It was as if a giant hammer had slammed down upon their hearts; the eyes of Jin Zhanyi and the others held a vacant stupor.

This was not the first time He Yiming had been violently struck down, but by this moment, their hearts had grown almost numb to the sight.

Indeed, just as they had predicted, He Yiming sprang up from the ground, and from his very movements, it was clear he hadn't sustained an injury.

At this point, everyone had entirely dismissed the possibility that Franklin had been holding back.

Perhaps, in his capacity as the Pontiff of the Temple, he might have shown restraint the first time, but after a Five Qi Grand Venerable had entangled him for so long, any continued leniency would inflict irreparable damage upon his reputation. Therefore, Franklin absolutely could not afford to continue showing mercy.

This much was evident simply by observing how many times He Yiming had been driven to the ground in this short span.

Yet, the current He Yiming had transformed into an unkillable cockroach. No matter how intense the assault from a peak Human Dao expert, and no matter how wretchedly he fell, every time the onlookers assumed his life force was extinguished and salvation was impossible, He Yiming would always prove their assumptions utterly absurd through his actions.

With the eyesight of Jin Zhanyi and his group, discerning the specifics of the exchange between the two fighters was impossible. They could not possibly imagine that He Yiming was able to completely negate the attacks from a peak Human Dao expert purely by relying on the seemingly unremarkable vest he wore.

At this moment, a single terrifying thought haunted the minds of all present.

Could this fellow He Yiming truly be a Sacred Beast, and moreover, one of the most supreme varieties?

For only such a powerful Sacred Beast could exhibit such an impassive demeanor under the repeated blows of a peak Human Dao expert.

Leaping up from the ground, He Yiming stamped his foot once more, the five-colored radiance flickering around him, and he relentlessly charged toward Franklin in the sky.

This Pontiff of the Western Temple was genuinely starting to get a headache.

This was the first time he had encountered such a troublesome Five Qi Grand Venerable. No matter how heavily he struck, the mysterious vest on the opponent acted like an indestructible fortress, dissolving all of his power. Even when unleashing the power of Light without reservation, he still could not penetrate this defensive divine artifact.

The old man’s expression was no longer characterized by the easygoing casualness of the beginning; it was replaced by an unprecedented gravity. He had never imagined that a mere Five Qi Grand Venerable could force him into such a predicament.

Although this man’s methods of attack were certainly profound and mysterious, they posed no significant threat to his own strength. However, conversely, even though he had batted He Yiming around like a shuttlecock, he was incapable of inflicting any substantial harm. If this style of combat continued, his reputation as a peak Human Dao master would truly be ruined.

With a soft sigh, the tip of Franklin’s Staff of Light began to glow faintly.

This was also a light, but the power contained within this radiance was entirely different.

He Yiming, who was ascending, suddenly halted mid-air. He tilted his head up, staring intently at that faint glimmer of light, his heart experiencing a violent, uncontrollable tremor.

Jin Zhanyi and the others naturally did not know the true nature of this light, but He Yiming’s body certainly told him that this was the primordial power of Light, the divine power belonging to the Light element.

Only in the face of such divine-path power could He Yiming feel such an intense resonance.

He Yiming’s eyes locked onto the elder’s every movement, his internal true Qi surging to its absolute peak, ready to face any immediate upheaval.

He Yiming had sensed a trace of the divine power of Blood from the Yellow Spring Ancestor, and in this old man, there was unexpectedly a sliver of the primordial power of Light.

At this moment, He Yiming felt quite surprised. Did one need to grasp a trace of divine power before being able to advance to the peak Human Dao realm?

Once this point of light manifested, Franklin’s face took on a look of solemn reverence. Under the illumination of this miraculous light, he seemed to transform into a distant, aloof deity, regarding the crawling ants of the mortal world with a condescending gaze.

In this instant, the elder’s image was elevated infinitely.

As if influenced by this strange atmosphere, Edwin suddenly roared, dropping to his knees with utmost reverence. He pressed his forehead to the ground, tracing arcane patterns across his chest with one hand, seemingly chanting something aloud.

Beside him, the experts from the West gradually knelt down in small groups, murmuring the very same incantations.

Only Glinton and the other two Venerables hesitated before ultimately retreating side-by-side to the rear.

These three hailed from the Dark Alliance, the Temple’s ancient adversary, and thus they naturally could not worship the Pontiff. However, upon witnessing Franklin radiating with divine power, they too were profoundly shaken.

As for Jin Zhanyi and his faction, although they did not mimic the prostration of Edwin and the others, their faces changed color upon sensing that extraordinary, immense pressure.

Especially those few who had witnessed peak Human Dao experts in their respective major sects, their complexions turned ashen, and a flicker of despair crossed their eyes.

Even Jin Zhanyi, who held the greatest faith in He Yiming, lost all hope at this juncture.

Because they could all see that to deal with He Yiming, Franklin was deploying the most potent might available to a peak Human Dao expert.

This power, when used against cultivators below the peak Human Dao level, was absolutely a great killer capable of instant annihilation.

He Yiming took a deep breath, gave his wrist a sharp shake, and drew a shield from within the Five Elements Barrier. This was a divine artifact he had acquired from the Land of Reincarnation, originally stored in his necklace space, but after discovering the wonders of the Five Elements World, he had transferred it into the Five Elements Ring for convenient access during combat.

Holding the shield high, a resolute glint flashed across He Yiming’s face as he once again initiated a reckless charge toward his opponent.

Regardless of He Yiming’s ultimate fate, the sheer courage he displayed in challenging a peak Human Dao expert without regard for his own life was deeply etched into the memories of all present. Even those who envied him could not help but admit that this fellow possessed an unyielding will that was beyond the reach of ordinary men.

However, no one could see the flicker of anxiety that crossed He Yiming’s face, hidden behind the shield covering his head.

Why hadn't that fellow, Bai Lingba, found the White Horse yet? Had they turned on each other and started fighting themselves?

This thought only crossed his mind for a moment before He Yiming’s entire focus snapped back to the elder before him.

Franklin watched the rising He Yiming—like a tiger unleashed from its gate—with immense frustration over this seemingly invincible foe, yet beneath it, there was a trace of undeniable admiration.

But alas, he was an Eastern expert…

With a glance tinged with pity, he lightly waved his short staff, and that point of divine power of Light seemed poised to unleash at any second.

Yet, at that very moment, the elder’s expression abruptly shifted. He felt the surrounding airflow change with uncanny strangeness, and an incredibly weighty pressure surged up from below, as if a vortex had suddenly materialized beneath him, encircling Star Island and threatening to drag his body down into that terrifying realm of eternal damnation.

Franklin’s radiance flared violently. In an instant, he understood that this was He Yiming’s doing, and the source of that power was precisely the round shield he had just drawn.

For a moment, His Holiness the Pontiff felt a faint pang of jealousy toward He Yiming’s incredibly rich treasury. No one could remain indifferent to someone who produced top-tier divine weapons one after another.

Powerful light surged outward, barely managing to stabilize his tottering form. Then, the elder swung his wrist, and the point of divine power atop his staff finally shot downward.

The pressure in the air suddenly multiplied countless times.

The divine power of Light possessed the ability to purify everything; in the presence of light, all things were repelled and slated for annihilation.

In a daze, He Yiming felt as if he had returned to that bright world he knew before leaving the cycle of life and death.

In that world, He Yiming had narrowly escaped death, leaving an indelible impression on his heart.

And now, He Yiming seemed to have returned to that same reality.

His eyes narrowed, and he suddenly made a choice that utterly surprised everyone watching.

With a flick of his wrist, the shield vanished instantly. Immediately after, He Yiming tucked in his head and limbs. The strange vest on his body seemed to gain sentience, expanding slightly to envelop every exposed inch of his physical form.

That speck of divine power of Light rapidly expanded and shone directly upon the vest.

The power capable of purifying everything washed over the vest like a tide. The vest began to change at a visible rate, continuously swelling and inflating under the stimulation of the divine power from both the front and back.

Finally, when this burst of divine power of Light subsided, the vest enveloping He Yiming had transformed into a massive tortoise shell floating in mid-air.

Slowly, He Yiming’s head and limbs emerged from the shell. He looked forward with lingering fear, his eyes brimming with undisguised delight.

The mighty divine power of Light also failed to penetrate the Black Tortoise Shell, which had been forged by the Nine Dragon Furnace.

Franklin stared dumbfounded at the tortoise shell covering He Yiming, his gaze growing increasingly fervent.

This was the first time today that he had lost his composure, for he had finally recognized the origin of this defensive divine artifact.

Suddenly, a thunderous roar, like the cry of a mythical beast, echoed from an even greater height, and a sky full of lightning and thunder drifted overhead…