When Mu Chen resumed command of the Nine Nether Troop, the majestic fighting spirit instantly came crashing back to him in huge waves. Its intensity and tenacity caused Lord Mountain Cracker and his followers to be suddenly seized with an unknown terror. Not knowing the cause, they almost doubted their senses.
However, Mu Chen didn't pay attention to that. He was standing in mid-air with the fighting spirit swirling like a tumultuous inky sea beneath his feet. With his eyes partly closed, he immersed himself in the fighting spirit, as if it were an infinite roar resonating in his heart, causing his blood to boil.
For Mu Chen, regaining control of the Nine Nether fighting spirit was like putting a tiger back in its cage. Within the ocean of fighting spirit, he could easily feel his mighty power, capable of crushing the world to pieces by just lifting his finger.
Had he been able to use this power in his previous battle with Fang Yi, the latter's so-called Primordial Star Descent Celestial Body would have been utterly destroyed.
Because that's the power of the fighting spirit.
Although the fighting spirit did not originate from oneself and was restricted in multiple ways, nevertheless, sometimes even the top powers had to acknowledge its extreme destructive power.
In ancient times, the fame of top battle strategists was comparable to that of the invincible masters between heaven and earth. It is true that a battle strategist's power would be greatly reduced without the support of their massive army, but when a top battle strategist had the support of a massive elite army, not even those considered supreme among the invincible masters would dare hold him in the slightest contempt.
"In our previous battle, both sides suffered huge losses. I think it is time for another go." Mu Chen's sharp black eyes gazed far off into the distance where the Heavenly Alligator Troop had assumed a defense formation to beat a hasty retreat. Fang Yi was among them, hidden in the crowd of horses and people, but his icy gaze still pierced Mu Chen to the core.
Slam!
Mu Chen slammed his palm down decisively, and with a prompt of his mind, the Nine Nether Fighting Spirit immediately rolled out like jet black waves, releasing a clear bright cry that rang out across heaven and earth. The spirit instantly turned into a gigantic Nine Netherbird with complex battle runes engraved all over its enormous body. That magnificent fighting spirit was actually strong enough to create ripples in the air around him.
"The Spirit of Fighting Intent?!"
It was only when the Spirit of Fighting Intent materialized that Lord Mountain Cracker and his followers finally realized what was happening. With their pupils dilating in fear, they looked in Mu Chen's direction.
"This Mu Chen, to think he is able to attain such a high level of mastery of the fighting spirit despite being so young," commented Lord Mountain Cracker solemnly. He had numerous top fighters and countless outstanding commanders under his command, but none of them had ever managed to reach Mu Chen's level of being able to materialize the Spirit of Fighting Intent.
Standing not far behind Lord Mountain Cracker, Zhou Yue was also watching the Spirit of Fighting Intent hovering above the Nine Nether Troop with an unreadable expression on his face. He who was once acknowledged as one of the four greatest commanders of the Daluo Territory could only sigh in admiration. Mu Chen's move shocked him so badly he even lost the will to challenge and give chase.
Whoosh!
Under everyone's watchful gazes, the Spirit of Fighting Intent flapped its wings downward the moment it materialized, cutting through the air with a whooshing sound and releasing a flash of light that sliced apart the sky like an extremely sharp blade. In the next moment, it was right above the Heavenly Alligator Troop, ruthlessly roaring down on them.
A flash of light split the sky in two.
Xu Ba stood among the Heavenly Alligator Troop watching the flash of light hurtling downward. Breaking out in a cold sweat, he promptly let out a mighty roar.
"The Fighting Spirit of the Heavenly Alligator!"
Boom!
A scarlet fighting spirit suddenly shot upward from among the Heavenly Alligator Troop and transformed into fighting spirit ribbons which travelled across the horizon, furiously rushing toward that flash of light in an attempt to block it.
Bam! Bam!
However, his attempt at blocking was ultimately fruitless; the fighting spirit ribbons fell apart where the flash of light pierced through them. Witnessing the effortlessly destructive momentum of the flash of light, the commanders of the Heavenly Alligator Troop froze in fear.
The flash of light sharp enough to split apart the sky finally reached the ground, and suddenly piercing screams rang out. Among the Heavenly Alligator Troop, bodies spurting blood dropped to the ground, clearly affected by the light's attack.
It was just their first encounter, but the Heavenly Alligator Troop had already lost hundreds of its skilled warriors.
Xu Ba's facial muscles were twitching rapidly, giving him a savage look. Beside him, Fang Yi was green in the face. He never expected Mu Chen to become this powerful after commanding the Nine Nether Troop.
"Retreat immediately!" Xu Ba growled under his breath, realizing that the Blood Hawk Troop currently trapped in the valley was preparing to fight their way out and surround the Heavenly Alligator Troop together with the Nine Nether Troop. When that happened, they would be in serious trouble.
They had no choice but to retreat by themselves, because Lord Flaming Wolf and Lord Celestial Bear had been forced to retreat by Lord Mountain Cracker's three troops and simply couldn't afford to send help.
Mu Chen watched the large-scale retreat of the Heavenly Alligator Troop indifferently. He evidently had no intention of letting go of this opportunity to kick them while they were down. With a wave of his hand, the Nine Nether Troop appeared like a massive black cloud. Above them, the Spirit of Fighting Intent flapped its enormous wings, and with a surge of majestic fighting spirit, transformed the Nine Nether Troop into countless black feathers which shot toward the ground like sharp arrows.
Above the heavens, a huge army was hastily retreating with another army hot on their heels. Each time the two fighting spirits had a vicious face-off, the air would shudder, and the ground below would crack open.
With every face-off, both sides suffered losses, though clearly the losses suffered by the Heavenly Alligator Troop, whose hearts were not in the battle, were more serious. Although they held the advantage in terms of numbers, the Nine Nether Troop managed to make up for the gap with the support of the Spirit of Fighting Intent.
Mu Chen's silhouette appeared above the skull of the fighting spirit. He observed the hasty retreat of the Heavenly Alligator Troop, or rather, of Fang Yi among them, with narrowed eyes, twirling his finger. Suddenly, he stopped and lightly tapped the air.
Buzz!
The black feathers shooting downward in all directions suddenly changed directions. Quick as lightning, they evaded the Heavenly Alligator Fighting Spirit's barrier and homed in on Fang Yi as their target, shooting furiously at him.
Clearly, Mu Chen was planning on taking this opportunity to destroy his arch-nemesis, Fang Yi.
Fang Yi's face changed once he saw the black feathers shooting toward him. He could feel the immense power surrounding the black feathers, for that power was the converged fighting spirit of the entire Nine Nether Troop!
Mu Chen had definitely changed!
Boom!
Despite knowing this, Fang Yi was also not the type to wait helplessly for death. With a low growl, he released all his regained spiritual energy without holding back. A huge shadow once again took shape around him. It was the impressive Primordial Star Descent Celestial Body.
Mu Chen smirked when he saw the Primordial Star Descent Celestial Body. With a light swipe of his finger, the dozens of black feathers pierced through the void and ruthlessly descended upon the Primordial Star Descent Celestial Body.
Ping!
The violent spiritual energy rolled out, and the Primordial Star Descent Celestial Body, which had caused Mu Chen much grief before, immediately fell apart. Fang Yi's shadow recklessly lashed out, resulting in blood pouring out of multiple wounds on his body. His face turned as white as a sheet.
It was just their first clash, but Fang Yi had already been defeated!
Crash.
The people who were still watching this chaotic scene from a safe distance were all stunned. Who would have thought that the Mu Chen who had to exhaust himself just to come to a draw with Fang Yi, was now so powerful that he only needed a single strike to defeat the latter?
While Mu Chen didn't just rely on his strength but rather, had the help of the concentrated power of the entire Nine Nether Troop, this was a battlefield, and no one would care that he only won the battle with outside help. The only thing that was important was the result, not the process.
Only a fool would believe in the concept of absolute fairness.
Mu Chen coldly watched the badly defeated Fang Yi. The latter no longer had the elan he had previously when they were fighting one-on-one, because the two were no longer on the same level.
Tsk!
With a sweep of his sleeves, dozens of black feathers again shot out quietly from among the black feathers surrounding the entire Heavenly Alligator Troop, speeding toward the battered Fang Yi. Clearly, Mu Chen intended to see this through to the end.
Fang Yi immediately sensed Mu Chen's murderous intent, and urgently retreated, his face ashen. He realized he could not contend with Mu Chen and his mastery over the Nine Nether Fighting Spirit by himself.
However, Mu Chen evidently was not going to give him a chance to retreat. The extremely sharp black feathers surrounded by the vast Nine Nether Fighting Spirit pierced through the void like lightning, arrived above Fang Yi in just a few breaths, and started furiously shooting downward.
Fang Yi's escape route was blocked, and he was trapped.
Boom!
However, just as the black feathers were about to blast Fang Yi's body apart, Xu Ba appeared with lighting speed in front of him, and with a horrific roar, released a majestic fighting spirit explosively like a storm.
Ping!
The minute the black feathers came into contact with the violent storm-like spiritual energy, they were blown apart.
"How dare you kill someone in front of me, you arrogant brat still wet behind the ears!"
Xu Ba glared at Mu Chen ferociously, and barked at the Heavenly Alligator Troop, "Retreat first. I'll deal with this arrogant brat!"
Faced with Xu Ba's violent roar, Mu Chen smiled coldly and abruptly formed a seal with one hand. The Spirit of Fighting Intent threw back its head and let out a loud cry, and immediately the horrific fighting spirit descended upon heaven and earth.
"You think you're so great just because you're a Sixth Grade Sovereign. Well, if you insist, I'll use you as the sacrifice for the battle flag of my Nine Nether Troop!"
The black feathers which filled the sky changed directions with a whoosh, and locking in on Xu Ba as their target, furiously shot down toward him with clear murderous intent.
All the men between heaven and earth sucked in a breath in shock. The audacity of Mu Chen! To think he actually intended to use the power of an entire troop to annihilate a Sixth Grade Sovereign!