The might of the truly powerful.

Yao Jun threw the thoughts running through his head to the back of his mind, temporarily dismissing them. There was no point in thinking about something he was currently unable to achieve, it was better to spend his time working towards getting stronger, only like that would he be able to achieve all those things.

Yao Jun did not immediately leave the shadows, tapping his chin as he started thinking over what he should do now. Now that the Merged Heaven Clan had come here to aid the Final Fire Clan, it was uncertain whether or not the World Tree Clan army here would be able to continue staying here. But before Yao Jun managed to get anywhere with his thoughts, the sound of space shattering rang out, the shadows he was hiding in trembling fiercely.

A rift opened in front of him, sharp blades of wind flying wildly through the rift and tearing apart the darkness. Yao Jun's heart skipped a beat when he felt the horrifying energy contained within the blades of wind. He hurriedly stepped out of the shadows and teleported through space, vigilantly sweeping the surroundings. And what he saw upon sweeping the surroundings, was pandemonium.

The sky was burning, golden and blue flames, the clouds themselves turning into fire and evaporating all moisture in the surroundings. Tornadoes that stretched from the ground and into the sky were spread all around the area, the blades of wind released by them slicing up the entire valley. The earth had turned white and brittle, just like bone, trees made out of bones stretching towards the sky, the branches piercing everything and turning everything they touched into bone.

But no matter how ferocious the wind, flames, or trees of bones got, there were three things standing high in the sky that they dared not get close to. One was a massive gorilla covered in orange hair, two curved horns decorating the side of its head, two massive tusks growing up from its lower jaw. The second was a spider that was somewhat smaller than the gorilla, it had a violet carapace that looked so soft that it would be shattered by a slight breeze, the mark of a green skull marking the back of the spider.

And the last was a titanic behemoth with the head of a wolf, its body covered in pitch black scales, two massive horns spiraling outwards as they seemingly tried to pierce the heavens. It stood on all four, its limbs ending in massive obsidian claws, a long and thick tail stretched out behind it, ending in what seemed to be a long scythe-like blade. And standing at the head of this behemoth was Diana, who was tightly grasping a massive scythe that seemed like it was made out of the tail belonging to one such behemoth.

Yao Jun was easily able to guess that the spider and gorilla were the two leaders of the Merged Heaven Clan, transforming into more bestial shapes to unleash all the power they could. And the behemoth, that was the Demonic beast Diana had tamed and used as a basis for her law of demons. The sheer might that the three beasts released caused Yao Jun to feel like he was choking, but he was still able to act calmly and think clearly. The three beasts were terrifying, but the energy they radiated was weaker than the energy released by the Crimson Dragon and the Illusory Roc that Yao Jun had seen inside the hidden realm.

The three armies had moved closer to Yao Jun's position, so it seemed like they did not want to be caught up in the battle between the truly powerful people. Yao Jun glanced at the approaching armies, but his eyes quickly returned to the sky, a sigh of awe escaping his lips. This was the might of someone truly powerful, the earth turned to bone and the sky turned to fire, the world itself forced to change to suit their wishes as they fought. While Yao Jun was observing the sky, Diana's emotionless voice rang out, so calm and quiet that it was eerie.

"Grendel, since they wish to see our might, there is no need for them to be allowed to leave. All soldiers, retreat to base!"

The behemoth beneath her, Grendel, let out an earth-shaking roar after Diana spoke out. Its roar caused the flames in the sky to tremble and wane, the white earth to shatter, even space in front of Grendel cracked and collapsed. At this time, Diana was going to show her might and pride as the general that led the World Tree Clan army.

But what Grendel had released was not just a simple roar, as small black holes appeared in the air around the spider and the gorilla, pulling at them and threatening to tear them apart. This was the law that Grendel's race specialized in, the law of gravity. The spider, Elysande, quickly spoke out, her voice still soft, but Yao Jun could detect a hint of nervousness.

"We cannot afford to hold anything back, so unleash everything you have, Hartford."

The gorilla, Hartford, let out a long howl after Elysande spoke, his roar containing a strange power that seemed to send the sound directly into a person's head, disorienting them. But Diana did not even blink, nor did the black holes waver, growing larger and larger as they moved closer towards Elysande and Hartford. At the same time, Isolde and Emeric started fighting against the leaders of the Final Fire Clan, fire clashing with wind and bone as everything around them shattered. Some of the cracks that appeared in the earth even stretched beyond the valley, vanishing far out of sight.

To observe a battle like this, between true behemoths of people, was something that could bring great benefits to one, but Yao Jun was ultimately unable to enjoy it for too long. The soldiers that were doing their best to avoid being caught up in the battle had already reached his position. The soldiers of the World Tree Clan were following Diana's orders, retreating back towards their camp as quickly as they could, the Merged Heaven Clan and the Final Fire Clan armies chasing them.

Had it been just the Final Fire Clan army, it would not have been much of a problem, as the two armies had both only brought out people with similar cultivations. But once the Merged Heaven Clan army was added in, the balance was instantly broken. After all, the Merged Heaven Clan army had immediately brought out everyone, even bringing a few people that had broken through into the Immortal Rebirth realm. And the place the World Tree Clan and the Final Fire Clan had started their battle was quite a distance away from the camps of both armies, so it would take a bit of time for any reinforcements to reach them. Even worse was that some of the soldiers belonging to the Merged Heaven Clan had been positioned so that they blocked the path back to the camp. It was clear that the Merged Heaven Clan had prepared quite a bit for this moment.

Had it not been for the Squad Captains doing their best to keep their squads together, making sure that their formations were kept active, it was likely that the amount of deceased would have already skyrocketed. Some of the soldiers that ran past him glanced at the still-disguised Yao Jun, but as they focused on retreating, they did not bother to stop and introduce themselves. There was, however, one squad that approached Yao Jun, the squad of Azemar. Azemar stopped in front of Yao Jun, ignoring the gazes of the soldiers behind him as he bowed his head.

"I beg of you, please help us push through."

Azemar knew the strength of his own squad, they were unable to pierce through the blockade created by the Merged Heaven Clan. They would be held back and could then only wait to be killed, all of his men dying. To prevent that, he was not above bowing his head and begging someone else for help. Yao Jun only gave Azemar a short glance before nodding his head.

"Ignore everything behind you, focus all your power on Azemar and follow me. We are going to charge forward like a spear and pierce through their defenses."

Yao Jun would have to retreat back to the base anyway, and this squad contained Hamlyn and the others, so there was no reason for him to not help them. The soldiers were a bit confused at what was happening, but as they had seen the might that Yao Jun had unleashed, they did not say anything against his orders. Yao Jun took up position next to Azemar, integrating himself into the formation and sharing part of his Qi with Azemar.

The two exchanged a quick look, Azemar giving a slight nod of his head. The nod was the signal, every other soldier in the squad focusing all their energy onto Azemar, ignoring everything else. As one, the squad started to charge once more, heading directly for the blockade that cut them off from their own camp. Azemar wore a somewhat worried expression, but Yao Jun's eyes were calm as he swept the Merged Heaven Clan soldiers, looking for the best place to breach through, quickly finding it and pointing at it.

"There, that is where we are going to break through."

The place Yao Jun had decided on only contained three soldiers, the rest were busy blocking the other squads that were trying to break through. Luckily for Yao Jun and the others, the Merged Heaven Clan soldiers that formed the blockade had to spread themselves out quite far, so there were places that there were fewer people, and this spot was one of them. Azemar was a bit skeptical when he saw the strength of the three people, but at this point, he could only trust in Yao Jun's decision. As the squad neared the three people, a man with a somewhat chubby body pointed at them, a smile on his face.

"There's our prey boy. It could be better, but we'll take what we can get."

The two other men next to him nodded their heads at the words of the chubby man. They were all getting paid based on how many strong people they killed, so when they were given the duty of blocking the retreating squads, they were all rather dissatisfied, as they would be unable to go hunt down the stronger members of the army. Azemar got more and more nervous as they got closer, as the chubby man had a cultivation that had reached the very peak of the 9th Xiantian Heaven, he might even have broken past it already. The two men next to him only had cultivations at the early stage of the 6th Houtian Sky, so Azemar felt that he would be able to handle them, but the chubby man was far stronger than him. But faced with Azemar's worries, Yao Jun was still perfectly calm, speaking out in a hushed whisper.

"I will deal with the chubby man, focus everything on attack and try to kill the two others as quickly as you can. They don't have a formation, so it shouldn't be too hard for you."

Yao Jun could tell that the chubby man was strong, stronger than Wei Zhong Jun, stronger than Yao Jun himself. Had it been before Yao Jun had broken through in his cultivation before he discovered the marvelous usage of the laws, he would not be confident that he could do anything, he would only be able to flee. But now, facing the enemy in front of him, Yao Jun had confidence.

His confidence came not only from his increased strength but also from what he saw of the enemy in front of him. The chubby man had a sneer on his face as he looked at Yao Jun's squad, his eyes looking like a playful hunter, filled with arrogance. It was a completely normal and well-deserved arrogance, as he was far stronger than anyone within Yao Jun's squad. But it was arrogance that had no home on the battlefield, and Yao Jun was going to take complete advantage of it.

The two groups got within range of each other, so Yao Jun and Azemar dove into action. The soldiers in the squad fueled everything they had into Azemar, who charged at the two weaker soldiers, branches growing out from his body and turning into sharp spears that shot at the two people. The two soldiers moved to block and launch attacks of their own, but Yao Jun's eyes were completely locked on the chubby man, who still held a complacent smile.

Yao Jun took another step forward, the fiery crystals he had stored within his God Gate burning and filling his body with energy. The enemy had broken through to the Immortal Rebirth realm, he was just at the earliest stage, but he was still far stronger than Yao Jun. But that only helped excite Yao Jun further, his thirst for power, for strength, burning like a brilliant flare.

His body vanished into his own shadow, dashing towards the chubby man from within the darkness. The man's eyes narrowed somewhat, a long and thin spine piercing out from his shoulder and landing into his hand, turning into a sword he could use. Yao Jun jumped out from the shadows behind the man, raising his sword. But the lips of the man raised into a despising smile, his body turning around fast as lightning and stabbing out with the spine he held in his hand, aiming directly for Yao Jun's heart.

In his own complacency, he failed to notice the faint curve on Yao Jun's lips. Yao Jun used wind to push his own body half a step to the side, the spine easily piercing through his armor and stabbing into his lung, the tip of the spine poking out through his back, his armor unable to even slow it down. More spikes started to grow out from the spine, turning Yao Jun's left lung into a pincushion, but they were forced to stop when they crashed into his ribs, which had been strengthened by the Crumbling The Nine Heavens technique.

As if he had been expecting the man's actions, Yao Jun let go of his sword the moment the man struck out, Yao Jun's left fist smashing towards the side of the man's head. The man glanced at the fist, raising his free arm to block it. To him, this looked like nothing more than one last strike of desperation, but he still would not let it hit him directly. But even then, the fact that he had not put up any proper defense showed his arrogance, explained his downfall.

Yao Jun's fist clashed with the man's arm, and his attack showed its actual effect. A tiny crack appeared in space, rushing into the man's ear and expanding into a small rift. Even if Yao Jun opened the largest spatial rift he could create, the chubby man would be able to resist it with his high cultivation. This tiny spatial rift only served one purpose, and it did it wonderfully.

A screeching and booming sound rang out directly within the ear of the man, his eardrums immediately shattering as blood poured out from his ear. The sound went directly to his brain, his entire body feeling like it was spinning as he got dizzy. He would only stay dizzy for around half a second, but it was enough time for Yao Jun to finish what he had started.

Yao Jun's right hand reached out and grabbed onto his sword again, while his left hand pointed at the eyes of the man, drawing a thin black line in the air. The thin black line flew forward, slicing into the man's eyes, but it was unable to create a truly deep wound. But the true terror of the line quickly revealed himself, pitch black flames appearing from the edges of the wound, slowly growing larger as horrid pain wracked the man.

Yao Jun never stopped training, never stopped thinking of ways to get stronger. Every second awake was a second he spent working to get stronger, and this line was the result of those seconds. The thoughts behind the attack were simple, since two laws could be fused, what stopped multiple laws from fusing together?

First, he had fused the laws of spatial collapse with the laws of darkness, creating what he called the law of disintegration. Then he had fused that law with the law of fire, creating a pitch black flame that retained the disintegration and ever-growing ability of the disintegration law. And finally, he had fused the resulting flame with the law of spatial slicing, granting it a fierce cutting ability that would make it easier for the flames to reach the insides of his enemy.

But despite the man's face burning with black flames, Yao Jun did not ease up with his attacks. He tightly grasped his sword and struck out four times, each attack striking at the throat of his enemy. He did not send out four normal attacks but used the three techniques he had learned upon carving the three channels of Crumbling The Nine Heavens.

The first attack pierced a hole in the man's throat, the second attack sliced his soul in half, and the third attack, which consisted of two strikes, completely obliterated the man's soul and sliced open half the man's throat. With his soul obliterated and his head halfway to being sliced off, there was no way for him to survive, no matter how strong his vitality was.

Had he simply bothered to put up a proper defense, he would not have died to Yao Jun. But how could he know that Yao Jun was someone who held a God Gate, someone who turned the normal rules of cultivation upside down? Normal people could not fight against others stronger than them, but someone with a God Gate could do it easily. Normal people would find it harder and harder to grow stronger as their cultivation increased, but it would only get easier and easier for Yao Jun to grow stronger. Each Demonic beast he absorbed made him stronger, making it easier to absorb stronger Demonic beasts and grow stronger, forever continuing.

Despite the vast difference in strength, he had managed to take advantage of the enemies arrogance to catch him unaware and kill him, the exhilaration almost making him want to laugh out loud. But the pain from his chest reminded him that it was not without cost. His left lung was filled with holes, his ribs aching and creaking, and there was a hole that went straight through his chest. But he was alive, he had won and he had survived.

He froze the spine that was pierced into him, shattering it into dust and clogging up the holes with a layer of ice to stop himself from bleeding out. He glanced at Azemar, who was just finishing up the last of the two remaining soldiers, their bodies pierced by countless branches that hoisted them into the air. When Azemar glanced at Yao Jun to check if he was alright, his jaw almost dropped when he saw the result. Every time he saw Yao Jun, he would show a strength greater than last time, continuously surprising him.

But now was not the time to stare in awe. They had finished off the soldiers blocking them, so now there was nothing stopping them from rushing back to the camp. The soldiers behind Azemar were a bit pale from giving him so much energy, but they were still able to run. Yao Jun found it a bit hard to run thanks to his pierced lung, so Azemar lent him his shoulder and supported him as the ran back to the camp, meeting up with the incoming reinforcements.