Soul Land V: Rebirth of Tang San

Two figures simultaneously took flight from halfway up Ancestral Hall Mountain—it was none other than Tianyu Empire's strongest, the Eternal Heaven Burning Immortal Monster Emperor, and Rihchen Empire's mightiest, the Tianyang Spirit King.

The final battle of the Martial Contest for the Throne was presided over by these two ultimate powers, making the arrangement unquestionably appropriate.

The Tianyang Spirit King glanced at Tang San and Xiaowu, saying, "You are now both Quasi Emperors. The future belongs to you. Though this is the final battle, I implore the two of you to show restraint."

Tang San and Xiaowu simultaneously bowed slightly, expressing their respect to the Tianyang Spirit King.

The Tianyang Spirit King declared, "Both sides, prepare."

Before he had even finished speaking, and before the audience could quiet down, a streak of blood-red light burst into the sky. An overwhelming aura pierced the heavens almost instantaneously.

The blazing red flames illuminated the entire sky, their unmatched majesty causing the Tianyang Spirit King and Immortal Monster Emperor to grow visibly alarmed.

The Tianyang Spirit King opened his mouth slightly—did his earlier words go ignored?

Tang San was equally dumbfounded at this moment.

Standing opposite him, Xiaowu was enshrouded in burning blood-red flames. Though she had not summoned the Asura God's Sword, the crimson glow soaring into the sky unmistakably bore the spirit of a sword beam. She seemed to be burning everything within her, unleashing the essence of the Asura God's Sword. In mere moments, her aura had skyrocketed far beyond the state it had been when its divine might had pressured Ning Chenen into surrender.

Clearly, her compatibility with the Asura God's Sword had deepened significantly. But the question loomed: Was this move meant to cut down herself?

Under Xiaowu's seemingly self-immolating activation of her bloodline power, the Asura God's Sword emitted an unprecedentedly awe-inspiring aura—yes, awe. A pure majesty that felt as though it transcended all existence. Even with the isolating power prepared by the two Emperors, Tang San could still feel the sword beam's judgmental intent sweeping over everything.

The Black Tortoise Shield erupted instantaneously. Tang San infused it with life force, and its surface transformed once again into black whirlpools. Yet, at this moment, even those whirlpools trembled violently, betraying a hint of fear. Strong as the Black Tortoise Shield was as a divine tool, even it quaked before the majesty of the Asura God's Sword.

The two Emperors exchanged a glance, and the Tianyang Spirit King finally spoke in a deep voice: "Begin."

With energy isolation removed in a flash, the terrifying sword beam born from the Asura God's Sword descended directly upon Tang San, causing ripples to erupt all over the swirling surface of the Black Tortoise Shield.

Behind Tang San, the phantom of a Crystal Dragon emerged, summoning streams of water from all directions to converge upon the Black Tortoise Shield.

Xiaowu's gaze was solemn as she stepped forward into the void. With both hands gripping the Asura God's Sword, she swung it down directly toward Tang San.

At once, the entire sky seemed to split in two beneath the red glow of the sword beam. Crimson light flashed and instantly descended.

Tang San hid his body behind the Black Tortoise Shield, its surface shimmering with waves of water.

"Clang—"

A tremendous explosion echoed as the Black Tortoise Shield seemed to transform momentarily into an endless ocean, relying on boundless waves to continuously counteract the crimson sword beam. Yet the blazing red light cleaved through the surging tides, dispersing them repeatedly.

Pushed back a thousand meters by the strike before regaining his footing, Tang San realized that Xiaowu's blood-burning strike had touched upon the threshold of Emperor-level power. More crucially, she was wielding none other than the Asura God's Sword!

In fact, the Asura God's Sword was incapable of truly harming Tang San, as he was also among its chosen wielders. However, this did not apply to the Black Tortoise Shield. Against anything daring to obstruct it, the Asura God's Sword would brook no mercy.

As Sea God, Tang San possessed unparalleled control over water. Combined with the Black Tortoise Shield and the simulated bloodline power of the Endless Spirit King from the Crystal Dragon, his defensive strength had already reached an extraordinary level. Yet, after withstanding Xiaowu's terrifying strike, a crack still appeared on the surface of the Black Tortoise Shield. One of the world's most powerful divine tools—feared and revered—even it had been damaged by this single blow, attesting to the unprecedented might of her attack.

Xiaowu's blood-red flames surged once more, her life aura expanding furiously. Both her bloodline powers and life force now burned in unison, a sign of sheer desperation. Under such activation, the Asura God's Sword erupted with an even more dazzling brilliance. Its terrifying sword beam streaked across the sky, painting it red. Tang San could almost sense the genuine presence of the sword's true form nearby. One reason was that the true Asura God's Sword was no longer far from Falan Planet; the second reason was Xiaowu's immense power had unlocked its true potential.

"Stop! You'll harm your essence doing this!" Tang San shouted urgently, disregarding all else in his alarm.

Though Phoenix Nirvana could heal any injuries, excessive burning of one's life essence would inevitably lead to grave consequences, making recovery a near-impossible endeavor. Xiaowu's exertion of the Asura God's Sword posed a risk: if the super divine tool devoured even a portion of her life essence, not even the Blue Gold Fruit could restore her. After all, Tang San was not truly of the Blue Golden Tree Clan and could not produce Emperor-level Blue Gold Fruit in the future.

Xiaowu paid him no heed. Her grip on the Asura God's Sword tightened as she prepared to raise it again.

Tang San's face twitched, and he finally relented. "Enough! I surrender. Stop burning your life force!"

Nothing was more important than his wife's life.

In his past life, Xiaowu had fallen during childbirth. To ensure their son's survival, she had absorbed vast amounts of the destructive energy of the Golden Dragon King within their son, injuring her life essence. Despite being a god, damage to life essence was always perilous. At that time, the Divine Realm was struggling against the crushing effects of the cosmic turbulence, leaving Tang San, as Supreme God, no choice but to prioritize protecting the realm. He hadn't been able to properly examine his wife's condition. Later, when the Divine Realm was ensnared by a black hole, Tang San's relentless efforts focused on rescuing it; by the time he realized his wife's condition was dire, it was irreversible.

Thus, the sight of Xiaowu burning her life essence for victory left Tang San overwhelmed with desperation. He cared for nothing else, choosing to surrender immediately.

No foe, not even an assembly of Emperors, would ever matter more than sparing his beloved from the faintest harm.

Seeing his face etched with anxious concern, Xiaowu's stern expression softened slightly, and the blood-red light surrounding the Asura God's Sword gradually diminished.

Tang San turned to the two Emperors hovering in the sky and declared helplessly, "I concede."

The Tianyang Spirit King's lips twitched as he regarded Tang San, who had arguably been the most underestimated competitor of the contest. Yet, he had made it to the final battle. Representing the Spirit Monster Race, which included Tang San's Blue Golden Tree Clan—a race that had not yet achieved official Neutral Race status—his victory would have been monumental for their glory.

But here he was, surrendering after just one strike. Despite successfully deflecting Xiaowu's attack, decently protected by his shield. And while the Black Tortoise Shield had been damaged, the defense it displayed was remarkable. Moreover, Xiaowu's explosive wielding of the Asura God's Sword would allow perhaps only three such strikes at most. Triumph required merely weathering these attacks—but Tang San, moved by tender compassion, chose concern for his adversary's well-being instead of pursuing glory. Was this tenderness worthwhile, especially when Xiaowu showed zero romantic interest in him?

The Immortal Monster Emperor, on the other hand, was elated, his face glowing with pleasure. "Very well. The champion of this Martial Contest for the Throne is Xiaowu of Jiali City's Peacock Demon Clan. Congratulations."