"Aaaaaaaaaaaarghhhh—"

His scream tore out as blood burst from his shoulder, the severed arm burning to ash where it had fallen. Xiaoshan staggered back, barely steady as the dragon surged forward with its jaws wide open.

The massive maw descended toward him, heat and pressure crashing down as there was no space left to evade. His footing slipped for a fraction of a moment, and for the first time, death felt unavoidable.

Then Miao Han appeared in front of him without warning, stepping directly into the path of the bite. His eyes were hollow and empty, and a faint, unsettling smile rested on his face as if nothing around him mattered. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

He raised his hand and struck forward, his palm colliding physically with the dragon’s upper jaw and stopping it mid-bite. The impact echoed heavily as the force traveled through its skull and pushed the entire head backward.

For an instant, black flames burst across his body as if he had been caught in the same fire. The heat flared violently, wrapping around him without restraint, making it seem as though he would burn the next moment.

Then the flames flickered and collapsed inward as a red qi surged outward, swallowing the fire completely. It spread across his body and rose upward, forming a towering avatar behind him as its presence pressed down on the entire field.

The pressure sank into the ground beneath him, cracking the earth as a rune slowly etched itself outward under his feet. The lines carved deep and sharp, forming a single word that pulsed faintly.

Slaughter.

The killing intent surged with it, heavy and absolute as it spread across the battlefield, forcing every breath to turn heavy. Even Tianhe faltered slightly as his transformation wavered under that oppressive force.

The dragon roared and lunged again, releasing another burst of flame, yet the moment it reached Miao Han, it vanished as if swallowed. The attack left no trace, as though it had never existed.

Lin Xiao Tian’s expression changed as he watched, his calm finally breaking. No... this is wrong, he is not acting like a general anymore, this is...

Before the thought could finish, Miao Han moved, his figure vanishing from where he stood as that faint smile remained unchanged. In the next instant, he appeared above the dragon.

His spear descended in a single motion and pierced through its eye completely, drawing out a sharp, tearing screech. The dragon thrashed violently, yet before it could recover, his fist followed.

The first punch landed, and the scales at the impact point split apart violently as the skull beneath sank inward. Blood burst outward instantly, splashing across his arm and face as the dragon let out a broken roar.

He did not stop as the second strike drove deeper, crushing through fractured bone as more scales tore loose and flesh gave way under the force. Blood from his own burned arm mixed with the dragon’s as it poured down, coating both of them.

The third blow caved the head further, the structure collapsing under repeated impact as fragments of bone shifted beneath the surface. Each strike carried the same cold intent, without pause or hesitation.

The dragon’s screams turned distorted, its body thrashing wildly as it tried to break free, yet Miao Han remained in place. His hollow eyes did not change, and that faint smile never faded as he kept striking again and again.

The dragon let out a broken roar as it suddenly drove its head downward, smashing into the ground with full force to shake him off. The impact cracked the earth apart, sending debris and dust outward in every direction.

Miao Han stepped off at the last moment, landing lightly a short distance away as the ground beneath the dragon collapsed further. His posture remained steady, his hollow gaze fixed forward as that faint smile still lingered.

The dragon tore its head free and surged toward him again, its movements heavier but no less violent as blood streamed down its face. Its claw lashed out first, tearing through the space between them with crushing force.

Miao Han did not retreat as he stepped forward instead, his spear thrusting straight into the incoming path and deflecting the strike at its center. The force slid past him, missing by a narrow margin as he moved closer.

The dragon opened its jaws again, flames gathering rapidly as it tried to overwhelm him at close range. Before it could release them, his palm struck against its lower jaw and forced its head upward, breaking the attack entirely.

In the next instant, his spear drove forward again, cutting into its exposed neck as the dragon twisted violently to pull away. Blood spilled freely as the clash continued, neither side giving ground.

The fight dragged on, each exchange growing heavier as the dragon refused to fall despite the damage it had taken. Killing a creature like this was never simple, and it was clear that brute force alone would not end it.

The others held their positions without stepping in, their gazes shifting between Miao Han and Tianhe as neither dared to disrupt the fragile balance. Any interference now would only create openings instead of closing them.

Miao Han pressed forward relentlessly, his movements steady and direct as he forced the dragon to respond. Across from him, Tianhe’s presence continued to rise, his transformation nearing completion as a deeper pressure gathered.

Lin Xiao Tian watched from behind, his expression calm, yet his eyes did not leave the battlefield for even a moment. This is turning messy... if it drags any longer, something will go wrong.

The dragon roared again, its body twisting as it struggled against the pressure from both sides. Blood continued to spill, yet its strength had not collapsed, forcing the fight into a tense stalemate.

Just then another dragon roar rang out, deeper and heavier as it tore through the battlefield and pressed down on everyone. Tianhe finally moved from his place, rising slowly as a black dragon avatar coiled around his body.

The presence around him changed completely, no longer restrained as the pressure spread outward in waves. Each step he took felt steady and absolute, as if the space itself was yielding before him.

The dragon they had been fighting roared again, yet this time the sound carried something different within it. Its body trembled as if resisting something, its movements turning unstable as it struggled against an unseen force.

For a brief moment, it seemed to fight itself, its head jerking violently as its aura fluctuated without control. The earlier berserk fury twisted into something chaotic, unable to settle into a single state.

Miao Han did not move, his hollow gaze still fixed ahead as the red aura around him continued to surge. The pressure from both sides pressed down on the dragon, leaving it caught between two overwhelming forces.

Then it roared again, louder than before, as the dome above them began to crack under the strain. Lines spread across its surface rapidly before sections started to collapse, fragments falling as the entire space trembled.