1298: Chapter 1298 The Four Marshals Turn to Demons

"Again!"

Emperor Hei Fan shouted explosively, his entire body turning into a black meteor, charging fiercely towards Shadow.

This time, he no longer used those flashy Divine Ability techniques, but instead chose the most primitive, most brutal, and most lethal fighting style—close-quarters combat.

Shadow had no retreat.

He had to block Emperor Hei Fan, at least until A-Mu had safely evacuated.

The black shadow wrapping around A-Mu had already slowly taken shape behind him, tearing through the constraints of space, preparing to leave.

This required time—even if it was only a few breaths of time, in a Tier 6 duel, it felt as long as several centuries.

Emperor Hei Fan's first punch arrived.

That punch had no technique, no flashiness; it was simply a straightforward punch—a punch that condensed the full power of a Tier 6 Immortal.

Wherever the fist passed, space was crushed into a thin layer, like a crumpled piece of paper, stacking, wrinkling, and finally tearing in front of the fist's edge.

Shadow raised his hand to block.

The moment the fist and palm collided, Shadow's entire right arm exploded.

It wasn't broken, it wasn't shattered, it exploded—turning into countless pitch-black fragments that scattered and flew off, those fragments turning into black smoke and dissipating in mid-air.

Shadow's figure swayed violently, as if it would completely collapse at any moment.

But he blocked it.

The power of that punch was completely absorbed, neutralized, and dissipated by his right arm; not a single bit was transmitted to A-Mu behind him.

Emperor Hei Fan's second punch followed immediately.

This time, Shadow did not take it head-on.

His figure suddenly became illusory, like a wisp of green smoke blown away by the wind; Emperor Hei Fan's fist passed through his body and struck empty space.

But Emperor Hei Fan was not surprised—the corners of his mouth lifted slightly, his left fist already primed and ready, slamming down towards the position where Shadow was re-condensing.

Shadow was dispersed again and re-condensed again.

The third punch, the fourth punch, the fifth punch...

Emperor Hei Fan's fists fell like a storm, each punch capable of destroying a small planet.

Shadow's figure was continuously dispersed, re-condensed, dispersed again, and re-condensed again within the shadows of the punches; each re-condensation was more illusory and more transparent than the last.

He couldn't hold on for much longer.

But the preparation work for the space jump had only just passed the halfway mark.

Emperor Hei Fan clearly noticed this.

His attacks became even crazier, even more ferocious, each punch carrying the determination to destroy everything.

He wasn't just attacking Shadow; he was attacking the space portal forming behind Shadow—he wanted to use his own power to shatter that portal and keep A-Mu here forever.

"Give up."

Emperor Hei Fan lowered his voice while throwing punches, his tone carrying a kind of near-gentle persuasion.

"Submit to Me, and whatever you want, I can give you."

Shadow's figure suddenly froze.

It wasn't the stagnation of being hit, but a genuine, heartfelt pause.

A strange Divine Soul attack invaded his Divine Soul, attempting to make him submit.

It was this momentary pause that Emperor Hei Fan seized.

He threw a punch, striking Shadow directly in the chest.

Shadow's body was pierced through by this punch, a bowl-sized hole appearing in the center of his chest.

There was no blood, no flesh, only black mist constantly dissipating from the edges of the hole, like a leaking leather bag.

Shadow looked down at the hole in his chest, then raised his head to look at Emperor Hei Fan.

"I want your life; can you give it?"

Shadow spoke, his voice terrifyingly calm.

"But you won't be arrogant for much longer. Once my Master returns, that will be the end of you."

He raised his remaining left arm, fingers spread, and pressed it gently against Emperor Hei Fan's chest—directly above that deformed heart.

Emperor Hei Fan's pupils suddenly contracted.

He felt an unprecedented sense of crisis surge from Shadow's palm, and suddenly he realized something.

"Dam—"

Emperor Hei Fan only had time to say one word.

Boom!!!

The third collision.

This time, there was no heaven-collapsing or earth-splitting, no space shattering; there was only a silent black ripple spreading out from Shadow's body.

Wherever the ripple passed, Emperor Hei Fan's Domain, like a water surface into which a stone had been thrown, shook violently, twisted, and finally shattered with a roar.

In the Void Realm a thousand miles away, the space portal that had been suppressed to the point of collapse by Emperor Hei Fan's Domain suddenly expanded, stabilized, and formed at this moment.

The black shadow wrapping around A-Mu did not hesitate and dove headfirst into the portal.

Emperor Hei Fan wanted to pursue, but Shadow's remaining left arm was still firmly pressed against his chest; that vast power was crazily burning everything, pinning him firmly in place.

He watched helplessly as A-Mu disappeared into the space portal, watched as the portal slowly closed, and watched the prey he had in his grasp slip through his fingers.

Then, Shadow's body began to dissipate.

Starting from the fingertips, to the arm, to the torso, to that face without features—everything about him was turning into black specks of light, drifting away in the wind.

Those specks of light did not fly towards the sky, but fell towards the earth, towards the ruins, towards every inch of the corners shrouded in darkness.

They merged into the shadows.

All the shadows.

Shadow's voice rang out one last time; the voice had become extremely faint, like an echo coming from very, very far away.

"In the future, you will all submit at my Master's feet."

Emperor Hei Fan stood in place, his fists clenching until they creaked.

He looked in the direction where Shadow had dissipated and was silent for a long time.

The smile on that face had completely disappeared, replaced by a coldness that was gloomy to the extreme.

"Interesting, but when my race reappears in the world, how long can a mere anomaly hide?"

In the sky, those four Tier 6 auras had completely solidified, stabilizing at the pseudo-Tier 6 level.

Four pitch-black figures rose into the air from four directions of the ruins and landed in front of Emperor Hei Fan.

Grand Marshal Hei Zhan.

Marshal Heiman.

And two other marshals.

They were no longer human.

Grand Marshal Hei Zhan's figure expanded to three zhang in height; his skin turned dark purple, covered in scales and barbs.

His eyes turned into slit pupils, flashing with a ghostly green light; the corners of his mouth stretched to his ears, revealing rows of saw-like sharp teeth.

Behind him, a pair of tattered black fleshy wings slowly spread out, the wing membranes covered in red patterns like blood vessels.

Marshal Heiman's changes were even more gruesome.

His body became hunched and twisted, but his limbs were exceptionally thick, and half-foot-long sharp claws grew from his fingertips, capable of tearing through space.

His head became flat, like a venomous snake, his mouth constantly flicking out a forked tongue, each flick bringing out a thick poisonous mist.

The other two marshals also transformed into terrifying forms—one was covered in a pitch-black carapace, like a humanoid beetle.

The other lost its fixed form, the entire person turning into a mass of constantly squirming black flesh, with only a pair of blood-red eyes appearing and disappearing within the flesh.

The four pseudo-Tier 6 demon marshals knelt before Emperor Hei Fan.

"Your Majesty." Grand Marshal Hei Zhan spoke, his voice rough and hoarse, like two stones rubbing together, "We have achieved a Breakthrough."