Chen Tian reduced his control over his strength, improving his mastery of it. This allowed him to reduce energy consumption. Chen Tian's current state wouldn't last long, but it was sufficient for sustained combat. Gripping his dual sabers tightly, they pulsed with power. Xie Ming's Evil Spirit Spear, formed from evil spirit energy, was even more potent, further empowered by the Divine Punishment Lightning that adorned it, theoretically multiplying Xie Ming's strength tens of times over.
Of course, Xie Lei had temporarily lost his combat ability, bestowing his divine lightning upon Xie Ming. Without his primary offensive means, he was no different from an ordinary cultivator. Chen Tian and Xie Ming exchanged glances, their gazes colliding to create an explosion. Chen Tian's eyes emitted golden light waves, while Xie Ming's eyes shot out black light beams. The light waves and beams clashed, pushing both combatants back a slight distance. In their exchange, Xie Ming's eyes unleashed divine lightning, augmenting the light beam. An explosion erupted, and the resulting shockwave finally forced Chen Tian to step back.
Xie Ming suddenly felt that Chen Tian wasn't as difficult as he had imagined; it seemed he had a chance to defeat him. Chen Tian steadied himself, crossing his dual sabers in a practiced motion. With the Evil Spirit Spear in hand, Xie Ming directly unleashed an upward slash, displaying the full might of heaven and earth collapsing. The space merely quivered before returning to its original state. Chen Tian's dual sabers sliced out repeatedly, projecting over a dozen blades that converged to form a circular disc of blades. This blade disc met Xie Ming's attack, resulting in both combatants retreating three steps. Chen Tian increased his strength; currently, if Xie Ming didn't face him seriously, he might suffer a reversal of fortune.
With Xie Ming and Xie Yu lurking nearby, Chen Tian had to remain vigilant. They surely possessed more than one trump card. Chen Tian's figure moved, and as he stepped, the space beneath his feet cracked. This was a space created by the universe's consciousness, specifically prepared as a battlefield for Chen Tian, Xie Ming, and Xie Yu. Now, with just a casual step from Chen Tian, the space fractured. It was unclear if this space could withstand Chen Tian's full power.
However, this was not something the universe's consciousness needed to consider. It understood Chen Tian well. Chen Tian's figure approached Xie Ming. Xie Ming directly spun the Evil Spirit Spear, forming a black shield to protect himself. Chen Tian's dual sabers descended, aimed precisely at the center of the Evil Spirit Spear. Xie Ming, seeing Chen Tian's attack shift from defense to offense, spun the Evil Spirit Spear into a thrust. The spearhead, erupting with black light, scraped against the dual sabers for a moment.
The Evil Spirit Spear grazed Chen Tian's cheek, drawing a line of white blood. Chen Tian's blood had transformed into cosmic blood, changing its color to white, symbolizing purity. White could be tinted by any color, which was why cosmic blood could simulate other bloodlines. Chen Tian's dual sabers, meanwhile, sliced across Xie Ming's shoulders, narrowly missing piercing them. Lightning surged from Xie Ming's body, and Chen Tian retreated.
The lightning erupted from Xie Ming's body, spreading in all directions. Fortunately, Chen Tian had retreated in advance. Xie Lei, witnessing this, made a motion with his hand, and the Divine Punishment Lightning returned to his grasp. Unwilling to see Xie Ming perish, he addressed Xie Yu, "Xie Yu, leave the rest to me. Xie Ming and I will handle this together."
"Understood. Be careful. I'll wait for the opportune moment for a fatal blow."
Xie Yu had his own plans. Xie Lei's figure flew towards Xie Ming. Arriving beside Xie Ming, Xie Lei said, "I'm here to help you."
A golden lightning bolt appeared in Xie Lei's hand, merging with the Divine Punishment Lightning. Chen Tian had never witnessed two different energies of lightning fuse. Only lightning of the same level could fuse, meaning Xie Lei's golden lightning was also Divine Punishment Lightning, though its aura suggested it came from another universe. As the divine lightning merged, Xie Lei's power surged. Unlike Xie Ming, his body remained unchanged, but he was entirely enveloped in lightning.
Xie Lei felt the immense power within him. Of course, that one instance of Divine Punishment Lightning was a one-time ultimate move, Xie Lei's trump card, given to him by the person who revived him. He hadn't expected to use it, but it seemed everything was within that person's calculations. Black and gold lightning danced in Xie Lei's hand. With a thought, countless divine lightning bolts coalesced into divine lightning swords, numbering over a thousand. The divine lightning swords were all pointed at Chen Tian.
Chen Tian observed that Xie Lei's mastery of lightning had significantly improved. Previously, Xie Lei could only conjure a few hundred swords. Now, it was over a thousand, indicating that the fusion of divine lightning had enhanced Xie Lei's control. But so what? Chen Tian would not lose, for he had never lost. In his memories of his first life, he was always the victor. Chen Tian was confident in himself. With Xie Lei's trump card revealed, only Xie Yu's remained. Chen Tian didn't need to ponder; Xie Yu's trump card was likely even more formidable.
Xie Yu, meticulous in his planning, had not acted thus far because he trusted his trump card could heavily injure Chen Tian and was waiting for the right opportunity. He would not act until Chen Tian showed a flaw. Two of the three trump cards had been revealed. Xie Lei and Xie Ming joined forces to attack Chen Tian. Xie Ming was still recovering from his previous injuries, his aura unstable. Chen Tian decided to deal with Xie Ming first. Seeing Chen Tian's objective, Xie Lei spoke up, "You'll have to get past me first."
Xie Lei's finger flicked, and the myriad swords transformed into black and gold light, rushing towards Chen Tian like a dense winter snowfall. No matter where you stood, you were surrounded by snow. Chen Tian found himself in such a predicament, completely surrounded by divine lightning swords with no room to maneuver. Chen Tian stood his ground and sneered, "You think this can defeat me? How absurd."
A barrier appeared on Chen Tian's body as the divine lightning swords attacked, aiming to turn him into a porcupine. Chen Tian's barrier protected him. The swords struck the barrier, creating a resounding noise. The divine lightning swords, carrying electrical energy, were initially unable to crack or damage Chen Tian's barrier. Chen Tian's barrier was composed of over a hundred types of energy, which converged to produce even greater power. Xie Lei's attack alone could not break Chen Tian's barrier.
Xie Ming flashed, thrusting the Evil Spirit Spear with one hand, its tip glinting with sharpness. The spearhead struck the barrier, causing it to explode. Xie Ming shouted, "Now!"
Xie Lei clenched his hand, and in an instant, all the divine lightning swords charged at Chen Tian. An explosion rang out. Xie Ming was thrown back by the shockwave, but Xie Lei managed to intercept him; otherwise, Xie Ming would have been sent flying god knows where.
"I don't believe you can escape this explosion without a scratch."
Xie Lei didn't expect this attack to critically injure Chen Tian; he only hoped to inflict a minor wound, thus gaining a chance to defeat Chen Tian. It seemed they now had a chance of victory.
Chen Tian emerged from the explosion.
"Cough, cough, cough!"
"Not bad. This move would be world-ending for others, but it's ineffective against me. Did you forget I am immune to your divine lightning?"
Chen Tian looked smug. His system was absorbing the energy from Xie Lei's attacks. Chen Tian could withstand it without any harm. The system, fueled by the divine lightning energy, was even evolving to the next stage, requiring more divine lightning.
Seeing Chen Tian's smug expression, Xie Lei was annoyed. Xie Lei didn't believe Chen Tian was completely immune to divine lightning; he thought Chen Tian was lying and refused to believe it.
"Stop lying. If you were truly immune to divine lightning, wouldn't the existence of divine lightning be insignificant? Would the universe's consciousness allow you to live? No, it seems you've already been placed on the universe's kill list."
Xie Lei's tone was filled with sarcasm. Chen Tian retorted with a cold sneer, "Then try it and see if I'm immune to divine lightning or not."
Chen Tian was deliberately provoking Xie Lei. Divine lightning was Xie Lei's pride and his only means. Without it, how would Xie Lei differ from an ordinary cultivator? As a member of the Evil Spirit race, Xie Lei refused to be compared to low-level cultivators, as it would be demeaning.
Lightning surged from Xie Lei's palm, crackling with violent thunder. Dark clouds expanded above, creating an apocalyptic scene, akin to divine punishment. Divine lightning coalesced in Xie Lei's hand, forming a black and gold thunderball. The immense power and radiating waves caused the surrounding space to tremble faintly. Chen Tian saw Xie Lei, incited by him, unleash his full divine lightning power, which was exactly what Chen Tian wanted.
The system needed divine lightning energy for its upgrade. If Chen Tian could withstand this attack, his system would complete its upgrade, making him even stronger. Chen Tian watched Xie Lei quietly, without moving. Xie Yu, standing nearby, saw Chen Tian remain unfazed. Could it be that he was truly immune to divine lightning? Impossible. Such a physique couldn't exist, and the universe's consciousness had never designed such a trait. Yet, Chen Tian's expression, his unwavering confidence, where did it come from?
The more Xie Yu observed, the less he understood Chen Tian. Chen Tian was entirely different from his first life. If Chen Tian in his first life was a king and creator, then today's Chen Tian was an abyss. His understanding of Chen Tian was completely overturned. Unknown techniques, reincarnation, immunity to divine lightning – these were unheard of.
"I want to see how you'll handle this move."
Xie Lei roared and lowered his arm. The divine lightning thunderball descended directly upon Chen Tian, who was positioned below it. It was no exaggeration to say this attack had a range the size of a planet. Chen Tian was completely within its scope. But did Chen Tian need to escape? Did he even need to resist?
Chen Tian stood still. "I'll stand here today. If this move can injure me, then you win."
Chen Tian crossed his arms, his expression radiating arrogance. This only enraged Xie Lei further, causing him to accelerate the descent of the thunderball.
As Chen Tian's body was engulfed by the thunderball, Xie Lei imagined Chen Tian's pained expression. "You're so arrogant, foolishly courting death."
"It doesn't even tickle. You only have this much strength. It seems my expectations of you were too high."
Chen Tian's voice echoed from within the thunderball. Inside, Chen Tian was absorbing the lightning energy, the divine lightning.