"It's about time," replied the big man called Old Niu, who clearly fit the profile of the Hero. This pairing of the main character and the Hero also surprised Xing Chen quite a bit.

It was evident that this Old Niu, much like the White Ram Priestess who served the White Ram Daoist, had his personality system activated, explaining such human-like behavior.

In an instant, a strange thought flashed through Xing Chen's mind: what would it have been like if Yue Ying's personality system had been activated back then?

Of course, this notion was just a fleeting spark in his thoughts!

Wei Peng and Old Niu pressed forward in tandem. Their pace wasn't swift, but every inch they covered dragged a heavy, oppressive aura with it, like a colossal mountain slowly advancing.

"You two are too shameless," Xing Chen muttered, backing away cautiously while still managing to jab at them verbally. "It's just me, one person, and you two attack together. Don't you feel embarrassed?"

"Sorry," Wei Peng sneered menacingly. "We aren't those two idiots, White Ram and his wife."

"Achieving our goals by any means necessary—that's our style," Old Niu declared with equal arrogance. "That's what you call cool."

"A pair of scoundrels." Xing Chen realized further words were useless. He cleared his mind, settling in for a full-out engagement!

The flowing clouds churned, sword energy sharpened, and the wild sands of the great desert surged and spun. The entire sky, the whole earth, seemed to instantly lose all vitality and sunlight, leaving only those three figures standing silently suspended in mid-air.

Wei Peng and Old Niu appeared in no hurry, merely observing and sizing up Xing Chen. This feeling was dreadful; it was as if everything about him was already within his opponents' range of sensory perception—that they could read every surge of energy within him, perhaps even foresee his every intention.

Powerful opponents were not terrifying; what was truly terrifying was an enemy possessing considerable strength who maintained absolute reason and composure, for such enemies never made mistakes, meaning fewer, perhaps zero, exploitable weaknesses remained.

Regardless of the opponent, one must always fight with everything they have, striking down the foe with maximum force. This was Xing Chen's consistent fighting philosophy, and evidently, the two before him shared the same mindset. This was clear from their solemn gazes, steady demeanor, and the unhurried, calm aura they projected.

Xing Chen couldn't help but sigh inwardly; it seemed trying to seize an easy advantage was impossible. At this moment, there was no choice other than to fight to the death.

"Come then, let me see just how capable the so-called 'Crouching Dragon General' truly is." His voice was level, without the slightest emotional ripple.

This wasn't the first time Xing Chen had faced masters whose power far outstripped his own, yet each time he had engineered miracles of the weak defeating the strong. This, besides sheer magical luck, was inseparable from his strong will and level head. In fact, the deeper the desperate situation, the more his latent potential was ignited.

Now, he finally ceased his slow retreat and assumed a stance. It was a delicate distance, one Xing Chen had vaguely grasped after successive grueling battles—a subtle pattern where, whether advancing or retreating, this specific range allowed Xing Chen to unleash his full burst potential. In aerial combat, true footwork was absent; success relied more heavily on control of the Phoenix Sky Wings and mastery of movement techniques. Relying on his superior combat talent, Xing Chen quickly adapted to this peculiar fighting style.

Likewise, Wei Peng and Old Niu halted. Their shadowed eyes flickered with chilling intensity. "He actually has some tricks. No wonder White Ram and the others lost to you."

"I'll take the lead," Old Niu barked, and the Phoenix Sky Wings behind him suddenly flapped.

He almost vanished from his spot, yet his heavy presence instantly transformed into an explosive frenzy. It was as if a fierce fire had suddenly erupted in a cold room; the aura, seeming to carry immense heat, instantly pierced the entire space, causing the thirty-odd meters to feel suddenly unbound.

When the golden afterimage flashed again, a massive golden broadsword materialized before Xing Chen's chest, less than two inches away.

It was an incredibly fast strike, but not quite enough to evade Xing Chen's Moon Phantom. His eyes, usually cold, narrowed slightly!

It wasn't clear how he moved, but his purple form merely swayed a fraction, and he drifted out a meter like a willow catkin. In this vast expanse of sky, such a minute movement was almost imperceptible, as if Xing Chen hadn't moved at all.

Yet Old Niu’s lightning-fast strike inexplicably missed. Even more frighteningly, as Old Niu's sword went wide, a faint whistling sound of air being cut echoed from his left side—it was Xing Chen, counter-striking in the same instant he dodged, a blade slash light and nimble, like a gentle breeze.

But the killing intent contained within it caused Old Niu's expression to shift slightly. The speed wasn't slow; in fact, it seemed a fraction faster than even his and Wei Peng's.

Yue Ying was inherently a speed-focused melee combat unit. At this moment, both its power and combat data were perfectly integrated with Xing Chen, allowing him to push Yue Ying's speed potential to its absolute limit.

However, Old Niu's reaction was equally sharp. As he missed, he swung his greatsword horizontally to the left in a sweeping motion.

Clang! Xing Chen's swift, forest-piercing strike met Old Niu's golden greatsword head-on.

The Dragon Shadow Sword, glowing with crimson light, was once again knocked flying back!

All this happened in the blink of an eye. Xing Chen and Old Niu engaged in a fast-paced duel, exchanging one blow before passing each other! Neither gained any discernible advantage!

From the previous exchange, Old Niu's position had shifted. He was no longer side-by-side with Wei Peng but had moved behind Xing Chen, aiming to create a front-and-back pincer movement with Wei Peng.

Naturally, Xing Chen wouldn't allow it. He activated his movement technique, continuing his retreat, drifting back over ten meters while maintaining that exquisitely precise distance!

This repositioning turned the three of them into a curious equilateral triangle.

Although troublesome, both Wei Peng and Old Niu remained within Xing Chen's field of vision.

"Seems like a tough one," Wei Peng frowned slightly. He clearly recognized Xing Chen's profound experience in adapting during combat.

But this was hardly surprising. From the moment Xing Chen began roaming the continent, he had experienced countless battles. Describing him as battle-hardened was almost an understatement. His combat experience was naturally vast, especially in melees and chaotic group fights where winning against superior numbers was routine.

In this initial exchange, they had already gauged the basic outline of their opponents' capabilities! Unquestionably, Old Niu possessed immense power and clearly had a higher strength quotient. Yet, Xing Chen excelled in nimbleness and agility, holding the edge in speed!

Of course, this was merely the initial probing; neither side had revealed their full strength!

It seemed this Golden Bull constellation combination specialized in brute force. Xing Chen rapidly analyzed the situation: fighting just one of them was already taxing; facing both simultaneously meant he likely had no chance of winning.

As Old Niu’s offensive paused, Xing Chen, having made up his mind, decided to fully leverage his speed advantage and seize absolute initiative! Therefore, he gave Old Niu no chance to catch his breath! The Phoenix Sky Wings behind him flapped violently, and he instantly erupted in a peculiar rainbow stream of light—the aura fluctuation unique to activating the Kaioken!

Then, the purple afterimage shimmered slightly and lunged toward Old Niu like a bolt of lightning!

Life Field soaring, Battle Qi intensity surging to forty thousand points!

Both Wei Peng and Old Niu's internal biological radars screamed warnings!

The rapid escalation of Battle Qi energy brought an extreme surge in speed. At this moment, even the air became resistance; the astonishing blast energy violently shook the air, creating a string of deep sonic booms! Along with a murderous aura like surging tidal waves, it roared outwards!

"Finally showing his true skill, have we?" Wei Peng showed no surprise at Xing Chen's Battle Qi instantly skyrocketing to forty thousand points. In fact, video footage of the battle between the White Ram Priestess and Xing Chen had already circulated internally at Crouching Dragon Villa! Everyone knew this mysterious intruder possessed a secret technique that could drastically boost combat power in an instant! Furthermore, based on data measured during the White Ram Priestess's fight, Xing Chen's peak Battle Qi intensity reached one hundred and sixty thousand points! All signs suggested that one hundred and sixty thousand might not even be his ultimate peak! Currently, Xing Chen arguably possessed the strength to challenge a Gold Warrior—but only challenge them, nothing more.

One hundred and sixty thousand was indeed an astonishing figure, and Xing Chen reached this cultivation level without even donning his reinforced Phoenix Sky armor. If he wore any of the Twelve Zodiac Reinforced Phoenix Sky Demon Armors, how much higher would his combat power soar? Perhaps it wouldn't be inferior to his current self.

While Xing Chen was undoubtedly strong, he still possessed one insurmountable weakness: he had lost his Guardian Hero, and his equipment was at an absolute disadvantage. The gap between standard Phoenix Sky armor and the reinforced versions was insurmountable; this was the absolute disparity introduced by equipment tiers. These two factors combined meant that no matter how hard Xing Chen tried, his combat power could never surpass that of a Gold Warrior. As for the defeat of the White Ram Daoist and the Priestess, it was purely an accident. If the Great White Tiger hadn't died under inexplicable circumstances, Xing Chen never would have defeated the White Ram Priestess.

Old Niu on the other side harbored similar thoughts, but they hadn't anticipated that Xing Chen would dare to attack proactively while facing a two-pronged assault from the sides. This was clearly a provocation, an insult, and a display of overconfidence.

However, all these complicated thoughts were instantly discarded. Any impulse detrimental to the fight was subconsciously purged! Thus, they were always able to make the most rational judgments in battle. Just like Old Niu now! He reacted almost instinctively, boosting his power!

Inferno Burn activated—Level One! Battle Qi intensity increased to fifty thousand points! Executing the ultimate technique—Blazing Heavens!

The golden greatsword danced lightly! Sword energy flames burned, saturating the sky, sweeping toward Xing Chen's head in a stance of pure offense, daring his opponent to defend! Old Niu indeed had the reserves for a reckless attack; his protective Battle Qi held an intensity of fifty thousand, enough to withstand Xing Chen's strongest current blow. Moreover, his body was shielded by the astonishingly durable Reinforced Phoenix Sky armor. In reality, Old Niu didn't need to consider defense; even if he stood still, Xing Chen couldn't harm him—unless he raised his Battle Qi intensity again. But doing so would certainly not escape the biological radars of Old Niu and Wei Peng, so they remained utterly confident. Thus, Old Niu swung his sword without reservation! But then, the sudden turn of events occurred.

Xing Chen, who had been rapidly closing like lightning, suddenly retreated, moving backward in a bizarre manner that defied the common laws of physics, shooting upward at a speed more than double that of his approach! This incredible motion—an advance followed by a retreat—created a visual shock that made both Wei Peng and Old Niu momentarily pause!

In that instant of hesitation, Xing Chen's body erupted with another burst of dazzling red light. His momentum surged madly in an instant.

Alarm! Target Life Field spiking again! Battle Qi intensity—sixty thousand points! Almost simultaneously with the red glow bursting forth came waves of suffocating pressure! For a single moment, it seemed the entire world was enveloped and frozen by that strange light! Countless fragments of light painted the sky with a bizarre, magnificent world of luminescence! What followed was a terrifying, world-shattering killing aura, raging downwards! The entire horizon seemed twisted into a hazy, scarlet hell by that terrifying murderous intent!

"It's that move!" Old Niu’s expression shifted dramatically! The strange, starlit sword energy appearing in mid-air was Xing Chen's signature technique: Nine Heavens Star River, First Form: Stars Fall to the Nine Heavens! Xing Chen's rapid retreat not only caused him to evade the Blazing Heavens but also gave him the opportunity to soar high and unleash that bizarre ultimate skill!

Although they didn't know the official name of the move, the White Ram Priestess's smart computer had recorded every detail of the previous battle. Therefore, both Old Niu and Wei Peng were acutely aware of this technique's lethality!

"Fine swordplay." But facing the bizarre swordsmanship, Old Niu's fighting spirit flared, and his reaction speed was superb and agile!

"Raise the Torch to Burn the Heavens!" With a deep roar, Old Niu’s powerful frame suddenly stomped the ground, forcefully halting his forward momentum! The sweeping sword slash naturally curved upward into a horizontal arc. The blazing sword energy, like a fiery dragon, miraculously changed direction, transforming into a rampaging dragon piercing through clouds and suns, charging toward the descending Xing Chen! The change in movement was fluid, without the slightest hesitation, as if he had anticipated Xing Chen deploying this move!

Whoosh! With a fierce whistle, the soaring fire dragon instantly collided with the falling vortex of starlight in the air.

However, the scene that followed astonished both Old Niu and Wei Peng. That fiery sword energy, imbued with a power equivalent to forty thousand opponents, vanished without a sound upon impact with the starry vortex! It was as if it had plunged into an invisible black hole! And the descending nebula vortex bizarrely exploded with another burst of strange golden light!

Battle Qi surged again, intensity climbing to one hundred thousand points! The biological radar in their minds flashed a terrifying number that startled both Wei Peng and Old Niu!

"Ah! How is this possible? The Battle Qi has fused!" Old Niu could hardly believe it—his Raise the Torch to Burn the Heavens hadn't intercepted Xing Chen's attack; instead, Xing Chen's strange star-cloud vortex had absorbed and fused with it, amplifying its power!

All this transpired in a flicker of lightning and flint! By the time Old Niu reacted, the eerie vortex of starlight was already crashing down upon him.

"Ah!" Old Niu’s face changed drastically! He didn't even have time to evade!