Hearing Fletcher Toba taunting him like that, Warren Tang felt his heart twist with frustration and regret. He hated that he couldn’t just give Fletcher a good thrashing right now—but he knew this wasn’t the time to act impulsively. Burning his soul to boost his strength wouldn’t last long, so his top priority was still helping Lila Li escape.
Fletcher grinned, unable to resist needling him. "Warren Tang, you look pretty pissed right now, huh? All frustrated, wishing you could kill me on the spot? Well, come on then! I’m right here—let’s see you try!"
"Senior Brother, let me fight by your side!"
Lila Li stepped up beside Warren, her aura surging as she stood shoulder-to-shoulder with him. At the same time, two silk sashes—one black, one white—appeared in her hands.
These were the Mixed Heaven Sashes, the exclusive paired treasures of Prime One Church Saintesses, refined over generations into peak sixth-grade spirit artifacts. Their rank was even higher than Warren’s Abyss Halberd.
Warren smiled faintly at Lila’s words. "Junior Sister, with what you just said, even if I die, I’ll have no regrets."
As soon as he finished speaking, Warren’s aura flared up again. The Abyss Halberd in his grip shone with dark light, transforming into a black dragon that smashed against the barrier ahead.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Each strike made the entire formation tremble violently.
"Not good! The formation can’t take much more—stop him, quick!"
Seeing this, Fletcher Toba's expression shifted slightly. He moved through the air, once again unleashing the Dual Force Palm at Warren Tang.
Meanwhile, Diana Toba flicked her wrist, and her black whip transformed into a venomous serpent, striking toward Warren Tang's abdomen.
"Hmph, your opponent is me!"
The Mixed Heaven Sashes snapped out—black sash colliding with the snake whip like lightning, while the white sash shot straight at Diana Toba.
"Hehe, Lila Li, you're no match for me!"
With a playful laugh, Diana Toba's left hand flashed, producing a gleaming silver curved blade.
Silver Moon Scimitar—a sixth-grade spirit artifact.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A series of explosive shockwaves tore through the air, as if threatening to rip the very void apart. Four figures clashed and separated, weaving in and out of battle.
"Damien Chi, aren't we going to intervene?"
Mira Xuan watched the four locked in battle, her voice low and steady.
Damien Chi gave a mysterious smile. "When two tigers fight, one must get hurt. Let's just watch from the sidelines."
Mira Xuan's brows knit together. She sneered, "Put away your petty schemes. The Witch God Church and Fire God Church are still trying to build trust right now.
If you openly try to play tricks, do you really think our two churches can keep working together? Besides, both Warren Tang and Lila Li have sixth-grade spirit artifacts. If you wait for them to be killed, why would the Toba siblings share the spoils with you?"
Damien Chi's face instantly turned ugly at Mira Xuan's words. The green totem stripes on his face made him look even more sinister and grotesque.
"Brother Toba, let me help you!"
With a sharp cry, Damien Chi darted forward. At the same time, a ghostly skull, wreathed in sinister energy, howled as it smashed down toward Warren Tang.
"Useless!"
Watching Damien Chi rush out, Mira Xuan secretly shook her head, growing even more worried that her father's decision to name him the next Witch God Church leader might be a terrible mistake.
"Forget it, let's not worry about all that right now. Let's just take care of Warren Tang and Lila Li first!"
With a thought, a jade-green flute flew out, emitting a mournful wail as it shot toward Lila Li. The sound of the flute had a mind-affecting power.
The moment she heard the flute, Lila Li's head spun. Diana Toba, whose cultivation was already a notch above hers, seized the opening—her venomous snake whip darted aside from the Mixed Heaven Sashes and struck from a vicious angle.
"Pshhh!"
The snake whip crashed into Lila Li, and with a sharp crack, her robe exploded apart. The impact bought her a split second—she barely twisted aside, so the whip pierced only her left arm instead of her heart.
But just then, the flute flared with light and smashed hard into her chest.
"Ah!"
With a pained cry, Lila Li spat blood and was sent flying, crashing to the ground. Her face turned deathly pale and her aura grew dangerously weak.
"Junior Sister!"
Locked in battle with Fletcher Toba and Damien Chi, Warren Tang saw this and felt his heart nearly shatter.
Taking the combined blow from both opponents, Warren Tang flew to Lila Li's side, scooped her up, and dashed toward the barrier, unleashing all the remaining power in his soul.
"Break for me!"
The Abyss Halberd transformed into a streak of black light, slamming hard against the barrier.
"Crack!"
A fissure split the barrier with that strike. Warren Tang, holding Lila Li, surged through the opening, then pulled out a black talisman and crushed it.
The talisman shattered, transforming into a black light that wrapped around them both—and with a whoosh, they vanished.
"Teleportation Heaven Talisman!"
Watching Warren Tang and Lila Li disappear before his eyes, Fletcher Toba's face twisted in rage. "The Teleportation Heaven Talisman can carry them up to five hundred li. Both are seriously wounded—especially Warren Tang, whose soul power is down to just a tenth. He won't last long. We split up and chase them. If they escape Myriad Spirits Island, our entire plan will be ruined!"
............
Ian Song and his companions had already ventured a hundred li into Myriad Spirits Island. Along the way, they subdued two first-rank spirit beasts and encountered several other factions searching for spirit beasts.
But since Myriad Spirits Island would only be open for a limited time, everyone was busy capturing as many spirit beasts as possible, so no real conflicts broke out.
"Aunt-Master, why don't we split up and act separately?"
Ian Song suddenly suggested. Earlier, he'd deliberately provoked the Skyflower Sword Gate cultivators to show off his strength, hoping Shayne Snow would let him act alone—after all, he was quite interested in the Spirit Beast King.
"No way. You're too weak. What if you run into other sects who want to kill you and steal your treasures?" Shayne Snow refused flatly.
"Aunt-Master, I have a protective artifact gifted by Senior Azure. As long as no Golden Core experts come after me, I can handle anything!" Ian Song said.
Hearing this, Shayne Snow recalled how Ian had killed Iron Kui earlier, and her expression grew hesitant.
Seeing Shayne Snow waver, Ian pressed his case. "Aunt-Master, think about it—everyone just arrived on the island, so it's the perfect time to tame spirit beasts on the outskirts. If we miss this window, we won't get another chance in the next few days."
"Fine, let's split up then!" Shayne Snow thought it over and nodded, agreeing with Ian's reasoning.
"Aunt-Master, Senior Sister, take these two bottles of healing pills."
Ian tossed each of them a bottle of healing pills, then sped off in a chosen direction.
Once he was dozens of li away from Shayne Snow and Ling Yan, Ian Song finally stopped and was about to use his Transformation Divine Art to change his appearance—when he noticed five people flying straight toward him.
And as luck would have it, the group was none other than Sean Shen and his lackeys.
"You!"
The moment Sean Shen recognized Ian Song, his face lit up with delight. Glancing around and seeing no one else nearby, his smile grew wider. "Surround him!" he ordered eagerly.
"Yes, sir!"
Four lackeys darted out, encircling Ian Song. Sean Shen sauntered over, staring at Ian with a mocking grin. "Kid, aren't you good at calling for backup? Why don't you summon someone now and show me?"
Ian Song gave a sly smile. "To deal with trash like you, who needs backup?"
"What did you say?"
Sean Shen stared at Ian Song in disbelief. How could a mere tenth-stage Qi Refiner dare call a group of Core Formation cultivators trash? Had the kid lost his mind from fear?