A low rumble echoed across the destroyed camp as Lu Heng, now fully transformed into the monstrous Golden Carnage, towered above all—a lion-like behemoth cloaked in golden fur streaked with crimson patches of dried blood, a mane that billowed like molten banners, claws long, black and etched with glowing golden lines. His amber eyes radiated sadistic glee, his monstrous grin spreading far too wide, filled with jagged fangs made for nothing but slaughter.
Tianhun stood unmoving, his silver-armored form glowing with rising intensity. "A complete transformation," he muttered, voice low. "Rare indeed… especially one that touches the peak of Rank 2." His tone carried no fear—only cold judgment. "I expected one of you to run. Cowards never accept their punishment. But you…" His silver eyes narrowed. "but i guess you weren't as fast as your friend in doing so."
Lu Heng let out a guttural laugh that trembled the earth, the deep echo of it crashing like waves against the shattered ruins of the mine camp.
Tianhun raised his arms.
A silver brilliance exploded around his fists as Fist of Glory awakened—his signature peak-tier Rank 2 technique. The gauntlets etched with archaic runes pulsed with might. From beneath his feet, the cracked earth rippled outward like water struck by lightning.
Then he vanished.
BOOM.
He reappeared mid-air, right above Lu Heng's head, one fist drawn back like a comet ready to fall.
"Midnight Sundering — First Form: Devastating Force!"
His silver fist struck downward.
A shockwave blasted the skies open. Lu Heng snarled, raising a massive claw—but it was too late. The punch connected clean on his temple, sending the Golden Carnage staggering, the ground beneath his feet cratering into a wide basin. Dust and chunks of stone erupted like geysers.
Before Lu Heng could even roar, Tianhun was on him again.
"Second Form: Crushing Eclipse!"
With the twist of his waist and a burst of silver Qi, Tianhun drove both fists into Lu Heng's chest. The impact released a thunderous concussive wave that shattered stone, ripped tents from the ground, and sent minor cultivators flying like leaves in a storm. Lu Heng was launched backward, skidding across the cracked battlefield, smashing through a line of ore carts and steel beams like twigs.
But he didn't stay down.
With a feral roar, Lu Heng surged to his feet, a beast-shaped flame now flickering behind his golden mane. He charged, claws flashing in the sunlight.
CLANG!
Claw met gauntlet.
Silver and gold blurred. The two forces collided again and again—Tianhun's speed and precision against Lu Heng's overwhelming size and destructive power.
Lu Heng lunged, maw wide, fangs snapping—Tianhun spun low, ducking beneath, and delivered a rising uppercut that nearly broke the lion's jaw sideways. Golden blood sprayed, hissing as it hit stone.
But the Carnage didn't flinch. He slammed his tail—coiled like a black whip—against Tianhun's ribs, sending him flying into a cliff wall. The broken mountain cracked from the force.
Then, just as Tianhun pulled himself out, Lu Heng leapt, golden claws streaking downward in a furious arc—
But Tianhun met him mid-air.
"Ironspire Break!"
A mid-tier Rank 2 technique. His gauntlets ignited with silver Qi as he delivered a rising punch that spiraled with compressed power. It collided with Lu Heng's incoming claws—an explosion detonated in the sky.
Lu Heng was blasted away, spinning like a meteor into the far side of the camp, flattening an entire ridge of mining cabins.
Still the beast rose.
Panting, grinning, blood leaking from his fanged mouth.
But Tianhun wasn't done.
He slammed his fists together. The air froze.
"Earth-Weight Pulse!"
His body seemed to double in weight, the Qi pressure pouring out of him now threatening to collapse the mine entrance itself. A heavy silence settled—then he vanished once more.
This time, he appeared behind Lu Heng.
Fists blazed. Runes on the gauntlets glowed bright silver.
"Fist of Glory—Full Drive."
Both fists smashed into Lu Heng's spine.
CRACK.
A ripple of destruction erupted outward.
The Golden Carnage screamed in pain, his body thrown forward, tearing through scaffolding, rock, and metal. Entire chunks of the camp collapsed. Storage buildings exploded into splinters. Massive ore veins shattered. Tunnels collapsed behind them, sending plumes of dust and fire into the sky.
Lu Heng crashed, rolling across what remained of the mine.
He tried to rise, golden claws scraping against rubble—but Tianhun didn't let him.
He struck again.
And again.
And again.
Each blow a hammer of divine retribution. Each strike reducing the battlefield into ruins.
Now, the entire camp was a battlefield of broken stone, twisted beams, and fire.
And at its heart—Lu Heng, the monstrous Golden Carnage, bloodied, battered, breathing hard, pinned under Tianhun's knee, unable to rise.
Tianhun stared down at him, face shadowed beneath the glow of silver light.
"You chose power. Now bear its weight."
Lu Heng Roared as a storm of golden Qi exploded forcing tianhun into retreating.
Lu Heng's beastly frame trembled slightly as he wiped blood from his mouth, his amber eyes gleaming with suppressed rage. "Damned old bastard's still this strong… I can't do anything to him even as a peak-stage Rank 2 beast. Damnit!" he cursed internally. "Running away without the demonic corpse would ruin everything… Sure, I got plenty of information about the Farlands, but I can't guarantee I'll find another demonic beast there. I need that corpse... and for that, Wuyu has to succeed. He must."
Before he could stand, a heavy boot struck his side, slamming him into the ground with a deep thud. The force cracked the earth beneath him—but it didn't kill him.
Xie Tianhun stood above him, face cold and resolute, gauntlets crackling with Qi. He didn't follow up with a lethal blow. "I'd kill him right now," Tianhun thought, "but I won't deny Lu Zhenhai his final chance to speak to his brother. Maybe—just maybe—he can bring some sense into him. If there's even a shred of remorse left in Lu Heng, we might avoid executing him. Imprisonment for a few decades would be enough. But... from the look in his eyes, that seems impossible."
Lu Heng snarled and leapt back to his feet, his body twitching from the previous blow. He didn't retreat—he attacked, claws slashing, muscles bulging as he lunged toward Tianhun in desperation. He needed to buy time.
Tianhun narrowed his eyes, then raised both arms, fists clenching.
"High-Tier Rank 2 Technique — Steel-Crushing Tempest!"
With a shout, his gauntlets ignited with swirling Qi as he met Lu Heng's beast-form head-on. Each punch of his bore enough weight to crater boulders. They clashed in a brutal storm of strength — Lu Heng raked at his chest, and Tianhun answered with bone-breaking hooks, knees to the ribs, and a final spinning backfist that launched Lu Heng through a boulder. Dust erupted.
Far from them, within the Empire's military camp, soldiers suddenly snapped into a defensive formation. A loud voice barked commands as the healers pushed the students behind the perimeter.
Xie Lang sat cross-legged under a canopy, frowning as he adjusted the splint on his fractured leg. His body was glowing faintly — healing pills circulating within him, repairing the internal damage.
"Huh?" he muttered, feeling the sudden surge of Qi in the distance.
He looked up — and his pupils shrank.
Two silhouettes blurred in and out of sight through the trees, the earth cracking beneath their feet as they raced toward the camp.
One of them was a man with lightning roaring around him and his bow it was none other then Lu Zhenhai.
And the other — the elegant but terrifying man whose presence made the wind still — was Jiang Wuyu.
"That's... the Jiang Clan Patriarch..." Xie Lang's heart began to pound.
"So this was your plan all along," he growled, watching Wuyu zigzag through trees with blinding speed, deflecting arrows with bursts of Qi while steadily pushing toward the camp.
"You fake a retreat... only for you to try and attack my students or are you trying to use one of them as a hostage i wouldn't expect less from you anyways but trust you'll only reach them as a corpse?."
Jiang Wuyu didn't reply — he vanished.
Lu Zhenhai's eyes narrowed— there!
"Mid-Tier Rank 2 Technique: Lightning Talon!"
He released the string, and the arrow screeched as it transformed into a thunderous hawk of lightning, its wings sparking violently as it chased after the fleeing Wuyu.
Wuyu spun mid-air, Qi forming a half-circle barrier behind him. The hawk crashed into it and burst apart—but not without slowing him. Zhenhai didn't stop.
He launched another volley—three arrows simultaneously—each imbued with different elemental Qi. One exploded into vines mid-flight, the second split into needles of wind, and the third twisted with freezing mist.
Wuyu dodged the vines by leaping up, broke the wind needles with a backhand burst of Qi, but the icy arrow hit his thigh, slowing his steps.
Damnit! he thought. He truly deserves the title of the Tempest Bow !
Still, he pressed on, forcing his way forward. The camp came into view.
He crossed the boundary just as three more arrows slammed into him — one pierced his left shoulder, another dug into his foot, pinning him briefly to the ground. Blood splattered—but he pulled his leg free, eyes never leaving his goal.
Xie Lang.
Even wounded, even limping, Jiang Wuyu pushed forward with terrifying resolve, each breath drawing in more Qi as he summoned strength from his core.
The soldiers shouted, blades drawn, Qi techniques flashing to life as they prepared to intercept.
But Wuyu didn't slow down.