"Human, you really shouldn't have provoked this king!"

A human and a spirit locked eyes, as if an eternity passed, or perhaps just a fleeting moment, it was finally the Sacred Heavenly Spirit You He who spoke first, his tone carrying a hint of repressed killing intent.

When they first met at the bottom of the seventh layer lake in Xuanyin Cave, You He was in a deep slumber, his consciousness hazy, only relying on some instincts to prevent Yun Xiao from approaching.

But in this second meeting, both parties were fully conscious. If it weren't for certain changes, perhaps the Sacred Heavenly Spirit You He could have easily crushed the young human who repeatedly thwarted his plans into a pulp with a single strike.

Unfortunately, now You He, having continuously transformed into two avatars and forcibly condensed a high-level Silver-grade Heavenly Spirit avatar, has already depleted most of his power.

Yet even with only two or three tenths of his power remaining, You He wasn't completely desperate, especially seeing the extremely miserable state of the young human facing him.

At this moment, Yun Xiao's clothes were tattered, the fabric strips incessantly drifting in the lake water, and even his fleshly body continued to ooze bright red blood, forming wisps of bloody water, floating to the lake's surface.

Evidently, this was the aftermath of Yun Xiao forcibly resisting the power of twelve stars. Although currently controlled under the Ancient Dragon Taming Technique and Xiao Wu's devouring, it was impossible for him to be at his peak state.

A Sacred Heavenly Spirit with only two or three tenths of its power left, a young human who had fallen to a half-step Heavenly Rank, also heavily injured, the power comparison between the two seemed to favor the Sacred Heavenly Spirit You He. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

It was precisely because You He subtly sensed the state of this young human that he decided to drag Yun Xiao directly to the lake's bottom at that moment.

This could be considered You He's home ground; he could clearly sense Yun Xiao's current state and had absolute confidence in completely killing this human youth.

As a once Sacred Heavenly Spirit, You He had slumbered for hundreds of years, finally awakening, yet repeatedly sabotaged by the young human before him. How could he swallow such a bitter pill?

Even because of the recent battle with Yun Xiao using avatars outside, a profound unease had risen from the depths of You He's heart.

He had reason to believe that if he didn't completely kill this human youth today, once the human truly grew, even if he regained his peak strength, he might not be this person's match.

Due to the Thousand Stars Blood Gathering Array being broken, You He had completely cut off the possibility of further advancement. The peak he could recover to would only be a high-level Sacred Heavenly Spirit at best, never reaching the true Holy Spirit level.

All of this was caused by the young human before him. Driven by his anger and that thread of unease deep in his heart, You He was determined not to let Yun Xiao leave this place alive.

"The Nine Dragons Continent ultimately belongs to humans. You alien races, if you remain obedient, fine, but with ambitions running high, wanting to replace the human race, you're destined for destruction!"

At this moment, Yun Xiao seemed to have returned to his former domineering spirit as the Long Xiao Battle God. These words, he had uttered countless times in his past life to those Alien Spirit strong people, carrying an indescribable majesty.

The Human Clan is actually quite a tolerant race. Except for special forces like the Spirit Fighting Commerce, which thrives on Meridian Spirits, as long as the Vein Demons don't take the initiative against humans, not many human cultivators would go looking for trouble with the Vein Demons without reason.

In fact, the Human Clan could treat alien spirits similarly. But those Stranger Spirits naturally hold hostility towards all things spiritual in humans, as long as they encounter humans, it's a fight to the death.

Thus, the Human Clan could not stand idly by while being bullied. On the Nine-layered Dragon Cloud, wars erupt countless times each year due to the wanton behavior of alien spirits.

Back then, the Long Xiao Battle God's greatest duty was to battle on all fronts, eliminating alien spirits threatening humans, thus he harbored intense hate for the Strange Spirit Clan.

After being reborn, Yun Xiao had mingled with alien spirits to an extent, but those were minor skirmishes until this Sacred Heavenly Spirit ignited a full-scale alien spirit war.

This seemed to return Yun Xiao to his state as the Long Xiao Battle God atop the Nine-layered Dragon Cloud. Back then, what he did most was to capture the leader first, strike down the enemy's head to end the war sooner.

In front of him, the Sacred Heavenly Spirit calling himself You He was undoubtedly the source of this human and alien spirit war. Yun Xiao believed that if he could seize this opportunity to kill him, it might ensure peace for the Tenglong Continent for decades.

You He wanted to trap Yun Xiao at the lake's bottom entirely, but didn't Yun Xiao think the same?

After all, he knew that if he truly allowed this guy to recover to his peak, perhaps no one on the Tenglong Continent could withstand him.

"Human, you simply don't know what true Sacred Heavenly Spirit power is!"

Hearing the somewhat weak-spirited words from Yun Xiao, You He's body trembled fiercely, and in the next moment, as soon as he settled down, an overwhelmingly powerful energy surge erupted from him.

"Hmph, even if you were indeed once a Sacred Heavenly Spirit, can you now exert two-tenths of your strength?"

Yun Xiao sensed the vast power, but let out a cold snort. The fact was, if the opponent were truly a Holy Grade Heavenly Spirit at its peak, he wouldn't have dared come to Impermanence Island; he wouldn't risk his life foolishly.

"Even if only twenty percent remains, killing you is still possible!"

You He wasn't angered by Yun Xiao's cold words this time; he said, "I can sense the blood energy within you is different from ordinary humans. Perhaps devouring you will bring an unexpected surprise!"

When You He's gaze swept over Yun Xiao's vaguely bloody and blurred physical body, a trace of greed flashed in his eyes. It seemed that he sensed an alluring temptation from Yun Xiao's blood energy.

Yun Xiao himself didn't fully understand this body. He only knew it was vastly different from his previous ordinary body before rebirth, and that it should be stronger than the Long Xiao Battle God of the past.

Whether it was the unlocking of the Dragon Pattern Lock to recognize the Dragon Taming Sword or the heaven-defying activation of the eight Ancestor Veins, all indicated Yun Xiao's body's uniqueness.

Even though You He was only left with one-fifth of his strength, his sensing ability remained, especially since Yun Xiao's blood energy was overflowing and couldn't be hidden. This body's taste was extremely tempting for the bloodthirsty You He.

You He even considered that if he truly devoured the blood energy of this human youth, combined with the remaining energy from the Thousand Stars Blood Gathering Array, reaching peak form again wasn't impossible.

"If you truly want it, come and get it yourself!"

As Yun Xiao felt the twelve Star Powers within him calming down, a battle intent rose. The opponent wanted his blood energy, and he, in turn, desired the spirit crystal.

Yun Xiao knew if he could obtain the spirit crystal of this Holy Grade Heavenly Spirit, breaking through to the true Heavenly Rank Floating Life Realm would be a certainty.

Though You He spoke fiercely, his strength wasn't even comparable to that of the high-level Silver-grade Heavenly Spirit fighting Hu Ying'er outside, likely only around low-level Silver-grade Heavenly Spirit combat power.

Facing an opponent of this caliber, Yun Xiao certainly had the strength to fight, even without invoking the power of the Five Elements Ancestor Veins, especially with a newfound confidence after absorbing the twelve Star Powers.

Unfortunately, some things are beyond the comprehension of the "frog at the bottom of the well" type of Holy Grade Heavenly Spirit You He.

After Yun Xiao's words, You He's aura transformed as a massive water column surged forth toward Yun Xiao, bringing with it a fierce splash.

"Human, it's useless. At the bottom of this lake, you can't be a match for me!"

You He's tone was filled with confidence. Though he currently had less than a fifth of his peak strength, this human youth was only at the half-step Heavenly Rank.

"Hehe, is that so?"

As the massive water column rushed toward him, Yun Xiao suddenly wore an odd, amused smile. His hands extended, seals shifted, and several special light spots appeared before him.

These light spots weren't the same as those seen previously with Yun Xiao's use of the Five Elements Techniques; rather, they resembled a kind of star power, seemingly forming a connection akin to a highly oppressive special array.

"This aura… Why does it feel familiar?"

Observing the light spots in front of Yun Xiao, You He's heart tightened inexplicably, sensing a vague familiarity from them.

"Twelve Star Powers, gather!"

As You He wondered, managing to hasten the water column's speed, Yun Xiao let out a low shout, causing the light spots in front of him to burst brightly.

Spurred by the rotation of these light spots, an energy surpassing Yun Xiao's half-step Heavenly Rank cultivation erupted from his body. Upon sensing this energy, You He's entire frame trembled violently.

"No! Impossible! How can a half-step Heavenly Rank human possess such powerful means?"

You He roared in anger, seemingly unable to believe the scene before him; yet, no matter his rage, he couldn't change the reality.

After the overwhelming power exploded from Yun Xiao's body, a more dazzling light beam surged from the radiant light spots.

"This is… Star Power?!"

Feeling the power within the blinding beam, You He's body trembled even more fiercely, suddenly realizing the familiarity he sensed earlier, his eyes reflecting even more astonishment.