“Qianye! I’ll never let you off!” Linken flew out of her airship and rushed toward the Martyr’s Palace.

The demonkin flagship was like a broken beehive, with a dense swarm of figures flying out from within. Compared to the massive airship, the demonkin were even smaller than bees. A group of experts who were evidently superior to their peers followed Linken in a bid to stop her. Fighting in the void was the role of heavenly monarchs and great dark monarchs. No matter how strong Linken was, she was still a long way from that rank, and it would be lucky if she could exert even two-thirds of her power in this environment.

However, Linken had moved at extreme speeds. Even in the void, she had moved hundreds of meters in the blink of an eye, leaving her other subordinates completely helpless. They had no choice but to return to what remained of the flagship. More importantly, there were at least hundreds of demonkin crew members on the airship. These weak members simply couldn’t survive in the void and would need to be brought into lifeboats. Now that the flagship had been severed, the number of survivors would depend on the assistance of these experts.

The infuriated Linken no longer cared about the fate of her subordinates. She charged for the Martyr’s Palace, intent on taking down Qianye to appease her hatred.

Even through the void, Linken moved like a bolt of lightning, arriving near the Martyr’s Palace in mere moments. There, she rushed for a massive defect on the side of its body but crashed into an invisible barrier ten meters away from the target. Caught off-guard by the strong pliable screen, Linken was actually flung backward from the impact.

She was surprised at first but soon overcome by joy. A ship with a protective shield was at least at the duke-grade. Even for her own ship, she wasn’t yet able to afford one due to insufficient savings. Qianye’s warship possessing one despite its massive size proved how priceless it was.

After a fruitless charge, Linken channeled her origin power to its fullest extent and charged at the Martyr’s Palace again in a cloud of demonic energy. However, Qianye had already sensed her presence at this point. Martyr’s Palace moved swiftly and lashed at Linken with its tail.

A lash of Earth Dragon’s tail was enough to heavily injure the demonkin flagship—its might could be considered peerless. Yet, Linken was also highly agile. She flashed away from the incoming tail and crashed forcibly into the defensive field, soon arriving atop the back of the Martyr’s Palace.

She hadn’t yet secured her footing when a radiance flickered before her eyes, and sharp sword energy pricked her skin. Qianye had decided to launch a preemptive attack instead of evading!

Linken was furious. Qianye’s cultivation was vastly inferior to her own, yet he dared to seek a fight proactively. This was blatant disdain.

Linkin raised her left arm and chopped down at the incoming sword. She was actually going against East Peak with her bare hands!

The sound of clashing metal rang out as the palm and sword came together. Soon afterward, an earth-shattering force spread out in all directions. This impact was enough to warp steel, but the Earth Dragon’s body remained entirely unharmed.

Linken staggered back. The force behind this blow was so far beyond her imagination that she could hardly endure it.

It was also surprising for Qianye that the demonkin’s left hand was intact. He glanced over at Linken’s arms and found that the skin color was a bit different from her neck and cheeks. Apparently, she was wearing a skin-colored glove.

Both parties became apprehensive after the singular exchange. Only at this point did Qianye have the time to size up this terrifying enemy.

Linken was taller than Qianye by half-a-head, and the inherent charm and elegance of the demonkin were fully expressed on her. Clad in a magnificent black uniform with gold embroideries, she was quite captivating despite her fury. The patterns on her collar and cuffs were not just beautiful; there was a type of origin array woven into them.

The most eye-catching part wasn’t just her face but those shockingly long legs of hers.

Linken launched the first move after a mere moment of confrontation. She raised her leg well above her head from ten meters away and swung down ferociously, forming a semilunar blade of demonic energy that arced toward Qianye.

Qianye evaded the demonic blade with a sidestep and arrived before Linken in a single step. East Peak swung out across her waist.

The two clashed and retreated several times within moments, their interweaving figures almost indistinguishable. Beads of blood shot out in all directions, bursting upon the Earth Dragon’s bones like sanguineous projectiles. There were specks of gold flickering within the blood, a clear sign that they belonged to Qianye.

However, the seemingly advantaged Linken suddenly unleashed a furious howl, breaking her lock with Qianye and glaring intently at him from a distance.

At this moment, Qianye was riddled with injuries, the longest of which extended from shoulder to waist. Although the injuries were merely flesh wounds, one could judge how powerful Linken’s attacks were considering his physical prowess.

Qianye paid no attention to the wounds on his body. He spun East Peak about and removed a sparkling earring from the blade; there was even a bead of blood hanging upon it.

Linken held onto her ear with a livid expression, almost spouting flames from her eyes. Her left earlobe was dripping with fresh blood, and the earring was nowhere to be seen.

“Too bad, I missed.” Qianye was expressionless as he flicked the earring to the ground and stepped on it. A clear, cracking sound echoed from beneath his foot.

Linken was so angry that her voice was trembling. “You’re dead!”

Her silhouette flickered and appeared in front of Qianye, her right leg swinging down at his neck like a giant axe. A dark blade of demonic energy condensed upon her toes during this attack. The might of this kick was not inferior to a slash from East Peak, enough to remove Qianye’s head were it to connect.

Qianye made no move to evade this enraged kick. Instead, he raised East Peak and clashed firmly against Linken.

Another shockwave spread out in all directions. Linken’s body was badly jolted, making it difficult for her to launch a follow-up attack. Struck by the blade of demonic energy, Qianye took several steps backward with a new wound on his body. He almost seemed numb to the wounds on his body—it was as though the body wasn’t even his.

Qianye slid back over ten meters, where he thrust East Peak into the ground and finally stopped the inertia.

Linken didn’t even wait for the numbness to subside before she started giving chase. It was just that she hadn’t even taken the first step when she saw Qianye whip out two handguns and merge them into one.

Linken didn’t have time to think long. Her many years of combat instincts told her that she had to run away.

Yet she had only moved a hundred or so meters when an indefensible wave of might fell upon her. In the blink of an eye, she felt as though she were in the presence of the three lords of the Sacred Mountain. It was a fear born from the bottom of her heart, one that caused her momentum to freeze.

“Oh no!” Linken was shocked out of her wits. Demonic energy erupted profusely as she went all out, finally managing to overcome the imposing might and regaining her freedom.

At this moment, however, a pair of luminous wings unfurled behind Qianye. The handgun trembled as a bright feather suffused with an aura of destruction shot toward Linken.

She could no longer evade.

...