When Long Zhantian revealed his true form, the aura surrounding him intensified by countless times. Although he remained at the initial stage of the Demon Emperor realm, it was as if the difference between a single keg of gunpowder and a whole cartload—the resulting power had increased exponentially.

And his true form was staggeringly immense, akin to a massive mountain range. Even the silver giant wolf of the Werewolf tribe seemed no larger than a mouse compared to him.

Seeing Long Zhantian manifest his true form, Ashura knew this was a desperate battle. Even possessing the Abi Sword, killing him would prove incredibly difficult. Despite the Abi Sword’s sharpness, compared to Long Zhantian’s true body, it appeared minuscule. To speak nothing of the entire sword, Ashura himself seemed like a mere needle next to Long Zhantian’s colossal form. As for the Abi Sword? It was thinner than a strand of hair.

"Aoo..." A colossal roar erupted from Long Zhantian’s massive maw. As his mouth opened, a torrent of black Dragon Flame spewed forth. For him, it was merely a single breath of flame, but for Ashura, it felt like an infinite inferno rushing toward him, leaving no avenue for escape.

However, Ashura made no move to dodge. Streaks of blood-red light flared across his body as he shot straight into the sky.

"Hiss..." The monumental blood-light collided head-on with the Dragon Flame, producing a searing, spitting sound. Immediately following, the blood-light began to rapidly erode, swiftly swallowed whole by the Dragon Flame. The scorching black fire left extensive, charred scars across Ashura's body, yet he seemed utterly unfazed, charging directly toward Long Zhantian's hill-sized bulk and thrusting his sword forward.

With a "Shing...", the Abi Sword pierced through Long Zhantian’s scales without resistance, the blade sinking deep into the dragon’s interior.

"Aoo..." The moment the Abi Sword breached his body, an agonizing shriek tore from Long Zhantian's giant jaws. Logically, with such an enormous frame, the Abi Sword should feel like nothing more than a sting, incapable of even breaking the skin, much less damaging bone. He should never have let out such a tremendous cry of pain.

But who could know that the Abi Sword did not merely wound the body; it wounded the soul. For any ordinary person, even those legendary Immortals, being struck by the Abi Sword meant their primordial spirit would be instantly sucked into the blade, becoming its most nourishing tribute. Only those Witches whose souls and flesh were perfectly fused could barely withstand the Abi Sword’s touch.

Even so, the agony inflicted upon Long Zhantian by the Abi Sword was immense. He felt as though his very soul had been violently stabbed—a pain incomparable to any physical hurt.

The demonic power within him surged toward the Abi Sword, the volatile energy violently forcing the blade out of his body. His massive frame spun rapidly, and with an unexpected lunge, he clawed toward Ashura.

Though his body was colossal, his speed now surpassed that of his human form. In almost an instant, the dragon claw, large enough to cover several houses, was upon Ashura.

Before the claw even struck, the sheer force of the pressure field began to fracture Ashura’s bones. While his power vastly eclipsed Long Zhantian's, his physical endurance was nowhere near as formidable.

Feeling his body on the verge of shattering, another surge of blood-red light exploded from within Ashura. He whipped the Abi Sword in his hand, aiming the strike directly at Long Zhantian's descending claw.

To Long Zhantian, the Abi Sword, so incredibly slender, seemed like a weapon finer than a needle. But having already tasted its power, Long Zhantian immediately retracted his claw upon sensing the sword's intent. His massive body swayed violently, and his tail—moving like a passing Halley’s Comet—swept across the area.

A tremor ran through Ashura’s core. He immediately thrust the Abi Sword forward again, realizing he lacked the absolute strength to block such a massive tail; his only recourse was to force Long Zhantian to hesitate.

Yet, Long Zhantian showed no sign of holding back; the monstrous tail continued its straight, crushing trajectory.

"Shing..." The Abi Sword found its mark unerringly, piercing deep into Long Zhantian’s tail—it was like being stung by a bee; the sword blade itself was barely visible. But the massive tail slammed full force into Ashura’s body.

Poor Ashura. Compared to the Demon Dragon King, his body was like that of an ant, perhaps a newborn one. The Demon Dragon King’s body was an elephant, no, a Tyrannosaurus Rex. How could he possibly withstand the full might of a T-Rex’s attack?

He was sent flying instantly, hurled away like a cannonball for several hundred kilometers until he smashed into a distant mountain peak, pulverizing it completely before finally coming to rest.

Nearly every bone in his body was shattered; his flesh and blood were a blurred mess, and the Abi Sword itself was left embedded deep within Long Zhantian.

"Aoo..." At this moment, Long Zhantian’s titanic roar traveled for hundreds of kilometers, causing the surrounding mountain ranges to tremble. Meanwhile, the blood-red energy within Ashura flowed relentlessly, knitting his wounds. For any normal being, such injuries meant certain death, but who was he? He was Ashura, an Ashura who had attained the Demon Emperor realm.

In mere breaths, more than half his body had regenerated. He launched himself upward once more, soaring back toward Long Zhantian. At his current level, a distance of hundreds of kilometers was but a single blink of an eye.

In just a few strides, he was back at the foot of Qingshan Peak, just as Long Zhantian finally forced the Abi Sword from his body.

Snatching up the Abi Sword, Ashura's face was etched with icy frost. True killing intent had finally taken hold.

"Long Zhantian, I ask you one last time: Do you truly intend to bar my path?" Ashura was utterly enraged, releasing his murderous aura without any reservation.

His question was answered by a deafening dragon roar, followed by a bolt of black lightning erupting from Long Zhantian's brow, striking directly at him. Even more formidable Dragon Flame subsequently spewed from his massive jaws. His gigantic wings flapped with full force, driving him toward Ashura at top speed.

"Since you insist on courting death, then do not blame me for showing no mercy!" Seeing Long Zhantian recklessly resolve to fight him to the bitter end, Ashura finally made up his mind. His body dissolved into a streak of crimson light, and the Abi Sword in his hand instantly blazed, transforming into a colossal blade—a sky-piercing giant sword hundreds of feet long, like a mountain peak itself, driven straight toward Long Zhantian...

(This is only Chapter One; the remaining two chapters will follow in the morning!)