He had killed over a hundred people from the Black Cloud Commerce Association, emptied their warehouse, and now had an unending enmity with Xia Shangji. Since it had come to this, he decided to settle everything right here.

He also wanted to see if he and Jie La together could kill a Tier Six powerhouse.

"You're courting death!"

Seeing Qin Tian speak like this, Xia Shangji hesitated no more and directly raised his hand, as a dark aura surged forth.

"Hand of the Abyss!"

A dense wave of dark energy, like ink dropped into clear water, instantly blackened half of the mine.

The oppressive aura of a Tier Six Dark Mage, carrying a chilling abyssal essence, swept forth, causing layers of black ice to form on the rock walls, seeming to even freeze the air.

Several giant hands formed purely of dark energy extended from the black mist, with bony joints and nails gleaming with a toxic glow, whistling toward Qin Tian to tear his soul apart.

Spirit Mage?

Qin Tian's mouth lifted into a grin. If it were a Tier Six Spirit Martial Artist, he would be somewhat wary, but a Spirit Mage was naturally countered by Jie La.

With a thought, the ground erupted with Soul-Devouring Demon Vines, taut like drawn bowstrings.

The tips of the vines sliced through the air, striking the dark giant hands with precision.

"Buzz—" At the moment of collision, instead of the expected explosion, there was only a low hum as energy was devoured.

The surface of the Soul-Devouring Demon Vine glimmered with intricate golden patterns, greedily absorbing the dark energy like a living creature. Those formidable claws that could tear steel transformed into a flow of energy upon contact, streaming into the depths of the vine along the patterns.

Xia Shangji's spiritual power suddenly stalled; he could clearly feel his connection with the dark hands being severed—not shattered, but silently "siphoned" away.

Even more chilling was the fact that after absorbing the dark energy, the vines weren't corroded. Instead, like beasts drinking nectar, their surfaces glowed with an oily sheen, the barbs became sharper, and their growth rate accelerated several times over.

Within just a few breaths, the vines, initially reaching only waist height, had surged to a height of a yard, weaving into an impermeable web that completely enveloped his dark giant hands.

"What on earth is this ghostly thing!"

Cold sweat covered Xia Shangji's forehead. He had never seen such an unusual plant capable of devouring energy this way.

Just as his mind was shaken, Qin Tian commanded the vines to counterattack.

A vine as thick as a bowl swept horizontally like a long whip, with a sharp whoosh slicing through the air toward Xia Shangji's face.

He instinctively raised his arm to block, instantly thickening the dark shield by three inches.

"Thud!" The vine struck the shield with a dull roar.

The shield trembled intensely, dark energy rippling across its surface, but ultimately it did not shatter—the foundation of a Tier Six powerhouse still remained.

But Xia Shangji's heart constricted violently.

He could feel, at the instant the shield touched the vine, a sliver of energy was silently siphoned away.

It felt like there was a hole poked in his back, no matter how much energy he infused, the vines would quietly steal away a portion.

"Get lost!"

He roared, detonating the remaining dark giant hands to repel the vines while quickly retreating to gain distance and reorganize his formation.

But the vines clung to him relentlessly, some slithering along the ground like snakes to coil around his ankle, others descending from above, their barbs flashing with a ghostly glow, sealing off all angles of escape.

More bizarrely, these vines seemed to possess wisdom, always managing to avoid his sharp edges, targeting the gaps in the energy flow of the shield.

Despite none of the encounters breaking the defense, it felt like countless ants gnawing at a dam, forcing him to remain constantly on edge, fearing that the shield could be entirely drained at any moment.

"Amazing... truly amazing!"

Vivian's eyes widened, her small hands clutched tightly to her skirt, her knuckles turning white.

She had personally experienced Xia Shangji's terror, the descent of the Hand of the Abyss carrying an overwhelming sense of destruction, almost turning her, Luo Xiu, and Allen into mince.

Yet now, witnessing it again, the once despair-inducing dark giant hands appeared like playthings in the grasp of a mischievous child before the vines, unable to harm and instead serving as nourishment for them.

Allen's Adam's apple bobbed, his dragon scale-laden face full of shock.

He had fought life and death battles with Xia Shangji multiple times, fully aware of how overpowering a Tier Six Dark Mage's energy was, but Qin Tian's vines seemed like a natural bane to darkness, silently consuming the energy with each clash.

He turned to Qin Tian, who stood there with an expression as tranquil as if merely dusting off, the effortless demeanor sparking in Allen an indescribable admiration.

Luo Xiu focused ahead, notable fluctuations entering his keen gaze for the first time, and as his eyes settled on Qin Tian, a hint of respect emerged. The helper brought by Allen was astonishingly formidable beyond imagination.

Beside him, members of the Shadow Moon Tower couldn't help but retreat a few steps, distancing themselves from the battlefield. Their gazes at Qin Tian carried a deep wariness, never having seen such a peculiar spirit plant, seemingly the natural nemesis of Spirit Mages, particularly within the confined mine where the vines' rampant growth characteristics were amplified to the extreme, weaving into an impermeable web of death, with a suffocating sense of menace permeating the air.

Not only mages but martial artists could not gain any advantage either.

"This curse needs a solution…" Cold sweat drenched Xia Shangji's back.

Although his spiritual power reserves far exceeded those of his opponent, the incessant drain alongside combat was torturous—like holding a full cup of water, but a tiny gap kept leaking, visible and tangible but impossible to seal.

At that moment, Qin Tian's voice drifted over with a light smile, "Don't worry, this is just the beginning."

Before the words fell, golden arcs of electricity suddenly burst open on the vines!

The Power of Celestial Punishment Divine Thunder poured into the vines through Qin Tian's fingertips, instantly overlaying the deep green vines with golden thunder patterns, the current crackling and dancing amid the barbs, with a charred scent spreading through the air.

The Soul-Devouring Demon Vine, imbued with the power of thunder, transformed into raging thunder whips, lashing out at Xia Shangji.

"Not good!" Xia Shangji's pupils shrank sharply.

Lightning properties, like light attributes, can restrain dark magic. While the shield can withstand physical impacts, it cannot block the penetrating damage of lightning.

He hurriedly gathered more dark energy to reinforce the shield, but at that instant, the surrounding space suddenly solidified.

Spatial Confinement.

Silver light flickered in Qin Tian's eyes, an intangible pressure surged from all directions, causing Xia Shangji's movements to stall crucially for half a second.

That half-second was fatal—a thunder whip, slicing through the air with a sharp whistle, struck the most vulnerable side of his shield.

"Clang!"

The thunder whip struck the shield, golden currents spreading like spider webs, dark energy on the shield's surface rolling violently, almost dispersing.

Xia Shangji groaned, not injured but shaken to the point where qi and blood surged within.

Seeing the vines dancing amid the lightning arcs, and observing Qin Tian's eyes, as calm as ancient wells, a never-before-felt terror gripped his heart.

He feared neither fierce battles nor injuries, but he dreaded this mysterious, incomprehensible eeriness.

These vines, like maggots sticking to bones, spatial confinement as invisible shackles, the lightning further counteracting his dark magic. He understood that continuing to churn would eventually lead to exhaustion by the vines, sapping the last ounce of his spiritual power.

"Retreat!" Xia Shangji bit down in anger, detonating the remaining dark energy, black mist engulfing the mine, using the explosion's force to boot his rapid retreat.

However, such a minor trick couldn't fool Qin Tian's eyes. As he was preparing to pursue triumphantly, he seemed to sense something, his face changing dramatically.

Crash—

A crisp sound echoed from the ceiling overhead, with countless stones dropping like raindrops, clattering to the floor.

Before everyone could respond, more terrifying scenes swiftly followed: the previously solid rock walls began to crack with web-like fissures spreading at visible speed, the crevices revealing an eerie red glow from the depths, as if a giant beast opened its eyes within the darkness.

A horrifying aura descended with earth-shattering momentum.

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