"I also don't want to stand against you in the future, nor do I want to put your mother in a difficult position. Today, it's fine because Xia Yi and your mother are not true enemies. If you give him a heads-up, your mother won't be truly angry. But if you do this in front of a real enemy, just imagine how furious your mother would be."
Gu Yue patted Lan Fozi's shoulder as she spoke.
"I... I understand." Lan Fozi lowered her head slightly.
"Alright, don't overthink it. Let's go, we should catch up and take a look." Gu Yue smiled gently and then resumed her pursuit in Xia Yi's direction.
Soon, they had distanced themselves from the Far Ocean and Heavenly Sea.
Once she was sure that those ships wouldn't detect them, the aura around Demon Empress began to rapidly diminish.
The Demon Empress stopped advancing and, with a flick of her wrist, sent a palm strike toward Xia Yi from a distance.
The surrounding seawater instantly thickened, nearly reaching a semi-solid state.
Xia Yi felt as if the entire ocean was rejecting and compressing him.
Lan Fozi had used a similar palm technique on him before.
However, compared to the Demon Empress, Lan Fozi's technique was as insignificant as a mere trick.
Forget about a Soul King—even a Soul Emperor with a Two-Word Battle Armor would likely be crushed into dust under such an attack.
"A test?" Xia Yi raised an eyebrow. The Demon Empress's strike was powerful, but it was not enough to take him down.
The second soul ring on Xia Yi's body lit up. Under the influence of Fox Mind Technique, the oppressive force from the surrounding seawater instantly disappeared.
The Demon Empress was momentarily stunned. She realized that within a three-meter radius around Xia Yi, she could no longer manipulate the water.
"I've always heard that Fox Mind Technique is incredibly mysterious. Today, I finally see it for myself." The Demon Empress took a deep breath.
A moment later, intense purple-gold light erupted from her body, surging like an explosive geyser and transforming into overwhelming tidal waves that came crashing toward Xia Yi.
"This is—!" Xia Yi's expression slightly tightened. The Demon Empress's power clearly did not originate from the ocean.
"This is Demonic Abyss Roaring Sea, a technique I comprehended after becoming the leader of the Holy Spirit Cult. When combined with the power of the sea, its strength is multiplied." The Demon Empress's voice rang out.
"Still not enough. If you want to compete in soul skills, you can't win against me!" Xia Yi chuckled as he reached out.
The power of Fox Mind Technique gathered in his palm and then grasped toward the surging purple-gold light.
In the Demon Empress's shocked gaze, the purple-gold energy was directly caught by Xia Yi.
Under the suppression of Fox Mind Technique, the energy was compressed into a small sphere the size of an egg.
"Fox Mind Technique doesn't just control physical objects? I never thought it could manipulate intangible energy as well..." The Demon Empress's beautiful eyes were filled with shock.
Before she could finish speaking, Xia Yi threw the condensed energy sphere toward her with force.
"Not good!" The Demon Empress's expression changed drastically. She was fully aware of how terrifying her own soul skill was. If it had been released normally, she could still control it. But now that it was compressed into such a small size, once it exploded, its power would increase more than tenfold.
Without hesitation, blue-gold light erupted from various points on her body. As the light spread across her, a blue-gold Two-Word Battle Armor appeared on her body.
The Demon Empress had a tall and slender figure, standing over 1.9 meters—taller than many men. However, her presence carried not even a trace of roughness. Instead, it only emphasized her grand and regal beauty.
Wearing her battle armor did not make her appear bulky or cumbersome. Instead, the ornate blue-gold patterns on the armor highlighted her heroic spirit and unparalleled grace.
With her battle armor donned, the Demon Empress's suppressed aura surged upward once more. The purple-gold energy around her body condensed intensely, almost instantly forming into a cocoon of light.
The spinning purple-gold cocoon surged like a spinning top, charging toward the energy sphere Xia Yi had thrown.
The surrounding seawater was dyed in hues of purple and gold, while the Demon Empress herself turned into a purple-gold meteor, hurtling directly toward Xia Yi.
BOOM!
The explosion of the purple-gold energy sphere and the cocoon sent shockwaves rippling through the ocean. Even hundreds of meters deep in the sea, the violent energy caused the waters to tremble fiercely.
Clad in her Two-Word Battle Armor, the Demon Empress rushed out from the explosion's epicenter, charging straight at Xia Yi.
A deep blue energy shield enveloped her, allowing her to remain unharmed.
The Demon Empress was incredibly fast. In the blink of an eye, she was in front of Xia Yi, unleashing a massive purple-gold energy beam directly at him.
At such close range, the energy beam unleashed its full potential.
Xia Yi's One-Word Battle Armor appeared instantly.
"True Fox Mind Technique—Three Thousand Troubles Vanish in a Thought!"
Xia Yi struck out with over a dozen palm prints.
The terrifying purple-gold energy beam shattered into small fragments upon contact with his palms.
The Demon Empress pointed a single finger forward, and suddenly, the surrounding seawater was completely expelled, creating an isolated vacuum.
Xia Yi suddenly felt his entire body slow down, and even his Fox Mind Technique seemed to stutter momentarily.
It was as if the ocean itself no longer acknowledged his existence—not just repelling him, but outright severing his connection to it.
Taking advantage of this moment, the purple-gold light around the Demon Empress intensified. A massive purple-gold vortex appeared beneath Xia Yi's feet, its horrifying suction force attempting to drag him in.
Xia Yi raised an eyebrow, and his fifth soul ring lit up.
The Demon Empress, unaware of his fifth soul skill, was caught off guard. She suddenly felt drowsy, and her soul skills were instantly interrupted.
"Now's my chance!"
Xia Yi's fourth soul ring lit up, and a golden fist appeared right in front of the Demon Empress.
By the time the Demon Empress managed to break free from the influence of Fox Mind Technique, Xia Yi's right fist was already pressed against her forehead.
Even though he had restrained his power, the Demon Empress knew that with Xia Yi's strength, even a Soul Saint in a Three-Word Battle Armor would suffer greatly if struck directly by Exorcism First Form.
Looking at the golden fist before her, the Demon Empress let out a soft sigh. Without a word, she dropped to one knee before Xia Yi, placed her right hand over her chest, and slowly lowered her head.
"Master."
"Rise." Xia Yi helped her up, his eyes filled with curiosity. "Did you lose on purpose? You weren't even using your full strength, nor did you fully harness the power of the sea."
The Demon Empress had suggested fighting underwater to take advantage of the ocean's power.
Yet, aside from the initial test, she had mainly used soul skills she had learned from the Holy Spirit Cult, only supplementing them with the ocean's power.
Those techniques were indeed formidable, but in deep-sea combat, they were no match for the soul skills of the Deep Sea Demon Whale Clan.
"A daughter I raised myself… No matter how much trouble she causes, I can only accept it."
The Demon Empress cast a glare at Lan Fozi, who had been watching the battle from the side.
With a helpless sigh, she continued, "With Fozi's warning, you must have already prepared a countermeasure and were waiting for me to use the ocean's power, weren't you? If I had used the Deep Sea Demon Whale Clan's techniques combined with the sea's strength, I probably would have lost even faster. Rather than fall into your trap, I might as well fight you with the skills I mastered in the Holy Spirit Cult and catch you off guard."
After speaking, she shot another glare at Lan Fozi.
Lan Fozi shrank her neck, not daring to utter a single word.
If not for her interference, the Demon Empress wouldn't have lost so quickly.
(End of Chapter)