cracks began to spread across its surface. It looked ready to shatter at any moment.
Everyone looked up. A colossal figure slowly emerged from the rift. It stood over a dozen metres tall, its entire body encased in black armor. Bizarre, eerie runes covered the armor, radiating a dense Void aura. Its head lacked any facial features; instead, it was just a swirling mass of black mist. In its hand, it wielded a massive black war blade. Black venom dripped from the blade, and every drop that hit the ground corroded a massive crater into the earth.
"That's a Void Commander!" Qian Renxue's voice was heavy with dread. She had read records of Void Commanders in ancient texts. They were the core guardians of Void power. Their strength far surpassed that of a Void Lord, reaching the Title Douluo level. They could manipulate vast quantities of Void energy and even manifest a Void Domain. Their power was genuinely terrifying.
After stepping out of the rift, the Void Commander came to a halt. The swirling black mist that served as its head slowly rotated, as if scanning the crowd. Then, it released a low, guttural roar filled with chilling killing intent, as if it intended to devour them all.
"Everyone, fall back immediately! Form a defensive line! Do not engage it directly!" Zhao Feng bellowed his orders. His soul power skyrocketed, pushing him to the absolute peak of the Soul Douluo stage. A dense layer of soul power coated his battle axe as he prepared to meet the Void Commander's attack.
Qian Renxue slowly closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She forced out the very last wisp of Angelic source power from the jade pendant. Although her internal Angelic power remained faint, it became unimaginably pure. She knew that to defeat a Void Commander, they had to rely entirely on the Angelic power's natural suppression of the Void. Otherwise, no one here stood a chance.
"Lin Mo, take a few members and focus on distracting it! Keep it moving! Zhao Feng, take the rest and wipe out the remaining small Void monsters—don't let them interfere with our fight!" Qian Renxue opened her eyes, her gaze resolute. She had already steeled herself to go all out. Even if it cost her life, she had to stop the Void Commander from expanding the rift and prevent the Void from eroding this land any further.
"Yes!" Lin Mo and Zhao Feng shouted in unison, immediately moving into their assigned roles. Lin Mo led three of the strongest Soul Masters, armed with soul tools, and charged toward the Void Commander. They didn't recklessly launch a direct assault; instead, they continuously circled the behemoth, looking for an opening. Zhao Feng led the remaining members to swiftly mop up the straggling Void monsters, carving out a safe battlefield for Qian Renxue.
Annoyed by Lin Mo's squad darting around it, the Void Commander let out an angry roar. It violently swung its massive black war blade, sending a colossal blade aura of black energy slashing toward them. The black blade aura carried a dense Void miasma; in its wake, the very air was corroded, leaving a deep, ravaged trench in the earth.
"Dodge!" Lin Mo yelled, leading his three team members in a frantic evasion. The black blade aura grazed past them and slammed into a small hill in the distance. The hill was instantly corroded into nothingness, reduced to a pile of ruins.
"What terrifying power!" Lin Mo's heart jolted. He could clearly sense that the power behind that single blade aura had reached the Title Douluo level. Even if he went all out, he wouldn't be able to block it head-on.
Seizing the moment when the Void Commander was focused on attacking Lin Mo's squad, Qian Renxue slowly floated into the air. She channeled every ounce of her Angelic power into her hands. The golden light grew blindingly bright, condensing into a massive golden blade of light. The blade radiated a sacred aura capable of effortlessly purifying Void energy. "Void Commander, your time is up!" Qian Renxue shouted, bringing the golden blade of light crashing down upon the creature.
Sensing the lethal threat of the golden blade, the Void Commander let out a furious shriek and swung its black war blade once more. An even larger black blade aura surged upward to meet the golden blade head-on.
The golden blade of light and the black blade aura collided. A deafening explosion rocked the battlefield as golden radiance and black Void energy intertwined and clashed, dyeing the entire sky in two contrasting colors. A powerful shockwave rippled outward in all directions. Lin Mo's squad, Zhao Feng's team—everyone was sent stumbling backward by the sheer force. Several Soul Masters coughed up mouthfuls of blood.
Qian Renxue was knocked out of the sky by the shockwave. She vomited a mouthful of golden blood. Her Angelic power was almost completely dry, leaving her face as pale as paper. But she didn't give up. Forcing herself to her feet, she once again circulated the pitiful dregs of her soul power, desperately trying to gather more Angelic energy.
The Void Commander hadn't escaped unscathed either. The golden blade of light had inflicted significant damage; a deep crack had appeared in its black armor, and the Void energy within its body fluctuated wildly. Driven into a berserk frenzy, it shrieked and charged blindly at Qian Renxue. It raised its massive black war blade high, preparing to cleave her in two with a single strike.
"Xue Yan, look out!" Lin Mo screamed. Disregarding his own safety, he threw himself into the air, positioning himself right in front of Qian Renxue. He condensed every last scrap of his soul power into his long sword and thrust it at the descending black war blade.
Clang!
Long sword and black war blade collided. The long sword snapped instantly upon impact. Lin Mo was sent flying by the sheer force of the blow. He vomited blood, crashed heavily to the ground, and lost all ability to fight.
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