Chapter Thirty-Eight: A Fierce Battle!

Jiang Wenchong was not dead; he had merely had his star sea destroyed by Long Xiaoqing. The shattered star sea, like a constellation of stars, was annihilated in a space both real and illusory. Long Xiaoqing's attack was swift, precise, and utterly unexpected—even if Jiang Wenchong had harbored the slightest suspicion, he would never have met such a fate. He simply could not have imagined that, in the presence of two senior cultivators at the late stellar stage, Yang Ye's side would strike first.

As his son Jiang Ming cried out in grief, Jiang Wenchong opened his eyes wide, glaring toward the direction of the gate with boundless resentment.

Bursting through the villa's entrance, Yang Ye and Long Xiaoqing split, each heading in a different direction. Jiang Lei and Jiang Yu exchanged a glance, then separated, each pursuing one of the fleeing pair. Neither intended to let them escape.

“Whoosh—”

After sprinting several hundred meters, a white figure descended, blocking Yang Ye's path. Yang Ye came to an abrupt halt. It was Jiang Lei who barred his way. Meanwhile, clad in black, Jiang Yu appeared before Long Xiaoqing. Jiang Wenchong was Jiang Yu’s own son, and since Long Xiaoqing had gravely wounded him, Jiang Yu’s hatred for her was even deeper.

Long Xiaoqing had intentionally allowed Jiang Yu to catch up; otherwise, at her speed, he would never have succeeded. Having consumed the beast core of a late-stage stellar creature, Long Xiaoqing’s combat strength now far surpassed that of ordinary cultivators at the same realm.

Though both Jiang Yu and Jiang Lei were at the late stellar stage, Jiang Yu’s foundation was slightly superior. Standing before Yang Ye, Jiang Lei’s white attire billowed despite the absence of wind, his body radiating an intense stellar force that made Yang Ye feel as if he stood before a blazing sun, the sensation of being scorched palpable.

Within Yang Ye’s star sea, black stellar bodies whirled rapidly, unleashing potent star force that coursed through his meridians.

“Die!”

Jiang Lei coldly shouted, raising his right hand with fingers splayed into claws toward Yang Ye. A surge of stellar force emanated from his palm, enveloping and compressing Yang Ye’s body.

Cultivators at the late stellar stage wielded star force with consummate skill, capable of endless transformations. The stellar force surrounding Yang Ye acted as an extension of Jiang Lei’s fingers, seizing him from afar.

Jiang Lei clenched his fingers tighter, causing the stellar force constricting Yang Ye to grow ever more suffocating.

When wielded against granite weighing several tons, this technique would pulverize it instantly. Most planetary-level cultivators could not withstand even a minute under Jiang Lei’s grasp—they would be crushed to pieces from afar.

Yet now, his opponent was Yang Ye.

The star force surging through Yang Ye’s body neutralized much of the force enveloping him, augmented by his formidable physique. To Jiang Lei, Yang Ye’s body felt as hard as alloyed steel, the stellar force encountering fierce resistance and sending feedback that prevented his fingers from closing.

“Boy, let’s see how long you can endure!”

Jiang Lei gritted his teeth and intensified his output.

“Spiral Force!”

Under immense pressure, Yang Ye shouted deeply, raising both palms and pushing forward with force.

With a crisp sound, concentrated star force spun forth from Yang Ye’s hands, shattering the force that had bound him.

Freed, Yang Ye’s figure flickered and appeared before Jiang Lei, driving a fierce punch at his abdomen.

“Boom—”

A thunderous blast echoed. Yang Ye’s fist missed Jiang Lei, instead smashing into the ground and leaving a deep crater with earth and sand flying.

“Whoosh—”

Suddenly, a gust sounded above Yang Ye’s head.

Without hesitation, Yang Ye pushed off the ground, darting several meters away.

“Rumble—”

Where Yang Ye had just stood, a deep pit appeared.

Swiftly evading, Yang Ye did not pause, instantly moving at high speed. The sense of peril hanging over him never abated.

Yang Ye knew that his opponent’s divine sense had locked onto him.

“Boom… boom boom… boom…”

Explosions erupted continually around Yang Ye. Intense stellar force combined with the shockwaves battered him, slicing gashes across his body. Yet no blood flowed—the attacks only damaged the wooden ‘skin’ of his physical form.

Meanwhile, Long Xiaoqing and Jiang Yu’s battle raged fiercely. Unlike Yang Ye, Long Xiaoqing exchanged blows with Jiang Yu relentlessly. Her fists and feet hammered at Jiang Yu, but his protective stellar force deflected her attacks.

Long Xiaoqing herself endured constant bombardment by stellar force. She lacked the star force wielded by human cultivators, relying solely on her physical body to withstand Jiang Yu’s assaults.

Watching his own star force batter Long Xiaoqing without effect, Jiang Yu grew more and more astonished.

“Bang—”

Suddenly, Jiang Lei seized an opening and struck Yang Ye’s chest with a palm.

Yang Ye’s body shot out like a cannonball, flying dozens of meters before crashing heavily to the ground and bouncing up again.

In that moment, Jiang Lei flashed over, launching another palm strike at Yang Ye’s airborne form.

“Spiral Force!”

Suppressing the pain in his chest, Yang Ye gathered a surge of star force in his left palm and struck at Jiang Lei.

This was the first opportunity Yang Ye had to directly clash with Jiang Lei since their fight began. Jiang Lei’s speed was simply too overwhelming.

Jiang Lei observed the situation on his brother Jiang Yu’s side, seeing the grave expression on Jiang Yu’s face, and knew that things were not going well.

He needed to eliminate Yang Ye quickly and go to assist.

In his mind, both Yang Ye and the young woman Long Xiaoqing were far stronger than they had expected.

Yang Ye’s combat power was far beyond what anyone at the planetary realm should possess. And Long Xiaoqing—her body emitted no trace of star force, yet her fighting strength matched that of a late-stage stellar cultivator!

Things so abnormal could only be ominous.

As Jiang Lei and Jiang Yu grew increasingly alarmed, they understood that if they failed to destroy Yang Ye and Long Xiaoqing here, the Jiang family’s extinction was inevitable.

“Rumble—”

Their star forces collided fiercely. The spiral star force unleashed by Yang Ye was mostly neutralized, but a small portion pierced through Jiang Lei’s defense, striking him directly.

“Bang bang—”

Two dull thuds sounded amidst the deafening explosions, almost simultaneously.

Yang Ye’s star force struck Jiang Lei, while Jiang Lei’s star force also landed upon Yang Ye.