---XiGuang Province, Earth Dragon Manor---
It was time to finish this. Circulating his true essence to keep the poison ravaging his body at bay, he used a small part to dampen his fall, landing not far from the warrior on the ground. Although he used a weird energy, the elder could perceive that he was still clinging to life.
He took a moment to check his state. His true essence was depleted by half, and he was a mess. Oh Yang had not received this much damage since he reached the Spirit Severing Realm and completed his Earth Dragon Body.
Although he suffered some serious wounds, it was the energy and poison injected through them that were really annoying. All wounds were showing signs of necrosis because of the poison energy, and the deep cut just wouldn't stop bleeding. He needed half his focus just to keep himself from bleeding out and keep the poison at bay.
To think that his flesh, which equaled an earth-grade treasure, could still suffer this much... The weapons they used had to be at least high-earth-grade or even above. If that really was the case, he would at least be able to recoup his losses.
His eyes turned back to the man on the ground. The only reason he was alive was that he managed to land on his abnormal shield, which was now covering him. Although he was unconscious, it was as if he was still trying to protect himself with the shield.
Or was the shield protecting him? Oh Yang knew that some heaven-grade weapons even developed a consciousness and chose their owner. If that was the case for the shield, he might even leave this fight with a net profit.
Having checked himself, he stepped forward to finish this man and then all his companions. However, the man on the ground suddenly started speaking to him. No, he was still unconscious. It was the shield! It was... singing?
"And so you're back. From outer space, I just walked in to find you here with that sad look upon your face." The words made no sense to him. Wasn't he the one walking right now? It's next words only confused him more.
" I should have changed that stupid lock, I should have made you leave your key, if I'd known for just one second you'd be back to bother me." He never expected a heaven-grade artifact could go insane...
" Go on now, go, walk out the door. Just turn around now. 'Cause you're not welcome anymore." He ignored the singing and kept walking. Only after he walked to the exit of the courtyard for a couple of steps did he notice something was wrong.
It was like a lapse of conscious thought. At some point, he had turned his back on the man on the ground and walked away. For just a moment, he had actually forgotten his own intentions. He glared at the shield, listening closer to the song.
"Weren't you the one who tried to hurt me with goodbye? Did you think I'd crumble? Did you think I'd lay down and die?" it asked. Was it mocking him? He winced as a spurt of blood shot from the cut in his side. He had lost focus for a second and failed suppress the foreign power raging in his body.
"Oh no, not I, I will survive. Oh, as long as I know how to love, I know I'll stay alive. I've got all my life to live, and I've got all my love to giv,e and I'll survive..."
""I will survive, hey, hey"" a raspy voice joined in with the artifact's song.
Shocked, his attention jumped back to the man. His bones should have been shattered and organs crushed from his Earth Dragons Seismic Descend. By all accounts and measures, he should have been dead. That he wasn't was a wonder.
But now he was singing? No, even his energy was swelling again. As he watched, the warrior was rapidly regaining his vitality! Did he eat a pill while he was distracted?
"It took all the strength I had not to fall apart. Kept trying hard to mend the pieces of my broken heart," the warrior's voice gained strength as he sang along the artifact. "And I spent oh-so many nights just feeling sorry for myself. I used to cry." What man would admit to that....
"But now I hold my head up high, and you see me. Somebody new~"
Before he could make sense of what was going on, the man was already standing again. He was not as good as new, but the worst wounds had rapidly mended...What was he doing, getting distracted? He had to act quickly, before-
"Go on now, go, walk out the door. Just turn around now. 'Cause you're not welcome anymore."
Oh Yang charged using the Earth Dragon Jumps Over The Fence-Technique. He charged straight toward the exit of the courtyard, hurriedly holding his step when he realized that he almost left.
"Weren't you the one who tried to break me with goodbye? You think I'd crumble? You think I'd lay down and die?" a choir of four voices resounded. Four?
"Oh no, not I, I will survive," he heard someone exclaim close by, before a crescent of sword energy almost bisected him. The elder managed to block it in the last moment, wrapping himself in his internal energy.
"Oh, as long as I know how to love, I know I'll stay alive." The moment the song slithered in his ears, a spear tore through Oh Yang's side. It was an attack he was unable to completely evade, but with a turn of his body, he protected his vitals. In the same moment, he circulated his energy and struck the spearman in the head with his elbow.
At that moment, a sudden pain traveled through his arm and disturbed his concentration, allowing the bleeding to resume and the poison to spread a little further. He really had to end this, or else he would run out of power to deal with his injuries...
"I've got all my life to live," the shield-bearer charged at him.
"And I've got all my love to give, and I'll survive." The swordsman attacked from behind. He got ready to evade them when-
"...I will survive!" the man on the ground groaned, his hand clamped around Oh Yang's ankles!
He was unable to evade! But he was not without options. His body bent, getting ready to take the charge and deflect the sword, when he heard a fourth voice from the distance.
"Hey, hey!" The bow was already empty, and the loosened arrow traveled at a speed the elder could no longer perceive or react to. An unstoppable black arrow passed by his hand, lifted to block it, and entered his body straight through the gaping wound in his side. It was all a meticulously planned play that led up to this moment.
The arrow exploded inside it with tremendous force, crushing his internal organs and his dantian. No matter how well one trained their body, the insides would always be softer than the shell. Spurting blood from all wounds and orifices, Oh Yank collapsed on the ground, dead.
His last moment was marred by disbelief and frustration before the pain washed his life away.
While Azzo, Caroling of the Mountain King's song echoed from one floating island, the other was ravaged by terrifying winds, devastating every building on the landmass and flinging disciples into the depths.
In the meantime, the tree had grown big atop the Earth Dragon Peak, and there were no more signs of the sect leader. The Earth Dragon Manor was finished.