Du Busi was embedded into the wall, bleeding from all seven orifices. The extreme ice power within the Emperor's Palm had inflicted heavy internal injuries upon him. If it weren't for his extraordinarily tough body, any other slightly weaker Super Douluo would have either fallen unconscious or died on the spot from that strike.
That was the terrifying might of Emperor's Palm, which required direct contact to take effect. Once hit, there was no escape—one could only endure its full destructive force.
While Du Busi struggled to catch his breath in the distance, Xue Di didn't waste time. She brought her two fingers together and slashed downward at the fallen members of the Body Sect.
In that instant, countless white sword auras exploded forth, shredding every remaining black-cloaked figure—whether dead or alive—into pieces.
Jing Hongchen, behind her, was drenched in cold sweat. Even he would have no hope of survival under that sword aura if not protected by an invincible barrier.
What baffled and relieved him at the same time was—Xue Di… why hadn't she targeted anyone from Mingde Hall?
Under the might of her Emperor's Sword, not even Soul Saints, Soul Douluos, or Titled Douluos would stand a chance. Death was inevitable.
Just as Du Busi managed to recover, he saw this and spat out a mouthful of blood in rage. He had brought over half of the Body Sect's core strength for this assault—and now, it was all gone.
Furious and ready to fight Xue Di to the death, he was interrupted by three figures clad in robes of the Hall of Consecration appearing on the scene.
At their head, Ye Yulin shivered slightly upon sensing the lingering chill in the air. His brows knitted as he surveyed the ruined Mingde Hall, then quickly noticed the unconscious Jing Hongchen and rushed over with two other Rank 9 soul engineers.
"My old friend, are you alright?"
Jing Hongchen responded with a quiet gesture. He pointed toward the white figure still hovering in mid-air.
Ye Yulin looked up and immediately jumped in fright.
"Th-this isn't a Body Sect attack anymore… where did this beast-level powerhouse come from!?"
Glancing at the frozen or unconscious researchers from Mingde Hall, Ye Yulin quickly understood what needed to be done. He ordered the two Rank 9 soul engineers to evacuate the valuable researchers from the danger zone at once.
Sensing the activity behind her, Xue Di didn't react. Her cold gaze remained fixed on the furious Du Busi, who was launching a punch at her.
The calm reaction from Xue Di helped both Jing Hongchen and Ye Yulin breathe a sigh of relief.
Facing Du Busi's powerful punch, Xue Di showed no fear. Ice condensed around her own fist as she met his attack head-on.
The clash of fists unleashed a deafening boom. Several of Mingde Hall's ground-level research facilities were reduced to rubble in the shockwave.
The earlier Emperor's Palm had drained much of Xue Di's temporarily restored power—she couldn't unleash it again.
Still, her ice-infused punch was far from weak. Though she merely drifted back and stabilized herself after taking Du Busi's attack, the already-weakened Du Busi was once again sent flying in disgrace.
His body stiffened from the chilling energy washing over him. Glaring at Xue Di and the newly arrived reinforcements, Du Busi finally cooled his head. No matter how much he'd lost, he wasn't getting it back now. If he stayed, even his life as the Body Sect's master could be forfeit.
Xue Di didn't pursue. Her peak state would fade soon, and a 98th-rank Super Douluo wasn't so easy to kill. If Du Busi tried to self-detonate, it could even endanger Huo Yuhao.
"Just you wait!"
Snarling, Du Busi vanished like a fleeing rodent into the underground tunnel dug by the Body Sect.
Neither Jing Hongchen nor Ye Yulin made any move to chase him. First, because Xue Di was still there; second, because the Body Sect had already paid a steep enough price. If pushed too far, who knew what chaos Du Busi might unleash in Mingdu?
When Xue Di slowly turned and cast her icy gaze toward them, Jing Hongchen and Ye Yulin both shivered.
Jing Hongchen broke out in a cold sweat. He had insulted her quite a bit when speaking over that God-bestowal Platform.
"Humans… next time, be more mindful."
Leaving just those words, Xue Di's figure vanished.
Jing Hongchen stood frozen. Had she really… let them go?
He released his spiritual sense—her presence had indeed disappeared.
"Old friend… that was…"
Ye Yulin still had lingering fear in his voice. Just looking into her eyes had made his heart skip a beat.
"Yes. That was none other than the leader of the Three Great Kings of the Extreme North—Xue Di. Old Ye, surviving today… is nothing short of a miracle."
"She's really gone?"
"She must be. If she wanted to stay, there would've been no reason to pretend."
Jing Hongchen slowly stood up with a long sigh.
He and Ye Yulin exchanged a look and remained silent for a long moment.
All Jing Hongchen felt now was the joy of surviving the catastrophe. The soul beast escaped? His plan to give his grandson a second martial soul was ruined?
Forget a second martial soul—if he had known that the embryo inside the platform was Xue Di, he wouldn't have dared let either of his grandchildren near it. Absorbing a seventy-thousand-year soul ring? That wasn't something you just tried because you wanted to.
'To forge a mighty vessel, one must endure a heavy burden. But a seventy-thousand-year soul ring isn't something that can be casually absorbed.'
"Let's first assess the casualties and damages."
"You're right."
Back in the control room, Huo Yuhao had witnessed everything via the monitor.
Now, he finally felt relieved. Du Busi was wounded and forced to flee. The Body Sect forces had been annihilated.
"Looks like it's over. Teacher Xuan, I'll head over to Mingde Hall and take a look."
Xuan Ziwen nodded stiffly. The clash of titans had left quite the impression on the soul tool fanatic—it even gave him new inspiration for designing soul tools.
Huo Yuhao arrived at the spot where he had agreed to meet Xue Di and saw her standing there, wearing a satisfied smile.
"Let me back in, Yuhao. That felt amazing."
Huo Yuhao sweatdropped. The way she phrased that sounded… questionable. Still, he helped the 'kill-happy' Xue Di return to his spiritual sea. At that moment, he felt his Life Origin Power begin to return.
Aside from that, he noticed something else—a peculiar new presence had entered his memories.
"Yuhao, you've now witnessed the power of my signature soul skills—Emperor's Palm, Emperor's Sword, and Emperor's Frozen Sky. These are all self-created abilities. I've passed my insights about them onto you. While you won't be able to master them without my personal instruction, the understanding you've gained will make it easier to learn them in the future."
(End of Chapter)
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