His martial soul was a sword, but his soul skills were not primarily offensive—instead, they focused on control.
Take his fourth soul skill, for example, called Fear. Its effect was to induce fear in the enemy's heart, making them afraid of what stood before them, thereby slowing their movements.
Not only movement—an opponent's soul skill power would also be reduced by fifty percent. It was both control and debilitation combined.
This skill could be considered top-tier. Even among control-type soul masters, few skills possessed such powerful effects.
The Ten Thousand Demon King (Wan Yao Wang) dared not be careless. He had already experienced the might of this skill once and had suffered a loss—there was no way he would let that happen again.
He continuously reminded himself that this was all an illusion, not real, that there was no need to be afraid. After all, he was the Ten Thousand Demon King—how could he possibly fear this?
In addition to psychological suggestion, he also actively circulated his soul power to calm his emotions and keep his mind clear.
The biggest flaw of this skill was fear itself. Once fear was eliminated, the skill lost most of its effect.
With his strong personality and proper countermeasures, he reduced the impact of Zang Xin's fourth soul skill to the minimum.
The Ten Thousand Demon King activated the seeds he had previously scattered. These dust-like seeds instantly released powerful energy fluctuations.
Zang Xin's expression changed drastically. He inwardly cursed that things were going badly and immediately flew upward at top speed.
"Trying to run?" the Ten Thousand Demon King sneered coldly and instantly detonated the seeds.
"Boom! Boom! Boom…"
The seeds exploded like soul-guided artillery shells, and dark green explosive energy engulfed Zang Xin.
The seeds in the surrounding space rapidly converged toward Zang Xin's position, and once close, they all detonated at the same time.
This was one of the Ten Thousand Demon King's strongest innate abilities, called Demonic Tree Seeds. Each seed was as tiny as dust, extremely difficult to detect when scattered through space.
Once detonated, the seeds erupted with highly toxic energy that could penetrate the skin and infiltrate living organisms, destroying internal organs.
Some special demonic tree seeds also possessed extremely strong corrosive properties, capable of easily corroding even metal.
The Ten Thousand Demon King had scattered both types of seeds—corrosive and penetrating—creating a double-layered effect that made them even harder to resist.
Zang Xin activated his fifth soul skill, Retrace, which rendered him immune to all forms of energy-based attacks.
At the same time, when attacked, it would instantly move him along the trajectory of the opponent's energy attack to appear directly in front of the attacker.
This skill helped him negate the explosive impact, but it failed to bring him in front of the Ten Thousand Demon King.
That was because once the demonic tree seeds were scattered, their source became the surrounding space itself, not the Ten Thousand Demon King.
Moreover, there were thousands upon thousands of seeds—was he supposed to retrace to each and every one of them?
Only the first half of the skill's effect activated; the second half could not be realized.
Zang Xin erupted with energy and broke through the energy blockade created by the seed explosions. When he emerged, he looked extremely disheveled.
More than half of the hair at the back of his head had already been corroded away and was still disappearing, with green viscous liquid slowly dripping down.
His four-word battle armor was also covered in dense pits, all corroded, with smoke rising from them.
Zang Xin circulated his soul power to neutralize the toxins invading his body, but his overall condition was extremely poor.
"I didn't expect you to have such a hidden trick," Zang Xin said grimly. This time, he had been careless.
He had thought those wood-chip-like particles in the air posed no threat, never imagining they would possess such terrifying power.
"There's plenty more you haven't anticipated," the Ten Thousand Demon King replied, giving him no time to recover as he launched even fiercer attacks.
Zang Xin raised his sword to defend while observing the overall battlefield, his heart heavy. The situation was extremely unfavorable for them.
"General Yu, please lend us your assistance," Zang Xin shouted toward Yu Guanzhi in the distance, seeking help.
The Central Army Group's garrison was only thirty-four li away. If he could persuade Yu Guanzhi to help, their crisis could be resolved.
"Master of the Tang Sect, what did you say?" Yu Guanzhi pretended not to hear clearly and shouted back.
The battle had nothing to do with him. While life-and-death combat raged ahead, he stood calmly aside, clearly just watching the show.
Zang Xin's expression darkened. How could he not understand that Yu Guanzhi was deliberately embarrassing him—and the Tang Sect?
"If we had mobilized enough manpower this time, why would I need to ask you for help?" Zang Xin thought bitterly.
Forced by the circumstances, he still chose to compromise.
"The Tang Sect is currently facing a crisis. I hope General Yu will extend a helping hand."
"As long as you help us, the Tang Sect will repay this favor afterward. Whatever requirements you have, General Yu, you may state them."
He knew Yu Guanzhi well. This man would never act without benefit. If he didn't offer something tempting, Yu Guanzhi would never intervene.
What Yu Guanzhi wanted wasn't personal gain, but benefits for the Central Army Group.
He valued collective interests far more than individual ones. If he asked for compensation, it would definitely be the Tang Sect's new weapons.
Yu Guanzhi's eyes flickered, and he laughed inwardly. Zang Xin, Zang Xin… so you've fallen to this point today.
"Master of the Tang Sect, are you serious? Any condition is acceptable?" Yu Guanzhi asked.
"Yes," Zang Xin replied while continuing to fight and speak at the same time.
The Ten Thousand Demon King did not interrupt their conversation. Instead, his attacks grew even more ruthless. Since the enemy was willingly distracted, how could he miss such a good opportunity?
"But I have more than one request—at least three. What should we do about that?" Yu Guanzhi said, feigning difficulty.
Zang Xin clenched his teeth. Under normal circumstances, he would have slashed Yu Guanzhi with his sword already. This old fox was really pushing his luck.
"Three it is. As long as your conditions aren't too excessive, General Yu, everything can be discussed," Zang Xin said through gritted teeth.
Yu Guanzhi's lips curled into a satisfied smile. "Very well. Then I'll help the Tang Sect Master."
He then deliberately raised his voice:
"Zhou Jun, immediately mobilize fifty thousand elite troops and have them prepare for battle!"
"Yes!" the officer beside him responded loudly, pulling out a communicator and beginning to contact the army.
In reality, Yu Guanzhi had already ordered him to mobilize the troops earlier. The situation had grown too large and required military intervention.
What he was doing now was simply cooperating with Yu Guanzhi's act, making it look as though the order was only just being given.
"General Yu, please help relieve the pressure on our people," Yun Ming's voice came from the sky.
Normally, he would address Yu Guanzhi by name. Only now, when seeking help, did he call him "General Yu."
Yu Guanzhi frowned. If it were Zang Xin, he could joke around a bit, but with Yun Ming, he decided against it.
Mainly because he feared the man's strength. He knew Yun Ming's temperament well—if he joked now, he would probably be settled with afterward.
He glanced toward the distant battlefield and fell into deep thought, hesitating and clearly unwilling to act.
The people on the Dragon Phoenix Hall side had already gone completely berserk. Even if he intervened now, it would be impossible to make them stop out of fear.