The bell's resonance still trembled in the air as two figures collided like falling stars!
"BOOM!"
Han Yu's sword finger clashed head-on with Fan Lie's fist, which contained the power to shatter mountains and split rocks!
The explosion was deafening!
Violent shockwaves rippled outward from the two combatants, slamming violently against the arena's barrier.
The light barrier shook intensely.
In a single exchange, both figures swayed, sliding backward several steps each!
They were evenly matched!
Han Yu's eyes were cold as his sword finger shifted.
Condensed, almost tangible sword energy materialized from thin air, shooting toward Fan Lie like a violent storm!
The angles were treacherous, sealing off all his evasion paths.
This was his specialty—precision strikes.
Fan Lie laughed wildly, neither dodging nor evading.
His fists flew like wind, their power mighty and unmatched!
He actually shattered those fierce sword energies one by one!
His fist technique was open and grand, full of the beauty of raw power.
Each punch seemed capable of shaking mountains, forcing Han Yu to constantly change positions, using skill to overcome strength.
"BANG BANG BANG!"
"CLANG CLANG CLANG!"
Sword energy and fist power constantly collided and exploded!
The arena was filled with flashing lights and continuous sonic booms.
The two fought at incredible speed—in the blink of an eye, they had already exchanged nearly a hundred moves!
So fast that many cultivators below could only see blurred afterimages and constantly erupting energy bursts.
Evenly matched!
Whether in strength, speed, or timing, they seemed to be on equal footing—neither could overcome the other.
"As expected of the Law Enforcement Elder! His sword technique is so precise!"
"That Fan Lie is also incredibly formidable! His fists are practically as hard as spirit treasures!"
"Looks like this will be a prolonged battle!"
The audience below buzzed with discussion, captivated by this high-level duel.
However, on the high platform, Xiao Chen, Jiang Che, and others furrowed their brows slightly.
They could sense that within Fan Lie's fist power, there seemed to be hidden an extremely obscure yet unsettling aura.
In the arena, Fan Lie grew impatient after failing to gain the upper hand.
A sinister glint flashed in his eyes.
He suddenly changed tactics—his fist power retracted as he pressed his palms together, then thrust them violently forward!
A grayish-black, twisted and bizarre torrent of energy gushed from his palms like a breached underworld river, surging straight toward Han Yu!
This energy was not pure spiritual power.
It carried a disturbing aura that made one irritable, agitated, and prone to rage.
It was as if it had condensed all the world's malice and curses!
"Tribulation Power?!"
On the high platform, Xiao Chen's expression changed.
He recognized it immediately—this was precisely the strange power that cultivators from the Upper Realm could wield after being affected by the Great Tribulation!
Han Yu also sensed the strangeness and danger of this grayish-black energy.
He didn't dare be careless.
With a low shout, several thick layers of "Heaven-Defying Sword" sword energy barriers instantly condensed before him!
"BOOM—!"
The grayish-black tribulation power slammed into the sword energy barriers!
There was no violent explosion as expected.
Instead, the tribulation power clung like a parasite, rapidly eroding and penetrating the brilliant sword energy!
The sword energy visibly dimmed and decayed, making a teeth-grinding "sizzling" sound!
Han Yu grunted, feeling a cold, malicious aura full of temptation and destruction flooding into his body through the connection between the sword energy and himself!
Even more terrifying, this external force acted like a key, instantly igniting certain thoughts he had forcibly suppressed deep within his heart!
Fan Lie's earlier words echoed madly in his mind like demonic whispers—
"He stole the heaven-defying opportunity that should have belonged to you..."
"Without him, you could have escaped the demon master's clutches on your own..."
"Han the Immortal Venerable... should have been you..."
"The Reincarnation Mirror... seeing the future..."
"Pitiful... laughable... tragic..."
"He's using you..."
These words, which he had originally dismissed with firm willpower, now became incredibly clear and incredibly seductive under the amplification and catalysis of that strange tribulation power!
Countless thoughts of anger, doubt, and resentment grew wildly like weeds!
'Could it be... what he said... is true?'
'Master saving me... was it really just a coincidence?'
'The Immortal Gourd... could I really not have escaped on my own?'
'Immortal Venerable... the future...'
'Is he... really using me? Using all of us?'
Once these dark thoughts arose, they could no longer be contained.
They spread rapidly throughout his entire consciousness like a virus!
His dao heart instantly wavered, and his spiritual power became sluggish and chaotic!
"PUFF!"
Han Yu lost control of his mind.
The sword energy resisting the tribulation power instantly collapsed.
The remaining tribulation power slammed into him viciously.
His face went pale as he spat out a mouthful of blood, stumbling backward.
"Hahaha!"
Seeing this, Fan Lie laughed triumphantly.
His attacks didn't pause—he pursued like a parasite, his fists and palms still containing that maddening tribulation power!
"Do you understand now, Han Yu?!"
Fan Lie continued to provoke him with words while attacking wildly.
"This is the truth! Your master saved you only because he saw your potential and that Immortal Gourd!"
"He stole your destiny! And you, like a fool, are grateful to him! Becoming an obstacle to our Upper Realm's grand plans!"
"Angry? Resentful? That's right! These are the emotions you should have!"
"Surrender to this anger! This is reality!"
Han Yu felt his head was about to split open.
In his mind, two thoughts battled madly.
On one side was his trust in his sect and the warmth of the past.
On the other was infinitely magnified doubt and rage.
His sword techniques became scattered, his defense full of holes.
He could only rely on instinct and deep cultivation to barely defend, sustaining several more wounds and appearing utterly wretched.
Fan Lie grew more excited as he fought.
His eyes flashed with the sinister smile of a successful scheme.
His earlier psychological attacks had never been about convincing Han Yu in that moment.
They were for this very instant!
To plant a seed of doubt in his heart, then use tribulation power as a catalyst to grow it into a towering tree.
Finally, to completely shatter his will to fight—even his dao heart—from within!
This was his true killing move!
Han Yu retreated step by step, his mind scattered.
Defeat seemed certain.
Below, the supporters of the Immortal Holy Land had their hearts in their throats, filled with worry and confusion.
They couldn't understand why Elder Han, who had been as cold and calm as ice before, was suddenly acting so abnormally!
On the high platform, Xiao Chen and the others had extremely grave expressions.
They could guess that the opponent had used some sinister method to affect Han Yu's mind.
But according to arena rules, outsiders couldn't intervene.
Fan Lie seemed to see victory waving at him.
His attacks grew even more ferocious, determined to completely crush Han Yu!
"It's over, Han Yu! Accept your destiny!"
...
"Stole the heaven-defying opportunity that should have been yours..."
"Without him, you could have escaped..."
"Han the Immortal Venerable... should have been you..."
"The Reincarnation Mirror... seeing the future..."
"Pitiful... laughable... tragic..."
"He's using you..."
These words, originally dismissed by his firm will, now became incomparably clear and seductive under the tribulation power's amplification!
Countless dark thoughts grew wildly like weeds!
'Could it be... what he said... is true?'
'Master saving me... was it really just a coincidence?'
'The Immortal Gourd... could I really not have escaped on my own?'
'Immortal Venerable... the future...'
'Is he... really using me? Using all of us?'
These dark thoughts, once arisen, could no longer be contained!
They spread like a virus throughout his entire consciousness!
His dao heart instantly wavered!
His spiritual power became sluggish and chaotic!
"PUFF!"
Han Yu's mind lost control.
The sword energy defending against tribulation power instantly collapsed!
The remaining tribulation power slammed into him!
His face pale, he spat blood and stumbled backward!
"Hahaha!"
Fan Lie laughed triumphantly!
His attacks never paused—clinging like a parasite, his fists and palms still carried that maddening tribulation power!
"Do you understand now, Han Yu?!"
Fan Lie attacked while verbally provoking him!
"This is the truth! Your master saved you only because he saw your potential and that Immortal Gourd!"
"He stole your destiny! And you, like a fool, are grateful to him! Becoming an obstacle to our Upper Realm's grand plans!"
"Angry? Resentful? Good! These are the emotions you should have!"
"Surrender to this anger! This is reality!"
Han Yu felt his head was about to split!
In his mind, two thoughts battled madly—trust in his sect and the warmth of the past on one side, infinitely magnified doubt and rage on the other!
His sword techniques became scattered, his defense full of holes!
He could barely defend through instinct and deep cultivation!
More wounds appeared as he grew increasingly wretched!
Fan Lie grew more excited, his eyes flashing with a successful conspirator's smile!
His earlier psychological words were never meant to convince Han Yu in that moment!
They were for now!
To plant a seed of doubt, then use tribulation power to grow it into a towering tree!
To completely shatter his fighting will—his dao heart—from within!
This was his true killing move!
Han Yu retreated step by step, his mind scattered!
Defeat seemed certain!
Below, Immortal Holy Land supporters had their hearts in their throats—worried and confused!
They couldn't understand why Elder Han, usually cold as ice, was suddenly so abnormal!
On the high platform, Xiao Chen and others had grave expressions!
They could guess the opponent had used some sinister method to affect Han Yu's mind!
But arena rules prevented outside intervention!
Fan Lie saw victory beckoning!
His attacks grew more ferocious, determined to completely crush Han Yu!
"It's over! Han Yu! Accept your destiny!"
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