The news of the Nile Department conquering the Taurus Defense Zone, and Star and Moon Shadow slaying the Phoenix Knight, spread like wildfire in all directions. Every single fighting unit in the Shadow Moon and Chen Xing Departments was ecstatic, their morale soaring to unprecedented heights.

Conversely, the Soaring Heaven Department seemed stunned by this battle! Facing the frenzied assault of the high-spirited Chen Xing and Shadow Moon forces, they could only retreat continuously into their shells!

The twelve Zodiac Defense Zones fell one after another, and even the final seven strongholds, the Sky Cities, were captured by the emboldened regular legions of the Shadow Moon and Chen Xing Departments!

As for the Nile Department, they marched on with continuous victories! Under the command of Nile Mei Meili Li and Uncle Jin, their conventional troops were virtually unstoppable in engagement after engagement.

The western defensive line of the Soaring Heaven Department could not halt their advance in the slightest! But even so! The combined push of the three massive armies took nearly a full month before they finally reached the indigenous territory of the Sleeping Dragon Manor! To the west of the Sleeping Dragon Manor lay the Sleeping Dragon Plains!

The fiery red clouds in the sky gathered thicker and thicker, rumbling with a dull thunder that deafened the ears, as if ready to blast the entire earth into dust, while overwhelming sheets of red fireballs rained down like a violent storm, crisscrossing and colliding with each other!

This was the western gateway into the Sleeping Dragon Manor; only by breaching this point could one penetrate into the location of the central altar within the Manor itself. Which was precisely where Xing Zhan was imprisoned!

The battle grew fiercer, yet Xing Chen could offer no assistance; he knew clearly that this would be the final decisive battle determining the fate of the two great factions. Only after the conventional legions cleared the outer obstacles would Xing Chen have the chance to make his move! Perhaps by then, Xing Chen would have to face the most powerful opponent in history: Xiang Tian, the Dragon Guard of thirty thousand years ago, who was now the Master of the Sleeping Dragon Manor!

The dull roar, the rain of fire across the sky, the tragic slaughter—these had long since numbed Xing Chen’s resilient nerves. All he could do now was wait, wait for the red clouds before him to dissipate, wait for the appearance of that destined, ultimate adversary!

Finally, when all the clouds dissipated and the storm passed, the fiery red sky cleared, becoming as bright and transparent as a post-rain azure, making the oppressive gloom vanish instantly!

Inside the transparent barrier, Xiang Tian coldly watched the two figures slowly approaching from outside: “Shadow Moon, are they your last hope? Whether right or wrong, let us settle everything today?”

Xiang Tian gently squeezed his legs, and the spirited, majestic golden eagle beneath him lightly soared into the air! It began to circle slowly in the mid-sky!

“Clang! Boom! Rumble!” A series of muffled, heavy impacts sounded! The transparent barrier suddenly rippled with a strange distortion, and then a peculiar, massive hole was blasted open! The protective barrier of the Sleeping Dragon Manor had been breached from the outside for the first time in thirty thousand years! And the ones who breached this layer of defense were Xing Chen and Yue Ying!

Yet, strangely, Xing Chen and Yue Ying were not rushing to enter the barrier, but instead hovered far at the edge of the opening, coldly observing Xiang Tian within the shield!

“Xing Chen and Yue Ying.” Xiang Tian’s eyebrows rose slightly, revealing a hint of curiosity! Both rode golden eagles, enveloped in golden lightning—precisely the standard equipment of Shadow Moon and Chen Xing back in the day! Not only were the equipment and mounts identical, but the appearance and aura of the two were startlingly similar to the original Shadow Moon and Chen Xing! For a moment, Xiang Tian even had the illusion of time reversing, of history cycling: “We meet again.” Xiang Tian’s voice held a touch of ancient weariness and emotion, as if addressing old friends unseen for years.

“Are you Xiang Tian?” Xing Chen also gravely assessed the single figure and mount suspended quietly within the barrier! The golden eagle seemed slightly larger than typical aerial war beasts, but Xing Chen distinctly felt that the life force field of this golden eagle was far superior to other aerial war beasts. Lan Ye’s bio-radar also clearly displayed a set of chilling data: Life Force Field 10 Million, Dou Qi Intensity 10 Million! What shocked Xing Chen even more was Xiang Tian's personal Life Force Field: 120 Million! Total Dou Qi Intensity: 1 Billion! It matched the predictions of Yue Ying almost exactly! Although anticipated, Xing Chen was still struck dumb by this astonishing Dou Qi intensity! To truly have a Dou Qi intensity exceeding 100 million—it was almost unbelievable!

Xing Chen wondered where such terrifying power possessed by Xiang Tian originated, but when his eyes focused on the set of golden armor worn by Xiang Tian, he understood everything! The Heavenly Dragon Set! Xing Chen gasped internally, “It really is the Heavenly Dragon Set!” In the game Legend of Mir, the Sleeping Dragon Manor Lord was definitely a terrifying powerhouse, one of the most difficult opponents! However, the real-life Sleeping Dragon Manor Lord was absolutely more formidable, more terrifying than his counterpart in the game!

The golden Heavenly Dragon Set glittered brilliantly. On his back, the fiery red wings resembled a vivid fire dragon on the left, and a spreading fire phoenix on the right! Golden wings, golden armor, simultaneously surging with energy fluctuations like a terrifying tidal wave. And the Heavenly Dragon Holy Sword in his hand exuded an aura that made one gasp and tremble! This was the divine weapon and armor that allowed the Sleeping Dragon Manor Lord to sweep the world and reign supreme back then! Furthermore, the Sleeping Dragon Manor Lord possessed another heaven-defying treasure that struck fear into everyone’s hearts! The Paralysis Ring! Legend held that this ring possessed an incredibly potent icy cold energy; once struck, one would be instantly frozen by that terrifying cold, those with lower cultivation instantly killed, and even if not killed, they would be frozen stiff on the spot by the terrible chill, unable to move, left to be slaughtered at will. This was the terror of the Sleeping Dragon Manor Lord! Legend claimed he never needed a second move to kill an enemy, always achieving one-hit kills, because no one could withstand a single blow from him!

Of course, since they had arrived! Xing Chen was naturally fully prepared! In fact, the one who was completely prepared was not Xing Chen, but Yue Ying. Every turn of events today had not escaped Yue Ying’s calculation. So, despite the immense disparity in strength, Xing Chen remained full of confidence!

“We have never met,” Xing Chen and Yue Ying both flicked their hands, holding the Dragon Shadow Spear and the Dragon Shadow Raging Thunder before their chests: “How can you say we meet again? I think you are truly senile.” Hearing this, Xiang Tian couldn't help but throw his head back and laugh wildly. The laughter was unrestrained and booming, fierce like crashing sea waves, high-pitched like a battlefield horn. As the unrestrained laughter surged, an extremely violent wave of Dou Qi fluctuations followed, stirring up sand and stones across the entire plain! And the Dou Qi impact brought by the powerful sound waves even made Xing Chen, Yue Ying, and their mounts involuntarily drift backward!

“Kid, not only do you look alike!” Xiang Tian laughed: “Even your tone of voice matches that damned kid exactly! If there truly is reincarnation in this world, then you must be his rebirth. This is truly fate.” “……” Xing Chen was momentarily stunned, but this did not affect his train of thought: “The reminiscing ends here. Let’s fight a match and settle this so we can all go home to sleep early.” “It’s rare for an old man like me to have such a good chat,” Xiang Tian lamented: “And you, kid, are such a party pooper. Truly infuriating.” “I’m not familiar with you, what is there to talk about?” Xing Chen replied. “……” A flash of awkwardness crossed Xiang Tian’s face, but he still stared at Xing Chen with a look of inquiry: “The two of you combined only have twenty million in Dou Qi intensity. How can you fight me?” Xiang Tian stated: “I suggest you give up now, to avoid unnecessary physical pain.” “You don't need to worry about that,” Xing Chen assured him: “We came prepared.” “Came prepared.” Xiang Tian became curious: “I’d like to see what excellent method Yue Ying left you with.” “Open your eyes wide and watch.” Xing Chen waved his hand gently! Roar! Almost at the instant Xing Chen waved his hand, outside the barrier, the overwhelming mass of fifty million Fire Dragon Moths simultaneously let out earth-shattering roars! Thanks to the continuous victories over the past few days, the conventional troops of the Shadow Moon and Chen Xing Departments still had a surviving force of fifty million Fire Dragon Moths when they reached the Sleeping Dragon Plains. Their simultaneous roar created a truly world-shaking spectacle. Even Xiang Tian was momentarily stunned by this terrifying aura! And as they roared, all the Fire Dragon Moths simultaneously spewed a fireball, and these fireballs all flew towards Xing Chen and his mount! “Ah! This is!” Xiang Tian could hardly believe his eyes! What in the world is this guy trying to do? He doesn’t need such a massive display just to commit suicide, does he!

Forty million Fire Dragon Moths spitting fireballs—each possessing at least 20,000 Magic Strength. The combined Magic Strength of fifty million fireballs reached a terrifying 800 million! Bang! Boom! The massive torrent of fireballs struck Xing Chen and his mount almost simultaneously! But the scene that followed truly left everyone gaping in disbelief! Struck by such terrifying magical energy, Xing Chen and his mount were not instantly vaporized into dust. Instead, the large fireballs striking them seemed to be drawn by some mysterious force! Looking closely, it was the Raging Thunder Wings behind Xing Chen, subtly fluttering as if a pair of strange, huge hands were gathering all the fireballs into one mass, and then completely absorbing them! The incoming storm of fireballs that had rained down on Xing Chen mysteriously vanished! Ah! This! How is this possible! It's Energy Conversion!

Whether it was the Heavenly Demon Armor, Thunder Armor, Phoenix Demon Armor, or Raging Thunder Armor, all were equipped with dual wings for flight! But besides flying, these wings possessed another magical function: Energy Conversion! Energy Conversion meant the ability to transform magical energy into Dou Qi energy! In the Mafa world, Ji Du nearly lost to Xue Hu Luojiang’s sword back then. In the end, relying on the energy conversion of the Heavenly Demon Wings, and with the help of Xing Chen, Feng Qing Tian, and others, he successfully launched an energy conversion and ultimately defeated Xue Hu Luojiang! This was the marvel of energy conversion! However, although energy conversion was miraculous, it had its limits—the capacity for conversion must be within the range the recipient could handle! If Ji Du had received an impact from magic fireballs whose intensity exceeded his own tolerance limit, he would have been instantly reduced to ashes. This shows that while energy conversion was useful, its practical value in combat was not very high. Therefore, in thousands of years of warfare, the warriors of the Sleeping Dragon world never considered such a complex fighting style. In their view, the Heavenly Demon Wings or Phoenix Wings were primarily used for flight. Energy conversion was merely a negligible, superfluous function! But this so-called negligible energy conversion met Xing Chen, a freak immune to magical attacks, and unleashed a terrifying, astonishing power! Almost instantaneously upon conversion, the magical energy surrounding Xing Chen’s body was converted by the Raging Thunder Wings into a Dou Qi intensity soaring to 80 million! Combat power skyrocketed! Yue Ying, who shared energy with Xing Chen, instantly possessed the same terrifying energy level as him! Even witnessing it firsthand, Xiang Tian was completely dumbfounded by this unbelievable scene!

“Damn it! Good one, Yue Ying! So you even manufactured the Demon Devourer Physique just to use this method of energy conversion to boost combat power!” Only now did Xiang Tian fully grasp the entirety of Yue Ying’s plan! The Demon Devourer Physique plus the Fire Dragon Moths capable of spitting fireballs, plus the authentic Raging Thunder Gear capable of converting magical energy into Dou Qi energy to the maximum extent! These three elements converged to create the terrifying warrior before them, possessing a Dou Qi intensity reaching 800 million! Although Xing Chen’s individual 80 million Dou Qi intensity was not enough to shock Xiang Tian, adding Yue Ying with an equal level made a huge difference! Due to Yue Ying's unique energy sharing mode, Xing Chen’s companion, Yue Ying, also instantly boosted her combat power to 80 million! This meant he was about to face two terrifying warriors, each possessing 80 million total Dou Qi intensity—160 million combined! Even the original Chen Xing and Shadow Moon combined could never possess such terrifying combat prowess! If it weren’t for the Raging Thunder Set’s limit that it would completely disintegrate if the intensity exceeded 80 million, that madwoman Yue Ying could likely enhance Xing Chen’s combat power indefinitely! But realizing this now seemed too late!

“Take this.” The surge of 80 million in Dou Qi energy instantly elevated Xing Chen’s confidence to its absolute peak! “Hngh!” The energy fluctuations of Xing Chen and Yue Ying, and their two golden eagles, merged perfectly together! Harnessing the powerful energy field of their masters, the two golden eagles were also engulfed in fiercely burning Dou Qi flames, radiating a suffocating, wild aura like two fire phoenixes spreading their wings in the air!

“Roar!” Xing Chen, whose aura had surged, initiated the attack first! Leveraging the highly developed electronic technology of the Sleeping Dragon world, Xing Chen and Yue Ying had tested countless tactics against Xiang Tian in virtual combat scenarios. The first was the Mage-Warrior combination: Yue Ying acting as ranged support, while Xing Chen handled close combat! Both Yue Ying and Xing Chen were utterly familiar with this fighting style. However, this formation, once considered the golden combination, was utterly routed by Xiang Tian in virtual combat simulations. The reason was simple: Xing Chen simply couldn't withstand Xiang Tian’s formidable close-quarters fighting capability! And Xiang Tian’s speed was just too fast, too fast! Often, before Yue Ying could even launch her support, Xing Chen was instantly eliminated! Experiments proved that the Warrior-Mage combination could never defeat Xiang Tian.

As for the Priest-Warrior combination, Xing Chen and Yue Ying also attempted it, with results even worse than the Warrior-Mage style. In desperation, Xing Chen and Yue Ying finally settled on the Warrior-Warrior combination! Only then could they contend with Xiang Tian! Of course, there was a difference between virtual training and actual combat, so Xing Chen dared not let his guard down in the slightest! In both attack and defense, Xing Chen and Yue Ying had to maintain absolute unity; only then could they keep their combined Dou Qi intensity from being surpassed by Xiang Tian! Otherwise, one slip-up, and they would definitely be instantly eliminated by Xiang Tian!

Whoosh! The wings of the two golden eagles merely fanned slightly! Their two massive bodies shot out like cannonballs fired from a barrel, slamming towards Xiang Tian and his mount inside the barrier! As they rapidly approached, the Dragon Shadow Spear and the Dragon Shadow Raging Thunder held by Xing Chen and Yue Ying carved out countless dazzling golden half-moons at astonishing speed, rolling toward Xiang Tian like a thousand overlapping waves!

Everything happened incredibly fast! But Xiang Tian’s reaction was equally astonishing! Their combined Dou Qi energy was absolutely not inferior to his own, perhaps even slightly superior, so Xiang Tian dared not be careless in the slightest! The Heavenly Dragon Holy Sword slowly swept around, raising an incomparably solid Dou Qi light shield in front of him, staring fixedly at the rapidly approaching figures of Xing Chen, Yue Ying, and their mounts! “Hah!” With Xing Chen’s thunderous roar, the thousand-wave surge—that terrifying crescent sword energy—slashed forward instantly! Xiang Tian only saw golden half-moons churning like scattered feathers surging from all directions, and hidden within these countless golden half-moons were the nimble, dragon-like golden figures of Xing Chen, Yue Ying, and their mounts. This move possessed no fancy techniques; it relied solely on overwhelming Dou Qi energy to crush the opponent head-on! In the past, no one could imagine anyone other than the Sleeping Dragon Manor Lord being able to unleash a Dou Qi energy attack exceeding 100 million, yet Xing Chen and Yue Ying had miraculously achieved it! Facing this tide of sword energy capable of destroying everything, Xiang Tian also had to become cautious and meticulous! The Heavenly Dragon Holy Sword seemed to carry a weight of a thousand jun, sweeping slightly! The long-prepared Dou Qi light shield rose to meet the overwhelming tide of sword energy with perfect alignment!

Clang! Boom! Across the empty plain, within the transparent barrier, a world-shaking roar erupted! The sword energy torrent unleashed by Xing Chen and Yue Ying was entirely blocked by Xiang Tian’s Dou Qi light shield, not a single strand missing! And the incomparably violent clash abruptly ceased. However, Xiang Tian’s deep eyes remained fixed on those two blurred golden afterimages; he knew this was only the beginning, and what followed would be a far crueler and more intense test.

The sky full of half-moons was pulverized, but Xing Chen didn't care in the slightest, and Yue Ying, who remained his shadow, wore an expression of cold indifference—perhaps he had already anticipated such a result, as the opponent was the strongest Sleeping Dragon Manor Lord in history! So, after their offensive was blocked, he didn't pause at all. He let out another roar, and his telepathically linked golden eagle instantly changed its trajectory, soaring sharply upward, flying directly above Xiang Tian! And Yue Ying’s movement, true to her name, became Xing Chen’s shadow; as Xing Chen shot up rapidly, Yue Ying and her mount soared in parallel at an astonishing speed! The Dragon Shadow Spear and the Dragon Shadow Raging Thunder Sword swept out simultaneously! Eighteen strange streams of light shot out, carving trajectories along mystical, profound paths toward the vital points surrounding Xiang Tian and his mount at incredible speed! At this moment, Xing Chen and Yue Ying finally unleashed their strongest mounted combat technique: two sets of Nine-Color Dragon Shadows! The surge in Dou Qi intensity also endowed these eighteen seemingly insignificant projectiles with a chilling offensive power! Each possessed a Dou Qi intensity as high as 240,000! It was as if eighteen Phoenix Knights, each with a Dou Qi intensity comparable to a Golden Dragon, had simultaneously attacked! And Xiang Tian dared not underestimate this magical attack method; even with his vision, he could discern the terrifying nature of these Dragon Shadows! Instinctively, he gently squeezed his legs, and his telepathically linked golden eagle darted agilely backward! And Xiang Tian’s Heavenly Dragon Holy Sword merely gave a slight sweep, forming a strange gravitational field in the air, pulling toward the rushing Dragon Shadows! Ah! It was the Vortex Field! Xing Chen had experienced this strange move before; back on the Snow Domain Continent, Elder Bing Chi of the Ice Tribe had used this marvelous technique to firmly trap his Dragon Shadows! That battle was undoubtedly the hardest Xing Chen had ever fought, and even now, it remained vividly etched in his memory! Although the opponent was now Xiang Tian, and the gap in strength was immense, the principles of martial arts remained the same! So, as soon as Xiang Tian employed it, Xing Chen saw through the profound mechanism! Watching the eighteen Dragon Shadows about to collide with the spinning vortex field, a slight curl of Xing Chen’s spear caused the projected Dragon Shadows to unbelievably flash through nine bizarre C-shaped arcs in the blink of an eye, then, impossibly, turn around and fly back to Xing Chen’s side! Yue Ying's movements were identical to Xing Chen's. The moment the Dragon Shadow Raging Thunder swept lightly, the launched Dragon Shadows were reeled back to her side! This caused Xiang Tian’s vortex field to miss its target! The eighteen Dragon Shadows, having returned to Xing Chen and Yue Ying’s side, swam playfully around them like eighteen lively little fish, showing no intention of launching an immediate assault! “Good kid, you have some insight,” Xiang Tian couldn't help but sigh: “You could actually see through the Sealing Vortex.”

"I see through your meager tricks," Xing Chen chuckled lightly. "This warm-up match is over; now I'm unleashing my true skills!" As he spoke, Xing Chen's expression instantly grew solemn. The relaxed, leisurely air that had enveloped him vanished, replaced by an imposing aura as unyielding as a mountain!

Xiang Tian’s heart suddenly accelerated for no discernible reason—a sensation he hadn't felt in a long time: the prickle of danger. He also knew, perhaps, that his opponent was only now revealing their genuine power!

"Bring forth whatever moves you have," Xiang Tian said, outwardly calm, yet his own heart felt a tremor of shock!

The brief exchange just now lasted only a few moves, yet his opponent’s experience, techniques, and power were in no way inferior to his own!

It could be said that this fight was more perilous and demanding than when he battled Ying Yue and Chen Xing in the past! Strangely, however, he felt no trace of fear or tension; instead, a surging anticipation and exhilaration welled up, making him eager to test his limits!

Perhaps he had been undefeated for too long, long enough to forget what tension and fear felt like. Now that this almost-forgotten sensation had flooded back, it reawakened Xiang Tian’s thirst for combat, his desire to surpass limits, and his craving for a worthy opponent!

"Meet my move: Dragon Shadow Cyclone." Xing Chen Yueying’s mount subtly flapped its wings. Its posture, previously circling high above, suddenly shifted, diving down; the two golden eagles plummeted like meteorites, hurtling toward Xiang Tian at an astonishing speed!

And those eighteen small dragons that had been swimming around Xing Chen moments before instantly vanished!

No, they hadn't truly vanished. Although their speed was immense, it hadn't managed to escape Xiang Tian’s perception!

This level of familiarity was beyond what instruments or the naked eye could discern; only the martial artist's sharpest intuition and instinct could track them!

And within Xiang Tian’s perception and instinct, the trails of those eighteen small dragons were vividly captured!

At this moment, they were smashing toward Xing Chen Yueying and their mount at a terrifying velocity, swirling around them like the blades of a high-powered electric fan!

Because the speed was too great for the eye to follow, they appeared to have vanished!

"What an uncanny technique," Xiang Tian’s eyes burned with a fierce light. The stronger the opponent, the stronger his fighting spirit became!

As Xing Chen Yueying and their mount bore down on him, the fiercely rotating dragon shadows suddenly whipped out, all at once targeting Xiang Tian's vital points!

Xiang Tian let out a cold laugh, channeling his Dou Qi, maintaining that strange spatial distortion. He trusted that no matter how fast the Dragon Shadows moved, once caught within it, they would absolutely be unable to break free!

Xiang Tian held absolute confidence in this technique, the Confinement Vortex!

As the Confinement Vortex shot forward, Xiang Tian simultaneously struck out with an open palm! This seemingly unremarkable strike instantly unleashed a strange white light, erupting like a cannonball straight toward Xing Chen’s chest!

An icy killing intent washed over him instantly! Xing Chen felt his entire body almost freeze rigid in that single moment!

Ah! This was the frigid Dou Qi of the Paralysis Ring!