Damon's eyes stared at the approaching scythe without any fear at all. He didn't even make a move to block it, as a small but smug smile hung on his face.
Peng!
An incredibly fast sword image sailed forward and collided with John's scythe, stopping it in its tracks. John quickly looked to the side, and saw Culein, the Sword Emperor, look at him in disdain, as if he was unworthy of receiving such an attack.
He suddenly dashed forward and appeared next to John in an instant, his sword piercing towards his chest like a blur.
Peng!
John raised the handle of his scythe just in time, blocking the attack. The force of the attack sent him a dozen yards backwards. Not only was Damon extremely dangerous, but when it came to sheer killing moves, the Sword Emperor was even moreso.
"Crimson Blood Sword!"
Damon suddenly slashed out with his own sword, using the Crimson Blood Sword that had been demonstrated by Dylan back in the tournament. However, this sword technique was miles ahead of what Dylan could accomplish, and appeared almost like a different attack.
A blood red sword image slashed towards John, attempting to overwhelm him with its sheer force and power. While Culein had extremely sharp attacks, Damon's attacks were powerful and oppressive. John could even feel his blood slightly affected by Damon's attack, but his powerful blood and body was able to instantly suppress it.
Bang!
Bang
John slashed his scythe out twice in quick succession against the two attacks, blocking them fully. His body was sent flying backwards once more, losing out slightly in the exchange.
They were just about to press their attacks, when thee lightning nodes suddenly lit up, sending multiple beams of powerful lightning to each opponent. All three opponents turned to block the attacks at the same time.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
The ground continuously shook as lightning continued to rain down on the youths, causing them to focus their attention on it. It was like they were in a perpetual lightning storm, being struck at from all directions. The Heavenly Lightning Domain when utilized to its full extent was extremely powerful, but also extremely taxing on Qi reserves.
Thankfully, John did not have to worry about that last part too much due to his formidable essence dantian. Lightning continued to rain down ceaselessly, causing his opponents to get more frustrated by the moment.
After stabilizing his backwards momentum, John slashed his scythe forward with one hand, sending a powerful scythe image towards Culein. At the same time, his other hand raised, pointing his finger towards the remaining Bloodfiend King.
Lightning Ruin!
A powerful lightning beam shot out of John's finger, piercing directly towards the King who was still busy fighting against John's Lightning Domain. He noticed the attack at the last moment, but would be a hair late to stop it.
Bang!
Bang!
Both the scythe image and the lightning attack collided with suddenly appearing swords, causing the attacks to fall just off their targets.
"Hmph,"
Culein scoffed at the two attacks. A dozen swords now floated in the air around him, each brimming with the power of an early grade Core Formation weapon. Clearly it was some sort of sword domain.
Not only that, but he suddenly held a different sword in his hand than before. It was brimming with an ancient aura, clearly something the Sword Emperor had obtained in this ancient city, or perhaps even in the arch trials.
Lightning continued to rain down on the youths, but the swords revolving around Culein suddenly shot out in every direction. They moved incredibly quickly, and formed a revolving defense around the three youths, completely fighting back against the lightning domain. Not only that, but the swords sliced into the domain nodes as well, severing them apart. The nodes would quickly reform, but nodes destruction, although momentarily, gave the youths more reprieve than before.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Lighting and swords continually collided, exploding against each other and bathing the area with powerful shockwaves. At the same time, the battle between Kirri, Azalea, and Kaiden continued to rage on the other side of the formation area, violently shaking the ground from their exchanges.
Kirii darted around like a blur, looking like a beam of lightning itself, his speed unmatched. Azalea and Kaiden attempted to pin Kirii down, but were unable to do so. Azalea suddenly activated a defensive domain, which slightly slowed down Kirii's speed. The two sides continued to trade blows, with neither side coming out on top.
John narrowed his eyes as he stared forward and Culein and Damon. Not only did Culein reveal shocking power and a shocking weapon, but an incredibly ancient and powerful weapon now rested in Damon's hand as well.
It was a blood red sword, and its grade was at the peak of the Core Formation Realm. John could tell it was an amazing weapon. The two Emperor's auras exploded out with incredible power, shocking all those watching.
"What monsters!" a youth in the crowd muttered.
The nearby youths all nodded their heads in agreement. The two Emperors were showing why they were so feared.
"Your strength isn't bad. But now you die," Damon scoffed as the surroundings suddenly went red.
'Crimson Hell Domain!'
John instantly recognized the domain, as it was displayed by both Jason and Dylan previously. However, this domain of Damon's was much more profound, being on a completely different level compared to the amateur displays of the other two.
John felt the same invading force on his body and soul, seeking to control his blood in his body, as well as overwhelm his soul and will. John steeled his will, resisting the soul portion of the attack, while powering his body even further to resist the blood portion.
'Even with my incredibly powerful Asura Body, I can still feel effects on my blood and body from Damon's domain! I think it's about time to use it.'
John was shocked at this discovery, which showed just how powerful Damon was. His body was actually being affected greatly by the domain, which was outside of his expectations. Unfortunately, his body, which was at the Late Qi Condensation Realm, was just too low at the moment to resists such a domain.
John narrowed his eyes as he stared at the three youths. His eyes slowly began to turn red.
Immortal Asura Transformation Art!
The area went silent for a brief moment, before John's aura suddenly shot up into the sky, much more powerful than before. The aura continued to become more sinister and bloodthirsty, completely shocking the crowd. Its power was unlike anything they had ever felt before. It was like they were witnessing the birth of a demon god.
The Two Emperors and one King narrowed their eyes as they stared at John with serious expressions. They noticed John's eyes go completely blood red, clearly indicating that it was some sort of transformation art. His aura was also completely unlike before, giving even them a moment of pause.
Even Azalea and Kaiden paused for a moment to look over towards John, completely shocked by his sudden explosion of power.
John felt the negative effects of Damon's domain completely wash away, once again freeing him from Damon's control.
Damon quickly composed himself and suddenly shot forward like a bullet, appearing directly before John, his sword slashing down powerfully. John quickly raised his scythe.
Peng!
Sword and scythe collided, and John was the one to lose out in the exchange as he was sent several steps backwards. Damon raised his eyebrows in surprise, as he expected John to be unable to move at all due to his formation.
"Your power and body truly is shocking. Once I kill you, I'll use your blood to improve my battle arts," Damon said in a mocking tone as he suddenly slashed at John again. The Bloodfiend King, who wielded a sword as well, joined Damon in his assault on John.
Peng!
Peng!
Peng!
Peng!
Swords continuously pierced and slashed towards John in an endless barrage, seeking to take his life. John's scythe revolved and twirled endlessly, fully utilizing the scythe insights he had recently gained. His twirling scythe was like a defensive wall, blocking whatever attack came his way. However, he was slowly but surely being pushed backwards. Even with his incredible transformation, John was still on the losing end.
His body cultivation was unfortunately only at the Late Qi Condensation Realm, an entire major realm below Damon's cultivation. Despite the incredible powerup, he was still on the defensive.
Bang!
Bang!
At the same time, lightning from John's lightning domain continued to rain down on the three youths, like an endless lightning storm. However, swords quickly flew about, completely blocking each and every lightning domain attack. The swords would also occasionally join in the assault on John, making things even harder on him.
The crowd watched in stunned silence at the battle before them. Despite John being on the losing side of things, he was still holding his own against two Bloodfiend Emperors and one Bloodfiend King. While the Emperors and Kings were not going all out yet, it was an incredibly shocking scene, as none of those present would be able to remotely do such a thing at John's cultivation.
"Is he a reincarnated battle god?" One Divine Soul Sect youth asked in a stunned tone.
"That, or a demon god," another replied, unwilling to take their eyes away from the fight.
While the Divine Soul Sect was stunned, the Supreme Battle Sect youths felt their blood boil at the sight. While they didn't know how John knew the Supreme Battle Art, watching him use it and fight three against one sparked their battle intent. The Heavenly Lightning Sect youths watched on with mixed reactions of pride and worry. However, they were not powerful enough to help John, and so they could only watch.
John's scythe continued to twirl about, blocking the attacks that came from Damon and the other boy. He would occasionally send a counter attack out, nearly taking the King's life several times. However, all of his blows had been blocked or dodged at the last moment.
John's eyes suddenly focused on his scythe. His scythe was now completely riddled with cracks and scars, having blocked the higher grade weapons for quite some time. It was only a Qi Condensation grade weapon, and could not keep up with the barrage from the ancient Core Formation grade weapons.
Peng!
Peng!
Shatter!
After blocking several more attacks, a powerful sword attack from Damon collided against John's scythe, shattering it completely. It fragmented into bits, the bits slamming against his body, while Damon's Crimson Blood Sword also landed on John's chest.
John suddenly shot backwards like a bullet, a trail of blood following behind him. The crowd grimaced as John slammed against the formation wall on the far side, coming to a complete stop and rebounding to the floor below. He lay face down after landing, appearing as if he was dead, or at least greatly injured. Blood pooled below his body, revealing the state of his injury.
"Hmph," Damon scoffed as a large smile appeared on his face. He and the Bloodfiend King slowly began to walk over to John's body.
Outside the formation, a concerned look appeared on the girl watching from the sides. Her hand suddenly raised once more, beginning to glow with incredible power.
"Forgive me, Russell," a soft voice suddenly spoke out. It was incredibly soft, but for some reason, everyone could hear it.
Damon scoffed once more as he approached John. His sword slowly raised above his head, ready to slash down at a moment's notice. "Apologize when you meet him in the underworl-"
Boom!
His voice suddenly cut off as John's aura instantly exploded outward once more, even greater than before. The clouds above the temple began to churn, and quickly gathered into a violent tempest. Lightning continuously snaked through the sky within the clouds, sending deafening booms echoing through the air.
A terrifying pressure suddenly pressed down on all the youths, with John at the center of its focus. The pressure was completely overwhelming, causing even the Three Emperors to stop in their tracks and stare upwards, their faces showing signs of fear. While they could not see the storm above the temple, they could clearly feel and hear it.
Tribulation Clouds!