The thunderous roar and the powerful, heat-laden shockwave, followed by the appearance of a massive mushroom cloud, left everyone stunned. Even the members of the Shushan Sect, who were aware of the martial art Chris practiced, were astonished by such an exaggerated spectacle.

Tommy’s mouth dropped open: “That guy Chris actually managed to unleash such an outrageous move? He’s practically a human nuclear bomb!”

As the dust and smoke dissipated, those present saw that the area before Chris was not only clear of any snow, but the ground beneath was faintly cracked in places, with wisps of smoke rising from numerous spots. Even the snow visible in the distance was melted, and some areas had turned into boiling, gurgling pools of liquid water.

The Shushan Sect members, sheltered behind Hua Yi’s divine light barrier, had suffered little harm despite being subjected to some impact. In contrast, Xu Xian, who was outside, had a rough time. Fortunately, this Seventh Generation disciple of the Shushan Sect possessed formidable skill and numerous protective measures. Seeing the situation turn perilous, he immediately brandished his long sword, stirring up countless foot-long small swords that whirled around him as a shield.

Thus, the terrifying impact and intense heat did not harm him—though even so, Xu Xian still expended some of the Hanguo Essence within his body as a precaution. Having witnessed Ye Wen personally explain this technique to Chris, he knew that besides releasing immense shock power and terrifying heat, this martial art also generated radiation.

Uranium Wave Punch—this was the technique Chris had just employed.

Truthfully, Ye Wen himself hadn't expected to produce such a secret manual. He had almost no memory of this particular art, only recalling fragments he had seen online; he couldn't even confirm its true origin.

But now that this technique was available, there was no need to overthink it. Since the Uranium Wave Punch carried the name "Wave Punch," imparting it to Chris was perfectly natural.

However, according to the manual, the technique was indeed rather ferocious; if mastered to a deep level, it could unleash power comparable to a large nuclear bomb.

Previously, everyone knew Chris practiced this skill, but they had only assumed it would grant his Wave Punch more power, making him harder to defend against. They never expected the astonishing destructive force unleashed when he used it at full strength.

Looking up again, the flying swords that had been aggressively attacking Ning Rushue were now scattered haphazardly. Furthermore, one or two of these swords were damaged: one bore fine cracks, while the blade of another had partially melted.

These two swords were the first to collide with Chris’s Uranium Wave Punch, suffering the heaviest damage. Although the other flying swords were not damaged as severely, they had sustained minor injuries, and many were stained with a peculiar green substance, contaminated by the radiation burst from the Uranium Wave Punch.

Although immortal artifacts are not living beings, they are not immune to such things. After all, radiation is a form of energy. If not handled properly, it was entirely possible that all thirty-six Heavenly Dipper Swords could be rendered useless.

Unfortunately for Tiangangzi, he currently had no time to worry about his flying swords. The Kunlun Sect members were entirely preoccupied with protecting themselves.

Ning Rushue’s Thousand Schemes Fading Light Sword had slammed down upon their heads the instant the explosion occurred. Seeing the swords descending, this group hastily employed their respective defensive measures.

Tiangangzi produced an iron fan and swept it towards the incoming sword, instantly summoning a fierce gale. The sword wavered under the strong wind but stubbornly continued its assault toward him.

Noting that his first attempt failed to blow the sword away, Tiangangzi frowned. He executed two more sweeps, unleashing two more potent gusts of wind, which finally made the sword veer erratically to the side.

Feeling this was still insufficient security, and finding the sound of the explosion terrifying, coupled with the approaching heat and impact making him uncomfortable, he took out a small object shaped like an iron pagoda, tossed it above his head, and chanted, "Suppress!" The pagoda immediately began to spin, releasing sheets of light that enveloped Tiangangzi within a protective curtain.

This pagoda was a magic treasure he had crafted over a century, gathering materials inspired by the Primal Chaos Yellow-Black Exquisite Pagoda. It was his ultimate protective tool, and because it could trap demons and imprison enemies, he named it the Demon Suppressing Pagoda. Its only drawback was that it consumed significant spiritual energy and could not be used indefinitely.

Hidden within this treasure, Tiangangzi naturally felt safe from the incoming heat and force! However, those around him were not so fortunate. Many were looking up, guarding against the swords above their heads, only to be met by an intensely strong gale rushing toward them, mixed with terrifying heat, causing everyone to stagger.

A few of the weaker disciples were actually burned by the heat, letting out shrieks of pain. But these screams were abruptly cut short, as those injured by the scorching wind had neglected the flying swords descending from above, resulting in them being pierced through by the rain of sword qi released from the suddenly exploding Azure Lotus Sword.

Screams echoed incessantly, and disciples following him kept falling. Tiangangzi’s expression grew uglier. Only when the aftereffects of the explosion subsided did he see the severe damage inflicted upon his flying swords, eliciting a furious curse: "Little brat, you court death!"

Before the words had fully left his mouth, his eye caught a streak of vermilion light rushing toward him, accompanied by countless foot-long small swords. If he were struck by that crimson streak, he feared he would instantly be minced into a paste by the endless small blades.

Alarmed, he swiftly drifted sideways, narrowly evading the attack. Although his reaction was quick, he was still grazed. Thankfully, the light curtain protected him, preventing personal injury.

Even so, Tiangangzi was startled because the light curtain vibrated violently when struck by those small swords. In an instant, it endured so many attacks that it nearly shattered his protective artifact.

While he was in shock, he heard a mocking voice from behind him: "I wonder who is truly seeking death!"

Tiangangzi turned to see that Xu Xian had somehow appeared in his path of movement, his long sword aimed directly at him.

The Southern Bright Luminous Fire Sword in Xu Xian’s hand erupted with an even more dazzling crimson rainbow. Tiangangzi felt the long sword before him grow larger and larger as Xu Xian thrust forward, gradually obscuring Xu Xian's figure until only the giant crimson sword remained in Tiangangzi's vision!

When the giant sword collided with the light curtain, it produced a muffled thud—not piercingly loud, but it felt as if Tiangangzi had been struck hard in the chest with a massive hammer. He felt a sharp discomfort in his chest, his blood surging uncontrollably, and his spiritual energy becoming erratic and chaotic, causing him immense distress.

"How can it possess such power?"

He distinctly remembered seeing Xu Xian use this move before. Back then, Xu Xian only used it to break his flying swords. With Tiangangzi’s sight, he knew this technique, while potent, couldn't harm him. At that time, he was only defeated because he was too eager in pursuit and was caught completely off guard by Xu Xian’s sudden counterattack, not because Xu Xian was exceptionally powerful.

But now, he was genuinely wounded by this attack, and through such a direct confrontation—although he was dodging the previous attack, his protective light curtain had not dissipated. This meant Xu Xian’s strike had landed solidly on his protective artifact, yet he was injured by the residual force that seeped through.

How could this not shock him? He had confidently brought his disciples to catch the Shushan Sect by surprise, intending to eliminate this great foe smoothly, but he never anticipated this situation—and what made him even more conflicted was that the sect's top master, Ye Wen, had not even shown himself.

"I should have managed to rope in Zhang Sanfeng and Yiyangzi!"

Feeling a slight regret for his rashness this time, Tiangangzi casually reached out and threw several Explosive Thunder Fireballs to delay Xu Xian for a moment.

Unexpectedly, the moment the artifacts left his hand, a flash of green light appeared, and his fireballs vanished without a trace.

Startled by this turn of events, Tiangangzi stared at the empty space where his artifacts should have been, blinking repeatedly. Only then did he confirm he wasn't hallucinating; his treasures were truly gone.

"Heh heh!"

Perhaps Tiangangzi’s expression was too comical, as Hua Yi, who had collected the fireballs using the Vibrant Wood Divine Light, couldn't help but chuckle. This immediately informed Tiangangzi whose doing it was.

It turned out that although Hua Yi had not mastered all five divine lights of the Five Elements Divine Light over the years, she could command the four she had mastered with perfect fluidity. Moreover, she could use the complementary or conflicting properties of the divine lights to collect less powerful artifacts into the light itself.

For instance, with the Explosive Thunder Fireballs just now, she had two options: either collect them using the Vibrant Wood Divine Light, which corresponds to thunder and fire, or use the Metal Divine Light, which counters Vibrant Wood.

Which one she chose made no difference to her; it simply depended on which one she thought of first!

It was unfortunate that she could only imprison the artifacts within the divine light for now. If she mastered this technique deeper in the future, she could refine the artifacts entirely using the divine light. Then, she could adopt a maddening fighting style: collecting an opponent's artifact one minute and using it against them the next.

However, Hua Yi did have other artifacts. She had obtained several Explosive Thunder Fireballs right when she arrived in this world, and they came in handy now. Seeing Tiangangzi look toward her, Hua Yi waved both hands, unleashing not only the thunder and fire energy from the Explosive Thunder Fireballs but also launching a surprise projectile attack. Two fireballs—one fast, one slow, one leading, one trailing, one left, one right—attacked Tiangangzi.

Although Tiangangzi had protective treasures, he couldn't just stand there and let himself be hit. He moved to evade. Seeing the trajectory of the two fireballs, he twisted his body using a specific incantation.

But unexpectedly, halfway through their flight, the two fireballs changed. The faster one suddenly paused in the air, while the trailing one abruptly accelerated several times faster, nearly catching up to the first one.

After flying for a while, the two fireballs moved closer and closer, no longer on separate sides, but aligned in a single line.

Seeing this maneuver, Tiangangzi wasn't surprised; after all, the transformations employed when controlling flying swords were far more incredible. Thus, he reacted immediately to the change, shifting a little further sideways, believing he could evade the attack.

At the same time, he glanced toward Xu Xian. He saw that the Shushan Sect Master's junior brother held his long sword back to its original size; the terrifying giant crimson sword from before was gone, suggesting that move wasn't something easily deployed.

However, just at this moment, the two fireballs transformed again. The rear one slammed into the front one, and then the two exploded slightly, their respective thunder and fire energies interacting, causing the two fireballs to erupt with even more terrifying speed.

They traced two arcs in the air and smashed directly into the light curtains on his left and right sides. If it had only been this, Tiangangzi would have been surprised but not overly alarmed. Although the light curtain had swayed precariously from Xu Xian's previous blow, it had stabilized somewhat after a moment of shock. Two mere Explosive Thunder Fireballs certainly couldn't break his artifact.

But what he never imagined was that Hua Yi would use the Explosive Thunder Fireballs like hand grenades, treating two perfectly good magic treasures as single-use items, unleashing the full power of both in an instant.

With two loud rumbles, the two fireballs naturally vanished. Tiangangzi, who took the full brunt of the blast, was certainly not feeling well. One could see the Demon Suppressing Pagoda above his head tilted significantly, and the light curtain emanating from its top was sputtering intermittently, indicating that this Kunlun expert, having been besieged and hit several times by the Shushan members, had fallen into an extremely precarious predicament.

"Junior Brother, hurry and save me!"

Seeing his protective artifact about to shatter, Tiangangzi frantically abandoned all other concerns and quickly turned his head, intending to seek help from his junior brother, Disha Daoist.

But when he turned, he saw the Western man who had created that huge mushroom cloud with one punch, along with another dark-skinned man, locked in combat with his junior brother—and the situation clearly favored Disha Daoist's opponents.

In reality, if it had only been Chris, he might not have been able to defeat Disha Daoist. But Tommy was right there beside him. This brat might not be good at anything else, but he was exceptionally clear-sighted when it came to taking advantage. Knowing exactly when to strike to cause maximum discomfort and which spot to target for the greatest effect seemed instinctive to him; he didn't need to think twice for such insights to flood his mind instantly.

Furthermore, since he wasn't brought up in the tradition of formal martial arts practitioners, the kind of moral purity sometimes found among martial artists never afflicted him. Thus, upon seeing Chris and Disha Daoist locked in a tough fight, Tommy immediately rushed forward—resolute in his decision to gang up on him.

After all, the current situation wasn't a formal martial arts contest; it was a life-or-death struggle, so there was no adhering to the etiquette of one challenger at a time.

Moreover, he noticed his own elders were ganging up on others! He hadn't expected his martial uncle to be so violent, unleashing a giant sword dozens of meters long in his first move. If that thing smashed onto someone, he couldn't imagine the result.

While circling around and ambushing Disha Daoist, he still had the presence of mind to observe the wider battle. After glancing around, he turned back just in time to see Disha Daoist clench his hand in a gesture, causing the blazing pillar formed by the Six Harmonies Phoenix Greeting Spear to clash head-on with Chris’s Wave Punch. Under the resulting eruption of force, both Chris and the fire pillar were thrown backward.

However, the fiery energy on the Six Harmonies Phoenix Greeting Spear waned with each exchange. A portion of the spear shaft was now visible. Tommy seized the opportunity, leaping high into the air, aiming precisely for the Six Harmonies Phoenix Greeting Spear that had been jolted upward, and executed a spinning downward cleave. This move somewhat resembled a Taekwondo technique, but it was actually a move from the Seven Revolutions Slash.

This technique was immensely powerful, capable of inflicting severe harm whether using fists, palms, or weapons. However, using the feet made execution slightly more complicated; although the power was greater, it left more openings, making it easier for opponents to exploit flaws. But using it at this moment was perfect. As Tommy’s foot connected solidly, the formidable energy, which was gradually turning entirely into blue fighting spirit, erupted. The Six Harmonies Phoenix Greeting Spear was driven directly into the ground by Tommy’s kick, embedding itself deeply.

And this strike was deliberately aimed at Disha Daoist. Fortunately, Disha Daoist reacted quickly enough, dodging aside just in time to avoid being impaled by his own artifact.

Because of this brief delay, Chris had recovered. The handsome brown-haired man let out a furious roar; his clothes suddenly bulged, and his muscles seemed to strengthen further. Simultaneously, the blue fighting spirit around him churned like a fierce, burning flame. To Tommy’s surprise, a hint of purple began to subtly emerge from the deep blue.

"Broke through?"

As he mumbled this, Chris condensed two beams of light in his hands. With a swing, he unleashed over a dozen Wave Punch forces, trapping Disha Daoist within them, leaving him no room to evade and forcing him to rely on his artifact to defend.

Tommy naturally wouldn't miss such a golden opportunity. He immediately channeled all his fighting spirit into his legs and unleashed the Seven Revolutions Slash technique. Blade-like kicks rained down from above, plunging toward Disha Daoist—Tommy intended to coordinate with Chris to finish him off right there.

But precisely at this moment, an elderly Daoist suddenly appeared in front of Disha Daoist. With a wave of his left hand, a Tai Chi energy appeared, wrapping around all ten-plus Wave Punches, causing them to spin endlessly within the energy field. With every rotation, the Wave Punch energy weakened slightly until it vanished completely.

Although Tommy reacted quickly and tried to change his move, he found that the old man’s right hand seemed to be waiting for him. As a result, his left leg was firmly grasped by the old Daoist.

The old Daoist was about to speak after grabbing Tommy when he felt a sharp surge of energy aimed directly at his wrist. In his haste, he had to release his grip to avoid being struck by the sword qi; any slight hesitation and his wrist would have been injured.

Turning to look, he saw Ye Wen suspended in the air, enveloped in a shimmering golden mist, a speck of purple light flickering on his finger as he pointed toward the old Daoist: "It seems True Master Zhang also intends to stand against my Shushan Sect!"