Huo Yanluo seemed to have been prepared. His armor suddenly emitted a red light, and then Ye Bufan felt an energy surge towards him.
"Buzz—"
Ye Bufan felt the energy envelop his broken sword, causing it to tremble instantly. His hand also began to shake.
"What a strange energy!" Ye Bufan struggled to control the broken sword in his hand.
"I suffered a loss at your hands before, but this time, I won't let you escape again," Huo Yanluo sneered. In his eyes, he had fought Ye Bufan before, but Ye Bufan had taken him by surprise using the inheritance he obtained. Therefore, this time, Huo Yanluo had made special preparations.
Ye Bufan smiled slightly, and behind Huo Yanluo, the Xuanwu Sword had already appeared without anyone noticing.
The Xuanwu Sword pierced towards Huo Yanluo. With a clang, Huo Yanluo was heavily impacted by the Xuanwu Sword and immediately fell forward.
Ye Bufan, standing in front of Huo Yanluo, slashed his sword fingers towards him. The broken sword descended from the sky, catching Huo Yanluo off guard.
But in the next second, Huo Yanluo miraculously vanished before Ye Bufan's eyes, which surprised Ye Bufan, especially since they were within his sword domain.
Ye Bufan then unleashed his spiritual power, and Huo Yanluo reappeared instantly. Ye Bufan noticed that Huo Yanluo's black armor was slightly shimmering. A long whip appeared in Huo Yanluo's hand, and he swung it towards Ye Bufan.
"Not good!" Ye Bufan dodged with all his might, finally understanding what had happened moments ago.
Within the sword domain, Ye Bufan should not have been unable to sense Huo Yanluo's movements. The only explanation was that Huo Yanluo's black armor was now different. Besides being a defensive artifact, it was also a spatial artifact, capable of temporarily concealing him within a space.
To verify this, Ye Bufan simultaneously attacked Huo Yanluo with both the broken sword and the Xuanwu Sword.
Huo Yanluo vanished before Ye Bufan's eyes once again. Ye Bufan smiled slightly, knowing he wouldn't fall for the same trick this time.
Ye Bufan took a deep breath. The sword domain was his domain. He sensed the fluctuations of spiritual energy within the space and finally pinpointed a direction to his front left.
"Two Sleeves Green Snakes!"
The two swords, accompanied by sword energy, transformed into two green snakes and lunged in that direction. Huo Yanluo appeared almost simultaneously.
"Got you!" Ye Bufan roared. Huo Yanluo had no time to react. He never expected Ye Bufan to pinpoint his location so quickly.
"Boom—"
The sword energy from the broken sword and the Xuanwu Sword exploded, sweeping towards Huo Yanluo's location.
"No!"
Huo Yanluo's pupils dilated. The long whip reappeared, and with a flick in the air, a spiral vortex of energy formed. This vortex interrupted the sword energy between the two swords, causing the balance of spiritual energy and sword energy within the entire sword domain to disappear.
This change also required Ye Bufan some time to adapt.
"Scorpion's Tail!" From within the vortex created by the long whip, another whip emerged, surging towards Ye Bufan. This whip resembled a scorpion's tail, sharp and seemingly capable of shattering anything.
"Sword Qi Dragon Roll!" Ye Bufan took a deep breath, and his sword energy also transformed into a dragon.
The sword energy collided with the scorpion's tail of the whip. The dragon exuded the majesty of a powerhouse, engulfing Huo Yanluo's scorpion's tail and reducing it to nothingness.
Huo Yanluo's eyes twitched, and his body moved again.
"You want to attack again? No way!"
The broken sword had already appeared above Huo Yanluo's head without him noticing. Huo Yanluo was greatly alarmed; Ye Bufan had disrupted his rhythm.
"Two Sleeves Green Snakes!" Ye Bufan used the technique again. Huo Yanluo observed his surroundings, realizing he could no longer escape. He roared,
"Luoshu Demonic Hand!"
Countless arms appeared behind Huo Yanluo, resembling a thousand-armed Bodhisattva. However, at this moment, the aura emanating from him was like that of a killing god.
"Boom—"
With a loud bang, Ye Bufan felt his sword domain being subjected to an energy surge from Huo Yanluo, which threatened to disintegrate his sword domain.
"What's going on? Why does it feel like he's dissolving my sword domain?" Ye Bufan was astonished by Huo Yanluo's progress in cultivation over the past few months, his power having increased significantly.
"Sword Opens Mountains and Rivers!" Seeing this, Ye Bufan also began to gather all his strength to counter.
Behind Ye Bufan, the broken sword and the Xuanwu Sword combined in mid-air to form a colossal sword.
This giant sword reached into the clouds, appearing immense. A faint killing intent emanated from its blade; anyone with a weaker will would have been overwhelmed by its aura and perished on the spot.
Huo Yanluo also felt immense pressure. At this moment, Ye Bufan was like a deity. The giant sword cleaved down, slicing through the sky as if splitting it in two.
Within the sword domain, the wind and clouds churned. Huo Yanluo could hardly believe his eyes.
Huo Yanluo roared at the sky—Demonic Escape Transformation.
Huo Yanluo's armor emitted a black mist and a dark purple halo. Ye Bufan saw a towering figure appear behind Huo Yanluo, like a war god.
The war god met Ye Bufan's giant sword with a punch. Upon seeing this, Ye Bufan channeled the power of the Dragon Emperor Token within him. A pure dragon's roar pierced the sky, and the two collided with a deafening "bang."
Ye Bufan and Huo Yanluo were both sent flying backward. Ye Bufan rolled in mid-air after three breaths and finally stopped suspended, then dispelled his sword domain.
Huo Yanluo was similar to Ye Bufan, pausing slightly in mid-air. The black war god formed by the black mist behind him vanished.
Ye Bufan looked at Huo Yanluo. This time, Huo Yanluo's appearance did not evoke the usual restlessness from the Dragon Emperor Token. He wondered if Huo Yanluo had somehow refined the Dragon Emperor Token, otherwise, how could he have become so powerful?
But soon, Ye Bufan noticed Huo Yanluo's aura suddenly climbing, finally stopping at the peak of the late Nascent Soul stage.
"I didn't expect Huo Yanluo to have broken through to the peak of the late Nascent Soul stage. No wonder he was confident enough to seek me out," Ye Bufan took a deep breath. Then, Huo Yanluo opened his hands, and the Dragon Emperor Token appeared in his grasp.