Chapter 1777: The Final Card

"Humph! If you thought that I would go down without a fight, you thought wrong!"

Seeing that the other party had decided to sever their ties once and for all and make a move on him, Sovereign Chen Yong raised his saber, and a pitch-black flame engulfed his entire weapon. It was as if he had summoned the Heavenly Flame Ordeal.

The strongest battle technique of Sovereign Chen Yong, Herald of the Celestial Flame!

A flash of a saber carrying unparalleled sharpness and the destructive might of a Heavenly Flame; there was nothing in this world that could withstand its might!

"Heh!"

As if knowing that Sovereign Chen Yong would make this move, Sovereign Chen Ling sneered coldly. Raising his palm, he exerted immense pressure upon Sovereign Chen Yong, compressing the surrounding air to the point that it almost felt tangible to the touch.

Respected as the number one Otherworldly Demon Emperor, Sovereign Chen Yong wielded strength that far surpassed the others, such that a collaboration between Sovereign Chen Ling and Sovereign Chen Xing would not even faze him.

However, at that moment, due to his severe injuries, his strength was not even close to a tenth of his peak. As powerful as Herald of the Celestial Flame was, its might was severely diminished due to his weakened prowess.

As Sovereign Chen Ling's palm strike collided with his saber, the flames were extinguished, and his saber flew away to somewhere beyond his reach.

Peng!

As if a cannonball, Sovereign Chen Yong was slammed forcefully to the ground. His face paled, and fresh blood spurted out of his body.

To be honest, it was a miracle that he was still alive given the injuries that he had sustained after the fight with the twenty Ancient Sages. There was no way that he could possibly stand up against an expert whose strength was near his level in his current state.

"Hahahaha!" Seeing that his attack had worked, Sovereign Chen Ling's eyes glowed in exhilaration. "Sovereign Chen Yong, you have been in a position of dominance for so long. Did you ever think that you would land in such a state?"

As he spoke, he walked toward Sovereign Chen Yong a step at a time. Placing his feet triumphantly upon the chest of the defeated Sovereign Chen Yong, he burst into hearty laughter.

This was a man who was renowned for being peerless. He commanded might far surpassing anyone around him, and there was no one who did not fear him. Yet, he had still ended up beneath Sovereign Chen Ling's feet, suffering a fate worse than death!

Suppressed under Sovereign Chen Ling's feet, Sovereign Chen Yong was unable to move at all. With a livid expression on his face, he turned to the other Sovereign and said, "Sovereign Chen Xing, I have treated you with kindness. Are you certain you want to collude with him against me? If he's able to turn his back against me, the same fate could very well befall you another day. As long as you help me tide through the difficulties today, I can overlook what has happened today, and everything will go back to what it was..."

"I..." Hearing those words, Sovereign Chen Xing fell into deep contemplation.

He had always played a neutral role in the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. To be honest, he would never have chosen to betray Sovereign Chen Yong if he had any other choice.

Seeing that Sovereign Chen Xing was actually hesitating, Sovereign Chen Ling exclaimed in fury. "Sovereign Chen Xing, from the moment that we decided to ally with one another, you stepped onto a path of no retreat. If he recovers to his peak, both you and I will be goners!"

Sovereign Chen Xing was a person of astounding strength and wits. However, if there was one flaw to be picked about him, it would be that he was too indecisive.

They had already gone so far, so how could they possibly turn back? It was far too late for that!

"I'm sorry, Sovereign Chen Yong! The terms that Sovereign Chen Ling has offered me are simply too great for me to reject..."

Recalling the means of Sovereign Chen Ling and the terms that the other party had offered him, Sovereign Chen Xing hesitated for a brief moment before raising his palm to deal the killing blow against the floored Sovereign Chen Yong.

It was a strike that harnessed incredible prowess. If Sovereign Chen Yong failed to dodge it, his head would be burst into bits, and he would die on the spot.

As Sovereign Chen Xing's palm swiftly approached Sovereign Chen Yong's head, the latter did not seem to panic in the least. On the contrary, with a look of resignation on his face, he shook his head in disappointment.

"As much as I don't want to acknowledge your betrayal, do you really think that I would get so careless, especially after the Spirit God went to the extent of warning me about my circumstances?"

"What?"

Seeing the look on his face, the two Sovereigns immediately felt a bad premonition. Sovereign Chen Ling bellowed, "Quick, kill him!"

They had no idea what Sovereign Chen Yong was up to, but they knew that it would be foolish to grant him the time that he needed to turn the tables on them.

However, before the palm could even strike its target, both Sovereign Chen Xing and Sovereign Chen Ling suddenly felt a stabbing pain assaulting their chests. Lowering their heads, they saw two skeletal arms piercing through their chests from their backs.

Vicious' arms!

Those two skeletal arms should have been restrained by the straw garment! The two Sovereigns knew that Vicious' arms were the greatest trump card of Sovereign Chen Yong, so they had specially prepared the straw garment to block them. Yet, who could have known that the skeletal arms would still be able to break free of the restraints to impale their hearts!

"You..."

Feeling their hearts being crushed by the skeletal arm, the two Sovereigns felt their strength receding by the ebbing tide. Their bodies jolted from the impact before their knees fell to the ground.

As Blood Reincarnation realm Ancient Sages, they were capable of reviving as long as a droplet of blood remained. However, that would require an immense amount of time and a huge accumulation of energy. Given how the two arms had crushed the source of their vitality in an instant, even if they were to survive the ordeal, their strength and lifespan would surely be severely compromised.

"The straw garment is an artifact left behind by Vicious himself, and it should be able to control his body. How could it..." Feeling his life force swiftly draining from his body, Sovereign Chen Ling was still unable to believe what was going on.

The straw garment that Bo Yu had brought out should have been able to control the consciousness sprouted in Vicious' body parts. It was something that Vicious had left behind in order to ensure that his body would eventually fuse together as one, thus allowing for his revival.

They had tested the artifact before and verified its effectiveness. It should have been able to keep the two skeletal arms under control, so why was Sovereign Chen Yong still able to move them?

Struggling to his feet, Sovereign Chen Yong spat coldly as he panted heavily. "The consciousness sprouted within the skeletal arms has already been cleaned by the Spirit God and replaced with mine... I knew that the two of you were biding your time around the area, and I was waiting for this opportunity to deal with you two..."

By default, the various body parts of Vicious would eventually sprout their own consciousness, but through the means of the Spirit God, the consciousness in the skeletal arms had been wiped away and replaced with his own.

As such, not even the straw garment was able to bring the arms under its control.

When he heard earlier from the Hundred Schools of Philosophers that they had conspired together with the other two Sovereigns to kill him, he knew that the two Sovereigns would surely make their way over personally in order to ensure his death. Otherwise, there was no way that they would have been able to rest in peace.

As such, he had intentionally acted as if the skeletal arms were placed under the control of the straw garment in order to lower the two's wariness and unleash this unexpected blow on them!

When he asked Sovereign Chen Xing for his help earlier, he had, in truth, been giving the latter one last chance to make his choice. However, since the latter had chosen to betray him, there was no need for him to stand on ceremony.

"You b*stard, I'll kill you!"

Sovereign Chen Ling did not think that his plan would be foiled like that after all of the schemes that he had concocted. Overwhelmed with rage, he gritted his teeth and gathered all of the strength in his body.

Boom!

He forcefully jolted the skeletal arm out of his body before raising his palm to strike Sovereign Chen Yong.

Alas, before his palm could land on the other party, his figure suddenly vanished. It seemed as if he had leaped into a spatial passageway.

"Sovereign Chen Yong, I have underestimated you. I might have failed to kill you this time around, but I'll have plenty of opportunities to do so in the future. Just wait and see..." His voice gradually grew fainter and fainter before turning completely silent.

Everyone had thought that Sovereign Chen Ling was going to make a move, but who could have known that he would flee instead?

"I... Wait for me..."

Seeing how his comrade had fled without him, there was no way that Sovereign Chen Xing would dare remain in the area. He quickly turned around and fled as well.

With the departure of the duo, Sovereign Chen Yong's body wobbled weakly before falling back to the ground.

At the same time, the two skeletal arms that he had driven to assault the two Sovereigns seemed to have lost all strength and plummeted to the ground as well. At that moment, he looked incredibly frail.

Despite the imposing airs that he had put on earlier, the truth was that he had already completely depleted himself. Had those two Sovereigns been any more courageous, he would have lost his life there and then!

There was absolute silence for a moment before Ancient Sage Yan Qing and the others flew over to Sovereign Chen Yong's side.

"Sovereign Chen Yong, you don't stand a chance against us in your current state. End your own life and preserve your dignity!"

The two Sovereigns might have escaped, but they were still around.

"You want me to end my own life?" Surrounded by so many Ancient Sages, Sovereign Chen Yong knew that there was no way that he would be able to leave alive. A look of resignation flickered across his face as he sighed deeply. "Who could have known that I would lose my life like this?"

Raising his palm, Sovereign Chen Yong prepared to strike his hand on his forehead.

At this crucial moment, Zhang Xuan rushed over and bellowed, "Hold it!"