The elder from the Northwest Mercenary Group had just cast "Mental Prison" in an attempt to lock down the Spiritual Flame, when the surrounding Martial Artists swarmed forward, attacking them almost instantly.
For a time, blades flashed, spells flew, and the air was filled with intense energy fluctuations.
Accompanied by roars and curses, various Martial Skills and Special Abilities erupted simultaneously, surging towards the Northwest Mercenary Group.
"Protect the boss! Don't let them break the 'Mental Prison'!" The members of the Northwest Mercenary Group gritted their teeth and held on, shielding the elder. Various defensive skills were continuously cast, forming layers of shields that barely withstood the surrounding attacks.
However, the numerical disadvantage made it difficult for them to sustain. The shields continuously cracked under the violent attacks, causing the ground to rumble.
"Fire Dragon Blast!" a Martial Artist roared, as crimson flames condensed into a dragon shape and fiercely smashed into the mercenary group's formation. The raging inferno instantly engulfed one of the mercenary group members.
At the same time, other Martial Artists also seized the opportunity to launch a combined assault. Ice Swords of the Water Element and sharp spikes of the Earth Element swept towards the Northwest Mercenary Group, almost completely surrounding them.
Seeing this, the elder of the Northwest Mercenary Group snorted coldly. Although his Mental Energy was slightly weakened, he still gritted his teeth, continued to maintain the "Mental Prison," and growled, "Hold on! Whoever dares to touch us will pay the price!"
However, under wave after wave of fierce attacks, the Northwest Mercenary Group's defense line quickly collapsed. Several members fell to the ground, and the others were also heavily wounded and unable to sustain.
The attacking Martial Artists were not much better off. The close-range energy collisions had exacted a heavy toll on them, with several Martial Artists already charred black and lying motionless on the ground.
Affected by the intense Mental Energy and energy fluctuations, the Spiritual Flame let out an angry low hum, its dark purple light continuously flickering, seemingly on the verge of breaking free.
The elder was ultimately unable to withstand so many attacks. The "Mental Prison" finally shattered under the combined assault, transforming into a wisp of residual light and dissipating into the air. The Spiritual Flame regained its freedom, vibrating at high speed in the air, its power clearly more ferocious than before.
After the fierce battle, the Northwest Mercenary Group suffered heavy casualties, and the besieging Martial Artists were also panting heavily, their combat strength greatly reduced.
Looking at the heavily injured opponents, Xu Liyuan's eyes darkened, knowing this was precisely the opportunity. He waved his hand, signaling the Xu Family members to prepare to advance.
Throughout the entire battle, Shen Han dared not relax his vigilance. He kept the "Sniff" skill activated to prevent any unforeseen changes. Just as Xu Liyuan gave the order to advance, he discovered someone hidden in a tree about 1000 meters away, observing everything.
Name: Ye Wuchen
Mental Energy: Martial Emperor Seventh Realm
Special Ability Rank: Fire Element - S-Rank, Mental - S-Rank, Metal Element - A-Rank
"This person is incredibly strong. I absolutely cannot let the Xu Family fight for the Spiritual Flame. If both sides are heavily injured again, the hidden Ye Wuchen could wipe out this entire group with almost no effort," Shen Han thought.
"Wait!" Shen Han stopped Xu Liyuan's action.
"Kid, do you dare to stop me?" Xu Liyuan was exceptionally enraged that someone was preventing the Xu Family from acquiring the Spiritual Flame, especially someone from his own team. Xu Haojie also had a frosty expression.
"Elder Xu, may I speak with you for a moment?" Shen Han had no choice; to successfully return, he still needed the strength of these people.
"Speak directly. This old man has no time for your nonsense."
"Aren't you curious why so many people have gathered here? Why do so many people know about the news that the Xu Family originally kept so tightly under wraps?" Shen Han questioned.
"Do you think this old man hasn't thought about it? The Spiritual Flame is right in front of us. It's not too late to consider it after we've acquired it. Kid, get out of the way."
"Elder Xu, if the snatching goes poorly and so many people are injured, if the person behind this jumps out at that moment, we could all be wiped out," Shen Han reminded.
"What exactly do you want to say?" Xu Liyuan felt that Shen Han had discovered something, and his expression softened slightly.
Shen Han whispered, "There is indeed a Martial Emperor Seventh Realm expert lurking in the shadows. Does Elder Xu still think this is just a coincidence?"
"The bushes in the southeast direction, over 900 meters from us. This junior's strength is low, so I can only detect this much. My words are finished." Shen Han warned in a voice only Xu Liyuan could hear.
Xu Liyuan was suddenly startled. Someone was already ambushing, and he hadn't noticed at all. Cold sweat broke out all over his body.
"Are you sure?" Following the direction Shen Han pointed out, Xu Liyuan released his Mental Energy but still failed to find the hidden person.
Meanwhile, in the jungle, Ye Wuchen first saw the group of Martial Artists who were just about to shout and kill suddenly fall silent. Then he noticed someone using Mental Energy to probe in his direction.
"I've been discovered? Is there someone in this group with such keen observational skills?" Ye Wuchen was annoyed for a moment. "Forget it, it's almost time anyway. I'll take care of the rest myself."
...While Xu Liyuan was puzzled, he saw someone walk out from the direction he had just probed.
"Sure enough, there was someone. That was close~" He turned to thank Shen Han but found that Shen Han was nowhere to be seen.
At this moment, Shen Han, deeply aware that the situation was beyond his control, pulled Li Muhua and quickly climbed a nearby ancient tree. As everyone's attention was diverted, he quietly hid in the Dimensional Space.
"Damn it~ Han-ge, when did you Awaken the Space Element?" Li Muhua asked in a low voice, surprised.
"Later. Let's observe the situation first."
"Your Excellency must be the mastermind who spread the news of the Spiritual Flame everywhere. Who exactly are you, and what do you want to do?" Xu Liyuan sternly rebuked.
The Martial Artists also finally realized that things were not as simple as they appeared on the surface and became vigilant.
The person who arrived was Ye Wuchen. He laughed arrogantly, "Hahaha! Do you mere dregs deserve to inquire about my identity?"
With that, Ye Wuchen formed hand seals and unleashed a Mental skill, a wave of Mental fluctuations assailing the crowd.
"Boss, what are you doing!" A member of the mercenary group was shocked to find that their leader had raised his weapon and aimed it at them.
Similar scenes also occurred in other groups.
"Ah—!"
"Ah—!"
"Ah—!"
Screams of agony rose and fell. Many were unprepared for the Special Ability attacks from former comrades and friends.
"It's 'Mental Control' of the Mental Element! He's from the Star Eclipse Council!" some quick-reacting Martial Artists shouted in horror.
Ye Wuchen completely ignored the shouts of these Martial Artists. In his eyes, these Martial Artists of the Martial Spirit Realm were mere ants.
Before long, the original group of seven or eight hundred people had suffered heavy casualties, with only a handful surviving.
Many were already heavily wounded from the struggle with the Northwest Mercenary Group, and now they had no chance to escape.
Xu Liyuan also sighed, feeling lucky he hadn't fought with these Martial Artists; otherwise, no one would have escaped today. Xu Haojie, Song Ziqing, and Li Mingxuan were all standing behind Xu Liyuan at this moment.