Ultragene Warlord

A blood-red and a black dragon manifested, bearing down on his opponent with the might of Zhang Lie's spiritual sea between them. The two blades shone in unison, then gave off dazzling light as the twin dragons shot forward in unison like a twister.

Zhang Yangyan's pupils contracted as he attempted to run, but the twister moved so rapidly that he was physically unable to do so.

He had no choice but to defend against the blow. His halberd glowed as brightly as the sun, then shone with incandescent light. Stardust revolved around him as he brought the stars, the infinite galaxy, down to the arena. His halberd transformed into the fiercest golden dragon, shining with might and force.

Despite his strength, Zhang Yangyan, who was only an eidolon, naturally lost out—and even the slightest disadvantage in a fight against two phenomenal talents was lethal.

The blood and black dragons twined around the golden sun, obliterating it and causing the energy within to explode. Zhang Yangyan was sent flying, his halberd almost sent flying from his hands. The eidolon turned dark, as though it would vanish at any moment.

"[Second Form: Piercing the Soul]!"

Zhang Lie's disaster-grade mistmeld clam soulshard activated as he infused its energy into his swords, causing them to shine radiantly with multicolored light.

He could see that Zhang Yangyan didn't have a soul of his own; this was some illusory manifestation, nothing more.

A rainbow arc accompanied Zhang Lie's slash, as though an aurora borealis were visible in the sky. It shone in all the colors of the rainbow, momentarily hypnotizing anyone who looked at it.

With Guicang in hand, Zhang Lie flew through the heavens. His sword shone as brightly as the auroras overhead, bringing him momentarily out of the physical into the intangible.

Zhang Yangyan blocked with the halberd held horizontally before him.

Metal struck metal as Zhang Yangyan barely held back Zhang Lie's sword slash.

Zhang Lie's [Second Form: Piercing the Soul] was a spiritual attack at heart. Although the physical component of the attack was still a strong one, it only served to cover up the damage that it dealt to his opponent's very soul.

Even so, against an opponent whose soul did not exist, [Second Form: Piercing the Soul] was easily nullified.

"[Ninecarp Transformation]!"

Red scales formed a natural suit of red armor around Zhang Lie. He was surrounded by what looked like scarlet flames, but was actually steaming, blood-red water-attuned genetic energy. A black sun rose behind his back, and a blood moon shone at his feet.

A long tail grew out of his back. His black hair took on a red tint, as though they were lit up by an inner fire. Interlocking rings of black and red that warped natural law surrounded his body, and a domineering aura exuded from him.

Red water-attuned genetic energy surrounded Zhang Lie, manifesting in the shape of a dragon.

Red energy of chaos exploded from Zhang Lie as the moonlight and sunlight combined, then drifted into the air like water vapor.

Zhang Lie's genetic energy took on fire-attuned qualities as it gushed out. Zhang Yangyan's halberd was suppressed by Zhang Lie's blade.

Hanguang sent the halberd flying, leaving his guard wide open.

Zhang Yangyan, however, still possessed his prescience. The moment Zhang Lie struck, he gave up on the halberd and retreated at full speed.

"It's pointless to retreat now!"

Guicang gleamed brightly in Zhang Lie's hands as he infused more and more spiritual energy into it. From the surface of his spiritual sea came waves charging forward, sounding like stampeding hooves, like raging dragons.

"[Blades, Extinguish]!"

Zhang Lie's spiritual sea expanded greatly, past the confines of his own body. As the mistmeld clam soulshard's energy was infused within the blade, it began glowing with multicolored light, simultaneously illusory and real. A sea seemed to rest in the crack between the two domains, unable to be touched or otherwise sensed.

The transient, illusory nature of the light would captivate everyone who saw it.

The sword in Zhang Lie's hands burned with scarlet water-attuned genetic energy. Billowing clouds of red-tinted steam surrounded him as though he were a burning pyre.

The high-temperature steam was so hot that it visibly glowed an alarming shade of red.

Zhang Lie's domain of scarlet steam looked less like a domain than a red sea, one which overtook the void. Any lifeform in the vicinity would spontaneously combust.

The temperature around Zhang Lie grew so hot that his surroundings began to warp. Mirages formed all around him.

One of Zhang Lie's blades glowed with radiant light; the other shone scarlet with water-attuned genetic energy.

The illusory sea combined with the scarlet ocean of reality, the attack simultaneously in the boundary between the real and the illusory, linking together the physical and metaphysical, the real and the abstract.

The two halves of the attack clashed with each other.

The spiritual sea began to burn, as though it had been ignited by the scarlet steam, forming spiritual flame. The scarlet steam, bolstered by the spiritual sea, grew even hotter. Contact with the steam seemed to sap at one's very soul.ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ ɴo(v)elꜰɪre.ɴet

Zhang Lie had allowed these two disparate sources of energy to combine, and their merger was so intense that the distinction between the real and illusory began to blur.

The surface of the sea frothed with angry waves, like dragons emerging with the tide. From afar, the waves looked like a coven of flaming phoenixes spreading their wings and taking flight; from close up, they looked like flaming dragons.